#{Spartan-197.}

[devotedrigelianflower]

Continuing from here: [Link] | @pieman1112

~*~

Josephine gave a gentle smile at him taking the initiative to hold her hand as she listened to Hunter talking about his day. Honestly, being with him brought the best in her at least from the last time she talked to Rinea. “There might be some people who are still bitter about the results but hopefully there won’t be too many rebellions.” Those who were related to the previous emperor were not happy about Alm at all and she had been keeping an eye on the gossip from the other noble women she talked with for work related reasons. “The manor has been looking a lot better than the first time.” It did look newer but it was a good thing that it was build on a strong foundation. “You would be correct. We don’t have those…technologies here but it was a good thing that you brought up some ideas from your time in the UNSC that Alm and Celica liked from the letter I received this morning.” Josephine stated as while her husband worked in the military, she had to do ‘noble work’ by being the leader of her land. “That reminds me. I also got a letter from Berkut and Rinea. It seems like Berkut doesn’t want us to get married before he does.” She gave a small laugh. “Unfortunately, due to not having gods rule over us, it has caused an issue on those who can officiate weddings.” It was normally the priests of Duma or Mila depending on where you lived. “Which in Berkut’s case means that emperor Alm would have to officiate his wedding which of course he doesn’t seem too pleased with.” Given the history between the two cousins, it made sense that there was still some tension. “I would be honored if the emperor married us, but he already has a lot on his plate so hopefully the problem will be solved soon enough.”  It was not the highest priority but people are going to want to get married so it would have to be resolved at some point.

Once the couple had arrived back to the manor, Josephine had gone over to the parlor room where the letters and other documents were kept. “While I was organizing stuff, I discovered something that I wanted to check out but I was waiting for you to arrive.” It was something that surprised her but also puzzled her. She walked over to what looked like a regular book but when she pulled the book, it moved one part of the bookshelf to reveal a hidden door. She turned on a lantern and slowly opened the door. There were indeed stairs leading to a room. “…It might not be anything bad but…” She was slightly worried since this is where her aunt had lived before she was killed by her husband.

~*~

[gzeidraws]

Commission for @pieman1112 of their OC Spartan-197 with Lucina and S.T.A.Rs! Thank you so much :D

[the-good-spartan]

A Few Notes on 427 BCE: The transfer of the Kingship at Sparta.

In the summer of 427 BCE, the Spartan army marched on Attika to ravage the land for the fourth time in the Arkhidamian War, but unlike the previous three occasions, they were led by an Agiad war-leader, Kleomenes. [Thuc 3.26]

Arkhidamos II, sole Eurypontid king since somewhere around 469 BCE, was probably seriously ill at this time – extrapolated from the fact that he was succeeded by his son Agis II, and the following year, the summer of 426, Agis was the War-King.

One king – the senior king - was always the war-king, so the fact that Agis didn’t lead that army in 427 means that Arkhidamos must still have been alive but couldn’t lead the army as he’d done for many years beforehand.

Kleomenes was the exiled [Agiad] king Pleistoanax’s brother, and was serving as regent to Pleistoanax’s son, Pausanias, who was underage – perhaps meaning below the age of twenty, when an ordinary Spartan could gain full citizenship if he’d met the stringent criteria related to his education, wealth and socialisation; though the eldest sons of Spartan king’s didn’t attend the agoge, so they may have had a different age requirement.

Please note that this is a guess based on almost pure academic speculation. There is a deep lack of evidence around all this topic.

Pleistoanax had been in exile for a long time. In 446, during the Second Sacred War [a series of battles between Athens, Sparta and allies on both sides, for control of Delphi] Pleistoanax invaded Attika, going as far as Eleusis and Thria, before turning back. He was believed to have been bribed into retreating. [Thuc. 2.21]

Cartledge, quoting Gomme, suggests that, ‘The real bribe, however, may not have been monetary, but “the offer to surrender, or discuss the surrender of, Megara, Troizen and Achaia,”’ [S&L:ARH pg. 197] places taken during the Sacred Wars.

In the winter of 446-445, Athens and Sparta agreed the 30 Years Peace which lasted until the outbreak of the Arkhidamian War. Pleistoanax was exiled before this, probably in 445 BCE. [Thuc. 2.21.]

For context, in 418 BCE, Agis II did the same thing, accepting a four-month treaty with Argos without consulting the ephors and gerousia then returned ‘the finest army ever seen in Hellas’ to Sparta. The authorities at home were livid - they threatened to burn down Agis’ house and fine him 100,000 drachmae. He managed to avoid this outcome, but the next time he marched out with the army, he had to take ten commissioners with him, and if he wanted to withdraw his troops from enemy territory, the ten had to agree. This was completely unprecedented. The War-King had always been the absolute authority when on campaign. [Thuc 5.63]. But, all things considered, he was lucky that his victory at the Battle of Mantinea let him off the hook.

