.:Current Events:.

Saturday, July 9th, 2016
Workplace
Semi-comfy chair

I can keep up with my profile, I said... it'll be a piece of cake, I said...

oQo

.:Quick Info:.

Nickname: DL or Dragon
Occupation: Part-time mortal, full-time mythical beast

-Stories Currently Completed:-

Animorphs:
"Once a Boy"

The Black Magician Trilogy:
"Guard Duty," "Stay"

Fire Emblem:
"tremble," "Bunny Feet," "husk,"
"Just wait for to get a little taller, okay?"

Guardians of Childhood/Rise of the Guardians:
"the boogeyman's joy," "Midnight: Christmas Special"

Harry Potter:
"Pawn," "toxic," "too scary"

Neopets:
"The Darigan Eyrie"

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney:
"It Isn't Stupid," "Settling In," "Keep Her Safe"

Pokemon:
"Coming Home," "Go Look It Up!," "His Fear,"
"Hope in Dreams," "I, the Original," "In a Perfectly Imperfect World,"
"It Sucks to be a Regi," "My Prince," "New Year,"
"Ninjas, Psychos, and Juggling Iron Thorns," "Nobody Likes a Ball," "Picking Seats,"
"Responsibility," "Small Doses," "Stupidity," "Through a Meowth's Eyes,"
"Chief," "Correspondence," "waves"

Sonic the Hedgehog:
"A Kind Heart, But An Evil Roommate," "No Time Left," "The Chosen One, How I Can Relate,"
"The Modified Shadow the Hedgehog Game"

Crossovers:
"AI IM"

-Stories Currently in Progress (released and unreleased):-

Avengers (movie canon)
"On the Job"

Fire Emblem:
"Just wait for me to get a little taller... okay?"

Guardians of Childhood/Rise of the Guardians:
"The Dragon Child," "the dragon child: snippets," "into the abyss"

Harry Potter:
"Draconem non est fabula"

Pokemon:
"Just to Satisfy," "Legendaries Need Love, Too: Literature Collection"

-Stories Currently on Hold:-

Harry Potter:
"Pawn"

Pokemon:
"Distortion," "DL and Legendary Friends," "Hearts of Gold," "Legends Have No Contest,"
"Life at the Legendary Muses Mansion," "Perfection of Thought," "When the World is Bored"

Rune Factory 2:
"Determination"

inFAMOUS:
"Reepurz"

Naruto:
"The Talk With a Stalker"

Neopets:
"Snake's Eyes"

Sonic the Hedgehog:
"A New Dawn," "Just Your Regular Daily Chaos,"
"The Fallen and the Broken," "The Perfect Harmony of Hearts"

-Stories Currently Discontinued:-

Crossover:
"Accepting What Isn't Originally Pokemon," "DLive"

Fossil Fighters
"Dinosaurs are Awesome"

Inuyasha:
"Silent Tears"

Naruto:
"Sharingan High"

Pokemon:
"Amber Eyes," "Searching for Forgiveness"

Savage Skies:
"Brutal Skies"

Sonic the Hedgehog
"A Lovely Chat," "The Chao Chronicles 1: The Supernovas," "The Desert Phoenix"

Warriors:
"Dawn's Arrival"

oQo

ATTENTION, WRITERS!

A long time ago, I thought of a writing challenge, called Challenge of the Heart, where you take your favorite pairing, separate the characters and pair them up with different people. The idea was that, if you really loved the characters enough, you could try putting them into different pairings and writing them out, perhaps even finding a new pairing to love.

Now, I'm finally spreading the word on this challenge. CotH is something that should be fun and invigorating for any avid fanatic of any fandom, from Pokemon to Harry Potter to Bleach to who knows what else! There are no restrictions or rules for this, other than the guideline that you're writing two new pairings from the separation of your favorite couple. So, go nuts!

Awards I've Received

Legendary Muses Forums 2010 Awards Night

I was nominated for "Best Overall Writer"
"Small Doses" was awarded "Best Dialogue"
"Small Doses" was also in the running for "Best Overall Fic"

oQo

I really need to keep better track of my profile here. *ahem*

oQo

Categories I currently love to write for:

Avengers/Marvel (movie canon)
Fire Emblem (Awakening specifically)
Guardians of Childhood/Rise of the Guardians
Harry Potter
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Undertale

Categories I currently love to read:

Avengers/Marvel
Fire Emblem (Awakening specifically)
Inuyasha
Harry Potter
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Undertale

oQo

Future Ideas

Fire Emblem:

Title: You are not alone

Estimated Length: Long chaptered-fic (like, really guys, strap yourselves in for a long ride, it has about 60k words atm and I still have plenty of plot to make happen)

Genre: Adventure, Friendship, Humor, Romance, Drama, etc.

'Verse: Awakening

Characters: Maygen (OC), Lon'qu, M!Robin, Chrom, Basilio, Flavia, other OCs, etc.

Summary: The Mad King has been defeated, and Ylisseans can finally relax. Or they would, if Robin wasn't so sure there was a bigger plot behind it all. And then he asks a favor of Maygen that will place her within the twenty-yard "no women" buffer zone around Lon'qu. Wasn't the adventure supposed to end with the war?

Excerpt:

"You want me to... train with him?"

Nodding, Chrom beamed at her with a clap of the shoulder. "Lon'qu is a skilled warrior, but this one weakness threatens his everyday life. Sure, he can stomach it when adrenaline's pumping through his veins, but how's he going to get through dinner if he can't even ask a friend to pass the salt unless they're a man?"

"You have a point..." Still, she wasn't sure how her presence was going to help, or at least anymore so than any other female Shepherd would.

Seeing her doubt, Robin added logically, "It's a productive way to spend your time as we wait for the citizens of both countries to settle down and be willing to listen to well-meaning people like you. Helping him conquer this fear will in turn give him more options to help others--and after all of our struggling, I think we'll need all of the help we can get."

Maygen sighed, adjusting her cloak. "You didn't need to tag-team to convince me," she muttered, gaze on their feet. "I'll do it, just... um, have you asked him about this?"

The tactician grinned. "We were just on our way to do that. Care to join?"

"Um--what?"

o

Title: The Shepherd's Pie

Estimated Length: Undetermined, collection of semi-related oneshots

Genre: Humor, Friendship, Romance, Drama

'Verse: Awakening (Alternate Universe, modern)

Characters: Chrom, F!Robin, Frederick, Lissa, etc.

Summary: Waking up without your name is terrifying. Thankfully, good-hearted people were always willing to help others.

Excerpt:

Trying to get him to understand, her gesture to encompass how complete her amnesia was suddenly prompted the blonde to scream. The men jumped, the stranger faltered, and Frederick immediately stepped between them, shouting, "What is it, Lissa?"

"Blood!"

Something had been trickling down her neck for the past minute, but she had placed it on the bottom of her list of priorities until that word had brought it to the fore. She glanced at the palm she had brought to her head and frowned at the red liquid smeared across it. "Oh," she said simply.

That was when her legs decided to give out on her.

o

Title: Special Homeland Espionage and Protection (subject to change)

Estimated Length: Long chaptered fic

Genre: Action, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Angst, Romance, etc.

