#AND THE FLOWER MOTIF-- EXTREMELY EXTREMELY TRUE!!!!!!!!

[noxiatoxia]

Hi, I really love your SDR2 translations! I’ve studied Japanese a bit too, but I’m still more of an amateur and don’t have as sharp an intuition for it yet. A while ago, I tried to do this retranslation of Zanka after finding that the sole Zanka translation circulating in the fandom seemed to have some significant flaws. Would you happen to have any thoughts/critiques?

https://www.tumblr.com/doctor-hopper/740448724665401344/%E6%AE%8B%E6%A1%9C-zanka-english-translation

Thanks a lot! I really appreciate the work you do for Komaedology!

Hello! Gosh, this is actually perfect because I translated ZANKA myself for a friend of mine! I never posted it since it was just something I did for fun and didn't think much on. But I can directly compare our translations!

I also want to say I am extremely flattered you'd come to me. I think there's a lot you can teach me, too. Seeing other translators' work lets me evaluate my own. Thank you for the opportunity!

So, I think your translation is very excellent! In fact, you taught me something!

[1] Written with an alternative character for “fall” that appears only here in the song, and that suggests not only falling, but also degrading or going astray.

I kind of glazed over the nuance of 堕ちる vs. 落ちる when writing my own translation, my brain automatically just filling it in as the same as "falling". And while both words do mean to fall, I had failed to think deeply on the change. In a way, I feel new learners have the advantage of always having to think carefully and critically of each word. The more used to it you get, the more you glaze over stuff and don't think about it...I try so very hard to avoid that! But it's super duper hard when you get to the point where you no longer think about nuance consciously, you just "know"...thank you for reminding me!!

Anyways, as you said, 堕ちる has a nuance of "degrading", or something became a "worse" version. Falling from grace, for example.

I wish to comment on the first line of the song.

「明日もまた会えるね」と笑ってた心の徒桜

Your TL: “See you again tomorrow,” I laughed—within my heart, transient cherry blossoms

My TL: “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” I smiled. My heart is an ephemeral flower.

I see we both went different directions with 笑ってた. Because of the lack of context, it could either be "smile" or "laugh". I chose smile personally, as I just felt it made more sense with the sentence "I'll see you tomorrow". Both are correct since we have no further context.

As for the second part...I don't think your translation is incorrect by any stretch, but within just simply wasn't what I had first thought of. As you know, の is a possessive, indicating that A "owns" B. Literally speaking, 心の徒桜 is something like "heart of scattering cherry blossoms". I admit my translation of "ephemeral flower" is clunky because I wanted to keep the flower/blossom motif, but 徒桜 is a metaphor for things that don't last long.

In short, thinking of it like that, 心の徒桜 means "[my] heart of little time [left]". I turned "of" into "is" since this makes more sense in English.

All that said, I think the distinction is very small, and your translation works just as well.

温もりを伝えあうように開く桜のように

Your TL: Like the cherry blossoms opening as if to convey warmth

My TL: Like how cherry blossoms bloom like they’re embracing,

Again, your translation is totally correct! I just got a bit more specific with it. 温もり means "warmth", but is often warmth of the "inside", and is very metaphorical/emotional. Hence "embrace" to convey this human type of "warmth".

Now, let's talk about the big line...

平凡に生��て共に逝くこと　叶うのならば　嗚呼…

Your TL: To live an ordinary life, and to die together. If that could come true—alas…

My TL: Ah, If only that wish of mine could come true: To live an ordinary life and pass away together with you.

I read your post here, and it is very well thought out.

However, in Komaeda’s line, there is no explicit “you” preceding it—so he wants to die together with something, but that something isn’t directly said in the sentence. It could be Hinata, but if you’re looking at the line that comes right before this one, it could easily also just be talking about the dying cherry blossoms or the departing spring mentioned there. (It’s worth noting that “together” is only attached to the “dying” part, not the “living an ordinary life” part.)

You are right that there is no "you" - and you are also right that 共に does not need to refer to people. It just means two things occurring jointly. It is used for objects and people alike. I think that sort of ambiguity is intentional.

I, personally, interpreted it as "you" for a few reasons. Back to your post...

An unspecified person who might be Hinata does play an important role in the beginning of the song, when he’s talking about seeing someone again tomorrow. But the line about living an ordinary life and dying “together” does not necessarily lend itself to the interpretation that he is saying he wants to live and die alongside a specific other person.

You are right to say it does not necessarily indicate such, however I think it's a safe bet to assume it does mean that. My reasoning lies in how Japanese in general is structured. If a subject is clear, it does not get repeated. With there already being an aforementioned alluded to "person", I felt this line was a callback. Of course, I can surely be wrong, and I do think there is still ambiguity there on purpose. But I think, at least, the ambiguity only exists because there is a person mentioned in this song. If there wasn't, we could all easily write it off as Komaeda saying he wishes to die with the cherry blossoms.

Another reason I read it as "you" is due to the fact the sakuras could not be the subject of 平凡に生きて共に逝くこと if we are basing it off the sentence that comes before it, ゆく春を惜しみあうように開く桜のように.

Because of this のように at the end, it cannot take the form of a noun. You can still argue it is to die together with sakuras! But it cannot be based on the proceeding sentence, as it does not make grammatical sense. It would then make dying with the sakuras as much of a call back as dying with "you".

(It’s worth noting that “together” is only attached to the “dying” part, not the “living an ordinary life” part.)

This is true! Although, there is a possible invisible キミと in front of 平凡に生きて if Komaeda is indeed singing about this "you".

Making it, "to live an ordinary life with you, to die together (jointly)".

Implied/invisible subjects like this are not uncommon, as you are aware. Omitted 私は and such - I think this line could easily be logically read this way. Your translation isn't wrong - it's just very literal in that it maintains this structure of Japanese ambiguity. Which is good!!! Having multiple translations in different styles is important! I rag on literal translations a lot, but when it comes to a discussion-based format like Tumblr posts (and not an official release to a game), having all avenues open is a great idea. It helps people who can't speak Japanese get the full picture. Your translation provides the raw, ambiguous text - and I'm simply providing one logical interpretation. This then allows people with no Japanese experience to be able to compare and contrast the two, and come to their own conclusions...

So, please don't think I'm saying you're wrong. Translation is tricky, and there's always room for debate on what something could/should be translated as. In the end, you may actually be more "right" than I am. The important thing is you clearly have a good grasp on grammar rules and words.

Now, I have a question for you. I'm confused about a line.

気がつけば枯れゆく枝にひとり残されてた　手折られて朽ちゆく傷が渇きゆくまま

Your TL: Before I knew it, just a single thing remained for that withering branch. Plucked of its flowers and in decay, the wounds keep on thirsting, yearning.

My TL: But before I knew it, a single withered branch had been left behind, alone. It was left broken, rotting, old wounds drying up.

I'm confused on the wording of "a single thing remained for that withering branch"...this is implying there is something undisclosed meant for the branch - something it must receive or see or...you know. Something for it. (ために?)

But I didn't read that at all in the text. Maybe I'm misunderstanding the wording in your translation. Very sorry if I am!

平凡ないのち注げる日まで

Your TL: Until the day this ordinary life receives water

My TL: Until the days of my ordinary life drain away,

As you said in your notes, 注げる means "pour". I really like your interpretation, but I'm unsure if it makes sense. To "receive water" would be to say the life itself is being poured onto, rather it being the thing getting poured, yes? But the issue is there's no "water" in the sentence for it to draw from. You would need 水を注げる somewhere in there. I think English dictionaries are misleading about the meaning of 注ぐ. One of the definitions is "to water", but it only takes this form if water is present in the sentence.

To pour water (etc.) from above. To sprinkle. "I water the bonsai" (lit: "to pour water on bonsai")

Also, my TL is plural since 日 can be day or days. I read it as a plural, but it can be singular just as well. It makes little difference with how it is used here.

Um, I think that's it...I'll post my full song TL under the cut with notes. Thank you SO much for the ask, and please school me if I'm wrong (lol), I hope I don't come across like I know everything, because I don't. I think it's very obvious reading my posts, but my speaking/articulation skills are god awful xD so I know for a fact you'll probably surpass my knowledge in no time. Please keep doing your best!!

“I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” I smiled. My heart is an ephemeral flower.[1]

The curtain of falling cherry blossoms were like a mist, painting the world like smoke. I was tempted by the sight and ventured further. When I arrived, those petals cast shadows along the water, swaying gently in the wind, falling and causing the water to ripple.

Like how cherry blossoms bloom like they’re embracing,[2] I wonder, where do the petals of a person’s journey[3], which bloom and die in such an ordinary way, end up scattering to?

The hands of the clock stop ticking. My heart, which is in full bloom, begins to scatter petals.[4]

An abrupt gust ends the shower of petals. When I open my eyes, I’m greeted with a sea of petals along the water’s surface drifting away.

Like how cherry blossoms bloom, as if grieving the departing Spring; Ah, If only that wish of mine could come true: To live an ordinary life and pass away together with you.

If the The North Wind and the Sun[5] were to affect us all equally, Then a magnificent flower[6] would bloom after we all braved the storm.

But before I knew it, a single withered branch[7] had been left behind, alone. It was left broken, rotting, old wounds drying up.

For the sake of the cherry blossoms, which bloom as if to fight off the incoming winter, Until the days of my ordinary life drain away, I continue to bloom long after my time has run out.[8]

-

[1] Literally "my heart is scattering cherry blossoms" but the word is also used as a metaphor to mean things that don't last long.

[2] Specifically the word for "warmth" in the sense of human compassion and love.

[3] In the lyrics it is written as "one's (whole) life" but the way it is pronounced is "a person's life circumstances/way of living(lived) life"

[4] Literally "cherry blossom rain". Refers to when the cherry blossom tree begins scattering its petals so much that it's like rain. Considered the most beautiful time to see the cherry blossom trees. This is also when the tree's leaves are dying.

[5] fairy tale. The agreed upon moral is that kind persuasion wins over brutal force.

[6] Written as "flower" but pronounced "hope" in the song.

[7] This uses one of the kanji in Komaeda's name, leading me to believe this is a bit of personification.

[8] Literally "off-season blooming" or a flower that blooms/is blooming when it should be dead already.

[rewildling]

Using Songs to Predict Sansa’s TWOW Arc Part I: The Bear and the Maiden Fair

Let’s put on our tinfoil hats and have some fun.

