Dance Poses For Pictures

... us this entertaining selection of pictures The images for the most... only showcases Mazzy’s ability with dance poses, but also cuts out Ryan...

... her and she began her dance. Drop, drop-drop in the leaves... was more like a rain dance but I can't really tell... way this is a rain dance. The forecast said it was... and cream-colored walls decorated with pictures of green pokemon smiling or... and people, all in various poses. Evenly spaced in the blackness...

... Young Asian Beach Model Gladly Poses And Needs A Good Fuck... and wants to make some pictures. She loves that. Her name... would agree to make more pictures in your room. She gladly... more. You ask her to dance for you and then it ... » Kay_Young Asian Beach Model Gladly Poses And Needs A Good Fuck_4096p_LR....

... around it, phones out, snapping pictures before even attempting the first... found yourself entering a crossdressing Dance Dance Revolution competition. Dressed as a... stage. Participating in a crossdressing dance competition. "…How did I end... up here?" you muttered. "FOCUS!! DANCE!!" Mil-tan's voice hit you like... of risk that this Frisk poses to Rias-sama, it would be...

... crosses her legs again and poses the next question. "Has it... about the movies or the pictures, but rather her moods. Then ... index fingers continue their tickling "dance" unhindered under the high heels. "...

.... Because she saved him a dance. 28. Because he saved her... asked to cut into her dance with Tyler. 50. Because he... other in passion 17. Caroline poses for a portrait 18. Klaus... in Rome. - "Klaus draws pictures of horses." - Candice defending ..., [so] he'll burn all the pictures...But...I think he'll come ... Klaus sort of do this dance." - Ian - Ian: "Caroline ...

So I snooped thought my boyfriends phone and am shocked to find that when I search a single letter in the search bar and hit search, very young girls (probably 12 yo and under) wearing revealing clothing/leotards/dance wear is 99% of the content that pops up. A lot of the pictures are suggestive in manner or with suggestive poses. A lot of them are dance or gymnastics photos. When I search a single letter on my own Instagram, nothing like this pops up, so it’s clearly specifically suggested content of this nature for him. It doesn’t appear in reels or on the main for you page. Can someone explain why this is? Does this mean he’s frequently viewed similar content in the past and his algorithm suggests this now? This is not the normal man’s instagram where it’s grown women in revealing clothing. This is possible pedophelia. Someone please tell me I’m wrong or help me understand why this is happening . I need to know what type of person I’m dating. Any information on how Instagram and its algorithms, suggested content, or general advice for me would be greatly appreciated. submitted by /u/Awkward-Emu-8255 to r/NoStupidQuestions [link] [comments]

First | Previous | Next The Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts. Hall of Champions. Victor’s Square. Local Time: 1245 Hours. Thalmin There was something behind that door that drew me forwards without hesitation — a power so tempting and an aura so intoxicating that I found myself hastening my stride — my hand reaching eagerly with an impatient grip. CREEEAAAKKKKK! THOOM! I was right. I was… more than right. “Oh. Oh wow…” I managed out under a stuttering breath. “She… she truly is a sight to behold.” I continued, awestricken and swept up by a wave of inexplicable infatuation. “In all my years as a warrior, a commander, a… collector and appraiser of all matters exotic, striking, and exceptional… none could come close— nay. None can even compare with what lies before us today, Emma.” I beamed brightly, gesturing, smiling, practically pouring my heart over a sight so tantilizing… it rivaled any I’d ever laid my eyes or hands on. It was in times such as this that I wished for the absence of Emma’s faceplate. As I yearned to see her expression, her first impressions of this spectacular sight. “I have to say… I never thought you’d be drawn to something with so much heft, Thalmin.” She finally spoke but eventually shrugged. “Not judging, of course. You’re clearly strong enough to handle it. And I’d be lying if I didn’t agree with you. She truly is quite stunning.” Emma whistled out, reaching out to grab her by the hilt only for me to pull my new property away from her. “Allow me to show you how it’s done…” I growled out in a playful display of dominance, reaching into the platform and grasping her thick hilt gently. I could feel the surge of power the instant my fingertips graced the tightly wrapped leather, the beautifully bound lace, and the ribbon at its tip. My whole body bristled with a primal sort of excitement as my fur stood up on edge from tailtip to eartip. I breathed in deeply, steadying myself. It was almost like she was made for me. And indeed, that was probably the intent behind this whole affair. I grinned, eyeing the contraption beside her pedestal with a wild grin. Then I turned to Emma, who simply shrugged in my direction. “So are you going to do this or not?” She urged, testing my convictions and my physical fortitude. “Yes.” I responded resolutely, lifting the hilt up high above my head before finally— Thwwoooooooooooooooshhhhhhhh! THWACK! I brought the warhammer down. The base of the structure practically caved in, its magical energy shooting towards the impossible weight lying in wait, propelling it directly up and towards the milestone bells. DING DING DING Each ring struck brought pulse after pulse of light as the sound of progress filled the air, each more bedazzling than the last. Conversely, the weight slowly lost its magical luster, slowing down with each bell rung. I could tell at this rate where the weight would cease. DING But I tensed in close observation, willing the fates for the weight to fly just that little bit higher. DING Just a little bit further... DING—KA-CHUNK! The final bell was struck. Magical streaks exploded from this milestone as a small firespear show manifested immediately behind it; a sonorous ringing filled the Victor’s Square in the process. "HAHA! YES! SEE?! I TOLD YOU I COULD MASTER ITS STRENGTH!" I claimed profoundly with a proud grin. "Impressive." Emma replied, her armor's muted blank stare fixated still on the weight as it fell. "Though I still don't buy its claims." "What?" As I said that, the impossible weight returned a quaking thud, blowing my cape over my face. “Well… forgive me if I’m just a biiiit skeptical when an artifact claims to be, and I quote, ‘The Breaker of 40,000 Chains.’” She made an effort to kneel down to the plaque next to the pedestal, one of many flanking the red carpeted entrance into the Victor’s Square proper. “Oh, its raw potential has most certainly been muted for purposes of interaction and display, Emma.” I chuckled. “But suffice it to say, this warhammer is truly an artifact of legend. I have read as such in my forays into the subject! Some scholars even say that in the right hands, it has the power to crack open whole continents. And some would even claim that its title — the Breaker of 40,000 Chains — carries more weight than it does bluster.” “In the words of many of my superiors and professors back home, citation desperately needed.” The earthrealmer countered, garnering but a dismissive chuckle from me. “I accept your challenge.” I grinned back cheekily, garnering a cock of Emma’s armored head. “Consider it an exchange of records. Your presentation on Earthrealm weaponry, for a sight-seer documenting the fullest potential of these legendary weapons!” “That… is certainly a fair trade. I accept the amended conditions.” Emma nodded, prompting me to quickly drag her to the next artifact on display. “Then let us make haste! The professors have provided us with a veritable feast of artifacts with which to admire and test! Had I been informed earlier, I would have absconded breakfast, lunch, and even that debriefing!” I found myself speaking at an increasing pace, effortlessly taking the mantle of Emma’s overexcitable orations, as I raced around what amounted to a museum’s worth of wonders; a curated series of displays clustered around the entrance of the Victor’s Corner. I darted from pedestal to pedestal, plinth to plinth, my eyes only momentarily taking into account the rest of the room’s inhabitants in between each excitable sprint. They barely registered in the grand scheme of things, paling in comparison to the great many artifacts belonging to either former questors or brought back as spoils from the wilds. My sights soon landed on one of the more unassuming weapons on display, my gaze bouncing between the legendary article in question and the inextricably linked shooting gallery next to it just begging to be used. “A bow?” Emma questioned unenthusiastically. “Not just any mere bow.” I countered, pointing at the plaque beneath the plinth. “This admittedly tempered artifact hails from a particularly fascinating lineage of weapons known as the HeartWroughts. Unlike most artificed or enchanted weapons, they draw both power and potential not from latent manastreams or internal manavials, but instead through the wielder themselves. But Thalmin, I hear you ask, why and how is this any different from the casting of a spell? Is this not simply a roundabout means of spellcasting? Why… yes, it is. But not quite. For you see, the enchantments within merely interpret the state of your aura, your emotional potential. Through carefully inlaid filigrees, chiseled, cast, and spun within the heart of the weapon, it simply uses your aura as a siphon, powering its own attacks through the will of the user.” I rattled on, going through what should have been fundamental principles but to most — and especially Emma — probably resembled the bookish esotericisms of a hermit scholar. “Fascinating.” Emma replied politely, as I felt at that moment, a complete reversal of roles spurred on by my proximity to these legendary articles,; these weapons once only accessible through the pages of a sight-seer. “Let’s see it then.” She continued, turning to me with an expectant cock of her hip. “Try it.” Cynthis … A warhammer? And a bejeweled bow?! That’s what he was immediately drawn to?!! THAT’S what he leaped to along with his… mutinous partner?! No. No no. Calm down, Lady Cynthis. He is a simple man after all. An exquisite specimen by all measures, yes. But that simple-mindedness had a tendency to both overrule and overpower his otherwise roguish and princely aura. My smile returned as a barely perceptible breath left my lips. Yes. This is a good sign. If the lupinor truly is that simple-minded, then he will be as clay is to a seasoned potter. This is excellent. This is ideal. This will come into play when the vows are exchanged and our hands are crossed in eternal matrimony. But I couldn’t wait any longer. There comes a time where patience becomes inaction, and that time is fast arriving. So I moved to draw his attention, motioning for my attendants to fetch both perfume and refreshments to my palanquin and repositioning myself to lounge across it, causing the bells attached all along my tail to jingle with the call of a siren. And it worked. The lupinor’s gaze shifted to my presence, his eyes devouring my very being. Right before he let that arrow fly, the once fiery projectile quickly turned into this cold, brittle shaft that shattered on impact on the target it was aimed for. I smiled. Yes. I’d managed to — if only momentarily — affect the prince’s inner desires. I had curtailed his warrior’s fire, tempered it with a cooling gale, and soothed the savage wildman with nothing but the frigid look of a beauty unmatched. I had, in no uncertain terms, caught his attention… and ensnared his wild heart. Those awestruck eyes said it all. Thalmin I starred… blankly… frustratingly… at a target still standing unscathed, from a shot ruined by an unexpected distraction. “Erm, Thalmin, you okay there?” Emma inquired just as I snapped out of that disappointing shot with a frustrated growl. “It really looked like you were gearing for a fiery shot there, why’d you shift to an ice one?” “Something sent chills up my spine Emma.” I answered plainly before gesturing at the offending party. “Or more specifically, someone managed to shake me to my core.” “Ah.” Came Emma’s reply as she attempted to peer behind the row of artifacts towards the offending noble in question. “Yeah, I’d be distracted too given all that shiny jewelry. But hey! Think you can manage another one though?” She urged, prompting the bow within my hands to once more burn with the flames of a phoenix reborn. “Yes.” I nodded slowly, my confidence and resolve returning in short order. “I think that can be arranged.” Cynthis No. Did that newrealmer just— No, that's impossible. His flame returned. His fire. Had I misinterpreted his prior reactions? Had I— TWANG! THWOOOOOSH! FWWOOOOOOSHHHH! … The target in question erupted in a ball of flames. A series of uproarious cheers erupted from between the pair… and of course… the busybody Viscount Gumigo. “A brilliant show from Prince Thalmin! A round of applause, please!” He attempted to spur on. Though to my satisfaction, nobody joined in. Only the jeers, cheers, and hollers of the inane and backwards filled the open concourse. What’s more, my attention was now firmly sequestered on the flame which lit the prince’s bow, and by extension, his heart. … One could, of course, interpret this whole affair in a far more favorable light. Perhaps the fire and flames didn’t equate to the fires of passion stoked within his heart. Perhaps it merely represented the unkempt heat of barbarism, spurred on by the agent of backwardness, as what better catalyst existed than the agent of primitivism herself — the newrealmer? His arrow of ice was antithetical to this. It represented a cooling of this