Thucydides tells us that Pleistoanax took refuge on Mount Lykaion (in Arkadia), sacred to Zeus Lykaios, where he lived in a house that was built half inside the sanctuary, ‘because he was afraid of the Spartans.’ [Thuc 5.16]

We don’t know when Pleistoanax returned to Sparta with any precision, but it was almost certainly later in 427 BCE, and I’d personally put money on it being only possible after Arkhidamos’ death. It’s said that ‘they brought him back with the same dances and sacrifices as when they inaugurated the kings at the original foundation of Sparta.’ [Thuc 5.17]

The fact that he wasn’t made War-King, despite his seniority both in personal age and the seniority of the Agiad line, suggests that he was considered a ‘new king’, rather than a restored one; but perhaps it was the cause of his exile which prevented him being made the War-King as was his ancestral right.

His return was apparently difficult for him. The Spartans, understandably, didn’t trust him at all.

When speaking of the push for the Peace [of Nikias, in 421], Thucydides tells us that Pleistoanax was very eager for the peace to be agreed, because his opponents were causing his ‘embarrassment.’ Every time Sparta had a set-back in the war, they put it down to his ‘illegal’ return, accusing him and another brother, Aristokles, of bribing the Pythia to repeatedly tell Spartan delegates seeking guidance from Apollo that ‘they must bring back the seed of the demigod son of Zeus from a foreign land to their own, or they would always plough with a silver ploughshare.’ [Thuc 5.16-7] The son of Zeus is Herakles, from whom both the Spartan royal houses traced their lineage.

Quoted Sources:

Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War, translated by Martin Hammond.

Paul Cartledge, Sparta and Lakonia: A regional history 1300 - 362 BCE.

[sentofight]

When Stacy had joined the UNSC, she had made countless friendships, protected the galaxy and all that lived in it. She was never prouder to have served but it was her time afterwards that would find her in the more…stranger situations. When a part of Alpha squad, she was the heavy gunner of the squad. It was her job to pin down enemies and give her squad covering fire. It didn’t give her much civilian job experience but she did work as a firearms instructor after her tenured in the UNSC. She still kept in contact with her old squadmates, including Rebecca though their communication was limited given Rebecca’s new position. To think she would be friends with royalty. They would hang out from time to time and she even babysat for the two when they would vacation in the UEG. She was always excited to see the little ones. At this point they called her Aunty Stacy and it was just the cutest thing.

So imagine her surprise when one day Spartan-197 and a mysterious woman who looked similar to Lucina but older appeared in her store one day. When she first heard that this mysterious woman was the same little girl that she had watched over was certainly out of left field. There was no way that the time went by that quickly. Stacy almost laughed thinking this was a joke but she saw that 197 would dead serious. Listening to this Lucina certainly made her realize that this was no joke. It was a lot to take in and one she would have to have Rebecca explain just what happened during her disappearance period. Though looking at this older It was then she heard the reason on why they were just here in the first place. This Lucina wanted to join the UNSC like her mother. She wasn’t really in a position to say no. Rebecca was one of her best friends and she owed 197 a lifetime debt after he had saved her. So when she heard that Lucina wanted to be trained to become a Marine, she was going to do it.

Stacy had been training Lucina for both her physical tests and aptitude test. It was important that she was taught on just what weapons she would be using as a Marine and the many different jobs. She could be a field medic like her mother, a sniper if range was more her thing, a navigator if she was more inclined to follow star charts. Something she would have time to figure out before going to boot camp. Stacy currently had Lucina running around a practice course. After making her go around the tract to go the distance of 4.82 kilometers, Stacy had clicked her stop watch that read a time of thirty one minutes forty seconds. It wasn’t a bad time but she would need to do a little better to make the cut. Stacy blew a whistle to signal to Lucina to take a rest. She walked over to her with a water bottle and the stopwatch.

“Not a bad time kid.” She said handing her the bottle. “thirty one minutes and forty seconds is pretty good though we will need to cut this by another minute for you to qualify. You’ve got your mother’s determination in you that’s for sure. Tell me. Why did you want to join the UNSC? I don’t want to dissuade you from this choice if it’s what you want to do but it’s not a decision to be made lightly. There’s a lot of choices to be made in it. Firstly which branch you want to join and then what job you want to apply for. I’m sure you are well aware that your mother was the field medic of the squad but there are other options as well. I was the heavy gunner of the squad. Got to deal with all sorts of heavy weapons. It was my job to cover my squad if we ever had to move from one position to the next. When you join you’ll be given a placement test that will show you which jobs you’ll fit in the best at according to different factors. Of course you can always choose something different than what the test suggested. It’s up to you to decide what you want to do.”

It was not strange that Lucina would favor one of her parent’s occupations. Hearing all about her mother’s glory days in the marine, made her grow fond and in awe of what she used to do. Lucina asked her parents and grandpa to help her get in that job like her mom and certainly it brought joy to Rebecca but a mixed feeling of concern and proudness. 

Spartan had brought her to whom who would help her achieve that dream--Stacy. Explaining that she wants to be like her mom and help in whatever she can, Stacy yielded and helped Lucina prepare for what will come to her in the future of this job.