When Sansa meets with Olenna and Margaery Tyrell in Sansa I, ASOS, Olenna’s fool sings The Bear and the Maiden Fair extremely loudly so that their conversation isn’t overheard and Sansa is free to tell them the truth about Joffrey. In the text, the lyrics appear in all caps. This emphasis isn’t only to indicate the volume of the fool’s voice — the words are practically screamed at the reader:

A bear there was, a bear, a bear! All black and brown, and covered with hair. The bear! The bear! Oh come they said, oh come to the fair! The fair? Said he, but I'm a bear! All black and brown, and covered with hair! And down the road from here to there. From here! To there! Three boys, a goat and a dancing bear! They danced and spun, all the way to the fair! The fair! The fair! Oh, sweet she was, and pure and fair! The maid with honey in her hair! Her hair! Her hair! The maid with honey in her hair! The bear smelled the scent on the summer air. The bear! The bear! All black and brown and covered with hair! He smelled the scent on the summer air! He sniffed and roared and smelled it there! Honey on the summer air! Oh, I'm a maid, and I'm pure and fair! I'll never dance with a hairy bear! A bear! A bear! I'll never dance with a hairy bear! The bear, the bear! Lifted her high into the air! The bear! The bear! I called for a knight, but you're a bear! A bear, a bear! All black and brown and covered with hair She kicked and wailed, the maid so fair, But he licked the honey from her hair. Her hair! Her hair! He licked the honey from her hair! Then she sighed and squealed and kicked the air! My bear! She sang. My bear so fair! And off they went, from here to there, The bear, the bear, and the maiden fair.

There are two ways to apply this song to Sansa’s relationship with Sandor. The first is to read it as a motif, which is more straightforward, so we’ll start with that.

The description of the bear and the maiden are clearly evocative of Sandor and Sansa — “black and brown and covered with hair” (ugly, beastly, coarse, etc.) and “a maid pure and fair.”

Then there’s the obvious sexual subtext of the song. This is the first chapter where we see that Sansa’s sexuality is beginning to emerge. Her childish crush on Loras Tyrell has matured into a sexual fantasy:

She remembered Ser Loras in his sparkling sapphire armor, tossing her a rose. Ser Loras in white silk, so pure, innocent, beautiful. The dimples at the corner of his mouth when he smiled. The sweetness of his laugh, the warmth of his hand. She could only imagine what it would be like to pull up his tunic and caress the smooth skin underneath, to stand on her toes and kiss him, to run her fingers through those thick brown curls and drown in his deep brown eyes. A flush crept up her neck. Sansa I, ASOS

We know that Loras isn’t interested in Sansa, and this is also when she realizes that he doesn’t remember giving her the red rose at the Hand’s tourney. Her attraction to him will amount to nothing. The point is that she’s starting to experience sexual attraction in general.

Consider the line “I called for a knight, but you’re a bear.” Sansa prays for a true knight to rescue her while she’s a hostage in King’s Landing. While Sandor isn’t a knight, he is her protector after Ned Stark’s murder. But the line is also evocative of the following scene:

If I close my eyes I can pretend he is the Knight of Flowers. Ser Loras had given Sansa Stark a red rose once, but he had never kissed her… and no Tyrell would ever kiss Alayne Stone. Pretty as she was, she had been born on the wrong side of the blanket. As the boy’s lips touched her own she found herself thinking of another kiss. She could still remember how it felt, when his cruel mouth pressed down on her own. He had come to Sansa in the darkness as green fire filled the sky. He took a song and a kiss, and left me nothing but a bloody cloak. Alayne II, AFFC

Like the previous passage, this is a sexual fantasy. Except this time, Sansa isn’t fantasizing about Loras Tyrell — she’s fantasizing about Sandor Clegane. At first, she tries to imagine kissing Loras but ends up picturing Sandor instead. She called for a knight, but she got a bear.

Notably, singing is used in the last verse to imply sex, which is a recurring motif throughout Sansa and Sandor’s relationship:

"I... I know a song about Florian and Jonquil." "Florian and Jonquil? A fool and his cunt. Spare me. But one day I'll have a song from you, whether you will it or no." "I will sing it for you gladly." Sansa II, ACOK

He gave her arm a hard wrench, pulling her around and shoving her down onto the bed. "I'll have that song. Florian and Jonquil, you said." Sansa VII, ACOK

And she dreamed of her wedding night too, of Tyrion's eyes devouring her as she undressed. Only then he was bigger than Tyrion had any right to be, and when he climbed into the bed his face was scarred only on one side. "I'll have a song from you," he rasped, and Sansa woke and found the old blind dog beside her once again. Sansa VI, ASOS

The Bear and the Maiden Fair is one of many allusions to Beauty and the Beast that appear throughout ASOIAF, including Sansa and Sandor as a romantic pairing. In some versions of Beauty and the Beast, the Beast is depicted as a bear:

The Norwegian fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon is a Beauty and the Beast story in which the Beast is actually a literal bear:

The Bear and the Maiden Fair is featured multiple times throughout the series and applies to several romantic pairings, particularly Brienne and Jaime (who are also a Beauty and the Beast allusion). But there’s a reason the song is literally screamed at the reader in one of Sansa’s chapters — after Sandor has already left her during the Blackwater.

When asked in a forum chat, "Is there any connection between Sansa’s story and the song The Bear and the Maiden Fair," GRRM replied, "Well, we’ll have to see," (So Spake Martin). So whatever this connection is, it hasn’t necessarily manifested yet, even though there are already obvious parallels between the song and Sansa and Sandor’s relationship dynamic.

This brings us to the second reading of the song: as foreshadowing.

The second verse of the song mentions a fair. There haven’t been any fairs featured prominently in the series so far, and apart from the song, they’ve only been mentioned a handful of times. In the most basic sense, a fair is a temporary gathering of people. Arguably the closest thing to a fair that appears in Sansa’s arc is a tourney. The Hand’s tourney and Joffrey’s Name Day tourney take place in King’s Landing during AGOT and ACOK, but the Winged Knights tourney is an upcoming event at the Gates of the Moon. It’s Sansa’s idea and is being organized by Littlefinger:

Four-and-sixty knights had been invited to vie for places amongst Lord Robert Arryn's new Brotherhood of Winged Knights, and four and-sixty knights had come to tilt for the right to wear falcon's wings upon their warhelms and guard their lord. The competitors came from all over the Vale, from the mountain valleys and the coast, from Gulltown and the Bloody Gate, even the Three Sisters. Alayne I, TWOW

In the song, who is it that goes to the fair? “Three boys, a goat, and a dancing bear.” If the song is foreshadowing the Winged Knights tourney, analogs to these figures should already be present in Sansa’s AFFC chapters.

When Sansa descends from the Eyrie to the Gates of the Moon, she finds Petyr drinking with three unknown hedge knights:

The hour was closer to dawn than to dusk, and most of the castle was asleep, but not Petyr Baelish. Alayne found him seated by a crackling fire, drinking hot mulled wine with three men she did not know. … Alayne laughed. “Are you louts?” she said, teasing. “Why, I took the three of you for gallant knights.” “Knights they are,” said Petyr. “Their gallantry has yet to be demonstrated, but we may hope. Allow me to present Ser Byron, Ser Morgarth, and Ser Shadrich.” Alayne II, AFFC

These are potentially the three boys: Ser Shadrich, Ser Morgarth, and Ser Byron — but the goat may be here, too.

The Bear and the Maiden Fair is a motif that applies to both Brienne and Sansa. In Brienne’s story, the goat is Vargo Hoat. In Sansa’s story, it’s Petyr Baelish. There are several notable similarities between the two: Vargo and Petyr are both cunning, slender, have dark hair and goatees, and were/are Lord of Harrenhal (which didn’t end well for Vargo and doesn’t bode well for Petyr). Petyr’s great-grandfather came to Westeros from one of the Free Cities (Braavos) as a sellsword. Vargo Hoat also came to Westeros from one of the Free Cities (Qohor) as a sellsword.

Because of their association with the god Pan, goats often symbolize male lust. Vargo Hoat is a serial rapist, while Petyr Baelish is a brothel owner with the lifelong obsession of seducing Catelyn Tully (now transferred to her daughter, Sansa Stark).

Goats (specifically black goats) are also affiliated with the devil in European folk traditions. In the medieval era, the devil was commonly depicted as a man with a goat-like face, horns, and a small beard — a goatee. Vargo Hoat is a torturer and sadist, and Petyr Baelish is a devious megalomaniac. Both are certainly devilish characters.

During Sansa’s descent from the Eyrie, she stops at the waycastle Snow for "a hot meal of stewed goat and onions." When she reaches the Gates of the Moon "closer to dawn than dusk," she’s summoned to Petyr’s solar, where he’s been drinking hot mulled wine all night with the three hedge knights. As others have noticed, "stewed" is another word for "drunk." So Littlefinger can be read as a "stewed goat" in this scene.

Let’s take a little detour here and talk about the ghost of High Heart’s prophetic dream:

"In the hall of kings, the goat sits alone and fevered as the great dog descends on him." The old woman took another long gulp of wine, squeezing the skin as she raised it to her lips. The great dog. Did she mean the Hound? Or maybe his brother, the Mountain That Rides? Arya was not certain. Arya VIII, ASOS

The irony of this prophecy is that the great dog could be both Gregor and Sandor. The events that take place at Harrenhal in ASOS make it seem as if Vargo Hoat is the goat and Gregor Clegane is the great dog, which is true. But it could also be the case that Petyr Baelish is the goat and Sandor Clegane is the great dog. This is potentially more fitting, since Sandor is more closely associated with dogs than Gregor. After all, Gregor is "the Mountain That Rides." It’s Sandor who is "the Hound."

Littlefinger is currently Lord Protector of the Eyrie and the Vale of Arryn. He’s taken up residence at the Eyrie and the Gates of the Moon, the historic seats of the Kings of the Mountain and Vale: halls of kings. In addition, Petyr is Lord of Harrenhal — the same hall of kings Vargo Hoat sat in.

