🍰BrownDust2 | Lucrezia’s Birthday 🎉 It’s Lucrezia’s birthday—the irresistibly High-ranking Succubus! 🎉 “My, thank you. This must be a birthday gift for me? Now I have exactly 1,000 presents today. See this tower I built with all my gifts? I wonder what it’s really worth… Hm? Didn’t catch that? Never mind, it’s nothing. I’ll place yours right at the top, just for you. So feel free to bask in the glory.” Today is Lucrezia’s birthday. Having amassed a tower of 1,000 gifts, she still makes sure yours sits at the very top—her mysterious, confident charm is impossible to resist. Whatever the true meaning behind her whispered words might be, let's forget about measuring worth for a day and just celebrate. Why not leave Lucrezia a dazzling, unforgettable birthday message, one that’s sure to make her smile? Your thoughtful words might be the brightest gift atop her mountain of treasures. #HappyBirthday#

🍰 BrownDust2 | Nartas’ Birthday 🎉 It’s the birthday of Anonymous Sage Nartas, a wandering sage who belongs nowhere and walks with the moon as his companion. 🌙 🎉 “Another year has passed… Time is a strange thing. Human or yokai—before time, we’re all the same. I used to blame where I came from, you know. I thought I was someone who could never truly belong anywhere. But now I understand… I never needed to belong in the first place. Origin, name—what use are they, really? Right now, under that moon… being here with those who accept me as I am—this moment alone is gift enough.” Today is a special day—a birthday you can spend with someone who accepts the quiet strangeness of time with calm grace. To Nartas, who treasures the present more than any title or past, why not offer a simple birthday wish—just as he is? A warm word shared under the same moon may be all the gift he needs. 🌙 #HappyBirthday# #Nartas#

Mary Austin and Freddie Mercury: A Bond Beyond Fame Mary Austin was just nineteen years old when she met the man the world would later know as Freddie Mercury. At the time, however, he was simply Farrokh Bulsara—a twenty-three-year-old art student with little money, big dreams, and a quiet nature that hid the confidence he would one day display on the world's biggest stages. Their story began in 1969 at Biba, a fashionable London boutique where Mary worked. Life had never been easy for her. Raised in Fulham by deaf parents, she left school at fifteen to help support her family. She was practical, hardworking, and far removed from the glamorous world she would eventually enter. Farrokh often visited the shop. He admired the clothes but could rarely afford them. For months, he returned again and again, gathering the courage to speak to Mary. The future frontman of Queen—who would later command stadiums full of fans—was too nervous to ask one young woman on a date. Finally, on September 5, 1969, his twenty-third birthday, he made his move. Mary did not even realize he considered their outing a date. To her, it felt like two friends spending time together. Yet that evening marked the beginning of a relationship that would shape both of their lives. The two quickly grew close and, within months, moved into a small apartment near Kensington Market. Money was scarce. Mary worked to help cover expenses while Freddie focused on music. As he pursued what seemed like an unlikely dream with a struggling band that would eventually become Queen, Mary stood firmly by his side. When others questioned whether he would ever succeed, Mary never did. Queen released its debut album in 1973, but success did not arrive overnight. Reviews were mixed, finances remained tight, and the band's future was uncertain. Through it all, Mary remained Freddie's strongest supporter. That Christmas, Freddie surprised her with a gift. Inside a series of nested boxes was a small jade ring. When Mary asked which hand she should wear it on, Freddie told her to place it on her left ring finger. Then he proposed. Mary accepted. For a time, it seemed they would spend their lives together. But as Queen's popularity grew, Freddie found himself confronting truths about his identity that he had long struggled to understand. By 1976, he finally opened up to Mary and told her he believed he was bisexual. After listening carefully, Mary responded with honesty. She told him she felt he was actually gay. The conversation changed the course of their relationship. Their engagement ended, and so did their romantic partnership. Yet instead of drifting apart, they forged a bond unlike any other. Freddie arranged for Mary to live nearby and ensured she remained an important part of his life. Although they were no longer a couple, Freddie never considered her simply an ex-girlfriend. He often described her as his soulmate. Many of the people Freddie dated found it difficult to understand Mary's place in his life. Yet he repeatedly made it clear that no one could replace her. In his eyes, she remained the closest person to him. He even wrote "Love of My Life" with Mary in mind, immortalizing their connection in one of Queen's most beloved songs. As the years passed, both moved forward. Freddie became one of the most famous performers on the planet. Mary built a life of her own, married, and had two sons. Still, they remained deeply connected. Mary knew the person behind the fame. She remembered the young dreamer before the stadiums, the records, and the worldwide recognition. She remembered Farrokh. When Freddie was diagnosed with HIV in the late 1980s, he kept the news private from most of the world. Mary was among the few who knew. As his health declined, she stayed close, visiting him regularly at Garden Lodge, his home in Kensington. On November 24, 1991, Freddie Mercury passed away at the age of forty-five. Before his death, however, he entrusted Mary with one final responsibility. Freddie did not want his grave to become a public attraction. He feared that his final resting place would turn into a spectacle for fans and tourists. To prevent that from happening, he asked Mary to take his ashes somewhere private after his cremation. She agreed. According to reports, Mary kept the ashes safely in her home for nearly two years before carrying out his wishes. Then, one day, she quietly left Garden Lodge and scattered them at a location known only to her and Freddie. To this day, she has never revealed where that place is. Countless theories have emerged over the years. Some believe his ashes were scattered in London, while others suggest Switzerland, Zanzibar, or even the grounds of Garden Lodge itself. Mary has never confirmed any of these claims. Her silence remains one of the last promises she made to him. Freddie's will further demonstrated the depth of his trust. He left Mary half of his estate, including Garden Lodge. Over time, her share became even more significant through the estate's arrangements. While some questioned why he left so much to a former fiancée, Freddie had long ago explained his reasoning. He once told Mary that if life had unfolded differently, she would have been his wife—and everything would have belonged to her anyway. For decades after his death, Garden Lodge remained filled with Freddie's belongings: his clothing, artwork, handwritten notes, treasured possessions, and even the piano associated with some of Queen's greatest music. In 2023, Mary made the difficult decision to auction nearly 1,500 of those items through Sotheby's. The collection attracted enormous global attention, with almost 140,000 visitors coming to view the memorabilia before the sale. For Mary, it was not simply about selling possessions. It was about closing a chapter that had remained open for more than thirty years. Yet one thing she refused to part with was the secret of Freddie's ashes. Over the years, Mary became the guardian of the private Freddie Mercury—the man behind the icon. Not the superstar who electrified Wembley Stadium, but the shy young artist who once wandered into a clothing shop hoping to find the courage to speak to her. Mary later said that losing Freddie felt much like losing a husband. Their relationship had survived every stage of life—success and struggle, joy and heartbreak, health and illness. What they shared never fit neatly into a single category. It began as love, evolved into friendship, and ultimately became something deeper than either. While romance ended, loyalty never did. Mary believed in Freddie before the world celebrated him. Freddie trusted Mary when he had everything to lose. And in the end, he placed his final wish in her hands. More than fifty years after they first met, people still wonder where Freddie Mercury's ashes rest. Mary Austin still refuses to say. Perhaps that enduring mystery is what makes their story so powerful. It reminds us that some relationships transcend labels, some bonds survive every change life brings, and some promises remain unbroken even after death. Some loves simply take a different form—and last forever.