Running was not bad but naga’s mercy achieving a certain time record is a tough job. Drenched in her sweat, Lucina was trying to take her breath when Stacy said she got a good record but she needs to do a little better.

“Huff... Gods ... this...is tough than I thought,” rubbing her sleeve against her forehead to wipe her sweat, she fixed her posture and took a deep breath. “I want to have different options to help people,” she is blessed by her natural father strength and her mother’s stamina, not to mention sword skills and other skill sets from her home realm. “I want to be able to do more than swing a blade to protect my family and friends.” 

She closed her eyes and opened them and you can tell the determination in her eyes. “I’d want to aim for a role like my grandfather, honestly, but I want to see where my abilities will be of use the best. Now, shall we go again, Miss Stacy?”

[pieman1112]

Do you think Spartan-197 or Rebecca would have any talent for Valentian magic, actually? I was a little curious when I reread one of our older threads :)

I think it depends on how the magic works for Valentia. If the magic has any inherited properties through genetics then they probably wouldn't be able to but if it can be learned then I think that Spartan-197 would have a better chance with it then Rebecca would.

Spartans were generally trained to use all weapons that were in the UNSC arsenal so that they would be equipped for any mission. When the Covenant attacked and the Elites joined Humanity against the prophets, they had a chance to train and use the Covenant weapons. Hunter kept this mindset when he arrives anywhere that isn't a UEG world.

In the free time he would have, aside from cleaning his own weapons or other tasks, he would probably study other magic users to see how it's done and try to copy their movements or stances to replicate the spells. He would also have S.T.A.R analyze footage of the mages both in combat and in practice to see the best way to utilize the magic staffs and tomes.

Rebecca might struggle a little more than her father. Her focus may be on learning the healing magic as that would be an area she understands a little more and without access to UNSC medical facilites to resupply her medical pack, she would have to adapt to how medicine is used in Valentia. She may also try to learn the basic spells but may struggle a little more with the higher rank spells.

[brutalrules]

197# SPARTAN - CAMERON CAFFEY

[lukeniklaspierce]

LONELY HEARTS CLUB

The irony of this edit would be I'm a terrible plant owner (I make all my little cactuses die, RIP T-T) even tho I really really love plants. It's like cooking. Well, I hate cooking anyway.

theme

featuring bellow items:

avarosa - hd brows 7 tmd/124/175/23 - tmd

avarosa - liam lel evo x avarosa/185/197/22 - mainstore

ag - ken hairbase derdieb - spartan wounds warpaint - (just a) flesh wound belacce - ballerina necklace classic ixchel - fingertip shadows kit es - body tattoo carpe diem

foxcity - photo booth - weekend plants

medias

[pieman1112]

Most of the Spartans didn't hear what Nobunaga had said after they had all gotten into the Pelican. Focusing on the next set of orders that they would be getting. According to High Command, planet was being over run by these creatures to the point where defensive outposts and forces were being pushed back farther and farther to the point where a full retreat was authorized. This needed to be contained to the planet and as such, a nuclear response was considered.

All survivors were going to be taken to the UNSC fleet above the planet for safety and relocation. When all of the Pelicans had returned, the fleet would launch Hyperion class missiles to decimate the planet. The last time Hyperion missiles had been used was during the Human-Covenant war for ship to ship combat. To some survivors watching it was like seeing the stories of the Covenant glassing unfold before their eyes.

When she did pass out, two of the Spartans grabbed the onboard medical pack to patch Nobunaga up. They administered the general bio-gel to heal the gashes on her arms and legs as well as a medical booster to keep her stabilized until they made it back onto the UNSC Atlas. Once back on board, they would move her to the medical wing of the ship where they were currently dealing with a lot of injured civilians and service members.

Spartan-197 would be tasked with other duties on the next move on making sure those things hadn't come aboard the ship and if they had even stopped them form advancing. Rebecca was currently assisting all of the injured and was assigned to look after Nobunaga.

pieman1112​:

After Nobu grabbed the Spartan’s hand, he hoisted her up a little with him moving her arm over his shoulder so that she could balance a little better on him and move away from here. His magnum was in his other hand and he was moving the pistol, cycling from target to target that was approaching. 

“This is Spartan-197. I have a civilian and we are moving to the evac point. Civilian is injured. Need cover.” He said into his helmet.

“Copy 197. we are coming for the assist.” Responded a voice in his helmet.

197 began to pull Nobu backwards with him. He was facing towards the creatures but walking back towards the evac point. With his pistol raised he began to shoot at the creatures. His pistol wasn’t doing much but agitating them but the repeated hits at the same spot seemed to be damaging them. Just then, the other Spartans assigned with 197 arrived and began to fire at the creatures with Spartan lasers and rockets to cover the two. 

