#John: I do not see definitely not

[alittlecrow]

Portrait study from the Solitary Cyclist.

I started this in July with the intention of finishing it before the Letters from Watson substack finished SOLI and that did Not happen.

I’ve been gradually chipping away at it ever since with it being about 20hrs just for the digital rendering. And it only took that long because I had to keep scrapping and restarting Holmes’ face and hand. All my love for Jeremy Brett, but his face is so specific that it was the greatest struggle to get his likeness any decent. And I still find it lacking. But what can you do.

I appreciate the learning experience this gave and it’s made me increase my efforts in digital painting in the weeks since I started it. And my complaints aside, I really did enjoy the process. Frustrating at times, but very rewarding. And I’m quite proud to have finished it instead of leaving it in my wips folder for eternity.

Anyways, bonus traditional sketch with too big Holmes Head and too small Watson Head and initial color comp.

[potato-lord-but-not]

When Arthur and John go through their nth divorce (because you know they would) (before getting back together, ofc), who gets who in the divorce? Or does it switch? (I'm talking about Arthur and his 3 boyfriends, lol)

Arthur definitely takes Oscar and John takes Noel, if everything works accordingly that is.

Sometimes they’ll both seek out comfort and help from Oscar (bc he’s a catholic priest he can’t help but hear em out) and be mad when that turns into marriage counseling. Or Noel will be like NOPE this is your stupid problem I’m taking Oscar and leaving for a bit, work this out or Else.

[wherevenusholdssomeofficespace]

I know the Phineas and Ferb Gravity Falls crossover is sorta popular right now, which fair. It's a lot of fun. BUT. We know that the kids are in elementary school (John P. Trystate), and that Dipper and Mabel are 13, so 7th or 8th graders. So Middle schoolers. Not the same age group.

But we DO know the middle school that John. P Trystate feeds into. Jefferson County. AND we know people who attend that middle school who just so happen to be friends with the Backyard Gang.

What I'm SAYING is that Dipper and Mabel would be classmates with Milo and his friends.

Dipper would ABSOLUTELY want Melissa's notes on Murphy's Law and would be all in on Chad and Mort's investigations into if Mr. Draco is actually a vampire or not. Mabel would probably be too invested in Melissa and Zack's relationship situation for either of their comfort. And probably Dakota and Cavendish's too. Also Zack was in a Lumberjack themed boy band, I bet his regional popularity extended to Gravity Falls.

[ratwithhands]

Some doodle requests of John Ward from insta. The ones submitted, in order, are:

Throws a bagel at him

Exorcising a demon child

Draw him pregnant

On all fours eating a pile of toes

I will perhaps post some other doodles of him because I'm getting back into Faith for the first time in a few years and I got some ideas while I was gone (namely one about a particular game over screen). Anyways see you guys later and sleep tight.

[izel-scribbles]

just finished malevolent relisten. needless to say the obsession has been rekindled tenfold its previous magnitude

[sammygender]

i just feel like looking at precanon dynamics going ‘oh the main reason sam and john clash is because they’re sooooo similar’ is ignoring actual canon and implication in favour of taking a specific comment about a specific arc of sam’s that dean makes and running with it.

for one it’s missing all the context which is. this isn’t two random people who clash for unknown reasons, this is a father and the son he’s actively abusing and neglecting. sam has a right to be angry!! it’d be more concerning if he Wasnt angry (a la dean)!!

also just what we do see in canon is like. totally the opposite. john’s always hated the fact that sam’s different from him… that sam wants different things, doesn’t want to hunt, a different life…. DEAN’S the one who tries to be identical to his father. whether he succeeds is another story (i don’t think he’s innately very like john but i do think he leans into the same coping mechanisms and behavioural patterns, wholly for the worse!) but john seems to mostly believe him. even going by the journal which like. i know people don’t take as canon but i like it <3. john thinks dean’s practically a mini him (ofc he Isn’t but) and that sam reminds him of mary. 🤷‍♂️ ofc you can still see sam and john as being similar in some ways. i can certainly see it and i’m sure i’ve written it. kids r often like their parents. but 1 that’s not, like, the Secret Reason they’ve always fought so badly and 2 sam is like john sometimes but he’s also like mary who’s like dean who’s also still like john. and sam and dean are often like each other. i already went on about this in my last post so i’m repeating myself but. reject the false binary inside your head where a sibling like. picks a parent and grows up to identically be them.

