hey folks so we know what this is about. we know. so i’m not going to waste your time and i’m not going to sugarcoat things. it’s bad. and we can say that. it is bad. i’m going to link to some things focused on abortion but i am also going to link to some stuff related to voting because, while i know the democrats as a collective body do not make moves faster than a turtle in molasses in january in a place further north than i, i will be frank in saying that the alternative is worse. i would know, given that i live in a state with a trigger law when this decision goes out. i am not getting into that any deeper because frankly i have neither the time nor the energy to do anything but hope that many of the people behind all this get stage IV cancer and i do not care at this moment in time how that makes me sound. i am not nice.
SisterSong :: BIPOC lead reproductive justice organization that provides not just abortion access but also support for people, as quoted from their website: “contraception, comprehensive sex education, STI prevention and care, alternative birth options, adequate prenatal and pregnancy care, domestic violence assistance, adequate wages to support our families, safe homes, and so much more.” They take donations, they also take members. They have a conference on sex education. They have a care fund for people needing help during pregnancy and first year post-partum.
If/When/How :: If/When/How is probably about to be supremely critical going forward. Also if you’re a lawyer or a law student, they might represent an area of the law you’d want to get into. Their big focus is representing people in court who’ve gotten an abortion or worse, simply miscarried and folks are treating that like a goddamn crime. Which has happened before and makes me very mad. But anyway a donation here helps get these people a lawyer with experience in this fight versus a public defender, who doesn’t always have experience through no fault of their own. It also helps educate those same lawyers on HOW to best represent those cases.
National Network of Abortion Funds :: The name states what it is on the tin. It’s a network of abortion funds across the country that give people money to help with the multitude of costs of having an abortion. These costs can range to be: “Some funds help with travel, lodging, child care, doula, and translation services so that accessing an abortion is less challenging. Abortion funds also work to change laws and culture that make abortion hard to get.” Basically, if you want to just donate so that someone somewhere gets an abortion they need they’re a good choice. Money’s gonna be spent where it’s needed. And if you want something closer to home you can search to find a more local fund to support directly.
If you want links to my other posts about this that have more organizations they are here.
tacos, beers, abortions
holy shit y’all
The other big thing you need to do is study your local midterm elections and go vote. Perhaps also help other people go vote as well, if you can. maybe phone bank for candidates who are trying to unseat republicans or more conservative dems – for instance Jessica Cisneros is trying to unseat Henry Cuellar. Who is literally a Pelosi supported Democrat who is anti-abortion. Yes that is the level of scrutiny we have to give things. Yes I am also mad about that, don’t worry. Anyway if you want to help but you either aren’t a Texan or don’t live in her voting district you can still help get the word out about her here: https://www.mobilize.us/sunrise2022/event/450154/
There’s very likely campaigns to get involved in and honestly, as someone with experience working in a domestic and family violence shelter for a year, the variety of activities you may have to do may not be as taxing as you worry they are. And a lot of those places ask that you stipulate what you’re capable of doing so that they don’t ask something you can’t perform. So if you’ve got the spoons and the spare time, check it out. At the very least don’t dismiss it entirely.
I’d also say if you’ve got people in your life of any age that could get pregnant to start doing the research on the types of self-managed abortions available at different gestation periods. Find out what to expect, how the meds work, what to say and not to say at the hospital if something goes amiss to avoid jail. If an arrest happens anyway have those justice hotlines numbers in your phone.
Don’t make them do the work of figuring this out when depending on their situation they very likely won’t be in a place to mentally and emotionally (perhaps even physically). This information is out there and is very available to you, I think one thing we can do for people we care about who are going to be affected worst by this is take this facet of planning and information gathering off their shoulders.
what's your 'thing' as a friend. i don't mean like 'oh im the mom friend' i mean like what's the Thing where if one of your friends was looking for a specific interaction they'd message you first. personally i can always be relied upon to get hyped about bugs, literature, and cursed internet images.
It was one of the quieter evenings at The Hard Place as the four of them sat at a mostly clean table, drinks before them. Orion, C’ravi, Leila, and Raih’a were all that were left of the Blackhawks now. Galahad had turned to monkhood, pleading his body and soul to Rhalgr to atone for all he’d done. According to Leila, Jajaya had ‘fucked off’ when things started getting too weird. Elias, the mage they’d hired to fill the talents left by Orion was dead...as was the manipulative, power-hungry woman from whom the group had gotten its name, Alyss Blackhawk.
“I’m...not sure.” Leila idly swiped a thumb against the perspiration on her glass as she considered Orion’s question. The markswoman met eyes with Raih’a for a brief moment. The four of them had mostly recovered from the events of the week prior, at least physically. C’ravi and Leila had a few new scars, the former mostly from being flung into a crystal pillar, while the latter from having to fight back some Shades that had gotten too close to her. Raih’a, however, had visible bandages peeking out from beneath his clothes; getting stabbed and being left to die by your own boss tended to take longer to heal, on all fronts. Orion, somehow, managed to look the best of them all despite being the one to actually die.