'Verse: Awakening (Alternate Universe, modern, secret agent fic)

Characters: Maygen (OC), Stahl, Frederick, Phila, Chrom, Lon'qu, Basilio, Aversa, Emmeryn, M!Robin, OCs, etc.

Summary: In the bustling city of Ylisstol, crime is running rampant, and the international terrorist organization GRIMA has been plotting something nasty for years. It is up to the dead and the forgotten to defend the citizens, and the world, against such an elusive yet potent threat.

Excerpt:

"This must be important, if you're willing to part with someone so valuable even for a time."

Phila gave a light squeeze before releasing Maygen's shoulder.

"Of course. GRIMA is involved."

A moment of silence was observed.

Despite Frederick's training, she let the name summon tension into her fists.

Gradually, Basilio turned in his seat to examine his own man. "So! What do you think? Up for the job?" The agents waited for his answer.

His features weren't friendly, eyebrows furrowing as his lips drew up for a scowl. The reluctance was practically screaming for him to be dismissed. An unspoken message passed between the men. In the end, he gave a faint huff.

"I follow your orders, sir."

o

Title: Gangrel the Ylissean (subject to change)

Estimated Length: Long chaptered fic

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, etc.

'Verse: Awakening (semi-related to fics "husk" and "How Prides Goes")

Characters: Gangrel, Gaius, Emmeryn, Chrom, Lissa, OCs, etc.

Summary: After war has decimated both nations, young Gangrel decides to hop the border into Ylissean lands and see what havoc he can wreak as a petty thief. Growing up in a nation he despises, and surrounded by people he should hate as a result, the gods see fit to throw obstacles in his path--not the least of which is his own neglected conscience.

Excerpt: N/A

o

Title: Oh, Brother

Estimated Length: Long chaptered fic

Genre: Humor, Friendship, Family, Hurt/Comfort, etc.

'Verse: Awakening (Alternate Universe, modern, college setting)

Characters: Maygen (OC), Gangrel, Chrom, Aversa, F!Robin, etc.

Summary: Going to college is bad enough, when you're not exactly the best student. It doesn't help when you have a guy like Gangrel as your dorm buddy. But he and Maygen go way back, so she's almost obligated. He could at least TRY not being an insufferable jerk, though.

Excerpt:

He grinned as he caught sight of someone entering the cafeteria. "There's my girlfriend. Beautiful woman. Curves in all the right places... do you see her--"

His words became a gurgle. The brunette had grabbed his chin to force his head back, pretending to choke him so he'd stop talking.

"Don't be crude, Gangrene," she muttered. The other women snickered as he forced her away with colorful insults. "Focus on your girlfriend's notes for a change, since you refuse to take any yourself."

o

Title: Feroxi High (subject to change)

Estimated Length: Short chaptered fic

Genre: Romance, Humor, Drama, Friendship, etc.

'Verse: Awakening (Alternate Universe, modern, high school setting)

Characters: Mainly Feroxi OCs, Maygen (OC), Lon'qu, Olivia, Gregor, etc. Later Ylisseans and Plegians make an appearance.

Summary: Senior year, and Zhent is prepared to coast on his good grades for a relaxing end to his pre-college education--no drama, whether it be from classwork or relationships. But then a girl transfers into Feroxi High, and his careful planning comes crashing down around him. His friends aren't any help, predictably. "For the last time, I'm not interested in her!"

Excerpt:

Sinking into his assigned seat in first period, [Zhent] couldn't help the relieved sigh that escaped him. Just one more year to go and he'd be through with high school, off to college and moving on with his life.

These last two semesters were going to be different.

One week in, a new student transferred to Feroxi High.

o

Pokemon:

Title: Watch Me Disappear

Estimated Length: 4-5 chapters

Genre: Romance, Drama, generally emotionally- and inner-conflict-driven stuff (not exactly Angst, maybe Hurt/Comfort)

'Verse: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky

Characters: Skuntank, Koffing, Zubat, Hero (Terris the turtwig), Partner (Gideon the cyndaquil), Grovyle, etc.

Summary: Skuntank's point-of-view is turned inside-out after a chance meeting at Sharpedo Bluff.

Excerpt: Suddenly, Skuntank felt out of the loop, and that was never a pleasant feeling for him. I want to know where these two have been . . . who this guy is . . . and why they’re hiding now. And then, I’ll expose them to the world! Who knew what nasty secrets these three could be hiding? Sneaking around town, probably stealing supplies and gossip from unsuspecting citizens . . . how ironically Skull-like. It had to be something juicy. Chaw to the haw-haw.

o

Title: (in progress)

Estimated Length: 100 chapters minimum, 250 chapters maximum

Genre: Humor, Friendship, Romance, etc.

'Verse: DPP

Characters: Volkner, Dawn (female player), Flint, Arceus, etc.

Summary: Using a god in battle would just be plain cheating. So, Dawn instead drops Arceus off at Volkner's to be babysat while she's doing Sinnoh Champion things. ZapPlateShipping, told in drabbles.

Excerpt: N/A

o

Title: (in progress)

Estimated Length: Around 100 chapters

Genre: Humor, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Adventure, Romance, etc. (in others words, I don't know yet)

'Verse: PMD Blue and Red Rescue Team

Characters: Hero (Kitsune "Kitty" the umbreon), Partner (Sakura the venusaur), Absol (Blade), Gengar, Medicham, Ekans, etc.

Summary: There was nothing in the world that could convince Blade that Team Meanies wasn't up to something, so he decided to keep an eye on things to protect his friends. Little did he know that someone was watching him in return. Not directly related to "Just to Satisfy."

Excerpt: N/A

o

Title: (in progress)

Estimated Length: 100 chapters minimum, 250 chapters maximum

Genre: Humor, Adventure, Romance, Friendship, etc.

'Verse: PMD 2, Darkness/Time/Sky

Characters: Weavile (Lady Weavile), Gallade (Rain), Arbok (Corvax), Drapion (Toxi), Roserade (Melody), Rhyperior (Bobby), etc.

Summary: Sometimes, Rain really didn’t know what to do about Team AWD. They were a band of thieves, taking treasure and intimidating pokemon left and right. But then, there was Lady Weavile . . . AntiquityShipping, PMD2-style. Told in drabbles.

Excerpt: N/A

o

The Guardians of Childhood/Rise of the Guardians:

Title: into the abyss (part one of the Midnight trilogy)

Estimated Length: 20 chapters maximum

Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Humor, Friendship, Romance, etc.

'Verse: GoC/RotG-mix, set after movie

Characters: Pitch Black, Man in the Moon, OC, etc.

Summary: When Pitch finds that he DOES have at least one believer, he grabs at the opportunity with greedy hands. And so starts a series of life-changing events, for both the King of Nightmares and his reluctant follower. Written using LJ writing community challenge.

Excerpt:

“I am the King of Nightmares, in control of the darkest depths of humanity’s heart.” Growing larger with his rising fury, he spat, “I am Pitch Black, where no warm light may shine.”

Her hand fumbled with the doorknob to her bedroom, sweaty palms interfering with her ability to turn it.

