All these industries with shortages of workers and they canāt figure out why.
Im proposing the hypothesis that the reason we donāt have enough doctors/pilots/bus drivers/etc is that maybe, just maybe, having your entire industry function as a lifelong hazing ritual isnāt the best recruiting strategy.
Doctors are subject to 8 years of post-secondary education and are forced to work 48 hour shifts.
Pilots and other transportation workers have absurd hours of service requirements that start your rest period as āthe moment you shut the vehicle downā and can be as short as 9 hours in some cases.
Railroad workers have to be available on-call 6 days a week and be ready within two hours notice. They donāt get sick time.
Retail workers have to keep a veneer of politeness against any and all abuse or they can be fired.
Truck drivers get paid by mileage and rarely see pay for shipper or receiver delays.
Work should not be designed to make you a miserable burnout and yet here we are.
When i was a teen in 2004 i went to a conference for kids interested in medical school. The deen of the mecical school we visited was so happy and pleased that Georgia (the US state) had passed into law that residents couldn't work more than 80 hours a week for patient safety. It seemed excessive to naieve little me at the time. Now? Holy shit. How many patients suffered because the physicians were criminally sleep deprived
Warnings: implied toxic relationship, implied emotionally abusive relationship, harsh language, please ask me to tag something if Iāve missed it
Summary: R/AITA: Hey everyone... Bonded human here with a question. AITA for calling my bonded my second best option?
Like... I know that the title is bad, but please hear me out before y'all flame me into oblivion! Obligatory apologies for any typos as I am writing this on my phone, and that this is a throwaway account as I don't want my main to be possibly witch-hunted for this.
So! Some background before I get to the part where I might be the asshole, although I'm pretty sure that I'm not...Ā
ANyways, so I've been bonded to a Ravenguard for about three months? And he's usually pretty quiet but he's.
So.
needy!Ā
He has to know where I am at all times, and if I am late from work because of traffic, or because I"m working late or because I wanted to go have drinks with my friends and didn't mention it to him beforehand, he'll call or text me and it's like.
dude! Give me my damn space! I was told that RG were independent marines, which is why I didn't immediately chase him of when he said that we were bonded. He's not the first marine I've been bonded to, but that's not important for this story.
So.
Anyways.Ā
Sorry for the rambling, I'm going to talk about the argument.Ā
The set up: I've been late home by between an hour to three hours every night for a week, hanging out with my friends and doing work stuff. I turn my phone off while I'm at work so that I don't have to deal with his dumb poems or needy voice mails as it's suuuper embarrassing if I have to talk to him while on my breaks as my work breakroom is kind of small and there's no real privacy, and stepping out of the building would mean that I have to be wait to be let back in again and I'm not going to do that in order to reassure the world's most needy bird-brained spaceman.
Also some of my coworkers think that Astartes are cringe and dangerous and while I can kind of see where they are coming from, every astartes I've known has been kind of pathetic with how much they simp for me.
Although they should worship me. I'm the best! I give them food and shelter and let them cuddle me when I want them too.
Argh! I got distracted again. Right.Ā
So, as I said before, I'd been late to get home every day for a week and had my phone off - not just the screen black, but fully off - so that I could focus on what I needed to do, and for some much needed time with my friends and me-time.Ā
I walk into the apartment and nearly run face first into my RG! He was less than an inch from the front door! And before I could really process much, he scooped me up and hugged me close and said that he loved me and was worried about where I had been, and that he'd been about to go looking for me.
Like I'm a lost pet that needs to be retrieved!
And that totally killed the great mood I'd been in. I was also kiiiind of drunk from having several glasses of wine with the girls. But not so drunk as to have not driven myself home from the wine bar, of course. I know when I've had too much to drink, and I hadn't had nearly enough to be unsafe-drunk.
And I was suddenly pissed! I yelled at him, saying that he was such a needy and clingy buzz-kill. That I hated that he was all over me when I didn't want him to be and that I wanted him to fuck off back to wherever it was that he came from.Ā
And this mopey pale motherfucker had the audacity to burst into tears when I rightfully tore into him for being a clingy shithead! He accused me of all sorts of things, that I was cruel and uncaring of his feelings. That he felt as though I viewed him as a second best option of hanging out with him, and that I favored my friends over him.Ā
I told him that he was right. While he's fun to be around sometimes - when he's not being a mopey edgar allen poe wannabe - he's new. And it's not as if bonds with astartes last a lifetime. I've been bonded to four different astartes. They never stay for very long, and I told him that he'd just be another astartes who left my life as suddenly as he came into it. But that my girls have been mine since we were in diapers.Ā
He went really quiet after that.Ā
and. Uh.
