#Mesmer The serpent king
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djdjakko · 14 days ago
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ELDEN RING ROLESWAP PART 5!!!!
Previously! Morgot took Mohgs role becooming: Morgot Warden Of Blood
Messmer took Morgots role becoming: Mesmer the Serpent King
Melina took Mesmers role becoming: Melina The Ashen Blade
Godrick took Melinas role becoming: Godrick The Blackflame Maiden Let me know who you chose and why?
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coolbeans32 · 9 months ago
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Echoes of Destiny: The Serpent and the Phoenix
PAIRING: Tom Riddle x F!Reader (OC)
SYNOPSIS: Genevieve's memories of her time at Hogwarts and Tom Riddle. Consisting of events from her first year to her death.
WARNINGS: This chapter contains themes of love, betrayal, heartbreak, and loss. There are also scenes of intense emotion, including arguments and confrontations between characters. Additionally, there are references to dark magic, including the concept of Horcruxes, and moments of violence.
WORD COUNT: 4.7k
AUTHOR'S NOTE: My favorite chapter writing so far!!! This chapter will finally include dialogue between the relationship of Tom and Genevieve. At some part, it mentions that Tom is called a muggleborn. It is important to note that this is done so in the perspective that the pure bloods (Abraxas Malfoy) do not know he is the Heir of Slytherin until later on. Happy Reading :))
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Chapter Eight
Revelations Part II
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A young Genevieve stood on the platform at King's Cross Station, her heart fluttered with excitement and nerves. It was September 1st, 1938, and it was her first day to go to Hogwarts. Her father, Albus Dumbledore, stood beside her, his presence comforting amidst the bustling crowd of students and families.
"Are you ready, my dear?" Albus asked, his blue eyes gentle as he looked down at his daughter.
Genevieve nodded, a mixture of anticipation and uncertainty swirling within her. "I think so, Father," she replied softly, clutching her trunk tightly.
As they approached the magical barrier between platforms nine and ten, Genevieve glanced up at her father, a question lingering on her lips. "Father, where's Pops?" she inquired, searching the crowd for any sign of her other father, Gellert.
Albus's expression softened, a hint of sadness flickering in his eyes. "He couldn't make it today, my dear," he explained gently. "He's busy with other matters."
Genevieve's shoulders slumped slightly, disappointment tugging at her heart. She had hoped that Gellert would be there to bid her goodbye, but she understood that his duties often took him away. They both walked through the barrier, where they were engulfed by various families rushing and running around, ready to send their children to their new home for a while.
Albus knelt down to her height, a small smile playing on his lips as he reached into his pocket. "Here," he said, offering her a lemon drop candy. "For the journey."
Genevieve's face brightened at the sight of the sweet treat, and she accepted it with a grateful smile. She hugged her father tightly, feeling the warmth of his embrace enveloping her.
"Good luck, my dear," Albus whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "I know you'll do great things at Hogwarts."
With a final wave and a whispered goodbye, Genevieve boarded the train, her heart filled with a mixture of excitement and sadness. As the train pulled away from the platform, she watched her father's figure fade into the distance, a sense of adventure and anticipation swelling within her.
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As the Hogwarts Express chugged along the tracks, Genevieve stood by the window of one of the train cars, waving goodbye to her father until the bustling station disappeared from view. A sense of excitement mingled with nervousness bubbled within her as she realized she was truly on her way to Hogwarts.
Turning away from the window, Genevieve began to search for an empty train car where she could settle in for the journey ahead. Eventually, she found one and stepped inside, only to find a boy sitting there, engrossed in a book.
"Um, excuse me," Genevieve said softly, her voice carrying a hint of hesitation. "Do you mind if I sit here?"
The boy glanced up from his book, a scowl forming on his lips as he prepared to admonish her for interrupting his reading. However, as his gaze met hers, he froze, captivated by the mesmerizing sight of her two-colored eyes.
After a moment of silence, the boy's expression softened, and he nodded slightly. "Uh, sure, go ahead," he muttered, gesturing to the empty seat across from him.
Genevieve offered him a grateful smile as she moved to sit down. "Thank you," she said softly, smoothing her robes as she settled into her seat. "I'm Genevieve Ariana Grindelwald Dumbledore. It's a pleasure to meet you."
The boy regarded her skeptically for a moment before reluctantly introducing himself. "Tom Riddle," he replied, his tone guarded as he recalled Albus Dumbledore, wondering why his spawn was wanting to sit next to him. 
Genevieve nodded politely, unfazed by his cautious demeanor. "Nice to meet you, Tom," she said, her smile warm and genuine. "Are you a first year as well?."
Tom, caught off guard by her continued conversation, reluctantly nodded. "Yes," he replied tersely, wondering why she seemed so intent on speaking to him.
Genevieve's smile remained undiminished by his reticence. "I hope we are in the same house," she remarked optimistically.
Tom merely nodded in response, hoping that she would take the hint and allow him to return to his book. He had little interest in engaging in conversation, especially with someone he had just met. Sensing his desire for silence, Genevieve turned her attention to the window, watching the scenery whiz by as the train sped towards Hogwarts. They sat in companionable silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts.
However, after a time, Genevieve began to grow restless. Bored of staring out the window, she decided to practice a bit of magic to pass the time. With a flick of her wand and a whispered incantation, she conjured up a delicate lily flower in her hand. Tom, though he tried to maintain his facade of disinterest, couldn't help but be impressed by her display of magic. He watched in silent awe as she performed the spell with ease, his curiosity piqued despite himself.
As Genevieve's attention returned to the flower in her hand, she glanced at Tom, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. Despite his initial reluctance, Tom found himself intrigued by the enigmatic girl seated next to him, wondering what other secrets she might hold.
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As Genevieve's name was called, she felt a mix of nerves and excitement coursing through her veins. Walking up to the front of the Great Hall, she took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the room as she approached the Sorting Hat. As the ancient hat was placed upon her head, it seemed to hesitate for a moment, as if pondering her fate. Then, after what felt like an eternity, it finally called out, "Slytherin!"
A wave of happiness washed over Genevieve as she made her way to the Slytherin table, where she was greeted warmly by some of her new housemates. However, she couldn't help but notice the absence of the usual sparkle in her father's eyes as he applauded her sorting from the staff table. As the sorting continued, Genevieve's attention was drawn to a particular student to be sorted, Tom Riddle, whom she sat with on the train. She watched intently as he approached the Sorting Hat, wondering which house he would be placed in.
To her surprise, the hat wasted no time in proclaiming "Slytherin" for Tom as well. Genevieve joined in the applause, clapping enthusiastically along with some of her fellow Slytherins. However, her joy was short-lived as she noticed the disdainful glares directed towards Tom from some of the pureblood students.
One particularly vocal boy, Abraxas Malfoy, made a derogatory comment about Tom's heritage, referring to him as a Muggleborn who didn't belong in Slytherin. Without hesitation, Genevieve stood up and confronted him, defending Tom against the unfair judgment. Abraxas faltered under her unwavering gaze, silenced by her unexpected defiance. Tom, meanwhile, watched her with a mixture of surprise and gratitude, his curiosity about the girl who had come to his defense piqued even further.
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Thirteen year old Genevieve made her way through the dimly lit corridors of Hogwarts, the echoes of her footsteps mingling with the distant murmurs of students. As she approached the entrance to the Slytherin common room, she noticed a commotion up ahead.
Peering around the corner, Genevieve's eyes narrowed as she saw Malfoy and a group of older Slytherins surrounding Tom, their voices dripping with contempt and superiority. Tom, ever composed, stood his ground, his expression a mask of icy indifference as he faced their taunts.
Without a moment's hesitation, Genevieve stepped forward, her wand held firmly in her hand as she cast the Flipendo spell at Abraxas Malfoy, sending him stumbling backward with a yelp of surprise. The other Slytherins recoiled in shock, their bullying tactics faltering in the face of Genevieve's unexpected intervention.
Tom, though visibly taken aback by her interference, maintained his cool demeanor as he brushed himself off, his eyes betraying a hint of confusion, upset at the fact out of anyone, it was Genevieve who stopped them. "I could've handled it myself, Dumbledore," he muttered, his voice tinged with frustration.
Genevieve turned to him, her gaze piercing and unwavering. "I know," she replied simply, her tone leaving no room for argument. "But Slytherins protect their own. Even Malfoy should know that, Riddle."
With that, she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Tom to ponder her words in silence. As he watched her retreating figure, a sense of curiosity and admiration stirred within him, mingling with the lingering confusion of her unexpected act of solidarity. With a sigh, he shook his head and made his way to the library, his thoughts consumed by the enigma that was Genevieve Dumbledore.
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[Time Skip to Fifth Year]
Genevieve trudged through the corridors of Hogwarts, her steps heavy with reluctance as she made her way to the library. She had been assigned to Tom Riddle for tutoring in potions, a consequence of her rebellious streak and her increasing defiance against her father. As she entered the library, Genevieve spotted Tom sitting at a table, a stack of books spread out before him. His expression was one of mild curiosity, tinged with a hint of skepticism as he regarded her.
"Late, as usual, I see," he remarked, his tone cool and detached.
Genevieve bristled at his remark, her rebellious spirit flaring to life. "I'll have you know that I'm not here because I want to be," she retorted, her voice tinged with defiance. "And I certainly don't need your help."
Tom arched an eyebrow, his gaze unwavering as he regarded her. "Oh? And yet here you are, assigned to me for tutoring in potions," he countered, his tone laced with amusement.
Genevieve clenched her jaw, resisting the urge to snap back at him. She knew he was right, but she refused to let him see her vulnerability. "Fine," she muttered through gritted teeth. "Let's get this over with."
With a resigned sigh, Tom gestured for her to sit opposite him at the table. As they delved into their studies, their interactions were filled with tension and animosity, their academic rivalry simmering just beneath the surface. Despite their bickering, Genevieve couldn't shake the feeling of unease that lingered in the back of her mind. She was rebelling against her father, against everything he stood for, and yet, deep down, she couldn't help but wonder if she was making a grave mistake. But for now, she pushed those doubts aside, focusing instead on the task at hand as she begrudgingly allowed Tom to tutor her in potions.
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Genevieve stumbled through the dense undergrowth of the Forbidden Forest, her vision blurred by tears of frustration and hurt. The echoes of her argument with Tom still reverberated in her mind, each cutting word carving deep into her wounded heart. They had been practicing dueling spells in a secluded clearing, their wands flashing as they sparred with intensity. But as the duel progressed, tension simmered between them, fueled by Tom's growing resentment at Genevieve's skill.
In a fit of rage, Tom had lashed out, hurling insults and accusations at Genevieve. He ridiculed her, accusing her of working with Dumbledore against him, of betraying their friendship for the sake of her father's agenda. Genevieve's heart twisted with anguish as she listened to his words, each one a painful reminder of their fractured bond. She had tried to defend herself, to reason with him, but Tom's anger was relentless, his words like barb wire digging into her skin.
But what hurt the most was the fact that he believed that she would work with her father to betray him.  It was a bitter reminder of their diverging paths, of the growing chasm between them, especially with her wavering loyalty to both Albus and Gellert. Everything was just building up so quickly, and it became too much. As the argument reached its peak, Genevieve couldn't bear it any longer. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she had fled into the forest, seeking solace amidst the ancient trees and whispered secrets.
Now, as she stumbled through the shadowed depths of the Forbidden Forest, Genevieve felt the weight of her despair pressing down upon her. She sank to her knees, her sobs echoing through the silent woods, a poignant symphony of pain and regret. In that moment of vulnerability, Genevieve felt utterly alone, the echoes of Tom's accusations still ringing in her ears. She didn't know how to mend what had been broken between them, didn't know if their friendship could ever be restored. All she could do was cry, lost in the wilderness of her own emotions, yearning for a glimmer of hope amidst the darkness that surrounded her.
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The soft rap of knuckles against the wooden door echoed through the silent corridor, breaking the stillness of the evening air. Genevieve sat on the edge of her bed, her heart heavy with the weight of recent arguments and hurtful words exchanged with Tom. She knew it was him standing outside her door, seeking reconciliation, seeking forgiveness.
"Go away, Tom," she called out, her voice tinged with a mixture of sadness and frustration. There was a moment of hesitation, a pause that stretched between them like an unspoken plea for understanding. Then, with a resigned sigh, the door creaked open, revealing Tom standing on the threshold, a bouquet of daffodils in his hand.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, his voice tinged with slight remorse as he held out the flowers as a peace offering. "I shouldn't have said those things. I shouldn't have let my anger get the best of me."
Genevieve's eyes flickered to the bouquet, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips despite herself. She moved aside, wordlessly inviting Tom into her room, her heart aching for reconciliation, for the restoration of their fractured friendship.
Tom stepped inside, his movements hesitant, uncertain. He approached Genevieve slowly, his eyes searching hers for any sign of forgiveness. When she reached out to accept the flowers, he felt a surge of relief wash over him, a flicker of hope amidst the darkness of their recent discord.
"Thank you," Genevieve whispered, her voice barely above a whisper as she met Tom's gaze, her eyes softening with warmth and understanding. Tom swallowed hard, his throat tight with emotion as he watched her. Slowly, almost tentatively, he reached out to embrace her, his arms wrapping around her in a hesitant embrace. At first, his touch was stiff, his movements rigid with uncertainty. But as Genevieve leaned into his embrace, he felt himself relax, felt the tension melting away as he allowed himself to be enveloped in her warmth. They stayed like that for a while, two lost souls seeking solace in each other's embrace, their hearts slowly healing as they began to rebuild the fragile bonds of friendship that had been tested by the storms of their own making.
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The air crackled with tension as Genevieve confronted Tom, her eyes piercing through his facade of secrecy and deception. Tom's expression darkened with rage at the revelation that she had uncovered his darkest secret, his plan for immortality through Horcruxes.
"How did you find out?" he demanded, his voice seething with anger as he struggled to maintain his composure in the face of her unwavering gaze.
Genevieve ignored his question, her focus unwavering as she delved deeper into the heart of the matter. "Are you truly prepared for the consequences of your actions? Do you know what consequences it brings to splitting your soul that many times?" she asked, her voice tinged with anger  and concern.
Tom's eyes flashed with determination as he replied, "It's the only way I will become the most powerful sorcerer alive."
Genevieve's expression softened with sympathy as she shook her head in resignation. "No, Tom," she said softly, her voice filled with regret. "It's not. You don’t know what you’re doing."
With a heavy heart, she reached into her cloak and withdrew a small package, handing it to him. It was his birthday gift, a journal engraved with his full name. As Tom took it, his fingers brushing against the smooth surface, Genevieve uttered a solemn "Happy Birthday."
Then, with a heavy sigh, she continued, "I found out who your family is. Your mother is Merope Gaunt, daughter to Marvolo Gaunt, and sister to Morfin Gaunt. Heirs of Salazar Slytherin himself. So I figured your mother named you after your father and grandfather. I hope you like it."
Tom's eyes widened in shock at the revelation, his mind reeling with the implications of his lineage. As Genevieve turned to leave, he was left standing there, a maelstrom of conflicting emotions swirling within him. No one had ever known when his birthday was, yet Genevieve had found out, somehow. And now, as he watched her walk away, he couldn't shake the feeling of emptiness and uncertainty that gnawed at him from within. Running his hands through his hair in frustration, Tom let out a heavy sigh, feeling more lost and conflicted than ever before. With a sense of unease settling in his chest, he turned and headed to his room, seeking clarity amidst the chaos of his thoughts.
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As Tom stared at the journal in his hands, the weight of Genevieve's words hung heavy in the air. He couldn't shake the feeling of disbelief at the revelation of his ancestry, nor could he ignore the unsettling truth of her warnings about his pursuit of power. For the first time in a long while, Tom found himself grappling with conflicting emotions. On one hand, there was the burning desire for power, the relentless drive to carve out his own destiny and become the most powerful sorcerer the world had ever seen. But on the other hand, there was Genevieve – wise, strong, and unwavering in her convictions.
Her opinion mattered to him more than he cared to admit. He had always admired her resilience, her intelligence, and her unwavering sense of right and wrong. And yet, he couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt at the thought of disregarding her warnings, of risking everything for the sake of his own ambition. But as he sat there, lost in thought, a realization began to dawn on him. Perhaps there was more to life than power and ambition. Perhaps there was something worth fighting for, worth sacrificing for – something that transcended the pursuit of greatness.
With a newfound sense of purpose burning within him, Tom made a decision. He would find Genevieve, he would seek her counsel, and together, they would face whatever challenges lay ahead. For in Genevieve, he saw not only a friend, but a kindred spirit – someone who understood the complexities of his soul, someone who saw beyond the mask of darkness he wore. And so, with determination coursing through his veins, Tom rose from his seat and set off to find Genevieve, ready to confront the truth and forge a new path forward, together.