The sounds of explosions and general destruction engulf the battlefield like a symphony but the Spartan group are able to make it back to the Pelican for evac. One of the other Spartan’s help Nobu up onto the Pelican as 197 is the last one to get on before it takes off and lets the area be overrun with the creatures. Two other Pelicans begin to fly in and level the place after the Evac Pelican is safely away.

She hated relying on anyone else like this. Though Nobunaga had never been opposed to asking her close allies for help in her mortal life, being this psychically reliant on a stranger of all things was…well, humiliating. Even in this berserker form - more lighthearted and easygoing than ever - she was almost tempted to shrug the soldier off. Her pride wasn’t something worth dying over, though. So she’d have to tolerate feeling like a helpless child. 

An eyebrow raises at the transmission she overhears, though; really? He’s still going to call me a-ugh. Forget it. 

She didn’t exactly have the time or energy to go over the whole Heroric spirit shebang at the moment. She might as well be a normal human. with her mana this drained, anyways. The only thing that made her stand out was the ease at which she dragged the guitar with her - and thankfully, she’s too exhausted to start getting annoyed about the amount of scratches she was going to have to try and buff out of it later. 

“Those things…multiply if you let them tear someone open. Unless you want to raise a bug army, don’t ignore the ones playing with corpses either”

The dude was probably too busy firing to hear her, but just the act of trying to give him advice somehow made her better about using him as a crutch. Made her feel less useless. 

“Wish we’d had this much firepower in Babylonia. Maybe you guys will make it out okay” she muses. At this point, she only half cares if anyone’s listening to her as she takes the aid into the Pelican. The half-hearted attempt at a joke is all she can do to try and keep her sanity. 

How much she had overexerted herself was rapidly catching up to her now. Logically, she knows she had a couple of gashes in her arms and legs that needed looking after, but all she wanted to do right now was sleep.

Clunk.

She can’t raise her guitar fast enough to keep her knees from hitting the floor. It starts to slide away as the heaviness overcome her eyes. 

“I’m just…gonna take a quick nap here…if that’s okay…” she mutters, not protesting against her body seconds later as her head hits the floor, her weapon clattering along with it. 

[iruludavare]

‘ you could have said that a little nicer. ’ (maybe responding to a comment about one of the other survivors)

Sweet and sour dialogue prompts || Accepting

          “I know, but...I was not going to lie,”

     She speaks almost in a whisper, and only after the person in question is both out of sight and earshot. It is true-- Serena was awfully blunt in breaking the news to them, yet deep down, the young woman knows it is the right decision. Lies can often create deeper wounds than the truth, after all, and in a situation like theirs, the last thing any of them need is for someone else to withhold information. Especially about the status of loved ones. Arms cross themselves over her chest in silent defence, and for a brief moment, the blonde almost braces herself to be scolded.

          “I’m not going to give them false hope. It would hurt them more to think their partner is going to live through injuries like that.”

     They are not as well off as Team Flare-- nowhere near it. Infections, why they are almost akin to that of a death sentence still, with too little supplies to adequately treat so many people and pokemon at once. She would make her rounds, as a figurehead, to see those who asked to speak with her-- to hold their hand, wish them well, and promise to make sure their loved ones stay safe. And she means each word with ever fibre of her being; each tear, each smile, each hold is genuine. 

     And that extends to speaking with their surviving family, significant others and friends. If the blonde has been told they will not make it, she will also relay that information back to them on behalf of the doctors and nurses and other professionals. To try and lessen the blow.

          “...I... I��ve been in their situation before. And I wish someone would have told me the truth back then... instead of sugar-coating everything.”

[nonpareiltactician]

💭

Send 💭 for a thought my muse has had about yours || {Accepting!}

{4/4}

          “Such strange armour they wear. I have never seen anything quite like it before… it is quite disturbing. Perhaps the Summoner is capable of bringing those from so many different worlds to this one… but something is different about those two. It is as though they are from a place and time so different from everyone else’s that it cannot have very many ties with our own ones,”

          “…I do not think it would be wise to come into contact with their armour. So long as they do not oppose the rest of us, it should be fine. They do not seem hostile.”

[redyearning-blog1]

∞

Send me ∞ and my muse will tell you…

If I Think They Are: Ugly || Plain || Alright || Cute || Freaking Adorable || Pretty || Beautiful || Hot || Stunning

If I Would Go On A Date With Them: Not even if we were the last two one earth || No || Maybe || Eh….Sure || Yes || WILL YOU MARRY ME

If I Trust Them: Not At All || Not Really || Kind of || Yes || With My Life

If I Care About Them: Not At All || Not Really || Kind of || Yes || Deeply

If I Would Sleep With Them: Not Enough Alcohol in the World || No || Maybe if I were wasted || Maybe || Eh…Sure || Yes || TAKE YOUR CLOTHES OFF NOW!

