#asked!

[sigelfire]

Rush question of the day: So... how are we feeling? 😁 (This is about the fact that they're touring again, just to be clear)

Also, if you were to pick a favorite Rush album cover, which one would it be?

I am glad that they decided to go on playing live. It's gonna be weird without Neil, but at least we'll have Geddy and Alex 💖

As for my favourite album cover, it would be Grace Under Pressure

I also love the Vapor Trails one.

[marmaleye]

In your havoc au, does kai after his transformation change in any other ways apart from the scales and such, eg cat pupil, taller, beter night vision, lighter bones (like birbs), does his tastes change eg things taste like ash or his spice tolerance goes into the sky sort of thing, just random small stuff thats nice lore but not really story relivant?

Oh friend, I'm so glad you asked!! You have no idea how many notes I have regarding this stuff :D

I was actually planning on doing a big post about this stuff when I make my side blog, but I'll do a quick run down here!!

So, apart from the scales and his tail, he's got quite a few changes. Like cats, his eyes change with the light and with his mood! In high light and more stressful situations, his pupils become narrow slits, and in low light or calmer situations, they become more round. He has excellent night vision, and can also track things much better than human eyes. His body is still pretty slim, but his muscle composition makes him pretty durable, and yes, he's a bit taller both due to the transformation and the time that has passed. His bones are lighter, but like bird bones, they are also denser and stronger!

And yup! His spice and heat tolerance has gone through the roof! He has no limit on how hot of food he can handle, both spice and temperature-wise! His canines are really sharp and pointy, so he has to be really careful when he talks and chews so he doesn't bite his lips. It was hard for him to get used to that at first. He's got really a sensitive sense of smell and hearing, which can lead to sensory overload at times.

Anyways, hope that's what you meant! Again, I'm going to be making a big post regarding Kai and his transformation, so stay tuned for that!

[kissjane]

cloud watcher!lucas and weather god!eliott for next fcf!

Oh, man. Remember when I was actually doing this type of thing? Nowadays I wish for just any old words. My ao3 account is as boring and dead as this one.

That said... Hmmm, cloud watcher and weather gods, huh? *rubs chin* In-te-res-ting! My fingers are getting itchy...

[oldjane]

14 and 66 please? anyone you like!

I AM SORRY THIS TOOK ME SO LONG... this was like, a hard prompt! To make it up, I kinda wrote the whole fic. I mean, it's not very clean and probably a bit jumbled and disjointed, but. Have at it!

[To the other people who asked - I'll get to it, I swear!]

If you wanna send me an ask too, here's the link to the game.

Even after all these years, Nicky still pretty much hates the constant silent shadow on his side.

Maybe it would be different, had he never known another life. Nicky’s father hadn’t always been directly in line for the Genovan crown, but when his uncle died childless after a long illness, everything changed. Nicky’s family had to move back to Genoa from London, uprooting Nicky’s life – and, incidentally, ending things between Nicky and his very first boyfriend at the tender age of fourteen.

Being back in Genoa hadn’t been too bad, all things considered, after Nicky had gotten over the loss of Philip – except for the sudden never-ending sudden attention. Naturally shy, he never liked being the centre of anything, preferring to quietly sink into the background and being generally invisible. But overnight, he was constantly watched, observed, noticed – by the public, by the paparazzi, and by his bodyguard.

Because Nicky is now third in line for the throne, and that puts Nicky in danger.

Unfortunately, there’s a very outspoken anti-monarchy faction in Genoa, and they are not above trying to force things by violence. Privately, Nicky fervently wishes they’d reach their goal – if only so he doesn’t have to become king – but it’d be great if they could go about it with a bit less guns involved.

Maybe then Nicky wouldn’t need 24/7 protection – he’s only deemed safe in the innermost parts of the palace, where his apartments are located. As soon as he takes one step out of them, he’s followed – quietly and as non-obtrusively as possible, but it’s not nearly as non-obtrusive as Nicky would like.

It's torture – to be seen, to be perceived. To never be alone. To have someone passively stand half a step behind him when he slips away to the kitchen to stress-bake, have someone stare at a non-descript point vaguely above his left shoulder when he picks flowers for his sister in the palace gardens, have someone pick up his book of queer love poetry when he forgets it in the car.

And it’s even worse since Joe got assigned exclusively to Nicky’s detail.