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In the depths of the Forbidden Forest, where the ancient trees whispered secrets and the air crackled with magic, Tom Riddle found himself standing before Genevieve, his heart laid bare. 
"Genevieve," he began, his voice uncharacteristically soft, "there's something I need to tell you. Something I've realized, something I've been trying to deny for far too long."
Genevieve looked at him, her eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and concern. "What is it, Tom?"
Taking a deep breath, Tom gathered his courage and spoke from the depths of his soul. "I love you, Genevieve. More than words can express. More than I ever thought possible for me." Genevieve's breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding in her chest. She had never expected to hear such words from Tom, never dared to hope that he could feel such deep emotions.
"But how can that be?" she whispered, her voice barely above a whisper. "You've always... I never thought..."
Tom reached out, gently cupping her face in his hands. "I know I've been distant, cold even. I know I have no reason for you to believe me…But you, Genevieve, you broke through the walls I've built around my heart since the day I met you on the train…You showed me that I'm capable of feeling, of loving, in a way I never thought possible. I admire your strength, courage, and wisdom. You’re much stronger than I could ever be, with everything you’ve dealt with…I wish I could say that I am the man you deserve but I’m not. You deserve someone better than me, but I am a selfish man. I don’t think I can bear thinking of you with someone else…I just want you.” Tears welled in Genevieve's eyes as she listened to Tom's heartfelt confession. In that moment, surrounded by the beauty of the forest and the enchantment of their shared sanctuary, she knew that she felt the same way.
"I love you too, Tom," she whispered, her voice trembling with emotion. And then, without another word, they leaned in, their lips meeting in a tender kiss that ignited a fire within their souls. And as they kissed, flowers bloomed around them, and spider lilies danced in the gentle breeze, in the garden-like sanctuary built by Genevieve, in the heart of the Forbidden Forest, a place where both Tom and her escaped in the midst of the chaos that brewed at Hogwarts. In that moment, Tom and Genevieve knew that they were meant to be together, bound by a love that transcended time and space, and that nothing could ever tear them apart.
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[Time Skip to Sixth Year]
In the bustling corridors of Hogwarts, Genevieve marched purposefully, her jaw set with determination. She had seen enough, heard enough, and she was not about to let it slide this time. As she rounded the corner, she spotted Tom Riddle, his expression stoic as ever, surrounded by a group of his followers.
"Tom," she called out, her voice tinged with anger.
Tom turned to face her, his brow furrowing slightly at the intensity of her gaze. "Genevieve, what's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" Genevieve repeated, her voice rising with frustration. "I'll tell you what's wrong. You promised me you would stop meeting with your Knights of Walpurgis, and yet here you are, still going behind my back."
Tom's expression hardened, his jaw clenching as he prepared to defend himself. "I had no choice, Genevieve. If I were to suddenly cut ties with them, it would undermine everything I've worked for. They finally treat me as their equal, and if I were to back out now, they would ridicule me, disrespect me."
Genevieve shook her head, her anger unabated. "That's not good enough, Tom. You promised."
Tom's gaze narrowed, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice. "And what about you, Genevieve? You're still helping both Dumbledore and Gellert, even though you're emancipated from them. Isn't that a bit hypocritical, knowing you clearly stated you broke ties with them?"
Genevieve's eyes flashed with hurt, her resolve wavering for a moment before hardening once again. "That's different, and you know it."
"Is it?" Tom challenged, his tone cutting. "Seems to me like you're asking me to do something you're not willing to do yourself."
Genevieve's fists clenched at her sides, her patience wearing thin. "Fine," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I need space, Tom. Leave me alone."
Before Tom could respond, Genevieve turned on her heel and strode away, disappearing into the throng of students. Tom watched her go, his heart heavy with regret. He hadn't meant to hurt her, hadn't meant for their argument to escalate like this. With a heavy sigh, Tom straightened his shoulders and pushed his emotions aside. He had Prefect duties to attend to, and he knew he would have to find a way to make things right with Genevieve. But for now, he would give her the space she needed, hoping that in time, they could mend their fractured relationship.
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Tom's heart pounded in his chest as he raced through the corridors of Hogwarts, his mind swirling with panic and regret. He couldn't bear the thought of Genevieve being upset with him for this long. He had tried to reconcile with her, but it was obvious that she wasn’t going to fold as easily, especially with the words he chose. He thought, “You fucking dumbass.” He had to find her, had to make things right, and make it up to her. 
He scoffed at himself, at the irony of it all. The great Tom Riddle, feared by many, was brought to his knees by a mere witch. A witch who had shattered his walls, breached his defenses, and claimed his heart as her own. He hated her for it, hated how she made him feel, how she made him want things he never thought he could have.
But deep down, beneath the layers of anger and pride, he knew the truth. He loved her. He loved her with a fierceness that scared him, with a passion that threatened to consume him whole. And now, as he searched frantically for her, he realized he was going to give up everything for her, no more lies, and especially, no more going behind her back, no matter how much it killed him. 
And then, as if guided by some unseen force, his feet carried him to the girl's bathroom on the second floor. And there she was, lying on the floor, unresponsive. His heart stopped as he knelt beside her, his hands trembling as he reached out to touch her. "Genevieve!" Tom's voice cracked with desperation as he fell to his knees beside her, gently cradling her in his arms. His hands trembled as he checked for any signs of life, his mind clouded with panic.
He looked up and saw a Ravenclaw in front of him, armed with her wand pointed at his love. He frantically yelled, “What did you do?”
Myrtle Elizabeth Warren, the young Ravenclaw, looked at him, in a slight daze, until she regained some consciousness, said, “I…I don’t know.” Tom looked at her angrily, “Find someone…Get help then, don’t just fucking stand there!” He exclaimed. 
"Gen," he whispered, his voice cracking with emotion. "Don't do this to me. Please, don't leave me. I love you. I'm sorry. You promised." But she didn't respond, didn't stir, but there were still signs of her breathing, slight, but still there. He had tried to come up with every healing spell possible to help her before help came along. Suddenly, Myrtle materialized before him, but Tom had no time to dwell on her as he heard Dumbledore's voice approaching.
"Dumbledore, please help me!" Tom pleaded as the headmaster entered the bathroom, his eyes wild with desperation. Dumbledore's response was not what Tom expected. Instead of rushing to aid Genevieve, he offered empty reassurances, his demeanor strangely detached. Tom's frustration boiled over as he realized Dumbledore's indifference.
Ignoring Dumbledore's presence, Tom focused all his energy on trying to revive Genevieve. He refused to accept defeat, pouring every ounce of his magical ability into his efforts to save her. But despite his desperate attempts, Genevieve remained limp in his arms, her life slipping away with each passing moment.
"Gen, please... don't leave me," Tom's voice cracked with emotion as tears streamed down his face. He held her close, willing her to hold on, but her stillness only fueled his anguish. Dumbledore's hollow words of consolation fell on deaf ears as Tom's grief overwhelmed him. In that moment, the reality of her absence washed over him, Tom felt something inside him break. He cried out her name, his voice raw with pain and desperation, as he realized he had lost the one person who meant everything to him. In a moment of raw emotion, he turned to the headmaster with eyes blazing with fury.
"You'll pay for this, mark my words," Tom's voice was barely above a whisper, but his words were filled with venom. "You let your own daughter die, and for what?" With those words hanging in the air, Tom cradled Genevieve's lifeless form in his arms, his heart shattered as he mourned the loss of the one he loved most. And as Dumbledore stood there, a silent witness to the tragedy he had allowed to unfold, Tom vowed to seek justice for Genevieve's untimely demise.
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Taglist: @wheenerrr @jillian2003
Tom Riddle Masterlist
© coolbeans32 2024
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lineycantdance · 5 months ago
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Jang Man Wol and Go Chung Myung as Eros and Psyche
In this meta, I will be illustrating how the storyline in the 2019 tvN K-drama Hotel Del Luna between its protagonist Jang Man Wol and second male lead Go Chung Myung follows the Aarne-Thompson-Uther folktale type 425: Search for the Lost Husband, while also containing elements of ATU-400: The Quest for the Lost Bride. In particular, I will be pointing out parallels to famous versions of these tales from Greek mythology: ATU-425: Eros and Psyche, and ATU-400: Orpheus and Eurydice. I am by no means an expert on this topic, so feel free to share where you disagree with me and point out any mistakes.
Before I go on, be advised: the following post will include mentions of violence, capital punishment, suicide, and all of the darker elements that were present in the historical subplot of Hotel Del Luna.
Part 1: Jang Man Wol and Go Chung Myung as Eros and Psyche
The myth of Eros and Psyche is said to be the prototypical version of the Beauty and the Beast story. Other tales classified under ATU-425 feature an Animal Bridegroom. After a taboo is broken, the animal husband flees from the bride, and she must complete a series of tasks or embark on a long journey to reunite with her lost husband.
A Mission Gone Awry:
The original version of Eros and Psyche comes from Apuleius’ Metamorphoses as a story within a story. The tale begins with the youngest and most beautiful daughter of a king and queen, Psyche, attracting so many admirers that people have started worshipping her instead of Aphrodite (Venus), the goddess of love. The jealous Aphrodite sends her son Eros (Cupid) to make Psyche fall in love with a hideous and wretched creature. However, rather than carrying out his mother’s bidding, Eros mistakenly pricks himself with his own arrow and consequently falls deeply in love with Psyche upon the sight of her sleeping form. In other words, the script gets flipped on Eros who is wounded by his own weapon.
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[Cupid Finding Psyche by Edward Burne-Jones]
Man Wol and Chung Myung’s first meeting bears a few similarities. After Jang Man Wol’s gang of bandits attacks Princess Song Hwa’s caravan, royal guard captain Go Chung Myung chases her down, intent on capturing the gang leader. However, instead of successfully carrying out this mission, Chung Myung becomes mesmerized by Man Wol’s beauty. Man Wol knocks him unconscious while he is distracted and takes him hostage. He is both held captive and captivated by her. Princess Song Hwa, the one who sent Chung Myung, will be playing the part of the jealous Aphrodite in this story.
In both stories, our heroine poses a threat to a royal/divine mother figure who takes this as a personal affront. A young man under her authority is sent to condemn the heroine to a dark fate. The hero fails to carry out this mission and ends up falling in love with the heroine instead.
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Man Wol appears as if asleep à la Sleeping Beauty.
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She flips the script on this lovestruck fool.
 The Mythical Snake-Husband:
Eros, the god of desire, is feared even by Zeus, for a shot from his arrow fills his victims with uncontrollable infatuation often resulting in infidelity and adultery. He is sometimes described as a serpent who flies on black wings. It is meant to be understood that, in a way, Eros is exactly the kind of monster that Aphrodite wished Psyche to wed.
In other fairy tales classified under ATU-425, the bridegroom is a young man, often a prince, who has been transformed into a monster, animal, beast, etc. He may take the appearance of a bull, pig, bear, snail, etc., but most often he appears as a snake or a bird such as in the Mexican fairy tale El Pájaro Verde, or the Italian fairy tale The Enchanted Snake.
Most obviously, Chung Myung takes the form of an animal when his soul is eventually transformed into a firefly. But, unlike the heroes in Animal Bridegroom stories, Chung Myung begins his story as just a regular man, not a beast or monster. That being said, when his character is first introduced in the show (and to Man Wol), we see him as a fearsome warrior and formidable swordsman. As Man Wol’s captive, he flirts with her in an attempt to convince her to let him go. At first, it is unclear whether he is simply trying to pull a fast one on her, and for a moment it seems like he is going to leave her for dead when she gets caught in quicksand. His initial shiftiness as well as his lethal capabilities make him, metaphorically-speaking, akin to a snake.
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The Beautiful Lonely Heroine:
Psyche, the youngest and most beautiful of three princesses, is plagued by solitude. She despises her own beauty for making her singularly lonely. Even though she is widely adored, no one wants to approach her. She resents her virginity as it represents her loneliness and longing for romantic companionship.
It’s worth mentioning that in other Lost Husband stories, the heroine is often depicted as a paragon of idealized femininity: young, beautiful, unquestioningly obedient to her father, kind, gentle, self-sacrificial beyond reason. Compare that to her older sisters who are portrayed as vapid, jealous, and vain, the latter primarily for “turning up their noses” and refusing to marry an animal bridegroom unlike their younger sister who is inexplicably totally cool with it. These polarized depictions of femininity, while regressive and devoid of nuance, are commonplace in fairy tales, and the lack of depth could even be considered a defining genre convention (see Max Lüthi's criteria for märchen in The European Folktale: Form and Nature, particularly "depthlessness").
Although the fierce thief Man Wol doesn’t fit this model of idealized feminine heroine, she does have some things in common with her fair-maiden counterparts. She, too, suffers from loneliness, and, as a transient bandit, she is emotionally isolated. Apart from her foster brother Yeon Woo, she doesn’t allow others to get close to her.
In the first flashback shown of her past, she says that she envies trees because they don’t have to wander around. She laments that “it must be nice to just put down roots and settle down.” 
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Man Wol’s conversation with Yeon Woo in front of the great oak tree reveals that she longs for stability and a way to live past her youth, neither of which her nomadic life as a bandit can provide her. When Yeon Woo offers to build Man Wol a house out of the wood from the giant tree, she teasingly turns him down. Considering the great oak tree symbolizes Man Wol’s desire for longevity, that Yeon Woo specifically promises to cut it down demonstrates the impossibility of their situation. His words to Man Wol in this scene about transferring his extra years to her are poignantly prophetic:
Yeon Woo: We all grow old. You should think about putting down roots. I can’t let you live under a tarp when you’ve become an old lady.
Man Wol: I could be captured and killed at any moment. That’s my life. I don’t even expect to live until I’m old.
Yeon Woo: But you can. The fortune teller said that I’ll live a long life, just like this tree. I’m expected to live 100 years, so I’ll give you my extra years.
Man Wol: If you do that, you’ll die.
Yeon Woo: You’re right. It’s okay, though. I don’t mind dying for you, so you can have it all.
Not only does this scene foreshadow Yeon Woo’s heart-wrenching sacrifice on Man Wol’s behalf, but it also indicates that, under Man Wol’s current circumstances, a life must be “cut short,” be it the tree’s or Yeon Woo’s, in order to secure the longevity and stability she desires. 
Whereas Psyche expressly wishes to find love, especially after her two older sisters are both married and she cannot find a husband, Man Wol's desires do not necessarily require love to achieve. However, “settling down” and “putting down roots” are conventionally achieved via marriage.
Merging of the Wedding and Funeral Rites, A Leap of Faith:
After consulting the Oracle of Apollo who tells them their daughter is to marry a hideous monster, Psyche’s parents assume this is a sure death sentence. In funeral attire, Psyche is taken to the edge of a cliff to be carried by the west wind Zephyr to Eros’s palace. She bravely accepts her fated marriage, takes the plunge, and encounters her mythical bridegroom in an enchanted palace in the forest. In blurring the lines between the wedding and funeral rites, death and love are depicted as intertwined.
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[Psyche’s Wedding by Edward Burne-Jones]
The most prominent moment when a wedding and funeral are merged in Man Wol’s backstory is during her deadly confrontation with Chung Myung in the royal bridal chamber. But more on that later. Sticking to this pair’s first meeting, a moment occurs that could be interpreted as her taking a leap of faith. Man Wol chooses to release her captive Chung Myung in hopes that he will save her from being swallowed by quicksand. In tossing him her sword so that he can cut himself free, she places her life in his hands. Chung Myung in turn, rather than escaping when he has the chance, saves his captor from the brink of death.
The Heroine Grows Affectionate toward her Nighttime Visitor:
Psyche is well provided for in Eros’s enchanted palace, but he only comes to visit her at night when it is dark and she can’t see him. Initially, Psyche is hesitant about the intimacy they share at night, but eventually she grows to enjoy those moments.
In other Animal Bridegroom stories, the groom takes off his animal skin/feathers in the heroine’s bedroom and reveals himself to be a handsome youth by night. The heroine grows fond of him and the private conversations they share together, but he must disappear with the rising sun.
Chung Myung meets Man Wol at the moonlit lake to share wine. At first, she is annoyed that he has disrupted her solitude, but he tells her that the view of the lake has gotten better since he arrived because she is no longer alone. Then, he says that in the future whenever she drinks there by herself, she will be waiting for him to show up like he did that night. These words prove true, as Man Wol evidently grows to crave Chung Myung’s company so much that she is willing to sneak into the Princess’s castle at the risk of her own life just to see him.
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Due to the forbidden nature of their relationship, Man Wol and Chung Myung’s trysts must occur under the cover of darkness.
