#A city is no place for wild creatures. :: Act III

[bearllydruid]

Halsin had grown up bathing in rivers, romping with other wood elves and druids would do that. "I will admit, I am still learning - my experience with vampires was few and far in between before I met you." It wasn't exactly as if there were many factual accounts either, it often became so conflated and the claims all seemed to conflict. Halsin's eyes trailed Astarion's form as he stood so gracefully, his innate grace drawing Halsin's attention. He had an appreciation for beautiful beings, Halsin wasn't blind after all, but Astarion was on another echelon entirely. "I almost regret how driven we were on our journey, it might have been nice to actually relax for a day and swim." Halsin agreed, however, that he preferred the scent of fresh, clean water to what passed for a 'beach' at Baldur's Gate.

The first thing to draw even a flicker of a smile to his lips was watching Astarion with Scratch. Seeing how their friend had even won over the rogue brought Halsin a sense of joy. It was dashed promptly however to the way that Astarion relayed the news that Scratch had been hurt. That his had been the face that had loomed over the dog, and that it had been quite serious, no less. Halsin looked aghast, his gaze a storm of gold breaking up the hazel. "I...I truly am sorry." Halsin said quickly, sending his aching body into a proper crouch to be smaller near the dog. It only lasted a few seconds before, in his exhaustion, Halsin ended up on his knees with one hand bracing his weight to keep him off the floor. He did not reach out to Scratch, rage and shame shackled him properly to the spot.

He had been careless, he had let his guard down, he of all people should have smelled the rot of death and Bhaal and known that it was not Astarion immediately. "Please forgive me," Halsin said as he bowed his head before the pale beast, who seemed to have already processed things and moved on. Dogs were quite good at that. Druids who held onto guilt like the most tender and cozy of cloaks, however, were not. Halsin swallowed thickly and took a moment to try and settle himself again. He would not let his rage get the better of him, and he would not allow his sorrow to consume him. Orin was dead. They had seen to that. He had seen it with his own eyes.

"I will need to hunt something particularly rich for him." Halsin said after a moment. "And the Cub?" He asked as he glanced over at the Owlbear who rested its head in Shadowheart's lap. He hoped that despite never properly teaching the Cub how to fight, his own instinct had stepped in to bridge the gap.

“Hm?” Crimsons shifted idly toward Halsin, stealing a gander from over his shoulder. The druid must have meant one of the vampire’s more inconvenient conditions, such as in how running water normally burned him like acid. “It’s been well over two centuries since I last bathed in a river. Running water and all that... But sulphuric springs? Those tend to have volcanic roots, my dear– infernal. Even when they’re meant to heal.”

It wasn’t the first time the infernal and the healing had collided, after all. Those waters in House of Hope’s boudoir had proven as much. “I could have tried the beach, of course,” Astarion continued, rising to his feet, all grace and feline fluidity, “but reeking of dead fish and sewage isn’t exactly my idea of a pleasant afternoon, I must admit.”

Just as he stood, Scratch trotted over, nipping at his shoes, stubbornly enthusiastic in a way only that dog could manage. A sigh spilled from the vampire’s lips and he dropped back to one knee, fingers immediately sinking into the creature’s fur. “You know that wretched shapechanger hurt this one, right? Wearing your face, no less.” His tenor soured, lids narrowing in faint recollection. Orin hadn’t killed Scratch– barely. “With our best healer missing in action, we had to make do. The cleric spent all night nursing the poor thing back to health.”

Despite everything, Scratch didn’t look too bothered about sharing in the druid’s presence. It was either as if the violence was something past and forgotten, or someone had whispered into his ear what had truly transpired. Someone whose breath smelled faintly of an animal-speaking potion.

Astarion would rather choke on said potion than to admit it was his doing.

[symbolismmotifvariation]

From Wine to Water- The Immortal tempest of Saint Antoine ~ Dickens’ variety of symbolic interpretations and motifs of the Parisian crowds in A Tale of Two Cities.

Read Time: 2 Mins

Symbolism is my favourite literary feature, offering us the opportunity to walk our own literary path and stray from the strictures of the narrator. In a Tale of Two Cities, symbols of wine and water act as my personal gateway into identifying the faces of the faceless French revolutionaries, signifying the consequences of social neglection.

It sounds far-fetched, but trust me, it works!

Quick history lesson: It’s 1789, working conditions are horrendous with madness ‘sold at 10 pence’. The living and dead become unrecognizable from one another, turning San Antoine into a scene from the Walking Dead. Already, we’re provided with gothic motifsof strange places and social constraints, where the supernatural environment symbolizes the ‘personality’ of the desperate, inhuman crowds. Orwell demonstrated that Dickens’s novel gave a ‘false impression’ of the Revolution���, however, we must question Dickens’s reluctance to defend ‘accurate “period” records’.

Maybe to open our eyes?

The Walkers are symbolised through the broken wine cask as animalistic, collapsing human boundaries. This is intensified through the ‘hunted air’ transforming them into diseased ‘wild beasts’. The primitive lapping up of wine from the cobbles is somewhat illustrative of Stoker’s vampirism with intense alcoholic cravings, symbolising the blood-thirsty foreshadowing of death on that same street.  

Outwardly this comments on ‘incompetent’ leadership, with workers desperately absorbing such luxuries, mirroring symbolic escapism. However, through Dickens’s exaggerated lens, the crowd purposely feed off oppressors to fuel their thirst for justice. Collectively ingesting this foreign richness connects these individuals, creating one vessel. There’s no longer a faceless ‘Jacques one’, as all have fed from the same puddle, so now share one brewing vision for class mobility.  

Photo by Terry Vlisidis on Unsplash

This gothic motif of ‘violent differences in power’of course symbolizes industrial symbolism, ‘exaggerating’ the ‘terror’ of a newly built mechanized creature called…

The Crowd.

‘People gather and attack the broken cask to relish their thirst’

During the Bastille invasion, this crowd symbolise a storm, fuelled by these wealthy liquids. The Bastille resembles a beach, threatened by the approaching intoxicated tempest of collective violence. Here, all sense of self washes away with the current of ‘drums beating’, illustrating the unification of one metaphysically operating body.

Photo by César Couto on Unsplash

Was freedom won then?

Well, Samuel Smiles thinks not, arguing this ghost crowd become more unknown, trapped within this mass unit. Now subsumed in waves, individuality is unreachable, questioning whether we can actually ‘hear the people sing’or merely hear them vocalize into deeper oppression, obliviously within their own ranks.

‘The living sea rose, wave on wave, depth on depth, and overflowed the city.’ 

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, II.21, pp.223-24.

However, Darwin’s evolution, rescues freedom! The novel symbolizes the strongest prevailing whilst unimproved forms drown (spoiler… the monarchy), suggesting a takeover is inevitable through survival of the fittest. Alongside the ‘echoing footsteps’ of encroaching modernity, we can fossilize Dickens’s history, tracing past progression to the present, alongside foreseeing our future prophecies; exaggerating the importance of looking back in order to move forward.

Was this symbolism a warning for Britain?

Well, if we explore Carlyle and Engel’s works then yes, they were warning our British bourgeoise of imbalanced supremacies. This was through the motif of doubling with France and Britain, with British crowds becoming swarmed by ‘flies’ amongst the ‘loud buzz’ of upheaval.

Sound familiar?

Engels also illustrates the environmental damage of 1844 London, whilst Carlyle see’s the British ‘creature in rage and pain’. Surprisingly, this reminded me of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, with France’s primitive past contained in Britain’s present. The novella enhances our doubling motif through a fear of primitive resurfacing. 

Is France Mr. Hyde, the symbolic evil other to Britain’s Dr Jekyll?

So, Dickens symbolizes Victorian working-class discontent through comparison with the French revolution. By noticing the causes that led to revolution we should make some effort to alleviate them, right?

Let’s fast-forward to 2021.

Well, take the Black Lives Matter protests. The crowd doubles those in Dickens’s histories, symbolizing one mass unit coming together, mirroring the uncontrollable tempest aiming to run out old ideologies, paving social equality and freedom … you get the picture now.

Everything’s a symbol for an important message, it depends on the angel you chose to look from.

Photo by Tito Texidor III on Unsplash

[bigprettygothgf]

kayla bigprettygothgf’s halloween recommendation list

I know it’s a little late into October to publish this, and I had wanted to get this out at the start of the month, other things just got in the way of my time. But, I finished it anyway.

I’ve divided this into two parts - First, movies that are available on the big three streaming services - Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu. Second, movies that are not available on those services and you’ll have to get via… other means. All in all there’s over 70 films here.

Summaries are either written by me or lifted from letterboxd. Because I’m lazy.

It probably goes without saying that almost all of these come with a CW for violence. Violence will only be mentioned specifically in CWs in more extreme cases.

If I’ve missed any applicable content warnings here, please message me about it! it’s been a while since I’ve seen many of these movies and it’s likely there’s some details I’ve forgotten.

Full list under the cut.

Available on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or Hulu

  -Annihilation (2018)

A biologist signs up for a dangerous, secret expedition into a mysterious zone where the laws of nature don’t apply.

   -Genres: Alien invasion, body horror, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: Death of a lesbian character 

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu

-Apostle (2018)

Netflix original horror tends to be very hit or miss, more often than not a catastrophic miss. While not without its flaws, Apostle is fortunately one of the better releases to the service, offering a very The Wicker Man (1973)-esque story about a man who travels to a remote island in search of his sister who has been kidnapped by a cult.

   -Genres: Cult horror, historical period horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-As Above, So Below (2014)

While the dialogue in the film borders on unintentional comedy at times, As Above, So Below is a surprisingly decent found footage flick about a team of explorers delving into the Paris catacombs. 

   -Genres: Found footage, horror thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2017)

Father and son coroners receive a mysterious unidentified corpse with no apparent cause of death. As they attempt to examine the young “Jane Doe,” they discover increasingly bizarre clues that hold the key to her terrifying secrets.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-Blade (1998)

When Blade’s mother was bitten by a vampire during pregnancy, she did not know that she gave her son a special gift while dying—all the good vampire attributes in combination with the best human skills. Blade and his mentor battle an evil vampire rebel who plans to take over the outdated vampire council, capture Blade and resurrect a voracious blood god.