I haven't seen him in like... Two or three days?Ā
Did I fuck up? Am I the asshole here? I'm sure he's just being a melodramatic raven man somewhere in the woods. Any pointers on what I should have done better? Not that I think that I've fucked up much. Maybe I was a bit harsh, but he needed to be put in his place! You all get it... Right?
The parking attendant paused by the double-length bay. Intended for mobile homes and cars with trailers, it was currently occupied by a sleeping dragon.
No parts of it extended beyond the lines, and the paper ticket was clearly displayed, impaled on a horn.
i had a thought of "do people not know what AUs are anymore?" and then i remembered nobody explains fandom stuff to new people anymore so it is entirely plausible people genuinely don't know what AUs are and nobody has explained it to them, so for today's lucky 10,000:
"AU" stands for "Alternate Universe" or "Alternative Universe" (same difference) and is basically any thought scenario for a fandom that isn't canon and can't fit within the canon universe. If it takes place in the canon universe but something is notably different, that is typically what's known as a "Canon divergent AU," because it diverges from canon.
an AU can be absolutely anything. There's a couple of widespread pan-fandom au scenarios that often get thrown around, like coffee shop aus, genderbend aus, hanahaki aus (hanahaki is a whole thing in itself i'd recommend researching on your own), etc. One you might hear sometimes is "crossover AU" which is when you have characters from one fandom interacting with characters from another.
You can have as many aus as you want. They can be whatever you want and you can do whatever you want in them. It's a sandbox for you to play around in and explore how things would be different or how the characters would act in those circumstances or environments. Maybe they have different relationships with each other. Maybe they behave slightly differently. Or you can just say "Okay, [x] is true. How did they get here? How would things have to be different for this to occur?" which can also be fun.
If you are ever confused about why people ship something that seems completely out of the blue or doesn't make sense to you in the canon setting, there's a good chance they like it in an AU setting! Not everything everybody is interacting with is necessarily the canon! Not everybody wants things to exist in canon and just want to explore playing dolls in a different sandbox and that's okay. And their sandbox might look a lot different than yours, and that's also okay. You have the freedom to make your sandbox whatever you please. Do whatever you want forever. Get funky with it. AUs are fun.
Okay that's my schpeal. everybody go have fun and play nice now.
Summary: Krohl is wandering a creek when his bonded calls him.Ā
Krohl hummed quietly to himself as he carefully picked up the round river stone that he had spotted along one of the banks of the stream that he was meandering down. It was semi-translucent, and a beautiful orange-yellow color that reflected the early morning sunlight beautifully. He turned it over and over again carefully in his hands, the cool temperature of the water not bothering him any.Ā
Yes, this one would do nicely. He would need to properly clean it of course, and he was trying to decide whether or not he wanted to cut it in half to see what it looks like on the inside, or leave it whole. Did he want to tumble the rock so that it was polished smooth, or keep it rough as it is now? There were many decisions to make.Ā
He only allowed himself a slight upward twitch of one corner of his lips. As an Iron Hand, he was not supposed to have many outward displays of emotion - at least not in public and that was not an expression of anger, disdain for the weaknesses of the flesh,Ā and passion for crafting and following the will of the Omnisiah. And arguing with other brothers about which path forward should be taken, to honor their dead primarch - may he rest in the light of the God Emp-Omnisiah.
Iron Hands tended to follow the doctrine of the Mechanicus and as such, tended to view theĀ Emperor of Mankind in his aspect of the Omnisiah.Ā He needed to keep that in mind, and generally did, as he is an Iron Hands.Ā
A normal, loyal Iron Hands.Ā
Krohl sighed internally as he continued down the riverbank, picking up a handful more rocks that he was either going to add to his slowly but steadily expanding rock collection, or he would polish them up and sell them on the little online store that he had for rocks that he decided weren't good enough for him to keep, but were likely to attract the attention of others and thus their interest in purchasing it from him.
It wasn't the most profitable thing, but if he wanted more of the local currency, there were dozens of things that he could do - and he did do some of them. He worked part time in an automotiveĀ shop, he repaired electrical issues, and even was able to forge things when commissioned to. He was generally commissioned to make culinary knives and the occasional pan.