The Bride and Groom are Married in a Symbolic Union:
With their marriage consummated and a bond forming between them, Eros and Psyche are no longer married only in name. At this point, they are referred to as husband and wife, not just the bride and groom of a sham marriage.
While marital and botched proposal imagery are evoked at several points throughout Man Wol and Chung Myung’s love story (which I will discuss further down below), I would pinpoint the moment they become symbolically married as when they are seated together in front of the fire, and he signs her name with her finger on the surface of a rock. This is the scene in which their bond is cemented, quite literally, in stone, and their feelings for each other are made clear.
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A Voice of Doubt Leads the Wife to Act Against Her Husband’s Wishes:
When Psyche’s sisters visit her in her luxurious palace, they sow doubt in her about the true form of her husband. They make her believe that her husband is truly dangerous and convince her to look upon Eros’s true form and kill him if he really is a monster.
In many Animal Bridegroom stories, the jealous sisters or an overprotective father may directly harm the husband, believing him to be devouring the bride at night. In other variants, the heroine asks about her husband’s origin, shares his secret identity with others, or looks upon his true form when he specifically forbade it. This constitutes breaking a taboo and/or a betrayal of the husband’s trust.
For Man Wol, the voice of doubt about her relationship with Chung Myung comes from inside herself rather than from an outside source. After Man Wol tells Chung Myung that she and her clan of bandits are leaving to join the rebellion, he offers to risk his life and run away with her. But she declines and breaks things off with him.
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In this impersonal statement of rejection, Man Wol alludes to the external obstacles that stand in between this couple’s happiness: her clan joining the rebellion against the kingdom that Chung Myung serves, their difference in class and standing in the law, the imminent war that stands between their peoples, etc. Although these obstacles are great, they seem to be just excuses for what is really holding Man Wol back—the internal obstacles within herself.
Needing to have relied on herself alone for so many years, Man Wol is fiercely independent and unaccustomed to letting others in. Her doubts, perhaps self-doubts, and hesitancy in commitment are the real reasons for this “break-up,” not the meddling of pesky relatives as in other Animal Bridegroom tales. In fact, the character you would expect to play the role of an overprotective or jealous family member, Yeon Woo, is quite supportive of Man Wol’s relationship with Chung Myung, and even encourages her to follow her heart when he senses she might not come back from bidding Chung Myung a final farewell.
Yeon Woo (joining Man Wol at the foot of the giant tree): Everyone’s ready. When should we leave?
Man Wol (gazing at the jug with her symbol tied to the tree): He was here. He’s probably there now. Let me go see him one last time.
Yeon Woo (catching Man Wol’s wrists to hold her back): Man Wol-ah. Will you come back?
Man Wol: Yes. Of course, I’ll be back.
Yeon Woo (dropping Man Wol’s wrists, he gives a sheepish smile): You don’t need to come back. I’ll be fine either way, so do as you wish.
Breaking the Taboo, a Betrayal of Trust:
Psyche listens to her sisters who tell her to approach her husband with a lamp to see his true identity and a dagger to kill him if he truly is a monster. When Psyche follows through with this plan and sees Eros’s true form exposed, this constitutes a betrayal of his trust. In other Animal Bridegroom stories, the wife does the one thing her husband specifically forbids her from doing which is often sharing his secret with a nosy family member. At this point, he assumes his animal/beast form and flees his bride.
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[From Favorite Greek Myths illustrated by Troy Howell]
This may seem counterintuitive, as Chung Myung is the one who ends up outright betraying Man Wol, but when Man Wol allows her fears and doubts to take hold of her and forsakes her love, this can be considered “breaking the taboo.” Her rejection of Chung Myung and of her true feelings leads to a series of events that results in Chung Myung’s “beastly” form being revealed—that is, his capacity for betrayal, deception, and acting in his own self-interest at the expense of those around him—i.e. the metaphorical qualities of a snake. This might sound like a circular line of thinking (it is), but I am framing this sequence of events in this way for the purpose of reading the story as a Search for the Lost Husband tale rather than a Quest of the Lost Bride tale in which the roles are reversed. On that note…
Part 2: Search for the Lost Husband or Quest for the Lost Bride?
(a.k.a. an aside in which I ramble on)
In a Search for the Lost Husband story, a betrayal such as Chung Myung’s on the part of the mythical husband would constitute a role reversal, and thus would be incredibly rare. However, a husband’s betrayal is commonplace in Quest for the Lost Bride stories. So, you might be asking yourself, other than switching the gender roles, how are ATU-425: Search for the Lost Husband and ATU-400: Quest for the Lost Bride stories different? Well, the biggest difference is in the story’s conclusion. A Search for the Lost Husband story usually has a happy ending with the couple reuniting, while the husband’s Quest for his mythical wife is usually unsuccessful. There are a few reasons for this, which I will get into later, but for now, all you need to know is that, in general, a betrayal by the mythical husband usually results in tragedy whereas a betrayal by the mythical wife usually ends with her successfully recovering her lost husband.
Because the love story between Man Wol and Chung Myung is ill-fated, in my interpretation, it follows the tragic Quest for the Lost Bride route. It includes hallmarks of tragedy such as a permanent separation of the mythical couple (as seen by Man Wol turning her back on Chung Myung on the bridge to the afterlife) and the husband wallowing away in grief and despair for the remainder of his days (as seen by Chung Myung remaining as a firefly for 1300 years only to cross the bridge by himself). However, as I hope to demonstrate in this meta, Man Wol and Chung Myung’s story also contains enough elements distinct to Search for the Lost Husband stories that, in my opinion, it could have gone either way, either ending with permanent tragedy for the pair, or happily with a love that transcended death. The show-writers were probably well aware of this, as the show itself seems to toy with the idea of Koo Chan Sung, the first male lead, being the reincarnation of Go Chung Myung, but eventually this is revealed to be a misdirection.
In addition to containing many unmistakable elements of ATU-425, Man Wol and Chung Myung’s story already sees many elements reversed anyway. It is Chung Myung, the hero, who is associated with royalty/nobility, not the maiden Man Wol. She is the one who is an outlaw and is shown to be quite ruthless, fierce, and scary, like the villainous Eros.
A critical aspect of the Eros and Psyche myth is that both Eros and Psyche must undergo joint journeys toward individuation. As a result, their journeys can naturally be thought of as parallel if not interchangeable. In this way, having Man Wol and Chung Myung move back and forth between the positions of Eros and Psyche, or “lost spouse” and “searching spouse,” does not actually contradict the story structure of the Eros and Psyche myth. Furthermore, often a husband’s failed quest for his lost bride serves as a prelude to a switch to the feminine perspective in which the wife’s search for her lost husband is successful.
We know that for as long as Chung Myung had remained with Man Wol as a firefly, she, too, had spent all those years waiting for him to arrive at her hotel. Given that the pair was mutually waiting for the other for over 1300 years and with a curse of her own for Man Wol to overcome, when Man Wol finally says Chung Myung’s name and he reappears before her, it seemed like all the ingredients were there for a successful recovery of the lost animal husband and the mythical couple reuniting in love and joy. This is also the moment when the flower petals of the Moon Tree finally fall, indicating that Man Wol’s punishment has come to an end. Despite this, the show still sticks to the unhappy Quest for the Lost Bride trajectory for this pair.
Typically in a Quest for the Lost Bride tale, the husband's betrayal is due to his fear, arrogance, or lack of faith in/faithfulness to his wife. These attributes are then harshly punished by the story’s tragic end for him. Although perhaps fear factored into Chung Myung’s decision to betray Man Wol, and arguably heedlessness into him getting caught in the first place, his reasoning for the betrayal, rather than highlighting a fatal flaw in his character, paints him as a victim of circumstance more than anything else. He was backed into a corner by the princess and coerced into betraying Man Wol against his own wishes while making a bargain for her life to be spared. It would seem that this betrayal was not about saving his own neck (he told Yeon Woo he was planning on paying for his sins with his life afterward), but rather saving as many innocents as possible (his relatives in the castle and the Gaori villagers).
As punishment for his misdeeds, Chung Myung dies by Man Wol’s sword and remains as a firefly, unseen to her for 1300 years, both of which were fates he elected for himself. Yet, after he finally has the chance to explain his side of the story to Man Wol, and she is able to make peace with what happened and let go of her grudges, for some reason the narrative isn’t through punishing him. Man Wol abandons him on the bridge to the afterlife, and the pair is separated forever after. The remorseful Chung Myung’s ultimate fate is characterized by eternal punishment and heartache for offenses that were deliberately portrayed by the narrative in a sympathetic light. This eternal punishment, in my opinion, comes off as exceedingly harsh, especially in contrast to other characters like Man Wol and Princess Song Hwa who had the blood of many on their hands, yet were both given happy endings in which they were able to find love again.
Part 3: Chung Myung and Man Wol as Eros and Psyche (cont.)
As much as a part of me relishes in the tragedy and melodrama of the storyline the show gave us with Man Wol and Chung Myung, my biggest qualm about its ending is that it retroactively suggests that Man Wol’s decision to forsake her love with Chung Myung was the right one? She alluded to the worldly barriers that stood between them when she told Chung Myung they could never be together. She spoke those words out of cynicism and guardedness, and she was at her least authentic to herself and her true desires when she said them. And yet, the narrative ultimately proves them correct? After a millennium had swept away the conditions that had made their love precarious and impossible in the first place, Man Wol still ended up being right: their love was not meant to be; it was never meant to be. (╥_╥)
The Husband’s True Form is Revealed, the Wife’s Love for him Deepens:
Psyche approaches her sleeping husband armed with flame and steel, prepared to kill him. When she discovers that he is the beautiful god Eros, she accidentally pricks herself with one of his arrows and falls even more in love with him. In other Animal Bridegroom stories, the wounded husband flees, and the distraught wife loves him so much that she is willing to walk to the ends of the earth, often until holes have been worn into the soles of iron shoes, to find him.
For Man Wol, there are two scenes in which she approaches Chung Myung equipped to kill him. The first plays the wife’s-love-deepening trope straight whereas the second directly subverts it.
In the first, Man Wol is hiding in a shed as a runaway slave. When someone enters the shed, she jumps out from her hiding place and blindly attacks the intruder with her dagger, unaware that it is Chung Myung. It is only when he catches her wrist mid-swing that she stops and sees his true identity. Her eyes quiver in recognition. The framing of this sequence—the use of slow motion, the soft music, the pair’s heavy breathing and parted lips, the symmetry of their silhouettes—indicate that this moment is especially significant; we are watching the moment when they fall for each other.
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Afterward, Chung Myung protects Man Wol by telling the soldiers who are looking for her to search elsewhere. This is followed up by a scene of Chung Myung bandaging Man Wol’s wound, clear visual language for the care and tenderness between them.
The second time Man Wol is prepared to kill Chung Myung is, of course, in the royal bridal chamber. There, she intends to destroy him, particularly the “monstrous” part of him that is loyal and wedded to the princess. She wields her sword (steel), then burns the palace to the ground (with flame).
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At this point in the story, Chung Myung’s loyalties had already been put to the test after he found himself at a crossroads when confronted by Princess Song Hwa. Seeing Chung Myung’s “true colors” revealed, Man Wol, rather than growing in love, grows in deep hatred of him.
A Harsh Light Exposes What Lies in the Darkness, The Snake Recoils:
The light from Psyche’s lamp reveals her husband’s true form. She becomes so startled that, in addition to pricking herself with one of Eros’s arrows, she spills hot oil from her lamp onto him. The wounded Eros recoils and retreats to the protection of his mother, Aphrodite.
Psyche had, quite literally, been kept in the dark about the identity of her invisible husband. When she casts his true form into the light, this can be read allegorically as her leaving a childlike state of ignorance behind and gaining a sense of consciousness. This new knowledge and awareness, although initially leading to pain and heartache, is ultimately necessary for Psyche—who represents the human soul—to individuate and enter true adulthood. Eros represents Psyche’s Shadow, her repressed desires that she fears to claim. When Psyche wields the knife and lamp, she strips back her own illusions and refuses to continue living in the dark. Psyche’s pursuit of Eros—the Soul’s pursuit of Desire—elevates her from her mortal status. The product of this union is a daughter named “Joy.”
One notable parallel to Man Wol and Chung Myung’s story is that Chung Myung, under the threat of never seeing Man Wol again, leaves the signal to meet at the lake where he awaits her with what appears to be a token of betrothal.
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He is exposed in the sense that he sets up this meeting in broad daylight for a change, as well as in that Princess Song Hwa arrives first to expose him as a colluder with the rebellion and a traitor to his country. Under duress, he retreats to the side of Princess Song Hwa who corresponds to Aphrodite.
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However, I think the comparison becomes much more interesting if we think of Man Wol as the snake-like Eros and Chung Myung as the light-bearing Psyche. Chung Myung—the man who was transformed into a firefly and whose name (hanja: 清明; pinyin: qīngmíng) translates to “Pure and Bright”—is the light that reveals Man Wol’s true self. He draws out her capacity to be warm-hearted despite her cynicism. Man Wol (hanja: 满月) is the “Full Moon” whose glow is only a reflection of the light cast upon it (from the Sun. Yes, I’m invoking Yin and Yang here). Man Wol cannot hide her true self from Chung Myung because he sees through the front she puts up and the walls she has built around her. She shows discomfort with this vulnerability such as after Chung Myung surmises that she came to see him in the castle because she had missed him while drinking alone.
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When Chung Myung offers to run away with Man Wol, his light shines too brightly, and she recoils from him. But we know she is acting against her true desires as seen by her tearful look as she watches him leave and by her impetuousness to see him one more time. The break-up scene between Man Wol and Chung Myung presents a moment in which Man Wol must confront the desires that she has been desperately trying to conceal from herself but outwardly manifest in the form of Chung Myung.
In forsaking her love, Man Wol acts in fear of her desires. On the other hand, this break-up can simultaneously be viewed as an act of Man Wol’s agency to make decisions about her own life. She is well within her rights to end this relationship as it had always been incredibly risky, even scandalous, for both involved. Chung Myung had been looking the other way and, at times, actively helping out a gang of criminals. Man Wol had been placing her trust in someone whose job it was to arrest and capture people like her. Her reasons for joining the rebellion—it’s better than living as a thief, getting caught, and dying young—see her taking steps toward achieving the stability and longevity that she wished for. It’s just that she couldn’t conceive of a way to achieve these things while keeping Chung Myung at her side (when arguably this may have been possible). I also think that Man Wol truly thought that putting her feelings aside and breaking things off between her and Chung Myung was the safest decision for the two of them. In a cruel twist of irony, however, this indirectly leads to the catastrophic series of events that occurred in the fallout of their relationship that the break-up was intended to prevent.
In my opinion, Man Wol’s character arc on the show, in addition to resolving her deep grudges and healing from her past, should have involved her learning not to run away from her desires and integrating her Shadow/animus.
The Wounded Husband Flees and is Confined, the Heroine is Tormented:
The injured Eros is looked after by his mother Aphrodite who confines him in her house for far longer than he wishes or is necessary for him to recover. As Psyche continues to seek her lost husband, the furious Aphrodite drags her by the hair and has her whipped and tortured by her lackeys Sadness and Sorrow.
In other versions of ATU-425, the fleeing husband becomes fatally ill or is about to be married off to another bride, often a monster or ogress who, like Aphrodite, holds him against his will. Symbolically, these two fates are the same as the prince’s illness is akin to being wedded to Death. Typically at this point, the heroine arrives just in time to cure her lost husband or rescue him from a loveless marriage.
After Man Wol’s rejection, Chung Myung returns, against his wishes, to the side of Princess Song Hwa. When Man Wol rides to the lake seeking him, she encounters Song Hwa instead who gleefully has her arrested while mocking her as the cause of her people’s demise. 
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As a quick aside, Princess Song Hwa is wearing a completely different robe when she confronts Man Wol from the one she wore when confronting Chung Myung at the lake which could indicate that a significant amount of time passed between these two occurrences. They may have even taken place on different days, meaning Man Wol arrived much too late.
Chung Myung is forced to marry Song Hwa even though his heart still belongs to Man Wol. Our heroine Man Wol arrives on the night of the wedding to kill him rather than to rescue her mythical husband from his marriage to the Death-bride.
The Heroine Undergoes an Arduous Journey to Reunite with her Lost Husband:
In order to see Eros again, Psyche must complete four seemingly impossible tasks given to her by the angry Aphrodite (in other tales it’s usually three impossible tasks, but Aphrodite is extra mean and gives Psyche a fourth). Eros’s hand is present in the assistance she receives for each task—in the ants, river spirits, eagle, and tower that come to her aid. The completion of these tasks credits Psyche for her bravery and persistence, and therefore she is presented as worthy of her divine husband. The details in other ATU-425 stories vary widely but are largely unimportant. Typically, the heroine will have to travel a great distance, collect magical items, and accept supernatural aid in order to recover her lost husband.