   -Genres: Superhero, vampire horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Hulu

-Candyman (1992)

The Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster’s myth.

   -Genres: Psychological horror, slasher, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Animal death, R-slur

   -Available on: Netflix

-Cloverfield (2008)

Five young New Yorkers throw their friend a going-away party the night that a monster the size of a skyscraper descends upon the city. Told from the point of view of their video camera, the film is a document of their attempt to survive the most surreal, horrifying event of their lives.

   -Genres: Disaster, found footage, monster, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: One of the lead characters, Hud, is played by accused sexual abuser T.J. Miller

   -Available on: Hulu

-Constantine (2005)

By all accounts, Constantine is a bad adaption of its source material, taking far too many creative liberties and making many unnecessary changes from the Hellblazer comic. However, despite that, the film is a fun and decent movie in its own right, and worth a watch regardless of whether or not you’re familiar with the comic it’s based on.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, superhero, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Suicide

   -Available on: Hulu

-Creep (2014)

Aaron answers an online ad and drives to a stranger's house to film him for the day. The man claims to want to make a movie for his unborn child, but his requests become more bizarre as the day goes along.

   -Genres: Found footage, horror thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-Creep 2 (2017)

A video artist who craves shocking stories realizes she has made a mistake when she meets a serial killer in a cabin.

   -Genres: Found footage, horror thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-The Crow (1994)

Exactly one year after young rock guitarist Eric Draven and his fiancée are brutally killed by a ruthless gang of criminals, Draven – watched over by a hypnotic crow – returns from the grave to exact revenge.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, superhero

   -Content warnings: Sexual assault

   -Available on: Netflix

-Event Horizon (1997)

A film that could have been great had it not been marred by interference from Paramount, Event Horizon is still a decent entry into the sci-fi horror genre, even if just for the great scenery-chewing by Sam Neill. It’s just a shame that we’ll probably never see a fully uncensored version.

   -Genres: Sci-fi horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu

-The Evil Dead (1981)

Bruce Campbell & friends take a trip out to a cabin in the woods. Hilarity ensues.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: The infamous tree rape scene

   -Available on: Hulu

-Evil Dead II (1987)

Bruce Campbell & friend takes a trip out to a cabin in the woods. Even more hilarity ensues.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, horror comedy

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Hulu

-The Exorcist III (1990)

Despite the title, The Exorcist III has very little to do with the original Exorcist film, only given connections to it due to studio imposition. Fortunately, this is a rare case where studio interference didn’t actually negatively affect the film itself much at all, and I strongly recommend it, even if you haven’t seen the original.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Ableism

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Gerald’s Game (2017)

When her husband’s sex game goes wrong, Jessie (who is handcuffed to a bed in a remote lake house) faces warped visions, dark secrets and a dire choice.

   -Genres: Psychological horror

   -Content warnings: CSA, graphic degloving

   -Available on: Netflix

-Ginger Snaps (2000)

The story of two outcast sisters, Ginger and Brigitte, in the mindless suburban town of Bailey Downs. On the night of Ginger’s first period, she is savagely attacked by a wild creature. Ginger’s wounds miraculously heal but something is not quite right. Now Brigitte must save her sister and save herself.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Animal death

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Green Room (2015)

A punk rock band becomes trapped in a secluded venue after finding a scene of violence. For what they saw, the band themselves become targets of violence from a gang of white power skinheads, who want to eliminate all evidence of the crime.

   -Genres: Horror thriller

   -Content warnings: Nazism, racism, N-slurs

   -Available on: Netflix

-Hellraiser (1987)

An unfaithful wife encounters the zombie of her dead lover while the demonic cenobites are pursuing him after he escaped their sadomasochistic underworld.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu

-Hereditary (2018)

When Ellen, the matriarch of the Graham family, passes away, her daughter’s family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry.

   -Genres: Drama, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Animal death, child death

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-The Invitation (2015)

Will and his new girlfriend Kira are invited to a dinner with old friends at the house of Will’s ex Eden and her new partner David. Although the evening appears to be relaxed, Will soon gets a creeping suspicion that their charming host David is up to something.

   -Genres: Cult horror, horror thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-Lake Mungo (2010)

One of my personal favorite films in the horror genre, the underappreciated Lake Mungo - creatively presented in a faux-documentary style - is an eerie look at the difficulty of moving on from family loss.

   -Genres: Found footage, pseudo-documentary, psychological horror

   -Content warnings: CSA

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Mother! (2017)

I hesitated adding this one because to be frank I do not care much for it and Darren Aronofsky, while a talented filmmaker, is a bit of a self-aggrandizing prick and this film demonstrates his pretentiousness more so than any of his past work. But, even so, there’s some legitimately great material here, particularly in the third act when everything goes to shit. If you can look past the extremely heavy-handed bible metaphors and clumsy environmental message, you may get something out of it.

   -Genres: Psychological horror, thriller

   -Content warnings: Misogynistic violence, graphic baby death

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu

-Nightbreed (1990)

A troubled young man is drawn to a mythical place called Midian where a variety of monsters are hiding from humanity.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy

   -Content warnings: Eye trauma, F-slur

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Night of the Living Dead (1968)

A group of people try to survive an attack of bloodthirsty zombies while trapped in a rural Pennsylvania farmhouse.

   -Genres: Zombie horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video (Public domain, so you should have no trouble finding it elsewhere.)

-Possum (2018)

Long stretches of not much happening are made up for by some truly horrifying puppet sequences which are among the creepiest things I saw in any 2018 film.

   -Genres: Drama, psychological horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Pumpkinhead (1988)

A man conjures up a gigantic vengeance demon called Pumpkinhead to destroy the teenagers who accidentally killed his son.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Child death

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu*

*Audio is slightly out of sync on both streams.

-A Quiet Place (2018)

A family is forced to live in silence while hiding from creatures that hunt by sound.

   -Genres: Alien invasion, sci-fi horror 

   -Content warnings: Child death

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu

-The Return of the Living Dead (1986)

When a bumbling pair of employees at a medical supply warehouse accidentally release a deadly gas into the air, the vapors cause the dead to re-animate as they go on a rampage seeking their favorite food: brains!

   -Genres: Horror comedy, zombie horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-The Ritual (2017)

A group of college friends reunite for a trip to the forest, but encounter a menacing presence in the woods that’s stalking them.

   -Genres: Cult horror, supernatural horror 

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-Saw (2004)

Obsessed with teaching his victims the value of life, a deranged, sadistic serial killer abducts the morally wayward. Once captured, they must face impossible choices in a horrific game of survival. The victims must fight to win their lives back, or die trying.

   -Genres: Horror thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Hulu

-Saw II (2005)

When a new murder victim is discovered with all the signs of Jigsaw’s hand, Detective Eric Matthews begins a full investigation and apprehends Jigsaw with little effort. But for Jigsaw, getting caught is just another part of his plan. Eight more of his victims are already fighting for their lives and now it’s time for Matthews to join the game.

   -Genres: Horror thriller

   -Content warnings: Needles

   -Available on: Hulu

-Scream (1996)

A killer known as Ghostface begins killing off teenagers, and as the body count begins to rise, one girl and her friends find themselves contemplating the ‘rules’ of horror films as they find themselves living in a real-life one.

   -Genres: Slasher

   -Content warnings: Rape mention

   -Available on: Netflix

-Society (1989)

Containing what I consider to be the greatest special effects Screaming Mad George ever did, Society is a story about the son of a rich Beverly Hills family feeling like he doesn’t quite fit in. If you like body horror, 80s practical effects, and satire about the west coast upper class, I can not recommend this hidden gem enough. Another of my personal favorites.

   -Genres: Black comedy, body horror, satire

   -Content warnings: Incest and really gross body horror. In general if you’re averse to sex and nudity you may wanna steer clear.

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Suspiria (2018)

I can’t think of many films I hold such a high opinion on that I was initially ready to hate. When I found out that the Call Me by Your Name director would be behind a remake of Dario Argento’s 1977 classic Suspiria, I rolled my eyes. When official photos started to roll in indicating the film would be gory and desaturated in contrast to the original’s surreal usage of exaggerated colors, I decided I wasn’t touching it with a ten foot pole. Fast forward about a year later, and I eventually decide to give the film a chance. Low and behold, not only do I list it as a top film of 2018, I actually, genuinely like it more than the original. While there’s much to be said about the style and color palette of the original film, I find the remake’s radically different tone and style to be still, in a difficult to describe way, faithful to the 1977 original. But most importantly, the film stands on its own as a visceral, nightmarish, violent, and disturbing experience I still haven't stopped thinking about nearly a year later.

   -Genres: Body horror, cult horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Suicide, very graphic gore

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-The Terminator (1984)

In the post-apocalyptic future, reigning tyrannical supercomputers teleport a cyborg assassin known as the “Terminator” back to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son is destined to lead insurgents against 21st century mechanical hegemony. Meanwhile, the human-resistance movement dispatches a lone warrior to safeguard Sarah.

   -Genres: Science fiction, thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, YouTube

-They Look Like People (2016)

While held back slightly by its low budget, They Look Like People is one of the best looks at mental illness I’ve seen in a film, especially a horror film, and I’d easily recommend it to anyone tired of the demonization of mental illness in the horror genre.

   -Genres: Psychological horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Amazon Prime Video

-Train to Busan (2016)

Martial law is declared when a mysterious viral outbreak pushes Korea into a state of emergency. Those on an express train to Busan, a city that has successfully fended off the viral outbreak, must fight for their own survival.

   -Genres: Thriller, zombie horror

   -Content Warnings: N/A

   -Available on: Netflix

-Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil (2010)

Two hillbillies are suspected of being killers by a group of paranoid college kids camping near the duo’s West Virginian cabin. As the body count climbs, so does the fear and confusion as the college kids try to seek revenge against the pair.

