my_thestral

One of those dreadful weeks again - the little one is still ill, vomiting for nearly a week now, so we went back to the doctor and we're hopeful he'll be better by Wednesday, when he has his 7th birthday. The bed we ordered for him as a present 10 days ago is still not here, so I shouted at the shop assistant today and I blackmailed him into free delivery if the bed is not here by Wednesday - it's only good customer service, in this Slytherin opinion. ;)

I went to pick up son no.1 today at school only to find him shouting hysterically - apparently he had gotten in a fight with five other boys, broke up their ice sculpture and smacked a boy - an innocent bystander at that - in the mouth and gave him a split lip. His father was absolutely livid when he phoned the school, apparently. How will this impulse-driven Asperger son of mine ever avoid jail in the future, it's anyone's guess. *sigh* We try to explain the working of the system to him - if he becomes uncontrollably or too impulsively violent, he's going to end up institutionalised one way or another - and there won't be a damn thing I can do about that once he grows up. Not a very optimistic thought, I reckon. :(

In fandom/Lj related news: after digthewriter 's post about LJ no longer sending out friend notifications, I went to check out mine, just to discover that I have 3 new friends I never added back. :( That was immediately rectified, however it's hard not to feel a complete and utter idiot after that, so dear new friends, here are my profound apologies. (And a kick in the butt to you, LJ!) Because of the younger son's illness I'm also awfully behind on my Ron/Draco entry - it's literally been going nowhere lately, so I hope I can pull it together in time - if this prolonged stay at home continues for much longer, I might have to ask for extension (hopefully, I won't embarrass myself completely and drop out).

I haven't watched the Inauguration, but the first moves of The Orange One is taking are not promising: Withdrawing from Trans-pacific partnership or the proposed bill to pull the USA out of the United Nations - not to mention the monstrosity that is The global gag rule he just re-instated - now, these developments are not something that fills me with optimism - but then again the Dutch are more than up to the job of cheering me up with this "welcome" to the most megalomanic president ever - it made me giggle out loud and because it has English subtitles, you'll be able to enjoy it as well. :) I suppose as long as there is humour in this world, there is some hope left. Never mind the gloomy ol' me, I'll get over myself. :)

Hey, y'all! I've got a question - and a bit of promotion - to do. I was wondering if any of you knew if there were any communities out there to post a lovely Neville Longbottom/Theodore Nott story. You see, a fandom friend of mine philharmony just finished her first fandom story (yey, everyone, this is where we throw our hats in the air! :D), and it's great, so I think more people should read it.

You think hp_fanfiction or hp_slash would be appropriate if there isn't anything more specifically dedicated to Neville? I wish I wasn't so damn clumsy navigating the LJ, so I hope someone of you, lovely, smart folks, might have some idea. :) A lot of work went into this story - it's over 90K long - and I really like all the colourful characters and the interesting plot, so I'm kind of hoping you'd be willing to help me out.

Anyway, not to sell you a cat in a bag - the story is called My cup of tea and it introduces us to Theodore Nott, working as an Unspeakable at the Ministry, caught in the daily routine of his rather solitary post-war existence. That is, until his world is turned upside down by a visting Neville, who only wanted to borrow a tea-bag, and managed to snatch Theo's heart away somehow. But you know what happens when you mix Slytherins and Gryffindors - a lot of action, that's what! :) This story has lovely scenery, adorable characters (old and new) and a very intriguing plot (with a proper villain and all!) and it's all the way hot and wonderful, so if you're up for a bit longer read, I'm certain you will end up appreciating it! And since everyone can always use a bit of help promoting their talent - that's what I'm up to today... :)

Any info will be appreciated and thanks heaps for your help! :)

There was an entertaining challenge posted this week by akatnamedeaster regarding drawing, and because it's Friday and I'm up to some fun I could do with some further embarrassing of myself, LOL!
Here's the banner to the challenge:





And here's my entry:

Well, yes, I'm aware that I'm on the other spectrum of talented, so this will definitelly call for subtitles: it's meant to be Scorpius Malfoy, enjoying his first morning coffee served by his lover. :)
LOL, giggle all you like, you know I am! :D This is fun! 