After the deadly night of the royal wedding, both Man Wol and Chung Myung have long journeys ahead of them to atone in some way for the sins they committed in their lives. Man Wol becomes cursed as the owner of the Guest House of the Moon and receives assistance in the form of Koo Chan Sung who himself receives guidance at pivotal moments from Chung Myung’s ghostly insect form. 
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This struck me as similar to how Eros is present in the small insects—ants—who help Psyche complete the first task of sorting out the grains. Chung Myung’s unwavering persistence in remaining at Man Wol’s side as a firefly is shown to have impressed Mago and even the Grim Reaper.
A “seemingly impossible” task needs to be accomplished for both Man Wol and Chung Myung’s curses to be lifted: the Moon Tree must bloom and wither flowers—meaning Man Wol’s heart must soften—for time to flow for her once again; for Chung Myung to regain his human form and appear before Man Wol she must utter his name, a feat rendered seemingly impossible due to Man Wol’s deep-seated resentment.
A Trip to a Realm only Accessible to the Dead, Another Way:
When Psyche is successful in completing three impossible tasks, Aphrodite makes one final attempt to get rid of her. Psyche must descend to the Underworld and bring back a piece of Queen Persephone’s beauty in a box to be delivered to Aphrodite. At first, Psyche believes that the only way to reach the Underworld is to die, so she prepares to fling herself from a tower. But Eros speaks to Psyche through the tower, instructing her on another way to enter the Underworld. He gives her highly specific instructions as well as coins for the boat ride across the river Styx. She must not deviate from these instructions lest she remain trapped in the Underworld forever.
Wanting absolution for all the lives she took, Man Wol journeys to the end of the road in search of the mythical Guest House of the Moon where the souls of the dead gather and are consoled. As the afterlife in this story leads to reincarnation and new life, it does not correspond to the Underworld; the Guest House of the Moon is more of an equivalent as it is a mythical, if temporary, abode for the souls of the dead. When Mago tells Man Wol that only the dead can go there, Man Wol draws her sword to her own neck, saying she is willing to take her own life just to get there.
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Mago tells Man Wol that it is foolish to think she can compensate for her sins with her life this way. Man Wol becomes tied to the Moon Tree instead, caught between life and death and cursed to serve as the innkeeper of the Guest House.
Just like Man Wol, Chung Myung believes the only way he can pay for the debt of his wrongdoings is with his own life. It is the voice of Yeon Woo that stops Chung Myung from doing this and insists there is another way for him to pay for his sins—he must live on as a traitor to ensure that Man Wol survives.
Traps and Risks in the Underworld:
Several traps lie in Psyche’s way as she journeys to Hades, chiefly if she opens the casket containing Persephone’s beauty out of curiosity she will never return from the Underworld.
The biggest trap set for Man Wol is the possibility of her giving into her anger and resentment, becoming an evil, spiteful ghost and vanishing forever. This would mean she would never leave the Underworld of the Guest House or move onto the afterlife to be reborn.
Chung Myung, who is also stuck in this Underworld as Man Wol’s first guest, also faces a great risk there. Over the 1300 years, his soul has become weary and his light has faded. With little energy left, he may vanish before reaching the bridge to the afterlife.
Facing Temptation, Return from Death’s Clutches:
Psyche carefully follows all of Eros’s instructions and manages to escape the Underworld. Thinking she has succeeded, Psyche wishes to take some of Persephone’s beauty for herself to please her husband. But what’s in the box is the Sleep of Death, and she falls down lifeless. Eros, who has healed and can no longer bear Psyche’s absence, breaks free from his prison and wipes the sleep from her eyes.
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[Psyche Opening the Golden Box by John William Waterhouse]
In other versions of ATU-425, the prince is on the brink of death or about to marry another woman when his wife finds and rescues him. To save the lost husband, the heroine must perform a task that only she can do, or use a blood sacrifice to cure his affliction. In this way, she is uniquely able to save him from a literal/spiritual/metaphorical death. 
Chung Myung’s marriage to a false bride is interrupted by Man Wol who infiltrates the castle intending to kill him. In some cases, such as with a snake-husband, a violent means is necessary to break the curse. With a snake, death or burning of the snake’s skin are typically the only ways for the snake-husband to be transformed back into his true self. Since Chung Myung has taken on the metaphorical qualities of a snake, it could be argued that only by dying and the subsequent burning of his body can he regain his humanity. Thus, Man Wol’s decisions to slay Song Hwa, the Death-bride, run Chung Myung through, and burn down the castle, while ruthless, are not, by themselves, mythically inconsistent with the ATU-425 folktale type.
1300 years later, Man Wol knows that her encounter with Chung Myung is inevitable, and she must face her temptation to give into her anger, destroy his soul, and vanish forever. However, after hearing his side of the story and learning of the promise he made to Yeon Woo, Man Wol’s anger dissipates. She is seemingly able to forgive Chung Myung, or at least let go of her resentments toward him.
The one final task that Man Wol is assigned by Mago is one that only she can accomplish: she must see Chung Myung off and accompany him on the bridge to the afterlife, thus saving him from vanishing forever i.e. spiritual death.
Recognition Motif:
After the heroine rescues her lost husband, typically there is a moment when the prince finally recognizes the heroine after their long separation and declares her his one true wife. The lost husband may not recognize the searching wife until she performs the one task that only she can do or until she shows the lost husband a gift she once received from him.
Apotheosis, Sacred Marriage, Happily Ever After:
A moment of recognition on Man Wol’s part occurs when Chung Myung’s ghost, while in possession of Chan Sung’s body, caresses Man Wol in a hauntingly familiar way. Later, she realizes that the firefly is Chung Myung who has been with her all along. She says his name, and he appears before her. A moment of recognition on the part of would-be prince Chung Myung happened much earlier in the bridal chamber when he said he wished to welcome Man Wol as a beautiful bride (his true bride).
Eros and Psyche have a proper wedding that is blessed and attended by all the deities. She eats ambrosia which makes her immortal so that the pair can be united for eternity as equals. Psyche, now a deity in her own right, gives birth to a daughter named Hedone or “Joy.”
Man Wol and Chung Myung walk down the bridge to the afterlife together, but stop midway. There, on the edge of eternity, Chung Myung offers Man Wol his hand in symbolic union one last time. He pleads with his eyes for her to join him and move on together, but she turns her back on him, departing from the mythic structure and leaving him to cross into oblivion by his lonesome. This is how their story ends.
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Part 4: More Parallels and Discussion
The Husband is Rebuked by the Cruel One who Sent Him:
When Aphrodite learns that Eros fell in love with her enemy Psyche rather than dooming her to fall in love with a loathsome monster, she rebukes him as a failure. Aphrodite sees Psyche as a direct threat and is fearful of being usurped by her.
When Song Hwa finds out that Chung Myung has fallen in love with an enemy and has been in league with Man Wol’s gang of bandits instead of quashing them, she chastises him as a traitor to his country, then blackmails him into doing her bidding and rounding up the thieves. Song Hwa and her father view Man Wol and her thieves as an existential threat to their kingdom. Like Aphrodite, Song Hwa is afraid that she will be usurped by Man Wol in two ways: first, she is afraid of a resurgent Goguryeo overthrowing her kingdom; second, she views Man Wol as a romantic rival for Chung Myung’s affections.
The Beauty Repeatedly Rejects the Beast’s Marriage Proposals:
As there is strong overlap between Beauty and the Beast type stories and Animal Bridegroom stories, ATU-425 stories can be read in those terms. Just as how Eros was the one who was pricked by his own arrow at the sight of Psyche, the Beast is the one who falls in love with the Beauty first, whereas the Beauty only starts to fall in love with him as she sees past his veneer and looks into the man who is inside. The couple’s momentary bliss, however, cannot last, as the Beast is not ready to let go of his brutish exterior. When he clings to his literal or metaphorical beast-form, the Beauty must reject him. (Think Jane fleeing Rochester after his bigamy is discovered in Jane Eyre.) It is only after he makes some kind of self-sacrifice on her behalf, often involving a literal/metaphorical death and rebirth, that the Beauty finally professes her love to him. Often this declaration of love is all it takes to heal him from the brink of death.
Man Wol rejects Chung Myung’s “marriage proposals” on three separate occasions. First is when he offers to run away with her when she is about to leave to join the rebellion.
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This botched proposal is prolonged; Man Wol initially rejects Chung Myung, but when he leaves the signal to meet at the lake, two details imply that, had she arrived on time, Man Wol may have changed her mind: 1) As mentioned previously, Yeon Woo seems to doubt that Man Wol will return from bidding Chung Myung a final adieu, and 2) while wallowing in self-loathing and speaking to a past version of herself, modern-day Man Wol says that she would have been happy to have received the metal brooch Chung Myung intended as a gift for her. Regardless of whether Man Wol would have changed her mind or not, Chung Myung’s attempts to risk his life and elope with Man Wol fail, and we see how things go horribly awry when the princess arrives at the lake to confront Chung Myung before Man Wol can reach him.
Man Wol rejects an overt insinuation of a marriage rite during her confrontation with Chung Myung in the chamber where the royal marriage was supposed to be consummated. He invokes the image of them as the true bridal couple by referring to Man Wol as “a beautiful bride” whom he missed and wished to caress. She is not receptive to this and reasserts her blade against his neck.
The last time Man Wol rejects Chung Myung’s hand in a metaphorical marriage is on the bridge to the afterlife.
The first of these botched proposals happens due to Man Wol’s hesitancy, fears, and doubts, as well as Song Hwa’s interference.
The second rejection in the bridal chamber is the most mythically consistent because Chung Myung is already wedded to a death threefold—1) Song Hwa as the Death-bride, 2) the imminent physical death promised to him by Man Wol, and 3) the spiritual death of living as a traitor to himself and his desires. Also, while Chung Myung’s undying love for Man Wol is on full display in this scene, at this point, he can be interpreted as still clinging to his snake-form since he continues to provide Man Wol with no explanation for his actions.
In choosing Chan Sung over Chung Myung, Man Wol only accomplishes one of these things. She turns her back on her painful past, closing that chapter in her life. But her choice does not lead to lasting joy, at least not in that lifetime, as shortly thereafter she must depart for the afterlife herself and leave Chan Sung behind. Furthermore, Man Wol’s love with Chan Sung makes no statements about an older versus newer way of doing things because Chan Sung is from Man Wol’s present. Chan Sung represents a fresh start for Man Wol unfettered by her personal past, but he does not necessarily represent a rejection of the precepts of the past more broadly.
As for the last, after 1300 years Chung Myung has finally gone through his transformation and is restored from a firefly back into a man. Man Wol rejects him on the bridge, not because he is still part-Beast, but because she has fallen in love with someone else—a departure from this story structure. This is the point at which the mythical couple, now more worthy of each other after their trials and tribulations, is typically joined in an alchemical union which gives birth to “joy” along with freedom from the pains of the past and the older generation’s way of doing things.
Compare this to a reunion with Chung Myung that would have transcended time, death, clan, class, war, ill-fate, heartache, misunderstanding, resentment, and all the other seemingly insurmountable obstacles, both manmade and metaphysical, that stood in the way of this couple’s happiness. A happy ending for this couple would signify that love is more powerful than any obstacle, that true love finds a way even when there seems to be none, and that a love that is forbidden in its time is only considered taboo due to the small-mindedness of people.
On the Bridal Chamber Scene:
I just wanted to elaborate more on how this scene merges the wedding and funeral rites. Man Wol attempts to kill Chung Myung here, but when she hesitates, he takes his fate into his own hands and sacrifices himself by running himself through. Apart from this literal self-sacrifice, Chung Myung also puts his own wants and needs aside in favor of Man Wol’s by saving Chan Sung on the tunnel to the afterlife and facilitating his reunion with Man Wol.
The final duel between Man Wol and Chung Myung takes place in the room where a marriage was supposed to be consummated. After killing Song Hwa, Man Wol disguises herself in Song Hwa’s bridal garments, clearly playing upon the idea of a false and true bride. Song Hwa’s bridal gown is rightfully hers, but in terms of her marriage to Chung Myung, she is only dressing the part. Meanwhile, Man Wol’s appearance in these bridal robes is false—it’s a ruse—but at heart she is Chung Myung’s true bride.
I find the decision to don the bridal attire on Man Wol’s part fascinating. Even if it wasn’t her intention, it’s as though she’s claiming her rightful place as Chung Myung’s intended bride. She even goes to the trouble of unveiling herself in the same way that Song Hwa did when she expected to be greeted by Chung Myung. 
Even if on a conscious level, Man Wol only wore the bridal garb in order to catch Chung Myung off guard or to vindictively shove in his face what they could have been, her “disguise,” on some level, reveals her true aspect. Man Wol may, in a literal sense, be merely occupying Song Hwa’s place in the royal bedchamber, but in this same act, she is refusing to let Song Hwa supplant her at Chung Myung’s side. Ultimately, Man Wol’s effort to catch Chung Myung off guard backfires because he uses it to garner her sympathy and demonstrate that he still loves her.
Furthermore, after Chung Myung breathes his last, Man Wol is left feeling shocked, hollow, and empty. It might have been easy to miss, but she appears to mourn his death. She even sheds tears for him, and perhaps, for herself and what she’s become.
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This isn’t the triumphant face of someone who just enacted her long-awaited revenge over an enemy; this isn’t even the face of relief over not having to kill someone she wasn’t sure she could bring herself to kill. This is the face of mourning.
I might be wrong about this, but the music that plays over their final exchange of words is reminscent of Lacrimosa from Mozart’s Requiem. This dirgeful piece of music is part of a funeral mass setting. Additionally, this piece of music is associated with the following sculpture by Antonio Canova.
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[Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss]
This famous sculpture depicts the moment when Eros revives Psyche from the Sleep of Death. 
Was the choice to evoke this particular piece of music composed for funerals and associated with the Eros and Psyche myth over the bridal room scene simply a coincidence? Honestly maybe, I might be reaching with this connection ahaha.
Beethoven’s famous Moonlight Sonata then starts playing as Chung Myung’s hand reaches to hold the back of Man Wol’s head. This song also notably has the somber character of a funeral march. These same notes are played during the opening sequence of the show as Man Wol travels with the coffin containing the trinkets of her deceased friends in search of the Guest House of the Moon, which is a kind of funeral procession.
Healing the Wounded Masculine:
The heroine’s ability to save her lost husband from a dark or deathly fate is a testament to her power and the strength of her love. This can be read as a literalization of the point in Murdock’s Heroine’s Journey at which the wounded masculine is healed then subsequently integrated with the feminine in a “sacred marriage” that transcends the masculine-feminine duality.
Man Wol already acts to heal Chung Myung by letting go of her resentments toward him and accompanying him on the bridge to the afterlife. She saves him from an eternal spiritual death in the form of vanishing, thus healing the outer wounded masculine (Chung Myung). Man Wol’s self-loathing could constitute her inner masculine that needs healing as well. It can be inferred from the scene in Episode 14 in which Man Wol talks to a past version of herself that she blamed herself for the death of her people and believed that she was foolish to have ever fallen in love with Chung Myung. The curse that she creates for Chan Sung when she suspects he is Chung Myung’s reincarnation takes the form of a shadow-version of herself.
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This deep bitterness that Man Wol harbors for her past self is presumably destroyed along with the metal ornament when it is dissolved by her tears at the end of her long-awaited meeting with Chung Myung—note how this differs from the recognition motif in which the heroine shows her mythical husband a gift he had once given her, and then he recognizes her as his one true bride. In this way, the shadow-version of Man Wol, her wounded masculine, is resolved by coming to accept that Chung Myung truly loved her and wasn’t playing her for a fool the whole time. This point would have been spelled out further if Man Wol accepted and returned Chung Myung’s love—if both the outer and inner halves were integrated in a “marriage.”
A Refusal to Live in the Dark:
Psyche’s refusal to live in a state of childlike ignorance/dependence is what launches her out of a state of unconscious and onto her journey. Eros likewise spends much of the story under the thumb of his overbearing mother, and he, too, must undergo a journey toward individuation. Eros and Psyche’s stories complement each other, and they must overcome similar flaws in temperament.
Man Wol launches herself into consciousness by choosing to join the rebellion. No longer satisfied with a life doomed to be cut short, she rejects her life as a thief and takes steps to achieve longevity past her youth. For Chung Myung, refusing to continue living a lie means pursuing his love even unto death, defecting, and quitting serving a princess and despotic kingdom to which he holds no strong affinity. It means following his heart and returning to the land of his forefathers (recall that Chung Myung mentions that his family originally hails from Goguryeo and jokingly says that he and Man Wol could be kin—hence, his term of endearment for her is “nui” or sister).