My Comfort Level With Your Muse: Keep a Distance || Okay You Can Stand There, But Don’t Touch Me || Let’s Get Coffee and Talk || Let’s Cuddle || I Can Change In Front of You || Let’s Take a Bath Together

If I See You As: A Stranger || An Acquaintance || A Friend || A Close Friend || My Best Friend || A Crush || The Love of My Life

[devotedrigelianflower]

~*It’s time for: Headcanon Time | Guest Staring: @pieman1112 ~

//This is going to be a long headcanon post but I wanted to give a little more context about Josephine's dream of being a Bow Knight. Since Shadows of Valentia is a remake of FE2 Gaiden, In the game Bow Knights are a male only class, while Pegasus Knight is a female only class. Which to me honestly is weird and makes no sense. In future games there many more women that can become archers and also bow knights and it took Fates to make the first male Pegasus Knight which was a long time coming.

So in this head canon, as a child Josephine wanted to be just like her dear grandfather Reginald the first. During his time in the military, he was a Bow Knight but also could become a Myrimidon, a sword unit, if there was a need for him to do so in battle. So when his youngest granddaughter asked if she could learn how to use a bow as well, he was more than honored to teach her everything he knew. His former military colleagues would tell him that he shouldn't teach her that. He would simply laugh and tell them, "If she want to use the bow to fight then so be it! She's my granddaughter after all!"

It was not easy at first to shoot an arrow while on a horse but with practice and her grandfather's guidance she managed to do so. When she was around 13 years old, it was her time to start her military training in the Rigelian army. Her grandfather had unfortunately passed away when she was 10 years old so he never got the chance to see her in her armor. Since Josephine had experience riding horses, it was easy for her to become a Cavalier and she did get used to using a lance, but when she asked about reclassing her to a Bow Knight, her grandfather's old colleagues refused to promote her to that unit. However, they did agree that she was skillful with a horse and had potential just like her grandfather. So they instead encouraged her to become a Paladin. All she really could do was customize her armor to look as close to a Bow Knight's armor but not make it too obvious for her peers to notice.

As a teenager, the Emperor Rudolf and those were close to him were intimating so she never brought up her wanting to be a Bow Knight to him. She mostly was on patrols near where she lived and sometimes fought terrors and monsters for the most part. When she turned 18, she had the choice of staying in the army and be promoted to Paladin or go back to being a boring noble woman to 'prepare for marriage'. She picked the latter option as she realized she would never get to be a Bow Knight while the old military order was still around. So she gave up on her dream believing that no one in Valentia would ever think that a woman could be a Bow Knight. She never spoke about her time in the military to anyone except to Berkut. The only reason he knows is because he found Josephine's military records when he was making sure she would be good friend for Rinea and was confused why someone with high marks would suddenly leave. She had told him that it was better for her family if she married a higher noble in the future and she enjoyed being in Rinea's company. "That does explain why you were able to fight back those assassins with a lance with ease. It is a shame really, you would have been an excellent Paladin for my army. Should you ever change you mind, I can have that arranged. I am the crown prince after all." Is what Berkut told her. He did however make her a secret bodyguard for Rinea but would be a 'lady in waiting' or some sorts in public. Josephine agreed to this and as order she never told Rinea the truth about it but Rinea figured it out easily since Josephine helped her get away from any fighting close by and had seen her fight before.

Perhaps due to Alm and Celica being much more open with changes, Josephine feels like perhaps she might be able to become a Bow Knight or at least have other girls like her be able to become archers. She has yet to tell her Hunter (or any beloved that could have had) about her military days since they are not the happiness moments in her life but he will find out soon enough. It will certainly be a huge surprise to everyone when she does show off in a battle the same skills that Bow Knights have.

[gzeidraws]

Commission for @pieman1112 of their OC Spartan-197 with baby Lucina 😊 Thank you!!

[missbaphomet]

Evidence of sappho being bi is super frail. Sorry but u will have to find someone else to cheer u on for sucking dick :( must be hard for u :(

User @bisexual-books put it so much better than I could ever hope to so I will quote her in her entirety.

Short Answer:

Here is the deal: No one knows the exact truth about Sappho.  What we have is fragments of poems and some very flattering words from the Alexandrians.  Besides having a ballpark of when she lived (600’s BC) and where (Lesbos), we know almost nothing about her. 

But that’s really not the point.  

Sappho wrote lyrical and romantic poetry about men and women because it was her job.  She got PAID for this, presumably.   We don’t know how she really felt about any of it.  It certainly seems like she cared about the people she wrote about, and maybe she did.  Or maybe she was just a really good writer.  

Our culture is full of generalizations about history and historical figures.   But it is only when Sappho is claimed as bisexual that people wring their hands about how we don’t know for sure.  Applying any label to a historical figure is technically dicey, but it is only the bi ones that have to prove it 100% beyond a shadow of a doubt.   The word lesbian, used to refer to women who are attracted to women, didn’t even exist in her time, but you don’t see people interrogating lesbians over historical inaccuracy. 