   -Genres: Horror comedy, slasher

   -Content Warnings: Rape mention

   -Available on: Netflix

-The Witch (2015)

In 1630s New England, William and Katherine lead a devout Christian life with five children, homesteading on the edge of an impassable wilderness, exiled from their settlement when William defies the local church. When their newborn son vanishes and crops mysteriously fail, the family turns on one another.

   -Genres: Religious horror, supernatural horror

   -Content Warnings: Abuse, animal death, child death, implied CSA

   -Available on: Netflix

Not Available on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or Hulu

-Alien (1979)

During its return to the earth, commercial spaceship Nostromo intercepts a distress signal from a distant planet. When a three-member team of the crew discovers a chamber containing thousands of eggs on the planet, a creature inside one of the eggs attacks an explorer. The entire crew is unaware of the impending nightmare set to descend upon them when the alien parasite planted inside its unfortunate host is birthed.

   -Genres: Sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Aliens (1986)

When Ripley’s lifepod is found by a salvage crew over 50 years later, she finds that terra-formers are on the very planet they found the alien species. When the company sends a family of colonists out to investigate her story—all contact is lost with the planet and colonists. They enlist Ripley and the colonial marines to return and search for answers.

   -Genres: Sci-fi action, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Altered States (1980)

A research scientist explores the boundaries and frontiers of consciousness. Using sensory deprivation and hallucinogenic mixtures from native American shamans, he explores these altered states of consciousness and finds that memory, time, and perhaps reality itself are states of mind.

   -Genres: Sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-AM1200 (2008)

A fantastic little horror short film. Officially on Vimeo.

   -Genres: Eldritch horror

   -Content warnings: Suicide

-Army of Darkness (1992)

Don’t ever let anyone tell you that Army of Darkness isn’t as good as Evil Dead II. They’re full of shit and this movie fucking rules.

   -Genres: Dark fantasy, horror comedy

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Basket Case (1982)

A young man carrying a big basket that contains his deformed Siamese-twin brother seeks vengeance on the doctors who separated them against their will.

   -Genres: Body horror, horror comedy, slasher

   -Content warnings: Attempted rape

-Beyond the Black Rainbow (2010)

Deep within the mysterious Arboria Institute, a disturbed girl is held captive by a doctor in search of inner peace. Her mind controlled by a sinister technology. Silently, she waits for her next session with deranged therapist Dr. Barry Nyle. If she hopes to escape, she must journey through the darkest reaches of The Institute, but Nyle wonʼt easily part with his most gifted and dangerous creation.

   -Genres: Sci-fi horror 

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Blair Witch Project (1999)

In October of 1994 three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, while shooting a documentary. A year later their footage was found.

   -Genres: Found footage, supernatural horror 

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Cabin in the Woods (2011)

Five college friends spend the weekend at a remote cabin in the woods, where they get more than they bargained for. Together, they must discover the truth behind the cabin in the woods.

   -Genres: Black comedy, eldritch horror, horror comedy, satire

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Christine (1983)

Geeky student Arnie Cunningham falls for Christine, a rusty 1958 Plymouth Fury, and becomes obsessed with restoring the classic automobile to her former glory. As the car changes, so does Arnie, whose newfound confidence turns to arrogance behind the wheel of his exotic beauty. Arnie’s girlfriend Leigh and best friend Dennis reach out to him, only to be met by a Fury like no other.

   -Genres: Horror thriller, supernaturally horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Donnie Darko (2001)

After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.

   -Genres: Drama, psychological thriller

   -Content warnings: References to CSA

-The Fly (1986)

When Seth Brundle makes a huge scientific and technological breakthrough in teleportation, he decides to test it on himself. Unbeknownst to him, a common housefly manages to get inside the device and the two become one.

   -Genres: Body horror, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-From Beyond (1986)

A group of scientists have developed the Resonator, a machine which allows whoever is within range to see beyond normal perceptible reality. But when the experiment succeeds, they are immediately attacked by terrible life forms.

   -Genres: Body horror, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: Sexual assault

-Get Out (2017)

Chris and his girlfriend Rose go upstate to visit her parents for the weekend. At first, Chris reads the family’s overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter’s interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined.

   -Genres: Horror thriller, psychological horror, satire

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Grave Encounters (2011)

I’ll admit that this found footage pseudo-reality show film isn’t all that good, but if you’re like me and you’re a slut for all those dumb Ghost Hunters-type TV shows, this should be right up your alley.

   -Genres: Found footage, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Ableism

-Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)

I’m just going to quote my best friend Lars @dracenines:

there is so much shit in this movie that makes no goddamn sense at all but it's so damn fun that i can't help but love it anyways

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The House of the Devil (2009)

In the 1980s, college student Samantha Hughes takes a strange babysitting job that coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret.

   -Genres: Cult horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-In the Mouth of Madness (1994)

With the disappearance of hack horror writer Sutter Cane, all Hell is breaking loose…literally! Author Cane, it seems, has a knack for description that really brings his evil creepy-crawlies to life. Insurance investigator John Trent is sent to investigate Cane’s mysterious vanishing act and ends up in the sleepy little East Coast town of Hobb’s End.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror, eldritch horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-It Follows (2014)

For 19-year-old Jay, fall should be about school, boys and weekends out at the lake. But a seemingly innocent physical encounter turns sour and gives her the inescapable sense that someone, or something, is following her. Faced with this burden, Jay and her teenage friends must find a way to escape the horror that seems to be only a few steps behind.

   -Genres: Psychological horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Sexual assault

-Jacob’s Ladder (1990)

A traumatized Vietnam war veteran finds out that his post-war life isn’t what he believes it to be when he’s attacked by horned creatures in the subway.

   -Genres: Drama, psychological horror, religious horror, thriller

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Jennifer’s Body (2009)

A newly possessed cheerleader turns into a killer who specializes in offing her male classmates.

   -Genres: Black comedy, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Keep (1983)

A great seemingly forgotten horror film that was unfortunately never able to be fully finished due to the death of the special effects supervisor early in post-production, and much more to the film’s determent, heavy studio interference, resulting in shoddy sound design and over 100 minutes cut from the movie. Despite this, I still enjoy this film quite a bit, particularly for its fantastic atmosphere and excellent soundtrack by Tangerine Dream.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Nazis

-The Lost Boys (1987)

A mother and her two teenage sons move to a seemingly nice and quiet small coastal California town yet soon find out that it’s overrun by bike gangs and vampires. A couple of teenage friends take it upon themselves to hunt down the vampires that they suspect of a few mysterious murders and restore peace and calm to their town.

   -Genres: Horror comedy, supernatural horror, vampire horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Marebito (2004)

A fear-obsessed freelance cameraman investigates an urban legend involving mysterious spirits that haunt the subways of Tokyo.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Eye trauma

-The Others (2001)

Grace is a religious woman who lives in an old house kept dark because her two children, Anne and Nicholas, have a rare sensitivity to light. When the family begins to suspect the house is haunted, Grace fights to protect her children at any cost in the face of strange events and disturbing visions.

   -Genres: Drama, gothic horror, psychological horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Prince of Darkness (1987)

A research team finds a mysterious cylinder in a deserted church. If opened, it could mean the end of the world.

   -Genres: Supernatural horror, zombie horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Resident Evil (2002)

Look, this movie is not great, it doesn’t follow the games, I know. But it’s a guilty pleasure and Milla Jovovitch awakens homosexual feelings in me. Just don’t bother with the sequels. Or do bother with them. Honestly, you could do a lot worse with your time.

   -Genres: Action horror, sci-fi horror, zombie horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Sinister (2012)

Found footage helps a true-crime novelist realize how and why a family was murdered in his new home, though his discoveries put his entire family in the path of a supernatural entity.

   -Genres: Mystery, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Child death

-Spring (2014)

Sci-fi horror romance film about a shapeshifting monster girl. That’s all I need to tell you.

   -Genres: Romance, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-Suspiria (1977)

From the moment she arrives in Freiberg, Germany, to attend the prestigious Tanz Academy, American ballet-dancer Suzy Bannion senses that something horribly evil lurks within the walls of the age-old institution.

   -Genres: Gothic horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014)

One of my favorite found footage films and and a great example of how much potential the genre holds when handled by a director who seems to actually give a shit. To top that off, it features a lesbian lead character who doesn’t die. It’s really that easy!

   -Genres: Found footage, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Five friends visiting their grandfather’s house in the country are hunted and terrorized by a chain-saw wielding killer and his family of grave-robbing cannibals.

   -Genres: Slasher

   -Content warnings: Ableism

-The Thing (1982)

Scientists in the Antarctic are confronted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of the people it kills.

   -Genres: Alien invasion, body horror, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: Animal death

-Trick ’r Treat (2007)

Four interwoven stories that occur on Halloween: an everyday high school principal has a secret life as a serial killer; a college virgin might have just met the one guy for her; a group of teenagers pull a mean prank; a bitter old recluse receives an uninvited guest.

   -Genres: Anthology, black comedy, supernatural horror 

   -Content warnings: Child death

-Us (2019)

Husband and wife Gabe and Adelaide Wilson take their kids to their beach house expecting to unplug and unwind with friends. But as night descends, their serenity turns to tension and chaos when some shocking visitors arrive uninvited.

   -Genres: Cult horror, sci-fi horror, supernatural horror 

   -Content warnings: Child death

-V/H/S (2012)

When a group of misfits is hired by an unknown third party to burglarize a desolate house and acquire a rare VHS tape, they discover more found footage than they bargained for.

   -Genres: Anthology, found footage, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: Sexual assault

-V/H/S/2 (2013)

While there’s less good to be found in the sequel than in the previous installment, the segment featured in V/H/S/2 titled Safe Haven is easily the best in the entire series and has quickly become one of my favorite horror short films of all time. It alone makes V/H/S/2 a worthwhile watch.

   -Genres: Alien invasion, anthology, cult horror, found footage, sci-fi horror, supernatural horror, zombie horror

   -Content warnings: References to CSA, eye trauma

-Videodrome (1983)

As the president of a trashy TV channel, Max Renn is desperate for new programming to attract viewers. When he happens upon “Videodrome,” a TV show dedicated to gratuitous torture and punishment, Max sees a potential hit and broadcasts the show on his channel. However, after his girlfriend auditions for the show and never returns, Max investigates the truth behind Videodrome and discovers that the graphic violence may not be as fake as he thought.