No doubt his father meant well – hoping Nicky would strike some sort of rapport with the man, rather than feeling intimidated by the surly, burly, fifty-something ex-military guy who’d been protecting Nicky before Joe.

But Nicky’s throat constricts every time he feels those dark eyes resting on him, stumbles when he catches a whiff of Joe’s spice cologne, and then suffers dangerous heart palpitations when Joe steadies him with a strong hand on his wrist, his hip, the small of his back.

The thing is – it’s not all that easy to hook up with someone when you’re third in line for the throne and have a surly, burly, fifty-something ex-military guy glare at every handsome man you meet. So Nicky’s experience is pretty much limited to Philip, and back then it had felt pretty daring to use tongue when they kissed, so Nicky’s – inexperienced. Frustrated. And horny as hell.

His very beautiful, competent, friendly, grinning, rainbow-pin-displaying bodyguard is not helping the matter. In fact, Joe’s obvious glances at Nicky’s ass, the lingering brushes of his hand when he shoulders past Nicky to sweep a room, his sinful smirks are actively making things worse – the same way his intelligent conversation during long car rides, the longing in his voice when he talks about his family, and his charming manner towards everybody he interacts with do.

They have been pulling and pushing for months now, openly flirting, touching each other in ways that are hardly subtle, and then setting the boundaries firmly in place again: Joe clearly, pointedly calling Nicky Your Highness again, as if to remind them both that there cannot be anything between them; Nicky purposely asking Joe when his next day off is, in a heavy-handed attempt to remind them both that Nicky is, technically, Joe’s boss.

The unresolved sexual tension runs high, and Nicky is halfway to the point where he loses his mind. He’s not sure what will happen, yet – either he jumps Joe’s bones during an official function, or he fires Joe and never leaves his room again.

And then, on a visit to a newly built children’s hospital high up in the mountains, everything changes. The secret service informs Joe that there’s chatter about a plot against the royal family, and the instructions are clear: Under no circumstance is Nicky to come back to the palace until the secret service gives the all clear.

There’s nothing to it but spend the rest of the day – and the night, and who knows how many more of those – in the only hotel in the small town, in the one room Joe can confidently guard all by himself until extra manpower can be sent up.

It isn’t a very big room, and Nicky is instructed to keep away from the door and the windows, which means he’s basically condemned to the bed. The tv is on, but the volume is low, so Joe can hear the updates being relayed to him via his earpiece as he paces the room.

Not that Nicky is watching – he’s worried about his parents, his sisters, even his cat – though Joe has pulled a bunch of strings to get someone to enter Nicky’s rooms to put out fresh food. And he’s worried for Joe. Joe’s nervousness makes Nicky itch – he’s gotten so used to Joe being a calm presence in his back, a port to anchor his ship in the storm. Joe, grinning from behind his sunglasses, one curl peeking out through his backwards cap, whenever he assures Nicky everything is safe with a cocky wink. Joe, self-assured, his fingertips loosely on the holster of his gun as he goes first into potential danger.

Nicky hasn’t prayed in a long time. But he quietly mumbles some half-forgotten formula, looking up, touching the tiny golden cross his nonna gave him on his confirmation day and he wears more in her memory than as a reminder of the faith he grew up in.

Pink light is creeping through the gap in the curtains when the word finally comes – everybody is safe, and the plan to abduct a member of the royal family has been foiled by the secret service.

Nicky is exhausted, and the dark circles under his eyes are purple, when he jumps from the bed, and hugs Joe tight in palpable relief, tears on his cheeks.

And then, suddenly, Joe is wiping at the salty drops with his thumb, and murmuring that everything is fine, and Nicky can feel his breath fan over his skin, and there is no way he can stop himself from closing his eyes and breathing out Joe’s name.

And then Joe kisses him, and Nicky kisses him back, and it’s nothing compared to the chaste, fumbling kisses with Philip, and then –

And then Joe’s earpiece, which he threw on the armchair after he got the good news, beeps, and Nicky remembers.

He pushes Joe away with a trembling hand on his chest, and Joe makes a sound as if he’s wounded, and Nicky needs him to understand.

“It’s not you, Joe, it’s – it’s my enemies.”

It barely makes sense, but it’s – it’s a bunch of conflicting things that tumble out of his mouth in no logical order.