Longer Answer with Historical Context (or, Ellie finally gets some use out of her Classical Studies degree):

The context of Sappho’s relationships with women is kind of complicated. Sappho ran a  thiasos, a sort of informal finishing school for young unmarried women. Upper-class families would send their daughters to these academies for instruction in proper feminine behaviors, as well as music and poetry recital, before they transitioned into married life (Krstovic). Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was the patron deity of the thiasos, and Sappho frequently used symbols of Aphrodite -  flowers and garlands, perfumes, incense, and outdoor scenery – as part of her love poetry to the young women under her tutelage (“Sapphos”). Many of Sappho’s poems were actually marriage songs for these girls when they left to marry men.

Sappho’s thiasos may be considered the female counterpart to the male education system. In the Athenian Greek world, it was common for older men to take a younger boyfriend, and this was an important part of training the boy for his adult public life , providing him with connections he would need to operate in a democracy. In Plato’s Symposium, Pausanias (himself an older lover), describes the relationship in terms of education. “When the former (the older lover) has the power to contribute towards wisdom and distinction, and the latter (the younger beloved) needs to acquire education and accomplishment” (Klink p.196-197). So if you want to talk about cultural differences, and how you can’t apply modern definitions to people in history, there’s your first point: When we talk about Greek homosexuality or Sappho, we’re talking about pedophilia, not the adult relationships that define modern gay/lesbian, bisexual relationships.

So Sappho was probably writing to under-aged girls. Athenian Greek readers would have probably seen an echo of their own pedophilic system in Sappho’s poetry. Whether or not they respected it the same way they respected their own male system is debatable, and given that women had such a poor role in Athenian society, they probably didn’t. But they would have recognized it as the same system, even while believing it to be “inferior”.  Greek men saw female forms of the pedophilic system elsewhere. By 100 CE, Plutarch described Spartan women taking girls as lovers, as the explicit female counterpart to the male practice (Klinck 197). This may be late archaic Greek idealization of the past, but it introduces the idea that men would have been aware of women following similar homosexual practices. In Plato’s Symposium, Aristophanes talks about women who love women and equates it to heterosexual love, in that both heterosexuality and lesbianism were inferior compared to male homosexuality. He treated lesbianism as a joke, but he is clearly drawing parallels between it and male homosexual practices of the time (Klinck, 196-197).

But for all her same-sex love poetry, Sappho didn’t seem to have a queer reputation until 100-200 CE, nearly 800 years after her death.  The earliest reference to Sappho’s sexuality doesn’t come until the second or third century CE, from a papyrus based off the earlier work of Chamaeleon. “She has been accused by some people of being licentious in her lifestyle and a woman-lover.” (Klinck, 194-195) “Woman-lover” is pretty clear, but take a minute to look at the word “licentious.” The verb is ataktos, meaning “not properly regulated,” “out of line,” or “unmanageable.” This word is important because it tells us about her sexual reputation.

By the Athenian period, women from Lesbos may have has a reputation for “unmanageable” sexuality, in much the same way the modern Western world stereotyped certain races and nations as more sexual. They may have especially had a reputation for oral sex, a more “slutty” act than ViP intercourse in the ancient world. In Wasps, a play by the Athenian comedian Aristophanes, the character Philocleon says he snatched up a flute-girl when she was going to “lesbianize” a man at the party, meaning she was going to perform oral sex with him (Klinck, 195). The effect is to equate the country with “unmanageable” sexuality. Other references to lesbian actions are less clearly oral, but definitely sexual in nature. The joke seemed to be that women from Lesbos were so sexual, they’d even do anything, even each other.

So Sappho’s reputation was one of “unmanageable” sexuality, whether she was writing homoerotic poetry about girls or lusting after younger men.  When people imply that Sappho’s male relationships were made up in order to make her seem “straight,” they are forgetting that those stories did nothing to improve her reputation, but just made it worst. In one of the most popular stories about Sappho’s love life, told by Ovid and comic poet Menander, Sappho falls in love with a beautiful young male sailor named  Phaon who will not have her. Finally in despair, she commits suicide by throwing herself off a cliff into the sea. The point in making her fall in love with a man was never to make her seem safely straight. The point was to make a joke at her expense, about how she was so sexed up, that even as an ugly old woman she was throwing herself at young men who would never be interested in someone like her. Ovid and Menander weren’t saving her reputation; they were painting her as a slut. As 21st century bisexual women, the stereotype parallels seem obvious to us.

The later focus on Sappho’s licentiousness, either towards women or men, may also be the product of shifting sexual mores. After all, there are nearly 300 years between Sappho’s life in (circa 570BCE) and her appearance in Athenian comedies and philosophies circa 300BCE, and nearly 800 years before she is discussed in poetry treatises in (200 CE). Research Anne L. Klinck observes, “Attitudes towards sexuality changed in the fifth and fourth centuries BCE, and perhaps the poetry of female passion came to be regarded as unseemly” (196).