happy birthday america. the greatest place ever invented. i’ll spare the cliche immigrant story or whatever but one thing i think about a lot is when i moved to london ppl would basically always tell me to tone it down (cuz i used words like awesome all the time) or ppl told me i was too optimistic or that would always be enthusiastic about something working. i had hard time doing this cuz i never learned any of this behavior, it was sorta just built into me. i found that to be strange & it took me a long time to realize they they were correcting all of my priors instead of simply correcting my vocab. that’s kinda the thing that is hard to explain until you leave. what makes this place so damn unique is ppl here are unusually willing to have an absurd dream & then attempt to make it real. it’s the greatest concentration of individuals on the planet who actually try to make stuff *real*. that instinct feels almost pre programmed into americans. “why not me?” is prolly the macro that separates this country from anywhere else. ppl love comparing here to other places using metrics like healthcare, trains, safety, etc. those things matter. but they are the outputs not inputs. the inputs matter way more. kinda like sports leagues trying to create the next generation of stars by investing in little league. the macro inputs of america are the belief that the future is not something that happens to you, but something you are allowed to build or change. & here, far more than anywhere else on earth requires almost zero permission to attempt it all.. without asking for any sort of cultural consent. that’s why all of the shit you see around the world is basically invented in america. what an astonishingly ridiculous beautiful country.

Happy Birthday @itstonybennett! You hold such a special place in my heart. Whenever I think of you I always Smile, just like Charlie Chaplin wrote. You're beautiful inside and out and the whole world loves you. I celebrate you today from home. But I wish we were Cheek to Cheek 😘

Happy birthday @GuntherEagleman and @Hunter_Eagleman! Two incredible patriots who make this place a lot more entertaining. I hope today is loud, legendary, and filled with everything you both deserve. 🇺🇸 🦅 Much love guys💜

Happy birthday ma boi 🔥 I admire you for your confidence and how you’re a perfectionist when it comes to things you have fun doing✨ I also hope that one day I get to visit your home town and you can show me around cuz it sounds like it’s an awesome place Have a good one 😎 😎 ps. I always forget that you’re actually 4 years older than me lol #HAPPY_NICHOLAS_DAY# #andTEAM# #MAKI#