However, the reason why he was out here currently, was because he had been given an unusual commission - but as the client had payed him seven times his normal going rate, he certainly wasn't going to complain about the... Odd sculpture that he was to be making out of a dead tree log that had naturally fallen due to a storm or other such things, animal bones that he could scrounge from the forest, and twenty-one river jasper, ideally wild-sourced and foraged by Krohl himself. He had given himself three days to devote to this, and had so far found over half of them so far.
It was probably some sort of psychic device or to be used in a ritual of some kind. Or it was a weird sex thing. But as the commissioner hadn't gone into the specifics of why they wanted what he was in the process of sourcing the very specific materials for, he was well within his rights to make the thing and ship it off without needing to report it to the local alliance representative. Then again, Krohl personally thought of such rules and regulations that were set out by the alliance to be more... Guidelines, than actual rules.
He paused for a moment as his vox buzzed and trilled, playing through the first bars of You are my sunshine. A small smile appeared on his face as he answered it "Yes, beloved?"
"Hey Krohl? I know that you're usually pretty busy on Thursdays, but I've been invited by a group of our friends to go have brunch with them, and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?" Tali, asked, her voice lilting hopefully.Ā
The Iron Hand smiled a little more widely "I would ne delighted to do so. I should be finished with the resource acquisition portion of the item making process. Besides, I gave the commissioning client a timeline that is almost double what I am fairly sure I will actually need in order to complete the project. They've paid three-quarters of the commission already, so it is on my priority list, of course."Ā
"Awesome, so I'll poke you on your side of the shop at about nine-thirty in the morning.Ā That way you have half an hour to show and get ready. And... All of my closest friends are going to be going to this brunch, so I will ask you to please, please, please do your best to be civil with them?"
"I promise to be civil, my love. I don't want to cause you unnecessary grief or stress." Krohl answers, a small smile appearing on his face. "I cannot say how they will respond to me."
"That's... Thank you. I will also be asking them to try and be polite as well." Tali answers "How goes rock hunting?"
"Quite fruitful. I have found a good number of the requested crystals for the client and even a couple that may be going into my personal collection as well." Krohl answered, his eyes lighting up as he scooped up another river-jasper up from the bottom of the creek that he was walking alongside, not in the least bit bothered by the water soaking into his shirt and pants. "Do you need anything, my love?"
"Not at the moment, I just wanted to tell you about the brunch we've been invited to." Tali answered "Iāve hit a wall on my research and I justā¦ Iām not sure what to do. Iāve asked and applied for funding in order to further it, but Iāve been waiting for any sort of response for weeks. Iām going to check my email and snail mail to see if Iāve got any sort of response, even a rejection. At least then I would know how to continue onwards.ā
āI believe in you, my love. I am sure the right research grant will come your way when needed.ā Krohl answered, making sure to pitch his voice to sound encouraging and supportive. The amount of money he was going to get when he finished the full commission will be more than enough to ensure that his wonderful bonded could go into one of her cute research spirals for several months, and by the time that money ran dry, Krohl knew that his slower sources of income would be bearing fruit of their own. But she didnāt need to knowĀ any of that. āI love you.ā
āI love you too. Oh! Iāve got to focus on answering this, talk to you later, bye!ā Tali murmured before ending the call.
Good, things were going according to plan. The smile on his face curled into a smirk. He only let it linger for a moment or two, before returning to the dour resting face of the Iron Hands he absolutely is.
Summary: Borthan, while searching for a spot for his warband to set up in, happens across a group of children in strange uniforms.
āHey mister, are you lost?ā A young child called out, dressed in what was clearly some sort of uniform. What organization they belonged to, Borthan couldnāt begin to guess. But they were dressed in browns and greens, wearing a dark brown vest with dozens of tiny cloth badges that had very carefully been sewn together.
āUhm.ā The hydra responds, blinking in confusion. Heād been walking for days through the forest, searching for a good secondary location for his warband to nest in, and hadnāt expected to come across anyone, much less a young baseline child.
āWhoāre you talking to?ā A second child asked, popping out from behind a tree. āOh! Woah, youāre so big and tall? Did you eat all of your veggies and milk to get that big?ā
āProper nutrition did help me grow to the size I am now, yes.ā Borthan responds, deeply confused by the question.