   -Genres: Body horror, sci-fi horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-The Void (2016)

Cloaked, cult-like figures trap a police officer, patients and staffers inside a hospital that is a gateway to evil.

   -Genres: Cult horror, eldritch horror, supernatural horror

   -Content warnings: N/A

-What We Do in the Shadows (2014)

Vampire housemates try to cope with the complexities of modern life and show a newly turned hipster some of the perks of being undead.

   -Genres: Horror comedy, pseudo-documentary

   -Content warnings: One F-slur

[unseeliephen]

history: kora &. phen - an unknowing reunion setting: the forest of thorn haven

i. 

With every full moon that past, Kora felt as if she lost a little bit more of herself. She needed this almost more than breathing.

The air is cold. It is mid morning but the sky is dark and heavy with promise of another bout of snow. The small brunette tilts her head up toward the clouds, short dark curls swaying against the wind as she laughs and twirls. For a moment, she is happy, unbranded with her power back within her possession.

Slowly snow begins to fall and hit pale cheeks.  Green orbs glance behind, smile beaming. “I’ll be back later.” before either Sidian or she has time to protest or change their minds, the she-wolf is already beginning to pull her shirt up and over her head. She leaves her clothes in a neat pile behind the green house attached to the magic shop before shes running through the snow, shifting in mid-stride. The black wolf quickly hidden within the treeline and up into Crown Points forested trails.

ii.

There’s a stirring in the night of the forests surrounding Crown Point. There are nocturnal animals wakening and hunting. Leaves are rustling when the wind blows them. Quiet murmurings of whispers to those who listen close enough.

A large gust of wind blew, stirring a few birds nearby and where there was once an empty clearing now stood Phen–the uniquely fae green eyes glowing brightly in the night. His cheeks quickly redden from the cold that bites at his skin, but it hardly phased him as he began walking through the forests. He could always find his way. The shadows of the forests were his home whenever he was on this realm.

It’s an uneventful night minus the whispers he hears in his ears. Better to drown them out for now, no one is keen on listening to his songs at the moment. But just when he thinks he’ll have to return to the city unhappy, there’s a blur that catches his sight. For those of a human, most likely would have missed it. But not Phen’s eyes.

“Will you come out and play?” Phen asked into the forest as he stopped walking, a hand reached out to press into a nearby tree. There’s an excitement in his voice and his eyes, the smile on his face one of a child’s. “Please? Come here! I just want to pet you.”

iii.

The wolf is racing herself through the damp foliage now. Kora’s sharp claws kick up wet earth with every fluid step. She feels at peace here - as if everything that ever happened to her led up to this moment. It was almost poetic as she stretched and used muscles locked away for too long. It was exhilarating to just let go. Of her problems, of herself. She was no longer merely Kora - the pretty little helpless slave.

- she had teeth and claws and limbs that can run for miles.

Limbs were stretched to their max and yet it still feels as if it isn’t enough. Her wolf demands its freedom. Suddenly, lost in her own little world of earthly sights and smells, she senses something unique within the trees. It drives her curiously forward to investigate, but she is careful to keep her distance. And though she stays hidden, the dark fur of her coat is of stark contrast to the white beneath her paws.

Never trust the fae folk. Its a warning that has stuck with her since childhood. The wolf lifts her muzzle, sniffing the air in search of more potential threats as she allows her presence there among the trees to be know. She does not move forward however, the warning still chiming in her head as she watches him, home there within the clearing.

iv.

A smart wolf to keep at a distance. Phen has always thought the forest is a different world, a society with its own set of rules and dangers than the city. Werewolves, skinwalkers, the fae folk… all the supernaturals that dwell among the trees.

“I see you,” Phen said as he tapped a finger to his nose and then pointed in the direction of the wolf. “But I’m not going to hurt you.”

To make his point, as if it would help at all, he sat down on the forest floor, back leaning against the tree. Phen has a soft spot for dogs. Domestic or not. Wild or supernatural. They’re beautiful creatures of strength and beauty. Phen’s written songs and poems about them. He’s made pieces of artwork in the haze of his creativity that brought to life the truth of them.

“I just want to pet you! You’re so beautiful. Majestic.” Phen didn’t move from where he sat but he reached a hand out. He’s suppose to do that, right? Let her sniff him, assess if he’s dangerous?

Well. He is. But not right now. Not to her.

v.

The sky was dark grey now, with snowflakes so thick she had to squint through it just to see the few paces ahead. It was raw, and real and she loved every second of her paws embedded in the dirt. Kora trotted her way through the undergrowth of trees when she had finally decided to make the small journey toward the fae. Especially now that he had lowered himself to the ground.

Head up and emerald eyes bright - the shewolf spots his form  beneath the canopy of a tree where snow is trapped above a thick cover of leaves. He is a mere few feet away now and yet her steps are slow, unhurried as she makes her way to him through the cold terrane. He feeds her with compliments, but its the uniquness of his fae nature that draws her animal in. She sits back upon her hind legs in front of him. Even before her enslavement it wasn’t common for Kora to allow anyone to touch her. It was an intimate act, as it would be even now.

The look she gives his slouched figure and outstretched hand says that if he isn’t careful teeth will claim his arm as payment. She steps forward, wet muzzle brushing up against the males offered hand and down-turned wrist as she allowed the strange fae to touch. After all she still wears her necklace; Sidian would know if she were in any sort of distress.

vi.

It’s a sight to see for those lurking in the shadows of the woods. Phen noticed the quiet murmurs are silent now. Whether those are in his head or not, that’s still to be discovered. Trotting across the forest floor is a werewolf, coming in the direction of an Unseelie fae that sat in the cold snow.

It hardly phased him, his thick cloak enough to keep him warm. His unusually bright green fae eyes are wide and excited, pale cheeks rosy from the cold. He doesn’t move, he knows better. Which of the two can be the greater threat, that would be a question not answered tonight.

The softest of gasps escaped from Phen when he felt her muzzle against his hand, letting her making the movements toward him first. He really didn’t want to lose any fingers. They were his life line. His ability to create. Losing them would mean losing his life.

But once he feels it’s safe, he turns his hand to run his fingers through her fur with deliberate slowness. “You’re so soft,” he whispered into the night with the words carried on the fog of his breath. “And warm.” Phen moves to scratch behind her ear, leaning forward just enough to let him do so. “Do you live in these woods?”

vii.

There is something very different about these woods, as if something more is lurking within there depths.  This place does not remind Kora of home, but the electric hum of magic in the air draws many a creature near. For now - it is as close as she will get unless she decides now to make for an escape. However, Sidian trusts her enough not to run far - she would hate to break that trust again.

And this fae - peering at her through eyes so bright, she knows she should be more cautious. Faeries were known for their trickery and violence when they think themselves disrespected. They were also rumored to steal sleeping babies from their cribs and replace them with changelings. She is reminded of every story her grandmother had ever told her and yet - this faeries touch was gentle as fingers carded through her dark fur. She’d only ever allowed Sidian or pack to touch her like this - it truly is a quiet sort of intimacy. One she hadn’t realized she so desperately needed after being in this hell for so long.

She allows him to touch freely, even goes as far as to tilt her head for more gentle scratches behind her ears. Hes cold. But Kora’s temperature runs hot and the cold hardly phases her. Ears draw back at his question and she glances back toward the thick line of trees in which she had come from as if to tell him she lived within the town. He wasn’t a wolf so their communication was limited. After a moment she drew nearer, plopping her heavy body down next to his own under the tree with a quiet huff, warm fur pressed against his side. She did need a rest after all before she needed to head back.

viii.

Phen’s eyes follow in the direction that the wolf looked. A tree? Did she live in a tree? That’s odd. He didn’t know of wolves to live in trees. That would have to be extremely uncomfortable! Phen’s mind momentarily boggled at the thought of how that would even work until his brain stopped and he realized his mistake. That was the direction of the city. The direction that he would eventually trek his way back to whenever he would need to go home.

“You live in the city. Sad. It isn’t pretty. These woods are pretty, but you should see my home. It’s the most beautiful realm. The woods there are gorgeous, you would love them.” There’s a dreamy quality to his voice, as if he hadn’t just been home mere minutes ago. Taking the wolf to the fae realm would be a very bad idea. Even if it was tempting, Phen was going to be good. Besides, someone would try to steal the wolf from him and that wouldn’t make for a very happy Phen.

A noise of surprise and pure happiness escapes him when the wolf walks close and sit next to him. The soft fur and warmth of her body is a comforting presence beside him and Phen can’t help but lean into it before he throws his arms around her neck and just buried his face into the fur. “You’re going to be my new best friend. My best wolf friend. Do you wanna see a trick? Of course you wanna see a trick!” Phen sat up slightly, still leaning into Kora as he reached a hand out. It was slow at first, a few sparkles in the air here and there before suddenly surrounding them were bright colorful orbs of light, dimming and brightening as they bobbed in their place. “Isn’t it so pretty… so many colors…”

ix.

Hes speaking of the faerie realm - a place wayward humans occasionally find themselves trapped. At least that is what Kora remembers of the stories her gran used to tell her before she would sleep. It was supposedly a very beautiful place, she was almost jealous that she would never get to see it. That is - if he did not suddenly steal her away. Sidian would never be able to find her then. The thought leaves the wolf weary, but she quietly listens to his tale as if shes back home, in her grandmothers small countryside cottage. Its a place she hasn’t been in a very a long time, not since the elder womans passing. Kora thinks this fae would prefer the forest there over the one they currently reside.  Maybe she will tell him of it one day - where many a faerie circle could be found.

Kora had always wanted to meet one of his kind - before she knew a wolf resided beneath her skin. She had sworn she could hear them whispering in the trees - but family thought her mad, a childs imagination on the brink of going much too far. And then - the very wolf with a faes arms wrapped around her neck - had ripped and tore its way out of her skin one night during a full moon. Kora hadn’t been crazy at all, merely in tune with the nature around her always. The brand and this place had taken that away from her.

