#SHE DID IT BY BEING GOOD AT BEING A NOBLE IN HER SPECIFIC CULTURE AND GARNERING TRUST AND SYMPATHY IN HER FRIENDS AND PEERS

[infinitelystrangemachinex]

massages forehead So Ambessa hid Mel away because she was a weapon in the literal sense, a mage. But Ambessa came to Piltover for Hextech? And Ambessa had nothing to say to Mel about her powers having visibly awakened? Even when Mel offered to go with Ambessa, giving her the ultimate opportunity to make Mel a weapon for real? And Ambessa made no attempt to find or retrieve Mel - not just her daughter and the remnants of the family Ambessa professes to love, but also her ultimate weapon - when she disappeared? And Ambessa trusted Singed and Viktor on their home turf - neither of them hiding how insane and self-serving they are with every reason to take over Ambessa's soldiers or just blatantly turn on her as soon as it benefits them - more than she trusted Mel? While Caitlyn (and by extension Piltover) was visibly and clearly falling away from Ambessa's teachings before Ambessa's eyes? (as if getting rid of certain people allows piltover to get rid of fascism but we won't get into All That)

Not only do I struggle to be hyped for Mel's powers beyond how amazing and beautiful she looks, but I can't help but feel like Mel is somehow less powerful in season 2 than she was in season 1, and not in an interesting way. As if Mel's ability to bend all of Piltover politics and economics to her will in season 1 now means nothing in season 2? You can argue that Jinx's attack led directly to Mel losing ground in Piltover - because I expected Mel to have to claw back that power without being able to rely on people who are too easily seduced by Ambessa and authoritarianism, and she would have to get creative to go toe to toe with her mother. I expected pushback to her mage identity that she would have to navigate. But instead this went either unwritten, or was ignored or discarded. Instead Mel is removed from the main plot, cutting her off from what made her the most interesting - only for all of Mel's very real talents, her very real powers and abilities, to be not only translated but REPLACED with magical powers she doesn't know how to control, and by the finale, those magic powers are the only powers that are considered real. Mel takes a backseat to Piltover's governing and decisions, a backseat to Jayce of all people who was not only new to politics mere months ago but made poor governing, strategic, and diplomatic decisions when he had that power. In season 1 Mel stayed off the "throne" but she did pull its strings one way or the other, and she makes no attempt at this in season 2

In my least generous suspicions, Mel was gentled and quieted to capitulate to an agenda for other characters who had to be correct and heroic - or wrong and villainous - no matter what the leadup narrative said, given her powers to help sell the game and set up future shows, and was effectively ejected from the Arcane story with faceless soldiers and a role she doesn't want because she was inconvenient there

[cannoli-reader]

Just some thoughts:

I didn’t understand how pervasive such expectations could be in a mono-cultural society.

This, I think, is a major problem with the show writers (and for Rings of Power as well). WoT & Middle-Earth are absolutely monocultural, and instead, the writers decided to make them the same as their own world. Ironically, growing up in a multicultural society, or working in a multicultural city like New York, Los Angeles or London, has eroded their ability to consider, embrace or understand a different sort of cultural background. To paraphrase The Incredibles, "If every culture is special, no one is."

Perrin has difficulty understanding Faile’s culture.

The same thing could probably be said of Rand and Aviendha, or of Mat and Tuon. Or perhaps not ...the characters are more aware that cultural differences fuel misunderstandings.

I think some of the biggest issues in this regard, outside of the overt problem Perrin has (Faile is aware and working the problem - she's simply getting no help at the other end), are actually between Rand & Elayne. Because class is culture as well. Elayne does not see herself as a superior class to any of the non-noble characters (and it's not channeling or lust - the first character she befriends is Min), and so is unaware of any such difference, but Rand is absolutely aware of her status and creates distinctions in his own head.

With Aviendha and Tuon, their Two Rivers partners stumble over specific cultural practices (like proposal/marriage rituals), and belatedly give indications of interest that were not intended as such (the ivory bracelet and the razor horse), but otherwise, culture isn't really a thing. Mat and Tuon more or less know what they are getting into from the start, and as the OP says, are aware of the cultural divide and both are actively trying to bridge it. The problems with Rand & Aviendha, for all they are superficially blamed on ji'e'toh, are more a factor of their own personalities and self-images than cultural problems. Again, Aviendha's nominal relationship to Rand is to facilitate his cultural understanding.

When Elayne is bewailing her inability to approach Rand or initiate an exploration of their potential for a relationship, Egwene cites some of the courting practices of the Two Rivers, which Elayne seems to find rather unhelpful, and to be fair to her, are rather impractical in their circumstances. Egwene simply intends this as an example of the principle that there are ways to communicate romantic interest without taking the risk of openly stating/asking to the other party, but what they are overlooking is how culture is a language. Rand would understand what Elayne meant if she did the things Egwene mentions, in the right context. Instead, Elayne & Egwene go with their on-page approach. And while part of Rand's refusal to accept the depth of Elayne's interest and affection for him has to do with personal factors, a good chunk is that he sees a gulf between them thanks to her rank, that she is unaware of.

In Elayne's aristocratic culture, marriage between people who have never met is not unexpected, and her own marriage might be pursued through any method, up to and including high-level diplomatic negotiations. In Rand's, everyone knows everyone, they grow up in each other's pockets, and marital partnerships evolve organically, with both of them knowing each other to a considerable degree as the relationship forms and by the time it is formalized. Basically, he does not know Elayne nearly well enough for him to be comfortable considering the level of commitment she wants (and refuses to tell him). Furthermore, marriage is an economic partnership, and it being a preindustrial society, male physical labor is going to be a significant source of the income for a family, and thus men are conditioned to consider their obligation to support and "do right" by their partners. This is the premise behind the obligation to marry Aviendha which he perceives after their sexual encounter. Because of his imposed vocation to save the world, Rand is not free to "do right" by a wife, and so, in turn, he does not feel as if he is in a position to make any requests of Elayne, relationship-wise, especially anything that might imply a commitment he cannot fulfil.

This stuff is cultural, because it is all utterly meaningless to Elayne's situation. She is vastly wealthier than he, and does not need his partnership. At her economic level, and in her society, the lack of a male partner is not as detrimental to child-rearing that it might be in a rural agricultural community. She is not at all thinking of that kind of propriety, because she has been raised in a royal court, in part by a cosmopolitan teacher in Elaida, and her mother has also received a partial education from a transnational institution. For Elayne, propriety is whatever her mother says it is, and the possible repercussions to her public image. As we see when she does become pregnant, that's not a whole lot. The closest to negative opinion seen is Elenia's prejudicial judgment (largely driven by her wish to see herself as a superior candidate for the throne, and thus inclination to exaggerate or invent disqualifying factors in Elayne) that her choice of lovers is poor, due to the presumed social status of the father of her children. So Elayne is not working under the same relationship constraints as Rand, and is completely unaware of their operation on him.

On the other hand, Elayne is feeling emotionally vulnerable in her situation, having carried a one-sided torch for him for more than a year, and feels that the risk of crossing her mother is all she is prepared to take. She's willing to take whatever risks come with a relationship with Rand, up to and including death (re: Ilyena), she does not feel she is asking too much to want Rand to make the first moves, and be the one to initiate the next development in their relationship. So when she asks him for a kiss, she dismisses any correlation between physical expression of affection and commitment. And Rand's experience with noblewomen and sexual relationships is actually surprisingly extensive at this point in his life, having been the recipient of attentions of Saldaean noblewoman in situations he considers implicitly sexual (though they do not), approached by two different married women in Cairhien at a party, and being made to understand that they want to have sex with him and do not consider their own marriages an impediment. And just the night before his "first date" with Elayne, Berelain propositioned him, claiming that his purported betrothal was no obstacle to their engaging in intimacy. So when Elayne says their kiss doesn't mean anything, Rand has what he considers to be a body of evidence that she, a noblewoman, means exactly that. Where Elayne, in her rather sheltered upbringing (as the sole heir to a throne, there is a greater urgency to protect her, and as a future Aes Sedai, sex and men were kicked well down the road on her educational journey), feels like she is basically putting out and giving away samples of the proverbial milk before selling the cow, Rand thinks she is just using him for fun times.

And that's just before he conquers Caemlyn, and his combination of Two Rivers indifference to noble bullshit and foreign protocols and Daes Daemar tutelage with a particularly Cairhienin flavor, manages to do all sorts of things wrong so that Elayne's coronation and their relationship are almost mutually exclusive goals by the time she shows up.

Tuon finds out that sul'dam can learn to channel, yet she continues to insist that damane should be leashed.

Those two concepts are not mutually exclusive or contradictory. There is a difference between learning to channel and channeling. Channelers are seen as a danger to society, and that is a danger that women who can only learn to channel will never manifest. Tuon's explanation of the difference is rational and true. There is a difference between the potential to do something and the choice to do it. Tuon cannot channel, and unless she goes out and learns how, she will never present the same sort of threat. This was a thing back in tGH where Rand was told that, because he was born with the spark, like all damane, would not be able to stop himself from channeling. Whereas Damer Flinn reached a very old age without ever manifesting the ability, so he is the male equivalent of a sul'dam. There is a difference. You can't slot this into your conception of bigotry.

The Wheel of Time, culture and gender

Something I find really interesting about WOT is how it explores the way gender is culturally constructed. So many of the characters have very strong culturally ingrained expectations about gender roles and relationships, and when characters come from different backgrounds, then there can be confusion and misunderstanding. Characters often attribute the misunderstanding to gender, when it’s really about culture - culture as it pertains to gender.

I remember when I first read the scene where Elyas tells Perrin, “I’ve only ever met about five Saldaean women I’d call meek, or even mild-mannered” (TPoD). At the time, I found that unconvincing. How unrealistic! I thought. Coming from the same culture doesn’t give women the same personality! I mean, being raised in the same family doesn’t give you the same personality! I realise now that Elyas is not saying that Saldaean women have the same personality. He’s saying they are all brought up have certain expectations of women should behave and how they should be treated, and so on.

I didn’t understand how pervasive such expectations could be in a mono-cultural society.

Keep reading

[immediatebreakfast]

Mina, and Jonathan experiencing the actual social expectations of married victorian couples by the cultural pressure of having four different men who are well comfortable in their position within the cultural/social victorian hierarchy, is truly the lowest point in their relationship so far.

Mina is getting desperate to have even a single crumble of information after compiling what is basically their holy manuscript about vampires while going "This is absolutely fine :)" only to stop herself from pushing further because she doesn't know what to do without actual support.

It is strange to me to be kept in the dark as I am to-day; after Jonathan's full confidence for so many years, to see him manifestly avoid certain matters, and those the most vital of all. 