A third child, similarly dressed to the other two, but with slightly more badges than the second, but not as many as the first whined āBut veggies are yucky!āĀ
Four more children in similar outfits pop out of bushes, and down from trees. What in the absolute fucking fuck has he run into? āJust because something tastes bad, does not necessarily mean that it isnāt something you should eat. There are many nutritious things that do not taste good. Uhmā¦ Do youā¦ Have an adult minderā¦? Why are all of you dressed so similarly?ā there appeared to be a range of body types, so he was pretty sure that they werenāt a group of very young Aspirants - besides. There was no legion with this combination of colors that he was aware of.
āYeah, but heās taking a nap under the big tree! Weāre not supposed to wake him up until after the alarm goes off, or someone gets hurt.ā The first child explained, pointing further down what Borthan was realizing was not a game path, but something made by man, for all it was merely dirt and gravel mixed with leaf and wood litter.Ā
āIā¦ I see. And what are all of you doing out here?ā The hydra asks, still at a complete loss. He almost asks where the big tree is, but refrains from doing so just yet. There are many large trees in the area, but he can scan for life signs if he truly is curious. The last thing he wants is too heavy a debt to pay back in anything other than the full truth as he knew it.Ā
āEarning our pathfinder badges!ā The group ofā¦ Six? Eight? Children answered at the same time, wide grins appearing on their faces.
Another of the children explain happily āWeāre taking a break because Scout Leader Travis needs a nap. He usually needs naps, because he gets really sleepy after lunch, which we had a little while ago.āĀ
āI seeā¦ And what do you do in order to entertain yourself while yourā¦ Scout leaderā¦ Is sleeping?ā Borthan asks, intrigued despite himself. Heās definitely going to be using the local noosephere using the image search function on the different badges that he was recording.Ā
āWe canāt use knives without adult supervision, so weāre not allowed to whittleā¦ But we do other arts and crafts! Weāre making friendship bracelets. Wanna join us?ā The first child asks, coming right up to him, bold as anything. They hold up several small plastic strings that have some beads on them, and is partially woven together.
āIā¦ Sure?ā Borthan answers, uncertain as the child closest to him grins widely and leads him over to the clearing where there were even more children sitting down in the dirt, or on a fallen log. Most of them were carefully weaving beads and plastic together, though there were a couple who had curled up together for a nap. The young hydra is pretty sure heās never been more confused in his life, and that was saying something, given that heād been trained by members of the Alpha Legion. āI donāt know how to make friendship bracelets. Would anyone like to teach me?ā
āSure! There are a bunch of different kinds of friendship bracelets - Some are made with string, which you can weave into simple braids like this one I have here, or you can make patterns! Some patterns are a lot harder than others. Like this one, this one and that one.ā The child explains, showing him the many small bracelets they were wearing. āBut weāve got plastic string and beads today, and Iāll show you how to make different kinds, and then you can decide what colors and how many beads you want.ā They reach out and pat his knee and say āItās easier to learn while sitting down.ā
Borthan caught the implied request for him to sit and he does so. āAlright, I am ready to learn.āĀ
The children all grin and move closer to him, the leading child eagerly explaining the different ways to weave the beaded bracelets together.Ā
Summary:Ā You come home after a long, tiring day. Hagiel lifts your mood.Ā
Today had been a long and difficult day at work. A tired groan left your lips as you slowly pulled into the parking spot assigned to you, by the building manager, from whom you rented your apartment from. Sometimes one of your neighbors - or more likely someone visiting them - would park in your spot.Ā
The one you paid for as part of your rent, and all parking spots were clearly marked. Those were very annoying moments. If you recognized the vehicle in question and felt like trying to talk to one of your neighbors - some of them were much nicer than others - then again, the nice neighbors didnāt park in your damn parking spot.Ā
But there was one certain neighbor of yours that occasionally parked in your parking spot. The same bitch who,Ā you were quite certain, called a tow truck to get someone out of what she thought was her parking spot, despite the fact thatĀ there had been several inches of snow covering the entire parking lot, and no one was quite sure where they were supposed to park. She was the only person who had someone else towed away during that time, as everyone else had just silently agreed to give each other grace during a more difficult time.Ā
When you had tried to be nice to that bitch and knocked on the door and asked her to move her fucking car, she had screamed and swore at you because you, supposedly, knocked like a cop. Whatever the fuck that meant.Ā
She was also the cunt who threw parties every fucking weekend until four in the goddamned morning, with music blasting loud enough that you could hear it through the walls of your apartment complex.Ā
Most of your neighbors were great. She was a thorn in your side that seriously made you consider taking Hagielās offer up on moving in with him to Stoneflame base. Youāre not too sure what the permanent residence parking situation was like, but you were pretty sure that there were ways to work it out.Ā
Today had been a rainy, miserable day, quite out of character for the summer season. On the other hand, the grey clouds and warm, wet raindrops did at least keep the heat down. You pull into your parking spot and turn off the car. You sigh and yawn, unbuckling your seatbelt and taking a moment to justā¦ Close your eyes and listen to the sounds of the rain hitting the roof of your car. Once some of the irritation and exhaustion ebbs, you message Hagiel, saying {Just got home.}
{Welcome home, my dearest love!} Hagiel texts back immediately {Dinner is on the table. I am currently on our patio, enjoying the rain.}
You smile a little, curious as to how he meant that as you got out of your car, double checking to make sure that you had your bag, keys, and lunchbox. Satisfied that you had everything, you carefully lock your car and rush through the raindrops the short distance to your apartment, grateful that the apartment complex that you lived in was on the smaller side, and was not a high rise. You only had neighbors on your left and right, rather than above and/or below.