No one knows how Sappho’s poetry was originally published while she was still alive, but by the Era of Alexandrian scholarship in the second and third century BCE, her works were collected into a standard 9 volumes, none of which exists today, but we know that the whole first volume was made up of heterosexual marriage poetry, family, and religion. Because of her lustful reputation, her works were targeted for censorship first by Bishop Gregory Nazienzen of Constantinople in 380CE, and again in 1073 by Pope Gregory VII ( Krstovic). Most of Sappho’s work exists in fragments and scraps, and only one full poem still exists. Many of these came from Alexandrian textbooks of poetry and style, in which only short pieces were quoted as examples, because it was assumed the reader would have access to the full poems. These Alexandrian textbooks were not re-discovered until the renaissance. Other Sappho fragments come from 19th century discoveries of papyri scraps preserved in the Egyptian desert, and early 20th century discoveries of scraps used in the paper-mache liners of Egyptian of coffins (Krstovic), and more recently a lengthy portion of a poem about her brother was discovered on another  papyrus scrap (Romm).

In the 19th century, Sappho became a symbol for a growing movement of women-loving-women, even giving them her name. In the 19th century, women who loved women were frequently described as sapphic women, even if they also had relationships with men. The distinction between lesbians and bisexual women wasn’t nearly as important as our culture makes it out now. Later the sapphic movement took its name from Sappho’s homeland, the island of Lesbos. The association came about because of her love poetry written towards the young women she taught at her school.

But the ultimate question: did Sappho write love poetry to men? The answer: not many, but yes. . Because of  Sappho’s association with lesbians over the last few hundred years, modern writers tend to ignore her bisexuality. When discussing her supposed lesbianism, author’s will ignore evidence that she wrote of love between women and men, such as the epithalamia (marriage poetry), and many of the fragments are ambiguous, but clearly lack feminine endings. Some translators will purposely translate these ambiguous fragments with  feminine pronouns to imply a female love interest, even when those endings are not clear in the source material. When translating Sappho in her study of homoerotic elements, Klinck gives an example of a fragment that is frequently translated as the feminine participle when the actual word is optative, and another example of a fragment with a masculine ending that “may not be significant” (Klinck 201). Translators can sometimes be forgiven for this oversight – many of them are trying to strengthen the argument that Sappho really was as queer as her reputation – but it is not necessary to risk misinterpretation to do that.

tl;dr:

If there is a conspiracy afoot to fake Sappho’s poems about men to erase her lesbianism, we’ve never heard of it.  But we have heard of a lot of lesbians whine that in honoring the full spectrum of what we DO know about Sappho, we’re taking something away from them.  This is bullshit and biphobia talking.

We may never know the exact truth, but what we do know looks pretty damn bisexual to us.

 - Ellie and Sarah

Works Cited

“Sappho.” Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.

 Krstovic, Jelena. “Sappho: Overview.” Gay & Lesbian Biography. Ed. Michael J. Tyrkus and Michael Bronski. Detroit: St. James Press, 1997. Biography in Context. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.

 Klinck, Anne L. “’Sleeping in the Bosom of a Tender Companion’: Homoerotic Attachments in Sappho” Journal of Homosexuality. 49.¾ (2005) :193-208. Database name. Web. 20 Feb 2014.

 Romm, James. “Scholars Discover New Poems from Ancient Greek Poetess Sappho.” The Daily Beast. 28 Jan. 2014. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/28/scholars-discover-new-poems-from-ancient-greek-poetess-sappho.html

In conclusion: die mad, biphobe

[sentofight]

The Shepherds of the future had endured many trials. From the loss of the Exalt and their families to the sights of the state of the world and the numerous Risen that plagued the land. It will almost be bearable as they made their way to the Outrealm Gate. Hunter had been an advisor to Lucina as she lead the Shepherds all the way here. He was so proud of this group and thankful that they all survived. They had lost many people on this journey. The knights who had fallen and then turned to enemies, villagers that helped them before being wiped out, even S.T.A.R who had fallen into rampancy and had self-terminated herself to ensure that she would not cause more problems in her rampant state. 

As they got closer to the Gate, Grima was more desperate to stop them. If they were allowed to go back to the past it could ruin everything. In an attempt to stop them, Grima sent their loyal followers and as many Risen as they could. When the Shepherds would get there, it would seem like a wave of Grimleal and Risen blocked their path. A battle soon followed and the Shepherds would come out victorious. They couldn’t celebrate this victory as Grima would send more forces to come push through the gate to stop them. Hunter instructed all of the Shepherds to start going through the gate one by one. He pulled Lucina, Thomas, and Maria aside for the last talk they would ever have. 

“Lucina, Thomas, Maria. This is the chance we have fought for. If the legends are true, and I hope that they are, you three will be sent back in time. You and the rest of the Shepherds will have the chance to change this future for the better and I’m so proud of you three. Lucina, you have grown into a fine leader. I’m proud to have fought by your side. Thomas, while we haven’t always agreed you have always taught me of different ways to look at situations. Maria, you had to endure in a world that took everything but now you’ll have a brighter world to look at." 

He soon took off his helmet and handed it to Lucina.

