#Perception Cecily

[schokonilk]

This is Cecily (long hair) and Toiba (short hair)!!! They are thematically connected thats all you get to know lol

I just really wanted to try a transition where the camera zooms into someone's eyes and then backs out to transition to a different person?? Its a bit rough and I know its fast (Procreate's animation rendering when you go to export the gif is not very good T~T)

[edmundtudor]

Below the cut I have made a list of each English and British monarch, the age of their mothers at their births, and which number pregnancy they were the result of. Particularly before the early modern era, the perception of Queens and childbearing is quite skewed, which prompted me to make this list. I started with William I as the Anglo-Saxon kings didn’t have enough information for this list.

House of Normandy

William I (b. c.1028)

Son of Herleva (b. c.1003)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 25 at birth.

William II (b. c.1057/60)

Son of Matilda of Flanders (b. c.1031)

Third pregnancy at minimum, although exact birth order is unclear.

Approx age 26/29 at birth.

Henry I (b. c.1068)

Son of Matilda of Flanders (b. c.1031)

Fourth pregnancy at minimum, more likely eighth or ninth, although exact birth order is unclear.

Approx age 37 at birth.

Matilda (b. 7 Feb 1102)

Daughter of Matilda of Scotland (b. c.1080)

First pregnancy, possibly second.

Approx age 22 at birth.

Stephen (b. c.1092/6)

Son of Adela of Normandy (b. c.1067)

Fifth pregnancy, although exact birth order is uncertain.

Approx age 25/29 at birth.

Henry II (b. 5 Mar 1133)

Son of Empress Matilda (b. 7 Feb 1102)

First pregnancy.

Age 31 at birth.

Richard I (b. 8 Sep 1157)

Son of Eleanor of Aquitaine (b. c.1122)

Sixth pregnancy.

Approx age 35 at birth.

John (b. 24 Dec 1166)

Son of Eleanor of Aquitaine (b. c.1122)

Tenth pregnancy.

Approx age 44 at birth.

House of Plantagenet

Henry III (b. 1 Oct 1207)

Son of Isabella of Angoulême (b. c.1186/88)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 19/21 at birth.

Edward I (b. 17 Jun 1239)

Son of Eleanor of Provence (b. c.1223)

First pregnancy.

Age approx 16 at birth.

Edward II (b. 25 Apr 1284)

Son of Eleanor of Castile (b. c.1241)

Sixteenth pregnancy.

Approx age 43 at birth.

Edward III (b. 13 Nov 1312)

Son of Isabella of France (b. c.1295)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 17 at birth.

Richard II (b. 6 Jan 1367)

Son of Joan of Kent (b. 29 Sep 1326/7)

Seventh pregnancy.

Approx age 39/40 at birth.

House of Lancaster

Henry IV (b. c.Apr 1367)

Son of Blanche of Lancaster (b. 25 Mar 1342)

Sixth pregnancy.

Approx age 25 at birth.

Henry V (b. 16 Sep 1386)

Son of Mary de Bohun (b. c.1369/70)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 16/17 at birth.

Henry VI (b. 6 Dec 1421)

Son of Catherine of Valois (b. 27 Oct 1401)

First pregnancy.

Age 20 at birth.

House of York

Edward IV (b. 28 Apr 1442)

Son of Cecily Neville (b. 3 May 1415)

Third pregnancy.

Age 26 at birth.

Edward V (b. 2 Nov 1470)

Son of Elizabeth Woodville (b. c.1437)

Sixth pregnancy.

Approx age 33 at birth.

Richard III (b. 2 Oct 1452)

Son of Cecily Neville (b. 3 May 1415)

Eleventh pregnancy.

Age 37 at birth.

House of Tudor

Henry VII (b. 28 Jan 1457)

Son of Margaret Beaufort (b. 31 May 1443)

First pregnancy.

Age 13 at birth.

Henry VIII (b. 28 Jun 1491)

Son of Elizabeth of York (b. 11 Feb 1466)

Third pregnancy.

Age 25 at birth.

Edward VI (b. 12 Oct 1537)

Son of Jane Seymour (b. c.1509)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 28 at birth.

Jane (b. c.1537)

Daughter of Frances Brandon (b. 16 Jul 1517)

Third pregnancy.

Approx age 20 at birth.

Mary I (b. 18 Feb 1516)

Daughter of Catherine of Aragon (b. 16 Dec 1485)

Fifth pregnancy.

Age 30 at birth.

Elizabeth I (b. 7 Sep 1533)

Daughter of Anne Boleyn (b. c.1501/7)

First pregnancy.

Approx age 26/32 at birth.

House of Stuart

James I (b. 19 Jun 1566)

Son of Mary I of Scotland (b. 8 Dec 1542)

First pregnancy.

Age 23 at birth.

Charles I (b. 19 Nov 1600)

Son of Anne of Denmark (b. 12 Dec 1574)

Fifth pregnancy.

Age 25 at birth.

Charles II (b. 29 May 1630)

Son of Henrietta Maria of France (b. 25 Nov 1609)

Second pregnancy.

Age 20 at birth.

James II (14 Oct 1633)

Son of Henrietta Maria of France (b. 25 Nov 1609)

Fourth pregnancy.

Age 23 at birth.

William III (b. 4 Nov 1650)

Son of Mary, Princess Royal (b. 4 Nov 1631)

Second pregnancy.

Age 19 at birth.

Mary II (b. 30 Apr 1662)

Daughter of Anne Hyde (b. 12 Mar 1637)

Second pregnancy.

Age 25 at birth.

Anne (b. 6 Feb 1665)

Daughter of Anne Hyde (b. 12 Mar 1637)

Fourth pregnancy.

Age 27 at birth.

House of Hanover

George I (b. 28 May 1660)

Son of Sophia of the Palatinate (b. 14 Oct 1630)

First pregnancy.

Age 30 at birth.

George II (b. 9 Nov 1683)

Son of Sophia Dorothea of Celle (b. 15 Sep 1666)

First pregnancy.

Age 17 at birth.

George III (b. 4 Jun 1738)

Son of Augusta of Saxe-Gotha (b. 30 Nov 1719)

Second pregnancy.

Age 18 at birth.

George IV (b. 12 Aug 1762)

Son of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (b. 19 May 1744)

First pregnancy.

Age 18 at birth.

William IV (b. 21 Aug 1765)

Son of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (b. 19 May 1744)

Third pregnancy.

Age 21 at birth.

Victoria (b. 24 May 1819)

Daughter of Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saafield (b. 17 Aug 1786)

Third pregnancy.

Age 32 at birth.

Edward VII (b. 9 Nov 1841)

Daughter of Victoria of the United Kingdom (b. 24 May 1819)

Second pregnancy.

Age 22 at birth.

House of Windsor

George V (b. 3 Jun 1865)

Son of Alexandra of Denmark (b. 1 Dec 1844)

Second pregnancy.

Age 20 at birth.

Edward VIII (b. 23 Jun 1894)

Son of Mary of Teck (b. 26 May 1867)

First pregnancy.

Age 27 at birth.

George VI (b. 14 Dec 1895)

Son of Mary of Teck (b. 26 May 1867)

Second pregnancy.

Age 28 at birth.

Elizabeth II (b. 21 Apr 1926)

Daughter of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (b. 4 Aug 1900)

First pregnancy.

Age 25 at birth.

Charles III (b. 14 Nov 1948)

Son of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom (b. 21 Apr 1926)

First pregnancy.

Age 22 at birth.

[ricardian-werewolf]

Take Me to War.

Chapter 1: If not to heaven, then Hand in Hand to hell.

Gwayne Hightower X Original Female Character. (slow burn, Medieval perceptions of marriage and womanhood)

Sunne in Splendour x House of the Dragon.

Word count: 3.48k words.

AN| This is the first time the author has written for Gwayne Hightower, so please be kind! The author also only has a surface level knowledge of House of the Dragon/Game of Thrones, so please be courteous when making comments or suggestions. The Author is a history student with a special interest in the Wars of the Roses and Ricardian sources, so knowledge of that period will be largely correct.

Summary:

Reeling from the battle of Bosworth Field, fifteen year old Cecily-Anne is a princess without her throne, family, or hope. Forced to play her hand with both hands tied; a seemingly mystical intercession forces her into a world that is shockingly similar to the England she knows, yet also drastically different. It is there as a mere lady in waiting, that she is forced to pick a side in a war that has been played over in her England for decades. It remains to see as to whom will come out from this "Dance of Dragons," unscathed and whole.

Tws: Brutal violence, implied sexual violence, sexism of the medieval period, religious mention, brutality.

Taglist: @lordbettany, @rmelster, @portiaadams, @mihrsuri

If you liked it, please reblog and comment! Every kind word keeps more of them coming!

