#(insert obligatory rail joke here.)

[foundationsofdecay]

There's this one line in Ascensionism that's been sticking in my head the last couple of days:

"With one eye on the door, other eye on a rail Other, other eye following a scarlet trail And the last few drops from the Holy Grail"

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this is the first time we've gotten any kind of lyrical reference to having any extra eyes? The eye on the door feels like a reference to Jaws, where Vessel's being watched while Sleep (or whoever else) is moving towards the door to leave him locked away, and the rail at first glance seems like it is a desire for stability or assistance/companionship. Blood trails have plenty of lyrical references throughout their discography, even just two tracks prior in Aqua Regia, but there are a couple of different interpretations that come to mind for the Holy Grail.

The way this is described in and of itself is curious, that you have Vessel's attention split not just in different directions, but in different amounts: 1/3 is looking at the door, either at a potential exit or looking at the place where someone's abandoned him, 1/3 is looking at something already present that could potentially be a source of grounding and relief, but the final 1/3 is split in two.

Four focus points, but over six parts. Reminds me of how Vessel's most recent masks have all featured six eyes, but hey, if nothing else that lends a precedent for this hyper-fragmentation of warring desires, or perhaps a combination of fear and desire; prey animals need ways to detect predators, after all, what could be better than two eyes than six?

Looking at this last 1/3, the final two of the six, you have this equal split. On one hand, you have the desire to continue this metaphorical hunt, that nagging urge to follow it to the source of injury and make it worse, to latch on and deepen the wounds and the pain in someone else. On the other, you have the last drops of the Holy Grail; depending on what interpretation of literature you prefer, that could mean bringing back eternal youth (the glory of innocence, perhaps, as a foreshadowing to TMBTE), or halting further progression of aging or disease (preserving telomeres, like was pointed out by tonguetyd here), or providing a source of eternal sustenance, something that would be able to sustain Vessel in a way that would free him from the need to follow that blood trail in the first place. Those are all very different things, though all certainly desirable in their own way at various points to Vessel throughout the trilogy.

Thing is, no matter what the Holy Grail does, the resource is finite. There are only a few drops left - even if Vessel were to opt for that route, he would still eventually age again, whether from a 'purer' point or his current state, would still return to his hunger and his need to feed. There's one problem here, though. Wounds heal. The scent of blood can last a long time, but if Vessel were to abandon the hunt for too long, it may be impossible to pick it back up and still have the upper hand, if he were to catch up in the first place. So, of course he would be torn over that more than anything else. Would really it be worth abandoning everything up until now to have that brief respite, to return to a time when he wasn't caught in this viscous cycle, when he knows fully well that it can never last?

[theladysherlock]

"Have your scientists bred anything that can run as fast as a train?"

"No, but have you Clankers ever made a train that can hunt for its own food, or heal itself, or reproduce?"

"Reproduce?!" Alek laughed. For a moment, he imagined a litter of baby train cars populating a rail yard, which led his mind to other aspects of the mating process. "Of course not, what a repulsive idea."

1. [Insert Obligatory York Drawtectives Wild Trains Joke Here]

2. Now this is a headcanon of mine that I realize is at least 50% projection on my part (so I don't take it super personally when people don't agree with me on it), but a majority of my basis for my Asexual Alek headcanon comes from this line. The first and only time sex shows up in any capacity in this series, and his reaction is "ew, gross." (Of course, there's further evidence down the line, but that's more anecdotal/aligning with my experiences as an asexual teenager. Specifically being more interested in his friends' relationships than his own and his initial discomfort when he realizes his friend has feelings for him, but I'll get into THAT more later)

[starsandmaple]

Dances and Drafts, Chapter 8 - Better Late Than Never

Synopsis:

It is 1977 and the Triwizard Tournament has come to Hogwarts. As the school prepares for its first Yule Ball in two-hundred years, Lily Evans finds herself completely put off going thanks to a certain toerag, and Severus Snape too shy to even consider attending. Can a cunning plan change that?

Notes:

I do not own these characters or anything deriving from the Harry Potter universe. All of that comes from the lovely J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Insert obligatory joke about being broke.

Better Late Than Never

Now Lily could finally admit that she was excited for the ball.

In fact, after what had occurred in the potions room earlier that day, Lily would even admit that she felt a little giddy.

Suffice to say both she and Severus had been a little distracted during their brewing session and got through far fewer potions than usual in the time between their arrival and the loud bell which rang through the castle signalling dinner. This had startled them both out of their side-tracked haze and they hurried to clear their table and head towards the great hall.

When they reached the large iron doors, the point where the two would usually part ways before entering the hall to join their separate house tables, Lily reached out and gave Severus’s arm a light, comforting squeeze.

“I’ll see you later Lily,” Severus said quietly, smiling back at her sweetly.

“I suppose I’ll see you at the ball?” Lily replied, releasing him. She knew by now that his evening would likely be taken up by his fellow Slytherins as it always was.

“See you there,” he paused for a moment before turning and walking into the hall.

Lily waited a moment before heading in, making her way immediately towards Dayana who sat at the Gryffindor table with a few other seventh year girls.

“Dayana!” she exclaimed as she sat down hurriedly, an anxious look on her face.

“Oh, hi Lily,” Dayana said distractedly between mouthfuls of dinner; tonight was vegetables and roast chicken.

“Dayana I need your help, do you have time to go into Hogsmeade this evening?” this caught Dayana's attention. The mousy witch considered her friend for a moment, looked up in thought, and then nodded.

“What’s up?” she said, swallowing.

“I need something to wear for tomorrow,” Lily said quickly, causing Dayana’s eyes to widen as a smile spread across her face.

“Does this mean you’re coming to the ball?” she asked excitedly.

Lily nodded, smiling a little herself, an expression which quickly disolved into one of urgency.

“Right!” Dayana quickly loaded up a plate of food for Lily, “Hurry up and eat, you’ve left this really late you know but better late than never,” she handed the plate over and motioned for her to hurry up.

Lily had never eaten so fast in her life. It was already 6:15 and the shops in town closed at 8:00.

By the time she and Dayana had finished dinner and made their way into the snowy town of Hogsmeade it was already 7 o’clock.

They hurried out of the cold into Galdrags Wizardwear, where an unexpectant shopkeeper looked up from behind a copy of the Daily Prophet.

“Can I help you girls?” spoke the middle aged witch as she put down the paper and crossed from behind the till. A silver name badge which read Esther was pinned to the front of her dark blue velvet robes.

“Yes, hello,” said Dayana, shaking snow off of her cloak, which magically evaporated before even hitting the carpeted floor, “My friend Lily here needs a rather last minute gown for the Yule Ball tomorrow night.”

Esther looked Lily up and down.

“You are lucky my dear, I brought in a lot of dresses for the Yule Ball this year,” she beckoned them to the back of the shop, “A lot of them have sold of course but we do still have a rather wide selection.”

Lily perused the racks of gowns, knowing that she didn’t have a lot of time she pulled a few from the rail and slung them over her arm. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Dayana doing the same from the opposite end of the room.

“Right, try these on quickly!” Dayana threw a pile of dresses towards Lily which floated through the air in a flourish of colourful fabrics. Lily caught them and nodded, quickly heading towards the changing rooms at the back of the store.