“I want to hate her for everything she did. I really do. Part of me though...there’s a part of me that still thinks about her...and misses her. I know intellectually that what she had for me—”, she looked to Raih’a then, “for us, wasn’t love. I know she just wanted people to control and keep around her to make herself feel better, but...I don’t think that changes how I felt for her once. At least, not yet.” Raih’a’s own eyes fell down to his drink, wordlessly agreeing with Leila.
Orion looked to the pair of them, but struggled to find the words to respond...so instead he looked to C’ravi, the more emotionally adjusted sibling.
“Feelins are complicated.” The younger sibling spoke, sparing Orion a glance. The latter merely rolled his eyes, as if to say ‘Well I could’a said that much.’
“But it sounds like you’re makin’ the right steps by even acknowledgin’ that much. I think, like with a physical wound, it’ll just take time for how ya feel t’settle.” Ravi offered the pair a sympathetic smile.
“Yeah, what he said.” Orion added helpfully. “An’ uh, you know, if you ever wanna talk about it or some shite...Ravi’s always available.” There was a thud from under the table as Ravi kicked Orion’s foot, eliciting a well-deserved ‘ow’. “Me too, o’ course.”, he added hastily.
Raih’a rolled his eyes, albeit with a smirk. ‘How kind of you to offer.’, the gaze said.
“Thanks, Ravi.” Leila offered the younger sibling a warm smile. “It’s a good thing at least one of the Coeurl brothers got the brains.” The table erupted into laughter then, even Raih’a’s raspy voice could be heard amidst the din. Orion, meanwhile, rolled his eyes and knocked back a third of his drink. The tiniest upturn at the corner of his mouth did not go unmissed by Ravi, however. The group got a couple of stares from the few other patrons who were trying to have an undisturbed evening of lonely drinking.
“So Rhanvir, what’s next?” Leila leaned forward on the table with her arms crossed.
“What do ya mean?” The older Seeker cocked an eyebrow.
“You know. I know you two are going to Radz-at-Han for a bit, but I mean if I know you, you’ve already got your eyes set on something new.” As Leila pressed, Raih’a too showed his interest by leaning forward. Ravi also looked to Orion then; he’d posed his brother the same question a few days ago, but had gotten nothing.
“Well…” Orion looked between the three of them. “I’m thinkin’ it might be time for a slight career change.” Raih’a nearly spit out his drink then.
“Wait, Rhanv”, Ravi began, brows knit together, “you’re not sayin’ you’re...quittin’ treasure huntin’, are ya?”
“Maybe he’s still possessed.” Leila offered, only half-joking as she scrutinized the man. Raih’a leaned back in his seat and watched quietly.
‘Curious.’
“It’s...somethin’ I’ve been thinkin’ of since my friends an’ I went down into that Gelmorran colony.” Orion rubbed at the back of his neck. “I dunno. It just doesn’t feel...right anymore t’take things, even from the dead. One o’ the things I think I’ve learned after everythin’ that went on is that...well, dead doesn’t mean gone.”
Ravi had twisted to the side, leaning against the table with one arm as he watched his brother, astonished.
“So what, you’re gonna pack it all up and find a boring life...I don’t know, I can’t even come up with an example because I can’t imagine you doing anything other than diving into ruins. I know you only really got into it because...Alyss took you in, but that aside it really did seem like that kinda thing was your calling.” Leila continued to eye him dubiously.
“Wait wait wait, who said I was gonna stop doin’ all that?” Orion interrupted, “I just mean I’m not gonna take anythin’ that’s not mine t’take...no matter how good it might look on my shelves...”
Raih’a gave a small snort, ‘There he is.’
“So then...what are you gonna do?” The younger sibling inquired, sharing Leila’s perplexed look.
“Well, one o’ the other things I learned is that there are”, Orion sighed then, putting a hand to his forehead as he shook his head, “—Wanderer...I’m gonna sound like Khron—” he muttered, “plenty o’ stories out there left t’be uncovered; some o’ them might need puttin’ to rest, even. There’s a ton o’ magic out there in the world it seems, some of it wild an’ causin’ trouble, an’ I dunno. After what we did underground...it felt...good, like real good, t’be able t’set all those trapped souls free an’ help ‘em move on. I wanna do more o’ that. Who knows what other kinda shite like that is goin’ on that no one knows anythin’ about?” Orion paused then, looking at the other three to gauge their reactions.
“Well, color me impressed. It looks like a coeurl really can change his spots.” Leila snorted, crossing her arms.
“That sounds...real dangerous though, especially alone. What if ya get hurt?” Ravi probed with concern.