In the Vale, Petyr Baelish is also very alone. He murdered Lysa Arryn, arguably his only powerful ally there. The lords of the Vale dislike him, and several are actively working against him:

"They have the Vale." "Oh, much of it, that’s true. Not all, however. I am well loved in Gulltown, and have some lordly friends of mine own as well. Grafton, Lynderly, Lyonel Corbray… though I’ll grant you, they are no match for the Lords Declarant. Still, where would you have us go, Alayne? Back to my mighty stronghold on the Fingers?" Petyr Baelish, Alayne I, AFFC

He thinks he’s bought the violent and dangerous Lyn Corbray with gold and boys. But as Sansa observes, Ser Lyn’s loyalty is tenuous at best:

Corbray’s lips drew back in something that might have been meant as a smile, though it gave Alayne a chill. "But what need have I for heirs when I am landless and like to remain so, thanks to our Lord Protector? No. Tell your lord father I need none of his brood mares." The venom in his voice was so thick that for a moment she almost forgot that Lyn Corbray was actually her father’s catspaw, bought and paid for. Or was he? Perhaps, instead of being Petyr’s man pretending to be Petyr’s foe, he was actually his foe pretending to be his man pretending to be his foe. Alayne I, TWOW

Littlefinger is so lacking in allies that he’s placing his trust in three strangers whose true motivations are completely unknown to him:

The three knights bowed and withdrew, though the tall one with the blond hair kissed her hand before taking his leave. "Hedge knights?" said Alayne, when the door had closed. "Hungry knights. I thought it best that we have a few more swords about us. The times grow ever more interesting, my sweet, and when the times are interesting you can never have too many swords." Alayne II, AFFC

He has completely misjudged these men, at least one of whom is actually in the Vale searching for Sansa Stark:

Ser Shadrich laughed. "Oh, I doubt that, but it may be that you and I share a quest. A little lost sister, is it? With blue eyes and auburn hair?" He laughed again. "You are not the only hunter in the woods. I seek for Sansa Stark as well." Brienne I, AFFC

And he’s led them right to her:

"Lady Alayne," he said, "the Lord Protector has been waiting for you." … Alayne found him seated by a crackling fire, drinking hot mulled wine with three men she did not know. … "You are never an intrusion, sweetling. I was just now telling these good knights what a dutiful daughter I had." Alayne II, AFFC

So Littlefinger is sitting alone in halls of kings. But is he fevered? Maybe not literally, in the way Vargo Hoat was, but the word "fevered" also means excited or agitated. And Petyr Baelish is definitely fevered around Sansa Stark:

"I wish you could see yourself, my lady. You are so beautiful. You’re crusted over with snow like some little bear cub, but your face is flushed and you can scarcely breathe. How long have you been out here? You must be very cold. Let me warm you, Sansa. Take off those gloves, give me your hands." "I won’t." He sounded almost like Marillion, the night he’d gotten so drunk at the wedding. Sansa VII, ASOS

He’s also fevered in the sense that he’s making a lot of moves very quickly. He steals Sansa away from King’s Landing, weds Lysa Arryn, kills her almost immediately, covers it up by blaming Marillion, takes Robert as his ward, starts poisoning him, gives Nestor Royce the Gates of the Moon, arranges a marriage for Lyonel Corbray (enraging Lyn Corbray), betroths Alayne to Harrold Hardyng, takes mysterious hedge knights into his service, and organizes a large tourney all in rapid succession.

Up until AFFC, Petyr’s schemes have generally taken years to play out. He himself acknowledges this:

"I had hoped to have four or five quiet years to plant some seeds and allow some fruits to ripen, but now… it is a good thing that I thrive on chaos." Petyr Baelish, Alayne II, AFFC

It’s possible that the moves he’s making in the Vale are an example of his advice to Sansa:

"Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are like to do next. Sometimes the best way to baffle them is to make moves that have no purpose, or even seem to work against you." Petyr Baelish, Sansa V, ASOS

But it’s also possible that his fevered pursuit of her is making him shortsighted. It’s likely that Littlefinger’s ultimate plan for Sansa is to marry her himself, which is fevered in the sense that it is delusional:

Petyr Baelish had offered to wed the girl himself, she recalled, but of course that was impossible; he was much too lowborn. Cersei II, ADWD

Okay, back to the The Bear and the Maiden Fair. There are three boys and a goat, so where is the dancing bear?

Throughout the series, "dancing" is often used as another word for "fighting," and we know that Sandor is the bear to Sansa’s maiden fair. As applied to Sansa’s arc, the "dancing bear" in the song could be a fighting dog descending on a goat, fevered and alone.

Though they have been mentioned, we still haven’t gotten a mystery knight as a major plot development in ASOIAF. The Winged Knights tourney could be GRRM’s last chance to include one in the series. And there are already hints that Alayne will give her favor to an unknown competitor:

"Saving yourself for Lord Robert?" Lady Myranda teased. "Or is there some ardent squire dreaming of your favors?" Alayne II, AFFC

"Who would ask to wear a bastard's favor?" "Harry, if he has the wits the gods gave a goose...but do not give it to him. Choose some other gallant, and favor him instead. You do not want to seem too eager." Petyr Baelish, Alayne I, TWOW

He grinned. "I will hold you to that promise, my lady. Until that day, may I wear your favor in the tourney?" "You may not. It is promised to...another." She was not sure who as yet, but she knew she would find someone. Alayne I, TWOW

The Winged Knights tourney mirrors the tourney at Harrenhal in several key ways. Ned Stark was living in the Eyrie when he descended to attend the tourney at Harrenhal. Similarly, Sansa has been living in the Eyrie and descends to the Gates of the Moon, where the Winged Knights tourney will take place.

The tourney at Harrenhal was hosted by Lord Walter Whent to celebrate his maiden daughter. The Winged Knights tourney is Sansa's idea and is being hosted by Petyr Baelish, who is posing as her father and certainly seems to be celebrating her at the feast:

And best of all, Lord Nestor's cooks prepared a splendid subtlety, a lemon cake in the shape of the Giant's Lance, twelve feet tall and adorned with an Eyrie made of sugar. For me, Alayne thought, as they wheeled it out. Sweetrobin loved lemon cakes too, but only after she told him that they were her favorites. The cake had required every lemon in the Vale, but Petyr had promised that he would send to Dorne for more. Alayne I, TWOW

The tourney at Harrenhal is where Ned Stark first met Howland Reed, who became his close friend and ally during Robert's Rebellion. At the tourney, Howland's honor was defended by a mystery knight, the Knight of the Laughing Tree — widely considered to have been Lyanna Stark in disguise.

Sansa’s arc in the Vale closely mirrors her father’s. A mystery knight appearing as an ally to her at the Winged Knights tourney would neatly harmonize with the events at Harrenhal. Regardless of whether or not Sandor Clegane is disguised as Ser Byron via a glamour, it isn’t unreasonable to suspect that he might show up at the Winged Knights tourney.

Back to the song. Sansa is certainly a maid, pure and fair, but does she have honey in her hair?

The color gold is often associated with deception in Sansa’s chapters. This imagery appears directly in relation to Littlefinger:

“We shall serve him lies and Arbor gold, and he’ll drink them down and ask for more, I promise you.” Petyr Baelish, Sansa I, AFFC

Sweetness is also associated with deceit in ASOIAF:

Give me sweet lies, and keep your bitter truths. Tyrion IX, ASOS

Littlefinger often calls Sansa “sweetling” or “my sweet,” particularly when he addresses her as Alayne Stone:

“Alayne,” he said. “My sweet. What brings you here so late?” Petyr Baelish, Alayne I, AFFC

Honey is both gold and sweet. There are plenty of examples of it being associated with deception and pretense throughout the series:

Her mouth tasted of honey and cloves, and her fingers were deft and practiced as they found the fastenings of his clothes. … Tyrion suspected her delight was feigned, but she did it so well that it did not matter. That much truth he did not crave. Tyrion VIII, AGOT

And Joffrey was the soul of courtesy. He talked to Sansa all night, showering her with compliments, making her laugh, sharing little bits of court gossip, explaining Moon Boy’s japes. … Snails in honey and garlic. Sansa had never eaten snails before; Joffrey showed her how to get the snail out of the shell, and fed her the first sweet morsel himself. Sansa II, AGOT

Reek was there too, he remembered, but he was a different Reek, a Reek with bloody hands and lies dripping from his lips, sweet as honey. A Ghost in Winterfell, ADWD

So honey can imply deceit. Is there something in Sansa’s hair that is associated with deception?

“It was not meant as flattery. If truth be told, you look too much like Catelyn. Something must be done. We shall darken your hair before we bring you back to the Eyrie, I think.” Darken my hair? “If it please you, Aunt Lysa.” Lysa Arryn, Sansa VI, ASOS

To keep up her disguise as Petyr Baelish’s bastard daughter, Sansa dyes her hair brown:

Alayne had darkened it again last night before she went to bed. The wash her aunt had given her changed her own rich auburn into Alayne’s burnt brown, but it was seldom long before the red began creeping back at the roots. And what must I do when the dye runs out? The wash had come from Tyrosh, across the narrow sea. Alayne I, AFFC

Deep down, at the root, she’s Sansa Stark, not Alayne Stone. Her true identity is constantly creeping back. She can’t keep up the charade forever. This chapter even features a reference to gold in her hair:

In the end she chose a simple velvet ribbon in autumn gold. When Gretchel fetched her Lysa’s silvered looking glass, the color seemed just perfect with Alayne’s mass of dark brown hair. Alayne I, AFFC

There are layers to this imagery. Autumn yellow is one of the colors of House Clegane. In this scene, she chooses to wear a simple ribbon rather than the opulent jewelry Littlefinger gave her. The ribbon is certainly a possible reference to Sandor and a hint that she’ll choose his directness and honesty over Petyr’s scheming or any other man. But gold is also the color of honey, and it’s in her hair — perfect with Alayne’s hair, specifically.

As applied to Sansa’s arc, the honey in the song could allude to deception, or lying. And how does the bear find the honey? He smells it:

Sandor Clegane snorted. “Pretty thing, and such a bad liar. A dog can smell a lie, you know.” Sansa II, ACOK

Sansa has gotten better at lying, but if Sandor shows up in the Vale (if he hasn’t already), he’s going to see straight through her disguise.

In the next verses, the bear “lifted her high into the air” while the maid “kicked and wailed.” This imagery is evocative of wife stealing. There are a lot of allusions to wife stealing in Sansa and Sandor’s dynamic. Sandor’s attempt to steal Sansa during the Blackwater failed — he wasn’t worthy of her at the time and couldn’t win her consent, but maybe he’ll do better now that the rage inside him has been gentled.

There is symbolic foreshadowing of a successful attempt at wife stealing by Sandor at the Gates of the Moon in Brienne VI, AFFC. That’s in addition to Littlefinger’s explanation of why Harrold Hardyng is Robert Arryn’s heir:

“The fourth was on her way to the riverlands to marry some Bracken when Burned Men carried her off.” Petyr Baelish, Alayne II, AFFC

Alayne is betrothed to Harry — figuratively “on her way” to marry him. And Sandor is literally a burned man.

The context in which The Bear and the Maiden Fair appears in Sansa I, ASOS is also an important hint at its significance: marriage. The Tyrells and Sansa are discussing Margaery’s upcoming wedding to Joffrey and Sansa’s potential betrothal to Willas. Neither of these marriages actually come to fruition. The Tyrells poison Joffrey the day of the wedding and the Lannisters force Sansa to marry Tyrion. Part of the scene's significance is that the song is associated with marriage — Sansa’s marriage.

In the song, the bear licks the honey from the maid’s hair — an obvious euphemism for oral sex. But if we read it as foreshadowing, this line implies that Sandor Clegane is the key to restoring Sansa Stark’s true identity:

He had come to Sansa in the darkness as green fire filled the sky. He took a song and a kiss, and left me nothing but a bloody cloak. It made no matter. That day was done, and so was Sansa. Alayne II, AFFC

Sandor Clegane and Sansa Stark — the two are connected in her mind. Her true identity is tied to Sandor. If she encounters him again, it will likely force her to reclaim her identity as a Stark and abandon the role of Alayne Stone. Then the deception will literally be rinsed out of her hair.