Blood flecked Cecily-Anne’s face, her skirts and hands. She stared down at her palms, running them together as if she wished to clear the mess. Raising her head, she could only stare in wide-eyed horror as Henry Tudor’s sword drove its tip into her father’s chest. The crunch caused her to flinch visibly. No one had bothered to remove her from the camp, to put her into sanctuary. All of the chaos of the battle had left her here. She was supposed to have only observed the preliminary actions and then been swiftly retired to the nearby Grayfriars priory in Leicester. 

But now she stood at the hands of the most likely man next to kill her.

Or wed her. He could wait, for certes. She was only ten-and-five years, not even yet showing signs of womanhood. But to a country teetering blindly towards anarchy, this was the only movement forward to solve so many problems. However, as she shifted uneasily from foot to foot. With her skirts turning soiled with the still-warm blood of her father, Cecily remembered Elizabeth Woodeville’s many daughters. Maybe he would choose one of them, and leave her well enough alone. Maybe clemency would work with this…. Bastard of a prince?

She would refuse to bend her knees and acknowledge him as the god-chosen king. No. The rite of the crown would go to Teddy. Or passing him, Meg. She would need to make arrangements, seek out Johnny and Kathryn. They would need to know of Richard’s death.

Suddenly, a hand clenched around her upper arm and she shrieked, blindly lashing out. 

“My lady, please!” A voice hissed. Female, french sounding. Véronique de Crécy. Cecily looked up into the lady-servant’s face and caught the tears forming on her lashes. “Do not cry out. You have been granted the right of sanctuary with the nearby nunnery. They are doing this out of the mercy of your womanhood, Chérie.”

“Mercy?” Cecily hissed as Véronique dragged her from the battlefield. She could only watch silently with doe-wide eyes as her father’s corpse was stripped to the flesh. Then, it was dumped over the back of a steed. “No-” She began to scream, thrashing in her mother’s servant's arms. Another hand clamped over her lips, silencing her.

“Do not make a sound, Princess. Keep very, very quiet.” Francis Lovell hissed. “It is horrific, yes, but this is what Tudor dictates, and we must bend the knee or be slaughtered.” He effortlessly dragged her through the leagues of white-tented campsites to a waiting horse and litter. Mistress Burgh, who had tended to her since infancy, examined her skirts silently. 

“By the holy mother-�� She began, then looked into Cecily-Anne’s whitened face. “Come, lovely. We must be getting you home.” 

“My F-father-” Cecily jerked her head up as she watched the white rose being put to the torch. Suddenly, the fight drained from her and she fell to her knees, the veil of her hennin swimming about her face like gossamer wings. “No, please, No!” She sobbed, wrenching off her hennin and veil with a firm tug. Her hair fell from its pins, spilling about her face.

“What is the meaning of this?” A voice sneered. “I find it most…” Cecily looked up into the face of a man who she would forever remember. Standing over her, clad in plate armour of pure silver with work of ferns and ivy was Thomas Builder, retitled Thomas Melbourne. A minor lord, he had backed her father until the end, and then revealed his hand when Tudor had taken the advantage. His eyes gleamed like emeralds in the watery sunlight shimmering overhead, and he bent down to lift her chin. 

“Unfaithful to your late Father, Princess.” His voice was velvety, meant to be soothing. But it merely made Cecily more vicious, more angered. She whacked his hand aside and bared her teeth. She raised her hand, and formed a fist. Her father’s knights who had served him now formed a Testudo around her. 

“Ah, princess.” Melbourne sneered again. “These men are traitors. They ought not rush to thy defence.”

“They shall.” Cecily rose on unsteadily feet, but squared her shoulders. The moment of grief within her was pushed down deep inside her, and she shut it away. She would not allow herself to show how much she hurt. He would not see how much she longed to lie down in the blood-splattered grass where her father had fallen, and implore God and his saints to take her too.

Please, Holy Mother, protect me from this man’s aims and evils. She prayed silently, her fingers sliding to the crucifix around her neck. Suddenly, she gasped as Melbourne parted the Testudo around her, ignoring the pike-axes grazing his cheeks. His hand snaked up and grasped hers. His eyes blazed with pure hate, and he grabbed the crucifix in hand. It did not burn him, which Cecily hoped it would. She could only sob as Melbourne yanked the chain forward, dragging Cecily along with it. She was pulled from the safety of her knights and thrown roughly to the ground. 

Around her, a cheering and jeering group of Tudors’s soldiers had gathered. At their head was Margaret Beaufort, clad in mourner’s black. Briefly, Cecily was reminded of her mother’s poisoned words against the mother of Tudor. She flashed her teeth again, snatching out a hand to grab something. But her hand was pinned under the black-metal foot of Count Adhemar’s boot.

“There she is.” He crowed as Tudor pushed through his men and raised his visor to regard her. “What a wonderful wife she would make for you, Your grace.”

“You deem him your king?!” Cecily snarled, crying out as Melbourne grabbed her hair and pulled her head back with a sickening crack. Looking up at him from below, Cecily was able to see his lengthened canines, and she shuddered in horror. It seemed as though not only was Tudor ungodly in his mortal affairs, he consorted with demons to win him victories.

She crossed herself, murmuring the lord’s prayer under her breath.

“She should be killed, Henry.” Margaret cried. “If she is not, she is a threat to your legitimacy. Any son she bears and the blood of the Yorks remains stronger than ever.” 

“There is still the matter of those two boys. Tell me-” Tudor turned now to Cecily, and stepped over her so that his legs were on either side of her hips. She looked up at him even though she couldn’t look him in the eye. Her breaths came in heavy, rapid gasps as Tudor grabbed her by the chin and lifted her head.

“Did your father kill the princes, girl?”

“No!” Cecily cried instantly.

The smack of his ringed hand to her face made Cecily cry out again. Around her, even some of Tudor’s knights were making murmurs of discontent. No one struck a princess, or made a movement against her. Yet, Cecily knew easily how vulnerable she was. With no strong woman such as her grandmother to speak in her defence, she was powerless. Véronique’s words were as good as naught.

“Then where did he put them?”

“I have no knowledge of where-” Cecily sobbed again as Tudor rained down another blow. She was saved a third as Margaret’s hand reached out and pulled Henry’s fist back. “Please, no. Do not taint your victory with such sin. God will find it distasteful.” 

Please, Holy Mother, protect me from this man’s aims and evils. 

Tudor glared at his mother and then Cecily. His thumb stroked her thrumming pulse point, and then he spat in her face. “Be glad that my lady mother raised me to be merciful. If I was not, I ought to put you in your place as you deserve, wench.”

Cecily shuddered. 

She watched with widened, fear-filled eyes as Tudor’s men departed with their king at the head. Atop Tudor’s head was the crown of King Edward, the very crown that had been affixed to her father’s helmet. A sob burned through her lungs and she pressed her knuckles to her streaming eyes. Wrapped in the spanish silks she had been gifted as part of her engagement to Joanna of Portugal’s younger cousin, Cecily-Anne Isabel Plantagenet knew that without a doubt that she was a marked woman.

As she was helped into the litter by Véronique, Cecily watched as Tudor’s men took down the White Rose of York. Her breath hitched as the Whyte Boar of Gloucester was unpinned from her father’s command tent. His squires who’d survived the battle were lined up in order of age. She watched with wide eyes devoid of all emotion as a barber surgeon and priest went about taking confession. Then, they were beheaded in front of the spot where her father had taken mass just that morn.

The battle of Redmore Plain had lasted a scant few hours, but the impact would fester for weeks. As the wheels of the litter began to turn and Cecily’s few knights fell into step beside the litter, the princess pressed a hand to her mouth and wept without shame. She clung weakly to her mother’s crucifix and the ring on her finger that had been the coronation ring of her father’s. Tudor would forge another ring, another crown; another state.

All of the work her father had done would be ashes and cinders. The North would not go quietly, which brought her some level of comfort. But their refusal to bend the knee would bite them soon enough. Sin had come over England with the miasma of plague, and it would stay thus until either the Tudors were ousted, murdered or ran out of heirs.

Pressing her hand over her eyes again, Cecily sighed deeply. 

“Write to Manuel and please inform him that the wedding is…” She waved a hand in front of her face. “Annulled. Ensure the Church knows also. I am certain they will be flooded with requests of dispensations for Tudor and whomever he chooses as his lady wife.” She looked to Véronique, who gave a quiet nod of acknowledgement.

“And you, cherie?”

“I believe I shall take a night in that nunnery you inquired for me. In the morn, we shall see where I am going. Whether it be the Tower Greene or the wilds of Bruges, I shall be excited to know.” swirling the cup of wine handed to her, Cecily drank deeply. Grief and shock had made her caustic. She would not wish to be anything other than that. As she drank more, she turned to debating in her mind how she would subvert Tudor’s wills for her execution. 

She should be killed, Henry.

She is a threat to the crown!