Both must be courageous to extricate themselves from the false families they have built for themselves, even if it initially leads to pain. For these risks, they should be rewarded with a joyous reunion. Instead, their story ends in infinite separation which, in the language of a Search for the Lost Husband story, means that one of the two is still being punished.
Different Taboos Yield Different Endings:
Earlier, I alluded to the fact that ATU-425: Search for the Lost Husband tales more often end happily while their ATU-400: Quest for the Lost Bride counterparts usually end in tragedy. One explanation for this can be found in Barbara Fass Leavy’s observation that taboos imposed on mythical husbands and mythical wives are different. For this part, I’ll borrow the words of Tumblr user @allgirlsareprincesses from her post about The Death of Love and the Lonely Soul in TROS:
In her book on swan maiden tales, author Barbara Fass Leavy points out that the taboos imposed on mythical husbands are different than those imposed on mythical wives. Men, for example, are most often prohibited from abusing their fairy brides, while women are prohibited from looking upon their fairy husbands or knowing their true identity. Leavy states: “In general, taboos imposed on the wife in Cupid and Psyche tales are often intended to keep her in her place, to prevent her from achieving some autonomy by knowing who her husband is, seeing him, or being able to disclose his identity to others.”
As these taboos are reflective of a patriarchal context, the difference in these taboos suggests an inherent imbalance in the relationship between husband and wife. Men are instructed not to abuse their power, whereas women are advised not to challenge their husbands’ authority or demand a more equal relationship. However, what is subversive about these fairy tales is that, despite breaking these taboos and challenging male authority, the women in these stories ultimately defy death. They are able to recover their lost husbands and are even elevated to royal/divine status for their courage and tenacity, thus entering into more equal marriages with their husbands.
In Man Wol and Chung Myung’s relationship, there is a clear power imbalance. As a bandit, Man Wol is on the wrong side of the law, and as a lowly migrant, she lives on the margins of her kingdom in a constant state of instability and upheaval. Meanwhile, Chung Myung, while originally of a humble migrant background, rose through the ranks to captain an arm of the kingdom’s military. He is the one in a position of power, power which he initially wields to protect Man Wol but is soon twisted against him. And yes, while Man Wol herself is the leader of her clan, her authority’s legitimacy pales in comparison to Chung Myung’s when he is favored by the princess and aligned with the royal crown.
This power imbalance is leveled on the night of the royal wedding. Chung Myung’s power is stripped from him in death as he is transformed into a pitiful firefly. Man Wol, a woman on the run, is on her way to a kind of death that awaits her as the owner of the Guest House of the Moon. Frozen in time, Man Wol becomes ageless. Unlike the immortality that is granted to Psyche which unites her to Eros as equals, Man Wol’s immortality is an everlasting punishment. Still, as owner of the Guest House of the Moon, Man Wol gains some special abilities which are showcased throughout the course of the show. She is able to influence the fate of Chan Sung’s father who appears to her on the verge of death and is able to magically protect Chan Sung at several points.
When Man Wol finally says Chung Myung’s name, he briefly appears to her as he did in his life as man without armor. It is during this long-awaited encounter that the petals of the Moon Tree fall, indicating that Man Wol has regained her mortality and must serve as the owner of the Guest House no longer. Afterward, Chung Myung is transformed back into a firefly, and he is not strong enough to make it to the bridge to the afterlife on his own. He is at the mercy of Man Wol who, after letting go of her ill-will toward him, agrees to accompany him to the afterlife. On the bridge crossing the Samdo river, Chung Myung appears as a man once more. He reaches his hand out to Man Wol and offers her the option to move onto the afterlife together, united in death on equal footing at last.
Part 5: Chung Myung and Man Wol as Orpheus and Eurydice
I’ll try to keep this section brief since this post is already way too long as it is. As mentioned previously, when the gender roles in a Search for the Lost Husband story are reversed, the tale more often than not ends in tragedy. So, since the love story between Jang Man Wol and Go Chung Myung is a tragic one, it can fairly easily be read as a Quest for the Lost Bride-type story. The famous version of this story in Greek mythology is the tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice. While it bears some similarities to the Eros and Psyche story, including a treacherous trip to the Underworld, Orpheus and Eurydice centers a masculine perspective as opposed to a feminine one. 
In the Greek myth, the union between Orpheus and Eurydice is doomed from the outset. Hymen, the god of marriage never blesses their wedding. In other Lost Bride tales, the powers that be may forbid the union (due to caste, clan, parent’s wishes, etc.) so the marriage must take place in secret.
After being bitten by a venomous snake, Eurydice dies and descends to the Underworld. In other Lost Bride stories, a separation between the husband and wife pair occurs when the wife dies during childbirth or after a betrayal on the part of the husband at which point the bride retreats back into her animal/swan form. With the bride lost or trapped in the Underworld, the husband must begin his quest.
The devastated Orpheus wallows and roams the earth, playing mournful songs on his lyre. Our hero descends to the Underworld and appeals to Hades and Persephone to return Eurydice to him. They agree but tell him that Eurydice must walk behind him on their way out of the Underworld. Orpheus is warned that he must not look back at her or else she will remain as a shade in Hades forever.
The hero swears he will obey whatever condition is put upon him, but he ultimately fails. Orpheus gives into the temptation and looks back to see if Eurydice has lost her footing. This “look back” is the equivalent of the breaking of the taboo from Lost Husband stories; it signifies a loss of faith or an inability to resist the lure of power or another lover.
Unlike the Search for the Lost Husband which rewards its heroine for her persistence with passionate love, the Quest for the Lost Bride contains harsh punishment for the failures of its hero. Orpheus loses Eurydice forever, and upon returning from the Underworld, he is torn to pieces by followers of Dionysus. His head floats down a river to the island of Lesbos to always sing sorrowful songs.
Another version of the Lost Bride story that I would like to highlight is from perhaps the most famous ballet of all time, Swan Lake. The ballet is about a princess named Odette who has been cursed by an evil sorcerer to remain a swan by day and a maid by night. The curse over Odette can only be broken if someone who has never loved before swears to love her forever. When the young Prince Siegfried, who has just come of age, stumbles upon the enchanted lake where Odette resides, the pair falls in love. Siegfried invites Odette to the ball his mother is holding the following evening in which he is supposed to select his bride.
At the royal ball, Von Rothbart, the evil sorcerer who cast the spell on Odette, arrives in disguise along with his daughter Odile who has been transformed to look like Odette. Thus, Prince Siegfried unknowingly pledges his troth to the villainous Odile rather than his true love Odette. Odette, who arrives just in time to witness this, retreats back to the titular swan lake, doomed to remain a swan forever on account of Siegfried’s betrayal.
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Despite these Lost Bride/Swan Maiden stories ending in tragedy, variations exist that end on a happy note. In some versions of Orpheus and Eurydice, Orpheus descends to the Underworld for good and is reunited with Eurydice, to spend eternity together, hand-in-hand. Similarly, some versions of Swan Lake end with a double suicide that vanquishes evil, breaks Rothbart’s curse over the other swan-maidens, and results in an apotheosis for Odette and Siegfried who are eternally united in death.
Although different productions of Swan Lake contain vastly different endings, the original ends in tragedy. In versions with a tragic end, Prince Siegfried is killed in his final struggle with Rothbart, or Odette permanently becomes a swan while the grief-stricken Siegfried remains alone at the story’s conclusion.
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The apotheosis from American Ballet Theatre’s 2005 TV version of Swan Lake.
So, how do these stories relate to Man Wol and Chung Myung’s? Well, first, it’s clear from even the very first minutes of Hotel del Luna that Man Wol’s love with Chung Myung is bound to end poorly because the show opens with Man Wol being doomed to keep the Guest House of the Moon as a punishment for killing numerous people. The mystery that unfolds throughout the course of the show is exactly what drove her to kill so many, and the answers we’re given about Man Wol’s past are all tied to Go Chung Myung.
The inciting event that takes the place of the wife’s tragic death or husband’s infidelity is Chung Myung’s betrayal of Man Wol. Like Prince Siegfried, Chung Myung fails to pledge his troth to his true love and instead pledges his loyalties to the false-bride Song Hwa.
It is after this betrayal that Man Wol returns to her ‘enchanted’ form, that is, in contrast to the true self that the ‘prince’ Chung Myung had drawn out of her, Man Wol resumes her inauthentic aspect as ruthless bandit. After slaying the false-bride along with countless others, Man Wol becomes trapped in the Underworld (the Guest House), and her treacherous lover joins her shortly thereafter.
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Chung Myung’s persistence in remaining at Man Wol’s side as well as Man Wol’s refusal to budge after all those years appeal to Mago, the ruler of this Underworld, and cause her to create the conditions that bring Koo Chan Sung to the hotel. It is Chan Sung’s entrance into Man Wol’s life that leads to her confronting her past and her eventual reunion with Chung Myung.
However, the power imbalance that we saw in Search for the Lost Husband tales is not entirely absent in their Quest for the Lost Bride counterparts. When Lost Bride tales are retold from a particular masculine perspective, the happy ending often predicates upon the husband successfully subjugating his wife rather than a marriage of two lovers as equals.
When Man Wol reunites with Go Chung Myung, he appears to her in his humble attire without his armor and says few words, accepting her decision to let go of her resentments toward him while she insists that it's time for him "move on" to the afterlife. Man Wol forgives Chung Myung, but she doesn't welcome him back with open arms, and subsequently declines his invitation to move on together. Chung Myung takes a more passive role in these interactions, so I don't really get the vibe that a happy ending between him and Man Wol would have predicated on him subjugating or dominating Man Wol. Man Wol is able to let go of her grudge toward Chung Myung, but they were ultimately unable to rekindle their love.
Alright, it's high time to wrap this up. On a closing note, I would like to say this is just one lens through which this story can be analyzed. My analysis focused on the historical subplot of Hotel Del Luna which is only one of its many concurrent storylines. You can easily read the overarching love story between Man Wol and Chan Sung as a gender-swapped Beauty and The Beast story with Man Wol as the cold and conceited "Beast" who holds Chan Sung's father hostage in episode 1 only to spare his life in exchange for his son's servitude, the Moon Tree as an analogue to the magical rose, and the Hotel del Luna serving as the Beast's enchanted palace.
I hope you enjoyed this long-winded meta, and if you made it this far, thanks for reading <3
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shy-fairy-levele3 · 1 year ago
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2023 Book List
Unbelievably I read a staggering 70 books in 2023! The most ever! My only disappointment is NOT finishing Dracula Daily, I came so close...
Wolf Brother Michelle Paver
Skin-Walker Michelle Paver
Be the Serpent Seanan McGuire  
She Who Became the Sun 
Soul-Eater Michelle Paver
Nona the Ninth Tamsyn Muir 
The Girl in Red Christina Henry
As yet Unsent Tamsyn Muir   
Outcast Michelle Paver  
Leonard Cohen: On a wire Philippe Girard
Oath Breaker Michelle Paver 
Ghost Hunter Michelle Paver   
 Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life Alan Cumming
M is for Magic Neil Gaiman
Silverwing Kenneth Opal 
Last Violent Call Chloe Gong
Malice: Malice Duology #1 Heather Walter  
Pandora Susan Stokes-Chapman
A Lady for a Duke Alexis Hall                                    
Boyfriend Material Alexis Hall
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries Heather Fawcett  
Motorcycles & Sweetgrass Drew Hayden Taylor
Conventionally Yours Annabeth Albert  
The Unbalancing R.B Lemberg  
Stone Blind Natalie Haynes
The Winter Soldier: Cold Front Mackenzi Lee 
Ruby Nina Allan
The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter Theodora Goss
Husband Material Alexis Hall
The Secret Service of Tea and Treason India Holton  
My Dear Henry: A Jekyll and Hyde Remix Kalynn Bayron
The Monsters we Defy Leslye Penelope
Travelers Along the Way: A Robin Hood Remix Aminah Mae Safi
Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman Alan Rickman
Morgan Is My Name Sophie Keetch
Threads That Bind Kika Hatzopoulou
European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman Theodora Goss
Feeling Sorry for Celia Jaclyn Moriarty
Daughter of the Pirate King Tricia Levenseller
A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix C.B. Lee
Harley Quinn: The Animated Series: The Eat. Bang! Kill. Tour Tee Franklin
Magic for Liars Sarah Gailey
The Story of Owen Emily Kate Johnston
The Brilliant Death A.R. Capetta
Circle of Magic: Sandy’s Book Tamora Pierce
The Merry Spinster: Tales of Everyday Horror Daniel M. Lavery  
Death's Detective- Malykant Mysteries #1-4 Charlotte E. English
The Salt Grows Heavy Cassandra Khaw
A Touch of Darkness- Hades & Persephone #1 Scarlett St. Clair
Mortal Follies Alexis Hall
Witch King Martha Wells
The London Séance Society Sarah Penner
A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future David Attenborough, Jonnie Hughes
A Game of Fate- Hades Saga #1 Scarlett St. Clair
Immortal Longings Chloe Gong
Hooked Emily McIntire  
Foul Heart Huntsmen Chloe Gong
Signal to Noise Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Daughter of the Siren Queen Tricia Levenseller  
Starter Villain John Scalzi
The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl Theodora Goss
Starling House Alix E. Harrow
A Marvellous Light: The Last Binding #1 Freya Marske   
A Restless Truth: The Last Binding #2 Freya Marske 
Thornhedge T. Kingfisher
What the River Knows Isabel Ibanez  
The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life's Final Moments Hadley Vlahos
Misrule: Malice Duology #2 Heather Walter
The Raven and The Reindeer T. Kingfisher
A Power Unbound: The Last Binding #3 Freya Marske
I started some series, and I finished some series. I found new favourite authors and revisited some old favourites. Please take them as recommendations, or if you have read any of the same books come talk about them with me!  
Reminder you can also follow me on The Storygraph to see what I am reading in real time, where I am simply shy_fairy   
Previous Years Reading lists can be found here: 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015
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neptuniadoesstuff · 7 months ago
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stargazers diary antagonists? 🤔
Heres the list of them currently (featuring ones I have not introduced yet) (also bcs i dont have much context for this :') ):
Dr. Gerald Lyconoth (Well as a puppet)
Dr. Lyconoth's old coworkers (now monsters)
"Mesmer" (The embodiment of hysteria & lies)
The Serpent King. (The original + his reincarnation)
Spark/S.P.Y/Spickle
The evil colony (which created Spickle & kinapped some alien children to make them into soldiers)
Kemor's lost friend (now brainwashed into working for the colony that took him away from his home planet)
Daffodilac (A very greedy Assasin fella)
Some brainwashed wild aliens (Yes some of them do die bcs they are beyond saving unfortunately but one of these aliens are very important to the story)
& the main antag itself... Terror... Terrir is the demon thing that's pretty much has been hunting Chris since the day HE WAS BORN!
Theres some others but this is all I can think of atm so plz forgive me :')
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dragonbanexxi · 2 years ago
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Soul of Bronze; Blood of Fire
Not Canon Compliant!!!!
Helaena Targaryen x OC Targaryen Royce
The Heir of Runestone would often joke that he should be referred to as Rhaegar Stone. Seeing as his father (Prince Daemon Targaryen) had no want for him and his mother (Lady Rhea Royce) was long dead. All jokes end when he and Ser Gerold Royce are summoned to the capitol by none other than King Viserys the First of his Name. The King wanting nothing more than to bring his estranged nephew into the fold, Viserys offers Rhaegar his so called Targaryen Right. A betrothal to the Princess Helaena and the chance to claim a dragon. Will Rhaegar be able to claim such a beast? Even if his valyrian skills were lacking? Prince Aemond seems to think so. Though he’s mostly is just thrilled to finally have someone around who’s willing to be his friend. Also the court begins to notice that the Princess Helaena seems to have taken a liking to the new prince. Much to her mothers dismay, who’s fighting tooth and nail to have the girl be given to Aegon. Something neither sibling wanted. To Rhaegar everything was going smoothly until the news of Laena Velaryon death had dampen everything.
Chapter 14: Rhaegar
Driftmark PT. 1
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Driftmark was stunning. It held an enchanting sort of beauty and charm that the Red Keep lacked. Where the Red Keep look formidable and impregnable, Driftmark looked like something out of a child’s fairytale. The murals painted throughout the corridors were mesmerizing as well. Paintings of serpents and mermaids, others of underwater sceneries of coral reefs and ocean life.
The Velaryon’s boasted of a great wealth, and their boasting is plain to see was rooted in truth. The Lannisters could only ever dream that their overrated rock could be as extravagant as Driftmark.
Quickly the Kings court was ushered through the keep and out to the seashore. Lord Corlys and his wife, the Princess Rhaenys shared an equal expression of grief. Grief for their dead daughter who died to far from her family and home.