The lines "Then she sighed and squealed and kicked the air" combined with "My bear! She sang. My bear so fair!" have obvious sexual connotations. But these lines also imply that the maid is happy with bear. This is something Sansa deeply desires, even though at this point she’s resigned herself to never having it:

Tyrell or Lannister, it makes no matter, it’s not me they want, only my claim. Sansa III, ASOS

It is not me she wants her son to marry, it is my claim. No one will ever marry me for love. Sansa VI, ASOS

And now the last lines of the song:

And off they went, from here to there, The bear, the bear and the maiden fair!

Read as foreshadowing, this verse could imply that Sansa is going to leave the Vale with Sandor — but how? And where would they go? Stay tuned for part 2.

[wsjyuyuyuau]

Kahseral (Dragon Ball)

Name: Kahseral

Series: Dragon Ball

Gender: Male

Status: Alive

Family: The Pride Troopers (Found Family)

Flower Motif: Gorse (Ulex europaeus)

Flower Meaning: Resilience

Weapon of Choice: Bayonet (Proto Hero) and Dual Pistols (Currently)

Associated With: The Gaia Council (Formerly + Jiren’s Quest), The Interdimensional Hero Club (Currently)

Hero Form Appearance: Hero Form Appearance: As a Proto Hero, his outfit is more akin to an armored soldier. The battle suit is mainly a solid white with a pale yellow hue, and with a chestplate, armored gloves and shoulder pads, armored knee pads, a visor, and horns on the headwear to show that he is up there with Jiren. His ranking is 02 (To show that he is an officer). Throughout the armor, there are subtle patterns of the gorse flower. (Jiren’s Quest)/An outfit that’s now worthy of a true hero, with there being a solid black undersuit to really make the bright yellow pop. The main outfit is a solid yellow, with there being an ombre that fades to a bright orange near the tailcoat, lower half of the sleeves, and the lower half of the pants. The accent colors are white, black, gray, gold, crimson, silver, and hints of bronze. The boots, shoulder pads, belt, and knee pads (As well as Kahseral’s hat) now have subtle patterns themed around the gorse, and the only other accessory is a pair of gorse themed wristbands that he wears on his wrists. The gorse’s petal shape can be seen in the tailcoat and collar. (Current)

Full Bloom Gauge Location: None (Proto Hero), Heart (Currently)

Guardian: Bellerophon (Based on the Greek hero of the same name)

Favorite Food: Homemade Tuna Casserole

Parallel To: Aya Kokudo

Bio: Kahseral is a cyborg warrior and general of the Pride Troopers in Universe 11 who participates in the Tournament of Power. He is also the pilot of the Pride Troopers Spaceship. Kahseral is extremely kind and treats the Proto Heroes all with the same treatment. When he speaks, it is always in earnest. Jiren states he feels regret just coming back with the other Proto Heroes coming back bleeding and with injuries. He does anything to be able to help his fellow Proto Heroes. Despite knowing the truth about the state of the cosmos beyond existence, having a strict attitude, and being trained in combat to uphold justice, he’s never lost his gentle spirit and genuinely trusts in the EverTree- and mortals. And even when the Proto Heroes ascend to true Heroes, he STILL stands by them (And in turn becomes one)!!

[geek-fashionista]

TODAY IS JASMINE’S BIRTHDAY, and so I will yap about her. (But before I do that, I should note that these yap sessions are incomplete versions of the character development diaries that will be posted as bonus content eventually. Just without the spoilers. :D)

Jasmine was born dead. And by that I mean that her first mother miscarried her. In despair, she came to the secret door at the bottom of the castle, studded with magical gemstones that arranged themselves into flowers. Beyond the door was a seemingly endless flower field, and within that paradise was Leilani Hirashima. Jasmine’s mother fell at her feet and pleaded for her child. And Leila, who walks the boundary between life and death, brought Jasmine back to the world of the living.

Jasmine was created at the same time as Sebastian. Originally the result of the union between my shadow and my husband's heart, her personality in 2006 was vastly different than it is now because Luna had not been created yet, so Jasmine was fulfilling her role. Energetic and cheerful, she welcomed the newly adopted Sebastian into the family with so much enthusiasm that she scared him.

Unlike all my other stories, Jasmine's tale revolved around the spiritual. She prayed. She was on the worship team at church. Everything about her screamed good little Christian girl. (She also shredded the guitar like it was no one's business.)

I wrote all this in 2006... and then Jasmine dropped off the face of the earth until 2015, when she was briefly considered for the lead role in my thesis novel before disappearing again.

She eventually resurfaced as a minor character in the first draft of the novel that would become Trainwrecks. It was then that I began to spend time with her and learn more about who she'd become since my high school days. The longer I looked at her, the more I noticed a great darkness pouring out of her heart.

You see, Jasmine was the daughter of my Jungian shadow. And if you've never heard of Jung's shadow theory, an extremely simplified version is that the shadow is all the subconscious, unwanted parts of you that get suppressed by the person you want to be. My shadow is personified as a hypersexual nymph who feigns helplessness to invade the minds of men.

That heredity, mixed with Jasmine's spiritual background, blended together into the story she is living today. Born (spiritually) dead. Dancing the danse macabre until she’s brought back to life. Now tormented by her past and starving for love. A good Christian girl desperately trying to suppress her old self instead of letting herself be freed of her shame.

Though her original mother is not in Trainwrecks, a side by side comparison shows their similarities: a restless need to be acknowledged, an unshakeable cool, impenetrable poker faces, an undercurrent of narcissism, shared musical motifs, and a yawning maw inside them that draws men closer, offering themselves as lovers and protectors.

Happy birthday to Jasmine, half shadow, half heart, redeemed by grace. (If you feel like celebrating, go listen to Danse Macabre by The Oh Hellos!) Her one true love has already found her, but her great romance is just around the corner.

[trans-luis-serra-navarro]

OK GOOOOOOOO READ THIS POST FIRST I WAS TRYING TO REBLOG IT BUT TUMBLR WOULDNY LET ME ADD ANY MORE PHOTOS OR TAG ANYMORE PEOPLE CUZ IM USING THIS POST AS A JUMPING OFF POINT!!!!!!! GO FOLLOW @theprestigegirly AND @cloverisnonexistantbro !!!!!!!!!

I had @void-detective ask me a few days ago if the ornaments on Luis’ jacket had any particular meaning and as with everything I fell down,,,,,, one hell of a rabbit hole HDNWHWNEHDNX

So, first off; I couldn’t find any super definitive answer to what was on his jacket but I have some pretty good theories!!!!!!!

@vespereargentum and their friend on Twitter helped point out to me that the floral designs are really reminiscent of old Spanish Renaissance furniture and like yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I mean look at it!!!!!!!!

These photos aren’t very good but you get the gist!!!!!!!

Why would Capcom put visual designs from FURNIATURE onto clothing I have no clue, but considering the fact that almost every single detail of Luis’ character down to the damn rings are extremely purposeful I’m sure we could pick up some pieces!!!!!

It also kinda makes sense, like,,, character wise too y’know- Valdelobos was a glorified Catholic cult and obviously they kept a very old-fashioned mindset so visuals-wise it makes sense!!!!!

@ 11cool also pointed out that his jacket has a lot of similar motifs to Matadors and Traje De Luces which they have their own post you can check out if you wanna!!!!!!!! Ofc there brings up the whole issue of y’know, Bad spanish stereotypes and bullfighting etc etc but this whole post is just throwing stuff at the wall in complete honesty!!!!!

And like the og post and @cloverisnonexistantbro said there’s a not for none Chance that the designers were trying to play into abstract windmill motifs would would be super cool!!!!!

@theprestigegirly and @kaychen666 were also kind enough to point out that the flowers on his jacket kinda look like poppies!!!!!!

And I think most people already know that poppies are a pretty common symbol for death (especially after war which I’ll touch on in a second) which. Y’know. Would be just SUCH A FUN AND SILLY DETAIL if true HAHDHENDHSJ

And like the og already has put so eloquently there are just,,,,,, S O many lil design elements of Luis’ that are so perfectly purposeful,,,;,,,… down to the fact that Luis has a gun from WWI (Realistically probably passed down from hsi grandfather, who would have probably had to have lived through Spanish civil wars (yayyyyy we love generational trauma yippeee another thing to add onto Luis amirite /lh)) and down to the fricken rings he wears and what fingers he wears them on!!!!!! (One of the rings for instance is of the Virgin Mary and it’s supposedly said that wearing a ring on the fingers Luis does symbolises leadership and compassion etc etc etc Yknow ring logic HDBEHEBXHX)

So like idk!!!!!!!! If anyone who actually has knowledge of Spanish culture wants to chip in PLEASE PLEASE DO!!!!!!! I’m the whitest Mf on planet earth there’s only so much justice I can give Luis BSNDHENDJSNSJ

Tl;dr: until Capcom or somebody whose more of a professional in this field outright explains what little design details like that mean for certain I’m just throwing stuff at the wall and letting people see it HDHEHEJEID

[waterloggedsoliloquy]

@hoooble I'm happy to help! i didnt actually draw with too much significance in mind, i was mostly practicing, but connections can be made anywhere

These are calla lilies, theyre an extremely popular and straightforward flower-- they really do represent love and matrimony and purity (look up X Flower Meaning on the internet and a bunch of contentscraping sites will give you virtually identical pages that say every flower means love and kindness. which duh, any flower given to another in an act of love means love.) The fun thing about calla lilies though is that they are associated with the greek goddess Hera.

These are lobelia! As a more obscure and less classical flower, my time scouring the internet found not much help. from aforementioned content scraping websites. I'm afraid i have to turn.... to physical media.

>humblebrag.jpeg

The first two books proved fruitless. Lobelia are clearly not a priority motif in western art. Shame! Kate Greenaway pulls through tho, and lists Lobelia to mean "malevolence". Sounds about right! Her book was originally published in 1846, right around the time of the floriography craze really kicked off, so i'll take her word for it.

A fairly reputable looking site on Hanakotoba, Japanese floriography, has a page about Lobelia.

It says that they represent humility. It also says its japanese name is 瑠璃姫, rurihime, which means if i am correct, lapis lazuli princess. which is so fucking true. lobelia is so princess.

[alastgoodnight]

Pick 5 Tropes!

True Blue Femininity

"Blue is a surprisingly common color to represent femininity. Thus a girl or woman wearing blue is a sign that she is fair and gentle. ...Blue has other meanings, such as sadness and loneliness. These can overlap with this trope (as in representing both femininity and sadness). Or that she is gentle (with blue representing peace and serenity)."