Was that same thing not spoken of about her Aunt Elizabeth? The very woman who had seduced her uncle to the bedchamber and made him a father to several children of health and vigour? Had that not been said of her own mother, whose wealth of lands in the north along with Aunt Isabelle set up a bloodless war between her father and mad uncle George? Had the women not birthed two sickly children for both sets of parents? Had fate not delivered her brother to God’s embrace far sooner than expected? Then a scant half-year later her own mother? 

Cecily smacked her hand against the wooden screen, and screamed low in her throat. She was well and truly alone, left to shoulder the burdens of a crown cracking more with each passing hour. The lords of London would throw the gates wide to the invaders, burn Crosby Place and Baynard’s to the ground. She would be bereft of a husband to-be, left to rot in a Court that would not place her in a position of honour. She would have to bend the knee to play favour, but her actions a few hours earlier would drive that thought from Tudor’s mind with the swiftness of a spring breeze.

Compline found Cecily-Anne kneeling before the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her mother’s crucifix chain in her fingers. She had always found solace in prayer, not for the religious aspects, but the simple acts of running her fingers through the beads. The easy recitation of her prayers and catechisms soothed her. She always had a list in her mind of who to implore on behalf of the Father for His favour - the poor, sickly, needy. Her family members who suffered more than most came second. As part of her selfless devotion that some saw as frenetic, while others viewed it as a sign of true humility, Cecily wore a long veil and forgoed a prayer kneeler. Her heavy skirts of velvet and stiffened brocade did well enough. The order of Augustinian Canonesses had taken kindly to the young princess and put her at once into sanctuary. As an order of 1337 nuns confined to the limits of the priory’s property, they were over-delighted to have a guest. After supping in her rooms, Cecily had gone with the younger initiates to pray Compline before retiring. 

As she turned her face upwards to Mary’s figure with her arms spread out in a gesture of welcome and warmth, Cecily prayed to one woman only.

Her lady mother.

“Maman, I implore you. Please, let me know that I am not in vain to ask for you. Let me know that my pain is not all I shall feel. T-there is no way forward for me that I see. You always spoke to anyone who asked that I could solve my way out of any problem the Lord put before me, and now I find myself without.” Tears dripped down her face and she angrily shook her head, slamming her fist into the floor. The nuns who prayed quietly behind her stilled in their prayers at the sound of her fist. 

Cecily shot them a look and made the sign of the cross without breaking eye contact. Her devotion would be unshakable. The chapel at Middleham bore marks of her nails in the soft stone as she had poured out her grief in the days after Ned’s death. Now, she drew her nails once more down the expanse of stone. One scratch for her mother, one for her father, and another for Ned. 

“Please, Maman. I beg of you, do something. I cannot live in an England that is without the security of your light, of Father’s judgement. I can only implore the Lord for why he chooses to test me.” She bowed her head again. “I beg that Father is at peace, for some knowledge that he is safe, that he is happy to be reunited with you and Ned again. Please, do not worry for me. I am as well as I can be.” She wiped a tear from her eyes. Yet, they seemed to not stop, even as she forced herself desperately to not cry in the Lord’s house.

“Child…” The Mother Superior murmured. Cecily jerked her head away. She hated to be touched, to be perceived. She brought her hand up, to quieten the woman. The blood froze in her veins suddenly as the Mother Superior grabbed her hand, and then she heard a harsh voice that was her mother’s hiss; Open your eyes!

Cecily’s eyes flew open, and she recoiled. For where the statue of Mary had stood was now a cut. A cut in the space of the room, that through it showed… another space - a field with trees in the distance. It was unheard of. No miracle such as this had ever been written of in a canonical history or court romance. Cecily’s head jerked up and she looked at the Mother Superior. 

“D-do you see that?”

“Yes.” The Mother breathed, her hands clammy around Cecily’s. Her skin itched painfully and longed to tug her hand free. Yet Cecily stayed in that woman’s grasp as the Mother pulled herself up from a kneeling position. Cecily’s fingers instinctively closed tight around the crucifix chain and she ran it over her lips. 

“Speak to me again, Maman.” She whispered, her lips barely moving.

Go forward. The cut will not hurt you, child.

Cecily shuffled forward, her skirts swishing as she moved. Her skirts, the ones still caked with her father’s blood. The deep blue was stained a runny wine-dark purple and caked in a scent so foul that the other nearby nuns had their noses pinched. In the flickering candlelight, they looked like demons sent from the very brimstone and fires of Hell she feared. Somewhere deep in the back of her mind, Cecily was half conscious of the fact that her mother never called her “Child.” Yet, the grief of so much loss…. Made her feel the exhaustion within her more sharply.

Crossing the nave before the altar, she stared up at the cut with widened eyes, and reached a hand out to touch it. Instead of the pain of burning or the cold of snow on a winter’s night, she felt merely warmth. Through the ugly gash, she could see waving grasses in a stiff breeze, and squinting, making out the forms of men waiting amongst the trees. Some of them were on horses, and she wondered if they could see her. What a shock they’d get! 

The cut will not hurt you, child. She remembered her mother’s words spoken just moments before, and looked back at the nuns. They had gathered together in a small grouping at the back of the chapel, and amongst them she saw Véronique gripping Francis Lovell’s hand tight in hers. What stilled her suddenly was the expression on Véronique’s face - pure, unadulterated fear. 

Go! Go, and do not look back, child!

Cecily’s head turned to look back at the cut and she stared once more through it, her hand still stretched out in front of her. The crucifix dangling from her hand caught the sunlight filtering through the trees, and she smelled the scent of freshly hay. Distantly, she felt as though she was back at Middleham, playing with Ned and Kathyrn and Johnny. Tears filled her eyes again and she closed them as her mind wandered. 

Yes, child. Step through. You are almost home. Just another step-

Cecily could feel the sunlight on her hands; her face, and she turned her palms upwards towards the light and warmth. Yet, suddenly, the sounds of screams filled the air. Looking down, Cecily’s face turned to horror as she stepped not on freshly cut grass but blood-stained earth. An earth-shattering roar split the air as she looked up to the sight of a dragon armed with a rider opening its maw wide. A column of liquid fire flowed from its gaping jaws and set the forest before it ablaze. The men under it, clad in deep green tunics with a silver tower were swiftly enveloped in the flames and a horrific screaming sound met her ears. Throwing her hands over her ears, Cecily turned back to look for the cut.

She found it gone. 

“MAMAN!” She screamed. “What is the meaning of this?!”

A test, child. You implored for my judgement.

“A TEST?!” Cecily shrieked. 

I am the holy mother, all who worship me are tested in some way or another at some point. This is yours. Take with it what you will.

The warmth she’d felt turned shockingly cold, and Cecily cringed back, fear filling her veins with cold sand. Around her, men screamed, crossed swords and brutally massacred one another. Stumbling blindly, she turned whatever way was quietest, and began to stumble across the battlefield that would later be called Raven’s Rock. As she reached what she hoped was a line of tents consisting of faces who would be willing to listen to her tale, something sharp and long embedded itself in her leg.

The ground tilted dangerously under her, and Cecily’s face smashed into a jagged rock. Atop the rock’s surface she felt soft lichen caress her cheek, and barely had time to fist the crucifix more tightly into her fingers. The next moment, the darkness of injury and exhaustion washed over her with the strength of a tide, and she was dragged into its swell.

Over her head, two soldiers bearing the same uniforms she’d seen earlier discussed what to do with this princess in a tongue she didn’t know. After a few moments more, a knight with ginger hair and emerald green eyes came to survey her chaining up. He took his helmet from a squire and left at once to take up arms against a foe who was merely his sister’s closest friend and the supposed former heir of the Iron Throne. The false Queen Rhaenyra had made war against Alicent Hightower’s chosen son and it was unto this war that Princess Cecily-Anne was dragged unwillingly into. A war that was set to shape a generation and dynasty had merely changed time and space, but the rules were the same - a woman’s place was not upon the battlefield. 

End of Chapter 1.

[emptygclds]

‘ priscilla quintana, cis woman, she/her, 30/300, high fae ’ ― cauldron save you. it seems NEVA MORA has finally made it to the capital, the EMISSARY from THE NIGHT COURT is said to be PERCEPTIVE and is said to describe themselves with MOONLIGHT SHINING THROUGH HEAVY CLOUDS, FLOWERS GROWING BACK AS THORNS, STRUGGLING TO FIND THE RIGHT WORDS and with all of this in mind their DISTANT nature always seems to get them into trouble. may the mother hold them as they navigate this unthinkable time.

𝑮𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑹𝑨𝑳 full name : neva mora. nicknames : nothing she'd accept. pronouns: she/her. sexuality: bisexual.

𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑰𝑵𝑺𝑷𝑰𝑹𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵 jung haein ( queen of tears ), evelyn hugo ( the seven husbands of evelyn hugo ) , shoko ieiri ( jjk ), cecily herondale ( the infernal devices )

𝑭𝑨𝑴𝑰𝑳𝒀 keir mora ( father whereabouts unknown ), esmeralda mora ( mother ), tba mora ( adopted sibling , wanted connection !!! )

𝑯𝑰𝑺𝑻𝑶𝑹𝒀 murder tw

the pristine image of the mora’s had been painted with a cold touch,  haunting the family and its members.  even neva,  still so young and supposed to be naive, grows up with it and it isn’t the cold that would make her shiver but warmth that she’d never get used to. neva spends most of her time alone, surrounded by grand halls and wasteful displays,  yet it seems that all that space barely offers any room for mistakes.  the moras not only expect a lot from their daughter but everything exceeding that.  it doesn’t matter that her mind is too fragile, crushing under expectations she has to prove that she’s worth bearing her name. neva doesn’t believe in miracles despite everything surrounding her . all of it was her own hard work driven by the shameful desire to leave her family, her life behind.  and perhaps that’s why the cold air surrounding her is almost suffocated by her pride. or she’s just another one who’d fallen victim to that damn pride of a mora. another doll painted on that perfect family portrait.  and that perfect facade would be passed to her,  a hint of pride gracing her father’s lip for the first time about his daughter being an emissary for the night court.  miracles still didn’t exist and only she could make them happen. perhaps love had to be earned and she finally managed to get it.  however, soon neva would learn that fate rarely changes and carried whispers could so easily break the illusion of impeccability.  her father vanished; leaving them with bloodied hands and a tarnished name, accused of murdering his best friend but more importantly to others a fae of high rank.  to this day,  she still doesn’t know about his whereabouts and even if she did, she wouldn’t search for him. after all, he has abandoned them and she’d do so, too. 

𝑴𝑰𝑺𝑪

she’s devoted to the night court and takes her responsibilities seriously. she knows that some people might talk behind her back and perhaps even believe that she helped her father, thus she’s even more determined to prove them wrong.   while neva doesn’  care about the gossip surrounding her,  she  tends to be a littl  vain sometimes.  she has quite an exaggerated beauty routine and love  pretty dresses. despite he  abilities, neva isn’t exactly beloved by the people  around her as she isn’t a particularly warm person.  she tends to be blunt and rarely sugarcoats anything. although vehemently denying  it,  neva likes romance.  she often asks her lady-in-waiting abou  any kind o  gossip regarding  romances within the court.

𝑾𝑨𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑪𝑶𝑵𝑵𝑬𝑪𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵𝑺 anything angsty with a lot of drama pls <3 but also

the child(ren) of the person her father has murdered people at her court (or have to work with her) who absolutely cannot stand her people who suspect her of being as shady as her father a friend someone she has a soft spot for and is one of the few people she cares about childhood friends

ex betrothal: someone who broke the engagement off because of her father or maybe neva was the one who just ended it suddenly angsty exes, exes with lingering feelings whose relationship might have ended because neva didn't want to deal with her feelings and now they're in this very weird inbetween ?? something based on this post !!! or on this tiktok

anything your heart desires <3

[tamtam-go92]

Wentworth

Rumor has it that the Wentworth family used to own a large fortune, but lost it due to generations of neglect. More recently, the Wentworth family is known for its big and clashing personalities.

After her husband Melville's death when the kids were still young, Cecily was forced into raising the children (that she had never been sure she was even ready for, and did there have to be so many!) all on her own. Now that she's in her golden years, Cecily is enjoying meeting lots of new people (especially the men) but it's a little difficult to make new "friends" when her adult children are always around.

Cecily Wentworth: female, elder, Sim Romance/Grilled Cheese (Become Hall of Famer) Libra (1/8/5/6/5) Culinary Career, OTH: Nature Traits: Slob, Natural born Performer, Angler, Irresistible, Grilled Cheese Lover

Vera has always been a little (or a lot) eccentric, but she doesn't notice when other people stare. Vera is passionate about her job and will happily chat anyone's ear off about lab projects and chemical reactions. A different sim might feel uncomfortable about her self-imposed space suit work uniform (barely tolerated by the high school administration), but Vera knows it's the only way to both get the teens excited about science and protect herself from spilled chemicals.

Vera Wentworth; female, adult, Sim Knowledge/Romance (Max out 7 Skills) Libra (0/8/3/7/7) Science Career, OTH: Nature Traits: Slob, Schmoozer, Eco-Friendly, Perceptive, Dislikes Children

Now that Linnea is an adult, she's dying to escape from her crazy, awkward, messy family. Linnea is fairly sure that no one else in the house has washed a single dish since she grew tall enough to reach the sink. Linnea dreams of single-handedly restoring the Wentworth fortune, by whatever means necessary. Maybe she'll share a little with her family, if they start acting a little more dignified and stop leaving massive puddles outside of the shower.

Linnea Wentworth: female, adult, Sim Fortune/Knowledge (Become Hall of Famer) Virgo (10/4/8/1/2) Business Career, OTH: Science Traits: Neat, Inappropriate, Meteorologist, Equestrian, Computer Whiz

Hadley has always felt overshadowed by her louder, peppier, more outgoing siblings. Everyone else seems to know what exactly what they want out of life, especially her twin sister Linnea. All Hadley has ever wished for is to be more like her family members, who can talk to strangers like it's nothing. Recently though, she's started seeing someone new that she met at work. Maybe this is the first step towards Hadley overcoming her crippling shyness.

Hadley Wentworth: female, adult, Sim Popularity/Knowledge (Have 20 simultaneous best friends) Virgo (3/1/8/5/8) Slacker Career, OTH: Tinkering Traits: Gloomy, Friendly, Techie, Cat Lover, Genius

Delaney keeps everyone on their toes with his constant energy. His mother always says that he never stops moving, even when he's asleep. Delaney may be hyperactive and have a hard time staying focused at school, but he is also devoted to his large and often nutty family. He wishes he wasn't the youngest, because he loves playing with kids. He can't wait to have some of his own someday.

Delaney Wentworth: male, teenager, Sim Family (Graduate 3 Children from College) Sagittarius (0/4/9/7/5) High School, Athletic Career, OTH: Nature Traits: Slob, Brave, Gatherer, Nurturing

Challenges rolled for: - round: Regular Day: No special events - season: Regular Season: Nothing Major Happens - week: Regular Week: Nothing Major Happens

[infernal-crows]

This has been in the drafts since That Happened. I'm still right. Major ChoT spoilers.

The one Lightwood death per series should have been Alexander. Tatiana killing the baby serves a narrative purpose; it, like the book says, carries out the "eye for an eye" mentality she has (even shows how skewed her perception is, because she never lost Jesse the way she would have made Cecily and Gabriel lose Alexander), and shows her depravity and cruelty in making a point. If there was no breathing room to mourn a main, or even side, character? Don't kill them at all. Alexander as a presence in the books, at that point, was an idea rather than a character. That's assuming, though, that we would have been shown Cecily and Gabriel nearly losing their minds with grief over the death of their son, because . . . well we didn't get that the first time, but oh well. Bonus points for Alec, then, carrying on the name of the Lightwood that never got to live.

[railingsofsorrow]

Character File

( meet the oc from NUMINOUS ! )

delilah's moodboard

numinous playlist

back to numinous masterlist

━ face claim: Natasha Liu

━ love interest(s)

Spencer Reid

Adeline Foster (oc)

NAME: Delilah Jane Shaw NICKNAME(s):

“Del” — Spencer

“Lilah” — Emily, Derek, Penelope, JJ, Luke, Adam, Milo

“Delilah” — Blake, Aaron, Rossi

“Shaw” — Gideon, Aaron

“Auntie Lilo” — Jasmine (because of their favourite childhood movie Lilo & Stitch)

“Lilo” — Milo (rarely, when he wants something)

“Blue” — Amber (in college) PRONOUNS: she/her AGE: 26 (on s3) DATE OF BIRTH: November 28th, 1981 HOMETOWN: Oak Ridge (Tennessee) BAD HABITS: smoking while stressed; skips meals (she forgets to eat); scratching her scars.

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BEST FRIENDS: Adam Torres; Milo Kline; Emily Prentiss (around s3); Spencer Reid (around s4) STYLE: dark colors; soft sweaters; jeans; cuffed pants; ankle/army boots; button-up shirts. PIERCING/TATTOOS: left wrist: her favorite musical notes from Clair de Lune by Debussy, her father's favorite piano composition; right shoulder: the turtle cruising from Finding Nemo on the back of her right shoulder; hip: "lay all your love on me" ABBA's song on the lower right side of her hip (drunk decision at nineteen) back: Pluto with a few stars around it. it's in the middle of her back. 

she has five piercings in both of her ears. SCARS: on her knees from playing around as a kid; a small one on the left side of her face from when she fell off her tree house, also as a kid; on her wrists, forearms and thighs from when she was a teenager (it will be explored further)

FAVORITE COLOR: blue

✦

KNOWN LANGUAGES: italian; english; french. MBTI PERSONALITY: INTJ PERCEPTION: realistic; pragmatic

✦

LIKES: apples; tuna; pastries; celery juice; cold baths; running; books; music; storms; dogs; babysitting; visiting museums; cooking. DISLIKES: pepper; ginger; avocado; gardening; sleeping in complete darkness; hospitals; elevators; locked rooms. HOBBIES: reading; sudoku; origami; dog training; journaling.