You open the front door to your apartment, not terribly surprised to find it unlocked as Hagiel was over. You walk in, set down your stuff and walk over to the back door. You pass through the kitchen, which smells amazing.Ā Your stomach grumbles hungrily, but you are utterly captivated by the sight of Hagiel dancing in the rain. Heās wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Heās not even wearing sandals as he dances and sways in the rain, his eyes closed and head tilted upwards, a radiant smile on his face. He is wearing his wrist-mounted vox- which is probably how he communicated with you earlier.
You smile softly as you watch him dance. He hadnāt seemed to have much contact with rain that didnāt involve a terrible, dangerous storm of some kind, before arriving on Earth. Not that there werenāt dangerous storms on earth, but this light rain shower certainly wasnāt dangerous. You don the emergency poncho and open the sliding glass back door and step out into the rain. āMind if I join you, love??ā
āI am always happy to have you at my side, beloved.ā Hagiel answers with an eager smile, reaching for your hands. āHow has your day been?ā
āI am doing much better, now that I am home with you. The day was long and filled with many small annoyances.ā You grumble, before shaking off the last of your bad mood by going up on your tiptoes and kissing him on the cheek. āLead me though one of those dances you were doing earlier?ā
āI would be honored, my love!ā Hagiel answers with a fanged grin, before launching into an explanation of the steps.
Summary:Ā You come home after a long, tiring day. Hagiel lifts your mood.Ā
Today had been a long and difficult day at work. A tired groan left your lips as you slowly pulled into the parking spot assigned to you, by the building manager, from whom you rented your apartment from. Sometimes one of your neighbors - or more likely someone visiting them - would park in your spot.Ā
The one you paid for as part of your rent, and all parking spots were clearly marked. Those were very annoying moments. If you recognized the vehicle in question and felt like trying to talk to one of your neighbors - some of them were much nicer than others - then again, the nice neighbors didnāt park in your damn parking spot.Ā
But there was one certain neighbor of yours that occasionally parked in your parking spot. The same bitch who,Ā you were quite certain, called a tow truck to get someone out of what she thought was her parking spot, despite the fact thatĀ there had been several inches of snow covering the entire parking lot, and no one was quite sure where they were supposed to park. She was the only person who had someone else towed away during that time, as everyone else had just silently agreed to give each other grace during a more difficult time.Ā
When you had tried to be nice to that bitch and knocked on the door and asked her to move her fucking car, she had screamed and swore at you because you, supposedly, knocked like a cop. Whatever the fuck that meant.Ā
She was also the cunt who threw parties every fucking weekend until four in the goddamned morning, with music blasting loud enough that you could hear it through the walls of your apartment complex.Ā
Most of your neighbors were great. She was a thorn in your side that seriously made you consider taking Hagielās offer up on moving in with him to Stoneflame base. Youāre not too sure what the permanent residence parking situation was like, but you were pretty sure that there were ways to work it out.Ā
Today had been a rainy, miserable day, quite out of character for the summer season. On the other hand, the grey clouds and warm, wet raindrops did at least keep the heat down. You pull into your parking spot and turn off the car. You sigh and yawn, unbuckling your seatbelt and taking a moment to justā¦ Close your eyes and listen to the sounds of the rain hitting the roof of your car. Once some of the irritation and exhaustion ebbs, you message Hagiel, saying {Just got home.}
{Welcome home, my dearest love!} Hagiel texts back immediately {Dinner is on the table. I am currently on our patio, enjoying the rain.}
You smile a little, curious as to how he meant that as you got out of your car, double checking to make sure that you had your bag, keys, and lunchbox. Satisfied that you had everything, you carefully lock your car and rush through the raindrops the short distance to your apartment, grateful that the apartment complex that you lived in was on the smaller side, and was not a high rise. You only had neighbors on your left and right, rather than above and/or below.
