#Journey to the West: Kingdom of Women

[the-monkey-ruler]

The Monkey King 3: The Kingdom of Women (2018) 西遊記女兒國

Director: Cheng Baorui Screenwriter: Wen Ning Starring: Aaron Kwok / Feng Shaofeng / Zhao Liying / Xiao Shenyang / Luo Ziyi / Lin Chiling / Gigi Leung / Liu Tao / Sun Yihan / Yuan Qiongdan / Pan Binlong / Chen Yali / Shi Shi Genre: Comedy / Romance / Fantasy Country/Region of Production: Mainland China/Hong Kong, China Language: Mandarin Chinese Date: 2018-02-16 (Mainland China) Duration: 116 minutes Also known as: Journey to the West: Kingdom of Women / Journey to the West: Kingdom of Women / The Monkey King 3: Kingdom of Women / 西游记·女儿国 IMDb: tt6466464 Type: Retelling

Summary:

Sun Wukong (Aaron Kwok), Tang Sanzang (Feng Shaofeng), Zhu Bajie (Xiaoshenyang) and Sha Wujing (Him Law) – inadvertently enter the Womanland of Western Liang because they angered the river god, they accidentally entered the female realm of Xiliang, a nation populated by women raised to believe that men are fatally deceptive in matters of the heart. After breaking into it, everyone discovered that there were only women in this country, and there had been no men here since the founding of the country. Moreover, the country has an ancestral motto that regards men as natural enemies. Love nevertheless blossoms between Tang Sanzang and the Womanland's young queen (Zhao Liying), even though her royal preceptor (Gigi Leung) is hell-bent on sentencing the men to death. As Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing search for a way out of this nation surrounded by a vast magical net, it soon transpires, conveniently, that romantic love is the only key to opening the gate.

There is also a prophecy in the classics, indicating that one day, a monk from the East will break into it with a monkey, a pig, and a little blue man and the day they arrive is when the Daughter Kingdom will be destroyed.

Source: https://chinesemov.com/2018/The-Monkey-King-3

Link: https://sflix.to/watch-movie/free-the-monkey-king-3-hd-16532.2519338

[dadodo]

some of the gorgeous costumes from the 1986 Journey to the West series

[ilikedetectives]

.

[jianghuchild]

赵英俊让我看懂了女儿国 | How Zhao Yingjun Made The Kingdom of Women Make Sense

不知怎的，突然想起赵英俊的那首《女儿国》。这两天反复听，歌词也扒着反复琢磨。朋友们，我悟了！女儿国这个单元，我从小到大没看懂，但赵英俊让我看懂了。我以为的一厢情愿，原来是心意相通；我以为的她爱他逃，原来是惺惺相惜却不得不斩的一个“情”字。所以赵英俊是怎么用一首歌来重塑了我对女儿国、甚至对唐僧的认知呢？且待我娓娓道来。

（事先说好了，笔者从小长在国外，以下只是自己一些拙见，有哪些分析不对的欢迎交流。中文水平马马虎虎，不许欺负我哟～）

1）歌曲结构

这首歌给我个什么感觉呢，就是唐僧和女儿国国王在对唱，但好像又没有完全在对唱。整首哥没有传统的主歌、副歌，而是一男一女各唱各的。他们歌词不变，没有什么递进，只是一遍又一遍的诉说自己的困惑。这种结构不由让我产生一种很微妙的感觉，仿佛两人都各自困在一个不可逃离的循环当中。

赵英俊在《女儿国》里也很爱用对句，就是相声里常说的“天对地、雨对风”。列入：

任来世枯��成灰 换今生与你相随

来世对今生、成灰对相随。（歌里还有更多的对句，到唐僧段挑几句细品一下。）这种细微的对照再加上整体的男女对唱，就让整首歌从大到小都散发着两个字：平行。唐僧与女儿国国王好像是平等而相互欣赏的知己，又像两条傍走却永不交集的河流。

男女声各自总共唱三遍，而只有最后一遍是一起唱。但即便一起唱也是交叉、平行，全程没有传统意义上的合唱。这也应证了他们即便心里有着对方，却奈何永远跨不过那道鸿沟。他注定要继续西行，而她也必须做她女儿国的国王。

2）女儿国国王的词

虽然歌里唐僧先唱，但我觉得还是先解读女生的歌词试试吧。倒不是说女儿国国王唱的这段没有深度，但感觉可能比较容易懂。要说女声这一段，最突出的应该就是那几句“x什么... ...”

说什么王权富贵 怕什么戒律清规 ... ... 念什么善恶慈悲 等什么望穿秋水

咱要往细了抠，光是每一句前面的动词都挺讲究的。两句点唐僧的话，一个用“怕”，一个用“念”。就好像她在说：或是你根本就不想西行，而是在害怕你那如来佛。你念的佛经，能渡世人，可渡不了你我。而前后两句又好似在说自己：我一身的王权富贵，到头来不还是困在这里苦等？与其等待望穿秋水的那一天，何不此时此刻，在一起？这也正映照了“远走高飞”和“换今生与你相随”那两句话。管他来时怎么样，我现在就要在一起。

（插句题外话，我估摸着这可以算chiastic structure吧？）

其实女儿国国王从来不是我想象中的强取豪夺。她早就看清自己的心，更看懂唐僧的情。两人也成了完美的对照：唐僧一心望成佛、渡世人，而国王甘愿放下已有的权利和来世的德行，追求当下的情欲。唐僧谨慎念佛，国王大胆追爱。二人没有对错，也注定不能长久。

3）唐僧的词

要说最让我对女儿国这个故事改观的词，那就是唐僧唱的这一段了。在我的脑海里，一直都是女儿国国王硬要留住唐僧，唐僧不情不愿。她好像跟那些想吃唐僧肉的妖魔鬼怪没什么区别，只是八十一难中的一难罢了。

世上安得两全法 不负如来不负卿

歌一开头就袒露了唐僧的纠结——再深一层，是不是也能读出一丝唐僧在心里把爱人和如来看得一样重的感觉？

反省凡心损梵行 从来如此莫聪明

这句可太厉害了。三重谐音看似没深度，其实是点破唐僧感情的关键。我得反省自己啊，我这肉体凡胎做不到放下七情六欲，达不到所谓的梵行，Brahmacharya。歌词通过谐音达成反差，刨开了唐僧即为凡人又为修行着的两难。第二句更是让这个人物彻底落地：唐僧又如何？不还是和你我一样？世上本就如此，金蝉转世也改变不了。

既生苦难我西行 何生红颜你倾城？ 如何抹去你身影？ 如同忘却我姓名

最后这四句真的是妙啊，可谓整首歌的核心。前两句引用了经典名言“既生瑜，何生亮”，也变相把国王与唐僧放在平等的台面上。这里的对句多少又有点古诗词的韵律——苦难对红颜、西行对倾城、抹去对忘却、身影对姓名。他们不是追求者与被追求者，而是可以面对面，势均力敌的知己。

唐僧的最后一句也狠狠的呼应了国王的最后一句：她愿今生相随，而他永世难忘。他们两个一样重情，只不过理念不同，对情的处理方式也不同。

一些总结

突然想到马东在《喜人奇妙夜》上说的一句话：“真正的经典就是经得起一遍又一遍的改编。”当时他点评的是四士同堂的sketch《八十一难》。在小品的最后，在为了帮沙僧而没能取到真经后，三藏道：“终一生渡世人，和终一世渡一人，为师觉得是一样的。”也正是这一句让整个作品升华。