Cope by Creating

"When a character uses art (such as painting, dancing, singing, crafting trinkets, etc.) as a coping mechanism to deal with extreme stress, such as trauma, loss, or isolation. ...The inverse of this is Too Upset to Create, which can cause things like Writer's Block when a character's emotions leave them unable to create."

Moving Beyond Bereavement

"Loss is a difficult thing to deal with, regardless of whether it's already happened or still in progress. Faced with the death of friends, family, significant others, etc., it's not unknown for some characters to struggle with accepting the inevitable. ...In fiction, this can form a character arc in which an individual afflicted by this crippling sense of loss gradually manages to let go of those they have lost and move on with their lives."

Cute Bookworm

"A cute and brainy bibliophile, this trope embodies the cute, shy, and vulnerable archetype as applied to a nerdy girl. She wanders around with her head in a book and is ready to spout out facts at the drop of a hat. There's a tendency for her to be shy, young, quiet, and socially awkward."

Flower Motifs (Hydrangeas)

"Flowers are one of the most popular motifs in literature, film and television alike. Whether given as a gift or mentioned as a character's favorite plant, they're probably worth taking note of; they may well be saying something about the story's theme or someone's personality. ...The system of hanakotoba is the Japanese system of flower symbolism... shoujo manga and anime (and related genres) will have the background break out in unexplained flowers to emphasize a character's beauty, goodness, or emotional state."

Tagged by: @moonrevolutions

Tagging: You!

[pastedpast]

I enjoyed reading this essay, 'Fraktur Folk Art (ca. 1750–1820)', by Sasha Archibald from the Public Domain Review (great website). It's a genre of art and era of history I've written about on this blog before (ADD LINK).

The southeastern corner of what is now Pennsylvania was once home to entire towns of religious dissidents. All had been persecuted in Europe, and sought freedom in the colonies. There were clusters of Mennonites, Moravians, Lutherans, and various other German-Protestant sects, some obscure and eccentric. Residents of the Ephrata Cloister, for instance, practiced extreme calorie restriction, sleep deprivation, and celibacy. Another group followed the sixteenth-century teachings of Caspar Schwenckfeld von Ossig, a bearded, deaf ornithologist who split ways with Martin Luther over the meaning of the sacrament. These motley religious communities had significant theological differences, but shared a great deal as well — they were farmers who spoke German, prized religious tolerance, and practiced the same distinctive artform: fraktur.

Fraktur is named after the font — heavy, angular, old-timey — which is usually called “blackletter” in the United States. Fraktur was ubiquitous in eighteenth-century Germany, and it remained so long after other European countries switched to the more readable Roman. (Fraktur is now associated with the Nazis, who used it extensively in propaganda, going so far as to outfit government offices with Fraktur typewriters.) How did the name of a font become the name of an art form? Fraktur art existed at the edges of text, as a decorative accessory of writing. It embellished fraktur script. In Pennsylvania and beyond, baptismal records, land deeds, certificates of accomplishment, bookplates, birth registries, and sometimes valentines were lettered in German-language fraktur, and decorated with the hearts, vines, and tulips that came to be characteristic of fraktur art.

Fraktur has its origins in folk art traditions from Alsace, Switzerland, and the Rhineland, but in America it became more colorful, elaborate, and freehand, and far more apt to dominate the script it sought to embellish. The genre’s golden age was the period between 1790 and 1830 — a time when the American religious context was still strong, but the European influence less stultifying. The forms are highly stylized. Hearts, flowers, angels, and various birds are repeated over and over, to soothing effect. The palette favors bold primary colors, traditionally made of inks concocted from berries, iron oxide, and apple juice. The composition is orderly. The tidy leaves of the tidy vines are perfectly equidistant, and the flowers pared down to floral symbols. The goldfinch that appears in many fraktur images is drawn in such a specific way it’s still known by its German name: distelfink. Symmetry reigns, and when it doesn’t, the composition is otherwise balanced. One of the most common fraktur motifs is the “three-heart design” wherein a large heart is complemented by two smaller hearts on either side of its apex — in fraktur, even the most curvaceous of shapes assumes the rootedness of a square.

Fraktur scholars and aficionados can distinguish Ephrata Cloister fraktur from Schwenkfeld fraktur from Mennonite fraktur. They can also identify the work of certain artists by sight —whether by name, or, for those who left their work unsigned, by epithet: the Nine Hearts artist or the Stoney Creek artist. But to simply appreciate the form, no expertise is necessary. Fraktur is straightforward and earnest. There is no irony and no secret code. Its pleasures are the homey kind. To contemporary eyes, the imagery signals feminine domesticity, but it wasn’t always so. Nearly all fraktur artists were men, and the papers they embellished were civic and religious documents. It is true, however, that fraktur was designed for private, domestic pleasures. It was not an artform of display or exhibition, but of personal devotion. Some of the most beautiful examples of fraktur are bookplates, hidden most of the time.

[neotriobrainrot-reborn]

Sup. I looked back at my other post about a Mushroom Girl moveset, and I wasn't too satisfied. It didn't feel too creatively fulfilling to just go the fungus/Mushroom route to fit her alias, and I found it kind of boring. Because of this, I decided to redo her character moveset with a different epithet that still has a plant-like motif. I also thought about team attacks of this move-set with other characters (or more like just Molly and Gio for now)

Also, quick note: I changed what I'm calling Mushroom Girl from "Rosary" to "Mosary" since the latter feels a bit more natural

Mosary Amaniphall (V2)

EPITHET: EFFLORESCENCE

Allows the user to create and grow flowers with various effects, including amplifying her and other’s capabilities.

Summon — Flower Mimic:

Mosary quickly grows a flower like summon with a brown stim, blue petals, scattered dark blue pokedots all over the petals, and a dark red bud. This appearance is merely a disguise, for it's true form is similar, except with one key difference: it has a large eye to replace the bud.

It’s key ability is that it can perfectly replicate any sound it’s heard before. From the sound and intensity of school bells to even people, as long as it’s audible, it can replicate the sound.

Mosary is able to have “Flower Mimic” copy a specific thing’s noise/sound so long as she specifies what she wants them to copy. If it’s a person, she needs to specify a name. She also has the choice to amplify the volume of any noise, including making already loud sounds ear piercingly loud. Though this takes more stamina, and she isn’t immune to the noise, so she would have to grow the summon near someone’s ear to use it without harming herself

If anything grabs or touches Flower Mimic, it will immediately disappear in a puff of pollen. This is poisonous to people, but only causes poison-ivy-like bumps to form wherever the pollen hit. This only acts as a getaway for the summon to de-summon itself instead of someone destroying it.

Summon — Venus

Venus is one of Mosary’s largest summons, being around 6ft large. When summoned, it lays on her hair as a flower without a stem. The summon has the appearance of a flower with green petals and stem, and a pink bud. The flower’s head is larger than Mosary’s head and typically appears to just be a harmless giant flower, because it is!

To people!

Its prey are summons. It emits a light telekinetic energy to any summon in the area, subconsciously drawing any summon towards the creature like a worm on a hook line. If the summon gets within 10ft of Mosary, Venus will quickly sprout vines to extend itself towards the target and close its petal like jaws closing on a fish, swallowing the summon whole. After a minute or two, Venus will spit out a stronger form of the original summon that will be under Mosary’s command.

Despite her summon’s deceptive size, it can actually eat summons somewhat larger than it. Though it does have limits. While it could devour stuff like Sylvie’s sheep easily, she would have a better chance of winning the lottery than trying to do the same to a summon like Graham at her current level. It also cannot eat more than one thing at a time. (Ex: if it ate Sylvie’s sheep, it wouldn’t be able to eat anything else until the transformation process finished)

Weirdly, it’s her friendliest summon and typically gets along with most people, provided they don’t attack Mosary.

Summon — Sunflower

Upon use, a small sunflower sprouts on top of Mosary’s head. When tapped, it’ll glow with a golden light and provide energy that amplifies all five of Mosary’s senses to a superhuman degree. Maintaining this effect takes an extremely small amount of stamina, but it’s constant. She can keep this active for about 5 minutes before needing to turn it off. Luckily, she can switch it on and off, signified by whether it’s glowing or not, so she can use it in short bursts.

She can use this to amplify someone else’s senses, and it’ll use that person’s stamina as a source of energy instead of her own. Regardless of who she uses it on, the summon being destroyed still does damage to her.

This is her most rude summon, but not to her at the very least.

Summon — Queen’s Blade

Mosary’s most offensively capable summon. A closed purple rose grows on Mosary’s head that upon opening, releases several thick vines with thorns as sharp as obsidian. She can telekinetically control the vines and use them to rip anything to shreds. These thorns are retractable, allowing her to use them for utility purposes as well.

Team attacks

Sound bomb ( +Molly): Molly creates a mute bubble while Mosary summons Flower Mimic on her hand. After that, Mosary specifies “Flower Mimic” to use an ear piercing sound before bringing her hand out of the bubble. This causes the opponent to be hit with a deafeningly loud sound while Mosary and Molly remain safe inside the bubble without the former having to get in up close to plant it

Palatable: ( +Molly): Molly uses hushabye, but doesn’t completely get rid of the summon. She only dumbs it down enough for Venus to eat it

Jester Privilege (+Giovanni): Mosary use’s queen’s blade to ensnare an opponent, leaving them open for Giovanni to land a critical hit

Silent Execution (+ Molly & Giovanni) Giovanni uses the fog of lost souls to block their vision, and Mosary uses sunflower to enhance her senses to tell where everyone and allows Molly to mute her and her summon before going ham with “Queen’s Blade”. Due to the fog, her being nimble on her feet, her being muted, and the sheer size and amount of vines coming at the targets, it’s extremely difficult for her targets to find where she is while dealing with the onslaught of vine attacks.

This is all I got for now, but I’ll probably think of more team attacks

Weaknesses

All of her summons have significantly more sentience than the average summon, comparable to that of a pet, albeit noticeably smarter. Because of this, unlike other epithet users with summons who can just manifest it, Mosary cannot do the same. Instead, she must send a mental request to manifest the summon, and the summon has the choice to accept or refuse her demands.

Due to her strange connection with her summons, if they take damage and get hurt, so does she. Her summons are significantly more resistant to being desummoned than normal due to them existing both physically and magically, but it will hurt her for a fourth of her health, and make that summon inaccessible for 24 hours if destroyed by someone other than her or the summon itself

Mosary (and her summons) are vulnerable to cold temperatures. If it’s too cold, her epithet will be weakened, and her threshold for potential ailments from the cold is at significantly higher temperatures than the average person (this doesn’t hold well for her since she lives in Taiga country)

To summon anything, she needs to touch the target (can be herself) and mentally summon a specific creature. If her hands are compromised, she cannot summon anything.