Rhaegar begins to get flashes of his own mothers funeral. It had been the most horrid day of his life. Rhaegar spent the whole night before standing vigil over her casket, to honor her one last time. The Gods must have felt a sick sense of humor because that following morning, to see his mothers casket be buried into the ground as his Uncle Gerold gave her the last blessing in the old tongue on the most beautiful spring filled sunrise. The day had been painfully lovely, yet beautifuly sorrowful. Almost eight years later and sunrises have never been the same for him again.
Rhaegar’s lavender eyes shift towards two little girls with whimsical silver locks. His heart skips a wistful beat. They’re so tiny he notes, the same age he was when his mother was murdered. Murdered by his sire. Still his eyes don’t harden at his sisters. It’s not they’re fault they were sired by Daemon Targaryen. Just as it’s not his fault Daemon Targaryen has no want for him.
Still Rhaegar will fulfill his duty as an older brother, if they ever need anything of him; he’d help them. One of them catches his gaze, her eyes are darker than his he notes. Her indigo eyes grow wide in childlike wonder. Rhaegar gives her a nod, and a small sad smile. She returns the gesture, patting her sisters arm to get her attention. She whispers something in her twins ear. His other sister has teary eyes and is hiccuping quietly. Her sad eyes looking up at him. Rhaegar’s face softens a little more, his heart begins to sear in pain for his little sisters. Having lost his own mother so young, Rhaegar could sympathize.
The girl begins to cry harder and his other sisters wraps her arms around her. Rhaegar made his way towards the girls. They may not know him, but they need comfort. They need someone to be strong for them. He doesn’t care if the Stranger himself tries to stop him.
“Lady Baela, Lady Rhaena.” He begins gently. “My deepest condolences to you both.” He kneels to their level locking eyes with his baby sisters. “I am Rhaegar-“
“Your our brother” one of them says curiously. Rhaegar nods and smiles at them both.
“I wish we could have met under different circumstances” he admits. The other girl speaks up.
“Me too” she says through tears. “I… I’m Rhaena.”
“And I’m Baela.”
He notes that Baela has a small mole above her eyebrow. While Rhaena has one in between her eyebrows.
“A pleasure” he says kindly. Before he could react his twin sisters pounce at him in a big hug. Rhaegar wraps his arms around them protectively and lets them cry into his clothed chest.
The Princess Rhaenys and Lord Corlys observe the interaction with great interest. The older woman makes her way towards them. “Lord Rhaegar” she greets regally.
The Runestone heir carefully lets go of his sisters and stands. He bows as expected “Princess Rhaenys, I’m so sorry for your loss” he says quietly.
The older woman tries her best to smile but given the circumstance it comes out as if she’s in pain. “Thank you… I wish we could have met in a happier setting…” he agrees with her.
Lord Corlys made his way towards them putting a gentle hand on his wife’s shoulder. “So you’re the infamous Heir of Runestone” his voice kind yet somewhat unnerving.
The juvenile nods. “Yes, my lord.”
The older man offers his hand and shakes it both with a firm grip. Corlys raises a sharp brow, Rhaegar suddenly feels like he’s being tested.
“Sit with us at dinner boy, Rhaenys and I would like to get to know you” He agrees and they walk away with his sisters at their heels, glancing back shyly.
It was time. Ser Vaemond was to begin his speech. Rhaegar stood next to his cousins Aemond and Aegon. Aegon already looking bored beyond belief. Aemond standing with perfect posture. His little cousin translating the speech to Rhaegar so he wasn’t left in the dark.
The Heir of Runestone concludes that the second son of Driftmark lacks propriety. Vaemond Velaryon has taken it upon himself to make thinly veiled jabs at the Princess Rhaenyra and her brown haired sons. A dangerous line to cross, especially with the King present. However the King and his heir only share a look. One that Rhaegar can’t grasp the meaning of too well.
His train of thought was broken as an irritating giggle was heard from the other side. How can someone laugh so blatantly during a eulogy? All eyes shift towards the culprit. Rhaegar grits his teeth. Of fucking course it was HIM.
If Rhaegar thought Ser Vaemond ill mannered, than his sire completely lacked civilities.
Rhaegar couldn’t help himself. His juvenile face acting on its own accord, giving his sire his best glare of contempt he could muster. The anger in his heart pounding a rhythm any drummer would be proud of. His blood begins to hum in a violent need of revenge.
He could do it, Rhaegar thinks to himself. He could kill him. From the distance a dragon could be heard roaring into the abyss. The Cannibal felt it’s masters mood shift thus making the beast feel angered as well.
Out of nowhere a gentle hand is felt in the crook of his elbow. The dainty hand of the Princess Helaena gripped him softly. Their eyes met, and suddenly everything around Rhaegar didn’t exist. Nothing mattered to him, nothing but the gentle warmth of his princess’s hand and sparkling glint in her lilac irises.
“Fighting bronze fire with red fire will endanger innocents through accidental crossfire.” She says quietly in his ear.
Could his angelic nymph read minds? He thinks to himself. How could she have known? The princess doesn’t let go, but begins to caress her thumb up and down his arm soothingly.
Unbeknownst to him, a certain Rogue Prince was staring at them with avid interest and a cat like grin.
“Stay indoors tonight Rhaegar” Helaena says as her eyes lock with her uncles. She doesn’t grow nervous surprisingly. Her eyes looking once more at Rhaegar.
“The night is dark and full of terrors.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here’s an early treat for you guys! Thank you guys for all the support! I greatly appreciate it. Next chapter is gonna be good! A Daemon pov!!!! Comments are always welcomed!!! ❤️
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travelagentss · 1 month ago
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Amarnath Yatra Tour Destinations: A Spiritual Adventure
The Amarnath Yatra is one of India’s most revered pilgrimages, drawing millions of devotees to the sacred Amarnath Cave in Jammu and Kashmir. Known for its spiritual significance and breathtaking landscapes, the journey provides an unparalleled experience of devotion and adventure. Here’s a detailed guide to the main destinations that make the Amarnath Yatra a memorable spiritual journey.
For  more information please visit - Amarnath Yatra Tours
Srinagar: Gateway to Serenity
Most pilgrims start their Amarnath Yatra from Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir. Known for its pristine Dal Lake, Mughal gardens, and the charming Shikara rides, Srinagar offers a peaceful beginning to the pilgrimage. Pilgrims can also visit the historic Shankaracharya Temple and Hazratbal Shrine, adding a spiritual touch to their stay.
Srinagar is not just a transit point; it is a destination in itself. The lush gardens, snow-capped mountains, and vibrant bazaars provide a perfect blend of culture and nature. Many pilgrims choose to spend a day here to acclimatize and enjoy the serene atmosphere before heading toward the holy shrine.
Pahalgam: The First Halt
Pahalgam, also known as the Valley of Shepherds, is a picturesque town that serves as the first halt for most Amarnath Yatra pilgrims. Located about 90 kilometers from Srinagar, this town is surrounded by lush green meadows, dense pine forests, and the gushing Lidder River. Pahalgam is a tranquil destination where pilgrims can relax and prepare for the arduous journey ahead.
Pilgrims also visit the Mamleshwar Temple in Pahalgam, which holds great historical and religious significance. The town is a favorite for nature lovers, and its scenic beauty adds a touch of serenity to the spiritual journey.
Chandanwari: Starting Point of the Trek
Chandanwari is the official starting point of the Amarnath Yatra trek, located around 16 kilometers from Pahalgam. At an altitude of 9,500 feet, it is famous for its mesmerizing landscapes and a gentle climate. The trek from Chandanwari to the holy cave begins with a relatively easy trail, making it a comfortable starting point for pilgrims.
This destination is known for its snow bridges, which are a unique attraction for visitors. The Baltal route for the Amarnath Yatra also starts near Chandanwari, offering an alternative path for those seeking a shorter trek.
Sheshnag: The Land of Mythology
Sheshnag, a stunning high-altitude lake surrounded by snow-capped peaks, is the next major stop on the Amarnath Yatra. According to Hindu mythology, Sheshnag is the dwelling place of the mythical serpent king of the same name. The lake, with its crystal-clear waters, provides a serene and spiritual ambiance for pilgrims.
Located at an altitude of 12,000 feet, Sheshnag is a challenging yet rewarding part of the trek. The area is surrounded by spectacular views of glaciers and valleys, making it a favorite spot for photographers and nature enthusiasts.
Panchtarni: A Scenic Stopover
Panchtarni, situated at an altitude of 12,500 feet, is the final camping site before reaching the holy Amarnath Cave. As its name suggests, this destination is where five rivers converge, creating a mystical atmosphere. Panchtarni is known for its breathtaking scenery, with wide open meadows and the towering Himalayas in the backdrop.
This spot serves as a resting point for pilgrims who spend the night here before embarking on the final leg of the journey to the Amarnath Cave. The serene environment of Panchtarni offers pilgrims a moment of reflection and preparation for the spiritual culmination of their trek.
The Holy Amarnath Cave
The ultimate destination of the Amarnath Yatra is the sacred Amarnath Cave, located at an altitude of 13,500 feet. The cave is home to the naturally formed ice Shiva Lingam, which is considered a manifestation of Lord Shiva. Thousands of devotees visit the cave each year to seek blessings and experience a sense of divine connection.
The journey to the cave involves steep climbs and narrow pathways, but the sight of the holy shrine and the spiritual energy it radiates make every step worthwhile. Inside the cave, the presence of other ice formations representing Goddess Parvati and Lord Ganesha enhances the spiritual experience.
Baltal: The Shorter Route
For those looking for a quicker route, the Baltal pathway offers an alternative to the traditional Pahalgam route. Located just 14 kilometers from the Amarnath Cave, this route is steep but shorter, allowing pilgrims to complete the Yatra in a single day. Baltal is also a base for helicopter services, providing a convenient option for elderly or differently-abled devotees.
Baltal’s surrounding landscapes are equally mesmerizing, with dense forests, gurgling streams, and panoramic views of the mountains. It is a popular choice for adventure seekers and those with time constraints.
Conclusion
The Amarnath Yatra is not just a pilgrimage; it is a journey of faith, endurance, and devotion. From the vibrant culture of Srinagar to the divine serenity of the Amarnath Cave, each destination along the route offers a unique experience. Whether you choose the traditional Pahalgam route or the shorter Baltal trek, the Yatra promises to leave you with unforgettable memories and a profound sense of spiritual fulfillment.
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the-girl-who-didnt-smile · 2 months ago
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Sir Duke / Grandmother Serpent [1][2][3]
Aliases: Sir Duke Grandmother Serpent The Prototype
Real Identity: The god of Peace
Species: A god
Gender: Androgyne
Age: Over 13.7 billion years
Family: Bon Dieu (Creator) Lady Rose (“sibling”, companion) Lady Love (“sibling”) Maman de la Vie (“sibling”) Baron de la Mort (“sibling”) Ironman (“sibling”) The Doorkeeper (“sibling”)
INTRODUCTION
Sir Duke / Grandmother Serpent is The Prototypical god, made by Bon Dieu on the first “day”. Originally, He had only intended to create one Lesser god, but Sir Duke’s highly reclusive nature made him/her unsuitable to serve as His sole messenger to humanity. And so, Bon Dieu created a home and six siblings for His Original Creation.
As the Prototype, Grandmother Serpent was created with additional features that are suppressed in his/her siblings. Unlike the other gods, s/he was allowed to assume any form of his/her choosing, which is why his/her true form is a giant white snake. Uniquely, Sir Duke is both male and female, shifting fluidly between these forms.
The wisest and most ancient of the gods, s/he assisted Bon Dieu in the Creation of the Universe. His/her home is a pocket dimension that exists in a remote “corner” of The Spirit World. 
Because s/he does not sing, s/he plays the soprano saxophone.
APPEARANCE
Grandmother Serpent is a visually mesmerizing divine being, who regularly shifts between three forms: male naga, female naga, and true form. For each naga, s/he selected the ideal human form, free of blemish or imperfection. Every motion the serpent makes is full of purpose and grace.
The true form of Sir Duke is a giant, pure white snake, who grows and shrinks its tail at will. The head of the snake resembles a python, except when it opens its mouth. Grandmother Serpent’s true form has anatomy that is impossible for a snake to have, where s/he has the skull shape and dentition of a python, but two prominent, gold fangs. His/her fangs do not contain venom, but are extremely sharp, and are only ever displayed when fighting another god. Because this scenario is by definition impossible, Sir Duke’s fangs are never displayed.
To shapeshift between naga and serpent forms, Grandmother Serpent folds his/her arms into his/her body and curls inwards. A cascade of dazzling white scales crawls across his/her spine, spreading across his/her back, such that the shape of the serpent’s head takes form. The upper, human half of the naga is the inside of the serpent’s mouth; the golden tongue of the serpent is the naga’s spine; the golden fangs of the serpent are the naga’s eyes.
Sir Duke cycles between the three forms in this sequence: serpent → male naga → serpent → female naga → serpent → male naga → serpent → female naga…
In addition to these, s/he has a fully human male form, and a fully human female form. When assuming a fully human form, s/he wears extremely expensive suits and dresses, made from gold and white. One would assume s/he is a King, Queen, Prince, or Princess from a foreign country. The Ultimate Gentle Man (gender-neutral usage).
While s/he is known to dress according to human gender norms, Grandmother Serpent is also known to adopt an androgynous style. In female form, s/he might wear a suit; in male form, s/he might wear a dress. Sir Duke frequently assumes a naga form due to the convenience of human hands, but avoids fully human forms due to the inconvenience of human legs.
Grandmother Serpent is completely mute, using telepathy and possession to communicate with lower beings. When communicating telepathically, the listener feels a faint buzzing behind their ears, while the serpent “speaks” with four voices: two male and two female. The four voices symbolize the four fundamental forces; the relative volume indicates which voice symbolizes which force.
When in female form, the loudest voice is female, symbolizing the force of gravity. The other voices are soft, with the soft female voice symbolizing electromagnetic force, and the two soft male voices symbolizing strong and weak nuclear forces.
When in male form, the loudest voice is male, symbolizing the force of gravity. The other voices are soft, with the soft male voice symbolizing electromagnetic force, and the two soft female voices symbolizing strong and weak nuclear forces.
The snake form of Grandmother Serpent is ‘beyond’ gender. There are two ways to interpret this: 
His/Her serpent form has both sets of reproductive organs.
His/Her serpent form does not have reproductive organs, having no use for them.
A being unrestrained by sexually dimorphism, Sir Duke does not need reproductive organs to create life; s/he can simply vibrate the strings of the universe to create life spontaneously. If Sir Duke’s serpent form has reproductive organs, it is purely for symbolic purposes.
His/her magic is white in color.
PERSONALITY
Being the Original Creation of the Supreme Being, Grandmother Serpent is the wisest of the gods, but the most solitary. Extremely ancient, calming, and otherworldly, a human being is instantly soothed by his/her presence. Even a person with the worst fear of snakes is perfectly relaxed, having no fear of being bitten. 
Sir Duke resides in a pocket dimension removed from the rest of existence. There exists an enormous garden inside this dimension, full of magic rainbow-colored flora. Grandmother Serpent spends most of his/her time gracefully crawling around this garden, which is more accurately described as a magic forest. The “garden” was not grown from seeds, but from transforming photons into electrons and quarks, and converting light into chemical energy. The flowers, trees, and fruits in this space grow and transform at the serpent’s will, never withering, decaying, or dying. Sir Duke is often seen crawling up and down the giant iridescent trees of the “garden”, and is sometimes spotted painting or brewing tea in the clearing.
Grandmother Serpent is a pacifist who abhors all forms of violence. It is owed to this and his/her primordial status that s/he is the least interested in human lives and the conflicts that occur on Earth. When s/he does intervene, it is generally to humanity’s benefit, but such interventions are rare. Any conflict that involves an “insignificant” number of human lives is left to the other gods; the most ancient god is too Avoidant to leave his/her garden.
There is a one-way “door” inside this pocket dimension that only allows one to exit. The only way to view or enter Sir Duke’s garden is if The Doorkeeper creates a portal, but he is known to play “tricks” by opening portals to the wrong destination. Grandmother Serpent immediately expels any unwanted presence by forcing them out the one-way “door”. S/he could also use the “door” to exit at any time, for s/he alone possesses the ability to instantly (re)enter the “garden” from anywhere without having to use a “door”; in spite of this, s/he is very reluctant to use that “door”.
ABILITIES
In addition to all of a god’s core abilities, Sir Duke / Grandmother Serpent possesses the following powersets:
WEAK POWERSET
Sir Duke controls the vibrational strings of the universe, which allows him/her to convert matter to and from energy and control thermodynamics. Although this powerset is extraordinarily versatile, s/he often restricts its usage to an astoundingly limited range.