“I. Am. The Boogeyman.” Shadows and sand from every corner of the room rose at his bidding, creating a looming mass of darkness that threatened to consume her. He narrowed his eyes. “I want to blacken your soul with fear, until you can only believe in me.”

o

Crossovers:

N/A

oQo

Biography:

I am a brown-eyed brunette and was born in Bethesda, Maryland from my sweet mother and caring father. Then me and my mother moved to Hawaii (my parents divorced when I was three), then Florida, then Nebraska, then Colorado, then New Mexico, and then Florida again. My father and his family (he remarried) have moved around quite a bit, too. I currently have two half-brothers and a stepsister.

In fifth grade, I made a friend. He was weird. He was funny. So, in my book, he was cool. I talked to him during and after school, and we both discovered we loved Sonic, Pokemon, and multiple other things. It was weird, but cool at the same time. Then he told me about these funny things (like bloopers of sorts) about Sonic, and I loved it, and we decided to make our own. Eventually, we went on full throttle and made our own characters. (Shadowpaw was born in 2004, July 20th while I was at a youth group thing in church, so technically she's only a couple of years old)

My love of writing grew in Florida, and I decided to write a story about it. And then, I made an account here after another friend of mine recommended it. I've been here ever since, and it's really quite a lively place. The story hits, the flames, the RPs, the beta-readers - this place has something for everyone! I also have an account on DeviantArt, under the name ShadowpawMFur, but I'm not as active there as I am on here. I tried to branch out and made a MediaMiner account, but I haven't been on it for a while.

I went through my middle and high school years changing from a withdrawn, strange and quiet girl into a friendly, eccentric and silly young woman, and I graduated with my high school diploma on May 21st, 2011. It was the turning point of my life, walking away from the campus I had gone to almost daily for four years, and I currently am trying to live life to its fullest. After all, we only have one death, right?

Might as well make the most of it! I was in college for a time, but funds and life-changing events have thrown me off my game; currently, I'm trying to muster up the motivation to finish a bloody novel and actually pursue my dream of being a published author.

So! Have you lived today?

oQo

-Note: Feel free to Control-F this section, in case you want to see if we have similar interests. Most things are referred to here in their full title.-

Shows I like/used to watch: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Ah! My Goddess, Pokemon, Trigun, Digimon, Yugioh, Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Inuyasha, Wolf's Rain, Cowboy Bebop, Family Guy, Futurama, Sailor Moon, Princess Tutu, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Dexter's Laboratory, Kids Next Door, Double Dare, Nickelodeon gameshows, All That, Amanda Show, Fairly Oddparents, Danny Phantom, Scooby Doo, Naruto, Ouran High School Host Club, Library Wars, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Blue Exorcist, Fairy Tail, etc.

Books on my/dad's bookshelf/I have read: Harry Potter books 1-6 by J. K. Rowling (haven't gotten around to DH yet), The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan, The Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey, Nightseer by Laurell K. Hamilton, The Sorceror's Son and The Crystal Palace in The Book of Elementals series and The Tales of Alaric the Minstrel series by Phyllis Eisenstein, The Warriors/New Prophecy/first book of The Power of Three series by Erin Hunter, Bloomability by Sharon Creech, Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson, Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, Pendragon book one by D. J. MacHale, The Hatchet and Brian's Winter and Brian's Return by Gary Paulsen, a bit of the Animorphs series and almost all of the Everworld series by K. A. Applegate, In the Shadow of an Eagle and Other Adventure Stories and No Pets Allowed which are collections of short stories, Into the Land of the Unicorns by Bruce Coville, The Agony of Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Sabrina the Teenage Witch: Millennium Madness by several authors, James Herriot's Cat Stories by of course Jame Herriot, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, Gregor the Overlander and Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane of the Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins, Inkheart and Inkspell by Cornelia Funke, etc.

Manga/comics I've read (but probably never finished unless otherwise stated): Beast Master (finished), Trigun, Naruto, Alice 19th (finished), Inuyasha, Pokemon (The Electric Tales of Pikachu kind of manga, featuring Ash and them), Digimon, Peach Girl, Princess Tutu (finished), Ouran High School Host Club (finished), Black Bird, Millennium Snow (finished), Library Wars, Blue Exorcist, Fairy Tail, etc.

Movies I love: Cowboys and Aliens, How to Train Your Dragon, Unknown, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service, Howl's Moving Castle, Bambi, Lion King, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, The Great Mouse Detective, The Land Before Time series, Pete's Dragon, The Princess and the Goblin, Homeward Bound 1 & 2, Mary Poppins, The Fox and the Hound, Pokemon movies, Digimon the Movie, Shrek, Balto, etc.

Games I love/used to play: Old Spyro games (Playstation), old Sonic games (multiple), I-Ninja (GC), Pokemon series (multiple), Digimon World series (PS/GC), Digimon: DATA Squad (PS2), FFX (PS2), FF8 (PS), Okami (PS2), Okamiden (DS), Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon (DS), Rune Factory: Frontier (Wii), Musashi: Samurai Legend (PS2), Lair (PS3), Sonic the Hedgehog: 2006 (PS3), Shadow the Hedgehog (PS2), DrakenGard 2 (PS2), Animal Crossing series (multiple), Super Smash Brothers/Melee/Brawl (N64/GC/Wii), Drill Dozer (GBA), Sonic the Hedgehog series (multiple), Mario series (multiple), Yugioh something-about-roses-and-duelists (PS2), Pokemon/Digimon/Yugioh/Magic: the Gathering etc. trading card games (cards, der), Monster Hunter (Monster Hunter Tri and MH4U) etc.

oQo

-Pairings:-

Of course, everybody groans. Calm down, I'll make it as short of a list as possible! I promise! These are just some I either like or can tolerate (I have yet to find a pairing I hate).

Current Obsessed Pairing(s):

Canon chars/OCs or OC/OC, such as Draconem non est fabula or my Midnight: Christmas Special

Fire Emblem (Awakening specifically): Robin/Gaius, Gangrel/Robin, Robin/Frederick, Frederick/Cordelia, etc.

Pokemon: Too many to count, the main ones being: Hero (MD)/Gengar (CurseOfLoveShipping), Blue (game)/Leaf (ConflictingShipping), Mewtwo/Heatran (PsychicScrapShipping), Arceus/Volkner (ZapPlateShipping), etc.