Mina knows that this is wrong, she knows that Jonathan not speaking at all to her about what he is doing in these missions is not the kind of dynamic they thrived in before joining forces with the others. This is not their solemn duty to one another, but what can Mina do exactly when she is currently residing in an asylum? She calls herself a silly fool for expressing what might as well be grief because of the loss of their communication. Mina still expresses that maybe someday Jonathan will tell her fully all of the information again (implied how in that future some day they are away from the others), so she has to keep her journal going. Moreover, Mina being utterly alone with her self deprecating thoughts made her spiral more because now she thinks she has to bottle up her feelings as to not worry Jonathan.

Meanwhile, Jonathan got invited to what I can only describes as a "good ol' lads only" mission where he almost had a panic attack in three different instances because being there in the Count's territory again activated his ptsd almost instantly.

I daresay it will be difficult to begin to keep silence after such confidence as ours; but I must be resolute, and to-morrow I shall keep dark over to-night's doings, and shall refuse to speak of anything that has happened. I rest on the sofa, so as not to disturb her.

On top of being utterly baffling to see him express these hards notions of misogyny for the first time in the whole book after it. This is not to say that Jonathan is not sexist because that would not align with his comments on the Weird Sisters; his line of thinking is more focused on the sexist idea that women are noble, nurturing people as a default despite him looking up to them. So, to see Jonathan repeat the whole "women are fragile beings made of glass which any kind of fright can shatter" in this robotic manner reads more as if he is repeating this to convice himself that leaving Mina out of the investigation was a good idea, and that he needs to push any discomfort with this new arragement "for them" because he is The Husband now.

All of this is the perfect opportunity for the Count to strike, and take down Mina specifically. Which he did not waste any time in doing for what we read on the entry.

[cloudshuffle]

an arrow, a spark. yan!childe

index / next / beta reader @malewifeharem

When they assign you to a new division in the Fatui, you think nothing much of it. People were always being moved around in the organisation, people disappeared under mysterious circumstances, new recruits were popping up out of nowhere.

What was strange, however, was whose division you were assigned to. Fatui Harbinger Tartaglia, all the way in Liyue, no less - or Ajax, as you knew him better.

“I'll be sorry to see you go,” Signora says from behind you.

You jump, nearly dropping the stack of papers in your hands. She stands in the doorway, imposing as always, yet the air she gives off implies she's left off a “darling” at the end of her sentence.

Madame Signora's always been fond of you for reasons you've never known, though that often meant being stuck in dull, dull meetings and organising her paperwork for her.

You salute her, then laugh nervously. In the midst of your packing, your office looks like a hurricane hit it, stacks of books and papers scattered everywhere. Not the best look to put forward to your boss.

“So, Liyue.” She takes a step, placing her right inside the threshold of your office. Behind her, her new bodyguard slash secretary shifts his weight from foot to foot. “Quite a ways from home, yes?”

“It is.” The land of the Geo Archon, Morax, but most importantly his creation of mora. A warm place by far, considering Snezhnaya's standards, but its trade sector was coldly competitive.

“How do you feel about it?”

How did you feel? The question catches you by surprise, much like her appearance in your office. Never before had you been asked your personal opinion on anything before, least of all by a harbinger.

It’s just work.

“It’s a great opportunity to expand my horizons and learn about another culture, ma’am.”

She chuckles elegantly. “A textbook answer. Good. It’d be useful if you kept those same wits around Tartaglia.”

You blink, a cloud of dust distracting you briefly from what she’d just said. “...Tartaglia, ma’am?”

“Oh, yes.” Her red lips curve into a wry smile. “He requested for you specifically. He’s been pestering me, in fact, to let him have you.”

You remain silent, unsure of how to respond.

“But look at me, holding you up. I do hope you have fun while in Liyue - it can be quite the interesting place, after all.”

────────────

You don’t quite know what all the fuss about Tartaglia is about till lunch, when you venture into the mess hall with Nadia.

She doesn't even wait for the two of you to sit down before broaching the topic. “Did you know the eleventh is back is Snezhnaya?”

“He is?” You stab at your potatoes with your fork, eyeing her cheekily. “And I don't suppose you're in the market for a partner at the same time, are you?”

“Oh, not a harbinger.” She laughs. “That’s way too high profile for me.”

You eye the raised platform at the front of the hall where a long table’s been set. It’s more for show than anything else, seeing as how the harbingers have never once found themselves privy to dining with you common soldiers. There are twelve high-backed, intricately carved mahogany chairs, and one in the middle, larger than the rest, gilded with gold and complete with red velvet cushions. The Tsaritsa’s. Yet another reminder of who you all served.

Nadia's chatter washes over you like a soothing wave. You're grateful to have a friend when you go abroad, if only for distractions like this if nothing else.

She wants to marry and settle down already - a noble sentiment for a young Snezhnayan lady. You think any man would be lucky to have her.

For yourself, you're not so sure.

“Ooh!” She nudges you. “Don't look, but Vlad's over there. Isn't he cute?”

Against her wishes, you turn your head. He looks like any regular Snezhnayan man to you, blonde and with an angular face that could’ve been carved from the frozen earth itself. “Well, I guess. He looks kind.”

“And he's coming to Liyue too!” Nadia stage whispers.

“Exciting.” You raise an eyebrow.

You excuse yourself from your meal after a while, leaving the mess hall alone. Nadia's conversation was entertaining but exhausting, provided one could keep up with her endless stream of news and gossip from various sources.

But it's from this river of information that you sift out a tiny gold nugget: that Harbinger Tartaglia would be in the archery fields if he weren't busy preparing for his return to Liyue with his new crew.

Perhaps it's curiosity, or pure boredom that drives you outside into the cold.

The walk is familiar, ice crunching under your boots. It was admittedly difficult to walk on snow and ice - if you were anything but Snezhnayan, born and raised.

Your fingertips tingle with the phantom itch to hold a bow. It'd been a while…

You follow the path, rounding the building to a frozen field. A number of wooden targets and straw dummies are lined up, some in varying states of disrepair. A small hangover, an incline, really, provides minimal coverage against the wind like a very tiny rock against a great river.

As expected, there’s no one there. You feel a small sense of relief at having missed that chance encounter.

The new recruits train elsewhere. It’s a place only for those who want to exercise the muscles you rarely get to use, being cooped up in front of a desk all day.

You take up position at the edge of the field, summoning your bow and fixing three arrows to it.

They arc in a graceful, shining line, each landing perfectly in the middle of its respective target board.

You affix another arrow to the shelf, taking a deep breath. The world narrows to the point of your arrow and the fletching on the arrow you landed.

Dimly, you’re aware of the shuffling of feet behind you, quickly hushed. Probably just another of your fellow soldiers who wanted to get out of the noise of the mess hall. You pay them no mind.

You release the arrow, reload, release, reload. Three arrows land in rapid succession, splitting each of the previous arrows neatly down the shaft.

You exhale, and your senses return to you. The cold embraces you again, and you shake the tension out of your shoulders, putting your bow away. You can almost feel its sigh, already impatient for the next occasion it could perform.

Slow clapping. “An impressive show, soldier.”

You spin on your heel.

Tartaglia stands at the top of the incline, flanked by two bodyguards. As if he needed them within the walls of the Fatui stronghold, the youngest of all the harbingers, who single-handedly dug his fingers into the fabric of Liyue to get the Tsaritsa a foothold.

It’s been quite a while since you last saw him, you realise. He looks a little sharper, a little leaner, his gaze perhaps a little more complex, as if he were thinking of the future while simultaneously discerning all your secrets. The hydro vision on his belt winks at you in the cold light.

Standing on the incline, he looks like a conqueror, surveying his land. It's a good look for a harbinger to have.

“My lord.” You salute him smartly, tamping down your embarrassment at noticing them late. “My apologies for taking up your time.”

“Oh, no need for all that, padruga.” He comes down the slope, the bodyguards following a respectful distance behind. “It's always a delight to watch you in action.”

What had Madame Signora said? “He requested for you specifically”?

Ajax- no, Tartaglia, is a good head taller than you, maybe more. As he approaches, you have to incline your head to meet the unfamiliar gleam in his blue eyes. Whatever could he want from you?

“You've been well, I trust?” He summons his bow, and you take the cue to move a step backward, leaving him room to shoot.

“Well enough, may the Tsaritsa continue to watch over me.”

To your surprise, he snorts a laugh, loosing his arrow. It strikes deep into the wood, igniting a spark as it scrapes against yours. “A devotary? Some things certainly have changed around here.”

One of the bodyguards shifts his feet. You glance back at him, then at Tartaglia. “Is a harbinger not also subservient to her majesty?”

He chuckles. “Of course he is. I’m just… surprised.” Another arrow, another target. “You never struck me as the type to believe.”

You remain silent as the last arrow hits its mark. All just to the right of your own arrows, pressed so close they seem on the verge of falling off.

“Excellent marksmanship, my lord.” The impersonal compliment comes easily to your lips. You clasp your hands behind your back.

A gentle breeze begins to blow (the kind that might have killed a man in lesser clothing), unsettling his already unruly ginger hair. The bodyguards adjust their stances, as if roused by the cold wind.

“Certainly.” He grins, a self-assured smile, unhidden by a mask. You’re grateful for yours in that regard - no need to hide your emotions or expressions too well when all Fatui are shrouded in uniform secrecy. “Nothing but the best to serve her majesty.”

Somewhere deep within the halls, a bell begins to toll.

You snap to a salute. “Thank you for your time, my lord,” you say, as if he hadn’t been the one to seek you out for conversation first. “I must be taking my leave now.”

padruga: friend (female) according to google

— word count: 1598. thank you for reading!

[reunionatdawn]

My Analysis of the Best Paired Endings in 3H (Part 16: Mercedes/Dedue)

Mercedes: If I were someone else, perhaps a commoner without a Crest or stature, maybe things would be different. It's a bit sad, but…this is the way things have to be. After all, only the goddess can decide our fates.

Each character in the Blue Lions was a victim of Faerghus's patriarchal culture. Mercedes was adopted for the purpose of being married off for her Crest. The Crest of Lamine is associated with the arcana of Judgement. It represents an important decision that needs to be made regarding love and romance. It also symbolizes a solution to a protracted problem, and a feeling of freedom.

Mercedes was separated from her brother at a young age and had to make a new life for herself in the Kingdom. What got her through those hard times was the support of the church. That's why her dream was to work there to help people, just as they did for her. But doing so would be difficult if she married a nobleman.

Mercedes: Though, just because two people share a promise, that doesn't guarantee they'll be together forever. You've noticed many nobles at the academy, right? They very rarely have the freedom to choose their own partners.

Mercedes had a lot in common with Ingrid. She did not want to give up on her dream to be used as a broodmare for her Crest, like her mother was. However, she felt like she had no choice.

Byleth: You can't just give up on your dreams. Mercedes: That's a very good point! We're only given one life, so we must do all we can to pursue our happiness! OK! I think that may have been just the push I was looking for! I'll tell him the truth. That I've found a life worth pursuing and I must decline the proposal! Maybe I should tell him I've fallen for someone else?