You open the front door to your apartment, not terribly surprised to find it unlocked as Hagiel was over. You walk in, set down your stuff and walk over to the back door. You pass through the kitchen, which smells amazing.Ā Your stomach grumbles hungrily, but you are utterly captivated by the sight of Hagiel dancing in the rain. Heās wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Heās not even wearing sandals as he dances and sways in the rain, his eyes closed and head tilted upwards, a radiant smile on his face. He is wearing his wrist-mounted vox- which is probably how he communicated with you earlier.
You smile softly as you watch him dance. He hadnāt seemed to have much contact with rain that didnāt involve a terrible, dangerous storm of some kind, before arriving on Earth. Not that there werenāt dangerous storms on earth, but this light rain shower certainly wasnāt dangerous. You don the emergency poncho and open the sliding glass back door and step out into the rain. āMind if I join you, love??ā
āI am always happy to have you at my side, beloved.ā Hagiel answers with an eager smile, reaching for your hands. āHow has your day been?ā
āI am doing much better, now that I am home with you. The day was long and filled with many small annoyances.ā You grumble, before shaking off the last of your bad mood by going up on your tiptoes and kissing him on the cheek. āLead me though one of those dances you were doing earlier?ā
āI would be honored, my love!ā Hagiel answers with a fanged grin, before launching into an explanation of the steps.
Summary: Hebe sings as he bakes and things goā¦ Strange.Ā
Hebe hummed softly to himself as he paused for a moment, pinching off a small piece of the dough that he had been kneading, lifting it up to the light and carefully pulling it apart, to see if he had achieved the window-pane effect that meant that the dough had been properly kneaded yet. It tears in his fingers before he can get what the instructions say is correct. A soft sigh leaves the young alpha legionnaire, and he gently reincorporates the small dough blob intoĀ the larger dough blob.
He pushes the dough flat with the base of his palms, before pulling it back with his fingers, before pausing for a moment, turning it ninety-degrees, and repeating the motion. He does this over and over again as he sings a shanty that he only half remembers. Heās not quite sure where he picked it up - and the fact that he doesnāt remember is a sign that whatever mission he went on had beenā¦ Edited post-completion by one of the old bastards he used to be forced to serve.
āCome all ye void sailors who obey the throne!ā
Keme, who was editing a video with headphones on sung back
āWey hay, pray to the crown!ā
Hebe continued to the next line as he kept kneading the dough, timing his kneading to the tempo of the song āAnd please pay attention and listen to me~ā
He was focused on this task. Heād been trying out different hobbies, now that he and Keme were out from under The Bastardsā thumb. While his and Kemeās fosters said that he could try any hobby he liked, even ones that werenātā¦ Useful to other people, only enriching himself, the young hydra couldnāt quite bring himself to do that just yet.Ā
Besides, the chemistry involved in baking was absolutely fascinating, and he really liked being able to know for certain what went into the food that he made. The fact that the two who were fostering him and his twin also seemed to appreciate the fresh bread and other baked goods that he made - when they turned out well, and Hebe was determined to make more good food than something that needed to be fed to the animals, or left on the compost pile to either rot or be eaten by the very spooky Death Guard who liked to lurk there.Ā
Keme called back āGimme some time to pray to the throne!ā As the next beat of the song. He continued to click and type away as he continued to work on the latest batch of videos that heād made. He had ensured that his face and voice while recording were the ones thatĀ were most popular for each video type that he had made.Ā
āI am a warp-born sailor just in from Cadia!ā Hebe continues to sing, doing his best to keep his mind from wandering too much. He did want to make sure that he didnāt over-knead the dough because he was being absent-minded, after all.Ā
Keme did the first response again, sounding happier than he had been in some time. Then again, they were able to keep most of what they made, except for a reasonable cut to their fosters for rent, utilities and food. Neither one of them could quite believe the stroke of luck that they had gotten in being able to shelter in this nest.