Rise of the Guardians/The Guardians of Childhood: Jack/Tooth, Jack/OC, Pitch/OC, etc. (Jack/Pitch is okay)

oQo

-Quotes to Live By-

Celebrities:

“In an age where humans seem to be confusing Facebook relationships with real intimacy
and Internet anonymity has given us carte blanche at rudeness and a general lack of civility toward one another
it would behoove us all to pause a moment and realize that art is something that evokes emotion
and that art is also in the eye of the beholder.
Why waste energy hating or making real people feel bad about what moves them?”
Patrick Nottingham

“There is no off position on the genius switch.”
David Letterman

"The trouble with a kitten is that when it grows up, it's always a cat."
Ogden Nash

"You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely."
Ogden Nash

"Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of coffee."
Stephanie Piro

"If you obey all the rules, you'll miss all the fun."
Katherine Hepburn

"Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."
Lao-Tze

"The greatest achievement was, at first, and for a time, but a dream."
Napoleon Hill

"No one ever is defeated until defeat has been accepted as a reality."
Napoleon Hill

"First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win."
Mahatma Gandhi

"As soon as anyone starts telling you to be 'realistic,' cross that person off your invitation list."
John Eliot

"Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first."
Mark Twain

"I believe in looking reality straight in the eye and denying it."
Garrison Keillor

"We artists are indestructible, even in a prison cell or a concentration camp I would be almighty in my own world of art. Even if I had to paint my pictures with my wet tongue on the dusty floor of my cell."
Pablo Picasso

"Being a mad scientist doesn’t leave me with much time for friends. I don’t want to be one of those lame sad scientists. So I discovered that when life gives you lemons… you give lemons life! LEMONSTIEN!"
Cyadine and Happiness

"Better a witty fool than a foolish wit."
William Shakespeare

"Between two evils, I always pick the one I haven’t tried before."
Mae West

"A poem is true if it hangs together. Information points to something else. A poem points to nothing but itself."
E.M. Forester

"A poet can survive everything but a misprint."
Oscar Wilde

"A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language."
W.H. Auden

"Always be a poet, even in prose."
Charles Baudelaire

"Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures."
Jessamyn West

"Any idiot can face a crisis - It's day to day living that wears you out."
Anton Chekhov

"Bring back dueling, I say. Drive-by sword fight."
Tim Roth

"Today's forecast: 70% chance of science!"
Adam Savage, Mythbusters

"Hopefully that's our job, to add rockets to everything."
Adam Savage from Mythbusters

"We're popping popcorn with lasers!"
Tori Balleci

"Smells like...science!"
Adam Savage, "Mythbusters"

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch."
Jack Nicholson

"Some people say that I must be a horrible person, but that's not true. I have the heart of a young boy -- in a jar on my desk."
Stephen King

"Artists, by definition innocent, don't steal. But they do borrow without giving back."
Ned Rorem

"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
Napoleon Bonaparte

"Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be killed."
G.K. Chesterton

"A true friend stabs you in the front."
Oscar Wilde

"Do I contradict myself? Very well then, I contradict myself. I am powerful. I contain multitudes."
Walt Whitman

"The dream is memory itself changing before your eyes."
BertStates

"Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the action stems the dream again, and this interdependance produces the highest form of living."
Anais Nin

"A dream is an answer to a question we haven't yet learned how to ask."
Fox Mulder

"Dreams are illustrations from the book your soul is writing about you."
Marsha Norman

"They tease me now, telling me it was dream. But does it matter whether it was a dream or reality, if the dream has made known to me the truth?"
Dostoevsky

"Dreams do not vanish, as long as people do not abandon them."
Phantom F. Harlock

"I dream a lot. I do more painting when I'm not painting. It's in the subconscious."
Andrew Wyeth

"Content, in dreams awake, and spins the fabric of tales. There is really nothing to be done with such imagery except to use it: in writing, in art."
Patricia McKillip

"What terrified me will terrify others; and I need only describe the spectre which had haunted my midnight pillow."
Mary Shelley

"The best reason for having dreams is that in dreams no reasons are necessary."
Ashleigh Brilliant

"We live as we dream - alone."
Joseph Conrad

"All the things one has forgotten scream for help in dreams."
Elias Canetti

"The proof of a poem is not that we have never forgotten it, but that we knew at sight that we never could forget it."
Robert Frost

"Budded on Earth to bloom in Heaven."
Baymond C.

"They're a rotten crowd," I shouted across the lawn. "You're worth the whole damn bunch put together."
"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"My house is never as clean as when I'm writing."
Tammy Greenwood, instructor of The Writer's Left in Bethesda

"If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn't brood. I'd type a little faster."
Isaac Asimov

'If the English language made any sense, lackadaisical would have something to do with a shortage of flowers.'
Doug Larson

"-And what would humans be without love?
-RARE - said Death."
Terry Pratchett

"The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it."
Ansel Adams, photographer

"Logic ridicules love, and love smiles knowingly at the whole foolishness of logic."
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

"Hearing voices no one else can hear isn't a good sign, even in the wizarding world."
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Myself:

"It's just in my nature (and upbringing) to be humble!"
TheDragonLover's best line, according to SchwaWarrior

"I go to school because I have to, not because I wanna go snog a guy in the hallway. Geez."
TheDragonLover

"Ouch. If there are any words to live by, "never punch a frozen turkey" are some of them."
TheDragonLover

"Oh, I could tell you some things, but then I'd have to tell other things, and those other things are the things that I don't want to tell, let alone some things. So, I will tell you nothings."
ShadowpawMFur (DeviantArt account)

"Dracula's my homeboy, b-tches. -crosses arms like gangsta-"
TheDragonLover

"Yeah, my dreams make no sense. But sometimes, they’re freakin’ awesome."
TheDragonLover

"If you try to avoid doing wrong, you prevent yourself from doing right."
TheDragonLover

"Some people don't realize that failure comes from the fear of failure, and success comes from the will to take a chance despite the possibility of failure."
TheDragonLover

"You know, I bet Subtlety had a heart attack when he learned that Chivalry had died."
TheDragonLover

Food is wonderful! ...That's what Ambertwo said in Pokemon: The First Movie, right?
TheDragonLover

"You shouldn't have to wait until you sleep to have a good night!"
TheDragonLover

"Even if I ate clouds, I wouldn't be experiencing more fluffiness than this."
TheDragonLover

"I curse a lot when my mind has been blown."
TheDragonLover

"OH MY- I'm so stupid. I went to reheat my tea by putting it in the fridge. -headdesks-"
TheDragonLover

"BUTBUTBUT." "...That is a very convincing argument. However, I must decline your offer."
Dalsson and Co. trying to convince me (TheDragonLover) to do something

"-finds note taped to head-
"Dear Megan,
I quit! I can't take it anymore! You can go watch these acid-trips on your own, but count me out!
Signed, Your Brain""
TheDragonLover

" "Quantity" of friends is not the same as "quality" of friends, because you can have a hundred fake friends leave you on the streets and one real friend give you a place to stay the night."
TheDragonLover

"So...good morning! Guten Morgen! -waves- Hope you have a good day (just pretend it's morning over there for a moment, the sentiment is nicer that way), and be happy!"
TheDragonLover, PM to a friend in Singapore

"Umm...I think we corrupted him to the Dark Side by accident -_-;"
"Accident? No, my dear, that was entirely intentional. I'm evil, you know."
DB the Unknown and TheDragonLover

"A reminder is rarely a coincidence."
TheDragonLover

"Team Hunters! We track down your criminals, scout out new places and hunt down lost and ancient treasure! We're always up for a good hunt!"
*heroic pose*
TheDragonLover after buying PMD: Explorers of Sky

Common sense, Megan is looking for you in the deli section, please reunite with her there.
TheDragonLover

"And I make typos soemtimes."
TheDragonLover talking about why it sounds like she types a lot more than she actually does

I'd be your big sister, but I can't do that and be your little sister at the same time without some serious time paradoxes.
TheDragonLover

...wait, you mean my mind thinks?
*holds head*
WHY DIDN'T I KNOW THIS?
TheDragonLover on Facebook comment

"But, when you’re a panicking woman, you throw all of the worst scenarios into the air and, well, PANIC. No need to be reasonable, after all, you’re a WOMAN."
TheDragonLover talking to DB the Unknown over a story in-progress (Watch Me Disappear)