Mercedes had difficulty standing up to her adoptive father. She was willing to lie to him by telling him that she had fallen for someone else. That might explain many of her pairing options.

Ferdinand: You baffle me. Do you not wish to be free? Mercedes: Of course I do. Let me try that again in a way you might understand. Ahem. A true noble cuts their own path, seizing freedom from the clutches of tyranny!

I suspect that the reason she rejected Ferdinand's help to sever ties with her adoptive father was because she wasn't sure if his gesture was an attempt to woo her. She wasn't sure if she would have the will to decline if he proposed. In their paired ending, she severs ties with her adoptive father and marries him immediately after the war. She lives the traditional life of a noble wife while her husband is recognized for his achievements.

Mercedes: I don't care to flaunt my noble past or my Crest. I have no desire to return to that status. Lorenz: Then, if I may speak hypothetically a moment… Does that mean that if a nobleman were to offer you his hand in marriage, you would decline? Mercedes: Not at all. That's a separate matter entirely. Even if I were to fall in love, regardless of their social status… I'm not looking to marry right now.

Even by the end of their A-Support, she still didn't seem to like Lorenz very much. She was unusually sarcastic with him. And she specifically said she wasn't ready to marry even if she was in love. But it is still possible that she will marry Lorenz immediately after the war. It shows how difficult it was for her to deviate from her path.

Mercedes: …No, I'm glad. I feel like I saw your true face for the first time. …Hey, Sylvain. Would you be able to save me from the curse of my Crest? Sylvain: I…I'll save you! With my heart and soul! I love you! Great! Let's get married!

Mercedes also had a lot in common with Sylvain, and the two actually became close friends. They are both Gemini, the zodiac sign which is thought to be two-faced because of their natural duality.

Mercedes: Don't be ashamed of crying. I'm here to protect you. Will you protect me in return? Sylvain: I will. I promise. You know, Mercedes, you really are a special lady.

Because Mercedes was able to empathize with his pain, he let the mask slip with her, and she saw his other face. Because of that, she was also the only character to see him cry. She wanted him to save her from her arranged marriage, and she had a genuine desire to save him from that fate, too. So, she is one of the very few women Sylvain is able to marry and have a paired ending with.

Mercedes: You're much the same, yes? People like us have to try to bloom as best we can. Sylvain: Never really thought of myself as a flower, but I get what you're saying. Flowers are stuck in the same spot for life, whether they like it or not. And if they happen to sprout in a bad area, they're out of luck. But we have legs, not roots. We can go wherever we want.

But Hopes does a good job of showing why that's not the ideal solution to their problems. Even if she did marry him, she would prefer to be doing charity work rather than living the life of a nobleman's wife. Sylvain was fine with that, but Mercedes did not want to stand in the way of him marrying the person he truly loved.

Sylvain: To be perfectly clear, I'm not making advances on your or anything. But I'm the heir of House Gautier. If I ask you, this other guy will have no choice but to bow out. Though I doubt he'd be happy about it. After that, you can do whatever you want. Go work at a church or ladle out soup or whatever makes you happy. I won't stop you. Mercedes: But that would prevent you from marrying the person you love.

She didn't realize that Sylvain didn't want to get married in the first place. He would be marrying her because she offered him a loophole to his own predicament. With her as his wife, he could fulfill his noble obligation, but still be able to live freely. They cared for each other and shared mutual respect, but neither of them seemed like they would have considered marrying the other without their fathers pushing them into an arranged marriage.

Mercedes: And before that, when I lived with my mother and my little brother. It also reminds me of the time I spent studying with friends at the school of sorcery in the capital. Things may not have been easy then, but I would give anything to return to those days.

The tagline for the game was, "Sweet memories twisted by time's cruel hand". The best option for Mercedes might seem like recruiting her into Crimson Flower and reuniting her with her brother.

Mercedes & Jeritza Once those who slither in the dark were finally defeated, Mercedes left home and opened a small orphanage in the Faerghus region with her mother. After many years of kind service raising children who had lost their families, she received a letter bearing familiar handwriting. Its author, a prisoner in Enbarr, expressed his sincerest well-wishes to Mercedes and her family. Still more time passed until, one day, the man who wrote the letter paid her a visit. With joyful tears in her eyes, Mercedes smiled, took Emile by the hand, and at last welcomed him home.

And their ending is certainly touching. I was never really a big fan of it, though, because Jeritza's condition is resolved without any explanation. In Mercedes' paralogue, the Death Knight said his soul had long departed. He was not fully in control of himself, which is why he continued to fight on the opposite side from his sister. Before this DLC update, it had been implied that Emile had probably been experimented on like the Remire villagers. He was barely human anymore and it was impossible for him to return to normal.

Mercedes: It's sad, but the truth is that people forget. You may be afraid to forget your past, but you'll never be able to revisit it. Living in the present is the best we can do. We owe it to those who can't come back. Dimitri: If someone had said those words to me five years ago, I would be a different man today.

As sad as it is, Mercedes had a stronger character arc in AM where she had to accept that she's unable to return to the past.

Annette: You know, I've always loved you more than anything in the world! Mercedes: My, is that…a confession of love? Hehe, I'm so happy~. Annette: Uh, um, I wanted to say I love the sweets you bake more than anything in the world! Mercedes: Oh, is that so... Well, I love you, Annie.

Other than Emile, Annette was the most important person to Mercedes. In their A-Support they both confessed their love for each other. While it did seem like the bisexual Mercedes may have loved her beyond friendship (particularly in the Japanese), Annette seemed insistent on emphasizing her platonic love.

Annette & Mercedes After the war, Annette and Mercedes lived separate lives: the former as a teacher at the school of sorcery in Fhirdiad, the latter as a cleric at Garreg Mach. Though they lived apart, they exchanged letters so frequently and shared their lives with one another in such detail that it was as though they were side by side. After many decades, they resigned their respective positions and reunited at Garreg Mach. In their final years, they relocated to a modest house in the Fortress City. It is said that they were happy together to the very end.

They will not be life partners even if you go for their paired ending. While they do keep in touch, they'll live completely separate lives until retirement age. It's a slightly bittersweet ending, showing how, as we get older and pursue different life paths, things don't always stay the same. I don't consider it to be the most satisfying ending for either of them. Still, the fact that Mercedes will move away from her best friend shows how important it was to her to pursue her dream.

Mercedes: I just don't want to let go of the life that I've made for myself. I know it's not what my heart wants, but I don't have the strength to say no.

After Garreg Mach fell, Mercedes returned home to the Kingdom capital and joined the merchant business. She told Byleth that she didn't want to give up the life she made for herself in Fhirdiad.

Annette: Since our time in the capital, so much has happened. We've had to make new lives for ourselves, and we've seen at least as many hard times as good. If things keep changing like this, I wonder if we'll be able to stay the same people we are now…

And Annette also didn't want things between them to change by starting completely new lives again, which is what happens in their paired ending.

Dimitri: My own dreams… I have never given it any thought. What about you? What do you want, Mercedes? Mercedes: I want to keep sewing and training with you, even after you've become king. I want to be your friend.

Mercedes even wanted to stay friends with Dimitri after the war, which would only be possible if she kept her old life in the capital.

Mercedes: I'm going to Fhirdiad to meet with my adoptive father, and I'd like you to accompany me. Byleth: What for? Mercedes: I feel the need to set things straight with him in my own way. I've already decided exactly what I'm going to say. I'm choosing to live my life how I want, in pursuit of my own happiness. I need you to accept that. I'm in charge of my own destiny. Not you, not anyone else. Just me. Ah… I've waited so long to say all that.

The best thing for her would be to sever ties with her adoptive father, without the excuse of already having a fiancé. She always left her fate in the hands of the goddess or people above her. But her character arc was about acting of her own free will.

Dimitri: Do you remember the child who cursed me after my father's funeral? Dedue: Ah, yes. I believe he was the son of a knight who fell in Duscur. Dimitri: He was furious that I would not take revenge on your people, and even more enraged to see you serving as my vassal. He berated me without mercy, demanding I kill you then and there. All I could do was walk away. Everyone desires revenge for that day. Survivors and the dead alike cry out for retribution.

Dimitri was also a victim of Faerghus's violent patriarchal culture. He was expected to carry out vengeance for the Tragedy of Duscur. His violent urges were encouraged and rewarded by the society he grew up in. At times, he was chilled to the bone by the depravity of his own actions, such as suppressing a rebellion.

Dedue: When I stood before those soldiers and their swords that day, I was prepared to die. But then you suddenly appeared, and you shielded me. I knew then that a savior's hand could reach into even the deepest darkness.

Dedue was the biggest victim of Farghus's retaliatory violence. His moniker is "Taciturn Devotee". A devotee is a person who strongly admires a particular person. But it can also mean a strong believer in a particular religion or god. It probably would not be an exaggeration to state that Dedue saw Dimitri as the Fódlan goddess.

Dedue: And I would cast it aside in an instant if my death were to your benefit. For that reason, I cannot consider myself your friend. There are still many in the Kingdom who despise the people of Duscur. It would be selfish of me to stand by your side as an equal.

Many people interpreted his feelings for Dimitri as having a romantic aspect to them. I certainly wouldn't reject that interpretation. After all, by reaching out his hand, Dimitri served the same role that Byleth did for him.

Dedue: You promised me you would build a Kingdom that is proud to boast of Duscur blood. In this Kingdom, where there is no distinction between the people of Duscur and the people of Fódlan… Will I finally, without reservation, be able to call you my friend? Will I…Dimitri? Dimitri: Dedue… Yes, you will call me your friend, again and again. No matter how many hardships I must endure… Dedue: I will do all I can to bring about that world as well. To be your friend…is what I have always wanted.

During their A-Support, we learned that Dimitri made a promise to Dedue before they attended the Officer's Academy.

Dimitri & Dedue After his coronation, Dimitri assumed the throne of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and his loyal vassal, Dedue, remained ever at his side. Among Dimitri's achievements was the reconciliation with Duscur: an extraordinary effort that required extensive negotiations to get past a history of betrayal and oppression. It was a trying task, but Dimitri never once considered giving up. While they behaved as lord and vassal in public, it is said that Dimitri and Dedue were more like family in private. When Dimitri finally fell to illness, Dedue tended to his liege's deathbed, and then took up a post at his grave for the rest of his days. When the time came, they were buried beside each other.

Their paired ending emphasizes Dimitri's efforts reconciling with Duscur and how he never gave up. But it does not specify whether the Duscur people were able to proudly live alongside people from Fódlan without distinction. In fact, because Dedue had to behave as a vassal in public, it implies that there was still hostility between Duscur and the Kingdom for the majority of Dimitri's reign. Dedue only gets to stand by Dimitri's side as an equal in death.

Also, there was no mention of Dedue's efforts bringing about the world he wanted to see. It only mentions him serving Dimitri for his entire life as a subordinate, then guarding his grave for the rest of his days. It is not that different from his solo ending, and I don't think it's a particularly satisfying ending for Dedue.