[themyscirah]

Complaining abt Suicide Squad yet again but the fact that they have Waller exposing the alien community to space racist attacks and talking abt how she got to her position through deceit and being a terrible person and stuff is just. Ahsfiwueh JUST SAY YOU DONT KNOW WALLER.

Anyways literally the 3rd mission of the Squad ever (and the first framed as smth Waller picked and not orders from above) was the Squad discrediting and stopping a rogue vigilante who was only arresting POC and funneling white people into white supremacy groups (of which he was the most prominent member) in SUICIDE SQUAD #4. and it's explicitly framed as this mission being personal for Waller that she's hiding from the government bc its illegal like. Guys. Please why are we having her incite (space bc comics) racist attacks now

Also the whole "Amanda got her position through deceit and being a terrible person" NO. she KEPT her position through being shitty and playing complicated political games!!! She wasn't always that way like there is a difference and it is IMPORTANT ppl PLEASEEEE. In Secret Origins #14 we learn Amanda's backstory and she used to be a normal, caring person! Like even after she entered into working in government and politics she wasn't automatically morally bankrupt like please people. She was originally given control of the Squad by Reagan (*sigh* 80s comics...) to distract and get rid of her because she was so successful at pushing progressive social policy in Congress. Acting like she's this static pillar of evil is such a waste of her character and so fucking uninteresting and disrespectful to her arc it drives me MAD.

Like I am NOT saying Waller is all sunshine and rainbows, she fucking SUCKS (said w love <3) but like there's a human being there. It's a progression, she has a character arc like please, DC, please!!! They've fucked up Waller so bad and made her so opaque and uninteresting she can't even be the protagonist of her own story for fucks sake!

Like I don't know how many times I have to scream it until DC hears me or remembers but WALLER IS THE MAIN CHARACTER OF SUICIDE SQUAD. ITS HER BOOK. yet right now she's a cutout to be used as the villain wherever the writers please. Even in her book we get none of her perspective really displayed, no exploration of her thoughts with any kind of understanding of the role she traditionally has played and was made to play in the story.

[homielander]

You called me "Squirt," silly. Remember why? [No.] Oh, Marty— okay. But you do remember, though, that I used to be left in there for hours, days on end. Completely alone, right? Only — I was never really alone, was I? Big Brother was always watching. You were always watching, weren't you, Marty? Huh? But... growing boys have certain... needs, shall we say.

THE BOYS 4.04 | Wisdom of the Ages

[natelia-aldelliz]

some quick ghost!Roach, don't look at the anatomy too much I'm fighting art block

[puppetmaster13u]

I was thinking something in-between where it almost depends on how many xenos are there? Like if a queen is outputting hundreds then there’s not exactly a lot of time to give extra biomass and whatever else to each individual drone or runner. But if it’s just a few then it’s easier to do so. Or it could be something similar to a queen ant’s first few eggs and workers where they’re there to protect said queen and future eggs. Just where they could evolve into the equivalent of majors and super majors over time to do so even better. Because if those first few are killed off the whole colony is screwed, while in larger colonies you can have hundreds sacrificing themselves and it not affect the colony much at all. Idk if I’m explaining my thought process well at all lol