Hebe continued to next verse of the song āIf you buy me a drink, then Iāll sing you a song~ā
Keme answered with the second response.
Hebe blinked, as he continued to knead the dough. He hummed the chorus, as he couldnāt quite remember what the lyrics to the chorus were, and trying to push for them made his head hurt and his hands shake. That was something to note down in his journal. He probably didnāt want to know why, as Rahas generally didnāt-
Didnātā¦
Didā¦
ā¦
?
What?
Right! The song! He should go back to the song as he continued to knead the dough, trying to figure out why his mind had gone so strangely blank for several moments. Something warm was sliding down his face, but Hebe paid it no mind. āThereās Sisters and Tech-Priests and Soldiers and all~ā
Keme answered with the first call back once again.
Hebe continued to sing, though he was feeling a littleā¦ Strange. As if he wasnāt fully in his body for some reason as the words spilled from his lips āThey all ship for sailors on the vessel of black~ā
Keme answers with the second call again, though his voice sounds hazy and distant.Ā Ā
Another lyric was pulled out of him as he continues to knead. The smell of the dough was mixed with something coppery. It was familiar in a not-good way. But Hebe felt very floaty and disconnected as he continued to sing āHide your psykers, lest they never come back.ā
Keme answers with the first callā¦ At least heās pretty sure he hears the other sing again.
Hebeās vision. Is. Hazy?
He blinks, raising one hand to his mouth as something wet. And sticky? Slides across his lips. He pulls his hand away. Crimson sticks to his fingers. āKeme? Iām goingā¦ To sit down nowā¦ I feelā¦ Very strange.āĀ
Hebe stumbles back and falls, though a newly familiar and safe-comfortable set of pale arms catches him as the world dissolves into shadow.Ā
ā¦
Hebe wakes with a gasp, flailing in confusion as Keme stands over him. āIā¦ What? Where?ā
āYou started humming loudly and fighting your blankets. Weāre at the nest, safe and sound. Weāre safe here, Hebe. Whatever nightmare that was haunting you is not real.ā Keme soothes, kneeling down and looking his brother directly in the eyes. āā¦ Do you want to talk about it?ā
āIā¦ It didnāt seem like a nightmare at firstā¦ Then things got weird and I started bleeding while singing.ā Hebe explains, trying to hold onto the nightmare to try. And parse it. It made no sense whatsoever.Ā
āThat sucks. Do you think you can go back to sleep tonight? Or do you need time to settle your mind?ā Keme asks, voice gentle as he reaches out and pulls his brother into a hug.
āI donāt knowā¦ I think Iāll stay up for a bit.ā Hebe answers, taking in a deep breath, trying to steady himself. āYou can go back to sleep, Iāll read for a little bit and then try to sleep after.ā
Keme nods and yawns, crawling back into bed and falling asleep moments later.
Hebe reads one of the trashy romance novels that he really shouldnāt enjoy, but does.Ā
Nirvikar stretched and hummed, a pleased grin appearing on his face as he carefully finished the final loop, hook, curl and twist required to finish off the hand-crocheted blanket that he'd been working on for the better part of three months. He had learned a great deal about how to crochet a blanket - and how not to crochet a blanket. He'd needed to unravel several sections of the blanket when it had become obvious that he had slipped a stitch, or made one of a dozen other small mistakes that would have had an unfortunate effect on the blanket, should he have not made sure to correct it by undoing everything after he made the mistake, then the mistake itself and continue crocheting the blanket. He had picked yarn that was of his bonded's preferred weight and texture. He had even chosen their favorite colors.Ā
While the guides that he had read both in what passed for the Noosphere in this era, as well as physical paper guides had recommended that beginners either stick to a single color, or simple patterns like stripes... Nirvikar was not only an Astartes, he was an Emperor's Child. This gift is a courting gift for his bonded, and he would accept nothing less than perfection when it came to gifts that he acquired or made for his bonded.
At the urging of his bonded, Nirvikar had joined a local club full of fiber arts enthusiasts. They were a mix of baselines and Astartes, and everyone worked on individual projects, chatted about what their plans were for new ones, and generally spent time together. Nirvikar found that most of the group was fairly welcoming to him, despite the fact that he was quite clearly a Chaos Marine.