Hes hugging her now, cold face pressed in to thick fur of her neck and she nudges him instinctively. She would be able to find him now with her scent upon him - that was if he continued to stay on this plane. Excitedly he pulls himself up and Kora answers his question with a small huffed bark, placing a large paw upon his leg. She did love magic - when it wasn’t being used against her. The sparks of light brighten her eyes as she looks about them - they were like brightly colored fireflies in the sky. Truly it was one of the most simplistically beautiful moments she would experience within these woods. Kora finds herself happy as her head tilts to the side when one floats in front of her face. She bops it with her nose and the orb sparks like a small firecracker, causing her to sneeze.

x.

In the quiet of the night, in the darkness of the forest, it’s is easy to miss the look in Phen’s eyes and perhaps for that he’s grateful. There’s a sadness that lurks in the corners, one that finds its spinning threads wrapped tight around him and deep to his core. Crown Point had never been the place that he had intentions of calling home. The world is one so expansive and brilliant, there are so many other places that he could visit. But he’s tethered. There’s a dreaded thread, one black and rotten, that keeps him spinning lost in the void of this city. Returning to the fae realm for trips gives him some solace and a comfort of where his real home is but he can never stay long. No, there’s always the ticking of the clock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

There’s a sudden dark and resounding moment of clarity. It crashed into Phen with no hesitation, washing over his body and his eyes dulled, a flicker as if the light had gone out for a brief moment. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. Phen doesn’t like it, no one bit. As quickly as the moment is there, it is gone in the next and Phen’s eyes are bright as they once had been, focused on the orbs of light as if he’d never actually left that reality. Had he left it for a brief space of time?

Phen’s expression is back to that of child-like wonder, following all the little orbs and watching the one that comes across to Kora’s face. There’s a cast of color against her black fur, Phen giving a soft oh at the sight of the display. He breaks into laughter when she sneezed from the orb and rolls himself over into the snow, laying down and looking up at the canopy and the lights until his laughter is that of mere giggles. “They’re so pretty,” he coos before making grabby hands at the wolf again from where he’s laying. “All of the beautiful lights, colorful and glowing. From their windows the humans are dazzled, unknowing. They wander through the forests, following with eyes so entranced. Past trees of willow, elm, and pine they danced. Such a delight, they found the beautiful lights only to find themselves caught in a trap. Oh those silly humans, so prone to mishap.” Phen rattled off, his voice singing in the words with no intention of keeping quiet. He’s one with the forest. One with the night.

“But you!” Phen suddenly exclaimed to the wolf. “Not you. No, never you. You’re not a pesky human. You’re a beautiful wolf who deserves only the show!” He waved his hand in the air, the colorful orbs disappearing. “Can I tell you a secret little wolf? You can’t tell anyone! Not a single soul.”

xi.

There is a lulled quietness in the air as if the whole forest has suddenly gone silent. Too silent. The wolf lifts her head, breathing in the scents around them, ears perked as if to check for any sort of threats. Like maybe a guard come to bring her back - Sidian was fickle that way. Sometimes he could change his mind on a dime. A cruel sort of punishment he’d often played on her here when the heat of their arguments got to be too much. When he had to throw his power around like a spoiled child who wasn’t getting his way. It would break her heart for him to be so cruel - to give her her power and also take them away. She tries to not dwell upon the thought for too long, not here at least. She realizes it’s the fae she is sensing - there is sadness clinging to him like a second skin. What did he have to be sad about? He was was either a civilian or a master. Either way - he was free. She herself still wasn’t free: even this forest felt like a prison.

They both seem lost within their own little worlds before the wolf peers at him, only to suddenly throw her large head into his shoulder and brush up under his neck. His beautiful unearthly eyes had gone dull as if his special spark had gone out. Kora is very familiar with the look - she had shut down fully while that demon had tortured and scarred her. She was still a mere shell of herself, forever a little broken. And she knows he too went somewhere else and she doesnt like it. So she touches another orb, this time nipping at the air. It too sparks like a firecracker much like the first - colors extending in different directions around them. Hes laughing now, falling into the snow and rolling about happily. Fae are such unique creatures, especially this one.

She sits beside him, tail swishing behind her on it’s own accord, looking very much like a loyal and trained pet when she could very easily sink teeth into flesh, or wings. At this time of late evening shes lethal, practically invisible within the dark of night. His sudden burst of song is lovely - familiar in a way she can not place. As if shes heard it in bits and pieces, within a dream, long past. He addresses her again, colored light disappearing - it’s dark and cold once again as he sits up. She makes a small show of digging her paws into the earth. He has a secret and she feels hes going to tell her whether or not she wishes to hear it. She glances back in the direction of the wooded trail covered in a thick blanket of snow that leads back to the city, shes still left curious, but she should get back soon.

xii.

If the bitter cold was not closing in and the snow melting into his clothes, Phen would have been happy to stay outside for as long as he could. The night sky is bright with stars, the eerie shadows of the forest that hugged each other, and the creatures that ran through the night. For others it might have been scary, a scene from a nightmare — but not for Phen. There’s a reason his apartment has been made to resemble this scenery, as close to possible to his home in the fae realm. Every person needs their own escape and in a city that is overwhelming for Phen, that apartment is his escape. There’s a comfort in knowing that even when he leaves this forest tonight, he’ll be back to another.

“Somewhere in the forest,” Phen started when he’d sat up beside the wolf. “There’s a small little ring of beautiful dark blue flowers. They’re tiny, tiny. Little wonders. I worked very hard on them. When the moon is high and full, something really special happens.” He pressed a finger to his lips. “But you shouldn’t go near them, okay? I like you. You’re my wolf.” Phen hugged her once again, enjoying the feeling of her soft fur one more time. Often times, it’s humans who find their way to the little circle. They wander at night or during the day and stray too far from the path.

In a burst of colorful light, he’s back on his feet about a foot away from Kora. He brushed off as much of the snow as he could before he clapped his hands together. “It is getting late! The moon will be gone and her rival will be up. Will you walk back with me?” Phen asked as he took a few steps forward, a hand reached out to pat Kora’s head. “You protect me and I protect you! There are a lot of scary creatures in the forest. You should never trust the shadows. And never trust the fae… but you can trust me.”

xiii.

He is speaking of a faerie ring - shes all too familiar with those, having searched for them every summer she spent in that little cottage. Would it be seen beneath all this heavy snow? Respect the fae and they would be kind to you, but never trust them. She left them little childish gifts, and spoke to them as if they were listening. The forest was her home, and it was where she ran and hid after every smack or nights when fathers drank too much of the angry juice. She was too odd, too strange, with eyes that were more than human. Even off-putting to other children. She looked like her mother. But the fae, they never took her away, never came to rescue her. She did that all by herself - all teeth and claws.  

Suddenly there is a burst of light and hes standing a few feet away. What a neat trick.  The wolf stands, makes to follow but stops herself. You’re my wolf. She belongs to another, protects another. Sidian. She’s been with him for years. He tells her to bring him anothers heart - she does it without question. She’s been with him through everything - until the day she ran. Until the day she hurt him. The fae pats her head, but shes lost in thought again. Abruptly shes throwing back her head to howl sadly into the night - she is met with silence. No pack answers, as they are either dead or locked away in cages.

And with that, she slowly follows in step, intent on at least helping him get back into town before he potentially freezes to death. Kora doesn’t want to get into trouble for accidentally killing or letting someone of higher rank die. Though she knows hes perfectly equipped to take care of himself out here.

                                                                   Faeries can not tell a lie.

[orodrethsgeek]

Kellan and Orsino - Taking a bath together

This prompt got away from me a bit; they insisted on plot. Takes place just before the beginning of Act III, following the events of the Legacy dlc. Thank you for the excuse to write about my babs!

A place should not feel at once so alien and so familiar after only two and a half months absence. Orsino does not realize how much he’s missed even just this, the estate, Kellan’s trappings hanging on the walls and the cheerful crackling of the fireplaces, until he’s there, so overwhelmed with it all he just—freezes.  

“First Enchanter?” Orsino blinks, half turning. Bodahn is looking up at him, one of his broad smiles dawning between his mustache and braided beard. “It is you! Well, you’re a sight for sore eyes, no mistake.” Orsino feels his breath catch somewhere in his throat. He has not allowed himself to entertain the doubts whispering at him since he first heard the news, but now that he’s here they all come rushing up at once.

“My apologies for showing up unannounced,” he manages. “Sebastian said—that is—” He cannot even bring himself to say the words; ridiculous.

Bodahn winks. “Just back not two hours ago! I suppose word really does travel fast in this city. He’s just off getting ready for a bath.” His smile dims, then, just slightly, and Orsino’s relief curdles. “I’m glad you’ve come. He’s in a—well. I think it’ll do him good to see you, that’s all. Go right on through; you know the way.”

“Thank you, Master Feddic.”

“It’s Bodahn!” the dwarf calls after him; he barely hears, already striding down the corridor. He cannot reach the bathing room fast enough, can’t be bothered with niceties like knocking. Two and a half months, more than twice as long as Kellan had anticipated; two and a half months with no word, no way of knowing what might have happened, and his dreams filled with nightmare after nightmare—

The door opens. There’s the deep, claw-footed bath, already filled with steaming water; there’s the little three-legged stool piled with soap and a cloth and the smaller bucket of warm water for washing; there’s the Orlesian screen Leandra Hawke had bought before her death.

And there, standing by the fire clad in nothing but a loose shirt and gloves, is Kellan.

“I said I’d ring, Bodahn,” he says shortly, not looking away from the flames. Orsino swallows, shuts the door behind himself.

“I’ll come back later then, shall I?” he asks lightly. Kellan whirls. He is grimed from head to toe, dust from the road in his hair and a small pile of indeterminately stained clothes growing on a sheet at his feet. Beneath the filth his face is gaunt, hollows under his eyes and something hollow in them, as well, when he stares at Orsino. There are dingy bandages looped tightly around his right forearm.  But he is alive. He is here. And even as Orsino watches he can see some of the coiled-spring tension draining out of him. “Orsino,” he murmurs, dreamlike. “You’re here.” Then his eyes dart sideways. “How’s your arm?”  “Healing.” In truth, the assassin’s blade had bit deeper than either of them first realized—or perhaps, Orsino acknowledges wryly, he is merely old and cannot expect to recover as quickly as he once might have. He still feels the ache in the muscles of his upper arm, especially in the cold, and he’d finally bowed to common sense and switched to carrying his staff in his off-hand to avoid taxing them. “What happened to yours?” Kellan grimaces and clasps his hand over his wounded arm.