Dedue: I would regretfully decline. I cannot know happiness without you by my side. I would still seek vengeance. Just… for my own sake, not yours. Dimitri: Interesting. And nothing I say to the contrary will change your mind? Dedue: Your Majesty, can you not live for your own sake? Dimitri: My life is not my own. It belongs to my kingdom, my people, and the dead.

Neither Dimitri or Dedue knew how to live for themselves, and neither could live without the other.

Dedue: I…can still fight, Your Highness. Dimitri: Shut up and retreat. You must live, Dedue.

During his boar phase, Dimitri was willing to mow down any of his old classmates, even if they were not his enemies. And he was willing to send all of his friends and allies to their deaths, too. The single exception was Dedue. He is the only person Dimitri tells to retreat at Gronder Field. And Dedue will live only to seek vengeance.

Dedue: Ngh… I'm not finished yet! Dimitri: Fall back, Dedue! Please! I cannot afford to lose you!

In Scarlet Blaze, Dimitri also begs him to retreat in the Valley of Torment. Dedue would have gladly fought to the death, but Dimitri personally made sure he didn't. It was because he cherished Dedue so much that he wanted him to live for his own happiness.

Dedue: Someday, I hope to show you a whole landscape of these flowers in full bloom. Byleth: You mean Duscur? Dedue: Yes. Once this conflict is over, and His Highness ascends the throne, I believe it can be done. You must live at least until then. Understood? Byleth: Same to you. Dedue: That's true enough. I had not thought much of my own life, until now. Except that I would gladly cast it aside for His Highness. That is still true, but now I desire to see the end of this war. Until I can show you the fields of Duscur in bloom… I will go on living.

Other than Dimitri, the only other thing that gave Dedue a reason to live was showing Byleth the flowers of Duscur in bloom.

Dedue: When I left the capital, I told His Majesty that I would be leaving his service. Byleth: What?! Dedue: He accepted my decision with a smile.

If you go for Dedue's paired ending with Byleth, you learn that if Dedue were to leave Dimitri's service, he would accept with a smile. And I think Dedue has a better character arc if he is able to grow past his codependence on Dimitri and find his own reason to live.

Dedue: To Duscur? There is nothing of interest left there. Mercedes: Isn't it where you were born? And isn't it where your wonderful food and stories come from? I think those are reason enough to visit at least once! Dedue: Mercedes… If you will allow it, I would like to accompany you. His Highness would surely grant me leave to go.

When Mercedes asked Dedue what his plans were after the war, he said it was to serve Dimitri for the rest of his days. And in most of his endings, that's exactly what he does, even if he's married. Going with her to Duscur and praying to the gods (and goddesses) of his own culture changed his entire fate. That's probably why his ending with Mercedes is so different compared to all of his others.

Mercedes: I think a place is only truly destroyed when there's no one left to remember it. You should tell more people about Duscur to keep it alive.

The whole relationship between Mercedes and Dedue revolved around the idea that they could keep their loved ones alive through their memories. He taught her many things about his culture, and she taught him a family recipe that would have otherwise been forgotten.

Dedue: I understand how you feel. I had a younger sister. Sylvain: Had? Oh. Tell me about her. What was she like? Dedue: Hm. She loved flowers, and often made crowns out of them. And once she set her mind to something, nothing in the world could change it.

I really loved their Support in Hopes. It felt exactly like a post-Houses version of their relationship after they had travelled to Duscur and fallen in love. There are rarely any times where Dedue seems happier than when teaching her and the kids to make flower crowns, in memory of his sister. They seem like a married teacher couple, too.

Dedue & Mercedes Two years after the war, Dedue and his wife, Mercedes, opened a school in the Duscur residential district in Fhirdiad. The school educated Duscur children, who had never been given structured learning before, in reading, writing, arithmetic, and even Duscur history. Many years later, when the Duscur people reclaimed their homeland, the people who attended this school were able to resettle there and revive their old culture. Because of this, Dedue and Mercedes were forever renowned by the Duscur.

This is the only ending where Dimitri's promise to Dedue is actually fulfilled, as it mentions the Duscur people having their own district in Fhirdiad. And it just so happens that this is the only paired ending (besides the one with Byleth) where Dedue isn't described as a vassal. He is still living in the capital, so we can assume that he and Dimitri are close friends. But they live as equals. Dedue has his own life now and his own achievements are renowned.

In Hopes, Mercedes said she wanted to go back to Fhirdiad, but not live with her adoptive father. This is the only ending (other than with Dimitri) where she can live her dream, help those in need, and stay in Fhirdiad with her other friends. With Dedue, they get married two years after the war. So, she clearly didn't marry him just to escape her arranged marriage. Dedue and Mercedes bonded over their sense of loss, but they used that pain to keep Duscur alive, so I think it's the absolute best conclusion to their character arcs.

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Author's notes about the Tanza and Auren fragment, because I keep having too many thoughts about it.

It's a good thing Auren started watching the movie only after his fictional self escaped from the rebels, because reliving his capture and near-execution might actually have been traumatizing.

He also missed out on the trauma of seeing fictional versions of his dead family and friends, who got much less flattering portrayals.

Tanza's desperation to stop the movie before Auren figures out what it's about is partially out of concern for his emotional health, but also out of sheer embarrassment at the idea that he's going to find out this exists (and maybe find out about her embarrassing tweenage obsession with this story).

(I can't believe I got the actor's name wrong for the first half of the story. I've gone back to fix it.)

(Also, if anyone thought this universe had good worldbuilding, I have fooled you all, because writing this I wasn't sure if tephans had chairs. The original story mentions an office chair, dining chairs, and folding chairs, but nothing about the seating in a living area. This scene gave me a minor crisis about this.)

Not only was the film a sensation that made its lead actor a star--he also became a Colin-Firth-in-Pride-and-Prejudice level heartthrob. (Which makes the real Auren a bit of a letdown to a lot of female tephans.) Tanza will never tell him about that.

Tanza was interested in the story because of its romanticized drama and the focus on the historical period. She did not have a crush like other girls. (If she did, it was toward the idea of this noble, tragic hero, not toward the actor.)

If there was a level of attraction toward the fictional Auren, it might be my window into imagining her romance with the real one. I can see Auren being attracted to Tanza (and in the original story there are two moments specifically where he's acting like a man in love), but I've had a harder time imagining Tanza developing romantic feelings for him. But there's something sweet in imagining this abandoned little girl (with her prickly outer shell hiding a vulnerable soul) falling a little bit in love with the story of the noble hero, never imagining that she'd grow up and find out the real man is so much better and in love with her. (There's also something weird about it, so it might be better not to go that way).

At some point, Auren is going to meet Corphan Holbrith at one of those political events/charity fundraisers he always has to attend. Holbrith is going to mention that he's overjoyed that the real Auren was found, because if the real prince hadn't shown up, Holbrith was half-afraid people would put "Prince Auren" on his own tomb.

(The two of them get along very well. Tanza just about dies from how surreal this moment is.)

The premise of the Prince Auren story has always been that there's been an Anastasia-style legend surrounding Prince Auren's survival. But now I'm sad that I didn't go full Anastasia, and make Auren discover that they made an animated musical about his alternate self.

The only reason I'm not immediately making a sequel about this premise is that I'm not sure Arateph has animation or musicals in the way that we know them (it might go a few steps too far in making them like humans).

There definitely is some kind of musical storytelling format (tephans have several strong musical traditions across their various regional cultures), and there's definitely at least one retelling of Prince Auren's imagined history in that format.

If we imagine the Prince Auren story works like the Anastasia story in our world, then there's a pretty good chance that Auren's survival story has become almost its own fairy tale, with lots of different reimaginings and retellings. Which makes it awkward after the real Prince Auren shows up. Can we keep telling versions of this story/putting on these beloved stage plays, etc.? Is it a fairy tale that has become public cultural property, or history that we need to stop circulating now that it's fully debunked?

[crownedwithstars]

Galadriel in the Rings of Power, part 4: A savvy politician or a silly brash youth?

This post is the continuation of my analysis of Galadriel as she is portrayed in the Amazon series The Rings of Power - and why I think it is so very bad. Part 1 focused on the the portrayal of her being a warrior, and the many problems it creates for her character and possibly even for LOTR, whereas part 2 argued that what is supposed to be war trauma is actually just an awful personality. Part 3 focuses on the ways ROP undermines Galadriel's story as a woman, wife, and mother.

Part 1 x Part 2 x Part 3

This post will discuss the various ways Galadriel's portrayal in ROP is wrong when comparing the mental qualities she expresses in canon and in the show, the depiction of her age, and whether she is well cast in the show.

I will post my arguments in a few different posts, because that should make the whole much more readable. I will use the tags #anti rop and #anti rings of power for the benefit of those who may want to filter my posts.

If you like Amazon Rings of Power, I have no issue with that; I only take issue with how a character I've loved for over a decade is portrayed in this show.

6. ROP!Galadriel does not have the mental capacity and abilities she should have.

In Tolkien's versions of Galadriel's story, she is consistently portrayed as an individual of high intellect and wisdom, matching even the loremasters of her people. She is insightful and astute, seeing into the hearts of people around her, and recognising evil even under a fair form. She is collected and resilient after great ordeals and suffering. She never is persuaded to follow or even like Fëanor, and when Sauron comes to Eregion as Annatar, she knows him immediately for what he is. She learns to check her ambition and when she's offered the rule of Lothlórien, she won't become a queen after King Amroth, but assumes more of a regent's role as the Lady of the Wood. Galadriel is also a strong and wise leader, respected by her subordinates and other Elven communities, which implies great diplomatic skill. As I have argued before, it is striking that she, a Noldo and blood-relation of Kinslayers, is revered among the Elves of MIddle-earth. It's hard to believe this would be possible if she did not build and maintain a connection with them throughout the First and Second Ages. When the Istari arrive in Middle-earth, she rightly recognises Gandalf as the greatest of them. She travels through Khazad-dûm with her daughter, and does so while her husband Celeborn refuses the journey due to his prejudices for Dwarves, thus showing her tolerance and ability to deal with the other peoples of Middle-earth. She makes allies among the peoples of Middle-earth, is the instigator of the White Council and even invokes love in the heart of Gimli the dwarf, who has every reason to be mistrustful of her. Specifically, it is her eloquence and respect for his culture that wins him over. She is one of the very few noble Noldorin Elves to survive the First Age and endure until the end of the Third. 

I don't find any of these qualities in ROP!Galadriel. The most glaring difference is how blind and gullible she is to Sauron/Halbrand's deceptions - a direct contradiction of how canonically Galadriel immediately saw through his disguise and was his enemy from the start. ROP!Galadriel doesn't seem particularly intelligent, what with jumping out of a ship and trying to swim across an ocean, and spending centuries fruitlessly hunting Sauron. And as I argued in the part 3, it doesn't seem like she ever had a very good plan of how to bring down Sauron, if she ever found him - unless her intention always was to self-destruct by Sauron.