There were a couple of corpse worshippers - one of whom did not partake in fiber arts directly, but instead aided his bonded in making the beautiful quilts that she made by fetching the squares of cloth that she needed, or cutting out the pinned pieces of fabric as she carefully stitched everything together. The Black Templar was a grumpy and growly bastard, at least whenever he spotted Nirvikar or one of the other Chaos Marines who had just as much right to be at the club as anyone else.Ā
Nirvikar outwardly pretended that he was ignoring the grumpy bastard, as he had been told that deliberately antagonizing loyalists was against the spirit of the alliance that kept the corpse worshippers from trying to slaughter everyone in their foam-mouthed frothing zealous and blind devotion to a false god. He was acutely aware of where the other was in the room, and the way he glared at him.Ā
He carefully tied off the end of the blanket before cutting it so that there wouldn't be much of a tail to deal with. He pulled out his sewing kit, and carefully threaded one of his needles, sewing the end of the yarn so that it was much less likely to unravel. A pleased grin appeared on his face as he carefully rolled and stretched his wrists. He held the blanket up, carefully inspecting it one final time. He really hoped that his bonded would like the floral pattern he'd carefully crocheted into the blanket.Ā
Satisfied that the blanket was up to his standards, Nirvikar carefully folded the blanket and placed it into the wooden box that he had hand carved and painted before closing the lid and sliding the small mechanism to lock it into place.Ā
Mindy - one of the other crocheters of the group - walks over to him and asks "What do you think your next project is going to be? That floral pattern is really lovely."
"Why thank you! It took me several tries before I could get the pattern down properly as this is the first large crochet project that I've tackled. I am grateful that you pointed out that the flowers were going to end up crooked about three weeks ago, if I didn't go back and fix it." Nirvikar responds with a grin "As for what I want to do for my next project.... I can't rightly say that I have anything in mind at the moment. I'll do some research about what I'd like to do... I did watch a couple of lace making videos, and I imagine that once one gets the patterns down, that moving the bobbins back and forth is a rather meditative process... But I'd need to get more and different supplies..."
Mindy nods, and offers "Several of us make blankets, scarves, mittens and hats for the children's hospital. You've got an excellent eye for detail and your craftwork is very impressive. And they're always grateful for the donations."
Nirvikar hums thoughtfully about the suggestion "I see... It would be nice to know that more of what I make is going to those who need a bit of perfection and comfort in their lives."Ā
Mindy beams, moving in closer and placing a hand on his elbow "I am really glad that you started coming here, Nirvikar. Your stories and songs always bring such a lively atmosphere to the fibercraft club. If I may be so bold as to ask, you never said who that blanket and box are for. They're really lucky, whoever they are."
Nirvikar beamed as he hugged the box a little closer to his chest "Thank you! And I am grateful that you were willing to take the less than perfect boxes I made while I was working on making this one. As for who this is for, why these gifts are for my bonded!"
".... Bonded?" Mindy echoed, her voice getting an oddly strained-sad quality to it. He can't imagine why. Unless she had a bonded who'd rejected her? That'd be a shame, as she's a lovely person. Then again, the chapter most likely to reject a bond among the corpse worshippers at least were Black Templars, who were horribly rude bastards most of the time. Chaos Marines who avoided bonds tended to not go anywhere near mortal settlements, as to avoid the chance entirely, as the whims of the warp tended to saddle stubborn or cruel chaos marines with intense bonds that kept them from wreaking havoc.Ā
"Yes, the lovely, amazing, wonderful mortal I am bonded to! I love them with all of my hearts, and both of these things are gifts to them, to show my affection and appreciation for them." Nirvikar explained, rocking back and fourth on his heels a little as he thought about the absolute love of his life, his muse, his grounding touch-stone.Ā
Mindy's expression seemed to have... Frozen. Or become quite fake? How strange. But that wasn't really his problem, though he was distantly fond of her, they weren't close friends or anything. "I see. Well, I hope that your lucky bonded likes your gifts." Her phone chimed a moment later "Oh! I need... I need to go answer this. Talk to you later, Nirvikar."
"Talk to you later, Mindy!" Nirvikar answers, giving one of his mortal acquaintances a little wave before heading back home, happily humming to himself.Ā
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