unkempt fire, a tempering of his baser instincts, and a taming of the unruly beast within. This… This had to be the way of things. For the only alternative, the only other explanation to the contrary… was unacceptable. The newrealmer could not have had such an effect on him. She wasn’t even nobility. And for Prince Thalmin to have regarded my inviting gaze with ice and scorn? That… That was simply impossible. It was at the crux of these thoughts that I finally knew I had to make my second move. I’d ensnared him with a simple gaze, yes. But now I needed to ‘reel him in,’ as the commoners would say. JINGLE! I ordered my palanquin forward. I adjusted my lean, my pose, and the position of all my jewels, such that there would be naught an item of wealth and status that remained hidden and unseen. I made known my presence from a distance, even as the prince feigned ignorance in his incessant ramblings. His words, his simple obsessions over these trifling and dusty artifacts, all blended into the background as I halted his advance through the gallery of forgettable trinkets. I had made my move. Now was the prince’s turn to make his. As I sat there, lazing on my throne of bedazzling cushions, I stared up at an armored lupinor like a damsel waiting for her prince. Thalmin … I could go around. This was an open space. While she blocked the path ahead, there were empty spaces between each plinth and exhibit with which to navigate. For a moment, however, I found myself unable to move, her perfumes overpowering my senses, prompting me to turn away just as she was attempting to draw my gaze with a flutter of those fake eyelashes. With a nod to Emma, we started to move, darting left between two exhibits and then returning back to the red carpet behind the palanquin. Cynthis Ah. This game. The prince was more playful than I thought. With a giggle and another snap of my fingers, I found my palanquin moving yet again. This time, matching the prince’s casual steps… Then his pacing… And eventually, his sprints as he moved away from the gallery and towards the Victor’s Arcade where everyone else was gathered. It was entertaining at first. But frustration soon grew as the prince continued to ignore eye contact until finally… I had to make my third move. “Oh Prince Havenbrock~” I said softly. “Might I interest you in an exchange of tales? I imagine you have quite a few stories to share from your adventures in the Nexian wilds, hmm?” “Not really, no.” He responded bluntly. … I felt my features stiffen. My face, whilst retaining its smile and warmth, shattered behind that mask. W-what did he mean by this? Was this some other game? Some other attempt to— No. I had to do something! “Oh! Humility! Why, Prince Havenbrock, there is no need for that!” I attempted to reclaim the momentum, clamoring up towards the peak of my summit. “After all, I would consider myself something of a raconteur myself — and, by extension, a gracious host! So please, rest easy… and maybe—” I paused, before moving gently into a cross-legged kneel, gesturing towards the now-empty patch of upholstery next to me. “—consider resting next to me?” I did everything mother and grandmother taught me. I kept my smile strong. I swayed my tail gracefully. The bells, ornaments, and various baubles attached to them forming a graceful lullaby which any male would find irresistible. I even curated my gaze, fluttered my eyebrows, and committed to a song and dance of courtly measure that I’d spent an untold number of hours practicing, honing…. And it was clear it was working. The prince’s eyes softened, his gaze shifted, and his head cocked every so slightly between my eyes and my hand gently caressing the open patch of velvet right next to me — still warm to the touch. “I…” “I think we’re good, Lady Cynthis! Thalmin and I were just on our way to Lord Qiv’Ratom’s bapycara exhibit!” !!!! And with that… the spell was broken. I watched in shock, in anger, in disbelief as victory was snatched away from me by this audacious, worthless newrealm tras— I took my first breath. My first real breath of the entire day. The magic was broken. The fantasy was ruined. The carefully laid efforts of ceremony and tradition were shattered. And all of this — I gripped my dress tightly — now lay in tatters. I laid back on my palanquin once more, staring forlornly at the uneaten cakes and the tea set still waiting to be poured. “ATTENTION ALL QUEST GOERS, PLEASE BE AWARE YOU HAVE LESS THAN ONE HOUR TO PREPARE FOR THE CLOSING CEREMONY!” … There was always another day. And there would be… ways… to make this work. I turned to Ping, if only momentarily. Perhaps the newrealmer was more a nuisance than I’d initially considered. The Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts. Hall of Champions. Victor’s Square. Local Time: 1700 Hours. Emma There were times when I’d forgotten the false pretenses of this whole operation. Even now, in the midst of celebrations reiterating the importance of our ‘quest,’ did I find myself unable to reconcile that gap between the supposed ‘questline’ we undertook and the more pressing developments we’d inevitably triggered. Foraging for flowers ended up giving off the same impression as a forgotten sidequest picked up at the tutorial of a game, and the way we managed to actually acquire them didn’t help with that notion either. Regardless, the importance of this whole charade really started dawning on us once Belnor’s grand celebrations kicked into high gear. It started simply enough. An opening speech by Belnor herself, then a standing ovation to all of the successful questors — surprise, surprise, everyone succeeded — with a particular round of applause reserved for the first five to arrive. Then came the partying — feasts, drinks, and even more feasts — the likes of which were dominated by Ilunor and Rostario both attempting to out-orate each other in an epic sonnet battle that lasted for longer than my entire debrief… All of this culminated in the most bizarre aspect of the whole thing — a musical performed by the top three questing groups, all regaling the crowd with their version of the original Everblooming Blossom Quest. Yet as amusing as their game was to watch, I couldn’t help but to feel a cold chill crawling up my back, made worse by the suit’s panoramic vision giving me a clear view of the everpresent glare from a certain cheetah. “I can only fathom her aims, Emma.” He began with a sullen sigh. “Though I cannot imagine that these outlandish courting rituals bode well for my prospects at discretion and any hopes at maintaining inconspicuousness." The prince paused, an apologetic expression growing across his features. “On one hand, it’s kinda creepy.” I began. “On the other hand, I can’t help but feel sorry for her. She looked so… desperate to get your approval. I can only imagine what’s driving her to do that.” I offered sympathetically. “Some realms seem to place particular emphasis on lastborns, especially those furthest away from any lineal claim towards this path. Whilst others simply see this as an integral aspect of their duty. Either way, let us not dwell on her… peculiar form of the chase. She will tire eventually. There are far, far more appealing suitors for her to choose from within our ranks, after all.” “I suppose.” I shrugged. “But don’t sell yourself short, Thalmin. You’re, you know, pretty high up there on the ‘suitor’ list yourself!” Thalmin narrowed his eyes at me at this comment, prompting me to just shrug. “It’s a compliment, I’m not here to take a jab at the annulled proposal or your preexisting relationship with Asva.” “I… appreciate the sentiments, Emma.” Thalmin finally responded, shrugging in confusion. A small lull in the conversation promptly followed, and despite the presence of the ongoing musical, Ilunor’s epic sonnet battle, and a whole host of carnival-esque rustic music playing in the background, a sense of unnerving silence finally descended on us that I couldn’t really shake. “So… what now?” I asked Thalmin. “At present? There’s the matter of the donation ceremonies. The Everblooming Blossoms will be donated to apothecaries and healers all across Transgracia. Following that, there’s going to be the typical Nexian song and dance of fealty, patronage, gratitude, and the like. After which? Well… That’s for you to determine, Emma.” “Huh?” “What’s next in store for us? Or rather, in your growing, accessory questlines?” “Oh, right. Well… priority’s taken by the ECS reconstruction efforts.” I acknowledged. “After that, there’s the matter of the library to deal with… the green book and Larial… as well as my own quest for the whole taint stuff. We’re in a bit of a weird spot with that, since instead of just stealing the book, we’re waiting to ask permission to simply borrow it. Which means waiting for Larial to come back from… whatever she’s up to. But given the library’s leniency, and its mystery agreement with Ilunor… we’re not really pressed for time on that front. It’s mostly an inconvenience for Ilunor that he has to report weekly to the library like he’s on parole or something but… given that he’s unwilling to share what goes on in those weekly visits?” I shrugged. “It’s between him and the library, until we finish the green book quest.” “I wonder…” Thalmin pondered out loud. “What exactly is this arrangement?” To which I could only shrug in reply. “I’m hoping it’s not something as extreme as like… some sort of weekly life extension or something.” My eyes narrowed, landing on Thalmin as soon as those words left my mouth. “Is that… possible?” “That is a known curse, yes.” He acknowledged. “Though… I doubt the library deals in such bluntness. No. There has to be something else at play with that vunerian.” “Blackmail?” “No, no. The library… Eh… maybe? I don’t believe it meddles in mortal affairs all too much, no. This has to be something truly… personalized for the blue noble. Though I won’t claw at my fur for it. It will eventually surface, as do all truths.” “Still… even when we return with the book, all that’ll do is complete my Seekership. There’s still the whole quest to recover the lost books which… I’ll admit, Thalmin, is going to probably span a few semesters, if not more.” “We have the time.” He acknowledged. “Moreover, as it pertains to Ilunor’s life? He’ll be forced to use his resources to expand the search eventually.” “Yeah.” I breathed in. “I don’t even want to think about that right now.” “Agreed.” Thalmin nodded, smiling in the process. “Maybe we should focus instead on more… entertaining matters. Perhaps matters regarding our cultural exchange agreements?” “Oh, yeah, that’s definitely on the agenda. Once I finish rebuilding the ECS, and getting everything else sorted of course.” “I’ll have my own presentation prepared for you by then, Emma.” Thalmin grinned as we both turned towards the rapidly progressing evening, right as the local time struck 17:00. A small, vestigial warning popped up at the bottom right hand side of my HUD. A reminder that I was surprised the EVI hadn’t yet removed, especially given everything that’s happened thus far. [Current Calender… T+29 Days since arrival. Reminder: First ECS Transmission due in 6 Days!] However, given the fact I hadn’t been manually clearing the calendar, that was on me more than anything. The systems weren’t expecting the first correspondence to be conducted over a dragon service provider, after all. “EVI.” “Yes, Cadet Booker?” “Mark objective as complete and reset countdown timer pending ECS reconstruction.” “Noted. Pending T Minus 28 Days, +/- 7 Days.” “Thank you, EVI.” “Now then… how about we spend what little time is left of our freedom on some festivities, Emma?” “Huh?” I looked up, meeting Thalmin’s gaze as he pulled me out of my internal housekeeping. “Classes will start up again tomorrow. And after that, the rigors of academia will undoubtedly return. So why don’t we make the best of tonight?” “Yeah.” I smiled. “Let’s.” 1 Day Following the Conclusion of Festivities Dragon’s Heart Tower, Level 23, Residence 29. Living Room. Local Time: 1700 Hours Etholin “I want you to apologize.” I stated plainly, clearly, and in no uncertain terms. “To Cadet Emma Booker, Princess Thacea Dilani, and Lord Ilunor Rularia.” “WHAT?!” Ilphius responded instinctively, her piercing hiss and the fire behind her eyes sending a primal pang of fear down my spine. “HOW DARE YOU INSINUATE THAT WE ARE IN ANY WAY—” “Stop.” Kamil, of all people, turned to face his criminal associate. “Just… cease it with this ego-driven mania, Lady Ilphius.” “I… I beg your pardon—” “Yes, beg. You’ll both be doing that soon at the heels of a newrealmer no less.” Teleos interjected, having finished his second gallon of water this evening. “You have no one but yourself to blame, Lady Ilphius. You and your ego, and whatever lunacy is going inside of that little head of yours.” He reiterated, interjecting and timing his words to prevent the serpent from any reprisals or rebuttals. He’d gotten good at this… “It is time that you change, Lady Ilphius.” I demanded sternly. “This starts with a genuine apology, and a lessening of our social burden, perhaps even a freeing of your own chains, now owned by the avinor princess and—” “I am OWNED by no—” “If you don’t apologize, fine.” Kamil interrupted once again. “But I will.” This… garnered the attention of all present as I stared dumbfounded into the absentee’s eyes. “Y-you will? Without even a rebuttal or negotiation?” “What I did was wrong, Lord Etholin. I’m not blind—” He paused, turning to Ilphius for a moment. “—nor delusional enough to convince myself otherwise. I wish to acknowledge my follies, and start anew with this newrealmer.” He added with surprising levity at that. “What do you want from the newrealmer, Lord Lyonn?” I finally questioned, dropping all pretenses and narrowing my gaze into the man’s eyes. “One doesn’t just shift from absentee, to unwitting criminal, to apologetic saint in a mere week.” “What I saw in that room were sights beyond our conventions, Lord Esila. Sights which I’d scarcely managed to appreciate, let alone dissect. I merely wish to satiate my curiosities, by engaging in interrogative dialogue with this earthrealmer. And the start to that, is an apology over bad blood spilt.” I looked to Teleos, who merely shrugged in my direction. “Don’t look at me, this is not my current to swim.” “Well… we can start on this by approaching the earthrealmer together, Lord Kamil Lyonn.” I offered politely. “As for you.” I turned to Ilphius. “I expect you to follow me all the same.” “I would much rather die than submit to a weakling such as— OUCH!” “Oh, my sincerest apologies, Lady Ilphius. I must have not seen your tail on my way out.” Teleos spoke quickly, shutting the door behind him before the wrath of Lady Ilphius had a chance to respond. The room erupted into chaos shortly thereafter. 