✦

[ WARNING ]: CLASSIFIED INFORMATION BELOW

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HOLD. . .

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ACCESS AUTHORISED!

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CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION ON:

𝕯𝖊𝖑𝖎𝖑𝖆𝖍 𝕾𝖍𝖆𝖜

DISTANT RELATIVES:

Brenda Shaw (absent mother);

Craig Shaw (deceased father);

Cecily Torres (Adrian's Aunt; Delilah's mother figure)

PAST RELATIONSHIPS:

Amberly Winslow (1st serious relationship — lasted 3 years; during college)

Gabriel Kosorog (brief situationship — lasted 4 months: during the training at the FBI Academy)

ALLERGIES: Penicillin; Cephalosporin antibiotics.

DEGREES:

(1998 — 2000) double major in forensic psychology and criminal justice

(2001 — 2003) MSc in criminology

(2003 — 2005) MSc in cyber security

CRIMINAL OFFENCES/MISDEMEANOR

17 years old: driving under the influence (DUI)

18 years old: weed possession

MEDICATION: Mirtazapina; Zolpidem.

ADDICTION: sleeping pills.

MENTAL ILLNESS: PTSD; Depression; Anxiety.

PHOBIAS: Cleithrophobia (fear of being trapped or locked); Katsaridaphobia (fear of cockroaches).

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[BONUS !]

favorite songs of all time: is it really so strange (the smiths); does your mother know (abba); i bet on losing dogs (mistki).

[whatsonmedia]

Beyond the Canvas: Immerse Yourself in Dazzling Art Experiences

This week, transcend the ordinary and delve into a global tapestry of artistic experiences. From gravity-defying dreamscapes to introspective explorations of light and identity, these five exhibitions promise to ignite your imagination and challenge your perceptions. 1. Carlijn Jacobs & Sabine Marcelis: Sleeping Beauty (Foam, Amsterdam, Netherlands) Opening: January 29th, 2024 Slip into a world of distorted realities and fantastical dreamscapes with this collaboration between photographer Carlijn Jacobs and designer Sabine Marcelis. Jacobs' surreal imagery, known for its warped perspectives and dreamlike atmospheres, collides with Marcelis' otherworldly aesthetic, creating an immersive and mind-bending experience. Expect floating landscapes, gravity-defying objects, and distorted portraits that blur the lines between reality and fantasy. For more> https://www.foam.org/events/carlijn-jacobs Highlights: "The Ballroom," a large-scale installation featuring shimmering curtains and warped furniture, and "The Garden," a surreal landscape with oversized flowers and floating chairs. 2. Olafur Eliasson: the weather experiment (Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark) Opening: February 2nd, 2024 Embark on a sensory journey through light, space, time, and perception in Olafur Eliasson's captivating experiments. Immerse yourself in large-scale installations that explore atmospheric phenomena like rainbows, mist, and artificial moonlight. Prepare to be challenged and intrigued by Eliasson's inventive approach to manipulating light and temperature, questioning our understanding of the world around us. Highlights: "Your rainbow panorama," a breathtaking rainbow spanning the museum's entrance hall, and "The fog machine," a room filled with an ever-shifting mist that distorts your perception of space and time. For more > https://www.phaidon.com/agenda/art/articles 3. New Paintings: Cecily Brown (Gagosian, London, UK) Opening: February 2nd, 2024 Dive into a vibrant world of mythology and dreamscapes with renowned American artist Cecily Brown's new large-scale paintings. Known for her expressive figures and dynamic compositions, Brown's artwork blends mythology, personal narratives, and dreamlike imagery. Prepare to be captivated by her bold brushstrokes, vivid colors, and the raw emotional energy that pulsates through each canvas. Highlights: Expect new works exploring themes of desire, transformation, and the fluidity of identity. For more> https://galeriemagazine.com/three-major-painting-exhibitions-not-missed-new-york/ 4. Beyond Words: The Art of Illustration (British Library, London, UK) Opening: February 3rd, 2024 Travel through centuries of storytelling through this exhibition showcasing the power of illustration. Witness original artwork from iconic illustrators like Aubrey Beardsley, Arthur Rackham, and Quentin Blake, exploring diverse genres from children's literature to political satire. Discover how artists use visual language to interpret texts, shape narratives, and evoke emotions. Highlights: Original illustrations from famous classics like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and The Wind in the Willows, alongside contemporary works addressing social issues and political commentary. For more> https://www-ianvisits-co-uk. 5. Faith Ringgold: American People (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, USA) Opening: February 4th, 2024 Themes: Witness a powerful journey through American identity, race, and social justice in this major retrospective of Faith Ringgold, a pioneering African American artist. Explore her iconic narrative quilts, featuring vibrant fabrics and bold storytelling, which tackle issues of racism, sexism, and the ongoing struggle for equality. Be prepared to be moved and inspired by Ringgold's unwavering voice and artistic activism. Highlights: Large-scale quilts like "The American People Series" (1963-1964) and "The Slave Ship" (1994), alongside mixed-media works and archival materials. For more> https://visit.mcachicago.org/exhibitions/faith-ringgold-american-people/ These are just some of the incredible exhibitions opening this week, offering diverse experiences for every artistic taste. So, get out there, explore, and let your artistic spirit take flight! Read the full article

[leslie-allen-spillane]

Living Loss exhibition at Glucksmann

Living / Loss, a major exhibition at the Lewis Glucksman Gallery, University College Cork, presents a range of artistic perspectives on illness, from the candid self-portraits of Jo Spence during her cancer treatment, to the tender and compassionate paintings of patients by Cecily Brennan. The show embraces humour with the tongue-in-cheek pharmaceutical packets invented by Damien Hirst, and pathos in the heightened detail of Thomas Struth’s photography for hospital rooms. A site-specific work that deals with public perceptions of illness has been specifically created for the gallery by Irish artists, the Project Twins.

[schokonilk]

OC group shot!!!! These designs are out dated (theyre all from like October-November) oops. Anyway.

This is what they look like at the end of the story (hypothetically. I still havent figured out how the story ends)

Also I havent mentioned this yet!!!!! My story is titled Perception!!!!! (Title pending) !!!!!!!

[livia-dovehallow]

agree 100% with your last answer, I'd love to read about that if you ever end up doing that angstier HH version

Also I think it would be hard too as Cecily is seen as one of the most beautiful of the enclave so even if she doesnt care about looks, it's another thing she is losing

Glad you see where I am coming from!

I love Cecily as a character because of exactly what you touch on in that second part. It’s not the external perception of herself that bothers her but her own feelings of losing the independence and strong personality she’s come to be used to. She now has to rely on help from others (which she isn’t used to even if the others are her literal family like her brother and husband).

Over time, Cecily learns that her difficult pregnancy was a different form of strength and a moment of realization of this is when Gabriel tells her that in his eyes, there is no one on earth as strong as she is. This is not to say that Gabriel has to validate her for her to feel better but that she is able to see herself through someone else’s eyes; especially the eyes of someone who loves her very much.

It’s like her realizing that she would never think or say those things she thought about herself about anyone else so why should she think of herself that way, you know?

My favorite thing about Gabrily is that they are supportive of each other no matter what. They each have their moments of self doubt and it’s reassuring to know that your spouse loves you and believes in you always. That’s what I hope to portray!

[synchronousemma]

25th August – 20th September: The intimacy between Emma and Harriet sinks

Read the post and comment on WordPress

Read: Vol. 3, ch. 19; pp. 317–8 (“and as Emma became aquainted” to “the most gradual, natural manner”).

Context

Robert Martin is introduced at Hartfield. Harriet is a visitor there less and less.

Readings and Interpretations

An Unmerited Punishment

Alistair Duckworth writes that, by the end of Emma, “the social gaps which individual actions threatened to widen, will be closed around the marriage of the central figures”; because Emma at this point believes that “it would be a great pleasure to know Robert Martin,” we may be assured that “Emma and Knightley will remain the friends of the Martins” (p. 176). This, Barbara Seeber argues, is a “complete misreading” (p. 44):

If it is a pleasure to know Mr Martin “now,” it is only because he takes Harriet off Emma’s hands for a seemingly natural reason rather than for the ideological “house-cleaning” of Hartfield. In order to read the novel as a call by the conservative Austen for the regeneration of societal institutions through individual commitment, Duckworth needs to insist on the continued friendship between the Knightleys and Martins. Clearly, this is wishful thinking. Emma and Harriet do not stay friends: “Harriet, necessarily drawn away by her engagements with the Martins, was less and less at Hartfield; which was not to be regretted.—The intimacy between her and Emma must sink […]” [p. 317]. (p. 44)

Critics disagree about what implications Emma and Harriet’s decline in intimacy has for the politics of the novel. Mark Parker notes that “Emma can generate two readings of class: a progressive one, which emphasizes the insidious workings of class in Emma’s disposal of Harriet; and a reactionary one, which sees and accepts this working as part of the price of social stability” (p. 358).