Grandmother Serpent applies this power by manipulating thermodynamics of the human nervous system, as well as those of other lower beings. This is how Sir Duke communicates telepathically, employs telekinesis, and displays all other psychic abilities. Because s/he has complete control over the central nervous system, Grandmother Serpent is the most powerful psychic in existence. 
For this reason, Sir Duke wins all psychic battles. If fighting a human foe, s/he rapidly converts all chemical energy stored within the brain into kinetic energy, creating a near-instantaneous explosion. These powers work on virtually all kinds of sentient beings, as the ability to control vibrational strings is not restricted to the nervous tissue. 
Grandmother Serpent rarely interacts with humans on Earth, but can still possess them or communicate with them through dreams. S/he is also known to possess nagas and snakes. Anyone possessed takes on the god’s demeanor, no longer employing verbal speech but gaining the power to communicate telepathically. Their eyes change shape and color to match the god, who now speaks through them. 
Sir Duke is associated with snakes, as the snakes symbolize the cerebrospinal axis and the strings in String Theory.
As gods are completely immune to psychic attacks, this WEAK POWERSET is worthless in a serious fight, where Grandmother Serpent must rely on his/her STRONG POWERSET. 
As previously described, Sir Duke also uses this WEAK POWERSET to grow and maintain his/her garden. Another application that is completely worthless in a fight.
STRONG POWERSET
In a serious fight, Grandmother Serpent reverts to his/her true form and displays his/her fangs. The points at the tips of each fang deal INFINITE damage; anything that makes contact with the tip of each fang is completely destroyed. The serpent’s SPEED is unmatched, exceeding that of the other gods and the boundaries of human imagination.
In terms of true potential, Sir Duke is the most powerful of the gods, by virtue of being the fastest. However, s/he is actually the least powerful one in practice, as s/he is crippled by his/her abysmally low RUTHLESSNESS stat.
SPEED is not Grandmother Serpent’s true power. Having a hand in the Creation of the Universe, Sir Duke shares some of Bon Dieu’s knowledge of Creation Itself. His/her true power is the ability to rewrite The Laws of Existence.
Because s/he never learned how to fight, Grandmother Serpent uses this power to make his/her fangs really sharp, then flee from battle. S/he is too conflict-avoidant to think of any other strategy.
SIR DUKE 2P
Sir Duke 2p has the opposite personality of Sir Duke, giving him/her maximum RUTHLESSNESS. A true force to be reckoned with, s/he annihilates all the other gods in battle.
S/he looks exactly the same, but the snake is jet black and s/he has angry eyebrows.
S/he gets completely destroyed by Bon Dieu, who is still infinitely more powerful.
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novelease · 3 months ago
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Discover the Magical World of "Coiling Dragon"!
If you're eager for a mesmerizing fantasy adventure, "Coiling Dragon" by the talented author 我吃西红柿 (Wo Chi Xi Hong Shi) is an excellent choice to delve into. Spanning 2.9227 million characters, this novel intricately weaves elements of magic, extraordinary beasts, and an epic quest.
The story unfolds in a wondrous world populated by incredible creatures, including a lion as large as a small mountain, a powerful golden monkey with purple eyes, an earth-shattering nine-headed serpent king, and a fearsome thunder dragon that commands lightning. In this enchanted land, the powerful can ride atop black dragons and unleash spells capable of devastating entire cities.
The plot centers around the legendary Dragon Blood Warrior, who has not been seen for a thousand years. The only family with this extraordinary bloodline has fallen from grace, becoming mere nobility in a small town. The narrative follows the eight-year-old Lin Lei, the last heir of this declining family, who, upon entering his dusty ancestral home, discovers the seemingly unremarkable Dragon Coil Ring. This moment marks the beginning of his fantastic adventure.
Join Lin Lei as he embarks on an epic journey filled with challenges, powerful adversaries, and the search for his true destiny. "Coiling Dragon" is an exciting fantasy tale that will surely captivate readers of all ages.
Read it for free on NovelEase or dive directly into the novel at Coiling Dragon.
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djdjakko · 4 months ago
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ELDEN RING ROLESWAP PART 4!!!
Previously!
Messmer took Morgots role becoming: Mesmer the Serpent King
Melina took Mesmers role becoming: Melina The Ashen Blade
Godrick took Melinas role becoming: Godrick The Blackflame Maiden Let me know who you chose and why?
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princeofgod-2021 · 8 months ago
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LIGHT OF LIFE 517
John 1:4
DIVINE ORDER 82: God Seekers 11
Gen 4:26 And a son was also born to Seth, whom he named Enosh. AT THAT TIME PEOPLE BEGAN to worship the LORD. NET
Our Altars Today 1
I have been under the ministration of an invited Minister who said: “make your worship of God more realistic. You can set up an altar in your living room with just a stool, Bible and anointing Oil bottle”.
I say No! Beloved. It is plausible but too risky for simple minds.
Jdg 8:27 And Gideon made an ephod from them and put it up in his town Ophrah; and ALL ISRAEL WENT AFTER IT THERE AND WERE FALSE TO THE LORD; and IT BECAME A CAUSE OF SIN TO GIDEON AND HIS HOUSE. BBE
Israel wanted to make Gideon King after he won the battle against Midian, but he declined, rightly allotting the honour to God who actually gave the victory.
This was commendable.
Jdg 8:22-23 After the battle with the Midianites, the Israelites said, "Gideon, you rescued us! Now we want you to be our king. Then after your death, your son and then your grandson will rule." "No," Gideon replied, "I WON'T BE YOUR KING, AND MY SON WON'T BE KING EITHER. ONLY THE LORD IS YOUR RULER. CEV
But he thence proceeded to make an idol, assuming he was yet honouring our God, whom he only just “glorified” before the people.
So imagine that when the people started worshiping the idol, they boldly presumed that they were worshiping the Israel God.
We all remember the Serpent that God commanded Moses to make for healing, right?
Num 21:8 The LORD said to Moses, "Make a bronze snake and put it on a pole. IF ANYONE IS BITTEN BY A SNAKE, THAT PERSON SHOULD LOOK AT THE BRONZE SNAKE ON THE POLE. THEN THAT PERSON WILL NOT DIE." ERV
Eventually, that Bronze snake became an idol, worshiped in isolation of God Himself.
Imagine that they even gave it a name, probably commanded by demons.
2Ki 18:4 He got rid of the illegal places of worship, crushed the sacred stones, and cut down the poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah. HE EVEN CRUSHED THE BRONZE SNAKE THAT MOSES HAD MADE BECAUSE UP TO THAT TIME THE ISRAELITES HAD BEEN BURNING INCENSE TO IT. THEY CALLED IT NEHUSHTAN. GW
That is why it is risky to erect anything now and call it [even] a tenable name.
You may be mature enough to “see” it for what it is and not “sidetrack” God, but someone with a weak conscience and simple mind - maybe even your children - will soon idolize it.
1Co 8:6-7 yet FOR US THERE IS ONE GOD, THE FATHER, from whom are all things and for whom we live, and ONE LORD, JESUS CHRIST, THROUGH WHOM ARE ALL THINGS and through whom we live. BUT THIS KNOWLEDGE IS NOT SHARED BY ALL. And some, by being accustomed to idols in former times, eat this food as an idol sacrifice, AND THEIR CONSCIENCE, BECAUSE IT IS WEAK, IS DEFILED. NET
Many people receive “mantles”, handkerchief, anointing oil from their leaders and those things become some form of idols eventually.
We need to be careful.
On the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter got mesmerized and almost did the abominable too.
Mat 17:4 So Peter spoke up and said to Jesus, "Lord, how good it is that we are here! If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." GNB
Moses and Elijah were approved Prophets of God but not objects of worship.
God clearly corrected that when He spoke of Jesus only and removed the two men from the picture.
Mat 17:5,8 While he yet spoke, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. And behold A VOICE OUT OF THE CLOUD WHICH SAID, THIS IS MY BELOVED SON IN WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED, HEAR HIM…AND LIFTING UP THEIR EYES, THEY SAW NO ONE EXCEPT JESUS ALONE. MKJV
Did you notice beloved, that even for Jesus, no “Tent” or Altar for worship was required?
Just [let’s] come together and call upon God in worship, and He is right there with us all.
Mat 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, THERE AM I IN THE MIDST OF THEM. KJV
The important thing is to be gathered “in His name”.
Do you remember the Bronze snake of Moses they called Nehushtan?
Actually, you don’t even need to build altars before you are considered as a worshiper of any idol or God.
Let’s discuss this in the next lesson.
May our hearts and lives, always connect to the Altar of God in heaven, IN JESUS NAME.
See you on Monday, as we proceed with this Subtopic.
Brother Prince
Friday, May 31, 2024
08055125517; 08023904307
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zrune01 · 1 year ago
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Viking King Sweden
Explore a stunning collection of historically accurate Viking jewelry and amulets in Australia, Sweden, and the Netherlands, all handcrafted to perfection. Viking King Sweden
About Company:-
Viking art, also known as Norse art, predominantly consists of intricate and captivating designs. The Vikings possessed a remarkable ability to transform everyday objects, such as bone and wood, into stunning pieces adorned with mesmerizing zoomorphic carvings. Furthermore, their mastery extended to metalwork, with bronze and silver being the primary materials used to craft exquisite jewelry and ornate artifacts.
One fascinating aspect of Norse art lies in its deep historical roots, reaching back to the prehistoric times of the 6th to 5th millennium BC. During this era, snakes and serpents held great significance and were revered as companions and protectors. They became closely associated with the Mother Goddess, the earliest deity worshipped by ancient European farmers.
As dedicated researchers, we are actively engaged in projects centered around the preservation and recreation of ancient artifacts. This field, known as experimental archaeology, grants us invaluable insights into Viking technologies and techniques. Drawing upon our understanding of Norse art motifs, we strive to create historically authentic Viking-style artifacts while also embracing the opportunity to innovate and produce unique contemporary pieces inspired by this rich cultural heritage.
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Location:-
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fishbreedsblog · 1 year ago
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Dive into Aquatic Elegance with the Majesty of King Cobra Guppy
Introduction to the King Cobra Guppy
Embark on a journey into the mesmerizing world of ornamental fishkeeping with the King Cobra Guppy (Poecilia reticulata). Let's explore the regal appearance, captivating colors, and enchanting behaviors that make this guppy a symbol of aquatic majesty.
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Appearance and Characteristics
Step into the aquatic masterpiece of the King Cobra Guppy, where colors and patterns dance in harmony. The dorsal fin, resembling a cobra's hood, adds a dynamic touch, creating an illusion of majestic elegance.
Examples of King Cobra Guppies
Royal Opulence: Imagine a King Cobra Guppy adorned in deep blue and emerald green, its dorsal fin mimicking the spread hood of a cobra—an underwater royalty.
Golden Serpent: Envision a King Cobra Guppy embellished in striking gold and red, with intricate patterns on its dorsal fin resembling a cobra's raised hood—an elegant contrast.
General Information
Discover the origins of the King Cobra Guppy, tracing back to the tropical freshwater regions of South America, particularly Venezuela and Brazil. These guppies, with a size range of 1.5 to 2.5 inches, become ideal residents for community tanks, gracing aquariums for 2 to 3 years under optimal conditions.
Habitat and Tank Requirements
Explore the natural habitat of King Cobra Guppies, enriched with aquatic vegetation and hiding spots. Provide a comfortable dwelling in a 10-gallon tank, maintaining water stability with a temperature of 72-82°F and a pH level of 6.8-7.8. Craft an underwater haven with live plants and driftwood to enhance their well-being.
Feeding
Witness the enthusiastic feeding behaviors of King Cobra Guppies as they explore all tank levels for sustenance. Offer a varied diet, including high-quality flakes, pellets, live or frozen foods, and occasional vegetable matter for balanced nutrition.
Breeding
Delve into the livebearer category of King Cobra Guppies, where female guppies carry developing fry until ready for birth. Designate a dedicated breeding tank with hiding spots, ensuring pristine water quality and a nutritious diet for the well-being of parent guppies and their offspring.
Common Health Issues
Understand the health concerns of King Cobra Guppies, susceptible to fin rot, ich, and parasites. Implement preventive methods such as regular water parameter testing, consistent water changes, and quarantine procedures for new fish to ensure overall well-being.
Special Considerations
Appreciate the compatibility of King Cobra Guppies with various fish species and their sensitivity to abrupt changes in water parameters. Enhance their comfort through gradual acclimation, regular care routines, and provision of hiding spots.
Legal Restrictions
Before acquiring King Cobra Guppies, always ensure compliance with local regulations, as specific regions may impose restrictions on certain fish species.
Compatible Fish Species
Neon Tetras (Paracheirodon innesi)
Corydoras Catfish (Corydoras sp.)
Harlequin Rasboras (Trigonostigma heteromorpha)
Dwarf Gouramis (Trichogaster lalius)
Cherry Shrimp (Neocaridina davidi)
Oto Catfish (Otocinclus sp.)
Ember Tetras (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
Dive in and explore the majestic world of King Cobra Guppies—a true delight for any aquarium enthusiast! 🐠✨
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colorfulfishbreeds · 1 year ago
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Unveiling the Majesty of King Cobra Guppy: A Dive into Aquatic Elegance
Introduction to the King Cobra Guppy
In the world of ornamental fishkeeping, the King Cobra Guppy (Poecilia reticulata) stands as a true testament to the artistry of nature. This article delves into the regal appearance, captivating colors, and enchanting behaviors that make this guppy variety a symbol of aquatic majesty.
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Appearance and Characteristics
The King Cobra Guppy is an aquatic masterpiece, showcasing an intricate interplay of colors and patterns. Its dorsal fin, resembling the hood of a cobra, adds a dynamic touch to its presence, creating an illusion of majestic elegance.
Examples of King Cobra Guppies
Royal Opulence: Picture a King Cobra Guppy adorned in deep blue and emerald green, with a dorsal fin resembling the spread hood of a cobra. The iridescent shimmer evokes an image of underwater royalty.
Golden Serpent: Envision a King Cobra Guppy embellished in striking gold and red, presenting an elegant contrast. The intricate patterns on its dorsal fin mimic the elegance of a cobra's raised hood.
General Information
Origin: The King Cobra Guppy, like other guppy variations, originates from the tropical freshwater regions of South America, particularly Venezuela and Brazil.
Size: King Cobra Guppies typically reach a size of 1.5 to 2.5 inches, making them ideal residents for community tanks of varying sizes.
Lifespan: Under optimal conditions and diligent care, these guppies can grace aquariums with their presence for around 2 to 3 years.
Temperament: Known for their peaceful disposition, King Cobra Guppies harmonize well with other peaceful fish species in community tanks.
Appearance: The King Cobra Guppy showcases a streamlined body adorned in a symphony of colors and patterns. The dorsal fin, mirroring a cobra's hood, captivates all who gaze upon it.
Varieties and Colors: Selective breeding has revealed an array of colors, from regal golds to mesmerizing blues, each displaying a unique interpretation of aquatic elegance.
Habitat and Tank Requirements
Natural Habitat: King Cobra Guppies hail from tropical freshwater regions enriched with aquatic vegetation and hiding spots.
Tank Size: Provide a comfortable dwelling for a small group of King Cobra Guppies in a minimum 10-gallon tank, enhancing water stability and providing ample space for their graceful movements.
Water Parameters: Maintain a temperature of 72-82°F (22-28°C) and a pH level of 6.8-7.8. Effective filtration and regular water changes ensure a healthy environment.
Tank Setup: Craft an underwater haven with live plants, soft substrate, and perhaps a piece of driftwood. Floating plants and caves add to their natural habitat, contributing to their well-being.
Feeding
Diet: King Cobra Guppies are omnivorous, relishing a varied diet of high-quality flakes, pellets, live or frozen foods, and occasional vegetable matter.
Feeding Habits: Displaying enthusiastic feeding behaviors, these guppies explore all tank levels for sustenance, adding liveliness to the aquatic tableau.
Suitable Foods: To ensure balanced nutrition, provide a diverse diet, including color-enhancing flakes, freeze-dried bloodworms, brine shrimp, daphnia, and blanched vegetables like spinach or zucchini.
Breeding
Reproduction: King Cobra Guppies belong to the livebearer category, giving birth to live fry. Female guppies carry developing fry until they are ready for birth.
Breeding Requirements: Designate a dedicated breeding tank with hiding spots, ensuring pristine water quality and a nutritious diet for parent guppies and their offspring.
Spawning Process: Female guppies give birth to fully formed fry after a gestation period of approximately 3-4 weeks, with hiding spots ensuring their safety.
Common Health Issues
Health Concerns: King Cobra Guppies are susceptible to common health issues like fin rot, ich, and parasites. Regularly test water parameters, adhere to water change routines, and quarantine new fish to prevent stress-related problems.