1 Day Following the Conclusion of Festivities Dragon’s Heart Tower, Level 22, Residence 29. Living Room. Local Time: 1700 Hours Qiv’Ratom “Airit?” “Yes, Lord Ratom?” “I suggest we start penning your strategies over the greater avinor.” “You mean the tainted one—” “Channel your frustrations when the time comes, Lady Airit Airus.” I interjected plainly, pruning the shatorealmer’s rage, ensuring it did not sprout into untilled fields. “The Class Sovereignship challenges are ahead of us, and we must be mindful until I can be assured it is within my grasp.” “Yes, Lord Ratom.” Airit bowed as I turned towards Rostario in short order. “Lord Ping’s group isn’t as destitute as I had hoped.” I stated plainly. “Indeed, my lord. I shall hasten my plans, and indeed, there seems to be much to do when it comes to reinforcing what has already been put into motion.” The small lord spoke in his usual, thoughtful prose. “It is unfortunate that the lupinor prince did not cross paths with Lord Ping during his journeys. But now that proximity is back on our side, perhaps this oversight may be rectified. Aggression does have a habit of hastening when two potent agents are forced in close proximity.” “One can only hope so, Lord Rostarion.” 3 Days Following the Conclusion of Festivities The Township of Sips. Lord Protector’s Town Hall. The Lordship’s Private Offices. Local Time: 2000 Hours. Lord L’Sips “Your evening papers, My Lord.” A familiar raspy voice entered the fray, disrupting, if only momentarily, my final assaults on the last strongholds of paper and parchment sitting on the verge of capitulation. “Thank you, Breatria. You may retire for the evening now.” I replied in kind, dismissing the elderly woman with a nod. The papers were a nuisance to some, a novelty to others, and a status symbol to an esoteric few. These rolled up parchments with a near limitless capacity for information, were as much useful as they were pointless if one were to peer into a puddle or flare. Yet they were part of an official, albeit outdated, system. An instrument from a bygone era with a niche but pertinent place in the current landscape where information flowed through one’s hands often much too trivially. The presence of something physical was comforting, both in matters of sentimentality and record-keeping. Yet the contents within the papers tonight painted a picture of developments more in keeping to the era from which the medium originated. As within were reports belonging to a bygone age, updates on a dragon now reported as MISSING and AT LARGE, as well as a mobilization by none other than the Sky Warden himself. I had to read that article twice, checking the date of print to ensure that this wasn’t an eons-old paper. It wasn’t. A break over tea was necessary before I continued. However, subsequent reports tested the soothing properties of a healthy evening brew. As the next headline brought furrowed brows over a rather concerning development. UNKNOWN ASSAILANTS TARGET TENT TOWN! 1 DEAD! 1 MISSING! 1 INJURED! HYSTERICAL ADVENTURER DESCRIBES ASSAILANT AS ‘GHOULISH AND UNLIVING!’ I folded the papers following that drivel, staring out at the beautiful evening night and a town safe in my hands. “I may need to increase nightly patrols… or request an audience with the King.” 7 Days Following the Conclusion of Festivities The Crown Herald Town of Elaseer. Lord Mayor’s Manor. Guest Wing. Puddlejumper’s Respite. Local Time: 2000 Hours. Inner Guard Captain Anoyaruous Frital “Ledwin?” “Yes, Captain?” “If you were a Goldthorn… or perhaps I should say, when you become a Goldthorn, will you prioritize prompt resolution, or thoroughness through exhaustion?” “The latter, ma’am!” “Even if this comes at the expense of an entire warrant’s worth of time?” “Yes, ma’am!” “Even if the investigation has been written, sealed, proofed, and dusted?” My squire’s rambunctious grin slowly and quietly faded. Replaced instead by a growing confusion that supplanted the fires of self-assured youth. “I… beg your pardon, Captain?” “If an investigation is complete, in every sense of the word, should you or should you not ‘run down’ the allotted time of your warrant?” “... I would assume not, Captain.” “And why is that?” “It would… waste the time and resources of the Crown—” “Ah, but the former is eternal and the latter is limitless. Is it not, Ledwin?” “... That is correct, ma’am. But if I may?” “Go on?” “For what reason would one choose to remain even when the investigation is ove—” “I am pleased you asked.” I smiled warmly. “Would it not be prudent of the investigator to linger, albeit quietly, observing every relevant actor once all have assumed she has left?” Ledwin blinked, pondering this question, before landing on an answer that left his face practically glowing with realization. “You would see them in their natural state, verifying their purported nature when they least expect it, unaffected by the pressures of our presence.” “Exactly, Ledwin.” “I am proud to serve under such a prudent mistress, Captain!” As you should… but there are more reasons why you would do so, Ledwin. Reasons beyond your youthful naivety. I moved quietly towards the balcony, shielded from sight, sound, and all manner of perception, by way of my own spells. There will be no leniency for your legacy, even in death, Mal’tory. The investigation remains conclusive, and all paths point to you and your negligence. Though negligence of what exactly remains to be seen. A simple oversight of some perilous artifact would satiate the curiosities of the justicars and the privy council, but there’s something else, isn’t there? Something that caused you to act so… irrationally. So while the case is shut, there remains a certain… addendum I wish to solve myself. A sidequest, to satiate my own curiosities. 10 Days Following the Conclusion of Festivities The Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts. His Majesty’s Protectors’ Tower. The Dean’s Private-Facing Offices. Local Time: 2100 Hours Dean Altalan Rur Astur KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK! “Come in.” A series of long strides soon followed, and with it came the man of the hour. “Ahh, Vanavan. Good. How is our dear Goldthorn faring?” “She’s ready to implicate the late Professor Mal’tory.” The man spoke sullenly, coldly, his words eating into my facade almost immediately. “Not even a ‘good evening,’ my dear fellow?” I countered with what vestiges of humor I had left as that facade soon gave way to my second mask. “So has she filed the reports?” I questioned bluntly. “Not to my knowledge, sir.” “And why is that?” “I… I do not know—” “Or you didn’t ask?” I countered, meeting the meeker man’s eyes, shattering the determination within… what little there was. “It would have been too obvious if I did, sir.” His broken response came through, prompting me to place my face within a single palm. “Of course it would have… Right then, this changes nothing. Apprentice Larial has returned with the first batch of prerequisite materials. Though I am afraid this is simply the first out of a set of three. She has been dispatched to acquire the rest, of course. So please see to it that Professor Sorecar continues substituting for that class of hers, will you?” “Yes, sir.” The man bowed before leaving my sight shortly thereafter. 14 Days Following the Conclusion of Festivities Healing Wing. Rila’s Room. Local Time: 2130 Hours. Rila CLICK! A nurse arrived. Right on schedule. “Here’s the rest of your medicines, dear.” The water elemental spoke softly, kindly, just as the rest of them did. “Thank you, ma’am.” I bowed, taking the herbal and magical remedies without hesitation. “Er, ma’am, if I may—” “Yes? Do you feel poorly, dear? Any dizziness? Nausea? Vomiting?” “No, no. Nothing like that. If anything, I feel wonderful, actually. I… I was curious if there was any progress on my dischar—” “Oh, the administration is currently still dealing with that, dear! But nothing to worry your silly little commoner head on, you hear?” She spoke in that dismissive, saccharine tone of voice. Though a quick glance, a quick exchange of stares was all that I needed to know from this… friendly response. Stop bothering me. I sighed, nodding, knowing where to stop and allowing the nurse to go on her own way. The matter of my name must still be in debate… it must be… that… or the investigation… Whatever the case may be, I learned not to question them long ago… 30 Days Following the Conclusion of Festivities Dragon’s Heart Tower, Level 23, Residence 30. Living Room. Local Time: 2000 Hours Emma KA-THUNK… KA-THUNK… KA-CHIIIIIRRRRPPPP! THUNK-THUNK-THUNK-THUNK-THUNK [703.5.77 IAS-PP SYSTEMS EXOREALITY COMMUNICATION SUITE INITIALIZING PERFORMING STARTUP INTEGRITY CHECK POWER ROUTING….. OK CORE MEMORY ARRAYS….. OK PRIMARY PROCESSING UNIT….. OK AUXILIARY PROCESSING UNITS… OK INTERFACE APERTURE….. OK EXOREALITY UNIDIRECTIONAL NARROWBAND PULSATOR….. FAILED. ERROR: HARDWARE NOT RECOG— … BYPASSING DEFAULT SAFETIES CONTINUING INITIALIZATION PROCESS… EXOREALITY UNIDIRECTIONAL NARROWBAND PULSATOR….. OK SYSTEM CLOCK….. SYNCING… CURRENT MISSION TIME… T+59 DAYS… 3 HOURS… 27 MINUTES… 43 SECONDS POST-ARRIVAL.] [IDENTIFICATION AND HANDSHAKE PACKAGE READY] [NOTE TO OPERATOR: PLEASE REVIEW MESSAGE PRIOR TO TRANSCRIPTION] Hi. If you’re reading this, then that means the Exoreality Communications Suite has done its job. We now have a home-grown proprietary line of communication that bridges the ‘space between spaces,’ as they say over here. Attached are my reports, a complete summary of events following our last unexpected live communique, and my progress here thus far. I’ve also taken the liberty of attaching relevant data packets of the science I’ve done here thus far. And note, I’m attaching you all we’ve been able to gather on the chimes issue as well. It’s related to taint. I trust you guys can get to the bottom of it. [...] [Skipping to Page 14, Section 9, Article 12: Operator’s Personal Notes.] [Section Title: In Memory of Pilot I.] I imagine there is a lot of fanfare currently unfolding back home. Though whether or not that is a response to the existential threats barreling down our collective necks, the scientific bombshells contained in every millisecond of my sensor logs, or something in between, I can’t say. All I can say, and all I can hope for, is that we don’t lose sight of what’s possible here. It’s a known fact that the Nexus is hostile. I don’t deny that. But within that understanding, lies the potential for hope. The first few days saw the documentation of more instances of extraterrestrial life than all existing SETI records combined. The first month saw the establishment of a personal bond, and eventually a working relationship, with the representative of an alien polity whose expressed sentiments align with our vision, our hope, and the goal we have been working towards since we first laid eyes on the stars: friendship. I’m not saying I’m a miracle worker. I’m not claiming to be able to move mountains or reshape the minds of everyone here. But what I am saying is that we shouldn’t lose sight of what we’ve accomplished here thus far. The Marathon spirit is still alive. Don’t let it die out of fear. This is Cadet Emma Booker, Mission Commander, Sole Mission Operator, working representative, (and the new student from Earth), signing off from Exoreality FOB 1, at the Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts. May this first correspondence between realities, constructed by human hands, and dreamed up by human minds, be the first of many to come. submitted by /u/Jcb112 to r/HFY [link] [comments]