She has no wisdom whatsoever, doesn't see her own faults and doesn't try to check herself. She is a princess of Noldor and in her youth witnessed all the tensions and rivalries at her grandfather's court, but still she has no skill in politics, diplomacy or negotiation. She lets herself be manipulated by Gil-galad, stepping on the ship that sails for Valinor and only jumps out at the point when there is no way she could possibly swim back to Middle-earth (only to be saved by idiot plot). She is antagonising against potential allies. She waltzes into the court of Númenor, yells platitudes at the regent, makes arrogant demands and gets herself thrown in jail - which she gets out of not by eloquence and persuasion, but by aggression and violence. The only reason Míriel seems to help her is because Míriel's own foreboding, not because Galadriel's diplomatic skill. She is a blunt weapon of no artistry or subtlety. She is rude even when her circumstances require tact and caution, and continues to act in a coarse way even though the Númenóreans' prejudices against Elves are already causing tensions and the smart thing to do would be to show discretion and courtesy. For her community, she is a problem to be dealt with, not a great asset and ally. She has no personal dignity and people around have no respect for her. And why would they? She is not nice even to her so called friends and mostly she is bothered to care about people around her when they can somehow serve her vengeance. Pride is maybe the only thing ROP!Galadriel has in common with her canon counterpart, but it's combined with an already awful personality and no redeeming qualities.

7. Depiction of Galadriel's age is nonsensical.

This argument has not just to do with Galadriel, but is linked with the show's larger problems with portraying Elves and the compression of time - although it is telling that it's the female character that gets this treatment, not one of the male Elves. However, this is another discussion altogether and I will cover it in the final part of my analysis.

According to Tolkien's lore, Elves reach maturity at the age of a hundred years. Galadriel at the end of the Second Age is already thousands of years old. At this point in canon, she has been married for an age and has a grown daughter. She is one of the oldest and most powerful elves of Middle-earth, and is senior to Gil-galad and Celebrimbor. 

Although ROP still maintains that Galadriel was born in Valinor during the years of the Trees and is thus exactly as old as in canon, you would not guess it from the way she presents herself. She is so brash and immature in her behaviour that Elendil, a mortal who can't even comprehend the ages she has lived, actually says she reminds him of his children (is this some convoluted way of saying that only parenthood will bring out one's full potential?). Meanwhile, Gil-galad and Celebrimbor, who are both her junior, are portrayed as older and more mature. In canon, Galadriel is wise already as a young elf and her wisdom grows only greater during her long life, but ROP!Galadriel has absolutely no wisdom and despite her great age, acts like a hot-headed teenager. It seems the show wants to portray her as "young Galadriel", never mind the fact that this character cannot in any way be considered young at the end of the Second Age. Heck, it would be a reach even if the show began at the start of SA.

8. Galadriel is not well cast

I will admit that this argument is partly a matter of taste, but there is also a more objective observation to be made: Galadriel is described as a very tall woman, as tall as most male Elves. She is also an athlete in her youth, and also physically strong. Combining this with her high intellect, her ability to read the hearts and minds of others, and heritage as a High Elf who saw the light of the Trees, Galadriel should be played by a tall, imposing and striking woman. 

The actress Amazon cast in the role does not have these qualities. She is diminutive and does not stand out in any scene as an ancient and powerful Elf. The weight of the role would be humongous for anyone after Cate Blanchett's widely beloved portrayal, and it is certainly not helpful that the show creators have made some very controversial choices about the character.

On a more subjective note, in my opinion the actress is not particularly good in the role. Most of the time, she has only two expressions, sullenness and angry sneer. Her delivery is not very good or convincing. But maybe this is not the actress' fault: the problems could stem from the script and direction, which are at times laughably bad. I don't know of the actress' previous work - I'm under the impression that she is a new face in the business and ROP is her first major role - so it may be also a question of experience.

Also we should cast tall women in more roles. 

&&&&&&

The next and the final part will attempt to tie in my arguments and also point out some problems with the show that are not necessarily about Galadriel, but affect nonetheless the way she's portrayed in the show.

[wastelandmoony]

Déjà Vécu: Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Eight : Foundation

Summary: Lupin can't draw.

Characters: Remus Lupin/Reader, Sirius Black/Reader (no use of y/n), James Potter, Petter Pettigrew, Regulus Black, Marlene McKinnon, Mary MacDonald, Lily Evans

Warnings: 18+ Only, Minors DNI

Déjà Vécu Masterlist

Companion Playlist

Read on AO3

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

August 10th, 1976

Remus forgave Sirius over the summer. She wasn’t sure of the specifics, nor did she pry, but the four boys had apparently spent time together at Potter Manor and fought it out. James had invited her to visit, a few times actually, to which she politely declined each and every letter. She just couldn’t see Sirius. Though the incident had been months prior, the rage was still there, waiting just under the surface for her to break. She didn’t ask Remus why he had decided to speak to Sirius again, frankly she didn’t care, his reasons were his own. He had tried to explain parts of Sirius’ alleged reasoning behind the betrayal, calling it a “prank gone wrong”, but she shut him down quickly. There was no excuse for what he did, and the attempt to blame it on Sirius’ lingering trauma was a slap in the face after all of the time she had spent consoling and helping him heal from his family. The progress she thought they had made was for nothing. He had proven his parents right, he was truly the heir to the noble House of Black.

The summer was relaxing otherwise, and she was able to spend a lot of time with her parents, much to their elation. The three of them went on weekly excursions to museums and parks, soaking up culture and experiencing all that the muggle world had to offer. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed it. In early August, they took a trip to the British Museum to see a new opening of a show on Impressionism. As her mother stood entranced by the pastel hued works, she snuck off to wander the halls. On one of the upper floors, there was a nearly deserted gallery dedicated to prints and drawings, and she almost sighed with relief at finally being away from crowds of people. 

Posting up on one of the slatted wooden benches, she pulled out her sketchbook and began to draw. When she finished a delicate rendition of a Circe print that had caught her eye, she tapped the book covertly with her wand, showing it to Remus. A few short moments later he replied in his normal scratchy handwriting.

She reminds me of you.

She bit back a laugh, scribbling a note back to him, How so?

A few moments lingered again.

Powerful sorceress, good with herbs and potions, loves to hang out with animals.

I’m a witch, not a sorceress, Remus.

She could practically hear his laughter through the paper, You’re splitting hairs, love.

He followed the message with a crudely drawn doodle of a wolf, a stag, a little rat, and a dog. At least...she assumed that’s what it was. 

———

September 1st, 1976

For the first time in her Hogwarts career, she sat with Lily, Mary, and Marlene in their compartment on the way to school. She had spotted the boys on the platform upon arrival, offering a small wave to Remus, Peter, and James. When she had turned to follow Lily onto the train, James yelled for her, voice laden with confusion. He must’ve thought the summer would have tampered her feelings. She looked back to see Remus whispering in his ear, James nodding to her in understanding. 

Sirius stood behind them, watching her from afar.

During the feast that night, she ate amongst her fellow Hufflepuffs, the house that she loved and admired, but still did not feel quite at-home in. Across the Great Hall, her friends were laughing, and her heart began to break.

———

September 24th, 1976

Remus was practically on his knees begging. So far, he’d harassed her at breakfast, in the corridor after her first class, and again at lunch. Now he was caging her between his arms against a pillar in the central hall, pleading with her to come to a party in Gryffindor Tower that night.

“Please, please, pleaseeeeee!” He whined, “Please don’t leave me alone with them.”

She sighed, “I said no, Remus.” 

“But it’s Peter’s birthday party, he’ll be upset if you’re not there.”

She cut him a look, “He’ll get over it, I promise.”

“Please,” he stooped down to her eye level, “I’m begging you. I’ll owe you for life. Just come with me to the party, you can stay by my side and I won’t even let Sirius near you.”

She almost winced at his name. 

“Remus…” She didn’t want to think about Sirius. Didn’t want to breathe the same air as him. Just seeing him in passing was like being stabbed in the gut repeatedly. She wasn’t sure if she could weather it. 

Remus’ eyes softened, “I know, I’m sorry. I just…I’ve missed you being around, and I know James and Pete have too. You can’t stay away from us forever, you’re an honorary Marauder.”

A laugh burst out of her mouth, “I’m sorry, a what?”

He smiled, “The Marauders. It’s the name we came up with over the summer at James’. Well, he came up with it, we all just went along when he wouldn’t stop saying it.”

“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” she chuckled again.

Remus laughed too and hugged her, “I know it is, but you’re a part of it too. I need you, the boys need you. Please come tonight.”

She melted into his embrace, savoring the warmth that only seemed to radiate from Remus. 

“Fine,” she groaned, earning herself a squeeze and a kiss on the top of her head.

“Brilliant, I’ll see you at 9,” and Remus finally let go and shot her a satisfied wink before he ran off to class. 

———

She’d been to so many Gryffindor parties that she couldn’t keep track, and each one had felt like a house party filled with her closest friends, no matter the occasion. Tonight though, she felt like she was walking into the lions den (no pun intended). The rhythm of her heart threatened to drown out the booming sound of The Ramones blaring through the common room. Even though it was Pete’s birthday party, Sirius had clearly commandeered the music selection.

She searched for Remus, finally landing on his shaggy brown hair sitting next to James near the fire. Pushing through bodies, she dropped between her two friends with a dramatic sigh.

“There she is!” James yelled, spilling some sort of amber liquid on the floor. He grabbed her face and kissed her cheek aggressively.

She laughed and shook him off, “Are you pissed?” 

James smiled, his eyes starting to become distant, “I’m gettin’ there.”

Remus leaned in to whisper in her ear “This is precisely why I needed you here. I can’t deal with all of them drunk off their asses.”

She let out another laugh as she noticed Lily stalking across the room towards the record player, stopping the needle abruptly.

The loud shout from the other side of the common room could only be one person. 

“Oi! Evans! What’re you doing!” Sirius grabbed the record from her hands like a precious jewel. 

Lily pulled out another album, flashing him a wicked smile, “I’m trying to liven up this party with some dancing.” 

When the needle hit, Abba began to play, leading to a loud shriek from a few girls around the party, including herself and Mary. Lily met her eyes from across the room and held out an inviting hand.

She paused for a minute, knowing that Sirius was within earshot, knowing he would be watching.

Fuck it.

She leapt up and grabbed Lily’s hand, the two of them spinning and moving to Waterloo. Mary and Marlene flanked them, the latter dragging Dorcas along and coercing her to join in. She forgot about the party, forgot about the room entirely, and most importantly, she forgot about Sirius. All she knew was her friends dancing beside her, laughing and smiling. She briefly locked eyes with Peter, standing behind the couch and laughing along to their dancing. Wiggling her fingers in his direction she called to him, “C’mon birthday boy, dance with me!” Pete beamed and spun her around, falling into step easily. He was a particularly good dancer, much to her surprise.