"When you meet me in the past, give him this and tell him ‘The S.T.A.R will always guide you, even in the darkest night.’ He’ll understand that you are not a threat. The S.T.A.R of the past should be able to access my recordings that are stored in the helmet to show the Shepherds of the past how to stop these Risen.”

Soon came the question from Maria that he dreaded. 'Aren’t you coming grandpa?’

“No kiddo, I won’t be. Someone has to stop the Risen from making it through. You kids have been through enough. You should have the chance to meet your parents. You three are the last to enter and once you do, I’ll destroy the gate.”

Seeing the shock on their faces and the inevitable tears from Maria hurt the old soldier but it was a sacrifice that had to be made. He brought the three of them into a hug.

“Don’t cry Maria. It will only make this harder on all of us. I’ve lived through many things and had to make many decisions, some I regret. Watching the three of you grow up and have the chance to make a beautiful future together is not one I regret. Even if I can’t be there to see it. You’ll have better experiences with the past me. It’s time to go.”

He soon ushered the three of them into the gate and after they walked through he began to start punching the gate to destroy it. His efforts were stopped when the Risen arrived and he began to attack them to halt their advance. This was the last action performed by Spartan-197.

It was bleak as it gets. Hope was not a fairytale told to get children to stop crying. Has Naga abandoned them? But why? Aren’t they good and Grima is the bad one? Why . . . ?

Why their parents had to die? Aren’t they good? Good things should happen to good people right? But ...why did they have to die? It does not make sense? Even aunt Lissa, uncle Frederick ... everyone ... even ... even ...S.T.A.R.  ....They are all alone. Had it not for Spartan, their grandfather with them they would have well, died, too.

Their grandfather had a plan--The Outrealm Gate. If Lucina cannot use Falchion and the Fire Emblem to invoke their powers to defeat Grima, then their only option is to go through that gate and hope they land in a present that is more ...welcoming to children. The group managed to reach there and when the time come, Spartan offered his final words to the kids. 

“B-but Grandfather--! You cannot leave us, too!” Lucina held his helmet so close to her chest. Maria cried and glued herself to his arm, this way he wouldn’t go and leave her. Thomas managed, at first, to hold his tears but the realization of being thrown into the unknown had made his tears fall down.

The trio didn’t have time to argue with their Grandfather because he quickly pushed them to the gate then worked on destroying it. The last thing the children saw was his faint smile disappearing against the light coming out of the gate.

Chris is after my life | i dont accept attack on my soul like that | @pieman1112​

[pieman1112]

What does 'being human' actually mean? RP with cinemachaos

With the Human-Covenant war over for the past decade, Humanity had reached a true peace. New ships were being constructed, planets that were glassed were being cleared and rebuilt, and new forces were being trained to rebuild the UNSC's might. But old rivalries and hatred threatened to destroy this new peace that humanity found itself in.

Before the Human-Covenant war, there were two major problems that plagued the UEG. Mutants and the Insurrection. The official policy regarding mutants was that they could serve in the UNSC as long as they followed the orders given to them and could pass the requirements that were in place for all of their soldiers. For the most part mutants were accepted by their peers in the UNSC. The soldiers would work together and train as units. Not all of this acceptance was of good intention however. Some leaders saw these mutants as weapons to be used.

When the Insurrection came into full swing, some used it as an excuse to attack the mutants since a lot of mutants signed up with the Insurrection of the outer colonies. Some even defected from the UNSC to the Insurrection as they fought. This war was the catalyst for project Orion, a super soldier program that would give the UNSC an edge against the Insurrectionists. When the covenant attacked Harvest and started the Human-Covenant war, the UNSC and Insurrection joined forces in an uneasy peace in what looked like the possible extinction of humanity.

The UNSC was always on alert for those who would threaten the peace that was achieved. While the integration of the covenant species into the UEG had eased some tension between humans and mutants into becoming more tolerant. There were still some who saw themselves as superior and had made it a mission to bring this superiority to a new age. Remnants of the Covenant, mutant supremist groups, human supremist groups, and insurrectionists seem to be popping back up again. The Office of Naval Intelligence was looking into these groups to see if a military response would be needed and to see if they threatened any ONI operations.

Spartan-197, a veteren of the Human-Covenant war, was chosen as the one to recon a new group called the brotherhood of mutants. Their leader was a charismatic mutant named Magneto and could possibly threaten the UNSC and the UEG with his magnitism. For this 197's armor was retrofitted with nonmagnetic alloys. It reduced some of the armor capabilities but he wouldn't have to worry about the suit being torn apart should he run into the leader.

He would be dropped via pelican jump near where the suspected meeting would take place. He would fall for a good distance before activating his jump jets to soften his landing, all timed to not draw suspicion from anyone there.

"Beginning mission." Hunter said into his comms after landing in a secluded forest.

Unfortunately for him and ONI, there were some sympathetic to the group that had leaked the information to the brotherhood. The whole meeting was poised to be a trap for the super soldier and Rogue would be chosen as the one to find out why this super soldier had arrived.

@cinemachaos