“It’s nothing.” Orsino frowns, but lets the lie go, at least for now. Whatever injury is hidden beneath the bandages, it doesn’t seem to be hampering Kellan over-much; it likely isn’t serious. It can wait.

“Where did the trail lead?” he asks instead, finally stepping away from the door.

“The Deep Roads.” Three words, his lips curling miserably around each one. Orsino feels something like understanding bloom.

“Are you—?”

“Fine. Everyone’s fine. Anders says we’d be showing symptoms by now if we weren’t. Still…” Kellan gestures vaguely, and firelight glints off the blade Orsino hadn’t realized he was holding. “Better safe than sorry,” he quips humorlessly, and cuts through the collar of his undershirt. The fabric gives, and he shrugs it down over his shoulders and steps out of it, letting it flutter to the top of the pile at his feet. He tosses the knife straight into the fire, followed by his gloves, and stands there, naked and shivering. Then he sighs, and rings the bell on the mantle.  

The door opens and Bodahn bustles in; Kellan splays one hand low over the mottled scar tissue where his navel used to be. The move makes him look more vulnerable than any number of scars ever could, and Orsino turns away, stepping behind the Orlesian folding screen.

“Take all this out back and burn it,” he hears Kellan say, “carefully.”

“Right you are, messere,” Bodahn says cheerfully. “And will you be wanting another towel?”  “Yes,” Orsino says, already draping his outer robe over the screen. Kellan chuckles softly, murmurs an assent to Bodahn. Orsino unbuttons his under robe methodically. Away from the fire and the wet heat coming off the bath there’s a chill in the room; he feels gooseflesh break out along the back of his neck, and his right arm throbs as he rolls his shoulder. On the other side of the screen, Bodahn promises to send his son along with the extra towel shortly. The door opens, the door closes.

Briefly, Orsino entertains the notion of leaving his underclothes on, just for a while longer. The image of it in his mind’s eye is absurd, and besides, Ser Thrask would be bound to notice if he came back with patches of damp rising up through his robes. He shucks the last of his clothes off and steps out from behind the screen before he can think better of it.

Kellan is just straightening up, dripping wash cloth in hand, when Orsino reaches him. The man half turns to meet him, and it’s the most natural thing in the world to lean in further and kiss him. He tastes overwhelmingly of pulped elfroot, a flimsy defense against the Blight at best, but better than nothing. Kellan makes a small sound of surprise, and then sighs into the kiss, wrapping an arm loosely around Orsino’s waist.

“I’m filthy,” he points out when Orsino pulls back, his eyes half-lidded.

“That’s true,” Orsino agrees, and laughs at the face it earns him. He reaches for the wash cloth and tugs it out of Kellan’s hand.  

“You don’t have to—”

“I want to.” Kellan acquiesces with a shrug. He settles cross-legged on the floor while Orsino sits on the stool and sets to work wiping away the layers of muck. A line of vivid bruises emerges across the span of Kellan’s shoulders, but even so there’s a strange comfort to feeling him, safe and undeniably real after so long.  “I’m surprised the Knight-Commander let you out on such short notice,” Kellan remarks, apropos of nothing, as Orsino dips the wash cloth back into the bucket. He smiles, though Kellan cannot see it, though there’s truly nothing funny about the likely prospect of Meredith’s retribution.  “She didn’t want to. But Sebastian insisted you had a pressing issue that required my expertise.” He doesn’t say, I doubt we’ll be able to use that again, or, She suspects us, or any of the other fears clamoring away in the back of his mind. Certainly not, I was afraid you had died. Kellan reaches up, catches his hand, and squeezes gently; only then does Orsino realize he’s trembling.  Kellan shifts, turning to look up at Orsino, his quicksilver eyes somber. “Has it been that bad?”  Do not try my patience, mage; the Champion isn’t here for you to hide behind. “Worse. Her paranoia grows by the day.” Give me a reason and I will have you whipped for your insolence. He forces a laugh that sounds hollow even to himself and resumes sponging the grit from Kellan’s skin, taking the opportunity to wash his upturned face. “We’ll have to invent something to tell her. Some arcane spellbook you found, perhaps, or—” Kellan shakes his head.  “That won’t be necessary. Sebastian wasn’t wrong.” He stares into the fire again, at the vague shape of the knife, still just visible in the flames. He shudders, and says, “What does the Circle know about talking darkspawn?”

“Talking… darkspawn,” Orsino echoes, uncomprehending. He feels a chill he shouldn’t be able to feel, so close to the fire. “I… don’t suppose the question is academic?”  “No,” Kellan says shortly, and twitches on the wash cloth as Orsino runs it over his collar. “I can reach the rest. Can you get my hair?” Orsino surrenders the cloth, reaches for the soap and the ladle in the bucket. Kellan’s dark hair is a mess of tangles, the ends already damp from where Orsino has washed Kellan’s neck and shoulders, the wet and warmth lending it a slight curl. He should say something teasing, lighten the mood. Talking darkspawn…  

Instead, he washes Kellan’s hair in silence, and listens to a brief, clipped account of the creature whose agents were apparently behind the assassination attempts. “The Wardens knew about it?” he asks, when Kellan pauses for breath; Kellan makes a derisive noise that has Orsino’s throat aching in sympathy.

“I don’t know what the bastards knew. Larius was insane, and Janecka wanted to use the thing, somehow.” He shakes his head, sending droplets of suds hissing into the fire. “We killed it, but all the same…” Then he sighs, the bitter fury fading. “Anders says he’s encountered a talking darkspawn before, back in Ferelden. He’s going to try to write to the Hero, but—”

“I’ll look into it,” Orsino promises. There are enough old tomes in the tower’s library, some even dating from the days when Kirkwall was still Emerius of the Imperium. He doesn’t know if any of them will help, but he can at least research the phenomenon, see if any of the magisters of old ever encountered such a creature. Meredith won’t like it; he can hear her already, sneering at him for chasing after one of the Champion’s wild tales while corruption festers all around you. He is so tired of endless suspicion and accusations.

Kellan finishes washing just as Orsino finishes with his hair. The suds have run a dingy sort of gray; Kellan upends the bucket over his head to rinse, then catches Orsino’s hands, kisses both palms. “Bath?” Orsino closes his eyes and nods, not trusting himself to speak.

He lets Kellan help him into the tub, holding on to the man’s hands longer than strictly necessary, because he can; because the demons were wrong, after all; because Kellan is back, shaken but whole, talking darkspawn or no talking darkspawn. The water has cooled slightly; it takes only the gentlest flickers of mana to bring it back to steaming warmth.

“Your bandages,” Orsino remembers, as Kellan makes to step into the tub. Kellan pauses, mutters a curse under his breath, and steps back toward the fire, unwinding the offending cloth. It joins the knife and his gloves in the fire when it’s unraveled, and then finally Kellan turns and slides into place behind Orsino. He pulls Orsino back against his chest, presses his lips to the crown of Orsino’s head, and a cold knot of fear finally loosens its grip on Orsino’s heart.

He will need to magic his hair dry before returning himself to Ser Thrask and the Gallows. There is nothing to be done about the smell of Kellan’s soap on his skin, but Orsino cannot bring himself to care about that minor detail. He will need to tell Kellan that he has to return to the tower tonight, warn him about Meredith’s increasing instability. He will have to deal with Meredith herself, all her dangerous insinuations and for-now empty threats. He will have to give the disturbing thought of talking darkspawn some considerable amount of attention.

None of that is now. None of it matters, at least for the present moment. Not while Kellan is a solid weight behind him, holding him, breathing slowly into his thinning hair. For now he can let go and feel safe for the first time since the assassins had drawn Kellan away from Kirkwall.

“I’m here,” Kellan promises. “I have you.”

Orsino closes his eyes and sighs.

[micaramel]

Artist: Leidy Churchman

Venue: Rodeo, London

Exhibition Title: Snowlion

Date: June 18 – September 2, 2018

Click here to view slideshow

Full gallery of images, press release and link available after the jump.

Images:

Images courtesy of Rodeo, London

Press Release:

I want to speak about bodies changed into new forms. – Ovid, Metamorphoses (Bk I: 1-2- The Primal Chaos)

In recent human history a series of unfortunate and careless circumstances has lead the world to feel like a very different place in a very short time. Authoritarianism has spread like wild weed, there is war and inequality everywhere, the Earth keeps sending devastating shifts and there seems to be no way out.

The need to embrace difference and change is as strong now as it must have always been. In parallel, we are surfing life through cities, or dipping out, sharing via images, our diaries amongst friendships, in love and solitude, art, traveling and ideas. Although there is an illusion of contemporaneity to all of this, humanity and its history as we know it has been built on the same concentrated and collective energies.

For Churchman, to paint is to act within a collective mind, portraying the multitude that a singularity is composed of. Within this activity of human marks, emotions and identities, every painting becomes a very unique symbol of itself. Like a haiku, seemingly disparate elements are coming together, building a narrative that is not. An identity that is not. A movement in stasis.

There is a rumour that the snowlion flew and pounced from peak to peak over the Himalayan mountains, bringing Buddhism to Tibet from India. In Tibetan Buddhism the Four Dignities are: The tiger which is Meek, the snowlion is Perky, the garuda is Outrageous, and the sky dragon is Inscrutable. For one who practices, understanding how each dignity unfolds can inspire the journey and enable them to discern, with awareness and delight, their own progress. The snowlion embodies fierce joy, a fearless and doubtless aspect of mind that manifests clarity and precision. Illuminating the range of this work is the ever-present wakefulness of this Dignity, with a gaze both joyful and wrathful.