以前我总觉得唐僧在西游记里是最没用的主角，不会打妖精还乱跑，动不动还爱念紧箍咒。可随着这些改编，也随着自己慢慢长大，我好像重新认识他了。他不是不懂情爱，而是为了求佛舍弃了自己的凡心。

顺便引用《鹤唳华亭》里的一句话：“相濡以沫，是佳事；相忘于江湖，是幸事”。可能唐僧也是这么想的吧。毕竟，世界上又有几个齐天大圣呢？大多数不还是在世间徘徊、自问“世上安得两全法”的我们吗？

其实自从听了《大王叫我来巡山》我就知道，赵英俊是个妙人。说起来又好笑又感伤，我这个人不怎么上微博，有一天却莫名其妙打开了页面，正好看到赵英俊当天去世的消息。赵英俊生前被质疑写口水歌，他却说，能让大家共鸣的口水歌才最难写，也是他追求的。我一直以为《女儿国》是首老歌，类似《天竺少女》一样的86版插曲。他在2017年写了一首放在86版西游记里都不违和的歌，句句是精华，更是以一己之力颠覆了我对女儿国和唐三藏的认知。

最后，赵英俊说他从小就喜欢下雨，在某个傍晚狂风暴雨，便是他来看咱们了。那就在下一个雨天，跟他唱一首口水歌吧。

[novelcain]

Food for thought (again) :

(I was the Single Horned Rhinoceros guy btw)

Anyways, remember how after the pregnancy river arc they enter the kingdom of women? How do you think all those ladies would react to the reader being the only woman in the group? (assuming the reader is a woman)

If they already know who she is, do you think they’d all look up to the reader or something?

Crowd Of Women : *cheering and complimenting*

Reader : Well it’s about TIME I GOT APPRECIATED!

(lol hi again Single Horned Rhinoceros guy)

tbh i feel like their reaction to reader wouldn't be much with how much their attentions would be on the men since they've never seen men before. if anything, in regards to being treated differently there, reader would just be happy to find that she's finally treated as a person an equal in a ancient china.

[saphirafoxgirlspost1]

(Open Rp) "Curse Of The Monkey King"

Long time Ago In the lovely Neighorhood, Saphira had Been Married To a Husband Name "Daniel Jamerson Rooster" for Three years but Alas, Her Marriage was Nothing but a Huge sham until She came Home from Shopping and Found him making Love with another woman. Saphira's Face is all In rage and began to Yelled at him and said,

Saphira: "Daniel… Jamerson.. Rooster! What in the Name Of Smiling devil do you think your Doing and Who is she!?"

She asked Pointed at the other woman Who is been on topped by Daniel, Then Daniel Stutter and said,

Daniel: " S-s-s-saphira it's Not what it looks like! She means nothing to me I swear! I promise I'll Stop Cheating ok!?"

Saphira: "Ugh! How many Chances Do you want me to give!? I gave you Three Chances Daniel, THREE! How Many Women You've been Sleeping this whole time in Three Years of our marriage!?"

Daniel: " Ok ok! I confess, I slept with 68 Women behind your back and all of them are The neighbors Wives"

Saph: "I knew it! I Knew Something Is going on here, You see I Hired my Private Investigators To Follow you and see how many women you've been Sleeping with and screwing around with Our Neighbors Wives! Ugh! Your a Fucking Pig Daniel!"

Daniel: "Please saphira, Please I've beg of you! I don't want my Father to find out about this!"

Daniel begged and Begged For Saphira's Mercy but She was Having none of it and she said,

Saphira: "Thats Enough Daniel! How Could you?! For Three years I've been Nothing but a Good Woman of your life and Now You threw it away with some 68 Hussies and I gave you too many chances, Thats it! We are getting a Divorce! I will not Marry to a Man who is Cheating on me with 68 Other Women! So! I want you and that hussy OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

When She said that, Daniel Cried and begged But Saphira Is Having None of it, She Threw him and His Mistress out. She Sign the Divorce papers and Made Daniel Sign it With His Father who is Now knew what His Idiot Son has Done. Then Saphira Sued 68 of Neighbors wives For alimony along with Daniel who is also Going to pay Alimony To Saphira For Infidelity, After All That Saphira Decided to Moved Out From the Neighborhood of Adultery into a Big Nice Luxurious and Very Spacious Manor on the Hill in a Decent Neighborhood. Its been nine Months Since The Divorce, Her Friends was Worried about her and They Try to Persuaded Saphira to Find Someone Better than Her Ex-husband, So saphira Decided to try a blind date.. Sadly it never go So well after 40 failing dates and rejections.. after the 41st failed Blind date, She'd watched The Movie called "Journey to the west" until she has eyes On Sun wukong aka the Monkey king, But then there was Saphira's Classmate who is Now watching her through the window. And His name is (Your Muse name here) And He knew Saphira Since College and already heard that She Divorced Daniel, he knew his Plan is Fullfilled because He's the one Who Brought the Evidence to the Private investigator as well.. But Now He Notice that Saphira has eyes on sun wukong, Her heart is beating when she sees The Monkey King Fought demons So brave.. Then She sighs In Love looking at the Monkey king, Thinking that he is So handsome, So brave, Confident, Charming, Fierce, and Most of All He has a Pure heart and a sharp mind. Saphira Smiles as her eyes turns into heartshape and she said," If Only he was so Real~ He would Swept My off of my Feet and Take Me to His kingdom and Let me Be His Beloved Queen." She Sighs in Love And then She has the Idea and said," You know what? I decided to make a grand Oriental Ball!" She gasp excitedly When she knows what to do, So She decided to Invited To Everyone in a Good Decent neighborhood with a Golden invitation Including Saphira's Good Classmate of hers and the Invitation was told that The Grand oriental Ball is Coming within full moon which is Tomorrow night, So (Your Muse name here) Began to head home and try to Find something in the attic but Nothing is there until Next Night, her Spacious Manor is Decorated with Chinese and Japanese Decorations and the Food is Exotic and wonderful..

Saphira who is Now wearing Her Royal Dress and Sees Others Dressing up In Kimonos and ghis and Some Dressed up as Mythical Character and all. Meanwhile (Your muse name here) Found something Amazing, He Opens the Chinese Closet and saw The armor of the great Sage Equal to heaven and His trusty Staff called "Jingu bang", He Found out that His Grandfather gave Him that gift and was told that it Belongs to the Monkey king himself.. Then he Found the Scroll of the monkey king, He Opens the Scroll and began to read the Story Of How the Monkey king was Sealed away By a Jealous God Name "Sun Hai" The Brother of The jade emperor Who is a Tyrant and went mad with power but he was Jealous of Monkey Kings ambition and so he began to Curse and Seal Him up with an enchanted Scroll and Any Reader who read this Scroll Shall be Cursed and the Monkey King Will Take Over Someones Body Until The great Sage Gets True loves Kiss To make him Permanent Forever But the Only Thing The Monkey king transform the reader into Himself.. Is by the golden Moon, Meanwhile Saphira announce that the grand ball begin as She Opens the Cage where Her pet Golden Dragon name Shen long began to Fly To the Moon and landed it, and turning the Moon into Gold and then (Your muse name here) Began to transform into the monkey King himself, it turns from screaming into laughing. He is back and then He Notice the Golden Invitation To the ball as he made a smirk, Meanwhile Saphira Was sitting on the throne While Her 2 Jade Tiger Sitting side by side next to her watching them Dancing gracefully at the ball Until Everyone gasp and made a Path and there Saphira saw was none other than The Monkey king, Her eyes is Widen and then The Monkey king said….