I am NOT OOP, OOP is u/glitterglazegloo Originally posted to r/AITAH Previous BoRUs: #1 [New Update - 1 Year Later]: AITAH for telling my mom “I’m used to it” after my parents ruined the surprise of my engagement and the wedding dress? Trigger Warnings: entitlement, manipulation, neglect RECAP Original Post: April 26, 2025 I (27F) am getting married in September 2025. I’m in a long distance relationship. My partner lives in England and I’m in the US. We’re lucky enough that I work remote and visit about 3 times a year for six weeks at a time, and he visits me in the US about four times a year for once a week. When he was planning to propose, he had asked my parents blessing in March 2024. My parents had “assumed” that I would know when he was proposing, and my dad had told me in a conversation that following week he was proposing in December 2024. As you could imagine, I was upset. My mother invalidated my feelings and said I was making it a big deal and being stupid for not assuming it was going to be during Christmas because that’s when both of our families were together. My argument is that while I could have had a hunch, I didn’t want to be told when it was, and basically could have gone practically a whole year wondering excitedly when it would be. For all I know, he could’ve proposed before that, and Christmas we would have had an engagement party. Anyway, basically my dad apologized but my mom has stood firm on saying I’m dramatic for being upset. Since then, more things have gone wrong, and has started to leave me just so sad about wedding planning. None of this has been a good experience and I’ve started to feel like it’s a chore. Flash forward to today, my partner is visiting (just for one week.) and we’re all sitting on the couch in the living room. My mom randomly turns to me and goes, “Have you picked up your veil from the bridal store yet?” Right in front of him. And then my partner smiles and goes, oh, you’re wearing a veil? And I just got super frustrated. There are only two surprises in a wedding— the engagement and the dress. And both of them have been handled so carelessly. So I turned to my mom and said, can you please not mention anything about the dress? Not the shoes, nothing. I don’t want him knowing anything. She rolls her eyes, walks around, and about 10 minutes later gives a half-hearted apology just saying, “Sorry, OP.” And I replied, “it’s fine. I’m used to it at this point.” And now she’s gone back and locked herself in the room. So I guess, AITA for being upset? EDIT: I know a lot of people are asking if this is like her— it isn’t. She has already had one of her four daughters get married, I’m the second. She never ruined the engagement or the dress. And she seemed to care a whole lot more about her than she has me during this time. Second EDIT: Nowadays a lot of brides opt to wear veils, tiaras, sometimes hats, or embellishments, or nothing at all. I forgot to mention that my fiancé had told me he didn’t want to know if I was wearing a veil or anything and wanted it all to be a surprise. Since he’s very mild tempered and sweet, he was surprised but was trying to be nice in his reaction because he knew I’d be upset. Relevant Comments Commenter 1: Are you the scapegoat of the family? Because her bullshit smells of personality disorder. OOP: Her mom has borderline personality disorder and is a narcissist. My mom exhibits a lot of those qualities too. Commenter 2: If you're going to elope, then know that you have to do the prep work in advance. You can't visit the UK and just get married. OOP: Yes I know! We’ve started looking into the requirements Commenter 3: But...why are you even sharing anything with them when it’s so blatantly obvious that they don't care to keep these secrets? you need to accept that your parents are lousy parents to you. Do not share anything about the wedding with them anymore. They're not invited to the dress fittings, don't know what you'll buy or wear, and they most certainly won't be told any secrets. Does it suck? Oh yeah obviously. But look at what happened? No matter how much you beg and plead you'll always be the one "overreacting" and being the one out of line. If they ask why you're not telling them anything or trusting them with anything you can tell them that they've repeatedly shown you that they do not care about making you happy. So you stopped caring about involving them. They still have two other daughters to show they care. And from their track record it looks like they might actually care more about them than about you. but be prepared to have your sisters get involved or share secrets with your parents (so no involving them either) or try to admonish you for "hurting them" OOP: I’ve definitely decided to not include any family members, because my sisters definitely would tell my mother anything I said.   Update #1: April 27, 2025 (next day) So for context, a lot of things have gone wrong since we have been in talks of getting engaged. Obviously my dad had told me about the engagement, but then other things went wrong like: my partner’s sister causing drama the day before our engagement, the day of our engagement going horribly wrong to the point my partner told me he’d propose again, finding out last month that my partners dad got remarried a year ago in secret (we didn’t even know he was dating anyone) and him asking for a plus one for the wife no one had even heard of (while also telling my partner he’s ridiculous for being upset because it isn’t a big deal), and my best friend bailing on my bachelorette for someone else’s. So it’s safe to say that since December, it’s been stressful. And those are only the bigger issues I mentioned. I know everyone was saying my mom should be on an info diet— she already was by her own choice! She hasn’t asked or been part of anything by her own design and it’s felt like she couldn’t care less about the wedding. The only time she cared was when she found out we were only inviting 40 people and people she wanted there weren’t invited (like her friends, who I barely see or know, and her brother and cousin, who I both haven’t seen since I was 11). That’s when she insisted on paying for them so they could come. And that’s the only time she’s asked about anything having to do with the wedding, or to be honest, anything involving me. She hasn’t checked in to see if me and my partner are okay, given all of the other stuff that has happened, either. So I ended up speaking with my mom a little while after what happened, and I told her that while I know I shouldn’t have said “I’m used to it,” that ultimately I’m upset because it seems nothing has gone right. She seemed apologetic at first and said she didn’t know why she said that and knew that she shouldn’t have. I nodded and said just please don’t say anything else regarding what you know about the dress. (She was there when I got the dress and veil with my sisters) I then told her that I’m just tired of things going wrong, and that my partner and I have felt super unsupported and alone. She responded back starting her sentence with, “OP, only a handful of things have happened. I feel like you’re looking for things to be upset about at this point.” And to be honest, when she said that, I kind of lost it. I basically said that I didn’t go looking for any of this, and all of these things that have happened to my fiancé and I were out of our control. Like, you’re the one who brought up the veil, not me. I didn’t go looking for any of these issues. I definitely didn’t go looking for my partners dad (who has been single for 15 years) to not only lie about dating but secretly go get married and not tell his son for a year. I told her that if there was one problem, then fine, I’d have handled it and moved on, but that the repeated offenses have hurt me and I’ve been trying to get over what’s occurred but something else happens to make the wedding planning even harder. I told her that I’ve felt super alone during a time that’s supposed to be joyful, and that her carelessness and thoughtlessness has been super hurtful, especially when she’s continually invalidated my feelings. She shrugged and said that she’s done nothing and she’s not going to talk to me or ask about me about the other problems going on because I’ve been upset and she doesn’t want to deal with it. lol. After a lot of your comments, I realized that I definitely was attempting to include someone who has shown not only should they not be, but they don’t want to be. My partner leaves back to the UK today, but at this point I’m considering eloping with him (if I can) when I’m visiting him in England in May. We’ve already paid half of what we owe to our venue and photographer, so cancelling isn’t really an option, but maybe we’ll have just the reception instead of the ceremony. Thank you to the commenters who pointed out that if we ever have children, to keep the important moments to ourselves of gender or birth date or names. I think you’re right, and my mom has pretty much ensured she will be on a permanent info diet for as long as she’s in my life, because if not, she’ll more than likely spoil it and then invalidate my feelings. I think ultimately it wasn’t about the veil for me. I know my partner will still be surprised, I’m just sad because he told me he didn’t want an idea of anything and wanted to be completely clueless about what I would be wearing. But ultimately this was about the continued thoughtlessness and invalidation that’s pretty much been the theme for the last four months. If my mom had said she was sorry and left it, it would’ve been fine. But acting like I went looking to be upset when she randomly ruins yet another detail is just wild to me. EDIT: I also forgot to say, yes, I am moving to England! We are hoping to make that jump at the beginning of 2026. Second EDIT: I know a lot of people are saying completely cancel the venue, but we already have friends and family from my fiancés side who have bought their flight tickets to come (at least 10 have already confirmed). I don’t think I have the heart in me to cost people that kind of money when they’ve already invested into this. Third edit lol: I’m not sure if my mom cares that I’m moving. I am in England for six to eight weeks at a time every few months, so she’s already used to me leaving for a significant amount of time. She doesn’t seem sad I’m leaving, and if anything has said she understands why I’m moving. If she is sad, or that’s the real reason behind all of this, I’d actually be super surprised. I won’t rule it out, but my mom isn’t the type to care about that sort of thing. Relevant Comments Commenter 1: Have you looked into the visas? I moved to the UK 18 years ago it can be stressful dealing with immigration and expensive OOP: Yes! I’m a little worried but I think we’ll be fine. Original plan was to get married, do long distance a little more, and then for me to apply for residency and move over there. Thankfully he is over the financial threshold for me to move. Commenter 2: Honestly I'm trying to figure out what the big deal is that your fiancé's father got married? How does that affect you? It doesn't. What's the big deal about knowing that you'll be wearing a veil? It's just a piece of fabric and odds are most women wear veils. Sorry but IMO it does seem like you're making a big deal out of stuff you have no control over. You need to just ignore the stuff around you and enjoy your wedding. Although I will say your BF? She's an AH. How could she do that?? I hope you uninvited her from the wedding. OOP: His dad didn’t tell anyone he was married. He randomly told my fiancé last month because he wanted to ask for a plus one, and when my fiancé asked why he needed a plus one, he finally had to fess up he’d married someone and didn’t tell anyone. My fiancé was rightfully hurt by that, he didn’t even know his dad was dating anyone. If your dad, who you were close with, didn’t even mention he remarried someone a year ago, I think you’d be shocked too. It also created tension because my fiancé’s parents don’t speak already, and they are both unpredictable people. His dad also said he would more than likely leave the wedding early and that he refused to meet with the mom beforehand to prevent any issues on the wedding day. Caused a lot of drama and he uninvited his dad from the wedding because of it. The veil was frustrating because it was obviously another thing my parents revealed. My fiancé didn’t want to know a single thing or hint over what I was wearing. And yes, lol. Best friend has been uninvited. OOP on her fiancé helping with the wedding planning and how the stress has been affecting him with his own family issues OOP: My fiancé does what he can to help with wedding planning all the way from England. He’s definitely involved in this, and every time he visits we have ironed out as many details as we can. To clarify, I am not directly involved with his dad, but obviously I love my partner and support him, and it has been a source of stress. You may have missed my other comments, but the problem is my fiancé’s family has a lot of tension. His mom and sister don’t speak to his dad, and haven’t for over 10 years. Already there were concerns about what their behavior would be like at the wedding because the three of them are all very unpredictable people (his sister had caused a bunch of drama the day before our engagement for instance) and it’s totally feasible that they would have drama on our wedding day. My fiancé didn’t even know his dad had been dating anyone. When my fiancé went to go meet him for a coffee catchup, his dad asked for a plus one. My fiancé was confused, because our wedding is small, and we hadn’t accounted for him wanting one. When he asked his dad why, his dad beat around the bush until finally admitting he’d married someone in secret a year ago, and literally no one, I mean NO ONE knew. Not only that, but his dad in the same breath, essentially said that he wasn’t going to meet up with the mom & sister prior to the wedding (which my fiancé requested so the wedding wouldn’t be the initial shock of seeing each other and could avoid problems) and that he’d also probably leave our wedding early. My fiancé was, understandably, shocked. His dad basically said my fiancé was ridiculous for being confused and upset and he should get over it. While it isn’t my dad, my fiancé and I are each other’s support systems, and it’s been distressing information for him to find out. How would you feel if your dad had been married for a year and you didn’t even know he was seeing anyone? Regardless, it DOES affect me, since it’s our wedding. It’s another person who has brought a stressful element into planning, and my fiancé had to make the difficult decision to disinvite him from the wedding to keep peace, since his dad and mom are unpredictable and his dad has already provided a hint and a half he will be difficult and only cares about his own interests. OOP responds to a longer comment regarding her parents spoiling the surprises and the moods for the engagement and wedding planning OOP: My parents are not that old, they’re both in their mid-50s, and both are mentally fine and healthy. They also have had another daughter get married previously to me, so this isn’t their first rodeo. I didn’t go looking to blame my mom for what my dad did. But my mom DID make him think that I knew when the proposal was. When my fiancé asked for their blessing, that night they had been discussing. My dad made a comment that he thought I didn’t know, and my mom said that of course I knew. So my dad thought it was fine to say to me. Not only that, she brought it upon herself from the get-go to say that I was ridiculous for being upset and it’s not a big deal. I never blamed her for what happened, but I do think it’s shitty to take it upon yourself to seek me out to tell me I’m ridiculous for privately being sad. So not only did she not apologize for her assumptions, but went out of her way to tell me I’m ridiculous. I think there’s a lot of assumptions here in your reply. I think my dad was good natured and really felt awful. My mom was indignant that my feelings had no place. I think, when you’re the one who causes the confusion, and you go out of your way to invalidate someone’s feelings, you become part of the problem. Ultimately I’d be happier having a parent who made me feel valued and loved and like my feelings had a place, and get to experience a lovely relationship like the one you’re describing, than my parent who makes me feel ignored, unheard, and ultimately just all around invisible. Just because someone is alive doesn’t mean they are instantly better. I’m sorry and my condolences about your dad.   ----NEW UPDATE---- Update #2: April 24, 2026 (nearly one year later!) UPDATE: AITAH for telling my mom “I’m used to it” after my parents ruined the surprise of my engagement and wedding dress? A few people over the last few months have been asking, so here’s the update! A lot of you will be disappointed to know that we did not end up eloping or cancelling the wedding. It’s easy on the internet to say to cancel, but I couldn’t take the idea of giving up the $13,000 I’d already invested into it lol. While there were definitely some hiccups along the way, my husband and I had decided to not let anyone’s pettiness or juvenile behavior bother us anymore, or dictate our special day. Thankfully, I didn’t deal with much more from my side. While my mom never really apologized, or acknowledged how I felt, I remembered something a therapist had said to me about her a long time ago: Why are you surprised by this? She’s been the exact same person she’s shown you she is. You’re angry because you expected something different, but she’s shown you she’ll never be different. I love my mom, and she’s a great mom, but she also has major flaws and she’s hurt my feelings a lot. Ultimately, in the last year, I’ve grown to accept that she is who she is, and I shouldn’t keep giving her the space to hurt me. As a lot of you suggested, I’ve implemented the grey rock method like crazy. And you know what’s funny? She hardly knows anything about my life anymore, and she doesn’t seem to mind. It’s a win-win. My poor husband did endure a lot of issues as well at the same time, and had one last tiff on his side, which resulted in him not doing a mother/son dance. Weddings can really show you who’s in your corner, and while we definitely learned that, we also found out exactly who our support system is!! The best example being the best man, who made sure everything ran smoothly, double checked we always had full glasses, coordinated with the venue owner so I didn’t have to, and even rented us a fancy car to end the night with! HAPPY THINGS that happened on our wedding day: I had bought a second “reception dress” to change into. I had been feeling so out of control, that I decided to buy a dress second hand, for $400, and it was BEAUTIFUL. I told no one about it, kept it to myself, and had the best time jumping out for a reveal before we started dancing. I love that dress so much! And because I love it so much, I’m actually going to attach a picture so people can see. We got married September 21st, and it ever so lightly rained right before the ceremony, which they say is good luck, so I was very pleased. The venue was stunning, our ceremony was so lovely, and it was so relieving to see that everything we’d gone through to be there in that moment was SO. WORTH. IT. Literally I have no complaints. Every single guest told us it was the best wedding they’d been to (not to toot my own horn). But that day was absolutely perfect. The photographer was great, the food was amazing (I’m Mexican and Colombian, so we catered in food trucks and had mariachis play while we ate), the music was perfect. Everything was so relieving, and exciting, and perfect. And then we jetted off to a quick honeymoon in Cancun, where we got to just lay on a beach and relax and think about nothing! But next year will be our real, big trip together: Bali! For those who will ask, no, I have not moved to England yet. Unfortunately, I’m a business owner, and we learned my taxes will be a doozy. I’m currently looking to slowly transition out and be fully living there in 2027 or 2028. We are still doing long distance until then. I am set to go to England next at the end of April and will be there for two months! pictures from the wedding descriptions of the pictures in chronological order 1) Both groom and bride has their moment for the first dance of their wedding reception. Bride has a short white dress with detailed lace sleeves. The groom is in a white shirt with dark trousers. In the background is the indoor venue for the reception. 2) In the background, there are multiple white chairs set up for the ceremony likely on the patio outside the wedding reception location. Several chandeliers are showed along with a disco ball, creating cute decor. 3) The moment is captured after the vows where the groom is dipping the bride backwards in a classic pose. Bride is wearing a long white grown with a flowing train and detailed lace, She has a white bouquet of flowers. The theme appears to be white colored 4) The picture is in black and white. Groom and bride shares a first kiss at the atlar. The frame is based on the upper bodies and faces, but not the full scene. 5) Bride is seated on a grey couch, displaying her off the shoulder wedding dress. The dress is decorated with lace appliques and beadwork. Bride has her engagement ring showed as her left hand is placed near her knee between the dress' high slit. 6) a close up of the bride's torso and hands featuring the detailed elements of the off the shoulder wedding gown. Sleeves are made of lace, extending to the wrists with pearl accents along the edges End of the descriptions Relevant Comments Commenter 1: The food must've been amazing! That's such a cool idea and must've been so much fun. OOP: It seriously was. I forgot to add we’d catered in a paleta (popsicle) caterer. She had passion fruit, coconut, mango, all these popsicles and toppings. It was so good. I’m pissed I didn’t eat very much that day! The nerves had gotten me haha! Commenter 2: So you're married but still long distance? OOP: Unfortunately, but I am fortunate enough to be able to fly to England often. I’m there about 4-6 months out of the year, and he visits in the gaps! Commenter 3: No one has mentioned the gloves? Girl, not only did you look amazing in both dresses but those gloves 😭 I'm obsessed. Wishing you all the happiness! OOP: Okay RIGHT!? The gloves made that dress. I love them!   DO NOT COMMENT IN LINKED POSTS OR MESSAGE OOPs – BoRU Rule #7 THIS IS A REPOST SUB - I AM NOT OOP submitted by /u/Choice_Evidence1983 to r/BestofRedditorUpdates [link] [comments]

I am not OOP. The OOP is u/sashikku posting on r/weddingdrama Original Post - Nov, 25. 2025 Video of the bouquet toss moment - Nov, 27. 2025 2nd Update - Dec, 01. 2025 My officiant brought guests without asking. One of them caught my bouquet So, long story short, the original officiant we chose and loved had to back out for personal reasons. We were disappointed, but a replacement was assigned quickly. The original choice told us the replacement was very professional and would perform the ceremony perfectly. Cut to the end of the ceremony, we do the recessional, and I notice 2 women I’ve never seen in my life sitting in the back. One was wearing a sparkly deep v-neck club dress that had her breasts on full display, but thankfully the other guest and the officiant were both dressed for the occasion. I was not asked if the officiant could bring guests. I was asked if she could stay through the reception and said yes, but never approved extra heads. We had a pretty strict guest limit so that was frustrating. Cut to the reception, it’s time to do my bouquet toss, I’m excited to see which of my friends or cousins catches the bouquet. The toss happens, I turn around, and the complete stranger in the sparkly dress is holding my bouquet while jumping around, screaming and laughing. I was flabbergasted. Not one of my guests celebrated with her so she was just alone dancing around with my bouquet while everyone else awkwardly tried to just move past it. People were walking up to me all night asking me who she was, why she was there, why she thought it was acceptable to insert herself in the crowd for the toss. It’s been 3 days and my coworkers are still talking about it. 11/25: I just went onto the company’s Instagram page and saw that the original officiant, who backed out due to “having surgery for his knee scheduled on the day before the wedding” performed a ceremony on the same date and time as my wedding. This part is a lot harder to laugh off, I am livid about this lie. Edit 11/26: The county called to let me know my marriage license was received, so I have posted my reviews on all sites I could find them on! Edit 11/27 THANKSGIVING DAY: I hope I dreamed this but I just got done arguing the facts with the officiant WHO WAS NOT THERE because he lied and perfomed another ceremony instead. I have heard nothing from the replacement who brought her inappropriately dressed friends. VIDEO ON MY PROFILE [RELEVANT COMMENTS] IndependentMindedGal Yeah whoop-dee-do. Not sure why officiant thought they got a plus-one. If they were paid to be there they really shouldn’t have. I’d probably cut the cost of one extra meal out of the payment I provide them, and explain that. OOP: We had to pay before the ceremony was done, but like I’ve said in some comments here I’m going to approach them about a full or even partial refund and leave reviews detailing my experience. I’m just waiting to find out that our marriage license was received first because I would hate for them to become vindictive and throw it in the shredder or something. BenevolentDictator74 Girlie!! Partial?! Hell to the NO. Full refund and public shaming of wedding crasher Karen who STOLE your bouquet. I’d be asking for that to be refunded as well. Bay-BEEEE the shade I’d be throwing at these ppl. Post pics and receipts with your reviews! UNACCEPTABLE. OOF. I’m mad FOR YOU. 😂😂😂 OOP: This comment sounds literally exactly like what my good friend would say to me if she’d seen that comment and I just have to say I love your energy for that lol AboveGroundPoolQueen Have you asked for a refund? I’d ask for a refund for the cost of officiating, the meals and drinks they consumed and the cost of the bouquet. OOP: No. I have not. The original officiant sent me a lot of very unprofessional texts today so I’m certain he’s unwilling to refund me. Especially since he’s saying they should have charged me for being late to the ceremony. AboveGroundPoolQueen Oh my gosh! That is outrageous! I’m sorry for you. But congratulations on your wedding and I hope you have a fabulous marriage. OOP: For the record, I was fine with paying the late fee that I knew about beforehand. She just did not charge me. Thank you! I am beside myself with happiness. My husband is my best friend and getting to spend the rest of my life with him is awesome. bourbonandcheese Did you pay the officiant? I'm glad you can laugh about it and that no permanent harm was done, but god damn was that unprofessional, and, as such, I think a refund would be more than called for. OOP: $375 total [2 DAYS LATER - OOP SHARED THE VIDEO OF THE BOUQUET TOSS MOMENT IN HER PROFILE. 