Fun Facts

No matter how large Venus grows as Mosary gains proficiency, its mass doesn’t grow proportionately and remains light, giving them a rather low density.

If not checked on, she will spend an entire day staring at a tree just because she saw a lot of animals there

Once Every week, she’ll be late for school and her classmates started making bets on how absurd her story was that made her late (she doesn’t know)

[prismaticstarshch]

some more muse rambling:

Terra, true to her cottonmouth motifs, has a white mouth, fangs (and literal venom), and can be semi-aquatic if she wants to be

Heartsong dated Candy Bomb in the past, but the two eventually drifted apart (while staying on good terms with each other)

Heartsong is the most likely to try to give people nicknames

LW!Bive’s concept came about because of a random combination of thoughts like “I wonder if she’d fit into LW” and “with her being a conspiracy theorist/self-proclaimed detective she’d probably wanna dig into what’s going on with Asgard, Lunar Events, the Underworlds, etc.”

the fact that 4 of my AO muses’ names begin with “A” is sheer coincidence, it never was intentional

if my AO OCs had their reputations inverted, Abigail would be deceptive and manipulative, Aisha would be boisterous and still chaotic while also being eager to do the right thing, Zoey, Aura, Amber, and Elvira would be pure nightmares to deal with, and Cleo would be shyer and more reserved

Elvira wields a katana partially because of Zoey

Zoey’s spirit weapons originally belonged to her father (who came from the Ryujin Dynasty)

The flowers on Zoey’s staff aren’t real and were added by her; they’re extremely durable so they don’t get damaged during fights

Abigail is extremely prone to self-neglect due to her prioritizing helping others over taking care of herself

Abigail and Aisha have the worst issues with being vulnerable (Abigail doesn’t want others to worry about her and Aisha doesn’t want to be seen as “weak”)

Abigail is conflict-averse and would rather talk instead of fighting, but is well aware that not everyone can be reasoned with (she also tends to apologize before fighting)

Abigail getting pissed off somehow would startle people because she rarely ever gets angry for any reason

Abigail likes collecting seashells and gemstones, which she’ll use to make things like jewelry to give to her friends (if she isn’t using them for brewing potions or jewelcrafting)

Aisha constantly brews insanity potions so she can play dirty in combat

Aisha is obsessed with being in control of situations and despises feeling powerless

Abigail never wants to fight Aisha, but Aisha always forces her hand

None of my AO muses are bad at cooking, but Abigail would be the best at it

In-universe, Abigail has a mosquito build

Aura being a glass cannon in-game applies in-universe as well

Zoey and Aura have a “straight man and wise guy” dynamic, where Zoey serves as the “straight man” (the rational, sane, and logical person) while Aura is the “wise guy” (the goofier person who presents wisecracks, puns, and wackiness and riffs off of the straight man)

Aura has the “golden retriever personality”

With the exception of Abigail (where canonicity with levels is applied to her), all of the skills my AO OCs use are inconsistent with their levels because yes

Soleil is a natural thaumaturge (miracle-worker) due to her divine lineage as a Celestial

Soleil is a direct descendant of Astralis Celestus, the matriarch of the four Columnae who the Aetherans refer to as the Aether’s “mother goddess”

Nadira was once a goddess, but fell from grace due to her use of black magic that eventually spawned the Aetheran Corruption

Both Komasa and Reviela are black mages, but neither of them have been driven insane by their magics’ influence due to their strong willpower

Lunae Lumen!Red is basically fully a robotic vampire due to some things that were done to her before she fled

Dianna would probably be the most likely to be asked “how are you still alive?”

Dianna doesn’t fit one particular class because she uses both melee weapons and magic

Dianna has weapons that don’t exist in Calamity Mod, “Sunderer’s Ark” and her “Collector’s Grimoire”

Going off of the fact that Calamitas makes some morbid remarks in her dialogue, she has a very dark sense of humor, particularly when it comes to death

[beardedcreatorcreator]

Use Accessories To Complete Your Costume

Luckily long hair can be styled various ways - from formal to more informal. So when it comes to wedding hairstyles for long hair you will there numerous options. Here are four.

When it will come time to be seen up enterprise ones, and also to devote time that you want don't have looking to the hair bow or clip, it just makes making ready that more and more hectic. We all know how that usually can be. The best solution to solve this problem is operating way of keeping total child's bows and hair accessories organized in a designated space.

A herringbone braid is highly if you've straight unwanted exquisite hair accessories. It adds that little something very different. It will also give your hair a lift and stop it looking flat. Normal works extremely well with wavy hair, but in the case of wavy hair, may be better to a little lift to the top.

Head bands are important if truly your hair to maintain place. Goody has an oversized line of hair musicians. Their StayPut Head Bands maintain your hair from getting in your way. Your French Hair Claw Clips bands are incredibly ferme. Still, if you accidentally get out behind 100 % possible buy a new one for less costly.

This comes in different brands. Depending on the motif for this wedding, your son's bride can uncover the traditional as well as modern dictionaries. For younger brides, a princess tiara can her appear fresher plus more vibrant-looking. However for a more unique and radical style, the asymmetric and retro-designed tiara could be a good selection.

Because planning for a wedding isn't easy, you need to to learn to prioritize. It's true that you angry, you'll scream to cry a lot, but in the end everything will turn out perfectly. If you need to have all the feaures set together you need make a subscriber list. Your dress and pearl bridal jewelry should come at the outset. If you don't have the time to spend time visiting to the mall and buying accessories, you can always invest a a small amount of hours and appearance online. Net is an excellent tool and you'll save up precious hours from the wedding time craziness.

Hair flowers needn't air pressure natural. Each of the ingredients always loved by women, since flowers bring out of the vulnerability too as your feminity effectively. When you put them on your hair, and in colours which match your outfit, you have the appearance of a healthy beauty which usually is totally unsurpassed.

Australia is beset using a number of professionals that bridal hair styles. Coffs Harbour offers its own wealth of globally competitive hair stylist who alter one as exquisite hair accessories well as wishful lady into a princess walking down the aisle with glamor and confidence.

[wsjyuyuyuau]

Toppo (Dragon Ball)

Name: Toppo

Series: Dragon Ball

Gender: Male

Status: Alive

Family: The Pride Troopers (Found Family)

Flower Motif: Gorse (Ulex europaeus)

Flower Meaning: Resilience

Weapon of Choice: Bayonet (Proto Hero) and Battle Axe (Currently)

Associated With: The Gaia Council (Formerly + Jiren’s Quest), The Interdimensional Hero Club (Currently)

Hero Form Appearance: As a Proto Hero, his outfit is more akin to an armored soldier. The battle suit is mainly a solid white with a pale yellow hue, and with a chestplate, armored gloves and shoulder pads, armored knee pads, a visor, and no horns on the headwear to show that he is one of the lesser members. His ranking is 20. Throughout the armor, there are subtle patterns of the gorse flower. (Jiren’s Quest)/An outfit that’s now worthy of a true hero, with there being a solid black undersuit to really make the bright yellow pop. The main outfit is a solid yellow, with there being an ombre that fades to a dark purple near the tailcoat, lower half of the sleeves, and the lower half of the pants. The accent colors are white, black, gray, violet, crimson, gold, silver, and hints of bronze. The boots, shoulder pads, gloves, and belt now have subtle patterns themed around the gorse, and the only other accessory is a pair of gorse themed armbands that Toppo wears. The gorse’s petal shape can be seen in the tailcoat, sleeves, and collar. (Current)

Full Bloom Gauge Location: Left Fist

Guardian: Heracles (Based on the Greek Hero of the same name)

Favorite Food: Chicken Wings

Parallel To: Yumiko Miroku

Bio: Toppo is the leader of the Pride Troopers, a group from Universe 11 tasked with the protection of the universe from all that is evil. Among them, Toppo is the second strongest and is only surpassed by Jiren. He also serves as the God of Destruction Candidate of Universe 11, and when banishing his inner limitations, he is able to fully tap into the power of a God of Destruction, and even though he lacks the official title, can utilize the same abilities as a GoD, such as the legendary Hakai technique. Toppo is rather conceited and competitive, especially towards Jiren (In a friendly way). He is also extremely foolhardy, and does not hesitate to engage in combat with Vertexes during missions; at the same time, he is also known to be wise. He tries very hard to maintain his dignified and bulky appearance, such as when he assures everyone he is fine when injured. In fact, his determination to maintain appearances and his team somewhat keeps him from revealing feelings of compassion. Despite his home universe’s name being a tiny bit tarnished in the T. O. P., Toppo is proud of his universe's achievements and vows to restore Universe 11’s name to its former glory with his comrades.

[godsiero]

i just re-read my own post and i realized that it may seem like i think jeff blim is a shit music writer based on my critiques, but i NEED everybody to know that is not true and i think he is an EXTREMELY talented composer. nerdy prudes must die is my favorite musical now, surpassing sweeney todd, largely (if not completely) because of the music composition. jeff blim will never see this, but if he does: you’re quite the talented gem, sir, and you deserve all of the flowers in the world, and i want to throw my praise at you like it’s a fucking baseball, dude. ps i could do an entire thesis essay on why and how the music and motifs of every hatchetverse show blends together, but i digress. i adore ur genius brain jeff 🥺 GIVE THIS MAN HIS COOL FIVE MIL

hello. i have just finished all of nightmare time. buckle up, i have thoughts and spoilers ahead.

just a general statement before opinions are shared: obviously some situations take place in different timelines (like the ape-man vs time bastard), but what do you think happens in the *same* timelines? obviously forever and always and time bastard are the same timeline, but do you think each episode is a different time line? do you think it depends? as i’m typing this, i think each episode of nightmare time is a different reality, let me know your thoughts!

okay, starting from the very beginning with ape-man:

i thought ape-man was a good intro to what should be expected of nightmare time. i thought the “ape-man” being a set-up between ted and hidges was funny. i loved that lucy ended up actually meeting the real ape-man in the end. i didn’t really care for the ape-man *song*, and after finishing the rest of the episodes, it was a forgettable episode as a whole, but again, great intro to the idea of what nightmare time is.

watcherworld:

i love alice and bill, so i enjoyed this. watching nightmare time *after* nerdy prudes must die helped me be more excited about the introduction of the rest of the lords in black (because i somehow avoided spoilers for THAT long). that father-daughter relationship was so well put together. i love the blinky song, didn’t care for snoozle town (however, it did sound like black friday, the song, which might not have been intentional, but i’m gonna pretend it was to appreciate jeff blim lmao), as i’m typing this i don’t really remember one thousand eyes, so…i guess it wasn’t memorable? overall, i liked the generally positive ending and bill and alice establishing they will change their ways to help their relationship. love love love.