[fuckyeahchinesefashion]

Beauties in 1986 chinese drama Journey to the West西游记

yutujing玉兔精 jade rabbit spirit

zhizhujing蜘蛛精 spider spirit

chang'e嫦娥 moon goddess

jin bi bai mao shu jing金鼻白毛鼠精 Golden nosed white haired mouse spirit

nv er guo guo wang女儿国国王 The Queen of Women's Kingdom 

[elancholia]

In Early Modern China's nearest attempt at writing a Rick and Morty episode, the lads visit an all-female kingdom and get boypreggers by guzzling from the wrong stream. Luckily,

I see we're leaving nothing to chance here.

Pilgrim Sun suggests that the births, if unaverted, will take place via a painful tearing-open of the armpit, of all places. Journey to the West Research compares the chapter to an episode from the Mahabharata (in which a king mistakenly drinks holy water intended to give his wife a son) and the choice of birth canal to stories of the legendary sages tearing open their mothers on the way out. Compare and contrast.

Oddly, it's sort of unclear why Western Liang is like this. It doesn't seem like a matter of policy, they're not Amazons and they're practically exhilarated to lay eyes upon our boys. Yes, it's a "male-undoing mountain", but there's no other indication that either the stream itself or the women are sex-selective.

As far as I can tell, this place exists so that Tripitaka can refuse to have sex with the most desperate queen alive — certainly a betrayal of his cicada namesake, but a chance to demonstrate his extreme commitment to virtuous celibacy and family-renunciation while playing his general meekness for laughs.

All that notwithstanding, I think the kingdom and its inhabitants are treated with remarkable respect. Yes, yes, they're desperate for the yang, clearly, but it's also a normal, functioning kingdom of impressive wealth. It has women officials who fulfill all the usual functions of a Sinosphere state, and their capacity to do so is not really commented upon or made ridiculous, at least not in any way that's legible to me. It's just that their entire society temporarily reorganizes itself around getting their superlatively beautiful queen into bed with a shy, celibate monk who needs and wants nothing more than to have his passport* stamped. They want him to stay, marry, and be king. He is defined by compulsive journeying and rejection of his role as paterfamilias. Classic comedy. Compared to the Amazon mythos or Lysistrata, the whole thing actually comes across as less pathological.

*Really, it's a travel rescript — a letter presented to the local government and signed to guarantee safe passage. Securing the travel rescript is a convenient device to force the characters to interact with the weird politics of the kingdoms they pass through.

Note also that abortion is presented as an uncomplicated and uncontroversial good, but that's probably the non-Abrahamic default.

Obvious commentary on the ongoing FDA abortifacient controversy.

Fruit baskets!

Always the bloody Daoists

Fruit baskets

After their plan to get the passport signed and leave the bride at the altar flubs, Tripitaka is promptly and perhaps serendipitous kidnapped by an unrelated scorpion, but his commitment to semen retention is, once again, simply too powerful, though she tempts him with remarkable persistence and buns filled with human meat. (She ties him up at one point; I'm sure there's fanfic of these two.) Ms. Scorpion does, however, accomplish the nigh-unprecedented feat of landing blows on both Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie in a fair fight, #feminism, before being destroyed by the Chinese equivalent of the constellation Orion (here appearing as a very large chicken).

I'm not sure what we learned from this one and I certainly don't have anything intelligent to add, but damned if it isn't funny.

[quitealotofsodapop]

I’m loving your courtnapping posts and lore. Question tho, who is Sai Tai Sui and what’s his story in JTTW and your aus? Trying to remember if you already made a post but just can’t find it.

tw in advance for discussion of SA.

Sai Tai Sui aka "Jupiter's Rival" is the villain of the Scarlet-Purple Kingdom Arc.

Roughly; Chapters 68-71 in the unabridged version of Journey to the West. Just before the Spider Demons arc.

Sai Tai Sui fell in lust with the King's wife "Lady of the Golden-Sage Palace", and kidnapped her while her and the king were enjoying the Dragon Boat Festival. The King the fell terribly ill/almost comatose from grief for the next three years.

Luckily, Dr Sun Wukong answered the call for an experienced doctor to cure the king! Well more specifically he tricked Zhu Bajie into answering it to punish him for falling asleep when he was supposed to be grocery shopping. Wukong then offers to take the heat off Bajie and treat the King instead.

Wukong spends literally the next whole chapter nerding out about traditional Chinese medical procedures and treatments.

Wukong accurately identifies that the King's illness was from emotional distress... and constipation. He goofs on the palace retainers a bit to hide what his medicine actually is (both out cunning and cus they were keeping Tripitaka hostage as collateral in case the monkey accidentally killed the king through medical malpractice).

The medicine gives the King a colon clean-out big enough to snap him out of his depression, and get him able to recount what happened the night his wife got courtnapped.

The only reason Sai Tai Sui hadn't forced himself upon the stolen Queen by that point was because a Daoist Immortal named Zhang Ziyang saw her being kidnapped, and sneaked her a garment that would make any physical contact upon her extremely painful.

So what does the celestial horn-dog do now that he can't SA his target of affection?

Over the next three years Sai Tai Sui extorts the kingdom to give him women and girls under the guise of providing servants for the Queen. The text sort of tip-toes what he actually does to the women he steals; but one of his demon lackeys mutters that the stolen women are "substitutes" for the Queen. And that the women are "driven to death" by the abuse they suffer.

Bruh.

Cut to Wukong sneaking in disguised as a minion to offer a rescue to the Queen. But the Queen warns him that Sai Tai Sui possesses weaponized bells called Purple-Gold Bells; that with a single shake they can release poison, fire, and sand able to harm even Wukong of all people.

We know she ain't lying cus when Wukong tries to swap out the bell with fakes the first time - he accidentally activates them, hurting him and alerting Sai Tai Sui to his presence.

Wukong is forced to disguise himself as one of the unfortunate servant girls as part of Rescue Plan B. Curiously, the servants/slaves in the fiend's compound include fox and deer demons, making it likely that Sai Tai Sui's crimes extend beyond what he's done to humans.

Wukong forms a plan with the Queen to seduce Sai Tai Sui into dropping his guard so Wukong can steal the real bells. Wukong even blasts off a bunch of tiny hair clones to act as fleas and lice to force Sai Tai Sui to take a bath.

Sai Tai Sui gives the disguised Wukong ("Spring Grace/Beauty) the real bells to clean (note: he be creeping on him too). But the horndog is so embarrassed by the sudden infestation of lice that he's not in the mood for pushing his luck with the Queen and instead goes to "retire with a palace maiden".

Note: In some adaptations (like the 1999/2000s cartoon) Wukong disguises himself as the Queen/the unfortunate palace maiden and does the seducing himself, albeit while wearing the same "don't fcking touch me"-dress as a precaution.

Wukong then goes outside to call Sai Tai Sui for a one-on-one fight.