"Love life until you find something to love doing every day of your life."
TheDragonLover

Well, when one uses paint, normally one gets covered in it. It's like the Universe is trying to make a joke, but it can't quite form the proper punchline.
TheDragonLover

Love is friendship; friendship is love. These two things I know to be true, for the marriages that last are fostered on friendship, and the friends that last are those who grow to love each other.
TheDragonLover

"Why is it smoking?"
"'Cause it's on fire."
TheDragonLover's little brother asking her a question when she's playing a video game

I had fun using the chicken wing as a puppet, though; tugging on certain muscles to make it wave at the vegetarian across the room. *slapped* Ohh, I'm so baaaad
TheDragonLover talking about dissecting in school

That's the problem with having a humongous country: You never get to go anywhere else.
TheDragonLover complaining about a friend's vacation outside of the country

Inspiration is such a fickle beast. I wish I could tame it.
TheDragonLover

Friends and Family:

“You know, I don’t get you–some days, you’re dead and we can’t get you out of bed or away from the computer, and others, you’re up before me and busy cooking and cleaning. It makes you a hard person to figure out. You amaze me.”
Guy named Mike talking about TheDragonLover

They need to put more practical sayings on those candy hearts. Like "Take out the garbage" or "Please change the basement lightbulb". Or "I'm sorry for your loss" for all of your funeral-candy needs. -shot-
Dashboard Dusk, talking about Valentines' candy

"When Dusk is called, Dusk... jumps out of a plane and DYNAMIC ENTRY! -guillotine'd-"
Dashboard Dusk

"Because I hoard books like a dragon hoards gold."
EeveeCelebi749

"What do you think was the best thing that happened to you in your life?
Mine was being born; if I wasn't born, then I wouldn't be here!"
My silly little brother

That's because you're wise and wonderful.
Like a dragon.
SchwaWarrior

"The way I write is like battling using a Keckleon."
SchwaWarrior

"You are the very definition of a hero, I hope you know."
SchwaWarrior

"Love what is, don't hate what isn't."
SchwaWarrior

Why must you boil water to make iced tea? o.O
Glory For Sleep

Don't be hatin' like Satan. D:
Glory For Sleep

Anyway...welcome back, Will. Hopefully a new era amongst the LM forum has begun - where the past can be muffled into silence and make room for the future to explode with bright new lights and sounds.
FIRE THE MISSLES. 8D
Glory For Sleep

Oh, don't be so modest DL. If SU is the brain of the forum, you're undoubtedly the heart.
Sgt. Shank, on the Chat Topic of LM

why does everything i glomp leave me D:
SnowSpirit6375, on the Chat thread of LM

-Dies again in a painful way- D:
...Y'know, dying this much can't be good for my health. -Would be mauled, but is already dead-
LM Forums, TheSunIsShining

Now you're smack-talking each other about weight? You two act more like teenage girls than the actual teenage girls here! (no offense)
DB the Unknown

...I'm an idiot. I kept refreshing and refreshing and refreshing the last page until I finally noticed: we're on page two. *mauled*
TheSunIsShining on the LM Forums

“Well, in my humble eyes, you're comparable to Glory and Dusk. XD”
“Well, you just might need glasses. *shot*”
Blazing Sceptile and TheDragonLover talking about the latter's apparently incredible writing talent.

One thing to say: Oshawott made me think "Oh Sh*t what? D:
SnowSpirit6375

ShinyxBlazing - Rapistshipping
This is not something you expect to find in your alerts on a regular basis.
Celebi96 commenting on a rather strange post on LM

"Why're you always covered in spiders?"
Catzer talking to Dusk

"Midnight and I have class tomorrow. Am I crazy? No! I'm a college student!"
Sean Hoolihan

"I guess I can always walk up to him, flip my hair, give him a rose, and be all like "It's for your beautifly." "
"I love you.
:'D"
Glory For Sleep and TheDragonLover

"You'd be the Dragon and I'd be the Dragon Knight."
"...don't you mean the DRAGONITE?"
Blazing Sceptile and TheDragonLover on being real life friends

Characters in Media/Fanfiction:

"Mutated excuse for an eel! Your mother was a hagfish and your father was a worm!"
Amaterasu, Ch.6 in "Paths in Sakura" by Niana Kuonji

"I was created from your dreams. If you believe in me, there is nothing I cannot do!"
Entei from the third Pokemon movie

"If I wish hard enough, will you die?"
Viral, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

"If anybody's out there, you can come out. And if you're a monster or a ghost, you can stay where you are."
Ash Ketchum, Pokemon

"Oh no. Staryu's in real pain."
"How can you tell? It doesn't even have a face."
"It's because I'm sensitive to others feelings."
"Oh yeah, like I'm not."
Ash and Misty, Pokemon

"That boy on the poster looks just like you, James."
"He does? I think he looks pathetic."
"That's what she meant, James."
Jessie, James and Meowth, Pokemon

"Oh, I left my motorcycle at the front desk."
Officer Jenny, Pokemon

"What kind of idiot would forcibly steal someone else's Pokemon?"
"Well, how many kinds are there?"
Bryce and James, Pokemon

"I can't see a foot in front of my face."
"If you don't shut up, you'll see a foot in front of your face!"
James and Meowth, Pokemon

"My nose! What happened? The stink dissolved it off my face! (pauses) Hmm? Oh! Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. The cartoonist never gave me a nose."
Team Rocket's Meowth, Pokemon

I'm not an actress, she thought, but not only am I onstage, I've completely forgotten my lines. No, I don't even know which play I'm in, and I walked onstage naked. I'm naked, I was prepared for a burlesque, and now I'm supposed to be performing kabuki and I have bronchitis. I'm naked, I have bronchitis, I'm supposed to sing opera and the yakuza are threatening to give my entire family concrete shoes if I don't bring in the crowds and give them the moneys.
KagomeCh. 6 of "Tales from the House of the Moon" by Resmiranda on MediaMiner

Even at this age, Sesshoumaru is unapproachable. It's like his personality cancels out his cuteness.
Kagome, Ch. 10 of "Unspoiled" by forthright

'I think you like her more than you did when you first met.'
'Of course I do,' Sesshoumaru admitted as Kagome rushed into the kitchen. 'I was on painkillers then.'
'You're a jerk.'
'I do try.'
Sesshoumaru and Kikyo, "Second Chance", Chapter 13

"She's talking about flowers, isn't she?"
"Hnn. How very astute, as they are standing in a garden."
Miroku and Sesshoumaru, "Matching Wits" by forthright

"Aha! The ionic defragulator!"
"Yay!"
"Do you even know what that does?"
"No!"
Eggman, Big, Rouge and Big again, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood

"Ah, Green Hill Zone. We've had some good times here, haven't we, Tails?"
"Good times? You mean like Eggman turning our friends into robots and pitting them against us?"
"Yep. Good times!"
Sonic and Tails, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood

“Sesshoumaru what is this?”
“That is a check Kagome. It is used to put money in a bank account.”
“I am surprised you have a sense of humor, but I am not finding it entertaining right now.”
Sesshoumaru and Kagome, "Marriage of Convenience" Chapter 25