Hellooooo, there, darlings!
Missed me? *this is where you say yes and nod furiously and try to look sincere, LOL! Also, squeal at will... ;)* Oh, damn, it's no use, is it? I guess most of you never noticed I left, because I post so rarely - BUT - those of you who did - I'M BAAAACK!

London was glorious as always (I'll make a separate post about that) - and The Harry Potter and the Cursed Child plays are definitely a thing to see (it's just not something you can read about and dis at will because seeing it is a totally different experience than reading about it and I'll argue with you about that until we're both blue in the face *picture feisty grin on a muddy face with a few teeth missing*). I'd definitely see them again in a heartbeat if I was offered a chance! They're just bloody adorable, that's what they are! :D That Ron... seriously. *big smile* And Scorpius, the show-stealing Malfoy! So, that was my Cursed child pimping - no spoilers without a warning, just like I promised! - and now to some serious promoting/pimping business:

- Our beloved hp_nextgen_fest will be back with us shortly (well, time is kind of relative anyway, but the fest's importance can't be overstated!) - so I can't jump at the chance to promote it fast enough - I mean just look at this adorable banner - who could resist, seriousyl?!:



come join hp_nextgen_fest!

Art by thiliart, Banner by capitu



- In case you're not aware, there's a new fest open that sounds interesting if one is a lover of music - and I am - and a Potterhead - blimey, I'm that as well! So, without further ado - please check it out and I hope you feel like giving it a go:



Aaaaand I think this is it from me before I disappear into the night. I'm kind of buried in e-mails and messages at the moment, so I apologize, if I won't be able to reply to all of you very soon - but I'll do my best to get back to you as soon as I can. I missed the fandom and you all! :)

... it would probably look something like this. Dear capitu, I'm certain your waffles looked better! :D Mine... erm, don't.

Hm, I normally don't do this, but I'll make an exception this time, because I had a rather stressful day and because just thinking of my favourite music makes me feel a bit better even though I'll barely have time to play any today.

So this would be my user name in songs:

Shamelessly snatched borrowed from vaysh

M - Melantroduction by Lacrimas Profundere
Y - Yesterday by Guns n'Roses
   - (hmm, a space would come here normally, if the LJ names allowed it, so let's do this one Space-dye vest by Dream Theater
T - The State by Poisonblack
H - Hope Vol. 2 by Apocalyptica
E - End of The Beginning by 30 seconds to Mars
S - Sleepwalking by Bring Me the Horizon
T - The Dust Storm by Those Poor Bastards
R - Replica by Fear Factory
A - Aerials by System of A Down
L - Living in the past by Jethro Tull

Uhm... I don't have a very girly taste? ;) Damn, I could think of a million songs under certain letters - but the "Y" gave me all the trouble in the world! :)

Sooooo, I guess it's a Fanfiction Writers Appreciation Day - have a happy one, my friends! Thanks to vaysh for bringing it up, and to capitu for reminding me of it with her lovely message, when this geriatric old troll forgot!

Because I'm a terribly busy House-elf in my real-life, I probably won't be able to read all the stories I want to and express my appreciation to all your wonderful works out there, that caught my attention over the years. I can, however, mention - and thank - at least few of you, my LJ life-support team, because sometimes, when a particularly nasty day comes by, you and your stories really are my life-line.