When the fiend's fails to activate the fake bells' powers, Wukong pulls out the real ones, and jokes "Well clearly your male bells fail to preform in front of my female ones." (it's a erectile dysfunction joke)

Guanyin shows up, subdues Sai Tai Sui with the real Purple-Gold Bells (like a dog collar), and explains the Lore of what went down.

Lore:

Turns out that when the King of Scaret-Purple Kingdom was a young man, he shot and killed two peachicks while hunting. The peachick's mom? Oh you know, Mahāmāyūrī. The same primordial peacock-phoenix who's the Buddha's mom?

So yeah, Mahāmāyūrī (Peng's sister btw) cursed the then-Prince to be separated from his true love, as he'd separated her from her children. Guanyin was witness to this sentence, as was her current steed; The Golden Haired Hou. The unicorn-wolf decided "why the heck not?" and steal the future king's love for himself - breaking through his chain leash when the watch-disciple in charge was asleep.

Golden Haired Hou = Sai Tai Sui.

In other words he's another Celestial animal giving demons a bad name.

End of Lore.

Wukong: "I'm gonna kill this guy." Guanyin: "No. No killing." Wukong: "Seriously!?" Guanyin: "Killing him would be merciful. I'm going to strap his own weapon to his body and trap him in the South Sea so that he can't walk the mortal plane ever again. If he ever defies this sentence, then you can kill him" Wukong: "Ok! That punishment is more like it!"

Sai Tai Sui is a curious case in that; unlikely many threats faced by the PIlgrims, he did not try to hide his actions behind "Well you got 80-something trials to face, and I was available" rather he was a genuinely evil creature who exploited Mahāmāyūrī's sentence to chase his dark desires. And unlike the earlier Kui Mulang - who courtnapped out of genuine, misguided love for a woman who did not remember her past life with him - Sai Tai Sui was motivated by sexual sadism.

Also though Guanyin doesn't want their steed killed, they do not forgive Sai Tai Sui - instead condemning him to an eternal imprisonment in the South Seas, unable to leave less he invokes a bounty on his head from all the Buddhist and Taoist pantheon.

You know it bad when the embodiment of Mercy and Forgiveness is like;

It's really dark story arc in that it deals with some nasty stuff done to women. Stuff that Wukong himself is in danger of since Sai Tai Sui has powers exceeding his, and has no qualms SA-ing his servants/captives.

You can imagine why Sai Tai Sui isn't explored in adaptations much. Amongst all the murder, monk-eating, and treasons; this guy takes it a step farther.

Also rare occurrence; Tripitaka didn't get kidnapped this time. Though considering what Sai Tai Sui does to his captives that's probably for the best.

I'm using the Yu and Jenner translations of Jttw as reference, with help from this cool Chapter-by-Chapter Summary of Jttw to break down the info.

[nanshe-of-nina]

Women’s History Meme || Mistresses (4/10) ↬ Nest ferch Rhys (c. 1085 – c. 1136)

She was the daughter of one king and the lover of another; the matriarch of a powerful dynasty and the cause of conflict and war. While most of her countrywomen lived out their lives in quiet obscurity, Nest, Princess of Dyfed, became a legend. She lived through one of the most exciting and dynamic periods of Welsh and English history, and was herself an influence upon its events. Her life provides a rare opportunity to explore the role of women in early Wales and the impact upon it of the Norman invaders. She was born into an extraordinary time. Her father, Rhys ap Tewdwr, was king of Deheubarth, the kingdom which extended over south-west Wales, and enjoyed considerable influence throughout all Wales. Yet he had very nearly not become king at all, and throughout his reign he had the strange distinction of being the only king in Wales to hold his kingdom undisturbed by the new neighbours who were occupying England. He had become king in the early years of the Norman Conquest of England, and survived through diplomacy and the policy of William the Conqueror, but on the death of William in 1087, Norman policy changed. The new king of England, William Rufus, needed to secure the loyalty of his aristocracy with land grants and promises of booty. Casting aside the treaty forged by Rhys and his father, he allowed his barons to invade the whole of Wales. Nest, perhaps still a young child, lost her father in battle. Her brother, Gruffudd, fled into exile in Ireland, while Nest fell into the hands of the new lords of south Wales. Up to this point, she must have expected her life to follow the usual pattern for Welsh women of royal blood – marriage to an ally of her father, and a life travelling with her husband’s entourage and bearing his children. The fall of Rhys changed all of this. Her captors, the earl of Shrewsbury and his son, Arnulf, the new earl of Pembroke, probably sent her into their English lands to be raised under their power. It was a journey that would determine the rest of her life. — Princess Nest of Wales: Seductress of the English by Kari Maund

[pompomqt]

Journey to the West Chapter 54

In this chapter of Journey to the West with @journeythroughjourneytothewest we get to attend a beautiful wedding! So let's get into it shall we?

So the pilgrims are traveling along until they finally hear the sounds of a bustling city. Figuring that this means they've finally arrived at the capital of the empire of women, so Tripitaka takes this chance to warn all of his disciples to be on their best behavior. *cough* Pigsy *cough*. However it would seem that the women of this city didn't receive the same warning for they are immediately swarmed by a mob of curious women who have never seen a man before. Luckily Pigsy's face is enough to scare most of them off, and the combined efforts of Sandy and Wukong are enough to make sure that the rest of them keep their distance.

Eventually they find their way to one of the city officials who tell them that visitors shouldn't enter the city gates without permission. She tells them to wait at the post-house while she goes to announce them to the throne so they can get their papers certified and be on their way. So the gang settles into the post house and have some tea while Monkey explains to the official for the record, on why they are here. Hearing this, the official also orders for some more food and drink to be brought to them, while she goes to talk to their ruler.

So the offical tells the queen, that Tang Sanzang, royal brother of the Tang emperor and his disciples are here to seek scriptures from the west and need to have their papers certified. Last night however the Queen had a rather auspicious dream, that she takes to mean that she should marry Tripitaka at once to consolidate her power and ensure her family line. The official says that, that sounds like a great idea, however his disciples are all rather scary looking. On the bright side however Tripitaka himself is rather cute. So the queen decides that the three disciples can just continue on the quest without him, and she'll even certify their papers for them and give them some supplies. It's the least she can do for her future husband! So while the Queen discusses auspicious dates with a matchmaker, she sends the Grand Preceptor to tell the gang the good news.

So Tripitaka and the others are enjoying their meal when they hear that the Grand Preceptor is here. Tripitaka wonders why someone like that is here to see them, and Monkey answers that it's probably for a marriage proposal. Tripitaka asks what they are supposed to do if that's the case, and Monkey just tells Tripitaka to say yes for now and let Monkey handle the rest. So the officials come in and sure enough Monkey hit the issue's nail on the head, they are indeed her to propose that Tripitaka marries their queen. When Tripitaka hears about this he is to stunned to speak so Pigsy takes over for him, and says that Tripitaka is to devoted a bhuddist to take an offer like that, he on the other hand would love to stay here and marry their queen!

While the officials tell Pigsy he is to ugly to marry their queen, Monkey tells Pigsy to shut up and let Tripitaka make up his mind on what he wants to do. Tripitaka asks what Monkey thinks he should do, after all they can't possibly give up on their quest to stay here! The Grace Preceptor takes his moment to chime in that the queen is perfectly fine with the disciples carrying on with the quest. So Monkey says that sounds just great and agrees to it before Tripitaka has a chance to protest. And ever the opportunist, Pigsy tells the officials to prepare a wedding banquet for them, which the officials cheerfully agree to before heading off to tell the queen.