"Hey, you tripped me!"
"Or maybe you're just clumsy."
Shadow and Rouge, Sonic Rivals 2

"Do I look like a ball to you?!"
Eggman, Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity

"Oh, great. Mama always told me that one day I'd get trapped in an alien dimension without a change of clothes."
Rouge the Bat, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood

"Oh, of all the lazy...Here I go to the trouble of waking that Dark Gaia thing up, and it causes me nothing but delays!"
"Dark Gaia had yet to reach maturity within the planet's core. Ergo, it was still incomplete at the time of its awakening. Ergo, it was unable to sustain its own weight upon its release. Ergo, it scattered around the world."
"I don't want to hear about its weight issues."
Eggman and SA-55 in Sonic Unleashed

“I thought of you as so cold and remote when we first arrived. Now I find you easy to confide in.”
“Probably because you’re on drugs.”
"Peace Treaty" Ch 17

“I knew you couldn’t resist me.”
“Keep it up, and my fist won’t be able to resist your face.”
Luke and Leah in my "AAoL" story on FictionPress, Chapter 16

"Your skill at self-aggrandizement is unparalleled."
SA-55 (the little robot) in Sonic Unleashed

"I know little girls who are better with a hammer than you. Well, one...anyway."
Sonic talking "to" Dark Guardian about Amy, Sonic Unleashed

"Whatever, you oversized letter opener."
Sonic to Caliburn, Sonic and the Black Knight

“Ah,” Giratina commented, “the power of yesterday sits heavily on the mind.”
Ch16 of "LNLT:PC:", Drabble Number 25 called "Yesterday"

“I give up,” he finally relented as he pressed his back against the wall and sighed. “I have no idea who made this, but I wish I could shake his hand...before I ripped his arm from its socket.”
Sesshoumaru from Striking Falcon's "A Cross of Blades"

"You're clean. Considerate. Well-spoken. You look at my face when I'm speaking to you."
"What else would I look at?"
She laughed and he didn't know why. It was a legitimate question, wasn't it?
Yoko and Viral, Ch. 4 of "Crush" by Jaswinder

"With Kagome, trying to kill her seems to be the surest way of making friends."
"Explain."
"It's actually kind of funny. I tried to kill Kagome the first time I met her. Miroku almost sucked her into his wind tunnel. Sango attacked us, too. Yup. It seems to be one of the best ways to get on her good side."
"The wolf tried to kill her?"
"Uh, no. He just kidnapped her."
Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru, Ch 20 of forthright's "Imperceptible"

"Does Sesshoumaru-sama really need three swords?" she asked, confusion creasing her face. "Sesshoumaru-sama only has one hand."
Rin, forthright's "Undeniable" Chapter 19

"Love takes courage."
Shippou, forthright's "Faint Heart" Chapter 5

"What was that?"
"That was a full-fledged taiyoukai," he replied with a grin. "Or hadn't you noticed we kept one of them around these days?"
Kagome and Miroku, forthright's "Imperceptible" Chapter 18

"Use whatever is at hand, be it friend or foe."
Kyoya Ootori from Ouran High School Host Club

"Everything seems stupid when it fails."
Raskolnikov, from Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment

"Ich bin... FUCKING ANGRY!"
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, after getting Molotovs (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"Now let's see you clap! Hahaha!"
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, after shooting off a zombie's arm (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"Look at all the body parts. Someone get me a bag!"
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, after blowing up a group of zombies (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"Ooh! This is much better than my Hitler Youth knife!"
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, after knifing a zombie (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"Under what reich is that fair?"
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, after getting the teddy bear from the Mystery Box (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"There is probably one big switch somewhere that powers EVERYTHING. We Germans are very efficient."
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Der Riese, at the beginning of the game (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"Mother said I shouldn't play with dolls...or myself, but I don't always do what mother likes."
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Shangri-La, when getting the 31-79 JGb215 (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

"I have earned un achievement!...(like a little kid) yay."
—Doctor Edward Richtofen at Shangri-La, after getting an achievment (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

A burning skeleton! Damn, that's cool.
Alex, from TheDragonLover's original series Casters

"Can I have my pen back?"
"What pen? Oh. Do you mean the one that some immature boy threw at me earlier?"
"I was only trying to get your attention."
Malcolm and Alex, from TheDragonLover's original series Casters

“I don’t understand why she won’t talk to me. Just because I’m popular and she isn’t doesn’t mean we can’t get along.”
Malcolm, from TheDragonLover's original series Casters

"Draco, come along. And don't look to your left, Greyback appears to be eating someone. We will talk about this at home."
Lucius Malfoy, Chasing the Sun, Chapter 33, by Loten

"The curse of the perpetual overachiever," he said, smirking, "is that when people discover that you can make miracles happen, they expect you to walk on water to bring them tea."
Severus Snape, The Fine Art of Fine Print by Mundungus42, Chapter Two

". . . Kitty." Her ear flicked at his voice, but she didn't turn around. "You should stop blaming yourself for everything. You can save the world, but you can't save everyone." She frowned and glanced over her shoulder to inquire about what he said, but he had turned around and was already walking away. She let him go.

It wasn't until the absol came back five minutes later that she realized Blade had left to give them privacy. It wasn't until she was coaxed into her bed once more that she realized he had also left her some supplies. And it wasn't until she was nearly asleep that she realized that Gengar was absolutely right.
Searching for Forgiveness, Chapter Two, by TheDragonLover (yours truly)

Armaldo: [The boss of a dungeon] probably won't listen to what you have to say. You'll likely be attacked often.
Igglybuff: Dungeon bosses don't have much patience, do they?
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, Special Episode 2: Igglybuff the Prodigy

"Never laugh at live dragons."
Bilbo Baggins

"Hearing voices no one else can hear isn't a good sign, even in the wizarding world."
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Snape was looking as though the first person to ask him for a Love Potion would be force-fed poison.
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Deliberately causing mayhem in Snape's Potions class was about as safe as poking a sleeping dragon in the eye.
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

--In all likelyhood, the test recipes for the anti-Crucio were probably hidden, or encrypted magically. The first thing Harry felt he needed to do was find a journal that was not what it seemed.
And then he had to decrypt it.
And then he had to understand the formula. Created by one of the most brilliant and paranoid Potions Masters to ever hold the title.
And then he had to recreate the bloody thing.
Perhaps there were some Dark Wizards he could go track down. He was much better at Dark Wizards.--
--Harry Potter fanfiction, "Snape's Memories" by paganaidd, chapter thirteen

Miscellaneous:

"Good timber does not grow with ease; the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees."
Miss-Rogue's signature on DeviantArt

"A dream which is not interpreted is like a letter unread."
The Talmud

"Bluffing... A pair of balls beats everything!"
smileyfox5150

"But it doesn’t make up for the fact that you’ll never love me."
smileyfox5150

"No door is ‘closed’ more than temporarily. Remember that paper clip in your back pocket. Or that TNT you ‘borrowed’. That’ll work."
smileyfox5150

"Did you just pour a bucket of beautiful on your face?"
smileyfox5150

"As an aside - I don't really have much personal experience with the gift-giving
rule for the Love Candidates. I apologize. I was side-tracked by saving the
world."
Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon: Courting/Marriage Guide by otakuAera

"Love is just a word until someone comes along and gives it meaning."
Kai-ka's deviation "Just A Word" on DeviantArt

leaf-lover: Jerk chicken? Is that like where you pit your chicken against other chickens and they bitch it out at each other? "Sweetheart, your eggs are so damn small, you sure you ain't a robin, 'ho?" Other chicken: Kicks eggs out of first chicken's nest. "Bitch, yo' eggs just fell out."