Omg the idea of Damian having flashes of memories from his MomDadTemplateQueenQueenQueen is amazing. I like to think the memories from previous lineages are more blurred than their usual vision, like they can perfectly recall it later, but it’s not a perfect picture if that makes sense? They can recall an old picture but if the picture is old and damaged then that’s what they’ll recall if that makes sense at all lol. Gosh poor boy has memories of fighting but not the muscle memory to pull it off and keeps getting distracted by the instinctive urge to find Bruce. Actually would the league even be aware of what Bruce is at first? Like would their blood still be acidic in human form or can they turn that off…

Gosh Jason’s return would probably be so different. I wanna say he’s slightly mindless after being revived not from the brain damage (well that too) but also because he’s slightly overwhelmed by memories of previous xenomorphs that are suddenly just there in his mind and he can’t forget them no matter how much he tries. Honestly tempting for Jason to scoop up Damian instinctively because he’s just a lil baby (to him) who is Not in a safe area and every instinct for both of them are screaming to get back to the hive. Probably not helped by Jason recently evolving since the Crusher is the runner equivalent of a praetorian, which are literally the caste that guards the queen and the young so… Yeah he suddenly has so many instincts pumped up to a thousand. 

Pfft, Bruce is so sad Jason is too big for him to carry him easily but he’s also just so relieved and happy to see that he’s alive. A little concerned about the small child with him that looks a bit too much like him and like Talia but well, two babies! Bonus baby for the price of one returning child! He can have a breakdown later.

Ohohoho more fun fact time! 

There was a cut scene in the movies of people being turned into hive material, and another of a xenomorph eating a victim

There are literal rhino xenomorphs that came from alien rino aliens called rhynth, which was impervious to fire unlike the other xenomorphs and could only be killed by freezing

One of the theories about the back vents is that they’re intakers for the atmosphere

Unlike the few we see in movies, there are more than 250 types of xenomorphs

Did you know that xenomorphs do have a natural predator that are reptilian, immune to their acid blood, and are a natural contender with them

They keep each other’s numbers in check on Xenomorph Prime (the home planet) but have never been brought off the planet 

We’ve actually seen a proto-xenomorph from a triolobite that infected an engineer, called a deacon, which was created in turn from the chemical goo

Predalien praetorians and queens have a unique ability to create bellybursters, which results in 3 to 5 offspring per host 

In the movies an android recreated a xenomorph called the protomorph, despite being a descendent of a cousin species

Said cousin species are the neomorphs, which emerge not from the chest but from the back and come from spores, not eggs

While all xenos can spit acid from time to time, there is in fact a specialized caste literally called the spitter

There’s a runner equivalent that explodes after it dies, called a burster due to the cysts on its head

While the red xenomorphs were called and colored that, the artists and writers have gone on record to say that in world they are actually the same color as the other xenos, they just needed a way for the readers to tell the two factions apart

At one point an AI created a xenomorph species called the white hybrids, which were a combination of human, xeno, and predator 

It took a queen, humans and a pair of predators working together to defeat them all 

There was an individual xeno called the necromorph that adapted to a necrotic disease while in incubation and was able to rapidly infect others

There’s also space jockey (aka engineer) xenomorphs born from more modern-day facehuggers which swamps even praetorians in size, though only drones of these type have been shown so it’s unknown how big they can get

Xenomorphs can be further mutated by the black goo, with the most well known one being subject 7 who was leucistic and was notably more intelligent than the others in the lab

There has been an irradiated xenomorph before, so radiation doesn’t always kill xenomorphs and may simply survive

Irradiated xenomorphs have a white glow and the one we know of had a body that acted akin to liquid nitrogen, freezing whatever it touched

While all xenomorphs can swim well, there’s specialized aquatic xenomorphs as well, which when fully grown are a similar size to praetorians

There’s a cut albino xenomorph drone in the movie Aliens which was smaller and said to be using its tongue to shape and mold the hive material

Thinkin more on the Xeno au and about the family. And mostly about what everyone would be. Like of course they'd start out as chestburster-esque with more flesh-colored exoskeleton that'd be really soft like skin and mostly only a long tail. And then grow into other things, but there's several castes that even basic runners and drones can grow into.