As soon as their gone Tripitaka grabs Monkey and berates him for doing this to him. He can't give up the quest to get married! What on earth is he thinking?! Monkey tells him to relax, because he's got a plan. See, they can't risk outright refusing and making an enemy of the kingdom of women, because that would mean they would have to slaughter their way out of here. Unless Tripitaka has suddenly changed his stance on murder of course. Tripitaka agrees that murder is indeed bad, and asks what they are supposed to do instead, since he can't possibly get married either.

So Monkey takes this opportunity to lay out his brilliant plan. They'll go through the motions of the wedding preparation just as planned and get their travel papers certified. Then have a wedding feast as a farewell party for them. After the feast as to be allowed to see them off at the edge of the capital, and once they are outside the city, Monkey will use his magic to freeze everyone in the kingdom for one day while they all make a run for it. After hearing this Tripitaka thanks Monkey and agrees to the plan.

Meanwhile the Grand Preceptor tells the Queen the good news. So the Queen tells them to prepare a wedding banquet while she goes out in a carriage to meet her new husband. So the Queen see's Tripitaka and is immediately smitten, and invites him to ride in the carriage with her. Meanwhile Tripitaka is to flustered to speak, and Pigsy is to busy drooling over the queen to be of any help, leaving Monkey to snap him out of it and tell him to just ride in the carriage for now. Tripitaka however is so overwhelmed by this he even begins to cry a little, while Monkey just tells him to try and enjoy all of this while it lasts.

So Tripitaka rides in the carriage with the Queen while his disciples follow close behind with all of their luggage, until they arrive at the banquet hall. And good news, when they arrive the Grand Preceptor tells them that it's an auspicious day and they can get married right away and Tripitaka can assume the throne tomorrow. Everything is going as planned as they all enjoy the 'wedding' feast together, and afterwards they are able to get the queen to stamp their papers without issue. However the Queen does remark, that only Tripitaka is listed on the travel papers, not his disciples. And Tripitaka explains that it's because they aren't from the Tang Kingdom like his is, instead he met them all on the way. Upon hearing the story on how Tripitaka met them all, she offers to add their names to the paper, which Tripitaka agrees to.

The Queen then tries to give the disciples money for their journey, but Monkey negotiates her down to just giving them some rations. After that Tripitaka takes his chance to ask the queen if he could accompany his disciples to the edge of the capital in order to see them all off properly. The queen agrees so the two once again set off in the carriage together. Once they reach the edge of the city, Tripitaka drops all pretenses and asks that the Queen just let him go so he can acquire scriptures. The Queen is of course very upset that he suddenly changed his mind, and begs him to stay, which causes Pigsy to snap and yell at the Queen that Tripitaka is a Buddhist dang it! Leave the man alone! This succeeds in scaring back the queen, however before they can properly make their get away, a women suddenly pushes her way out of the crowd and calls dibs on Tripitaka, before grabbing him and disappearing in a cyclone of air.

Current Sun Wukong Stats: Names/Titles: Monkey, The Stone Monkey, The Handsome Monkey King, Sun Wukong (Monkey awakened to the void), Bimawen (Banhorseplague), The Great Sage Equal To Heaven and Pilgrim Sun. Immortality: 5 + 94,000 years Weapon: The Compliant Golden Hooped Rod Abilities: 72 Transformations, Cloud-Somersault, Ability to transform his individual hairs, super strength, Ability to Summon Wind, Water restriction charm, and the ability to change into a huge war form, ability to duplicate his staff, ability to immobilize others, the ability to put others to sleep, and the Fiery eyes and Diamond Pupils, intimidating horses, churning large bodies of water, sleeplessness, seizing the wind, enhanced smell, discerning good and evil within a thousand miles, Spirit Summoning, lock picking, object transformation, distance reduction, vanishing in a flash of light, super healing, transforming others, and Invisibility Demon Kill Count: 9+ Unknown Number of Minions Human Kill Count: 1009 God's Defeated: 23 + Unknown number Defeats: 6 Crime List: Robbery, Murder, Mass Murder, Arson, Theft, Coercion, Threatening a Government Official, Resisting Arrest, Assault, Forgery, Employee Theft, False Imprisonment, Impersonating a Government Official, Treason, attempted murder, failure to control or report a dangerous fire, desecrating a corpse, breaking and entering, trespassing, violating Tree Law, looting corpses, trading counterfeit goods, criminal threat, animal abuse, Assisting or Instigating Escape, Damage to Religious Property, contaminating a substance for human consumption and Identity Fraud. Cry Count: 8 + 3 fake cries Mountains Trapped Under: 4

Current Tang Sanzang stats: Names/Titles: River Float, Xuanzang, Tang Sanzang, Tripitaka and the Tang Monk Abilities: Curing Blindness, making branches point a certain direction (allegedly), reciting sutras, pretty privilege, memorization, Heart Sutra and Meditation. Cry Count: 28 Tight Fillet Spell Uses: 31 Paralyzed by fear: 6 Bandit Problems: 2 Kidnapped by demons: 9 Falling Off Horses: 8

Current Bai Long Ma Stats: Names/Titles: Bai Long Ma (White Dragon Horse), Prince of the Western Ocean, and third prince jade dragon of the dragon king Aorun Abilities: Transforming into a human, a water snake, and a horse, eating a horse in one bite, flight, Magic of Water Restriction, Singing, and Sword Dancing. Cry Count: 1 Crime List: Arson, and Grave Disobedience. Contributions to the plot: 2 Kidnapped by demons: 1

Current Zhu Wuneng Stats: Names/Titles: The Marshal of the Heavenly Reeds, Zhu Wuneng (Pig who is aware of ability), Zhu Ganglie, Pigsy, Idiot and Eight Rules. Weapon: Rake Abilities: 36 Transformations, parting water, fighting underwater, cloud soaring, size enhancement and CPR Demon Kill Count/Kill steals: 2 Kidnapped by Demons: 4 Human Kill Count: 1 Failed Flirtation/romances Attempts: 4 Cry Count: 2 Crime List: Sexual Harassment, Murder, Kidnapping, arson, defamation, Damage to Religious Property, contaminating a substance for human consumption, Identity Fraud and Theft

Current Sha Wujing Stats: Names/Titles: The Curtain-Raising General, Sha Wujing (Sand Aware of Purity), Sandy and Sha Monk Weapon: Monster Taming Staff Abilities: Fighting underwater, Cloud soaring, and fetching water from a well. Demon Kill Count: Unknown number of minions. Kidnapped by Demons: 3 Human Kill Count: 1 Crime List: Breaking a Crystal Cup, murder, desecration of a human corpse, Damage to Religious Property and contaminating a substance for human consumption

[the-monkey-ruler]

Journey to the West: Prequel to Tripitaka (2018) 西游·三藏前传

Country/Region of Production: Mainland China Date: 2018-08-02 (Mainland China) Duration: 65 minutes Also known as: Journey to the West / Pilgrimage To The West / 西游释厄传 Type: Reimanging

Summary:

Jiang Liuer had to go through ten reincarnations to become Tang Monk. In the tenth reincarnation, Jiang Liuer was reincarnated in a temple. After accidentally letting a demon go, he was expelled from the sect by his master and went down the mountain. At the foot of the mountain, he saw the colors of the human world, participated in the Voice of Tang Dynasty, and met his beloved woman. Along the way, he was secretly protected by Sun Wukong. The four, master and apprentices, had karma in their previous lives, and later they cultivated to the West to obtain the scriptures. On the way to the West to obtain the scriptures, they met the woman of their previous life. Did Tang Monk love in his previous life? Was the Queen of the Kingdom of Women who later went to the West to obtain the scriptures a fate owed by him in his previous life?