bleedingangel84 - hon, you were not dealt the best of cards in life from the get-go, but you're just taking it in stride like a true hero - I guess you're as close to Harry in real-life as one gets. Thank you for taking good care of your wonderful little plot-bunnies (especially a certain ginger one!) and sharing them with us on weekly basis - it's often one of your cute stories that simply makes my morning! *shamelessly pimps for another one*

candamira - honey, you're as talented as they come, your Black coffee was a total knock-out and if anyone by any chance, missed that one, go on, give yourself a treat and read it, it's magical and the imagery is just...guh... I'm jealous, that's all I'm going to say (well, I am, but in a good way)! :)

capitu - you wonderful Toaster you! ;D You are here-by scolded rather than complimented for sharing too little of your exceptional talent with us and I strongly suspect there's a treasure under a mountain in your homeland, hiding all your collected works! Go on, you lovely kitchen appliance, make us as happy as you did Draco in The Morning After, this pearl of a story - it made me giggle like a loony and for good reasons! :) And please remain your kind, caring self, you just light up the fandom with your magic, you're practically a Lumos in a human form! ;)

digthewriter - you once wrote, in what I like to think of as a moment of your weakness, that you were not a good artist and a writer - and that's just the biggest injustice anyone's ever uttered about their work (I'm tempted to call this statement a load of crap, but I don't want that phrase anywhere near your work ;))! You're incredibly prolific, your pairings are various like no one else I know and you're not afraid to tackle any of it, and with wonderful results as well! I'd be terribly disappointed if I never heard from you again, that much I'm willing to say, so no more self-deprecation or I'm totally ironing your hand... or something, we, the House-elves know no better. ;)

lokifan - your Ron/Draco stories were among the first that introduced me to this pairing (my favourite one since) and even though I know that you like another one of your own works better, for me A Rush of Blood to the Head is always going to be an epitome of all stories steaming hot and sexy - and I've got a bookmark to prove it! :)

nia_kantorka - Nia, you little perfection(ist)! The vocabulary in your stories is so rich it leaves me gawping in awe every bloody time, every word is in the right place and polished until it shines in perfection! There's a small million of your stories that I loved, but Victor and Victims is the one that touched me the most, in spite, or perhaps because of, its the dark glow - oh, you know how we, the Scorpios are - we love it dark! :) Don't leave us waiting for another one for too long, darling!

roelliej - Roel, your love for Ron is infectious and I simply wish there were more like you out there! We're going to keep on rowing that Ron ship even long after when all the rats are gone, aren't we?! :D There's simply too many of your delicious stories with my Ronnie to point one out, so I'm going to single out to this one that has no Ron in it, but a very cute blond boy (something alike to what I have at home). :)

starstruck1986 - you're by far and large one of my favourite Ron/? authors. The sheer realism of your stories gives the reader that priceless "fly-on-the-wall" perspective, almost as if one was there to witness it, and to me it doesn't get much more magical than that. I just want to say - keep on writing, I couldn't pick my favourite one of yours if my life depended on it! :) All of them, perhaps? :)

this_bloody_cat - I read your work long before we were even LJ friends and you certainly gave the world one of my favourite Albus/Scorpius stories. But I loved this little pearl as well and I just wish you had more time to write more, more, more! :) Go on, make time, steal that time-turner (can I borrow it from time to time?) and make us happy! :)

Eh, I kind of vaguely remember boasting like a rooster on a pile of manure that this journal shall not be neglected any longer, but we Slytherins tend to be a bit shifty when it comes to our promises, erm, you know... it was just a temporary promise, drafted for the purpose and limited to that particular mail! *innocent blink* (How did I do with wiggling out of this one?)
So, yeah, but not to be a complete and utter butt, I decided to at least be half way decent and pimp a next_gen fest which is coming real soon (and which I might take a part in if I finally lose al my marbles).and which is totally going to be awesome. I'm looking forward to reading all of them stories, so go wild, people! :)


come join hp_nextgen_fest!

Art by 8c, Banner by capitu

So the lovely daleah has done it again and got us all these really fancy participation banners for the HP Mental Health Fest ! I'm so waving mine - ain't it cute?! :D if it were any cuter with the feather and the glasses, I'd adopt it! :)