“Well, I wasn’t really plannin’ on goin’ it alone. I was gonna wait ‘til after we got back from Thavnair an’ after I’d thought on it more, but I was thinkin’ I’d ask the three o’ you—an’ some o’ the others—if you’d wanna uh…”, he gestured vaguely with his hands, “y’know…”
Ravi smirked triumphantly then, the smugness on his being palpable, “You’re goin’ t’have t’say the words, Rhanvir.”
Orion sighed, shooting his sibling a weary look, “...If you’d wanna help me out.”
Leila and Raih’a looked at each other then.
‘I thought you wanted to go straight?’ Raiha’s eyes seemed to say.
“Well, it sounds like our old coworker’s found a way to make that a lot less boring than I thought it’d have to be.” Leila stated in response aloud.
‘True...but is that really the life for us? After everything?’
“It’s kind of all we know. Besides, it’d be kind of nice to see the world just to...see it”
‘And not because someone has something we—she wanted?’
“Yeah…”
Orion and Ravi watched the conversation, even if they only heard Leila’s side of it. While the siblings had spent enough time with Raih’a to be able to read him to some degree, only Leila truly understood the mute Keeper.
‘I suppose...it’s better than being alone.’
“You won’t be. Not again.” Leila reached over and put a hand on Raih’a’s, squeezing it gently.
‘Thanks.’ Raih’a smiled before casting a glance in Orion’s direction, who offered him a broad, hopeful grin in return.
‘...He’s gotten frustratingly handsome since the last time we sat down like this.’ Raih’a’s eyes rolled, a subtle blush dashing his cheeks.
Leila let out a small, scandalized gasp then. “I’m going to tell him you said that.”
‘Don’t you dare.’ Raih’a’s gaze smoldered, brow creasing tightly.
“Tell me what? What’d he say?” Orion asked, raising an eyebrow. “If he’s said somethin’ mean about me, I’ve got the right t’defend myself. Whatever he said, it’s wrong.”
Leila’s face tightened as she struggled desperately to hold back the laugh that shook her body then, before ultimately shaking her head,
“He just said he’s in.” The woman smirked, wrapping a hand around her drink. “I am too. Sounds like a lot of fun.”
The Seeker beamed then and raised his glass to toast before pausing and turning to Ravi,
“Wait...what about you, Ravi? You’re in….right?” Orion’s voice quieted a bit as he asked his sibling. Things still weren’t perfect between them; they’d talked some more once they got back from the Aetherial Sea and while Orion’s actions there had done leagues to prove to Ravi that Orion was a changing man, it wasn’t easy to bridge years of being apart. That awkwardness still lingered, albeit much less so now than before, and it was something each of them felt.
“If it means finally gettin’ t’see the world with ya like we’d set out t’do all those years ago...then yeah, of course I’m in.” The younger sibling smiled warmly at him before raising his flagon to clink it against Orion’s. “Besides, you’re gonna need me. Like Leila said, I’m the one that got the brains.”
The table of former thieves broke into a cacophonous laughter once more as the evening wore on.
[Keeping to himself as usual, Val couldn't help but overhear the nearby conversation. Something about big news in Ishgard. In an effort to conceal his connection, he had made the habit of never asking anyone for news of his home. He could only settle on scraps of information eavesdropped from travelers.]
[The strangers voices were clear as they described what they had heard in their travels: The long fought Dragonsong War was finally over. Man and dragon had made peace.]
[Val retreated to the outside balcony to find fresh air and privacy. His mind was a flurry of emotions. How could this be?]
[He had given his life to the knighthood. He had sworn to give his all to protect those he loved... and all the citizens of Ishgard.]
[But that opportunity... that life had been stolen.]
[And now he stood here, hundreds of malms from home. Having done nothing, having contributed nothing.]
[Just a coward who had run from his duty.]
[The air suddenly turned to a freeze. And all he could see were bodies and feathers and blood in the snow. Splintered shields, broken spears. Mangled limbs. Death all around.]
[And all he could do was cry out helplessly for the losses. A lone soldier lost in the icy wind, heart broken beyond mending.]
[And there was no one left waiting for him. No trail of love and warmth to lead him back home.]
Nidhogg had been felled and victory had been called. The war was won. Adhamh’s thoughts, however, were not to celebration but to seeking out his bard. There he was, across the bridge half destroyed in the chaos, and he ran. Every limb screamed for rest—for respite after the battles just fought—but he ran nonetheless.
There was a shimmer of sound, a clash of metal, as chainmail hit chainmail, Adhamh pulling the smaller man into him, his hands gripping the other’s head in a tender ferocity. He spoke no words, letting his lips carry his emotions—his relief, his anxiety, his fear, his love; an entire unspoken conversation between the lovers finding themselves on the other side of the heat of battle. It was a passionate exchange that spanned ages over the course of a minute. Then, the knight pulled back and he stared into his bard with love-drunk eyes and in a moment of pure, unfiltered spontaneity, the words unceremoniously slipped right off his tongue,
I’ll post my edits there as well as take commission work. Also, if anyone just wants to donate or contact me on discord for a commission request, let me know!
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