In Churchman’s work, the subject matter is at once familiar and unfamiliar — coming from the unknown, popular imagery, and joining with other artists’ work; logos of corporations, paintings of tombstones, natural elements, flora and fauna, unidentified creatures in transit, staring-out fierce deities…

The new paintings made for Rodeo in Piraeus represent, as a whole and as individual works, a specific state.  In Cairo 1550 B.C. animals have claimed the roles of humans and switched the power structure completely, a row of cats serving the master mouse. The eyes of a vine leaf are staring at us from Medieval Sketchbook, another plant character hovering above while an ancient naked muscular orator is making a point. There is the cover of the journal Womanspace, a non-profit community in California, that has been advocating since the ‘70s on gender equality and social justice in art. In the bed of Felix Gonzales Torres, which was shared before his lover died of AIDS, there are crocodile mummies swirling, with vacant crushed pillows above. A tiny gold painting is framed by a thin black outline, with one white dot on each corner. An erotic work by Dorothy Iannone has been joined with collected language, concrete poetry and snails winding labyrinths. A calligram in the form of a gentle flower, titled Budapest 1551, has become a deep black, and intensifying the centre void there is gold.  A countryside photograph by Thomas Struth pictures a bright open sky and a curling road, quiet and tense, not knowing where it leads.

It is with great importance to inaugurate the space with a symphony of a solid variety of such joy, colour, openness and positive aggression. This will define and determine the identity of a space that aims towards constant flux, togetherness and diversity, a locus amoenus.

  Leidy Churchman (b.1979, Pennsylvania) lives and works in New York and Maine. His work has been recently shown at Trigger: Gender as a Tool and a Weapon, New Museum, NY (2017-18), Kunstmuseum Bern, a solo show at Kölnischer Kunstverein (2017), Protuberances at LAXART (2016), Lazy River at Boston University gallery (2013) and extensively at gallery exhibitions. This summer he is participating in Painting: Now and Forever III that is taking place between Greene Naftali and Matthew Marks in New York, and in the fall One day at a Time: Manny Farber and Termite Art at MOCA, Los Angeles. In June 2019, he will have a solo exhibition at Hessel Museum, Bard College. Churchman received his MFA from Columbia University in 2010, and his BA from Hampshire College in 2002. From 2011-12, he was a resident artist at Rijksakademie in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Link: Leidy Churchman at Rodeo

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from Contemporary Art Daily http://bit.ly/2Mi2ZRc

[henrybelgz-blog]

20,000 Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne

Student/Blogger: Henry M. Belga Jr. Adviser: Mrs. Joanna Jacinth Ferer II. About the author and book background Author Verne was born to bourgeois parents in the seaport of Nantes, where he was trained to follow in his father's footsteps as a lawyer, but quit the profession early in life to write for magazines and the stage. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages extraordinaires, a widely popular series of scrupulously researched adventure novels including Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873). Verne is generally considered a major literary author in France and most of Europe, where he has had a wide influence on the literary avant-garde and on surrealism. His reputation is markedly different in Anglophone regions, where he has often been labeled a writer of genre fiction or children's books, largely because of the highly abridged and altered translations in which his novels are often reprinted. Verne has been the second most-translated author in the world since 1979, ranking between Agatha Christie and William Shakespeare. He has sometimes been called the "Father of Science Fiction", a title that has also been given to H. G. Wells and Hugo Gernsback. (Wikepedia, 2017) Book Background  The novel was originally serialized from March 1869 through June 1870 in Pierre-Jules Hetzel's periodical, the Magasin d'Éducation et de Récréation. The deluxe illustrated edition, published by Hetzel in November 1871, included 111 illustrations by Alphonse de Neuville and Édouard Riou.  The book was highly acclaimed when released and still is now; it is regarded as one of the premiere adventure novels and one of Verne's greatest works, along with Around the World in Eighty Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth. The description of Nemo's ship, called the Nautilus, was considered ahead of its time, as it accurately describes features on submarines, which at the time were very primitive vessels. The title refers to the distance traveled while under the sea and not to a depth, as 20,000 leagues is over six times the diameter, and nearly twice the circumference of the Earth.  The greatest depth mentioned in the book is four leagues. The book uses metric leagues, which are four kilometres each. A literal translation of the French title would end in the plural "seas", thus implying the "seven seas" through which the characters of the novel travel; however, the early English translations of the title used "sea", meaning the ocean in general. (Wikepedia, 2017) III. Summary      The story starts in the year 1866, everyone in Europe and America is talking about a mysterious creature that has been attacking and sinking ships. The United States government assembles an expedition in New York City to find and destroy the monster, using the vessel called Abraham Lincoln. On board the ship are Pierre Aronnax (the main caharacter), a great scientist along with his servant, Conseil, and Ned Land the best harpooner.      After weeks of searching, the ship finally encounters the beast. Abraham Lincoln is attacked by the beast. The three men find themselves on top of the mysterious creature, which they later realize it was a submarine vessel. They are quickly captured and brought inside the vessel, where they meet its creator and commander, Captain Nemo. He tells them they can stay on board the ship and enjoy freedom as long as they return to the cell if asked. They are never allowed to leave the vessel again. Ned Land didn’t agree with the captain, for he believes it doesn’t sounds like freedom at all.      The Captain treats the men very well, especially Aronnax. They are given cloth and fed, they are also permitted to wander around the vessel at their leisure. The men spend their time observing sea life through observation windows. Aronnax studies and writes about everything he sees. Nemo then announces that he will be taking the three on a voyage through all the world's seas. They hunt in the underwater forests of Crespo Island and visit the site of two famous shipwrecks. There was a time when they set foot in an island, but they were interrupted and attacked by cannibals.      One night, the men are asked to return to their cell. They are given sleeping pills and awake the next morning very confused. Nemo asks Aronnax to look at a crewman who has been severely injured. The man later dies and they bury him in an underground cemetery, where many other crewmen have been laid to rest. They travel through the Indian Ocean and visit a bed of pearls, where Nemo saves a pearl diver from a shark, and then he was saved by Ned. On their voyage they pass by the lost city of Atlantis.       They reached the South Pole, but on their way back, the Nautilus becomes stuck in the ice. Everyone must take turns trying to break a hole in the ice so the vessel can get through. The ship almost runs out of its oxygen supply and the men grow tired and light headed. However, they escape just in time.      Finally, while sailing north of England, Nemo himself was consume by revenge, he attacked  an unknown ship. Aronnax is horrified when Nemo sinks this ship in order to get back at those people whom Nemo says took away his family and his country. Aronnax does not know to which nation the warship belongs, but he is horrified when Captain Nemo sinks it. The men decide they must escape at all costs.      Lastly, the Nautilus drifts aimlessly until it encounters the Maelstrom. As the Nautilus is being pulled into this vortex, Aronnax, Ned, and Conseil manage to jump ship. They wake up in a cabin on a remote Norwegian island. There, Aronnax finishes recounting his wild and adventurous voyage. But he hardly answers all the questions in his mind. He still doesn't know Nemo's home country or general backstory or if he even survived the Maelstrom. IV. Lesson Learned       This book was written in the year 1870, in which the submarines are not yet common to the people. Verne give us an overview about the submarine and how it works. In the story, we learned that we must observe a good interaction with others who works with us onboard to avoid misunderstanding and quarrel. And we have to be respectful of each other’s culture as well as of their age, gender, social status, and religion. Although this story is a science fiction, all the place are not just imaginary,   the author also give us realistic places to venture around the world. The character in the story depicts the reality where everything is not easy, not all the times you will always live in a comfortable way, there is always a hindrance, a challenge that makes our self strong. V. Critique/Review       I really like the story of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. The book was a quite good example of a science fiction. The beginning was exciting, it interested me until the first long and detailed scientific description. It was a little bit boring at some parts and I really don’t understand some terms used sometimes, but with the help of the dictionary I manage to reveal those meaning. I loved reading about all the different underwater cultures that Nautilus encountered. The descriptions of underwater landscapes are beautiful and amazing, that I feel that I am with a voyage with them. The adventures of the main characters are written in a very detailed way.       My favorite character here is Captain Nemo. I can compare him to a famous superhero today, Batman. Like Batman, Nemo boasts a unique moral compassion, but the course between justice and vengeance is not always an easy.  Also like Batman, Nemo has encountered personal tragedy, hides his true identity and has a vast fortune in terms of money. Unlike Batman, however, Nemo is a legitimate menace to the world. He has advanced technology, the will to use it, and is powered by righteous anger. Certainly Nemo wreaks bloody vengeance against those who have angered him, but his passion for science, exploration and knowledge makes him mightier. He's a genius, an intellectual, a man with a strong body and mind. Nemo strikes back at the world that killed his loved ones by attacking the ships of those governments. These acts are murder, a wrong act but to Nemo who has lost everything, it is justice. Then, Nautilus was pulled in the vortex of the maelstrom and through, the final fate of Nemo and his extraordinary vessel are not revealed in this text. The ending left me wanting more. It is such a cliff hanger. VI. References  Wikepedia(2017) Jules Verne Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_Verne at 9:00pm July 24, 2017 Wikepedia(2017) Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty_Thousand_Leagues_Under_the_Sea at 9:00pm July 24, 2017

[delicatelysublimeforester]

Black swallowtail on wild bergamot

Species at risk: Mormon Metalmark (Apodemia mormo) butterfly depends on buckwheat host plant.

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) photo credit William Warby

“Entomology extends the limits of being in new directions, so that I walk in nature with a sense of greater space and freedom. It suggests, besides, that the universe is not rough-hewn, but perfect in its details. Nature will bear the closest inspection; she invites us to lay our eye level with the smallest leaf and take an insect view of its plane.”—Henry David Thoreau.

In popular esteem the butterflies among the insects are what the birds are among the higher animals—the most attractive and beautiful members of the great group to which they belong. Entomology happens to be the branch of zoology focussing on the study of insects. Butterflies are primarily day fliers (diurnal) and remarkable for the delicacy and beauty of their membranous wings, covered with myriads of tiny scales that overlap one another like the shingles on a house and show an infinite variety of hue through the coloring of the scales and their arrangement upon the translucent membrane running between the wing veins. It is this characteristic structure of the wings that gives to the great order of butterflies and moths its name “Lepidoptera”, meaning scale-winged.