“How’d you get so good at this?” she said over the music. Pete spun her wide, pulling back to have her pressed to his chest as they swayed. 

“Perks of growing up with an older sister, I suppose,” he laughed into her ear.

She smiled, the first genuine one she’d had in a while.

“I’m glad you came tonight,” Pete said quietly, “I’ve missed you, it’s been weird not having you around.”

She reached up and scratched his head fondly. Pete leaned down and kissed her cheek, finally giving her one last twirl. As the music faded and the room stopped spinning, her eyes landed on Sirius holed up in a corner of the room, tossing back what she knew wasn’t his first firewhisky. His eyes never left hers as the glass drained down his throat.

When the next song began to play, she sat back beside Remus, out of breath but feeling rejuvenated. James had gotten up and was now talking to Lily, who it seemed had finally begun speaking to him again, a small blush creeping up her freckled face.

Remus put his arm around her, “It’s good to see you smile again.”

She leaned her head on his shoulder, listening as a few 3rd years began to sing along to Sitting In The Palmtree, and relaxed.

———

If James Potter was one thing, he was a man of his word; and that man was good and truly pissed within the first hour of her being at the party. Her and Remus watched him from the window, dancing and singing atop a table to Elton John. 

“He’s actually not bad,” Remus mused, fishing a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He held one out, which she accepted as they both watched James spin around, using a bottle as a microphone.

She hummed as Remus lit both cigarettes, propping open the window to blow smoke out into the cold air. 

“So,” He took a drag and side-eyed her, “are you happy you came?”

She flicked at the filter, not wanting to give Remus the satisfaction of being right. 

“Yes…” she mumbled, taking another drag and refusing to look at him. 

She heard him laugh quietly beside her, leaning over to kiss her head, “I’m glad. I want things to go back to normal.” 

She sighed a trail of smoke, the tendrils curling around her face as she stared out into the night. “I’m not sure if it can, Moony. Maybe it can get better, but it can’t be like it was.” 

Remus didn’t push her, just stood in companionable silence as they watched the stars. She tossed her cigarette butt out the window, the embers dancing in the breeze. 

“It’s fuckin’ freezing,” She rubbed her arms, “Mind if I borrow one of your jumpers?”

Remus took a final pull of his cigarette and nodded, “Go ahead, you know where they are, top drawer.” He motioned towards the boys dorm. 

She weaved through the (now mostly drunk) partygoers, grabbing Lily once to twirl her around before heading up the stairs to the boys bedroom. The sound of people at the top of the spiral staircase made her cringe, she didn’t feel like walking through two horny 4th years trying to get off in the solitude of the upper levels. As she turned the corner to the top landing, she came face to face with a pretty blonde entangled with a dark haired boy. The girls’ hands were fumbling with his pants as he moved to kiss up her neck sloppily. Even from across the landing she could tell both of them were completely drunk. 

“Can you two have intercourse somewhere else? Maybe somewhere more private?” She called, moving towards the dormitory door.

The boy looked up and she froze. Sirius’s blue eyes shot through her and for a moment, she couldn’t breathe. For what felt like an eternity, he stared at her, and she could have sworn something like longing flickered behind his drunken gaze. As quickly as she saw it, it was gone, replaced by a smug expression that she had seen Regulus wear too many times to count. 

“C’mon Em,” he slurred, “Let’s go to my room.”

“You can at least wait until I leave, you know,” she shot at him, surprising even herself. 

Sirius turned around slightly as he opened the dormitory door, “What’re you even doing up here?” His voice was cold, and it shook her to the core. 

“Remus said I could borrow one of his jumpers,” she muttered, suddenly feeling so small under his scrutiny. 

Without another word, Sirius dragged the blonde girl into the dormitory, collapsing onto his bed. The girl climbed on top of him and they resumed the exploration of each other’s mouths. 

The last thing she wanted was to be seen as weak, let alone by Sirius fucking Black of all people. She squared her shoulders and strode to Remus’ closet, making a loud show of finding the right drawer containing his jumpers. As she aggressively slammed one of them shut, Sirius moaned loudly. He was playing the game too, it seems. 

Ripping a green and brown jumper from the top drawer, she spun around to find him glancing up at her from beneath the girl, eyes challenging as his hands continued to roam her body. 

She wouldn’t let him win this. 

She tore off her shirt and tossed it onto the floor, standing in the center of the room in just jeans and a bra and stared back at him, face cool and expressionless. She stood there for a beat, watching as Sirius’ mouth went slack, causing his partner to whine against his lips. At the sight of his barely contained shock, his eyes briefly jumping from her face to her chest, she pulled Remus’ jumper over her head and stormed out, slamming the door behind her. 

———

October 15th, 1976

Emmeline Vance had a death wish, though she didn’t know it. Apparently the fondling during Peter’s birthday party wasn’t a one time thing, and the blonde was now an almost constant fixture at their table in the Great Hall. The entire situation made everyone uncomfortable, but none of them had the guts to tell Sirius to cut it off. The little Ravenclaw sat in his lap, her favorite seat apparently, and her hands would be on him in some capacity at all times. 

The sight of them made her physically ill, so after a week of trying to suck it up and just not look at his side of the table, she decided to sit with the Hufflepuffs, much to Remus and James’ frustration. 

She didn’t like Emmeline, it wasn’t like when Sirius had dated Mary a few years ago. Mary was fun, and witty, and could match Sirius on his attitude any day. Emmeline was a parrot, just giggling and repeating everything he said, no real opinion or thoughts on any topic. The worst thing about her though, was that she was mean. Not cruel in the way that Regulus and his group of assholes were, but she was rude and stuck-up, especially to younger years. One morning, a small 1st year had accidentally bumped her with their schoolbag when leaving the Great Hall, and Emmeline had shot them a death glare and spat “Watch where you’re going, idiot.” The first year scuttled off, looking on the verge of tears.

She almost leapt across the table and strangled her. But if that was the type of girl Sirius wanted, then fine. 

The rest of the group largely ignored them, not that Emmeline seemed to mind, she only cared about touching Sirius, kissing Sirius, groping Sirius, and licking Sirius (as they all had the pleasure of witnessing early one Wednesday morning; Peter had choked on his tea).

She tried to move on, tried training her heart to not reach for Sirius every time she passed him in the corridors. At times when he would creep into her thoughts, she quickly shut down an impenetrable wall of steel, blocking out the memories of him entirely; the color of his eyes, the sound of his laugh, the feeling of his chest rising and falling as he slept. 

Eventually, Sirius became an afterthought, a bookmark in a chapter of her life that she had closed. And slowly, but surely, she moved on.

[sharffffff]

Taren Velas

Art by: https://x.com/madnessdemon

So, first things first, my main TES OC as of now, who is also my Vestige. They've already been seen on this blog before, but I love talking about them and also constantly change their backstory around a bit, so there's that.

While some could consider an appropriate term to call what Taren is a "Demiprince", in all actuality this term isn't correct. Yes, they're an offspring of Mephala, but no, they aren't a Demiprince. There's more that goes into this title than just being a descendant of a Daedric Prince, and while Taren is working toward attaining it, they don't have as much thought put into it when compared to constantly having to save the world.

How did an offspring of Mephala come to be, one might ask?

Answer is simpler than one might assume - they were part of a deal with Mephala. Offspring of Daedric Princes are mentioned in multiple legends from many different cultures, yet only a couple of Demiprinces have ever been recorded. This is because a Prince is powerful enough to limit what portion of their power goes into an offspring, and although said offspring will always have a stronger Padomaic connection than normal, be it an offspring with a mortal, another Daedra or just a creation from their own blood. Usually it never comes into play for their mortal offspring, aside from potentially higher resilience or faster natural regeneration, however there are very specific cases where this intrinsic Padomaic value causes for an event unexpected by the godly parent - or, potentially, expected and even planned for ahead of time, just purposefully kept silent about - since, as it is known, Daedric Princes love to keep to their secrets. That is to say, most of the offspring of Daedric Princes become just usual individuals of their other parent's race - with, perhaps, supernatural resilience or other abilities, but nothing too far from the ordinary to be noticeable.

This simple fact, however, sometimes goes completely unnoticed due to both the legends of the powers of the offspring of Daedric Princes, as well as attributing actions of certain historic figures to them being descended from one, especially so in Dunmeri culture, where quite a few historic figures were speculated to be offspring of either Azura or Boethiah, with little proof of it actually being true. So, while not common, some people have attempted to bargain with the Princes, most commonly Boethiah and Mephala (and, of course, Azura, but unlike other two, she never answered), for children, hoping to both strengthen their own family line and overshadow their rivals, as well as potentially parenting the next big hero of the Dunmer race. This practice was rare enough to not be recorded, however, and rare enough to be amusing to the Princes, who were promised everything they could ask for in exchange for a child that they knew would be just ordinary Dunmer - so of course they took them up on that offer, it was too good of a deal to pass up. And it was always amusing seeing the reaction to the offspring that was thought to be the next big thing ending up living a completely uneventful life and dying to most random thing.

Taren's mother was one of the Dunmer who attempted such a deal, being one of the minor nobles of House Velas, one of the smaller vassal houses of House Dres, she always dreamt of greatness, of achieving more than she had ever had a chance to achieve on her own, and the chance to bring Velas out of footnotes of history right to its front was a chance she couldn't pass up. Of course, Mephala saw an opportunity here as well, as House Dres have always made the best spies, and even though the child would still be a normal Dunmer, at least the Webspinner could let it inherit something that would at least be beneficial to that child in their life. After all, secrets and deception are some of the aspects that Plot-Weaver rules over, so her gifts would prove useful.

Taren's early life was mostly uneventful, aside from their overall chaotic tendencies, disregard for authority and overwhelming sense of freedom. They had been taught in the art of nightblade, combining stealth, infiltration and assassination with shadow magic, as preparations for spy training in the future, and they abused their powers to their fullest potential. Taren always believed into breaking the mental chains that lock the person into the norms of the law, but into breaking physical chains especially so. And living on the territories of House Dres allowed Taren to practice their nightblade skills in the best way possible - by breaking the slaves free of their chains and escorting them to safety under the guise of shadows. They had been caught a couple of times, but were able to let it slip due to being a child of a noble and due to the chance of them "growing out of it".

This sense of freedom and wish for chaos was also why Taren was eventually sent off to Davon's Watch in Stonefalls. The official reason for this was this being Taren's first solo mission, but in actuality their mother was hoping for them to actually prove themself away from homeland and to make her own life easier, as the losses from the Ebonheart Pact's prohibition of slavery were only worsened by Taren's freeing of the "product". Taren jumped on this opportunity to work with people of different races away from oppressively traditionalistic views of the people of Tear, celebrating their leave with the biggest stunt yet, as well as the first big test of their Illusion skill - the night before they were set to leave, they gathered all the slaves from both their mother and a couple of their neighbors, made illusory images of a couple of slaves in each household, and made it to the contact while utilizing shadow magic to make the whole group invisible. It was incredibly straining, but Taren managed to be safely teleported to Davon's Watch at the dawn before letting the illusion drop to what Taren assumed was immense chaos.