Laura Thomason is one commenter who views the ending of Emma and Harriet’s friendship as a “conservative restoration of social order”; “the loss is represented as a natural and appropriate consequence of the difference in their social positions” (p. 229). Similarly, for Seeber, “social gaps” are “entrenched” by this “attempt to naturalize class boundaries: ‘What ... must be, seemed already beginning, and in the most gradual, natural manner’” (p. 45). Thus also Cecily Devereux:

Although Emma exposes the fragility of the social framework of which Highbury provides a microscopic representation, its underlining of the arbitrary nature of class distinction does not constitute an attempt to undermine the order it constructs in the text. Mrs. Churchill may have been elevated from being “nobody…barely the daughter of a gentleman,” but the narrative will not tolerate any such upstarts to disrupt its progression toward suitable connections: Harriet Smith […] is systematically denied entry into the upper ranks even through the more or less acceptable expedient, for women, of marrying rank. The disorder, moreover, caused by Emma’s attempts to maneuvre Harriet into a position above her birth—and, the text makes clear, her natural tendency—is powerful evidence of the novel’s own conservative tendency. (p. 40)

Edgar Shannon, writing in 1956, disagrees with this view. He takes issue with readings (such as Marvin Mudrick’s) that characterize Emma as an “unregenerate snob”: though Emma’s newly lowered opinion of Harriet “might conceivably be cited as evidence of Emma’s (and Jane Austen’s) residual snobbery, […] in the context of the novel it reveals an acceptance of Mr. Knightley’s rational estimate” of Harriet’s marriageability (p. 645):

The statement [that “The stain of illegitimacy, unbleached by nobility or wealth, would have been a stain indeed”] is not a supercilious aspersion upon Harriet but Emma’s final perception of the truth—that neither a Mr. Knightley, a Frank Churchill, nor a Mr. Elton (of any century) would, as she had fondly supposed, be inclined to marry an illegitimate girl of simple mind and unpropitious heritage. (ibid.)

The implication is that an understanding of how a society functions is not equatable to a belief that that society is moral or just. Thus, “by bringing Harriet into equilibrium with Robert Martin, Jane Austen has not been betrayed by the beliefs of her own time” into feeling that Harriet’s estrangement from Hartfield is natural and just on the basis of class alone (p. 646). The “sink[ing]” of intimacy between Harriet and Emma has another explanation:

In any age, differences of background, education, intelligence, force of character, and occupation create varying degrees of familiarity among people. Increasingly drawn as Harriet is by her engagement and marriage into a different circle from Emma’s, the intimacy between them, unfortunate for both, as Mr. Knightley foresaw, because it hindered Harriet’s natural inclinations and nourished Emma’s vanity, consequently subsides; but Emma has none of her prior illusions about ceasing to be acquainted with the wife of Robert Martin. There is now no disdain, no self-importance, no artificial barrier. Like Mr. Knightley, sensibly aware of limitations in Harriet and Robert, but gladly avowing their estimable traits, Emma respects them for what they are. False values have been succeeded by genuine “goodwill”. (ibid.)

Such an explanation, however, treats both Emma and Harriet as “people” between whom a lesser degree of intimacy must be normal and natural, ignoring the hand (Austen’s) that has delineated both personalities. Parker is able to acknowledge that Austen has made Harriet’s silliness align with her class without accusing her (Austen) of conservatism by attributing irony to the narrator in this section of the text:

Harriet’s departure from the charmed circle of Hartfield is marked by another ambiguously voiced passage: [quotes from “Harriet, necessarily drawn away” to “gradual, natural manner” [pp. 317–8]]. Behind the unassailability of the “natural,” the impersonality of the “musts” and “oughts,” and the insistence on smooth transformations is the active boundary maintenance of Emma and Emma’s class. The “natural” ending is further undermined by the facts of each woman’s education. Harriet, bred to do little else than be silly at Mrs. Goddard’s, is finally dismissed as essentially irrational by Emma. The ambiguous position of illegitimate Harriet is resolved by reference to what her ambiguous position has ultimately made of her. The ending, as the narrator’s ironic tone suggests, is anything but natural. (p. 357)

Daniel Cottom also reads Harriet’s fate as a condemnation of society: for him, “Austen’s novels are concerned with “the emergence of desire from the complex, contradictory, equivocal, unsympathetic forces of society,” and “may be seen as attempts […] to identify this process that is so destructive of individual identity and of individual expression” (p. 105).

Lead Me Not into Temptation

Upon acknowledging Robert Martin’s “appearance of sense and worth,” Emma reflects that Harriet’s future looks rosy: “She would be placed in the midst of those who loved her, and who had better sense than herself; retired enough for safety, and occupied enough for cheerfulness. She would be never led into temptation, nor left for it to find her out. She would be respectable and happy” (p. 317).

These lines, which speculate about the morality of Harriet’s future behavior, seem to contain something unspoken about her prospected sexual conduct. I am put in mind of Emma’s reflections about the cottagers to whom she and Harriet paid a charitable visit: “She understood their ways, could allow for their ignorance and their temptations, had no romantic expectations of extraordinary virtue from those, for whom education had done so little” (vol. 1, ch. 10; p. 57). This conception of virtue (here understood to mean abstinence from habits thought to be vicious, including premartial sex) as arising partly from education and partly from circumstance contrasts strongly with that present in many sentimental narratives, wherein heroines face anything from temptation to attempted coercion and must practice unwavering, and often untutored, virtue in order to be rewarded with a suitable marriage by the novel’s end. It could be argued that, rather than this representing an alternate conception of virtue in general, Harriet is being cast as unusually persuadable and susceptible to corrupting influence—after all, she has not been presented as an unpersuadable character throughout the novel. But then there are Mr. Bennet’s words to Elizabeth Bennet, where he implies that she, too, only wants the wrong circumstances to behave poorly: “‘I know that you could be neither happy nor respectable, unless you truly esteemed your husband; unless you looked up to him as a superior. Your lively talents would place you in the greatest danger in an unequal marriage. You could scarcely escape discredit and misery’” (vol. 3, ch. 17; p. 246). For both women, being “happy” and “respectable” (and in “safety,” out of “danger”) is a matter of being well-circumstanced: in these cases, under the protection of a good husband. You-Me Park and Rajeswari Sunder Rajan argue that the lines regarding Harriet point to a “Tory communitarian ideal” of “protection” for women, “especially” Harriet (p. 38).

Robert Miles argues that, in fact, Harriet is in no danger of sexual misconduct: rather, these lines show Emma being “stubbornly wrong because Harriet’s symbolic meaning implicates aspects of her [Emma’s] own identity that remain beyond her capacity for thought” (p. 80). He connects the lines to a long tradition of presenting capital as a “capricious female”:

Harriet, it seems, is a dangerous object of desire, to be cosseted for her own sake. Such solicitude may puzzle the reader as Harriet is shown to be less actively desiring than passively suggestible. […] [Harriet] is symbolic of capital itself; that is to say, she shares the properties Tory ideology attaches to capital, being illegitimate, an object of desire, and capricious. With this in mind, the solicitude expressed for Harriet’s removal from temptation easily becomes comprehensible: her marriage to Robert Martin represents the binding of a dangerous female [capital] […]. The solicitude is expressed through Emma’s free indirect discourse, which alerts us to a final act of projective identification. If Harriet is a symbolic representation of unbound capital, Emma [because of her fortune] is its literal embodiment: when she expresses concern that Harriet should be out of temptation’s way, she unwittingly speaks of herself. According to Tobin, the ending of Emma […] binds together the ideological contradiction between the agricultural and commercial classes, or land and capital (254). Thus the cash-rich, land-poor Emma marries the cash-poor land-rich Knightley, restoring Hartfield to Donwell Abbey in the process, thus healing the “notch” cut into Knightley’s ancient, organic, well-connected, estate. In this compact, the three principal interests (land-owner, capitalist, and tenant farmer) will all be cozily accommodated. Harriet’s meaning, as a symbol of capital, or “credit,” is thus Emma's projection, a product of her speculation, in which she mystifies her own action by clothing her schemes in the language of romance, except that in her version of it, the foundling is not a princess but the putative daughter of a merchant prince (that is to say, the symbolic product of a union between nobility and wealth). (pp. 80–1)

Thus both Harriet’s and Emma’s marriages are symbolically “a representation of the flow of capital onto land, where capital, as illegitimate object of desire, is made safe (or legitimized)”; “[t]he measure of Emma’s pastoral quality is that in the end, everyone finds their appropriate level” (p. 81).