Bruce: Drone -> Warrior -> Praetorian -> Queen (Winged)

Barbara: Drone -> Warrior -> Alpha Warrior

Dick: Runner -> Carrier

Jason: Runner -> Prowler -> Crusher

Cassandra: Runner -> Prowler

Stephanie: Drone -> Warrior -> Praetorian

Tim: Drone -> Warrior -> Praetorian

Harper: Drone -> Warrior

Duke: Drone -> Warrior -> Tusked

Cullen: Runner -> Aquatic

Damian: Drone -> Warrior

Carrie: Drone -> Spitter

Terry: Runner -> Prowler

Mathew: Runner -> Prowler

Random fun facts & rabmbles:

Tusked were, well, tusked xenomorphs specifically bred by yautja to act as forced attack dogs, and the ones we know who were released and escaped were accepted by a queen as her own

Alpha warriors are canon and are slightly larger than other warriors, can command other warriors, and in some cases are more intelligent too. They're almost between warrior and praetorian in ranking.

The praetorian caste is also known as royal guards, because that's what they are in most cases. They protect the nest and eggs and queen, and if the queen dies they may replace the queen.

Canonically there was a comic where Batman fought against a giant crocodile alien (no it didn't come from Killer Croc thankfully lol) that he defeated by bleeding it out until the floor collapsed into lava

The xenomorphs have had a civil war before on their home planet for the Royal Jelly, the black xenomorphs and red xenomorphs both fighting each other for their queen to become the next Queen Mother

Did you know there's further castes beyond the queen? A queen can become a Matriarch, then an Empress, and then a Queen Mother

Crushers are the equivalent of praetorians for the runner castes, and are canonically the most armored outside the queen castes themselves.

There's a theory about the spines on the xenomorphs' backs, where the longer they are the stronger the xenomorph, at least for basic castes. However there's another theory that this is an age thing. Neither is confirmed.

Did you know that xenomorphs have worked with others several different times when they're under threat, especially the queens or young.

Xenomorphs have Eidetic memory, and can even access memories from previous xenomorphs along their bloodline.

Normal xenomorphs can eventually become queens, but a xenomorph can be born as one from a Royal Facehugger, which unlike normal facehuggers have two embryo: a queen and a drone/runner to protect said queen

There have been exotic xenomorphs that are individuals such as the tusked or the winged queens, usually altered genetically or with an incredibly rare host (for example a winged queen has canonically come from a vampire in the comics before)

All xenomorphs are female, save for a single individual created using human dna and other genetic manipulation that was known as the king xenomorph.

Other genetic hybrids have been created as well, the most well known being the Newborn but there have been more balanced ones as well such as Eloise (a vat-grown android-xeno hybrid) which can have abilties of both species

Fun fact: A chestburster will not emerge in someone with leprosy, staying dormant, and other xenomorphs will not attack the people due to them carrying said chestburster.

Yautja hunting parties will hunt hybrids more enthusiastically than normal base xenomorphs for both the challenge and in some cases thinking they're abominations, such as a Predalien (in which case elders are usually the one to hunt them)

However they will also use xenomorphs as mounts, attack dogs, and other such things. For example one yautja rode a xeno-rex in ancient times as a hunting steed.