Preventive Methods: A balanced diet, stable environment, and reduced stress contribute to their overall well-being.
Special Considerations
Compatibility: King Cobra Guppies' peaceful nature makes them compatible with various fish species, including tetras, rasboras, and corydoras.
Special Care Instructions: While resilient, these guppies may react sensitively to abrupt changes in water parameters. Gradual acclimation, regular care routines, and hiding spots enhance their comfort.
Legal Restrictions: Always ensure compliance with local regulations when acquiring King Cobra Guppies, as certain regions may impose restrictions on specific fish species.
Compatible Fish Species
Neon Tetras (Paracheirodon innesi)
Corydoras Catfish (Corydoras sp.)
Harlequin Rasboras (Trigonostigma heteromorpha)
Dwarf Gouramis (Trichogaster lalius)
Cherry Shrimp (Neocaridina davidi)
Oto Catfish (Otocinclus sp.)
Ember Tetras (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
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lifehimalayatrekking · 1 year ago
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Indra Jatra
Indra Jatra is one of the most significant and colorful festivals celebrated in the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal. It is an eight-day-long festival that usually takes place in September, although the exact dates may vary each year as it follows the lunar calendar. Indra Jatra is a blend of religious, cultural, and traditional elements and is observed with great enthusiasm by the people of Kathmandu.
Here are some key aspects of the Indra Jatra festival:
Honoring Lord Indra: The festival is primarily dedicated to Lord Indra, the god of rain and the king of heaven in Hindu mythology. It is believed that by performing various rituals and festivities, the people of Kathmandu seek to appease Lord Indra to ensure a bountiful harvest and avert natural disasters.
Kumari Jatra: One of the most famous aspects of the Indra Jatra festival is the Kumari Jatra. Kumari is the living goddess of Kathmandu, a young prepubescent girl chosen through a rigorous selection process to represent the goddess Taleju. During Indra Jatra, the Kumari is paraded through the streets of Kathmandu in a chariot. This is a rare occasion when the public can catch a glimpse of the Kumari, as she usually resides in the Kumari Ghar (Kumari's residence) and only makes occasional public appearances.
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Processions and Cultural Performances: The festival features various processions and cultural performances throughout its duration. Traditional Newari dances, music, and religious ceremonies take place in various parts of Kathmandu, including Durbar Square. The processions are characterized by elaborate masks, costumes, and musical instruments.
Yosin: A tall ceremonial pole called "Yosin" is erected in Kathmandu Durbar Square during the festival. This pole represents Lord Indra's flag, and it is said to symbolize the defeat of a serpent demon, symbolizing the victory of good over evil. People gather around the Yosin and offer their prayers and devotion.
Lighting of Lamps: Another highlight of the festival is the lighting of oil lamps in Kathmandu Durbar Square. The square is beautifully illuminated with thousands of oil lamps, creating a mesmerizing sight after sunset.
Traditional Food and Drinks: During Indra Jatra, various traditional Newari dishes and beverages are prepared and shared among the locals. These include dishes like Yomiuri (steamed rice dumplings filled with jaggery and sesame seeds), sel roti (rice-based doughnuts), and various types of local alcoholic beverages.
Indra Jatra is not only a religious festival but also a celebration of Newari culture and heritage. It brings the community together and allows both locals and tourists to witness and participate in the rich traditions of Kathmandu Valley. The festival is a colorful and vibrant spectacle, and if you have the opportunity to visit Kathmandu during this time, it's an experience you won't forget.
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mysweetpoisons · 2 years ago
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Deep below the surface
Pairing: Namor/ K’uk’ulkan x reader
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Warnings: smut without plot, +18, spit, dominant namor, oral, p in v
Word count: +2700
The massive crafted stone doors are pushed shut behind you, confining you from the stern looks of the Talokanil guards.
The underwater cave is massive, spacious enough to be carved into a formidable palace, the place continues to amaze you each passing day as you explore it through your assigned chores. 
This room, however, you have never been privy to. The majestic throne room that has witnessed uncountable meetings and hearings over the centuries. And, in the center of the blue-illuminated salon is him. K’uk’ulkan. The name his people chant in reverent prayers, dancing salons and upcoming battles. 
The feathered serpent god is sitting proudly on his throne, the halo of sharp teeth at his back adding a literal extra edge to his posture.  
He's wearing that attire. The ceremonial helmet that has excitement running through your veins. You had only caught glimpses of it before, the mesmerizing movement of the colored feathers, the vivid red, green and blue contrasting against the dark gold and the soft glinting of the encrusted jewels. 
Vibrant colors, brown golden skin and rich brown eyes as exhilarating as fresh coffee beans.
No soul is immune to such beauty, especially not yours. But this? Looking at him feels like looking at the sun without glasses. His burning rays weaken your steps so much so that you almost end up toppling over when your knees meet the cold floor.
" My king " you greet with a soft voice and your head lowering in respect. 
" Come closer, surface dweller " 
Feeling a little bold, you decide to crawl to him until your hands reach the step where his feet rest. Your body is perfectly aligned with his middle.
Namor reaches down to cradle your face in his large hand. The gesture is almost sweet until the rough skin of his thumb taps your chin, directing your eyes up to his and sending a shiver to travel down your spine. 
" You have kept me waiting. Tell me, have you forgotten your place?" 
"I'm so-" your apology is cut out short by his tsk of disapproval.
Without speaking, Namor spreads his legs even wider for you to accommodate between them. A silent message that you get straight away: actions speak louder than words.
Instantly, your hands move up his legs, adoring the feeling of his hard muscles beneath your fingers, his skin wet yet still so warm.. exactly like that day.
That day, when the storm clouds had crushed the sky, the thunder struck in a deafening blast and freed the rain to flood. He had appeared among the waves, cloaked as another part of the wreck.  Then surfaced again, on the other side of the tattered board you had been sustaining yourself on. The tempest in his eyes, a mirror of the one surrounding you.
The offer was simple: die to become seafood or live to never come back. While the ship drowned behind your back, you were holding your arms out, surrendering to the cold angry waves to be caught and carried away by warm arms.  
Warm spreads all over your body just like that day as you slide your hands up his thighs slowly. Your fingers toy with the fraying edges of the loincloth he's wearing and then flick it to the side revealing his barely concealed bulge. A sight that never fails to have you licking your lips, those tight and short shorts are as much of a menace as he is. 
You palm his cock through the green fabric, feeling it stir at your touch. You can almost feel his fingers twitching with impatience, the need to fist your hair and urge you on. You continue to tease him, this time with your tongue darting out to lick the straining fabric around his half-hard-on, then nuzzling your nose along the way, following its shape. 
It isn't wise to provoke a god but the truth is that he needn't be demanding because a moment after your own desire to please him has you freeing his thick cock and fisting it almost urgently.  
As precum escapes its head, the tip of your tongue rushes out to taste it, swirling it in your mouth and spitting it right out, the mixed fluids dripping down his shaft as he hisses. You keep your tongue pressing slightly on the leaking slit, opening your lips to bring his head inside your mouth, sucking on it lightly. His large girth already sets an uncomfortable sting in your lower jaw. Your eyes climb up to his, finding two black pools of burning lust that make you squeeze your legs together looking for some kind of release from the kick of arousal in your stomach.
"Is that all you can take?" he mocks " You disappoint me, surface dweller" 
Oh, he knew you could take much much more, he was just being cruel.
Working him down your throat was always a challenge, a challenge you were gladly accepting each time.
So you renew your efforts to fit more of him, setting a pace that has saliva rolling down your chin, willing your throat to reach as far as you can while your tongue continues to trace each vein and ridge of his hard cock, leaving no trace of skin unexplored. Even when you gag and sputter around him you keep going, jerking off what you can't fit in your mouth.
You can see he's close, his chest is heaving, betraying his agitated state, his knuckles clutching the rudimental armrests while his legs part widely, twitching with the need to thrust up and choke you even more. 
To imagine that he wants this almost as much as you do, to think that he needs this, he needs you.. is … intoxicating. 
Having one goal in mind, you start to suck harder, bobbing up and down until tears fall from your eyes and your throat burns. His hand shoots out to fist your hair, catching you mid bob and pushing you even further down when he cums, filling your mouth and throat with his spend and groaning his release while you moan messily around his length, the vibration adding an extra stimulation that prolongs his orgasm, spilling even more cum into your awaiting throat.
Your pussy throbs needily while you clean him off, swallowing audibly any drop that could have escaped your mouth. 
After you have finished, his hand drops down to cradle the side of your face as you catch your breath against his thigh.
His thumb is drawing the line of your jaw when he commands huskily "Open", your mouth obeys him immediately showing that you have dutifully swallowed everything he gave you "Good. You did so good. Now, you think you deserve a reward ?" the rough pad of his thumb pulls down your lower lip admiring the soft pillowy skin as he continues to taunt you seductively "Think your pretty little body can take it?" 
You nod, waiting at his feet for doing it all over again. At least it was what you expected from that very first time. That time (not so far from your arrival to Talokan) when you had hunted Namor, fell to your knees before him and begged to release him from those hideously tempting shorts to please him with your mouth. Since then, he has never been satisfied with cumming once nor seeing you once a day and the sentiment was mutual. You have become insatiable, your desire to touch more of him, to elicit groans or any kind of unrestrictedly lustful reaction from him growing each passing day.
That's why a surprised yet pleased gasp escapes you when he joists you up into his lap.
Namor chuckles and bares you unceremoniously, untying the knot at your neck that holds your dress up. His eyes devour you as his large hands trace your body starting by your neck, following your pulse point down to your collarbone and lower to the sides of your breasts, touching every erogenous zone delicately. He stops at the top of your thighs to spread his fingers, thumbs moving up and down the line of your venus, digging into the flesh where your legs and pelvis meet and sending electric thrills to your core. 
"So soft and warm" his murmur is barely audible, almost as if his words aren't destined for your ears
You feel his hand cupping your heat next, the heel pressing against your bundle of nerves as his fingers easily slide down your slit and press at your sopping entrance.
Your hole clenches and sucks them in greedily, your entire body curling into the abyss of early ecstasy. He must realize this at the same time as you do because his smirk turns devilish.
"Haven't even touched you yet and you've already made a mess of yourself" his fingers sink into your heat, steadily coaxing you open "What's caught you so excited huh?" 
Swift as the snake he's been compared to over the centuries, he catches your eyes rising to his headdress and hears the erratic flutter of your beating heart. 
"Oh, you like this mmm.."- the torture of his fingers dragging languidly over your walls never stopping "Go on, tell me what you think"
"It's so..." you extend your hand tracing the curves of the golden beast up to the feathers and green aquatic leaves, not daring to touch any of it, afraid you will tarnish them somehow just by being so close " magnificent.." your eyes turning back to the god facing you, watching closely and unexpectedly quiet. Sometimes, he can even read your thoughts, but right now you're sure he can read your eyes. He sees through the praise, the amazement and reverence that lie beyond are not purely directed to what sits above his head.
He kisses you then. Pulling from your hair, he connects his lips with yours to capture you in a voracious kiss. His kisses used to be angry, long but measured. Now, they have morphed into life-consuming spells. One kiss was enough to have you drowning in desire, your body invaded by a thirst that could only be quenched by him: his lips, his hands, his cock.
His tongue breaches the seam of your lips, tasting them as he does so, then invades your mouth to fight and defeat yours. Each breath you take against his open mouth burns, the scrape of his teeth on your lower lip adding another log to the pyre. It's enough to make you lose your mind, shamelessly mewling while your hips move up and down, fucking yourself on his thick fingers. He parts his mouth from yours and your moans fill the room unobstructedly.
"Hold it" the warning is whispered into your ear, his dark voice electric like the thunder before a storm.
The single tear that falls from your eye at the effort is snatched by his finger, the pearly bubble dissolving in his skin.
"Poor, desperate surface dweller." the chocolate in his eyes is now completely melted "You're so lucky you taste so sweet."
The world seems to fold upside down when you're lifted and turned around, your butt landing on the throne with your legs parted wide open by strong hands.
Next thing you know Namor kneels and plunges his tongue inside you, then drags it out, licking up your slit once, twice and finally, his entire mouth takes as much flesh as he can and sucks, pulling deliciously on your clit and slurping your essence as if he was eating his favorite fruit. You completely forget how to breathe, as your legs start to shake uncontrollably around him and your head hits his throne. 
The mere image of him sucking on your pussy like a maniac at the feet of his own throne is enough to send you over the edge. Your hands wildly reach out to hold onto something as the pleasure turns unbearable. Denied of his lush hair they land instead on the gold shoulder plates, scraping needily on the metal as you cum, crying silently in shock at the suddenness of the white burning bliss that crushes you. He sucks your abused folds one more time and raises.
His hand brings you back to consciousness, squeezing your cheeks and prying your lips open only to spit in your mouth. He doesn't have to say a word, you swallow it all instinctively. 
"You're so dirty " he chuckles satisfied "and you're about to get dirtier, surface dweller"
He engulfs your lips yet again, sharing the remnants of your taste on his tongue as he manhandles you into a position he likes, yanking you down and pushing your knees up your chest with firm arms.
Moaning into the kiss, you feel the blunt tip of his already hard cock rubbing on your sensitive folds, parting them to push against your entrance. Slowly, he eases his head inside allowing you some reprieve before his mercy runs thin and he continues on, burying himself in one powerful thrust, reaching your limit and knocking all of the air from your lungs. The stretch overwhelms you with stinging pleasure, like thorns pricking on your nerves with shocks of bliss.
"Always so warm" he groans, his words fueling the heat in your belly as his lips part from yours moving down to mark your throat.
He drives his hips into yours, setting an unforgiving pace while searching and finding that spongy spot behind your front wall. Guided by your lewd moans he rams his cock into it fascinated by your body fitting more and more of his large cock and squeezing so hard around him. 
He makes you cum for the second and third time of the day, driving into you with such fervor and precision that scrambles your brain and rattles your bones. Slick drips down your cunt and soaks his lower abdomen as wet sloshing sounds fill the room. 
You feel utterly delirious, your gaze dropping to where your bodies are joined, the wide base of his cock splitting you open eliciting another wave of arousal, pushing another horizon of unbridled gratification. 
"Look at me " the pressure of his hand wrapped around your throat snaps your attention back up. His jawline is tense almost as if it was carved on stone, his lips look swollen and biteable and his eyes are so dark you feel like you're falling, your stomach trembling once more as he thrusts hard.
The golden face of the roaring beast seems to goad your febrile state.
"It is said that if you look too much, its eyes can trap your soul for eternity." the playful warning falls from his lips like honey when he notices you're staring "Tell me, is yours mine already?" his final chuckle earning another pained moan from you.
You can't even fathom how to answer that. You hope he doesn't expect a coherent response because the truth is, you haven't been able to think rationally since you had set foot in this room.  
Your walls cling to him and your back arches as you drink every sinful word he keeps bombarding you with. Every taunt, every smile, every chuckle, every hitched breath and moan between you both is vitally consumed as water in the desert. 
The grip on your throat tenses, your pulse point deliciously stroked by his fingers, causing your hand to shoot up grasping his wrist as the pressure in your lower belly starts to rise. Your chest touches his muscular one, your knees getting squished between your chests as he drives his cock even deeper inside you. 
He keeps pounding into you relentlessly until you feel him throbbing, the muscles in his lower abdomen tensing and you're choking on feverish words, the desire for him to fill you up once again maddening.
"That's it" he praises, his voice pierced by want "Keep begging for my cum. How much do you need it?"
You can't control yourself, the pleas that fall from your lips are intelligible, your voice breaking between moans. It only takes two more thrusts for him to reach his peak, his cock swelling and stretching you impossibly, pumping you full of his cum. As he groans his euphoria, his other hand reaches down to draw circles around your sensitive nub. The crease of the wave starts to fall on you too as he's still spilling generously inside you. The orgasm rips you apart. You come so hard you think your soul leaves your body, the only thing it remains is his name on your lips. 
He examines the image before him with voracious yet pleased eyes. Eyes closed, shallow breaths, skin shining with sweat and still stretched around him. You're a fucked senseless mess, just how he liked it.
Thoroughly ruined, a fleeting thought of quiet complaint stuck in your mind: how is it fair that he looks like he hasn't broken a sweat in his entire life when you feel so completely undone, the post-orgasmic haze gripping your mind and body with exhaustion.
He plays with what has leaked out of you, smearing it, making more of a mess and earning a raspy whine from you. 
"You look so good beneath me" Namor whispers while leaning forward, nuzzling your nose with his " This might be your new place. Would you like that? To have me holding you down, filling this greedy pussy forever?"
Your wrecked moan is answering enough.
🌊🌊🌊
Please comment or reblog if you enjoyed it, it would make my day! ❤️
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