According to Linda Zionkowski, Harriet’s marriage calls the value of advice into question: “In the end, the transmission of received wisdom has little effect on the well-being of the characters, or the stability of their society: following nothing wiser than the dictates of her own sentimental heart, Harriet ends up safely ensconced with the Martin family” (p. 231).

Discussion Questions

Who voices the second paragraph of this section—the narrator, or Emma? Do these lines indicate a belief that boundaries of class or rank are “natural”? If so, does the belief belong to Emma, or to Jane Austen?

Why does Emma reflect that Harriet will “never” be “led into temptation”? Why is the Lord’s prayer echoed here?

Why do film and TV adaptations of Emma unilaterally imply that Harriet and Emma will remain friends after the action of the novel?

Bibliography

Austen, Jane. Emma (Norton Critical Edition). 3rd ed. Ed. Stephen M. Parrish. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, [1815] 2000.

____. Pride and Prejudice (Norton Critical Edition). 3rd ed. Ed. Donald Grey. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, [1813] 2001.

Cottom, Daniel. “The Novels of Jane Austen: Attachments and Supplantments.” Novel 14.2 (Winter 1981), pp. 152–67. DOI: 10.2307/1344850.

Devereux, Cecily. “‘Much, Much beyond Impropriety’: Ludic Subversions and the Limitations of Decorum in Emma.” Modern Language Studies 25.4 (Autumn 1995), pp. 37–56. DOI: 10.2307/3195487.

Duckworth, Alistair M. “Emma and the Dangers of Individualism.” In The Improvement of the Estate: A Study of Jane Austen’s Novels. Baltimore, ML: John Hopkins Press, 1971, pp. 145–78.

Miles, Robert. “‘A Fall in Bread’: Speculation and the Real in Emma.” Novel: A Forum on Fiction 37.1-2 (2004), pp. 66–85. DOI: 10.1215/ddnov.037010066.

Parker, Mark. “The End of Emma: Drawing the Boundaries of Class in Austen.” The Journal of English and Germanic Philology 91.3 (July 1992), pp. 344–59.

Seeber, Barbara K. General Consent in Jane Austen: A Study in Dialogism. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press (2000).

Shannon, Edgar F. “Emma: Character and Construction.” PMLA 71.4 (September 1956), pp. 637–50. DOI:10.2307/460635.

Thomason, Laura E. “The Dilemma of Friendship in Austen’s Emma.” The Eighteenth Century 56.2, (Summer 2015), pp. 227–41. DOI: 10.1353/ecy.2015.0018.

Zionkowski, Linda. “Emma and the Problem of Advice.” Persuasions 33 (2011), pp. 223–37.

[dreamwritesimagines]

I feel like both Cecily's and Anthony's perceptions of each other changed drastically after this interaction. How do you think they see each other now compared to before and how do you think this is going to shape their relationship moving forward?

This is such a good question darling, thank you! ❤

So I agree completely, that conversation made them see each other in such a different way than before❤

For Cecily, she didn't even think Anthony was capable of falling in love, let alone falling in love that hard❤ She didn't think he was terrified of love, she just thought he was a rake 😏 But now she actually sees that he can be that person for Cherie, that he can be her husband ❤

For Anthony it was very enlightening as well❤ Anthony didn't think Cecily was capable of threatening anyone that calmly 😂 He also thought Cecily wouldn't be a good duchess but now he sees that she's definitely the duchess Elias needs (and loves of course😍)

I think after this chapter, they will be more open to communicating with each other and they will see that they're very similar😂 Elias and Cherie are both extremely chaotic and both Cecily and Anthony balance them, and they'll get closer and become very good friends I think! ❤

[crowndaughter-a]

Cecily, due to her partial blindness, has no depth perception and thus a very poor sense of balance.  She has a special saddle, made higher in the front and back to support her and help her stay put on her horse.

[shadowhuntering]

Matthew & Alastair comparison

I’ve been re-reading Chain of Gold in prep for Chain of Iron and I've noticed that Matthew and Alastair are a foil of each other.

I’ve also been re-reading Cast Long Shadows for investigative purposes and it furthers my realization.

Matthew and Alastair have been through similar issues, but are the opposite (if that makes sense) in some ways. eg. Alastair had to pick up after Elias who is a drunk; Matthew is also a drunk. How they responded to these issues tells you a lot about their nature.

This is my observations, purely for analytical purposes so if I sound particularly harsh towards a character, I do not mean to be.

1. Personalities are the opposite to the other.

Matthew’s personality is literally meant to "blind people" because he's sunny, outgoing and is meant to be the life of the party (or his mask).

Alastair on the other hand is literally "dark" he is broody, not very forth coming and can be very prickly

Ironically though, both have the façade of being conceited when they are the opposite. Though you could argue that Matthew’s alcoholism is a result of being selfish. However, he has little regard for himself which is the danger.

Definition of selfish: Concerned chiefly or excessively with oneself, and having little regard for others.

2. They share a similar notion of love not being real, or won't last. 

Alastair just having a very pessimistic view in general, but Matthew says it about himself. He has full faith that other people will have happiness, where he doesn’t see it happening for himself.

3. Alastair is unapologetically himself, whereas with Matthew he hasn’t been himself for a while, and even back before the events of Cast Long Shadows he was trying to fulfill what people needed at the time.

Matthew cares too much about the people around him to think about himself, but also tries not to care as he fulfills the bad reputation people have of him. He has a mask/façade(s) to help liven or distract, yet he also openly degrades himself. He keeps people at arms length so that they will not be disappointed by him, but also forms close bonds with people. He so badly wants someone to love him, but he doesn't want to help himself or be vulnerable to other people. He’s a walking contradiction.

Alastair does regret the things he did, but he doesn't think less of himself because of them. He did all those things to protect himself from hurt. Alastair also doesn’t care for his attitude. It’s not his problem if people don’t like it basically 😂 He clearly has people he cares about like Sona and Cordelia and prioritises them also. He is also actively trying to right his wrongs on not dwell on his past. He wants to move on with his life.

4. Matthew doesn't want to help himself, Alastair does want to help himself and become a better person.

Matthew openly degrades himself yet keeps his own secrets and thoughts of himself. He self-destructs as he feels he deserves it, even when people reach out and try to care for his well-being and that of others they also love (eg. Lucie’s confrontation). He doesn't see that he is hurting the people around him and also himself because of his attitude towards his own life really. He doesn’t have much of a quality for life. He is clearly depressed. He fails to let anyone in because he doesn’t want to help himself and also thinks too much about what people think of him when honestly the perception they have of him now is probably much lower now because 1. how he has chosen to deal with his mistake 2. how he has kept it to himself therefore making it look like the people who care about him would cast him out.

Alastair knows what he did wrong and is trying to improve himself for the betterment of himself. It was evident that at the time of Cordelia finding out about Charles, he wanted to break free, but once he got over being mad at Cordelia for snooping (rightfully so tbh) he understood that she loves him and would give him the support he needed; he had the inspiration from her to commit to moving forward and make amends for himself. Sure, he kept people at arms length in order to protect himself but inherently he does make himself vulnerable for other people. He still let in Charles, made himself vulnerable to love. Then with Thomas... he let Thomas see his guard down in Paris (and before that Thomas just saw right through him) and he ended up allowing Cordelia in, taking heed of her advice and love. He knew that Charles was hurting him and other people, so he stood up to him. He is much more open and vulnerable which is ironic really.

To me, the progression Alastair has already made makes me believe that the same will come for Matthew. However, the bottom line here is that Matthew self-destructs and doesn’t want to help himself whereas Alastair wants to be a better person and look after himself. Alastair has self-love which is what Matthew severely lacks.

5. Both had to grow up fast due to responsibilities of looking after their father...

Matthew arguably has "Mommy issues". This is not me making excuses for Matthew, or even criticizing Charlotte in any way, this is just my interpretation of Cast Long Shadows...

Matthew seems to have low self-esteem and love for himself due to abandonment issues it seems. He probably felt abandoned as a child by Charlotte. It's not that he was unsupportive of her or holds anything against her, but when you look at it objectively, his upbringing shaped his reaction to Alastair and to himself. She literally left him crying at 6 years old and told him to "look after your father" as she had to go off with Charles. Cast Long Shadows is a huge emphasis of how the feeling of abandonment from Charlotte, leading to how he instantly believed that Charlotte had an affair with Gideon and took drastic action. This I feel is because he never felt comfortable to openly discuss to her about himself really. He also didn't trust her...

I do not wish to insult Charlotte as her job is serious and I'm so proud of her, but unfortunately, due to it, it made an impact on who Matthew is now. He didn't trust, nor feel comfortable enough to sit down and talk to Charlotte because he never really got to know her properly or wanted to burden her. It probably also felt like she had favoritism over Charles, and Matthew didn't want to step on her toes. She also never noticed the little things he did like make her favourite scones and he just went feeling unloved or unappreciated (though he should have said something?). She would ask of him to be sensible, didn't really engage much in his humor which probably contributed to how he viewed himself as well as he already was so self-conscious and was vying for her attention. No offense to Henry but his immersion into his science probably left Matthew feeling abandoned as well as he was the one caring for him, then Christopher is the one who understands and engages. Matthew was his carer, effectively, making sure he ate, drank, slept and wheeled him about. He did love his father though, so he didn’t mind. Though Henry does praise him when he breaks the news about them expecting which just made Matthew feel more guilty of his accidental poisoning.