forever & always:

loved this episode. paulkins till i die fr. i was damn near fucking crying during the opening scene, i shit you not. (side note: i have recently developed the biggest soft spot for paulkins after reading the most incredible fan fiction, probably ever, forelsket by gooddaysunshine on ao3, which i qualify as canon now.) the song forever & always is definitely in my top five nightmare time songs, i just love it. i was totally shocked when paul killed the real emma, up until he revealed he was also a clone/not the real paul, so respect ig. top tier nightmare time episode.

time bastard:

the song time bastard is also in my top five nightmare time songs. kim whalen plz sing me to sleep. the song really set my expectations high because of how good forever & always was, but i was really let down. the revelation of tinky wasn’t as direct or nuanced as blinky and i thought the plot was really slow UNTIL the last ten minutes when everything looped (i love a fuckin loop). making ted the homeless man was truly an incredible plot twist, which makes me sad that wasn’t reflected during the rest of the episode. also peanuts is hilarious.

jane’s a car:

i love tim and sue me for being a barneston shipper. did NOT like jane, did NOT like the plot of tom fucking a car, that got a little too unhinged for even me. the song jane’s a car has been stuck in my head since before i even saw the fucking episode, i could not tell you how many times i have just yelled “GOT MY FOOT ON THE GAS” in the middle of conversations. that being said, the rest of the song was forgettable which upset me! i didn’t enjoy this episode, aside from the mention of the black book on the radio and the twist at the end where it’s revealed jane did take over becky.

the witch in the web:

first of fucking all, kendall nicole is a gift to this earth. that child is incredible beyond compare. protect her forever. second of all, i can’t really remember the plot of this episode, but i do know that i liked the story? not enough to remember it though? this is definitely a middle ground episode for me. i didn’t particularly enjoy either song, but i didn’t hate them. i liked the plot of miss holloway taking hannah into the black and white and travelling through time (kinda), and i liked the overall theme of webs to introduce webby.

honey queen:

the song honey queen didn’t do much for me, neither did latte hatte, or nibbly ditty. if this was any other circumstance i would’ve also added queen b to the list, but i saw it in the jangle ball before this and that made me enjoy it, but if i hadn’t seen jangle ball, just know, i would not have liked queen b. that being said, i did like this episode. i am not a linda monroe stan (sorry), but i do think she’s funny. i thought the kids were funny, i wanted to punch zoey in the face, sam gave me the ick, gerald is a fucking freak, i have never wanted to throttle jon matteson until i watched this (i forgot his character’s name), so all in all, none of these characters are likable at all except for river, but that’s the monroe’s for you. the episode was slow, but in the way a slow burn in slow. once again, liked the introduction of nibbly, and i think having the first episode *be* the honey queen festival was super important to the rest of the season because they never shut the fuck up about it after this (this is another reason why i think each episode is it’s own universe but i disgress). if that confused you, i *did* enjoy the episode, but it was another middle-grounder for me.

perky’s buds:

liked that emma got to start her pot farm. overall have nothing of value to say about this one. joey as the bird was really fucking funny. i like jae. love emma forever, that freak. this episode was really slow and not at all in a good way. i did not like the song perky’s buds. just wanted the episode to end. sad face.

abstinence camp:

this is probably my favorite nightmare time story. the song axe-man is definitely number one on my list (we’ll talk more later). the plot of this one was SO good and funny and creepy and everything hatchetfield is about. my main love for this episode stems from the introduction of our three lead nerdy prudes must die characters. i love those three freaks. steph and peter almost getting in the same shower went fuckin crazy and i was kinda glad they got caught lmao. the plot of girl jeri and boy jerry was too fuckin good, and i will say, i was a little confused why the axe-man never showed up to kill them when they were very obviously horny, BUT IT’S ALMOST LIKE THAT WAS THE PLOT HAHAHAHAH. also, love the return of plot and lore about the woods, seriously, needed that. also also, jon matteson and kim whalen should be paired up more because they’re both so fucking funny and have the capability of being charming yet ever so slightly off-putting and i fucking love it. virginity rocks is a fuckin banger (heh), but the real star of the show is axe-man. let me tell you why axe-man is the best nightmare time song: not only does it introduce the axe-man (who we have been seeing and hearing THE ENTIRE SEASON, mind you), but bryce charles is singing?? i literally don’t know what else you need to hear from me?? corey dorris in a flannel will forever change my brain chemistry and they both sound so good together, truly, and corey dorris is a baritone legend (i’m looking at *you*, corey singing the hidden baseline in high school is killing me). “his blade is made of hate” sounds damn near EXACT to “you better hope you’re outta sight” (literal monster). “oh the pain” sounds damn near EXACT to “it ain’t great” (hatchet town). MOTHERFUCKERS. WHEN THE BRIDGE STARTS “these woods belong to him…” THE FUCKING HATCHET TOWN MOTIF IS LITERALLY FUCKING PLAYING LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME????? also, just the fucking end that proves ur dead?? please. jeff blim. here, have some flowers. i will do anything for you. anyway. great episode. love it. 10/10.

daddy:

i liked that we gave frank some backstory and gave him a little more humanity because i really did not like that motherfucker (heh) in black friday. the plot with sherman was VERY funny and him turning into a child is kinda cute tbh. sheila u bitch, u let barry swift out of there!! i will forever be a man in a hurry fan, even after death 😭. yes take this psycho’s money and make your family’s toy store better and pay your one employee a living wage!! we love to see it. i don’t even remember the song young at heart, so that should tell you enough about how much i didn’t like it lmao. i had been waiting to see those care bears because i fucking knew they were going to be the lords in black plushies after i saw what colors they were. nick lang, you sneaky bastard.

killer track:

finally learned the tea about miss holloway and yes it was worth it. yes, i do realize why everybody loves duke and miss holloway now, hell, i love em now. miss holloway’s plot is crazy and if there’s another nightmare time season i hope she gets another episode, honestly. i like run away with me as a song in general, but for the genre of artist miss holloway is painted to be, the song is lackluster. I DO LIKE IT THOUGH BUT I WAS EXPECTING IT TO BE MORE ROCK AND ROLL. i do realize it is a ballad, but even rock and roll ballads go harder than that did. killer track is a fucking rager???? jeff blim what are you doing writing musical theatre songs???? go write some fucking grunge shit???? killer track goes so fucking hard i really can’t explain it, jesus christ, also the video was sick as shit, do more!! (this really just proves jeff can write anything lmao) i thought the nightmare time remix was really funny and fun and just a good time, no notes, joey slayed the house down boots honey mama.

yellow jacket:

i liked the vibe of the song yellow jacket, very avril lavigne. loved the plot. loved the reprise of lex opening the wiggly box x opening the pokey box. i love the idea that there are multiple kids like hannah in hatchetfield and that would be a GREAT plot to expand upon more, however, i like that hannah and lex got out of there, but i felt so bad for ethan :( i wonder if he had proposed to lex that morning if she had said yes and not left or if she had taken them with him ugh i hate not knowing. my favorite thing about the hatchetfield universe is that they just keep pumping out these stories and plot lines that confirm these things are canon in at least one universe. i love knowing as much as possible and that’s what nightmare time has given me, ily girl. sorry went on a tagent and didn’t finish: didn’t like use it or lose it, i didn’t like next time, but i thought it was sweet 🥺 they’re all such cuties. ALSO!! the general john mcnamara cameo in this episodes them song KILLED ME i SCREAMED!! he’s literally my favorite. if they continue with a season 3 i hope to fucking god they give my man his episode god dammit. bonus, hey melissa: that shit was fucking weird and i hated that paul sided with her in the end that creep. anyway, thank you for coming on this journey with me, i hope you liked my notes, i love a discussion if you would like to comment. <3

[nulltune]

just gonna gently hold her hands bc she’s precious and he thinks she’s as fragile as a petal doomed to fall:’) -from ray ur welcum<3

          A SINGLE WHITE ROSE, blooming in spite of the winter's adversities, ever-stoic. And yet it is a fragile thing —— a fleeting sort of beauty, in arm's reach; but in a way, distant. As slender hands are taken into larger ones (a difference that doesn't go unnoticed, noted silently), her gaze is drawn along with it, though the only reaction from maiden would come from the slight parting of her lips. A glance to Ray, doe eyes widening a fraction; hazel eyes appearing just a bit brighter. When eye contact is made, her gaze would jitter downwards again, to their connected hands.

          It's such a gentle touch... Though a porcelain doll she may resemble, she doesn't see it herself. Hakuno Kishinami thinks of herself much harsher; an empty, empty thing rather than beautiful blooms. Not to be treated gently / kindly / like this. Such things are / such things should be far beyond her reach — and yet here it is right now. And here she is right now, not wanting to pull away.  ❝ ...‎Your hands are very warm. ‎❞  Commented in a soft voice, as if afraid to disrupt this tender moment.

          Then her hands would slowly move— to lace their hands together, in a gesture just as soft.

unprompted,  always accepting!

[doblehkiin]

❗❗❗Long ask jumpscare warning ❗❗❗

idk if you still want asks but I thought I would talk about my 14-year-old self's extremely self-indulgent edgelord. He's changed a lot but I still adore him.

His name is Wencen Loresaris, he's my Snow Elf rogue. I've probably talked about him before, but I wanted to talk about his gimmick.

Lore's character gimmick is that he's several cryptids in the various regions of Skyrim, later being both Listener and Guildmaster. No one knows that these entities are one person.

Some behavioral context; Lore is always on the move, and kills people who look at him for too long. The more they see, the more they can describe, and then they can notice patterns. Patterns lead to conclusions, and conclusions will lead to his own death. Kids are the only exception. Everyone else has to die. Also, Lore operates at night. In the day, he rests in caves, sometimes sharing the space with an animal. He also uses nature magic that is unfamiliar to

Secrecy + old, forgotten nature magic he uses to get by + being centuries old himself = folklore.

In Hjaalmarch, he's considered a good omen and protector. He guides lost children home by taking the illusory form of a wolf and sheparding them back to Morthal. This led to him being called Fenrisulfr, which means 'Swamp wolf'. As thanks, locals started leaving offerings in a ruin up north. After that, the next harvests were especially bountiful. Due to his protection of children and the wolf motifs, he's seen as an aspect or spirit of Mara. It's custom for newly-weds to make a pilgrimage to Fenrisulfr's ruins and leave some of the wedding dowry.

Falkreath considers him a specter of Sithis that takes souls into the void. The Brotherhood operating in the area enforces the idea. Rather than being a reaper, he's the Seedsman, as flowers sprout in graveyards when he's in the area. They're used to death imagery, but the shadow in the cemetery is seen as someone being taken from you a second time, and the flowers are from the person's true and final passing-on. As such, they feel bitterness towards the Seedsman, even if they honor that its his duty. The flowers left are thought to indicate what kind of person the deceased was in life. Black dahlias always grow from the graves of Companions. Falkreath seeks their mercenary work elsewhere, in recent centuries.