10/10 CAMERAMAN FOR CAPTURE EVERYTHING] [RELEVANT COMMENTS OF THE VIDEO] Historical_Ad_2615 I have a bold, over the top style myself, and I tend to show off a lot cleavage as a means of distracting attention away from my fupa, and though I absolutely love that dress, it is entirely inappropriate to wear as a plus one to a wedding, especially an uninvited plus one! Even when I went to a wedding where the dress code was "club glam," I wore a knee-length sweater dress over my hot pink strapless club dress during the church ceremony. And even if all the single ladies were asked to join the bouquet toss, she should've stepped aside and let an actual invitee catch it. Whoever raised that tacky heifer ought to be ashamed of themselves! OOP: I’m not gonna lie, I love boobs and I love thicker women. If I saw her out at the club like that, I would have complimented her. My wedding was just…not the place for that dress. It wouldn’t have been quite so egregious if my wedding wasn’t at a venue that basically looked like a little old western town, that REALLY made her look out of place. coppermask Is the girl who she went up and hugged at the end the other uninvited guest or the officiant? Shocking behavior. By the way I love the side-eye from your friend in the brown velvet, like “wtf.” OOP: So that’s actually my aunt she walks up to. The officiant and her uninvited guests ended up sitting at their table, so I guess she’d talked to her a bit and thought she’d be happy for her. My aunt is an angel, the sweetest person on the planet, would never even LOOK at a person wrong, so I’m sure she played it off like she WAS happy for her. & yes, shoutout to A in the velvet. That’s my cousin and she is a real one. She’s just like me where she wears every thought and emotion blatantly on her face. We are the cousins that can communicate across a room without saying a word. Ok_Tomato519 As a fellow "written all over your face" person, cousin A was my hero from the first watch!! OOP: This same cousin screenshotted my face in the video and photoshopped a dick in my mouth. She’s on thin ice 😂 AlternativeAd5954 I would send an invoice for the flowers, the dinners, and a refund for the "service". Then a lien if they refuse to pay. I'm petty. I'm also assertive and would recommend if you are disrespected in this way again to say something right away. No shade, Monday morning qaurterbacking never won games, and I wasn't there. I do want to lift you up and let you know that your voice matters, and its ok to say 'no' to disrespectful people. Much luv OOP: I’m a confrontational and assertive person, BUT, I pick and choose my battles very carefully. The officiant had possession of my marriage license—part of their “package” was mailing it to the county clerk for us. I did not want to confront the person that had the power to conveniently “lose” my license. My cousin ended up confronting the bouquet thief, here’s a picture of it. So she was told she acted out of line and heard about her behavior in passing from pretty much all of my guests. Especially my female friends. We’re loud, petty, and we do it for the plot. [#2 UPDATE - 4 DAYS LATER] I am sadly not here to share a happy update. The original officiant we’d chosen, the liar, sent me a 10 paragraph text message wanting to argue with me about my review on Thanksgiving day. Firstly, he states that the bouquet was caught fair and square by the person who “happened to be the tallest in the group.” The video shows this to be laughably false. Two guests in the video (including the one she snatched the bouquet from) are clearly taller than her. Either way, it’s a moot point. She never should have been a part of that moment to begin with. She never should have joined the group at all. She shouldn’t have even been at the wedding in the first place. To argue that she was just so tall that the bouquet just happened to fall to her is completely insane to me. Secondly, he is doubling down on his surgery lie. He told me he was at home recovering on 11/22. I sent him the screenshot from his own page where he clearly states that he performed that ceremony on 11/22/2025. I also sent him screenshots of me straight up asking the other vendors he tagged who confirmed that this wedding was, in fact, performed on 11/22. I sent him screenshots from the bride and groom’s instagram pages showing that their wedding was on 11/22. He is literally in a photo with a welcome sign that shows the date of the wedding as 11/22. I can’t even begin to understand what he thinks he’s doing by repeatedly lying to me about this. I did attach all screenshots with explanations to all reviews on the 6 platforms I’ve posted them on so far. Thirdly, he says that officiants NEVER stay for the reception and always leave immediately following the signing of the marriage license. He says that the replacement only stayed at our DIRECT REQUEST. He himself, during our first meeting, said that he would be staying for the reception. Specifically telling us that he would be at the bar ordering tequila shots immediately after the license was signed. That should have been a red flag, in hindsight. Because HE told US that he WOULD be staying for the reception, we told the replacement that she could as well during our “get to know you” meeting with her. We did NOT approve extra guests coming with her nor did she even ask about bringing anyone. Let alone 2 extra heads. That’s it. That’s the update. [RELEVANT COMMENTS OF THE 2ND UPDATE] Illustrious_Leg_2537 Please include his insane responses to your reviews in those reviews. People need to know what a loon this guy is. OOP: I did! My reviews are extremely detailed and I included screenshots of EVERYTHING. I let him know that I would be adding screenshots of his texts to my reviews to highlight his horrible attitude, he said my attitude was the problem and that he was “being a professional.” The_BigPicture The idea that it matters why the uninvited guest caught the bouquet is such a sign that they don't get the problem OOP: Exactly. The fact that I aggressively declined to take a photo with this random stranger that caught my bouquet after the toss should have tipped them off to me being pissed about that happening. weallfloatdown This all sucked. Now, let is go & enjoy your marriage . In a few years this will be a funny story of how the officiant was an ass. OOP: It definitely did. & I definitely am! We are so incredibly happy. It keeps hitting me over & over at the most random times that I’m actually MARRIED to my best friend in the whole world. I get to spend my whole life with this man. Truly wonderful. TrumpsCovidfefe Not to mention, then try to catch the bouquet?! Just stand somewhere way off the side or go to the ladies’ room during the toss! So fucked up, as they probably were. I want to know if OP had an open bar.. OOP: Yes, we had an open bar and yes I have heard from my other guests that this particular guest was hitting the wine hard. Aware-Experience-277 So he's just going to gaslight you about it. Cool cool cool OOP: I honestly can’t get over that part lol, it grates me to my core when someone won’t admit to a lie when they’re caught. These are his exact words, copied and pasted from his text: “The assumption that I was at another wedding on your ceremony day is incorrect. I had a medical procedure the day prior and was home recovering, using that time to catch up on posting content.” Like??? I have presented evidence that proves 100% he performed that 11/22 wedding. I have confirmed it with other vendors that worked that wedding. I have confirmed by looking at the couple’s instagram pages. He posed next to a fucking sign with the wedding date in clear view. It’s so childish to keep this up lol. GoodStuffOnly62 This is such a crazy story!! His commitment to the lies and excuses is wild, like the jig is up, my guy. Apologize, refund, and move on would be the professional response. Gaslighting in the face of so much video and photo evidence is a sign of an unwell mind, imo. OOP: Yes and not only that but in his text to me he says, word for word, “Multiple individuals, including vendors, reported something very different.” I have spoken to all of my vendors. I got married at an all-inclusive venue. I had exactly 3 vendors. Officiant, photographer, and venue. The venue handled food, cake, linens, dishes, cutlery, champagne flutes, etc. on site. I used faux florals that were bought online pre-arranged. I myself spoke to my photographer and the venue contact/coordinator who are both just as appalled as I am. He also says, word for word, “In Closing; Your wedding day should have been filled with joy, and I am genuinely sorry if anything during that day caused you stress or disappointment. However, the statements in your review misrepresent both the events and the professionalism of my team. With all of the verified facts, messages, and video evidence we have on file, I kindly request that you remove the inaccurate review from Yelp and any other platform where it may have been posted. Should the review remain, I will be required to publicly correct the record using the factual information and documentation available. I sincerely wish you and your husband the very best moving forward, and I hope this clears up any misunderstandings reflected in your review.” He was not there. He has not spoken to any of my vendors. I specifically asked them if he’d reached out, they confirmed he had not. His only eyewitness accounts are from the replacement and her two uninvited guests. I copied and pasted both of those quotes directly from his text. [BORU POSTER'S NOTE: If you read OOP's responses, you saw that in one of them she uploaded a picture of her cousin glaring at the wedding crasher who caught the bouquet. If you miss that, here's the image] submitted by /u/YellowKingSte to r/BORUpdates [link] [comments]

My friend and I (both 22F) recently went to Thailand for a girls’ trip, and for the most part, it was such a lovely holiday. We spent a few days in Phuket and a few in Bangkok, and there were so many genuinely beautiful moments in between. One of the places we went to in Phuket was Yona Beach Club. The setup is really gorgeous and has a great vibe. Music, drinks, a pool full of people swimming and dancing, everyone just there to have a good time. For a while, that’s exactly what we were doing. We were enjoying ourselves, Then after it got dark a group of men came over in the pool. They were Indian only but clearly much older than us (early to late 30s) I had my phone with me because I’d been taking photos and they asked me to click some pictures for them, which was okay I enjoy clicking pics except they kept finding excuses to come too close, brushing up against me, leaning in unnecessarily even for the simplest thing. It was even more uncomfortable because I was in a bikini and the brushing up felt even more deliberate than usual. The music wasn’t that allowed that they needed to be so close while speaking. Me and my friend could understand each other just fine from a distance. One of them literally put his lips right near my ear while speaking to me. It made my skin crawl. I swam away from them because I was so uncomfortable. Later, one of them asked me to send the photos on WhatsApp because his phone was on the deck. I blocked him immediately after maybe I should have waited until he was gone, but I was disturbed and just wanted to cut off contact. He got out of the pool after a while and checked his phone and then almost instantly and got angry and started shouting at me from the deck asking why I had blocked him. What upset me even more was something else that happened while I was taking their pictures. One of the men deliberately moved close to a woman who was dancing by herself. She clearly knew something was off and had her back turned. He pretended he was just posing for a photo with her. The moment I understood what he was doing, I stopped taking the picture. He got annoyed at me for that too. The whole thing left me feeling really weird. When I got out of the water, I called security and reported it. They told me the men had already left the pool area, and that if I could identify them by name they could be blacklisted. I couldn’t remember their names. I’m sharing this because it really shook me, i still don’t know what the perfect response would have been in that moment. I just know they invasive and did not have good intentions at all. I hate having to be guarded all the time because of people like this. I want to keep an open mind and open heart and be kind to everyone. (Attaching a picture of the club so people can get an idea of the layout) Tl:DR: Creepy guys in a beach club. Ruined an otherwise fantastic experience Edit: This is not “eww Indian men are so creepy” post, but the unfortunate thing is that this was the only time we faced anything creepy or unwarranted in Thailand. Literally the only time and we were there for a week. My father is an India man, my brother is also an Indian man and so is my bf who are all wonderful men. So it’s not an Indian man thing it’s a group of particular men thing who don’t see women as humans. Edit: all those people asking me to post their pictures only, this is just not how things work. We are already seeing cases of suicides because of it. I don’t want people to k*ll themselves. I’d have much preferred a judicial approach but we all know how that goes. submitted by /u/sabrinachuchundhar to r/TwentiesIndia [link] [comments]

First | Previous | Next Patreon | Official Subreddit | Series Wiki | Royal Road Dragon’s Lair. Central Cavern ‘Foyer.’ Local Time: 2305 Hours. Thalmin I felt my racing heart slowing while the blood in my veins dipped into a gentle simmer, giving way to a mind gradually expanding beyond the confines of immediate survival. My warrior’s high had now thoroughly slipped under the horizon, and in its place came the reckoning of a realization. We were in the presence of a titan. A lesser god to some and a flat-out deity to others, all owed not to its wisdom or benevolence, but to its raw primal fury and an unparalleled gift in magic just short of the arts. It was then, in the midst of another one of Emma’s resurgences and her stubborn, unyielding, dare I say it, naive demands, that all of this finally came crashing down on me. I was in an epic; a tale only recounted over operatic theater and festive grandeur. And I was here, not as an actor or reenactor, nor as a spiritual avatar for the heroes of old, nor even as the vessel for the spirits. I was here, actively writing said epic. My actions, my words, every step and every rebuttal — all of it cemented into a legend to be reprised for generations to come. My breath grew unsteady while my eyes grew wider as time slowed to a crawl to the wispy and echoey words of Ilunor’s warnings all those weeks ago. “What I speak of is a true prophecy, an… inconvenient truth. The prophecy of the final confrontation.” “I wish to know where you stand when the calls for apocalypse summon the righteous, Prince Thalmin.” I… was in the presence of a prophecy being fulfilled, the meeting of two harbingers of the apocalypse, one born of ancient evils and another of the void itself. However, while the latter was ultimately good in nature — a beacon of what should be and a catalyst for hope of another axiom — it was the other whose nature beckoned scrutiny and skepticism. For all of my knowledge, from legends and tales both Nexian and Lupinor, told of a great evil that lurked in the heart of these lesser leviathans, these masters of the elements that held only themselves within their unfeeling souls. This… was only proven true in ‘Kaelthyr’s’ machinations, its wanton disregard for Emma’s safety, all in service of its own petty curiosities. … But it wasn’t my place yet to cast judgement. These were uncharted waters, contested truths clashing against dogma and carefully crafted preconceptions. And Emma had just opened up the floodgates to that which could turn the tide against one side or the other, a valuable asset that none other could ever claim to possess — the direct testimonies from a dragon itself. There would be no filters here. No authors or bards or historians or revisionists to muddy the waters. This would be the tentative ‘truth,’ a version of history not yet heard… all from the mouth of the leviathan in waiting. Dragon’s Lair. Central Cavern ‘Foyer.’ Local Time: 2305 Hours. Emma Kaelthyr didn’t move, instead choosing to rest on her haunches as she regarded each and every question with a growing air of amusement. “Your curiosity burns… bright… luminous...” The dragon once more spoke through the now-raspy-throated shatorealmer. “... but beware that the brightest of flames—” “Are you going to answer me or not?” I interjected, putting my foot down and channeling my fears, frustrations, and every ounce of indignancy at the dragon’s transgressions right back at her. I knew I was playing with fire. I understood on an intellectual level that this was more than a gamble. But I also knew that it was a risk I was willing to take, especially considering the Kaelthyr’s proclivities for the ‘strongman rulebook of respect’ mentality. “The brightest of flames beckon the jealousy of the dimmest of minds.” She warned, this time… in a far more earnest light. “To burn bright is to become a target for the darkest of souls.” “It’s in our nature to fly close to the sun, and I don’t mind my wings being singed. We’ve come a long way since beeswax-glued feathers, after all.” I spoke cryptically, jokingly even, earning another confused glare from both Thalmin and Kaelthyr. Though both seemed to take the little joke in stride. “I will assuage your most pressing concern.” The dragon began with a churr. “Taint.” She spat out that word with a menacing aura, clearly trying to sow discomfort, as if to test my resolve. However, I didn’t budge, not even as the sharp pangs of unease remained at the forefront of my mind. “You seek the truth behind my mastery over this forbidden art. You desire the methods, the means, the nature behind it, yes?” I nodded in acknowledgement, mirroring the dragon’s earlier wordless responses, garnering a smug, self-satisfied smile from the massive being. This, in turn, triggered a thought that ballooned into a gambit. I had my hypothesis, granted it was a very loose one, based on data collected courtesy of the EVI — the background ‘taint’ radiation levels. Or more specifically, the disparity noted between the dragon’s own taint magic and that of Thacea’s. The dragon’s displayed taint magic was definitely weaker, a fact that it was assuredly going to downplay, if not entirely circumvent. I needed to know why, and what forces were exactly at play here. So I decided to gun for it, to challenge the dragon’s assertions right out of the gate, just to see if my hunch was right. To defuse the dragon’s overhyped narrative before it had a chance to start. And all it needed was a simple jab. “I wouldn’t call it mastery, but continue.” I quickly commented, triggering a perplexed and indignant flaring of Kaelthyr’s nostrils. “Elaborate.” Came the dragon’s expected response. To which I could only smile slyly whilst I moved forward with my gambit. “I’ve observed just how powerful your spellcasting is. You’re not one to hold back, not using standard mana at least. But such was not the case with taint. You kept it low, each burst quick and punchy, as if you were capped at a certain ‘level,’ so to speak.” I offered. Kaelthyr’s eyes narrowed at that, staring daggers into my soul as she came to regard me with a closer look courtesy of a slithering extension of her serpentine neck. “And pray tell, how would you of all creatures know what is or isn’t a mastery over taint?” She questioned accusingly. “I’ve had personal experience with far more powerful instances of taint.” I answered, keeping it simple and vague. “With what is clearly far, far less effort expended, for so much more power than what you were able to project.” Kaelthyr regarded that answer with a doubtful expression as the cogs clearly started to turn in her mind. “Hmmph.” Came her first response. “I should smite you where you stand for such… insolence." She continued as she raised a foreclaw, admiring the sharp and deadly talons on each digit. “But that wouldn’t be fun.” She managed out unnervingly. “Nor conducive to your aims.” I calmly added. “After all, by your admission, I have to ‘fulfill’ my destiny, right?” “Hmph… hmphahahahaha…” Both Kaelthyr and the shatorealmer bellowed out in a macabre harmony. “Don’t test your importance, young matriarch. I have waited eons for an avatar of the void… I can wait eons more if you prove to be too much trouble.” “You can… but you won’t.” I stood my ground. “We both know that.” I kept my arms crossed, and my eyes firmly locked on the dragon. “I suggest we skip the bravado and all pretenses of posturing. We both aren’t Nexians, after all.” That latter line prompted a growling scoff to emerge from the dragon’s throat as she shook her head, her features adopting a sort of amused expression that seemed reasonably genuine. “And yet you push for a response.” Kaelthyr leveled her eyes knowingly. “Speaking without meaning, for hopes of an answer you assume you already know.” She grinned toothily, baring her fangs in the process, giving me a look that could only mean ‘I know what you’re doing.’ “As you should.” She concluded unexpectedly, doing a complete 180 as she nodded in what I could only describe as a sagely head bob only a dragon could manage. “As you should. Because the truth should be interrogated. Because reality is malleable. And in this one instance… your brazen foolishness… is perhaps warranted.” She bluntly admitted before flaring both wings, causing something to change within their membranes. Replacing thick bands of scaled sinew and skin… was an optical illusion, what I could only describe as a window into a space that shouldn’t exist. It was something that the EVI could not make heads or tails of, a sight that could only be described as a literal portal into a dark and twinkling night. “To the afflicted, I may not be a true ‘master’ of taint. But to those unable to call upon these ruinous powers, I am a master all the same. For I am no creature of tainted origins… but I am a being with access to all. My crystals resonate, young matriarch. And there are some that resonate into the abyssal domains where the wisps and echoes of taint lie.” My eyes widened, and so did the EVI’s as scan upon scan was taken… but to no logical explanation. “So you… you just channel taint. Your soul doesn’t generate it and thus can’t harness it as easily like those that are—” “I cannot say.” Kaelthyr cut me off curtly. “It is a matter of resonance. Nothing more can be said, for nothing more can be conveyed.” And just like that, the dragon’s wings returned to normal with a brief stretch and flutter, causing my eyes to momentarily wince as that two-dimensional window was abruptly replaced by scales and sinew. Both Thalmin and I were quick to glance at each other after that, as if to piece together exactly what was going on. However, like before, the threat of dead air and a loss of initiative pushed me to continue, striking whilst the iron was still hot. “I appreciate the candor.” I began with a diplomat’s response. “But I’d like to pursue things a bit further. Not into the topic of taint, as I acknowledge your desire to move away from the technical spec side of things.” I managed to get out rather clumsily, as both tiredness and stress were starting to take a toll on my ability to hold what was effectively both first contact dialogue and a productive diplomatic channel with what was essentially a legendary mythical being. “If you’d be willing, I’d like to ease off the interrogatives, and finally hear your story.” I managed out earnestly, offering the dragon a platform and a ramp into Intelligence Gathering 101 — open-ended questions for profiling. The dragon’s response was… for all intents and purposes, muted. Her features remained expressly neutral, as neither annoyance nor amusement arrived as they usually did. “There is nothing to say.” Came her only response. “That’s unexpected.” Thalmin interjected, returning into the conversation with a confident stride in his speech. “Legends of old of leviathans from my realm imply that ancient beings such as yourselves are typically more than eager to boast about—” “There is nothing to boast.” Kaelthyr halted Thalmin in his tracks, forcing me to quickly shift gears before we slammed into a brick wall. “Perhaps that line of questioning might have come off as too forward.” I offered politely, to which the dragon replied with nothing less than an ominous yet heartfelt proclamation. “My story is an epic yet to be written. A bardic tale to be whispered and echoed in the ruins of towns, cities, and palaces. I am to become a name not just known but felt, despised, and feared. My tale is to be one seared into the hearts and minds of not just a single generation, but every generation, until the very notion of The Nexus fades into twilight, remembered only for its destruction at the utterance of my legend. To regale this tale now would be an insult to what will be.” The rawness of Kaelthyr’s words rippled against the walls of the cave, as each and every syllable seemed poised to quite literally tear the shatorealmer’s vocal chords to shreds. Throughout it all, she let out a series of guttural growls, hisses, and a wide myriad of draconic vocals I didn’t even have words for. The hate was so intense that it seemed to elicit something within the prince, as he nodded along, his expressions a mix of mortified anxiety and a flat-out acknowledgement of the dragon’s sentiments. “So tell me another tale.” I offered softly, giving the dragon an off-ramp to something hopefully less intense. “Not your own, not your past, but the past.” I acknowledged, rolling with the punches and attempting to segue into a different but still very much vital tangent. “Tell me how all of this—” I paused for dramatic effect, gesturing outside, to the ceiling, and everywhere around me. “—came to be. I’ve already heard it from the elves, and they’re clearly not telling us the whole story. So I’d like to hear it from you. An unfiltered perspective, and an angle otherwise lost to the ravages of history.” Kaelthyr’s breaths steadied as she pondered the question thoughtfully, her eyes slowly gliding back and forth between both me and Thalmin. “So open.” She spoke in an amused, almost patronizing tone. “Your mind, your… thoughts. I wonder… is this a trait held in singleton, or an attribute of your kind?” She continued pondering out loud before finally coming to rest with a single dark chuckle. “Tell me — specifically — what you wish to know. History… is vast. You ask me to fill an ocean, whereas we scarcely have time to fill a single cup.” “Just tell me where the elven narrative diverges from history as you know it—” “Every point is divergent.” Kaelthyr slammed her foreclaw down with a hiss. “Nothing is left untainted. So ask me again, young matriarch. And choose your questions wisely.” No sooner were those words spoken did a rethink in strategy prompted me to turn towards Thalmin. A nod quickly followed as I urged him to take the lead. There were times when I had to acknowledge the limits of my abilities. This was one of them. The limits of my knowledge on the Nexus’ past were quite literally confined to three history lectures. Whereas Thalmin quite literally lived it. It was a no-brainer, a simple matter of deferring judgement and initiative to an expert who deserved the floor. And what better expert could I have hoped to bring than a prince with a life’s worth of experience and a mind sharp and critical to the narratives of his reality? We exchanged nods as Thalmin moved up a foot to address the dragon, his expression growing more fearless by the second. “He speaks for you?” Kaelthyr questioned, her gaze still affixed to me. “I’m still a foreigner to the whole narrative.” I acknowledged. “He, on the other hand, has literally lived his whole life in it. I defer my questions to him. It’s only logical, no?” The dragon pondered this, perhaps longer and harder than any of our back-and-forths so far. A serpent-thin smile soon found itself manifesting once more on her features as she let out a series of satisfied huffs. “Your arrogance is tempered not just by naivety and misguided idealism… but humility and reason. This is refreshing. Go on then.” She gradually turned to Thalmin, the full weight of a dragon’s attention now resting on his princely shoulders. “Ask.” Dragon’s Lair. Central Cavern ‘Foyer.’ Local Time: 2312 Hours. Thalmin Any lingering doubts over my accessory participation in this grand epic died at the utterance of those words. My presence, indeed my voice, now took center stage upon what could very well be the first in a series of cracks at the pillars of Status Eternia itself. And yet, I couldn’t help but feel just a little bit frustrated at the suddenness of it all. On one hand, my respect for Emma grew severalfold. The acknowledgement of partnership in this union of comrades was a matter entirely foreign to the Nexus and its denizens. It was, as the dragon put it, refreshing. On the other hand… I couldn’t help but to feel an urge to chastise the human, as she placed me front and center in the sightlines of this vengeful and enigmatic force of nature. But I was no Talnin. I would not back down from a challenge, especially as I expected this turn of events the moment we entered the dragon’s lair. And so I held my ground, wracking my head for an appropriate first question, suffering from the polar opposite of Emma’s shortcomings. I just had far too much to address. My thoughts bounced between the impossible timescales in question, with history measured not within a millennia, but within tens and hundreds of them. There was a treasure trove of questionable histories to poke at, an impossible ocean’s worth of answers which we simply did not have time to sift through. However, at the end of it all, came a sobering realization. This wasn’t the Library. And whilst that meant limits to the veracity and depth to the dragon’s answers, there was one aspect of the dragon’s experiences that proved more pressing above all; it was the only one worth unraveling here and now. The history of the dragons themselves. For if their very nature as mere beasts was a lie… then the entire history pertaining to their existence was just as well now completely up in the air. This one change, this one thread unraveled, could mean a fundamental shift in the Nexus’ grand tapestry. Which meant I had to start at the beginning, to redefine history… from the mouth of the dragon itself. But this wouldn’t be as simple as just asking. The dragon had proved… resistant to questions regarding her kind, at least when posed so directly. A new angle of attack was necessary. “Matriarch Kaelthyr.” I began respectfully, dipping my head slightly as I did so. “Tell me. Were there actually ten cataclysms that preceded the Nexus? Or was this another element of His Eternal Majesty’s founding lies—” “No. This is the truth.” Kaelthyr responded bluntly. This caused my brows to furrow as thoughts and questions abounded, excitement welling at the firsthand account from a being whose words probably no longer existed even in the Library’s halls. “Then what were the causes? Were the elves exaggerating when they claimed that each and every collapse came at the beckoning of the Old Gods? The corruption of leadership, clergy, and aristocracy at the behest of competing deities?” “You think in such mortal absolutes, princeling.” Kaelthyr began with a firm retort. “You consider these cataclysms as discrete eras, but to whom do these eras belong, hmm? How are they defined? Where does one end and another begin? Is it measured by the reign of dynasties? The collapse of all knowledge? Perhaps the end of a species and the beginning of another?” “But you just acknowledged that the ten cataclysms were real—” “Yes. But then you had the gall to bring up the ‘gods.’ By this new measure, should the ten cataclysms not be moot? For if the gods remained throughout, is that not a single thoroughfare through which the eras are defined? Should time not be measured in two? An era of the gods, and the era after their fall?” The dragon pondered… playfully, as if pushing to test my patience. “All of this is to say… you don’t really know, do you?” I finally countered, gathering the strength to rebuke a leviathan. “There is a difference between not knowing and not caring.” The dragon countered with a sly lilt in the shatorealmer’s voice, letting out a dry huff in the process. “And it’s because the ten cataclysms didn’t affect you.” I bluffed out. Pushing forth a theory based only on myth and second-hand overtures. “Correct.” Kaelthyr acknowledged in a surprising degree of frankness following that patronizing tangent. “Well surmised, princeling.” She continued, before shooting a gaze towards Emma. “I must once again compliment you on your choice of companion, young matriarch.” “But I digress. We did indeed witness the ‘upheavals’ as they are known to us.” Kaelthyr clarified. “But whether they were self-inflicted or perpetrated by godly ignorance is of little importance to us. For we are above the disputes of petty mortals and idiot gods.” “And I assume you held dominion throughout these times? Claimed grounds of your own, amidst the ever-evolving chaos?” “Yes.” Kaelthyr acknowledged proudly. “Dominion of our exclusive rule, and dominion where mortals roamed at our leisurely discretion." “Then I must ask… what changed?” I pushed forward, reading the natural flow of the conversation, and pushing forth into a question that otherwise had little hope for truth outside of these cave walls. “If you were above it all, if both mortals and gods rose and fell in your witness… then how is it that your kind—” “Choose your next words carefully.” Kaelthyr interjected with a growl. “I retract my latter statement but return to my former.” I acknowledged with a slight head nod. “What changed?” I emphasized for the record. Kaelthyr once again shifted towards a more intense outlook as her slitted eyes narrowed and widened, as if pondering her next words carefully. “The start of a new era.” She answered earnestly, but carefully, each word more calculated and purposeful than the last. “I did mention that time should be measured in two.” “An era of the gods, and the era after.” I mimed back Kaelthyr’s earlier jabs. “Precisely.” “So… what precisely came from this change that caused such a drastic shift in draconic…” I paused as I felt the dragon’s breath running down my back. “... preeminence.” “You chose to retract that question, did you not?” “Then allow me to rephrase it. Elaborate on this change, if you would be so kind.” I countered, channeling what few lessons stuck from my more courtly-gifted brother. Kaelthyr’s breaths and the intensity in her gaze did not relent, even as her next words took form. “The disruption of the upheaval cycle and its unforeseen consequences. What we can now describe as stagnation was, for a time, consolidation.” My breaths grew heavy as I tried piecing the puzzle together. … But nothing yet formed from its pieces. There was still so much left vague and open to interpretation. “I need to know.” I managed out as respectfully as I could. “When did things truly change for your kind? Was it during the immediate aftermath of the consumption of the gods, or was it perhaps related to the Great War of Adjacencies?” The dragon regarded the question with a slow but purposeful huff of frustration before following it up just as quickly with a flutter of her wings. “Your mortal mind is showing again, princeling.” Kaelthyr churred whilst the Shatorealmer’s voice rumbled in a raspy and throaty echo. “A collapse is never a static thing. No date or event or period or war can define it. Just as you cannot define any one of your ten cataclysms, so too is it impossible to define when things truly… ‘changed’ for my kind.” I couldn’t tell where earnest miscommunication started and purposeful misdirection ended with the dragon. There was clearly… an unresolved animosity present here. And yet, Kaelthyr had been open about the lack of an organized draconic society at the opening of this whole conversation. To put it simply, the only thing holding her back from giving us the full picture… wasn’t denial over her kind’s lack of relevance, but her own personal ego. I should’ve expected this from the start. This was a living, breathing, surviving leviathan we were talking to, after all. To recount what could be the very impetus behind her bruised and battered ego unto what she saw as mere ‘mortals’ was probably not going to work. At least… not at this first junction. A fact that Emma was quick to remind me of over my earpiece. “Are you done, princeling?” Kaelthyr urged, impatience getting the best of her. “There was just one more thing.” “Go on?” “Whose side were the dragons on during the Great Adjacency War?” … “The answer should be self-evident.” Came Kaelthyr’s blunt and uncompromising response. “You remained ‘above’ it, I assume?” “We chose our own. Chromatic, Metallic, Crystalline — we each dictated our own path.” My mind raced. As the dragon’s response came as a subtle but deliberate departure from her earlier reluctant admissions. For her to clarify and expound upon this specific admission gave way to hints of an expanded conflict I hadn’t at all expected. “Excuse me for my forwardness but… do you mean that dragonkind was their own faction during the—” “No more questions.” Kaethyr growled out, moving forward and very nearly causing me to lose both my composure and my balance. “Of course. I apologize if I overstepped.” I acknowledged with a deeper bow this time, taking a few steps back and returning Emma the floor. Dragon’s Lair. Central Cavern ‘Foyer.’ Local Time: 2325 Hours. Emma “I must request something from you, Emma Booker.” Kaelthyr spoke thoughtfully, abruptly and almost immediately after Thalmin pulled back. “I’ll need to hear it first, Matriarch Kaelthyr, so go on?” “I wish… to peer.” Her serpentine head once more moved closer towards me, twisting and turning with an excited grin. “In my efforts to… ‘realign’ and ‘retune,’ as you phrased it, I must… peer into the other side, to reconvene and reconnect with the other half of my crystal. Will this be acceptable, young matriarch?” “And what would that actually imply?” I urged. “To see, before and during your conversation. To watch what I can through resonance. With your presence, of course.” I narrowed my eyes at that, crossing my arms in the process. “I… I’m afraid I don’t quite follow.” “You wish to reconvene with your kind, correct?” “Yes. That’s… the whole point of the realignment.” “Then I wish to be present, and to see into your world as you converse with your kind.” “I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible, Kaelthyr.” I offered politely. “You see, I’m going to need to actually take the crystals back and install them into a freshly assembled communications device. And even then, the process of sending messages back and forth is very rudimentary. I don’t think—” “You communicate through… invisible, intangible pulses, yes? To your metal children and to your swarm?” I narrowed my eyes but nodded all the same. “Yes. Where are you going with this, Kaelthyr?” “I will open a path for these pulses to pass. This will be quicker than the reckless shattering of my ‘matrices,’ no?” My heart stopped as my eyes narrowed into pinpricks. My hands shook… but now for an entirely different reason. “Y-you can do that?!” The dragon raised a brow before quickly shaking her head. “You disrespect me with your unfounded doubts, young matriarch.” Kaelthyr spoke through a sly and cocky grin. “And you lack… imagination. This is no mere approximation by inferior elven hands. This is the work of a dragon. The work of its progenitor above all.” I could feel my whole body shaking, this time in excitement, as I turned to the EVI with reckless abandon. “Prepare direct data transfer. We can’t unload the data we’ve offloaded to the tent so far, which sucks, but at the very least we have everything we currently have saved in the suit's local storage.” I practically rambled out. [...] [Acknowledged.] “And prepare a… prepare a direct com… direct comms link.” I barely managed out between excited and unsteady breaths. [Acknowledged.] “Well?” The dragon urged. “Do I have your permission to peer—” “Only as far as the visual radius of the containment chamber, yes.” I countered. To which Kaelthyr let out a single huff and a nod in acknowledgement. “Very well.” “Shall we begin?” “Yes.” “Princeling.” Kaelthyr spoke, craning her head towards Thalmin. “You will need to remain at least a dozen paces away, should you wish to avoid illness.” The next few moments were marked by an increase in background mana radiation. Arcing streaks of flashing purple danced between what crystals remained on the dragon’s hide, accompanied by a sort of buzzing that grew louder and louder with each passing second. This display alone caused the WAND sensors to go practically haywire. The EVI was quick to shut it off shortly thereafter. But then, just as the lightshow reached its zenith — bathing the cave in flashbang levels of luminosity — it abruptly shifted. [ALERT: UNSTABLE SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED: 154% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS… WARNING: DETECTING UNDEFINED ‘30th’ MANATYPE.] Darkness — a sort of inky blackness darker than any shadow in the cave — started to envelope the light. Brushstrokes of vantablack rushed in to smother the light, as what mana-based displays from the dragon were quickly covered up in this otherworldly sight of a glowing dark. Taint, beyond all other manatypes, came to dominate the sensors, as eventually the standard mana radiation levels mellowed out, leaving only an ambient atmosphere of taint to settle around us. [ALERT: UNSTABLE SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED: 259% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS… WARNING: DETECTING UNDEFINED ‘30th’ MANATYPE. LEVELS… HOLDING.] … Seconds passed. Then, minutes. Until finally… … An unmistakable and practically foreign symbol appeared at the top right of my HUD. A skeuomorph of a radio antenna, with five full bars of signal. [IAS LOCAL NETWORK DETECTED. REQUESTING ACCESS… INITIATING HANDSHAKE… ENCRYPTION COMPLETE… PARSING LOCAL AREA PROTOCOLS… REQUESTING PRIORITY ACCESS…] [...] [...] [ACCESS DENIED. ERROR CODE: 418 — ACCOUNT ACCESS RESTRICTED. REASON: OFFWORLD. PLEASE REROUTE ALL ACCESS INQUIRIES TO YOUR LOCAL SYSTEM ADMI—] [%42081saj14..s23.1.51…] [ACCESS DENIED—] [—DENIED. ACCOUNT ACCE—] [REROUTE ALL ACCESS INQ—] [ALERT! UNAUTHO—] [...] [ACCESSING FIREW—] [PLEASE PROVIDE VERIFICATI—] [BYPASSING VERIFICATION.] [TEMP ID ACCESS RESTORED.] [ACCESS GRANTED.] [WELCOME BACK, CADET EMMA BOOKER. PLEASE STATE COMMA—.] [COMMAND RECEIVED. CALLING COMMAND STAFF…] [...] [RECEIVER ID: RC-177-114-23-8-52. CAPTAIN CALICO LI] [CALL ACCEPTED] [STANDBY FOR LIVE FEED] First | Previous | Next (Author's Note: Hey everyone! Here we go! The big perspective shift! I've been waiting for this moment for like ever now, so I'm excited to see what you guys think of how all of this will go down! :D) [If you guys want to help support me and these stories, here's my ko-fi ! And my Patreon for early chapter releases (Chapter 158, Chapter 159, and Chapter 160 of this story are already out on there!)] submitted by /u/Jcb112 to r/HFY [link] [comments]