It’s like Matthew wants all of the attention, but he never voices what he wants aloud. This results with no one paying him much heed. In Cast Long Shadows there is also a comparison to James and Lucie’s relationship with Tessa and Will. James and Lucie have communication with their parents, along with known support and trust. Matthew does not seem to have this as he seems too afraid to voice it, not because he is scared of Charlotte and Henry, but because he is too considerate of them. I also find it Ironic that the next story in GotSM is Every Exquisite Thing where there is a huge emphasis of Anna and Cecily’s relationship with each other. Anna being too scared that Cecily would be critical and not understand her, but when Cecily comes to Anna at her worst, she completely understood Anna and supported her, making her feel better. To me this is another stark contrast to Matthew where his parents are too busy to build a good relationship with him, and when there is a heart to heart (Henry talking with Matthew) it is too late and doesn’t ease his mind. Anna also points out how no one would approach Matthew because “he did not do well under confinement”- it makes sense, he doesn’t like confrontation. 

(I can go into further detail about Cast Long Shadows with Matthew’s upbringing being detrimental to his view of himself)

Alastair however has "Daddy issues". Alastair has a similar case of looking after his father, but he came to resent his father because he never got himself better or was so drunk to even remember or acknowledge Alastair and his help or I suppose confront his problem. Alastair knows what it can do and simply does not want to re-live it, and as Cordelia is now friends with Matthew, he doesn't want Cordelia being hurt by Matthew either or having to pick up after him as he did for Elias. That is also where they butt heads. It is too coincidental that Matthew is also drinking to forget, and is not wanting to make himself be better and deal with it. Alastair is trying to protect Cordelia, but he is also allowing her to make decisions for herself.

In ChoG Alastair says he was 10 when he learnt to fill the brandy bottles with water to mask the levels that had been drunk. He was probably picking up his father and "looking after him" well before that. Alastair tried to protect Cordelia from this because he was being more considerate for her sake. He wanted her to have a childhood he was robbed of. He is also being a foil here of Charles. Charles was so self-involved that he never decided to even think about his younger brother, Matthew. Alastair was compassionate; Charles was not. Alastair is a good older brother; Charles was not and was even accusatory that Matthew being parabatai with James and being in London is what caused Charlotte to be ill... he just has so much resentment...

I also believe that Alastair wanted the burden off of his mother, and I'm wondering if he knows more about Sona and her feelings towards Elias being sour and terrified (This is I feel what is indicated in the teaser of when Elias appears where Sona seems to go pale) despite rushing to him and hugging him etc.

“Sona went white and laid a hand against the wall to steady herself. "Elias?"” 

Alastair was bitter and twisted and he never wanted people to know because he knew it was a weak spot for him. It is what sparked him telling Matthew the rumor in the first place. 

“ "I wish I could say the same for you," said Matthew. "Has no kind soul thought to inform you that your hairstyle is, to use the gentlest words available to me, ill-advised? A friend? Your papa? Does nobody care enough to prevent you from making a spectacle of yourself? Or are you simply too busy perpetrating acts of evil upon the innocent to bother about your unfortunate appearance?" “

...

“Instead Alastair said: "Who are you to play the moralist, talking about tricks and papas, considering the circumstances of your birth?" “

He ultimately had inherited his father's shame which was wrong. It's what Cordelia has told him as well. Alastair shouldn't have to think of the mess of Elias; it is his shame to deal with, not Alastair’s.

Though arguably, as a result of Alastair giving Cordelia an innocent childhood, it opened the doors for Cordelia to want to reach out for him, due to her optimism and love, and as he loves his sister dearly, he takes what she has to say to heart. They will now face things together as a support network and hopefully they also have communication with their mother. Although their family may be "broken" they arguably have more communication and togetherness than Matthew does with his family.

(Sorry, that bit was long)

6. Result of their nature after childhood being robbed

Matthew seems to act more of a "child" anyways, being more “frivolous”. He is being reckless, he is a little petty as well. Whereas Alastair decided to grow up too fast and is more mature and relatively grounded. It did harden him to begin with, but he doesn’t want to completely isolate himself. He’s just simply more rational. This I feel is in their nature though, not nurture. 

7. Matthew is slowly driving everyone away, this is kind of what Alastair tried to achieve

Alastair at the Academy decided that he would be the bully in order not to be the one being ridiculed, thinking that he would be better off and retain a hard skin, but all it did was make him regret and never allowed him to create good bonds with people. Then when he came back from the Academy, he distanced himself from Cordelia. I interpreted this as him dealing with his guilt and regret and tried to not get Cordelia too close to him because of it, but Cordelia cared about him too much. Though it could’ve just been that he got too used to having a hard skin, not letting anyone close. Throughout ChoG he builds his bond with Cordelia, and we also see James coming around to Alastair. Thomas as always was curious and saw his better side and Christopher was seemed ready to give him a second chance. Though due to Matthew’s spew at the end, there is distance between him and Thomas and others (save Jordelia).

Matthew is driving everyone away, simply because he is being so reckless. He had originally established good relationships with people. Then, when Lucie confronts him he literally avoids it, no matter how realistic she was being and how much he cared for her, but that was it; he cared too much for her to tell her. We see that even James will snap at him in COI

Teaser #41: "There is no point to it," said Matthew. "If you will never see reason or good sense—"

"Because you're a bastion of reason and good sense?" James snapped. He knew he had a temper, just like his father; his anger spilled past everything else, tasting of copper and fury. "Matthew, you are drunk. For all I know, you mean nothing you are saying."

"I mean all of it," Matthew protested. "In vino veritas—"

"Don't you quote Latin at me," said James. "Even if you were sober, you've never taken love seriously enough to lecture me. Your passions have been a series of dalliances and ill-conceived attachments. Look at me and tell me there is something you love more than that bottle in your hand."

Matthew also decides to move out and get his own place to force independence and probably drive even more of a wedge between himself and Charlotte. We also knows he has an argument with Charlotte; his apartment and car is undoubtedly a result of that, escaping the conflict and confrontation. 

Anna had wanted to talk to him (Every Exquisite Thing), Magnus also wanted to help him. Lucie has always wanted to help for the sake of James and James has always known something was off. They just know that he wouldn’t say anything, and I think most were in the hopes that he would eventually say something. We know that Cordelia is most likely the one he tells thankfully! It is ironic that it is Cordelia for both Alastair and Matthew as well. So it already looks like Chain of Iron will provide the break and repair of relationships for Matthew, similar to Alastair’s progression of self-love.

8. Matthew is very open about his sexuality. Alastair does try and keep it hidden, however it’s more complicated. This is a reflection of their concern of judgement.

Although Matthew keeps things to himself, he admittedly is not afraid of what people think of him as his expectations of himself are so low. However, he is also ruled by the expectations of others, all through his life people had low expectations of him (again, another thing that influenced his actions in general) and he feels to fulfill that obscure one in spite?? The reputation the he has, has always been obscured because in everyone's eyes it will and always has been Charles who will inherit and uphold the good reputation as Consul as they don’t see Matthew as smart or responsible. However, the latter there he doesn’t help prove them wrong...

Alastair keeps his sexuality secret, that is until Cordelia finds out and he eventually warms up to her. Plus he was dependent of Charles as well, but committed himself that he wouldn’t be the side-dish. He wants to love himself for himself, not be hidden as a secret.

There is also a "reputation" element of the family that he still wants to uphold. He is learning though that he has to put himself first and should make amends for his reputation and not have to be burdened by others. Though I would argue that Cordelia is the one who is more concerned about it, but now she knows the truth she is wavering. It’s more complex.

To conclude: 

I feel like their stories will either reflect the other, or will be intertwined somehow. As Alastair has dealt with a drunk and looks down upon alcoholism in general because of his experience makes me believe that Matthew might need Alastair's perspective to grow up. Once he understands Alastair I feel it may pave the way for forgiving and loving himself. 

Alastair was the "spark" of making him spiral, but he was well on his way of questioning his family's loyalty and love of him before that (hence why we were given so much background) and it played into his weakness. Matthew I think wants to take it out on Alastair (he says he didn't blame Alastair or the Faerie. Alastair is just easy to take his frustration out on) as he is not prepared to come to terms with himself or even his family for that matter for his grievance. He loves his family very much and that’s why he feels so guilty, but it's wrong for him to believe so easily and hide his guilt away and that has to be due to his upbringing...

tldr; Alastair and Matthew have stark comparisons to each other that it’s probable that they are detrimental to each other’s character arcs.

@sparkofsummer