The Entomological Society of Saskatchewan takes part in the North American Butterfly Count July 21. The society members will also give talks, presentations and displays.

Take the time to learn how to establish a pollinator native plant ribbon or butterfly garden. The North American Butterfly Association will provide Certification for your butterfly garden.

Ronald R. Hooper states that 160 species of butterflies are known in Saskatchewan, in families known as skippers, swallowtails, whites, sulphurs, marbles, hairstreaks, harvester, metalmarks, brushfooted butterflies, meadow browns, and coppers (see bibliography for scientific nomenclature). Every fall the Monarchs journey from Canada to California or Mexico, and they return to Canada in the spring. During this migration phone Nature Saskatchewan’s toll-free line at 1-800-667-HOOT (4668) to report any Monarch Butterfly sightings.  When you are out and about this season, keep an ear out, do tell if there is the slightest murmuration when the butterflies migrate past.

And, whereas, the Monarch is known to migrate, this is not the case with all butterflies. Most of the Swallowtails pass the winter as chrysalids while practically all the Angle-wings pass the winter as adults. The Graylings and the Fritillaries are typical examples of butterflies which hibernate as newly hatched larvae. Many species simply find such shelter as they may at or near the soil surface, others may hibernate under boards, stones, or tufts of grass. The Swallowtails, nearly all of which hibernate in the chrysalis stage. Other examples are the various Whites, the Orange-tips, and isolated species like the Wanderer, and the Spring Azure and the American Copper. Now, an adult butterfly seems a fragile creature to endure the long cold months of winter, however many of our most beautiful species habitually hibernate as adults, finding shelter in such situations as hollow trees, the crevices in rocks, the openings beneath loose bark or even the outer bark on the under side of a large branch.

The butterflies furnish the best known examples of insect transformations. The change from the egg to the caterpillar or larva, from the caterpillar to the pupa or chrysalis, and from the chrysalis to the butterfly or imago is doubtless the most generally known fact concerning the life histories of insects. If you do not know the name of the lepidoptera larva, butterfly or moth that you have found, try to take a photograph of it. Identify your sighting at this web site which features an image gallery. If you have a photo of a caterpillar send in information about the plant that the caterpillar was found upon to Butterflies and Moths of North America and help to grow the database.

The Entomological Society of Canada hosts a Common Names database for insects and other related arthropods.

Learn about Butterflies Day Tuesday March 14. 1./ Learn.

2./ Experience

3./ Do Something.: ***

“The study of butterflies,—creatures selected as the types of airiness and frivolity,—instead of being despised, will some day be valued as one of the most important branches of biological science.”—Bates, Naturalist on the Amazons.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Aquatex Consulting ~ A guide to aquatic insects of Saskatchewan.

Butterfly Count 2

Canadian Geography and Butterfly Distribution. Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility. CBIF

Forte, Theresa M. Butterfly Gardens can be Elegant. Landscape Saskatchewan.

Froehlich, Shirley. Milkweeds and Monarchs. Prairie Originals

Holland, William Jacob. The butterfly book A popular guide to a knowledge of the Butterflies of North America. 1898. Garden City New York Doubleday, Page and Company.

The Butterflies of North America North of Mexico. Family I. Nymphalidae, the Brush-footed Butterflies

Subfamily Euplaeinae, the Milkweed Butterflies

Subfamily Ithomiinae, the Long-winged Butterflies

Subfamily Heliconiinae, the Heliconians

Subfamily Nymphalinae, the Nymphs

Subfamily Satyrinae, the Satyrs, Meadow-browns, and Arctics

Subfamily Libytheinae, the Snout-butterflies

Family II. Lemoniidae

Subfamily Erycininae, the Metal-marks

Family III. Lycaenidae

Subfamily Lycaeninae, the Hair-streaks, the Blues, and the Coppers

Family IV. Papilionidae, the Swallowtails and Allies

Subfamily Pierinae, the Whites, the Sulphurs, the Orange-tips

Subfamily Papilioninae, the Parnassians and Swallowtails

Family V. Hesperiidae, the Skippers

Subfamily Pyrrhopyginae

Subfamily Hesperiinae, the Hesperids

Subfamily Pamphilinae

Subfamily Megathyminae, genus Megathymus

Hooper, Ronald R. Butterflies and Moths. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Canadian Plains Research Centre, University of Regina. 2006

Hot, dry weather yields blizzard of butterflies. Bugs go through 3-5 generations in 1 summer. CBC News. Aug 11, 2016

Identify a Butterfly, Moth or Caterpillar. Butterflies and moths of North America.

It is prime butterfly time in Saskatchewan. CBC News. August 2, 2016

Monarch Butterflies start their migration in Saskatchewan. Weyburn this week. August 12, 2016

Monarch Butterfly Cycle. Homeschool Travelers. World Wide Traveling.

Monarchs and milkweed. Nature Conservancy of Canada NCC

Places to find milkweed in Sask. to conserve Monarch butterflies CBC News. April 2, 2016

Walk through the Prairie Getting to know Canada.

“What hand would crush the silken-wingèd fly, The youngest of inconstant April’s minions, Because it cannot climb the purest sky, Where the swan sings, amid the sun’s dominions?

Not thine.” Percy Bysshe Shelley.

There is another aspect of life on the land; while working in forest or garden a man has time for meditation and indeed his very act is devotion. He becomes in tune with the Infinite. The miracle of growth and the seasons’ changes induce a sense of wonderment and call forth worship from his inner being and in this sense WORK becomes WORSHIP.~ Richard St. Barbe Baker.

For more information:

Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, SK, CA north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map Facebook: StBarbeBaker Facebook group page : Users of the St Barbe Baker Afforestation Area Facebook: South West OLRA If you wish to support the afforestation area with your donation, write a cheque please to the “Meewasin Valley Authority Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area trust fund” (MVA RSBBAA trust fund) and mail it to Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area c/o Meewasin Valley Authority, 402 Third Ave S, Saskatoon SK S7K 3G5. Thank you kindly! Twitter: St Barbe Baker

Pinterest richardstbarbeb

“Winged flowers, or flying gems.”

Moore.

Learn about Butterflies Day March 14 "Entomology extends the limits of being in new directions, so that I walk in nature with a sense of greater space and freedom.

[bearllydruid]

Halsin's eyes cut to Astarion's, the curl of his smile revealing a fang for a moment. Their thighs brushed, and Halsin let out a little sigh and let his hand come down to rest briefly on Astarion's leg. He squeezed it once before he brought his arm back to his own lap. "Sorry to have offended your sensibilities, Mister Ancunin." Halsin said, playfully giving a partial bend to his back so he could bow his head. He couldn't deny the appeal of having Astarion stay closer to him - he didn't particularly feel like being alone, and keeping his eyes on his companions meant he could be sure that they had not been taken over. He assumed the rest of the Bhaalists would scatter to the Undercity, but revenge was so appealing, too.

Astarion suggested that he would have done the same, and Halsin immediately nodded. "I would. Without hesitation. With or without my bear's help." And whatever deeper forces in him that lusted for blood would delight in taking them apart. He honestly was glad that it was him who had been taken and not one of their companions. Not that Halsin thought it a noble sacrifice, he'd simply been in their camp alone, and she had taken advantage of her ability to wear other faces. He should have thought it was strange that Astarion wanted to see the process of making potions, but he had just been glad for the company against the cacophony of the city proper.

Halsin wouldn't tell Astarion that he was the way that Orin had gotten him to willingly go - and once they had been further away from the camp, Astarion had gotten far more pushy -- Halsin halted those thoughts. He would become enraged again. "Do you have any bath oils?" He asked suddenly - "Something with a stronger scent. The soap I have is rather plain." Halsin said and moved to stand up, but he let out a hiss of pain.

The blade had been dragged across his ribs, mapping each one out. It left a pattern on his sides, they would surely smart once they were touched by hot water. He didn't want to smell Orin anymore, and the thought of one of the scents he associated with Astarion would be more helpful to ground him, no doubt. "Surely," Halsin said as he pushed up from the bed, this time using his hands and exhaling through the pain. "Is your real estate allowed to leave your sight?" He asked, trying to focus instead on something more amusing. It would be far better for him to take the lifeline that Astarion was offering. He understood what was being said without his words: He would watch over Halsin if need be, to keep him more relaxed. It could be something else too, just something at the surface level rather than deeper at all, but Halsin was fighting the urge to regard everyone with suspicion. They'd come for him, they'd made sure he was safe. They had brought him back to their camp, and he'd seen the righteous fury on each of their faces as they battled for him. It was......it was humbling.

Angled dimensions of the pale elf’s complexion stood out under candlelight and the soft glow of the moon, casting shadows to highlight the hollows of his cheeks and the sharp line of his jaw. Every way perfect in his every imperfection.

“Perhaps I am.” Astarion’s smile was a waning crescent, faint yet dangerous. There was enough seafoam and song in those eyes to stone lesser men and entice the rest. “Or maybe I’m just looking for an excuse to spend more time with you…” Thigh dressed in leather, a little worn and plenty lived-in, nudged back, equal parts playful and suggestive. “But, honestly? A bath is long overdue indeed. Some of us were cursed with more sensitive nostrils than the others, you know?”

Halsin’s gratitude landed with a kindness the vampire wasn’t sure he deserved. There had been far too much thrill and not enough bodies involved for it to have been understood as anything but a selfish, bloodthirsty pursuit on Astarion’s end. The weight of it felt wrong– like praise for indulging the very instincts he’d spent lifetimes honing to survive, not protect.

“Oh, I’m sure you would have done the same for me.” Would he, though? Astarion’s smile was tight, forced. “Think nothing of it… I mean, you didn't truly expect me to let that shapechanger keep you all to herself now, did you? That would have been a waste.”

His smirk widened, more wicked than warm. “And let’s just say I’m not in the habit of letting prime real estate go to waste like that. Magistrate and all... But don’t worry, darling. My motives are as pure as driven snow.” Filthy, slushy snow...