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/30284862/

Link: N/A

[book--brackets]

Summaries under the cut

I Survived by Lauren Tarshis

Ten-year-old George Calder can't believe his luck -- he and his little sister, Phoebe, are on the famous Titanic, crossing the ocean with their Aunt Daisy. The ship is full of exciting places to explore, but when George ventures into the first class storage cabin, a terrible boom shakes the entire boat. Suddenly, water is everywhere, and George's life changes forever.

The Mother-Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick

The book club

is about to get

a makeover....

Even if Megan would rather be at the mall, Cassidy is late for hockey practice, Emma's already read every book in existence, and Jess is missing her mother too much to care, the new book club is scheduled to meet every month.

But what begins as a mom-imposed ritual of reading Little Women soon helps four unlikely friends navigate the drama of middle school. From stolen journals, to secret crushes, to a fashion-fiasco first dance, the girls are up to their Wellie boots in drama. They can't help but wonder: What would Jo March do?

Silverwing by Kenneth Oppel

Shade is a young Silverwing bat, the runt of his colony. But he's determined to prove himself on the long, dangerous winter migration to Hibernaculum, millions of wingbeats to the south. During a fierce storm, he loses the others and soon faces the most incredible journey of his young life. Desperately searching for a way to rejoin his flock, Shade meets a remarkable cast of characters: Marina, a Brightwing bat with a strange metal band on her leg; Zephyr, a mystical albino bat with a strange gift; and Goth, a gigantic carnivorous vampire bat. But which ones are friends and which ones are enemies? In this epic story of adventure and suspense, Shade is going to need all the help he can find -- if he hopes to ever see his family again.

The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards

The Whangdoodle was once the wisest, the kindest, and the most extraordinary creature in the world. Then he disappeared and created a wonderful land for himself and all the other remarkable animals—the ten-legged Sidewinders, the little furry Flukes, the friendly Whiffle Bird, and the treacherous, "oily" Prock. It was an almost perfect place where the last of the really great Whangdoodles could rule his kingdom with "peace, love and a sense of fun"—apart from and forgotten by people. But not completely forgotten. Professor Savant believed in the Whangdoodle. And when he told the three Potter children of his search for the spectacular creature, Lindy, Tom, and Ben were eager to reach Whangdoodleland. With the Professor's help, they discovered the secret way. But waiting for them was the scheming Prock, who would use almost any means to keep them away from his beloved king. Only by skill and determination were the four travelers able to discover the last of the really great Whangdoodles and grant him his heart's desire.

The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge

In 1842, thirteen-year-old orphan Maria Merryweather arrives at Moonacre Manor, her family's ancestral home in an charmed village in England's West Country, and she feels as if she’s entered Paradise. Her new guardian, her uncle Sir Benjamin, is kind and funny; the Manor itself feels like home right away; and every person and animal she meets is like an old friend. But there is something incredibly sad beneath all of this beauty and comfort, that shadowing Moonacre Manor and the town around it. Maria is determined to learn about it, change it, and give her own life story a happy ending.

The enchanted valley of Moonacre is shadowed by a tragedy that happened years ago, and the memory of the Moon Princess and the mysterious little white horse. Determined to restore peace and happiness to the whole of Moonacre Valley, Maria finds herself involved with an ancient feud, and she discovers it is her destiny to end it and right the wrongs of her ancestors. Maria usually gets her own way. But what can one solitary girl do?

Chasing Redbird by Sharon Creech

To Zinny Taylor, life is like trying to untangle spaghetti—she needs to escape the chaos of her family. So when she finds a long-forgotten trail in the wild woods near her home, she resolves to follow it. It's a journey that leads her to unravel the dark secrets of her aunt's life—and her own. And while Zinny chases ghosts in the woods, gorgeous Jake Boone is determined to chase her...

Mandy by Julie Andrews Edwards

The magic of finding a home Mandy, a ten-year-old orphan, dreams of a place to call her own. Escaping over the orphanage wall to explore the outside world, Mandy discovers a tiny deserted cottage in the woods. All through the spring, summer, and fall, Mandy works to make it truly hers. Sometimes she "borrows" things she needs from the orphanage. Sometimes, to guard her secret, she even lies. Then, one stormy night at the cottage, Mandy gets sick, and no one knows how to find her--except a special friend she didn't know she had.

I Funny by James Patterson

Jamie Grimm is a middle schooler on a mission: he wants to become the world's greatest standup comedian--even if he doesn't have a lot to laugh about these days. He's new in town and stuck living with his aunt, uncle, and their evil son Stevie, a bully who doesn't let Jamie's wheelchair stop him from messing with Jamie as much as possible. But Jamie doesn't let his situation get him down. When his Uncle Frankie mentions a contest called The Planet's Funniest Kid Comic, Jamie knows he has to enter. But are the judges only rewarding him out of pity because of his wheelchair, like Stevie suggests? Will Jamie ever share the secret of his troubled past instead of hiding behind his comedy act?

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The sea, the sea, the sea. It rolled and rolled and called to me. Come in, it said, come in. Sophie hears the sea calling, promising adventure as she sets sail for England with her three uncles and two cousins. Sophie's cousin Cody isn't sure he has the strength to prove himself to the crew and to his father. Through Sophie's and Cody's travel logs, we hear stories of the past and the daily challenges of surviving at sea as The Wanderer sails toward its destination—and its passengers search for their places in the world.

Best Friends by Judy Blume

Rachel is Stephanie's best friend. Since second grade, they've shared secrets, good and bad. Now in seventh grade, Alison moves into the neighborhood. Stephanie hopes all three of them can be best friends, because Stephanie really likes Alison. But it looks as if it's going to be a case of two's company and three's a crowd. Can the girls' friendship be saved?

[assortedseaglass]

Borne & Bound - I

Aemond Targaryen x OFC

[Masterlist]

Summary: When Prince Aemond insults the commander of the Braedel cavalry, Viserys sends him to their kingdom so that he may learn the art of diplomacy and do battle with the commander herself, the spirited Lady Geowyth.

Content Warnings: Strong Language, Violence, Smut, Canon-typical Sexism, Mentions of Incest¸ Mentions of Sexual Assault

Word Count: 2.6K

Note: Just a little intro chapter. This is completely canon divergent. I am rubbish at intricate plotting and relatively new to this fandom. This idea has been rummaging around for a good while in my head, and it’s time to put it into action. If you do want an amazingly plotted, political Aemond Targaryen story, please please please read You Were Always With Me by @myfandomprompts. I was on tenterhooks for every upload, it’s a masterfully crafted story with complex character analysis and so many tense and thrilling moments. I adored it!