@phoenixcatch7 I summon thee mutual lol

[mofsblog]

Not to showcase my insane Oscar malevolent fan copium but hear me out: I find it interesting that we have Scratch/Lillith, someone who literally intimately knows Oscar's past and has seen his worst fears, while we still have the plot thread of his letter which hasn't been opened yet. WHICH MAKES ME WONDER IF WE'LL GET SOME?? CONFRONTATION ABOUT IT?? Like I'm just saying it'd be really really silly of Lillith (who probably has a good grasp of Oscars personality and mannerisms) to briefly shapeshift into him to fuck with Arthur and John :) yknow. For the sillies

[uss-genderprise]

ianto study sketch page

[elvisqueso]

the purpose of the film is actually to objectify this man

[the-alan-price-combo]

On this day, in 1964, the Animals performed "House of the Rising Sun" and "I'm Crying" on The Ed Sullivan Show - their first American television appearance!! 🌅🐾✨️

Thought it would be fun to make a glittery, celebratory piece for this special day! Alan certainly likes it... he likes anything that glitters, after all 👀✨️

(Glitter effects under the cut!)

[sga-owns-my-soul]

regarding the shipping (that you ship everything) (i'm a few days late, i know, sorry), do you have thoughts on Radek/Rodney? i'm mostly a monoshipper (even though i want to be a multishipper), so since i ship McShep i'm sorta just lowkey "maybe i'll possibly read a fic or two for them" with other ships including either of them, but even still, i fucking adore Radek/Rodney and i'm a bit annoyed with myself for not properly shipping them, so, thoughts? cute? boring? fun? =D

(John/Todd too. but i like Radek/Rodney better (because i adore Radek) (like pls David Nykl is so cute) (have you seen Arrow? Anatoly pls https://littlegirlinvisible.tumblr.com/post/159026461523 (warning for flashing gifs)) (also i love Anatoly's beard) (but to get back to Todd i have a huge weakness for Christopher Heyerdahl and if it hadn't been for him idk that i'd have liked John/Todd as much as i do. John having to look up at Todd *whines pathetically*))

be well and have fun! (sorry about the rambly mess and all the parentheses)

ps. have you seen Hannibal? my dash had something SGA-related and directly below that a fucked up Hannibal fanart and my brain was like "tumblr user sga owns my soul would appreciate that" and it made me curious. fucked up show, fucked up ship(s), absolutely amazing.

i did not forget about you i've just been rotating this in my brain while putting out the 15 fucking (metaphorical) fires in my life that all popped up at once lmao

SO i have. a Lot of thoughts about rodney and radek as a pairing and you're getting them ALL so buckle up bc this will probably be long

first of all, rodney and radek have SUCH an interesting dynamic and i love the way they go from bitter rivals to reading each others minds with the flick of a switch and it gives SUCH old married couple vibes but they also have such, like, idk almost brotherly vibes??? like they regularly insult and belittle and attack each other but they also are the only one each other trusts (in the science departments) and the only one they let themselves rely on in a crisis. just that kind of "i can say whatever i want but you if you so much as imply something negative i'll break your teeth" vibes ya know????

anyways i think if they were in a relationship of any sort it absolutely would be hate fucking, like they get SO MAD at each other and they're screaming and throwing things in the labs and everyone takes The Cue To Leave bc they know that exactly 8 minutes after the violence starts, the sex starts and no one is paid enough to be traumatized by that lmao but it works every time bc they both emerge from the lab two hours later with messy hair and clothes but also with a brilliant idea that'll fix their 6 current problems and probably another 3 that haven't come up yet omg they would literally be The Power Couple but if you mention dating or any sort of Official Relationship they will both shoot you

also john/todd makes me fucking insane and i'm going to forever scream about how they're LITERALLY DESTINED TO BE TOGETHER JFC THEY ARE THE BRIDGE BETWEEN HUMANS AND WRAITH AND I FULLY FUCKING BELIEVE THEY WOULD RULE THE GALAXY IF THEY GOT TOGETHER I LOVE JOHN/TODD SO MUCH FUCK anyways i'm normal about that ship

ps i have not seen hannibal but the fact that you saw something from another fandom and thought i would like it is the SWEETEST THING EVER and now i feel like i need to watch the show

[burnsopale]

Childermass & Segundus - it sounds very well

So one day the York Society of Magicians receives a new member, and Childermass is like okay, no big deal, those guys never do anything interesting anyway.