There’s the fact that Joe will be fired if somebody finds out. There’s the fact that Nicky wants more than just a quick hook up to release the tension. There’s the fact that Nicky is Joe’s boss, that he doesn’t want Joe to feel pressured. There’s the fact that if Joe and Nicky are together, then Joe will be in danger as a part of the royal family, too –

It takes Joe three attempts to shut Nicky up verbally, and finally he resorts to kissing as a way more effective manner.

And then he tells Nicky he doesn’t want this to be a one-time thing, and that he’ll gladly resign if it means being with Nicky, and that he’s not doing this out of any sort of misplaced obligation towards a client. And that he’s already in danger from Nicky’s enemies, because – and Nicky swears he melts at the intensity in Joe’s voice – anyone will have to come through him to get to Nicky, whether he’d by Nicky’s side as his bodyguard, or as something else.

He sounds solemn, as if it’s an undeniable truth, the same way the sun comes up in the east and water boils at a hundred degrees. It makes Nicky shiver, the promise in those words.

He remembers how it felt when he asked Philip if Philip wanted to be Nicky’s boyfriend. It’s a silly question, juvenile and clumsy, yet he repeats it now, to Joe, with the same beating heart. Butterflies make it hard to breathe as he nervously waits for an answer.

Joe shakes his head.

“You’re not my boyfriend,” he says, and then, before Nicky can interpret this in the worst possible way, “You’re is more to me than anyone can dream. You’re the moon when I’m lost in darkness and warmth when I shiver in cold. And your kiss thrills me more than anything else ever could, even if I lived a millennium. Your heart overflows with the kindness of which this world is not worthy. I love you beyond measure and reason. You’re not my boyfriend. You’re all and you’re more.”

And, well. Nicky may not be Joe’s boyfriend, but when they finally leave the room, Joe’s definitely not Nicky’s bodyguard anymore.

[run-down-that-dream]

Hi! So I've been trying to learn more about Tom Petty lately and I've been trying to look up stuff about his personality, but I'm having a hard time finding stuff. Could you possibly please describe his personality? Plus cool quotes/stories if you have any favorites!!

Hello!! Thanks for the ask!

It was difficult for me to find stuff at first too. A lot of what I pieced together when I became a fan a year ago came from old interview clips I found on YouTube honestly 😂

Tom was just a really laid back guy who could get along with almost anyone. I call him a sunshine man all the time because he was just so full of warmth and love for his friends! And he was really funny too, though I guess some say he had a "different" sense of humor. (I mean.. take Yer So Bad as an example of that)

At some point (I believe the early 80s?) he was being described as "rude" or "aloof" but when asked about it he said he was just very shy and didn't have much to say anyway.

I do think he had a short fuse when it came to his anger, but the older he got the harder it was to light it. And I think he only really "blew up" if he felt he or someone he cared about was being subjected to an injustice in some way.

Now lastly I'm gonna tell you, I used to major in psychology so I could probably write an entire essay on his rough childhood and how it affected his personality but to save everyone the grief I'll just say it made him very driven. He used music as an escape, and once he decided he wanted to play it - there was no turning back from that. He kept that drive, and his love for music and creativity, his entire life

If you're super interested in learning more I recommend you check out the Runnin Down a Dream documentary It's like 4 hours long but very very worth it in my opinion

I also had the book Conversations With Tom Petty recommended to me, but I haven't had the chance to read that one yet. If you wanted to dig a little deeper it might be something you want to look into as well!

And as for cool stories..

I think this one will always be my favorite

[showedmecolors]

uh uh uh taylor swift um yeah thats all enjoy bestie ✨

YESSS nothing more needs to be said 🤪🤪 love u bestie luca

[i-am-a-green-rock]

I noticed some conlang help you had! I was wondering about the sound chart and what sounds they make? Can’t find anything about it since I’m making my first language :(

by sound chart I’m going to assume you mean the IPA chart

the IPA chart I use the most is ipachart.com! it has audio for every sound on the chart! the only problem with ipachart.com is that it doesn’t have anything for diacritics in IPA that’s why it took me so much longer to learn the diacritics oof

there’s another website that organizes the IPA chart slightly differently and it seems like a different person recorded the audio for this website so the pronunciations are slightly different.

if you want to learn more about extensions to IPA, you can go to the official website of the International Phonetic Association for the download of their full IPA chart or you can go to the Wikipedia page on the topic. just remember that these sites won’t have audio for things like pronouncing the diacritics

in the end, IPA is just an alphabet, so you can make it as precise or as approximate as you want! happy conlanging!