'Team Edward vs Team Jacob: With the score at 2-3, players from both soccer teams were jostling for the ball. The Slovakian goalie was as entangled in the net as a Twilight plot.'
A newspaper sports article

"These are my values. If you don't like them, I have some more."
Anonymous

"Drink coffee. You can do stupid things faster with more energy!"
Anonymous

"I will fight until I have nothing left. If my weapon breaks, I’ll fight with my hands. If my hands are cut off, I’ll kick them with my feet. If my feet get cut off, I’ll crawl along the ground and bite them. If they kill me, I will still win by getting my blood on them and ruining their clothes."
Anonymous

"Start every day with a smile and get over it."
Anonymous

"You’re only as strong as the tables you dance on, the drinks you mix, and the friends you roll with."
Anonymous

"Never go to bed mad. Stay up all night and plot horrible revenge."
Anonymous

"Haikus are easy,
but sometimes they don’t make sense.
Refrigerator."
Anonymous

"There’s a little truth behind every "just kidding," a little curiosity behind every "just wondering," a little knowledge behind every "I don’t know," and a little emotion behind every "I don’t care." "
Anonymous

"Never take life seriously. No one ever gets out alive."
Anonymous

"Smile so those around you don't see your pain. Hold your guard and never let it down. Protect your heart and believe in yourself."
Anonymous

Today is the tomorrow we worried about yesterday.
Author Unknown

"Because nothing's more sexual than sex."
Anonymous

Even darkness has its colours.
Rainbow In The Dark by =oO-Rein-Oo

When you view it from an adult perspective, first you're like, "that's such a simplistic view of love." But then you realize, maybe it is that simple.
"Friend Number Three" by riptey, chapter 20, author's note

"At least I got through the day without having any adventures, and only fell in love three times."
tumblr dump 2 by Larkles on DeviantArt

Still, you realize that (from the movie Thor) Loki only strived so hard to become ruler of Asgard to be competitive with Thor, to make himself feel as Thor's equal; and when Loki let go of Thor in the end, Thor was left with nothing - but in a sense, Loki had nothing left either.
--Kathleen Xue from Facebook

perfer et obdura; dolor hic tibi proderit olim. "Be patient and tough; someday this pain will be useful to you."
--Unknown

oQo

-Speeches and Essays-

June 22nd, 2009

"For whatever reason, this party was started as a celebration of LM...somehow... w;

But, maybe we don't need a reason! After all, this is LM, the place of randomness, craziness and fun.

We may have different lives in real life, where we seem different than the way we act here...

But we know that, when we sit down to that moniter screen, we have friendly faces waiting behind their own to listen to us.

And so, it is my honor (to be forced) to make this speech. *raises glass that appears out of nowhere* To LM!"
For the Legendary Muses Forums first anniversary, made in the Legendary Muses' Chatango

August 12th, 2009

A leader is a person of great humility and respect, filled with knowledge they're willing to give without prejudice or a biased opinion. They cannot favor their friends or neglect their enemies - all relationships are broken before being mended in a limited fashion. Outside of their role, they may think and say whatever they wish, but once they don it again they have to become neutral to all they love or hate.

A leader must have the ability to swallow their pride in order to lay a calm and wise hand on important matters. They may hold their own beliefs, but they cannot force anyone to share them. They cannot disrespect others for not sharing them, either, for a leader must accept that their mind may not work the same way as others. If a problem arises from a misunderstanding or a lack of communication, the leader must listen to all sides if the dispute and choose the correct one to support, not they one that they agree with.

If a leader is offended by another leader or anyone that may have a differing opinion, they must not use their powers in anger. They must step back and purge themselves of all emotion so they may think rationally and logically. Setting their own feelings aside, they must confront the offender in a calm manner and never resort to violence of any sort (verbal abuse, attacking, etc.). If they're angry or jealous, it will only servce to tear them apart and ruin their imagine as an honorable leader. All thoughts must be shared or it will grow in the darkness of their heart.

A leader must follow the rules - in fact, more strictly than others. They cannot enforce them if they don't obey them themselves. Having power does not and should not excuse laziness, stubbornness or a lack of integrity. If a leader breaks a rule, even with good reasons, they must be punished harshly. They cannot be allowed to just do as they will; they must set the example for everyone around them.

A leader must be able to take responsibility and make sacrifices that the normal population can not and will not. All problems and mistakes weigh on their shoulders if they do not deal with them properly. They must cooperate with others to sustain harmony and peace, and at times they must place a firm and steady hand to keep it. A leader must be ready to lead as well as listen; to command as well as to assist; to be strict and yet flexible. Many things are expected of a leader; not just anyone can fill one's shoes.
Leader Speech, written in Physics class

December 10th, 2009

Today, I have lost a little more faith in humanity.

My day went fairly well, at first; despite my terrible shooting this morning, I realized my back sights had gotten loose and was the cause of my bad shooting on my standing and kneeling position (prone was pretty good, so I assume I loosened the sights afterwards). I had crazy bread (breadsticks from Little Caesar’s), green beans and pumpkin pie for lunch, thanks to some wonderful donations from my friends, and we weren’t attacked by a single bee that day. Marvelous.

So, after thanking my friend profusely for letting me borrow her book about dragons (beautiful artwork, I tell you), I walked to my Physics class, hugging it closely to me in fear of it getting damaged or stolen. As usual, the others were loud and obnoxious, so I sat in my seat and read through the rest of the book. When I finished, we played Jeopardy to review the test.

Afterwards, the most ludicrous thing happened.

I had known that my fellow classmates didn’t like our teacher, but I still didn’t understand why–she was a beautiful young woman who, despite a slight accent and using different terms than we do, spoke with clarity and precision on the subject of Physics. They complained, however, simply because she came from Lebanon and how “they couldn’t understand a word she was saying,” despite the fact that I, a person with below average hearing, can understand everything she said perfectly. She was light and humorous, trying to make jokes that no one would laugh to, and I watched as they mocked her behind her back–and even in front of her, right where she could see them. She was either too honorable or too confused to reprimand them, and so the teasing continued. A particular group of kids behind me now spend every class trying to make her as furious and exasperated as possible.

Today, though, after we were done reviewing, they asked for the answers to the review. She refused to give them to us. I didn’t care, because unlike everyone else I read and understood the book and her notes, simply because I bothered to listen and attempt to understand. (You can only help those that help themselves, and so I gave up on trying to coax them to listen. They, however, blamed her for their lack of knowledge and patience, and they mocked her for everything she was and called her a terrorist. I was furious but could not say a word, because of my terrible, terrible cowardice and my fear that they would attack me, physically or verbally.) So, they started to cause a riot in the classroom, screaming and hollering because they wanted the answers. I could understand why they were so angry, but she provided a much better reason than they could ever think of for their side of the debate.