I think many people have done this, but I’ve aged up the Targaryen children to their mid-twenties.

“Pay attention,”

“It’s too fucking hot,”

“Be quiet!”

Casting his eye over his sister’s head, Aemond watched his mother and brother hiss lowly to each other. The afternoon was hot. Oppressively so. The clock tower above the sept chimed, marking an hour since they had appeared on the barbican steps, and an hour of passive bickering. A mustard butterfly flew across his face, and he looked down to see Helaena’s mournful gaze follow it. She smiled at him half-heartedly and turned back to the crowded steps as Ser Harrold’s voice carried over them.

“Lord Jason, of House Lannister, Lord of Casterly Rock and Ward of the West.”

In a sweep of embroidered velvet, Ser Tyland moved from his sentinel behind the royal family to greet his twin and the other members of his house.

“Lord Borros, of House Baratheon, Lord of Storms End and Lord Paramount of the Stormlands.”

The list of houses was endless. Despite the Targaryen proclivity for heat, even Aemond could feel a trickle of sweat journey its way along his spine. Thunder rumbled around the walls of the barbican and the gathered crowd stirred. Aemond cast his eye upwards, and the clear sky stared back.

“It won’t rain,” came Helaena’s soft voice beside him. Still Aemond watched the sky. “They would let us know.” At this, he turned to his sister. She was pointing to a beetle on the stone steps. A little way off, a sparrow watched it with glinting eyes.

“Mmm,” his eye moved to Aegon, who had stopped his fussing to listen to his sister-wife. He rolled his eyes at Aemond, who ignored him and turned slowly back to the approaching nobles. The youngest Baratheon girl gasped as his eye moved over her, and she inched closer to her sisters. The stiff leather of this doublet hid his sigh, for Aemond was used to this response, especially from the younger women of the court. On his eighteenth nameday, he decided once and for all to forgo the ugly eyepatch he wore to cover his disfigurement. The serving boy acting as his valet made to place the patch over his braided hair, when the young prince grasped his wrist.    

“Not tonight,”

The boy bowed and left the prince to his chambers. In the candlelight of the room, the sapphire in place of the prince’s missing eye shone vivid and the violet of the other, so famed in Targaryen lore, looked dull by comparison. With one last glance at his reflection, Aemond smoothed his green tunic, flicked the unbraided strands of blond hair over his shoulder, and made his solitary way to the feast. How rude of him, to keep his guests waiting.

With excited steps, he hurried through the keep and to the throne room. A few maidservants gasped upon seeing him and scurried aside, curtsying deeply as he passed them. Even today, Aemond could feel pride swelling in his chest. Maesters, heading back to their cloisters bowed with solemn utterances of his name, and Aemond nodded back, not noticing how their eyes trailed after the young prince with pity and horror. Two guards jumped into position as he approached the great doors of the hall, Aemond barely registering their exchange of shock. Light poured into the hall as they swung open the doors, the orange glow of flame illuminating the prince at the head of the hall. Ser Harrold’s voice announced his arrival, faltering as he turned to look at the young man. No sooner had he entered the hall did the whispered chatter begin. Members of every house gazed upon his nightmarish visage. Some couldn’t look. Girls from noble houses, adorned in their finery, some whom he had hoped to court, turned from his face when he looked upon them. The rest of the memory was a blur of hot tears and screamed vengeance. Since then, the eyepatch remained firmly in place.

“Brother,” Helaena’s hand brushed his own. “You’re staring.” Aemond blinked once, twice and averted his eye from the poor Baratheon girl, her own boring into the ground, quaking as her sister held her hand. Lord Borros and Queen Alicent talked quietly, exchanging pleasantries and glancing occasionally in Aemond’s direction. Ah, so that was the order of it. Marry him off to a Baratheon. Well, the youngest was certainly out of the running.

Another rumble of thunder rattled off the stone walls, accompanied by the clatter of metal against leather. Beside Aemond, Helaena gasped and clapped her hands together. The sound was not due to thunder at all, but the cavalry of horses making its way through the Red Keep’s portcullis. Many of the gathered crowd scuttled to the sides of the barbican courtyard, the Baratheons huddled next to the Queen and the Lannisters stopped in the doorway of the council chamber, eager to assess the party’s new arrivals.

At least three dozen dark stallions poured through the gates, their loose manes rippling in the breeze. The clap of their hooves across the courtyard sent deep tremors through the prince, and at his side he felt his sister shiver. With excitement or nerves, he didn’t know. Above the horses, banners of bronze, blue and wine-rich red flew in the air, the horses emblazoned on them riding the wind, and atop each steed sat a knight, their riding leathers adorned with the sigil of their house; the bucking horse with teeth bared. The helmets of their armour produced plumes of horsehair, no doubt to give the impression they were at one with their mounts. Aemond scoffed. It was a sweet attempt to seem commanding, he supposed. His amusement turned to horror however, when he noticed the slightness of some of the warriors. It couldn’t be. Beneath many of the helmets, scattered amongst the knights, were women. Women in battle dress, shields slung over their backs and swords at their side. The prospect of marrying a Baratheon girl did not seem so dreadful now, if the only women at court were to be Helaena’s ladies-in-waiting, the noble ladies his mother pushed at him or these horse maids.

“Gestillan!”

The cry came from the front of the cavalry, the language one that Aemond could not place, and the cavalry shuffled to a halt. Every head turned towards them. Three riders led the troop, two men and a woman.

“Lord Geodred, of House Beridan, heir to Braedel and commander of the Renward, his sister, Lady Geowyth, and Ser Herumbrand Fasthelm, captain of the Renward.”

Lord Geodred, the man who had issued the call, was at the centre of the three. Unlike the rest of the riders, the three leaders wore no helmets, and Lord Geodred’s hair shone russet like a crown about his head. Stubble decorated his round cheeks, and his small eyes twinkled with mirth. There was something in him that reminded Aemond of his mother in her happier days. The tunic he wore was made of velvet, the fabric coloured the same as the sky when Aemond rode Vhagar just before sun’s rise; that deep, endless blue. Bronze pattern work wound around his sleeves and cape, draped nobly over his mount’s back.

The man to his right was an imposing beast. Ser Herumbrand. The old knight’s dark armour was flecked with scratches, though none could quite match those across his face. His white hair was roughly shorn close to his scalp and, combined with the jutting of his square jaw, gave the man a look of stone come to life. Grey eyes scanned the royals and gathered nobles. He looked down his wide nose at them, though his mouth gave him away. The faintest smile played at the corners if his lips. At his side, his hand rested against the hilt of an enormous sword, the other lax on the reign of the chestnut horse he rode. The two men dismounted and Aemond watched their progress up the great steps towards the royal family. Lord Geodred bowed deeply to the Queen, and when she held out her hand, rather than bend to kiss it, Geodred clasped it warmly with both of his.

“An honour, my Queen, that you would have us attend the King’s council. I am only sorry that it is I and not our uncle,”

“And I am sorry that my husband is not here to welcome you, and that your dear uncle is ill. How is the good King?”