But then, right, then the new guy and one of the old guys writes to Mr Norrell and asks if they may have the pleasure of waiting on him sometime, and Mr Norrell is like "No" but Childermass is like "Actually yes" because he's intrigued, or because the cards have told him something is about to happen, or because Mr Norrell is years overdue to go to London and revive English magic and Childermass figures this might jostle him into doing something. We don't know what exactly happened, but it seems likely that it was Childermass who made the visit possible, because the idea of Mr Norrell ever wanting visitors is impossible to accept.

So these two theoretical magicians come to Hurtfew Abbey, and Childermass is in the library waiting for the visit to end and Norrell to show up and tell him what the men wanted, but instead, when the door opens, there they are, the visitors, having been invited to see the library and what the fuck did they say to old Gilbert to make that happen?? Not that it matters, they're not gonna remember anything by the time they get home, the enchantments will see to that.

Mr Norrell introduces Childermass, and the new guy gives him a look like Childermass facinates him, but Childermass is used to that. He figures he'll just hang out until they leave.

Except the new guy, who is a dark, timid-looking little man named John Segundus, keeps looking around like he can sense the spells lighting the room, keeps looking out the window like he's not happy with the orientation of the walls, keeps blinking like the magic is making him a little dizzy. John Segundus is clearly magic sensitive. No one in the York Society is magic sensitive, Childermass knows that for a fact. This is suddenly intriguing.

So Childermass ends up keeping half an eye on Mr Segundus as he explores, until Mr Segundus notices, sensitive as he is, and their eyes meet. Childermass reads longing, need, delight and confusion on the man's face, but Childermass is without pity; by the time Mr Segundus gets home, he won't remember what he's seen. It doesn't matter; no one in the York Society ever did anything interesting anyway.

But then later, the letter from Dr Foxcastle comes, and Mr Norrell is Upset and Offended, and Childermass realises that the Revival is about to start at last. And because Mr Norrell is fearful and Childermass is pitiless, they send a lawyer with their demands.

Mr Robinson the lawyer returns to Hurtfew a little perplexed. Oh yes, they all signed, just like you said they would, every one of them ... except ... except one. Childermass is a little surprised to discover that the timid little man had a spine after all. Mr Norrell wants Mr Robinson to go back and demand the last signature, but Childermass says "Wait". And at this point, we do not know what he is thinking. Perhaps he simply thinks that they will need someone to write to London once the miracle has been done, and Mr Segundus is more likely to be amiable if he has not just been deprived of his calling. But then, Mr Honeyfoot, the other visitor, would definitely be happy to write, even though he WILL be deprived of that same calling. Perhaps, Childermass thinks that this is a strangely fateful twist, that the one member of the York Society who has an actual talent for magic is the one person who refused to give it up. Maybe he remembers a time when he himself was full of longing for magic, when he could sense it all around him but was unable to grasp it, when he too would get dizzy in Mr Norrell's library. He may not feel pity, but he can be intrigued. He convinces Mr Norrell to let Mr Segundus be.

Childermass laughs inside when John Segundus doesn't recognise him outside the cathedral, but then startles when the man almost recalls after all. He is not supposed to be able to break the enchantment. Thankfully, the moment passes, and after the magic is done, Mr Segundus turns out to be exactly as easy to manipulate as Childermass thought he would be. The polite ones are easy, especially when they are full of need and longing, and keep looking at Childermass like he has the answers they are searching for. Maybe Childermass uses a little bit of magic to persuade the man to write to London, or maybe he just smiles, and waits, and lets John Segundus come to him of his own accord.

Childermass returns to Hurtfew Abbey and says to his master "Go to London. Go now." and because Childermass knows about these things, they go.

And nine years pass in London.

But occasionally during those nine years, Childermass turns his attention to York, to see what timid little John Segundus is up to. Mostly it's not much.