The review she had given us was, in fact, the exact same as the mid-term exam. If she gave us the answers, she afraid we would simply memorized (or write down) the letters and use them for the test. She said that if she did give us the answers, she would have to change the test, and that caused even more of a racket. They continued to hassle her for answers, until finally, one girl uttered the words that caused my heart to plummet into the icy depths of disgusted disbelief:

“I think that she needs to go back to her Muslim country.”

Other unflattering phrases, such as “f*cking b*tch” and, again, “terrorist” were flung around, and once again, they were said right in front of her. She did not react like she should have, or throw angry words back in their faces like I would have–instead, she simply looked back down to her computer screen and worked on clearing the Jeopardy game that was still there.

It was there that I figured that the students couldn’t really be this naïve, this dense; surely, it was only a slight misunderstanding, and if I explained things to them, they would figure it out and feel ashamed of their incredible actions and words. But, as I tried to explain to a friend beside me, I realized I was the only one who thought this was possible–for I was the only one who realized they were wrong. Even he believed that she wasn’t speaking clearly and that she didn’t know how to teach, and I was dumbfounded as I heard even more criticism flow around me like a hateful river of boiling blood.

When the afternoon announcements, always made five minutes before school was out (3:30 p.m.), began, I found that I had to leave the classroom–I had to get out of there before I screamed at their idiocy. Before I threw my desk at them and throttled them to try to make the oxygen rise to their brains. Before I turned around and punched the guy sitting behind me and tell him to take back what he called the teacher. I needed to leave. So, grabbing my backpack as the others started to get ready, I walked to the door and, after waiting a minute until they crowded around (blocking me from the teacher’s sight), I slipped out the door and started walking to the bus loop. As I did, the friend that sat beside me followed, and he told me, “You know it’s only three twenty-eight, right?”

“Your point?”

I didn’t care to listen to him. I didn’t care to hear him complain about problems that he had caused, the misunderstandings that he refused to correct, the faults that he rejected and labeled as hers. I didn’t want to see his face, because I was sure I would throw my fist at it if I did. I was so angry, so furious, that I walked right past the principal as I left for the buses a few minutes early. I don’t think he cared, because he didn’t stop me. Maybe he knew it was pointless.

When I sat on the bus and stared out the window, I found myself crying. Crying for my Physics teacher, the woman who came to America to learn and be inspired and to teach and inspire others, and all she received was a disrespectful spit in the face. As I walked home from the bus stop in the bitter cold, I realized that the cold I felt in my heart made it feel like it was summertime.

What gives them the right to criticize her? Those who do not bother to listen, to learn, and only give insolence and malice in return? Those who sit and talk and laugh, ignoring the teacher’s words and then saying she didn’t teach them that and how she couldn’t teach right? How could they be so dense, so oblivious to the fact that they were the cause of the problem, not the victim–the problem maker, not the problem solver? What compelled them to speak about their faults as if they were hers, not the cracks in their persona that they cherished so much and struggled to uphold?

What gives them the right?

(To be honest, I do think the world is getting too sensitive. I really do. But, there is a difference between "being too sensitive" and "being insulted." There is a difference between "freedom of speech" and "slander." There is a difference between "speaking your mind" and "cutting someone down." I will not stand for censorship, but I will not stand for cruelty of words.)
Rant about students in Physics class, first semester

February 23rd, 2010

Peter Singer's plan to rid the world of poverty is a fool's dream. To simply tell a citizen what to do with his money is not the wisest thing to do; he worked hard to collect his bounty, and he isn't going to donate it with wild abandon. Who's to say the man wants to send it out of his country? The money may do good elsewhere that could have easily been done in his own nation. Singer's plan is a direct attack on the people's rights.

To be fair, it is clear where he is coming from; he was raised to help others and do whatever good deeds he felt needed doing. Such a dream is admirable, but it doesn't change the fact that the idea is still a dream. There are no such things as superheroes flying around the world to save everyone from every little thing, and there never will be. To hope for Superman to burst through your front door and hand you a suitcase filled with money is childish. What right do we have to feed these hopes? And when the plan breaks down, who will it hurt? The victims will feel bitter towards the suppliers of these "sugar-coated lies" and resent them for many years.

Infants need to learn to walk on their own, and so does every nation in danger. During the Great Depression, the United States didn't beg for assistance or plead for outside influences. American citizens instead voted a man into office who could dig them out of the Depression and back into business. It would be an insult to America's pride if we turn around and take another nation through its "baby steps." In the end, the nation would be unable to stand on its own and would crumble underneath the weight of the responsibilities it had neglected to take before. To simply give a nation money and expect it to be stable is ridiculous because if it was unstable in the first place, then it would need to fix more than its financial issues. It all returns to the nation being independent of others and having sovereignty.

The most important issue, however, is one all Americans have pondered at some time: "What about us?" If we send this money overseas, it obviously won't be in the States where we all live. America has its own problems to deal with, its own poverty, its own hunger, and its own people. To help others before we even help ourselves would defeat the purpose of sending money in the first place–to end any and all poverty in the world, to give people better lives. Doesn't America care about its citizens, too? We should fix all of our problems before jumping into other people's nations to fix theirs. Caring about the world is pointless if we don't take care of ourselves.

Peter Singer is a man with a big heart and little foresight. He created a plan without thinking over the repercussions, and its flaws are blaringly obvious when examined closely. Good intentions do not excuse poor judgment and whimsical dreams.
Essay in Advanced Placement English Composition on Singer's article "The Singer Solution to World Poverty" in The New York Times Magazine

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

Well, I'll be completely honest and admit that this year sort of flew by; I was surprised when DB's PM came to remind me of LM's birthday, and when I looked at the date and realized it was only a few days away, I was like, "Holy crap, I haven't had any time to prepare!" I had wanted to write something special, like the chapter of my LM Mansion story celebrating our first birthday, but between faulty internet connections and family issues, I haven't had the time, energy or patience to do so. I'm just glad that I was able to get on today at all, let alone talk to you guys.

And you know what? That's okay. I love spending any bit of time I can get with you guys, and I'd do nearly anything to help any LMer here (and not here, for that matter). People like SU and Glory have written inspiring stories that brought us together, and newcomers like Misstress and Sunny once were help keep our bond alive. It's hard to describe how much I love and care for LM, even though I've written and uploaded over 600,000 words in stories and over 11,000 posts in this forums. It's like...a hug.

A hug is something so simple yet meaningful that it's difficult to explain, and although people describe the action they can never truly tell others the feeling and emotions behind it. It's an embrace that pulls two hearts closer to one another, brings warm smiles to people's faces and reminds us that we have someone who cares about our well-being. It can be given freely or sparingly, but it means just as much no matter how often it's given or who distributes and who receives them. I've often just glomped people here or in the real world without a second thought, but I mean every hug that I give and love every person I give it to.

So, here's to another year full of hugs, hellos and good-byes! *offers cup for a toast* To the Legendary Muses Forums, and all of Fanfiction! Let's enjoy every day and make the most of it, shall we?
For the Legendary Muses Forums' second anniversary

oQo

Lots of dragon-y love (and cookies!),
DL ('Dragon Lover')