It has to be mentioned that Taren was still pretty young by the Dunmeri standards, barely having turned 32 by the time they were sent off, having barely any life experience and a wish to help anyone and everyone they could. So, needless to say, when a weird hooded figure approached them with an opportunity of a lifetime in a secluded house, they didn't even think twice, and of course they didn't say "no".

And here is the fact mentioned at the beginning comes into play. Offspring of Daedric Prince have a very strong Padomaic connection, however in cases where the offspring is mortal, it also causes a stronger Anuic connection, as the Annuic soul strengthens the body and essence around it to contend with the Padomaic element of such individual. In most cases, it changes nothing, however when such soul is used to create a Soul Shriven Vestige... things happen. It can't be known if such things are intended or not, but they do happen - the strong Padomaic presence is made even stronger when the Padomaic Vestige is created, and due to the way this Padomaic element is intertwined with Anuic Soul, part of that Anuic essence is transferred into the Vestige as well, causing the Soul Shriven to act the same way as if it was a mortal with stronger Anuic connection created by Nirn itself, but with a completely different origin. And this Padomaic presence changes the nature of the Vestige itself as well, as it never actually becomes a Soul Shriven Vestige, and instead something else entirely - a never before seen type of Daedra, still bearing the same properties of their mortal bodies they would if they were Soul Shriven, but with significant connection to their Prince parent, increase in power and features corresponding to said parent, which differ from case to case - and so far, there has been only one recorded case of this very specific situation ever happening.

So yes, Taren getting sacrificed to Molag Bal and becoming one of his Soul Shriven has actually backfired, unlocking something locked away in Taren's Padomaic part, strengthening their connection to Mephala, and foretelling Planemeld's eventual downfall. In their consequent travels Taren has managed to visit Spiral Skein, attuning to it for a short amount of time to unlock their full potential, and gaining access to far more powers, as well as a Spider Daedra form. They didn't stay for long, as they still had a sense of duty for Tamriel, and it always needed saving.

As for why Taren couldn't count as a Demiprince despite now being fully Daedric and therefore virtually immortal and combining both Anuic and Padomaic aspects in them? That's easy. Demiprince has to have a plane to count as such - this refers to both a plane of Oblivion, and a plane of influence, and neither of those appear out of thin air - either a Daedric Prince parent has to wish for their offspring to be a Demiprince and give those to them, or their offspring has to claw it out through their own blood, sweat and tears. Taren didn't have time for second option, nor did they want to grovel before Mephala for the first, so while still being powerful, they haven't become a Demiprince.

[paradoxcase]

Chapter 3 of Nona the Ninth

Huh, so:

I guess this is definition 7, then. I've never heard that word used to refer to a person before, but it's not marked as being regional

So Nona looks old enough that people are fine with hitting on her, but not old enough that anyone thinks she's graduated from middle school. This is not a fun fact

Also, this school has "almost 20 children", this is like a one-room schoolhouse from the 19th century except it's in the middle of New York City for some reason, what even

I mean, is it really that hard to pimp out Augustine? If she'd said "I'd have had better luck pimping out Mercy" that would have been something, but maybe it actually is easier to pimp out Nona and Camilla than it is to pimp out Mercy

Can Camilla and Palamedes have regular conversations with each other? Very curious as to how that might work

Quasi-telepathic abilities sounding more and more likely

There's been descriptions of it being hot, and I'm not sure if a) it's just summer, and that's what summer is like wherever New Rho happens to be, or b) this planet is just hotter than Earth by virtue of being closer to the sun or having a naturally thicker atmosphere, or c) some kind of climate change is happening here

It sounds like she has some still-repressed memories of learning this stuff?

So they live in basically a cop building, and Pyrrha did say that one of their neighbors is a cop and another one has militia connections, so I'm guessing they are probably being specifically kept there by BOE or some other entity because of their Nine Houses connection, and Camilla doesn't want Nona telling people where they live because people might infer that based on the building?

Given that a lot of people here don't speak each other's languages, I wonder how much of this is just another culture's kinship system being mistranslated into whatever language the kids are using. Like, Brother Father and Younger Brother Father sound like they're probably uncles, Eldest Father could be a grandfather, and New Father could possibly be a step-father

I mean, first of all, Palamedes has been living here for a while, I think he should be used to BOE (or whatever you want to call this culture) names by now, but also, Honesty is a perfectly fine name. Like, Wake's name was silly, Hot Sauce is a silly name, We Suffer And We Suffer and Crown Him With Many Crowns are at least fairly odd from an English-language naming standpoint, and many of our common names are borrowed from ancient languages and don't mean anything in regular conversation, but we totally 100% also name people things like Grace and Faith and Hope and Joy and Harmony and Prudence and Felicity and Constance and I'm sure there's plenty of cultures where boys are named this way too and Honesty is a perfectly fine and reasonable name. While we're at it, Beautiful Ruby and Born in the Morning are also pretty good names? The only thing odd about these names is that we're not used to seeing them

Anyway, possibly the kids are speaking some non-House language (or are at least named in non-House languages) and Nona is translating their names into House for this conversation? It's a little odd in that case that she's not translating "Kevin" at least in the narrative text, since Kevin is just an anglicization of Irish Caoimhín which means "of noble birth" in Irish. But if Nona's language abilities are based on some sort of telepathic sense, she might fail to translate Kevin's name because Kevin doesn't know Irish? Irish seems unlikely to have survived the apocalypse, at any rate

She definitely can lie, though, she successfully lied and told the teachers at the school that Camilla was her sister and Pyrrha was a friend of her father's and that she had been through many resettlements, didn't she? She just doesn't seem to know on her own when she should be lying and when she shouldn't be

There are some implications for how language is being processed for someone who really can't lie, basically the science fiction premise of Embassytown by China Miéville, and in that book the aliens who could not lie also had an empathetic aspect to how they understood language. But I don't think Muir knows enough about linguistics to write that kind of linguistics science fiction

Is this why Nona's legs are sore, she is running around with these young kids all day and having trouble keeping up?

Very curious if this is actually some kind of possibly war-related movement of things through the underground tunnels, or if this is just a vernacular name for something else

So BOE is recruiting children on this planet to join their militia, and they are also executing necromancers here by burning them to death

It's kind of funny that Honesty is calling her stupid here - he knows there are spies who are necromancers and/or zombies, and Nona is in fact a necromancer (or used to be one at one time) and she also lives with Palamedes for that matter, but it doesn't occur to Honesty that there is actually a chance that Nona or someone she lives with could be one of the spies

So this is what they call the resurrection beast? Except we know that resurrection beasts don't come for regular necromancers, or else they would be all over the Nine Houses, they only come for Lyctors. I guess it's entirely possible that this one could be here for any of Nona, Pyrrha, or Camilla/Palamedes, or it could just be here to eat a living planet because that's what they do. I wonder if the mythology of these people is that the resurrection beasts are like God's punishment for necromancy or something, it seems like Hot Sauce believes that to be the case, at least. Possibly it's not completely wrong, depending on what the relationship was between the deaths of the nine planets and the occurrence of necromancy

[gwaaaaar]

Black Butler racism (or just overall bigotry) is the funniest shit ever (no it isn't. It's awful) because. Black Butler somehow got better. And worse. Spoilers under the cut for Baldroys backstory btw.

Please try not to take this as an entirely anti-black butler sort of argument. I was thinking about this in passing and thought it was something worth discussing. So DON'T COME AT ME!!!

I'm gonna start off with the easiest and earliest examples of racism.

Soma and Agni-! Wow... so I'd argue in the beginning Soma was based off of, I wouldn't say harmless stereotypes, but stereotypes that weren't applied with malice. He's a prince with like. 26+ siblings so he never really had a chance for the throne.

The 26+ siblings is... an unfortunate common stereotype applied to brown people, more specifically muslim. Soma is from Bengal and depending on where, there could be a high muslim population. But Soma is hindu. Either way, it's not. Good. To portray brown people like this. Like having 20+ kids that is a bad look. Indians do have big families, I should know, but not to that extreme and it has weird implications. Also when Soma tells Mey Rin to strip because painting naked women is better... yikes

Here is the harmful part: his and Agni's worship of Ma Kali is treated as a joke. Like ohhh look at this scary demonic hindu goddess!!! Even sebastian is weirded out and he's a demon!!! LIKE WHAT THE FUCK. :/

BUT. but. This. PALES IN COMPARISON TO THE SINOPHOBIA. Holy shitttt Lau... oh my god he is like a stereotype from mf Tintin. The opium den and the Chinese girl in skimpy clothing is crazy (and the implied incest??? What is ran mao to him again??? Theyre like siblings right???)... It really fucking sucks that the way hes portrayed almost implies that Chinese people wanted the opium crisis rather than you know. Having it pushed onto them by the British . I can be upset about Soma all I want but damn... maybe indian people did get the good end of the stick.

And, it's weird right? It's weird how one minority that normally isn't treated seriously can escape with relatively minor stereotyping compared to. TO THE SHIT TON OF OPIUM. Of course there's a lot of historical things going on, but wow the sinophobia is nuts.

I do think the main problem is somewhat classism. Victims are treated brutes for retaliating. Like that one miniarc where indian immigrants were tying up British nobles that visited India because they were angry that they were used and tossed aside and can't go back home. Soma, one of the few indians treated with sympathy, is a prince. I WILL NEVER FORGIVE WHAT THEY DID TO MINA... she was rightfully upset. The caste system is a terrible thing and she wanted to escape that, and she's the bitch? She isn't gentle to Soma, but she's in the right.

Black Butler has evolved as a story significantly since the beginning and when I say it's kind of gotten better I mean, the characters have evolved so much they can no longer rely on stereotypes. We have to take Soma and Agni seriously, they are no longer just some funny foreigners. LAU DOESN'T EVEN DO OPIUM ANYMORE AFAIK... that was like 50% of his personality and she got rid of it lmao.

edit: i lied he still does opium its just that isnt his personality anymore.

And that's a good thing! They shouldn't have been portrayed in such ways in the beginning. Stereotyping is just objectively shit writing. But also yeah shitty thing to do to minorities.

I think one of the most beautiful cultural references made later on is post Agni's death, when Soma has had enough and finally snaps. The panel that says "he has gone down the path of Maa Kali" is so poetic and my roman empire . It's a good reference back to the deity they worship, but instead of her being treated as something to ridicule or be scared of, it shows how Soma's personality, and background has lead him to who he is today. I think it's beautiful! I'm happy Soma is in the story because of that.

The same can be said about the slight transphobia with Grell in the beginning. NOW I know in the beginning, there wasn't a particular word for trans women or people in general so a word referring to effeminate/gay men or crossdressers was used. This isn't about that, language changes etc etc. Its moreso how she was portrayed as like, a sicko serial killer. Like yk, negative trans stereotypes. But over time she was recognized as a woman and gets to be her own character. Which is awesome! It's good that shes been viewed more postively over time.