Until Jonathan Strange happens. That he happens at all is rather extraordinary, but how interesting that he should come to seek Mr Norrell on the advice of John Segundus? For sure there are many people with an affinity for magic in England, but how many of them are magicians? Too few, thinks Childermass. How likely is it that two of them should meet at random? He wonders if this is another fated twist.

So he continues to keep half an eye on York, just in case Mr Segundus should discover how to actually grasp the magic that surrounds him. But when Strange returns from the war in Spain, his conversation tells Childermass that even with the learning, even with actual spells to hand, their timid little man in York cannot make the magic work.

John Segundus begins taking on pupils. Childermass keeps it from Mr Norrell. Childermass has been the instrument of many a theoretical magician's destruction, Childermass reads the hearts of men and feels no pity for them, and yet Childermass keeps John Segundus hidden from Mr Norrell. Maybe, just maybe, John Childermass is beginning to feel a little bit of pity after all. He was once the one longing to master the powers that often overpowered him. He too loves magic so much, enough to endure servitude and secrecy to be near it.

But then John Segundus wants to start a school. Well, if he is going to be that silly, then Childermass cannot help him. Mr Norrell finds out, Mr Norrell panics, and he dispatches Childermass to York to put a stop to this evil plan. Business as usual in other words.

Childermass sits quite comfortably on the steps of Starecross when John Segundus comes home. Childermass delivers his message.

"You know me, Sir," he says, completely forgetting that while he has always had half an eye on John Segundus, John Segundus has not seen Childermass for nine years. Maybe, just maybe, Childermass is a little embarrassed at his mistake. But the errand is completed, and Mr Segundus is easy to manipulate, because he is so very gentle and polite.

Childermass may or may not have noticed that he has been manipulated in turn, because he, who has no pity for any man, lets Mr Segundus know that he regrets that the school cannot be, and he is willing to do what he can to keep Mr Segundus' dream from failing entirely. Although of course, he knows that a regular school is not at all the same as a school of magic.

Childermass knows what it's like to long, but he has found, if not the answers to his questions, then at least the tools by which to hunt them down. He can do the magic.

Then Mr Strange and Mr Norrell quarrel.

And then Lady Pole tries to shoot Mr Norrel. The lady walks with one foot in Faerie and one in London, and for a while, so does Childermass. Something is not right with the lady, but Mr Norrell won't tell him what magic he employed to bring her back from the dead. She'll be sent away somewhere where Childermass will have no chance to discover the truth. Unless of course he decides where she goes. Perhaps for instance to one whom Childermass knows will feel the Faerie winds blowing about the lady, someone who will be able to carry on the search for the truth, whether he knows that he's doing Childermass' work or not. Mr Segundus is easy to manipulate.

Childermass recommends to Sir Walter that he send his wife to Starecross in Yorkshire. How fortuitous that the master of that hall has just decided to open a madhouse there. Surely the visions that gave him the idea were entirely coincidental.

Mr Norrell and Childermass quarrel.

Jonathan Strange Returns magic to England. The Raven King returns to England and rewrites his book.

Mr Norrell and Mr Strange disappear into Faerie.

Suddenly, Childermass is the most experienced magician in England. No one has read as much, has practiced as much, or knows the spells he knows.

But he thinks that there is one man who will not be far behind him in achieving similar results. And maybe Childermass wonders sometimes if it was not all meant to be this way, that it was fate, that he himself was meant to come out on the other side as a student of the two great modern magicians of the age, and that he was meant to bring with him, sheltered under his wing, a dark, timid little man with an extraordinary sensitivity to magic. The books may be gone, but through his instruments, the Raven King has made sure that the new generation of magicians are both capable of and eager to read the magic written on the sky. It will take sensitive men, full of longing, and isn't it fortuitous then, that all those years ago, in the library at Hurtfew Abbey, Childermass recognised another like himself in John Segundus, and decided to keep half an eye on him.