“He is well enough, for now-”

A glint of gold caused Aemond’s eye to drift from his mother and her guests to the woman now dismounting from her own stallion. The black horse she rode was an enormous creature, perhaps the largest horse he had ever seen. The tangle of mane covered its eyes, and it huffed through its flared nostrils as its rider departed with a firm pat to his sleek and muscled neck. From beneath its muzzle she appeared, removing her leather riding gloves and handing them to the rider beside her. Like her brother, the Lady Geowyth was bonny faced, though her hair was much darker. It cascaded in frizzy strands to her waist, the effect giving her the look of something haunted, like a witch fresh from a bog. Where her brother wore blue, she wore the red of her house, dark like blood, the velvet gown frayed and sprayed with mud no doubt from the journey. Lifting the skirt of her dress, she approached her brother, who turned and introduced his sister to the Queen. Aemond watched she curtsied, deeper than any who had come before her, and thanked her for her hospitality.

The Braedels moved along the row, first Lord Geodred, then his sister and Ser Herumbrand. Geodred shook Aegon’s hand jovially after bowing, and the poor prince looked jostled. His ability to stand upright was already hampered by his drinking and the vigorous shaking by a warrior lord did nothing to help him. The lady, Geowyth, curtsied to the prince who took her hand in his and pressed a kiss to it. He muttered something and she laughed, from genuine pleasure or politeness Aemond could not tell. When the party moved towards Helaena, Aegon looked to his brother and winked, licking his lips. He laughed as Aemond imperceptibly shook his head, but ceased when his mother smacked his arm. Aemond distinctly saw her mutter the word “behave.”

Unlike with his mother and brother, Aemond noted that Lord Geodred did not touch Helaena, merely bowed with a gentle “hello”, to which she nodded and clasped her hands. Instead, he stepped aside and introduced the princess to his sister. Helaena, taken by one of her flights of fancy, held out a hand and caught the dark velvet of Lady Geowyth’s cape. She ran her fingers along it murmuring about the delicacy of the embroidery.

“Perhaps we could go to the haberdashers,” Geowyth said gently. “And choose fabric together? By the old Gods and the new, it would be nice to have the company of another young woman.”

Helaena beamed, nodding as she let go of the fabric and swung her arms in front of her. Geodred stepped before Aemond and raised his eyebrows, the act denoting fondness rather than annoyance at their two sisters. The Lord’s calm countenance and assuredness belied his true age for up close, Aemond noted he could have been no older than thirty.

“Prince Aemond,” Geodred bowed. “A pleasure. Your father’s letters to my uncle tell that you are a great student of history.” Beside him, Geowyth looked up.

“History, yes,” Aemond’s voice was measured. “And the languages.”

Geodred nodded. “I hope that you would find the time to show me some of your favourite volumes. I have not the head for history but must learn if I am to inherit my uncle’s kingdom.”

“Of course,” Aemond bowed his head only slightly. “And I might enquire as to your language-” He let the sentence hang, waiting on Geodred to answer.

“Braehic, spoken only in our kingdom. Aed grundset,” At these unknown words, Aemond’s lips twitched into an uncomfortable smile and he bowed, signifying to Geodred that their conversation was at an end. The other man smiled and moved aside. “My sister, Geowyth.”

She was already deep in a bow when Aemond looked upon her. The hair she left untied, tangled like that of her steed, fell forward from her shoulders and near swept the floor. When she straightened to her full height, she met Aemond almost eye to covered eye. At once, Aemond’s eye fell to the ground. The flicker was quick, and he recovered to look at her once again, but nonetheless, they had caught him off guard. Like the bronze of Beridan banners, her eyes gleamed amber. Framed beneath her dark and straight lashes, they stared into his own like an eagle after prey, so bright they were almost yellow. She smiled.

“Your Grace,”

“My lady.” Aemond possessed none of the easy charm of his brother, nor the intriguing gentleness of his sister and, frozen under the gaze of her eyes, said nothing at all. The lady had clearly not expected his silence and glanced quickly to her brother.

“My Queen,” Geodred stepped forward and offered Alicent his arm. “I believe we are the last to arrive-”

“Thank the mother, the maiden and the crone’s sagging-”

“Thank you, Lord Geodred,” Alicent cut Aegon off, taking Geodred’s arm and leading him inside the Red Keep. Behind them followed the royal children and the nobles of the other houses. Helaena tucked her arm into Aemond’s, watching the party from Braedel every now and again over her shoulder.

“Borne and bound,” she muttered.  

“Hm?” Aemond followed her eyes. Lady Geowyth and Ser Herumbrand were deep in conversation. The old knight’s eyes caught Aemond’s and the young prince turned around.

“I like them,”

“I’m glad, sister,” he squeezed her hand. “They seemed very taken by you too.” Helaena blushed and clung closer to him.

“Shame the same can’t be said about you,” Aegon took Helaena’s arm from Aemond’s. When the time was right and he was sober enough to remember, Aegon liked to act the doting husband to his sister. Aemond bowed his head and took great strides to be away from his family and the party behind them, catching Aegon’s words as he departed for his chambers.

“Only a few more hours of council and then the drinking can begin.” A roar of approval rose from the noblemen and Aemond sighed. Between the council and the King’s nameday festivities, women being forced upon him or being ignored completely, Aemond knew this week was to be excruciating.

Note: Gestillan = halt

Aed grundset = of course

The language that the Braedel kingdom speaks is Old English. I was inspired (no surprises here) by Tolkien and the Rohirrim, and the area of the UK that I am from when creating this house. There will be a lot more about them and their society in upcoming chapters! The names in old English names are typically said how the are written, though the prefix “geo” is said as “gay-O”, rather than the “geo" in “geography”.

Tags: @arcielee @mefools @bladeofdreadfort @glitterandgoldfinds @heimtathurs @ewanmitchellcrumbs

[angstandhappiness]

LMAO, HOW SWEET

Me: “You know, we’ve seen JttW adaptations where Pigsy/Bajie is a hopeless romantic, a creep, a wannabe-Casanova, a wife guy… What about an adaptation where Blue Orchid is actually very much Into Him, so the ‘my pretty beloved spouse’ is mutual?”

Friends In Discord: “Yes, yes please!”

[novelcain]

ill take that as a yes <3 /p

anyways, jumping way ahead into the vague future again because silly things like time and continuity are irrelevant when youre neurospicy /j. anyways kingdom of women because for some reason my brain wants to think about the happenings there and who am i to say no, and also at this point i will be projecting onto reader now because its too late, theyre already on the kin list also what is proper sentence structuring, i dont know her, anyways back to the important and slightly less nonsensical part of this ramble

OKAY SO the whole thing where the empress wants to marry tripitaka, the reader just being "dude. just tell her the truth, it aint that deep", because seriously why dance around the issue this much? like she's not just gonna shatter if he rejects her lol,

🎵

Like fr he acts like it'd be the end of the world for her. She's an empress. She'll move on.

And SPEAKING of the Kingdom of Women~

I rewatched Monkey King 3 (as one does) and I really wanna make an x reader specifically for this one scene I have in mind.

⚠️SPOILERS⚠️

Basically, whenever the gang gets taken into custody by the Kingdom of Women and they're in the main hall of the palace and are accusing all of them of being terrible despicable men they also accuse the guys of kidnapping reader to use her as a servant and reader (who just had an argument with Wukong or Bajie) sees an opportunity to not only get back at them but to not be thrown in jail with them (and help break them out when no ones looking) and is like "YES YES THEY DID KIDNAP ME! Thank you kind women for saving me from these terrible men." I clearly don't know sentence structure either babe