He is most feared in the Rift. Remember that bit about Lore being nocturnal, couch-surfing with animals in the day, and killing people if they make too much contact?

The Rift is popular hunting ground. Hunters tend to track their prey—which is typically nocturnal and asleep in the day—back to their caves.

Getting netted, shot, or dogs sicced on you by a pack of hunters—while you're sleeping—is considered too much contact for Lore.

The impact was the lack of witnesses or survivors. The only evidence of something killing hunters, was the hunters' journals. Sometimes one or two get away, and write about the Thing they disturbed. It's only a matter of time before the Thing catches up to them. Search parties only find a shakily-written tale of an odd, not-of-this-world Thing. This creature was called the Something. Veteran Rift hunters know to go for their prey in the open, rather than by surprise in its sleep.

When told these legends, Lore is known to laugh, cough politely, and remember he has an errand.

edgelords are the best kind of oc's imo i don't care if that's controversial we all need a good edgelord. we also just need more falmer oc's. I love every single falmer oc I come across.

I love that you incorporated like, rituals with him being a cryptid cause he could just be like, a normal cryptid that people just whisper about but firstly nords love them some rituals and practices so that makes sense, but also it adds so much depth to his role as a cryptid.

i wish i was a cryptid in real life, he really is living my dream life i'm so jealous

[audreydoeskaren]

Hello, I sorry for asking so many questions. I have just found your site and really enjoyed all the new information you gave. With your knowledge on qipao, It would be very interesting to hear your review and thoughts on the historical accuracy in costumes in movies like "In the Mood for Love", "Lust Caution", "Flowers of Shanghai", " Raise the Red Lantern".

No need to apologize! I love answering asks and I'm more than happy to review period dramas. The writing got rather long so I’ll review In the Mood for Love and Lust, Caution first, the other two will be in a separate post. Quick disclaimer, I’m not a professional costume designer so everything is my two cents, if you found something you disagree with feel free to comment :))

In the Mood for Love (2000) 花样年华

In the Mood for Love is a 2000 Hong Kong romantic drama film written, produced, and directed by Wong Kar-wai. Its original Chinese title means "Flowery Years". It tells the story of a man (played by Tony Leung) and a woman (Maggie Cheung) whose spouses have an affair together and who slowly develop feelings for each other. (copy and pasted from Wikipedia) It's set in 1962 Hong Kong, so we're looking at 1960s Hong Kong cheongsam for the costumes. This movie is widely considered the pinnacle of 1960s cheongsam costuming and I agree. The costume designer is 张叔平 Zhang Shuping, who in my opinion makes fabulous 20th century costumes but questionable historical ones.

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Maggie Cheung's character in an abstract print, cap sleeved cheongsam.

The 1960s cheongsam had the extreme hourglass, Christian Dior New Look bombshell silhouette. The figure was accentuated by pointy bullet bras and girdles/corsets that cinched the waist. Because of the rigid shapewear, 60s cheongsam commonly had very sharp angles at the torso and wasn't streamlined at all. 60s cheongsam were usually knee length, with slits that went up to the middle of the thighs (could be shorter or longer according to personal preference). They had a high, stiffened collar that tapers dramatically at the front, closing with one or no buttons. They were either sleeveless or cap sleeved. Zippers would be used at the side and snap buttons at the front closures, replacing the fabric pankous that dominated cheongsam prior to the 1950s. 1950s and 60s cheongsam often had no visible buttons. Common fabrics used were printed or embroidered silks (e.g. the stereotypically Chinese looking fabrics with dragon or roundel motifs), cotton, rayon or any other household dress weight fabrics. Common print patterns were abstract, geometric or floral prints. Unlike 1930s and 40s cheongsam, 50s and 60s cheongsam weren’t heavy on trimmings, binding or other raw edge decoration. All of these features are perfectly recreated by Zhang's costuming for Maggie Cheung's character. My only minor qualm is that sometimes the collar looks too big? On old photographs they usually look very fitted to the wearer's neck.

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Sleeveless floral print cheongsam.

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Photograph of 1950s/60s Hong Kong.

Besides the cheongsam itself, the accessories, hair and makeup for Maggie Cheung's character are also on point. The 60s beehive and curled hairstyles, high arched eyebrows and plump lips are present. She wears high stiletto heels true to the period.

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Her hair and makeup is immaculate.

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Stiletto heels. Not sure if you could see them but the seam lines on the stockings are a nice touch.

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These pointy sunglasses are also very accurate.

Overall I’d say that In the Mood for Love has very accurate costumes. As to whether they’re appropriate for the plot, I don’t really know cause I haven’t watched the full movie (I probably should). I like that beside the accuracy, all the cheongsam worn by Maggie Cheung are also very beautiful and well made, making it an aesthetic viewing experience. I’d rate the costuming in this movie 9/10.

Lust, Caution (2007) 色，戒

Lust, Caution is a 2007 erotic espionage period film directed by Ang Lee, based on the 1979 novella by Eileen Chang. The story is set in Hong Kong in 1938 and in Shanghai in 1942, when it was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army and ruled by the puppet government led by Wang Jingwei. It depicts a group of Chinese university students from The University of Hong Kong who plot to assassinate a high-ranking special agent and recruiter working for the puppet government, by using one of their group, an attractive young woman, to lure him into a honey trap. (copy and pasted from Wikipedia) So for this movie we’re looking at the late 30s and early 40s cheongsam styles. The costume designer here is Lai Pan.

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Protagonist played by Tang Wei in an early 40s cheongsam.

In the late 30s, the cheongsam was still floor length and flowy, but the design has become less extravagant than early 30s styles. In the 40s, the length shortened to knee length. The collar dropped in height and was closed by one or two buttons (pankou in this era). Cheongsam were either short or cap sleeved, and the slits became lower. Unlike cheongsam of the 1950s and 60s portrayed in The World of Suzie Wong and In the Mood for Love, 30s and 40s cheongsam did not use Western tailoring techniques i.e. darts, so they were only loosely form fitting. Common fabrics used were cotton, rayon, silk or polyester. Print patterns were geometric, plaid or floral. Unicolor cheongsam were common too. The front and side closure was still closed by pankou, one or two at the collar, one or two at the placket and many more at the side depending on slit height. Piping was very popular in the late 30s and early 40s as both decoration and practical feature. All trimmings prior to the 1950s, piping included, went around the neck as well and that’s portrayed in this movie. Overall the cheongsam in this movie are pretty good but I found some questionable things with accessories. The plot also spans many years and the costumes represent a lot of character development, so I’ll go through the costumes by chronological order. 

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Collage of scenes from when the protagonist was younger and a student. The blue color is perhaps a reference to Indanthrene fabrics, which were very popular among students and usually came in a shade of dark blue. The low collar, longer sleeves and loose fitting silhouette are all pretty accurate to late 1930s student clothing. Straight hair was acceptable on younger women, commonly in the length portrayed here and with a side part.

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Early 1930s Indanthrene fabric ad. I though Tang’s character looked a lot like the woman in this picture.

Later on as Tang’s character takes on a socialite persona to seduce the guy, she starts wearing more glamorous versions of the late 30s cheongsam. I like that compared to In the Mood for Love where Maggie Cheung just wears a bunch of different cheongsam because she can, the costumes in Lust, Caution serve characterization. At first Tang’s character stuck to the blue color as a remnant of her true personality, and every time she reunites with her fellow resistance people, she also wears simpler, more toned down cheongsam. She also changed to curled hairstyles to look more mature, most of which were accurate for the early 40s. However, the hairstyles in this movie sometimes look a bit disheveled and not perfectly smooth and shiny like you usually see in old Hollywood movies, but that’s just a minor aesthetic issue I guess.

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A cheongsam look from the movie. The short cap sleeve/borderline sleeveless look, the short collar, piping and simple pankou are all accurate to the period. The print looks legit, the pulled back curled hair is also pretty ok. There seems to be a seam at the shoulder, which shouldn’t be there, but not all 30s and 40s cheongsam followed the historical dressmaking method so it’s fine I guess.

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Early 40s pinup poster showing women in similar cheongsam and hairstyles.

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Scene showing some support characters who also look quite convincingly late 30s/early 40s. I like the variety in hairstyles and the insertion sleeves worn by two of the women. Also poodles hairstyle representation is great.

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Late 30s/early 40s pinup poster.

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40s pinup poster showing poodles hairstyle.

There is one scene toward the end where Tang’s character wears a Western style suit with a jabot scarf, I couldn’t find a good quality photo of it but I love that look and think it’s super fierce.

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She wears something like this but with a different hat.

However, this movie is not without problems. The jackets/coats worn by Tang’s character also don’t have the deciding late 30s/early 40s characteristics, such as a flared hem, fitted waist and wide shoulders. Maybe the outerwear was made based on vintage originals but the final result isn’t quite there, it’s especially unfortunate considering how a lot of passers by in the background have convincing 30s/40s outerwear but the main character doesn’t. 

What I really do not understand is their insistence on bucket hats?? Maybe they were trying to do the 30s tilted derby hat impression but their hats are way too deep with too narrow brims and also don’t have the same structure. It’s also way past the time for cloche hats. Tang’s character is not the only one to wear it, a lot of extras also don bucket hats. I’m like ???? Maybe it was a conscious decision to show that Chinese women didn’t regularly wear hats and only did so in rainy weather, but I mean, when it was raining you would use umbrellas, not bucket hats. In my opinion, there are a lot of other 30s and 40s hat styles that give way better espionage realness than bucket hats could ever dream of. Also, the lack of women’s gloves of any kind in this movie pains my heart. 30s and 40s gloves and hats were very cool so I lament the missed opportunities.

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Scene where Tang’s character is outside. This summarizes most of my qualms with the costuming in this movie. The jacket and hat look too modern. The shoes also look like they don’t have heels that curve inward enough?

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The bucket hat strikes again in this scene...

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1939 coats.

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Hats from 1938. 

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Butterick magazine from 1938. In my headcanon Tang wore hats and gloves like these.

Another minor problem I have is the makeup. Judging by the pointed eyebrows they were probably going for the 40s look more (although in China the plucked eyebrow trend lasted well into the 40s). The lipstick is not overdrawn and just stuck to Tang’s natural lip shape, but it would probably be better if the cupid’s bow area were overdrawn a little toward the outside to make the upper lip more rounded and heart shaped. Tang’s cupid bow is kind of pointed and not exactly true to that era.

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Closeup of Tang’s makeup.

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1940s makeup look.

Overall I’d say that the clothing in this movie is solid, it’s just the accessories that sometimes broke the suspension of disbelief (especially the fucking bucket hats). I’d rate the costuming in this movie a 7/10.

That’s it for this post, I’ll review Flowers of Shanghai and Raise the Red Lantern next time.