Now... here's where things might be getting worse.

Baldroys backstory pisses me off. The idea that native americans were like ravaging his hometown and killed his innocent family. He even says something like how he knows their land got stolen so their reaction was probably justified but he doesn't care. It just. It just feels like siding with the colonizers you know? Like perpetuating these stereotypes to give people a reason to be "afraid". I know conflict was pretty rampant back then but there's just certain things people should be careful with when portraying... and I don't think Black Butler did a good job. I was really surprised to see that it was from a recent chapter bc it honestly read like something from the older ones.

AT LEAST we finally got a black grim reaper wooo mama

[unhetalia]

NO YOU'RE SO RIGHT the way native Americans are written in the series, especially in the first installation, is so odd to me. They're, like. all kind of evil?!?!??! or at least ambivalent, which, like you said, isn't Wrong per se because the idea of the noble savage IS still offensive and puts natives on a pedestal for no reason beyond being native and being subject to colonization, but like... maybe you shouldn't portray THE white colonizer and his people who are arriving to colonize native land as the only good characters in a sea of solely natives. That's why I lowkey fuck with Osha tbh, like I think she's unfairly hated on and played too much of a villain role.... yeah she's evil but like, I think she needs someone to balance out the hate she receives from every other character, especially when apparently like everything England does is actually not bad or didn't even happen, so it's okay.....! ALSO--ok this is going to get so specific, but I have literally 0 people to talk to about this, so I'm rambling, sorry--the part where Alfred says that he was glad when he found English because it was easier for him to speak/remember than Oneida always made me ??? 'cause it feels like it implies that English is, like, The innate American Language when it's not?? at all?? idk it just feels very essentialist in a way, like Alfred is Inherently English/Anglo-Saxon even though he represents almost every other kind of person and culture possible. It also feels like the story/the author hones in on biology and biological connection too much in that vein, too, where it's like Alfred's biology suddenly dictates the languages he can speak even before he knows they exist, the things he does, the interests he has. There's no way he didn't have a grasp on his NATIVE language!!! That's literally the language he was raised to speak, bfr.... You can forget native languages, but it's not really played as something he really cares about missing, so it feels more like English is just better! which I dont like Ok ramble over sorry <3

No it's ok! Tbh I'm also mildly Osha rights because I think she loved Alfred but the grief and anger and pain twisted it all up and caused her to lash out. JUST like how Arthur's grief and anger and pain made him lash out at Alfred for hundreds of years! I think if you tilt your head Osha can be redeemed and it can easily be proven how much she loves Alfred.

I guess there's also that implication that Alfred is not fully European despite his looks and if we're talking about biology I wonder if Alfred could biologically be Osha's as well as Arthur's? I don't think the writer will go there, but Osha raised Alfred despite what everyone said and did her best with what she had and I truly believe that!!!

I've forgotten that scene about English being easier, but I agree - and I also think it's wild that Alfred can't speak Spanish after all these years, especially considering how intelligently he's written (which I love).

I think what the fic does amazingly (and what I hope in the future with Osha) is showing different perspectives and showcasing how people's views aren't always right. The build up to the reveal about Alfred not remembering Rhys, and even how the author will show Matthew thinking one thing about Alfred, and then contrasting that with the viewpoint of someone else and therefore showing the reader that what they think isn't necessarily right. It's so masterful! I could only hope to write in that way one day! And I can only DREAM of completing 800k worth of fic.

[dotthings]

This is rolling more and more towards The Bad Batch joining the early seeds of the rebellion. They need to steal Dooku’s war plunder treasure so they can have a future and be free. But Echo knows what’s happening, what the Empire is doing. He's thinking about the people they could help.

There’s something very heart-wrenching about Omega being so baffled by the kaleidoscope. She thinks it contains gems. Romar has to explain “No, it’s only reflected glass” and also how it’s not only reflected glass. It’s a toy, and something that exists as art, for enjoyment. Omega’s not a war orphan, but she’s like a war orphan—one who never knew anything else except being raised to have a specific purpose, to be a tool of the forces who created her. She’s a child, and she has a sense of play, and of fun and mischief, and her brain isn’t fully mature. But she also doesn’t have memories of a before, where she was able to be just a child, where she had toys, where art can exist for art's sake. Yet Wrecker, who is also a clone, has a plushie -- and he gave Lula to Omega.

“Culture. Art. Music. Memories.”

“A separatist archive. Fascinating.”

“Not separatist, Serennian. We did exist before the war, you know.”

Tech automatically classifies Romar’s culture by the political definitions of the war he was created to fight. Romar gives them an identity that has nothing to do with war, they existed before war, and outside of war, not just in war.

And Tech’s mind is blown, just as much as Omega’s is by the existence of a kaleidoscope.

All the clones were created created for war, and yet they are capable of self-expression (thinking back to the way they decorated their helmets on TCW, or had different hair styles), they create art, express individuality, have free will (when they aren’t being controlled by their chips), compassion, love. They’re people.

Wrecker has a plushie, and he gave his plushie to Omega.

Like the Serennians, the clones are more than what others see them as.

Romar’s joy when Tech fixes the Serennian archive unit — Tech rescued their history, the record of a culture, art, music, memories.

And Tech still seems baffled. “You did it!” “Yes, of course I did.” He doesn’t get why Romar is so emotional about it. Tech did what he was designed to be good at, he fixed the tech. The implications of what his work can do for people hasn’t hit him yet.

Omega wanting to risk herself to save the jewels from Dooku’s war plunder, so she can give her dads their freedom, because of her guilt overhearing what Echo said about them being hunted because of her. Echo telling Omega “you have to let it go” because it’s not worth her life. She is precious for herself, not for being a tool, not for whatever treasure she can retrieve. And Echo is the one who argued for using the plundered treasure to help those who need help, who are being crushed under the Empire. And Hunter wants the treasure to gain their freedom, so Omega doesn’t have to live hand-to-mouth and on the run. Both of their motives are for the good of others, although Echo is seeing a greater good, Hunter is more focused as a father to Omega. But Echo too cares about Omega, and what he said turned out not to mean what Omega thought it did.

I like how Romar keeps calling Tech “Ace,” and after Tech was all “I’ll manage ‘tis merely a scratch” over his badly busted up leg, Romar follows him and helps him up, gives him someone to lean on when he needs it. There’s something paternal about Romar’s fondness for Tech — and Tech’s never had a father figure in his life.

The concluding scene of episode 2 with Echo and Omega. Omega’s regrets about losing the treasure, because she still doesn’t quite get it yet — “I wanted to make things better for us.” Which is a noble goal, she gets that people matter, she is caring, she wanted to save the treasure for her dads. To help them.

But Echo gets it on both levels. Seeing a greater good and caring about the people he cares about. Echo talks Omega down from risking herself to save the treasure, even though it could buy her dads freedom, or it could be used to help stop the empire. Echo then explains to her what he meant about how they’re there because of her. That if not for Omega, they would have wound up tools of the Empire. “We made the right choice. I’d do it all again.”

People matter. Protecting your family matters. Free will matters. Helping others matters. Caring matters. Saving entire cultures matters. Hunter’s leading with his heart and still very focused on the urgency of saving his family, the people closeset to him, but Echo can see how the immensity of the monster bearing down on them, that could devour them all, their family, everyone, and knows if they don’t do something to stop it, his family won’t be okay, and many many families in the galaxy won’t be okay.

Echo’s lighting the right course for them already, they just have to notice, and turn the ship.

[nexility-sims]

17,22, and 3 please!

ROYAL SIMBLR WORLDBUILDING  /   accepting !

3. if your monarch died with no legitimate heirs and no chosen successor, who would become the next monarch?

first, any monarch's child, biological or adopted, qualifies as a legitimate heir. succession proceeded according to male-preference primogeniture prior to the mid-twentieth century, but other children would be eligible in the absence of a son. a monarch is not empowered to choose their own heir; if it required adjudication, it would be a clan decision and, in the modern period, theoretically subject to legislative discussion and approval.

the operating principle of succession, even above primogeniture, is that the crown cannot be inherited from someone who never possessed it. what this means in practice is that, if a monarch died with no children, it would default to the eldest living child of the previous monarch(s). the newly deceased monarch's next eldest sibling may be next in line or, if there were none, then their eldest living aunt or uncle whose parent had reigned in the recent past.

it can get complicated in some cases, like with safya's death in 1990; because she never inherited, her children were skipped in favor of the beatriz's next eldest child. essentially everyone else in the family would have to die or decline in order for the opportunity to inherit to circle back to them, so they are functionally removed from the line of succession.

17. is there a mechanism to remove unpopular or incapable monarchs from the throne?

coup ! it has worked in the past, anyway :^) this is a good question, and i haven't really thought about the legal ways this would work. in theory, it feels like something the clan would have jurisdiction over, in the same way that they would solve any unforeseen succession issues. that being said, i think that the constitution drafted after baltasar's demise granted uspana's national assembly the authority to initiate a recall. the way that process works—and i'm coming up with this on the fly, so don't hold me to it—is that: the assembly approves a petition for removal; the petition requires a simple majority of eligible uspanian voters' assent; the petition is ratified by the assembly; the house of tecuani is required to have a clan vote within twenty days of the ratification. if they decline, then it goes to the courts for mediation. this has never happened, but you can imagine zealous legislators filing petition requests in the assembly as stunts, even if they go nowhere.

22. if royal marriages must be approved, what does the approval process look like? what kinds of factors are considered? do all members of the royal family require formal approval, or only those close to the throne?

they must be approved, yes ! the clan mothers vote on it, as well as everything else of importance, although it's typically more of a formality than anything else. they did this for rowena and alfonso here. all members of the family have to receive approval for their marriages, altho they can divorce without putting that to a vote. i wrote a Treatise™ on marriage in uspana somewhat recently, so i'll just put an excerpt here:

[...] marriage must have a real symbolic value, especially but not exclusively for elite families, that does engage in conflating partnership and procreation; embracing or emulating foreign practices would increase the tension, since neither the legal nor ceremonial system supports marriage having inherent permanence or concrete social value. there has to be social pressure to make marriages work, but the actual norms must be historically contingent and subject to the influence of specific conditions—material, social, cultural. to return to the above example, if the couple that married were nobles or royalty, then their marriage could be at the instigation of their families. but, if they can divorce each other before they have the permanency of children, then what’s the point? there must be general material reasons, like access to usufructuary property rights within another clan, and one can imagine a legal tradition of marriage contracts developing to elaborate on whatever traditional rights might be. the key part is that any sharing entailed in a marriage dissolves as soon as the marriage does, whether by divorce or death. so, there’s still not permanency, but there is the material incentive to avoid divorce. marriages traditionally require clan approval even if divorce doesn’t, which acknowledges that it’s a decision in which other people have vested interest—if someone wants to join the family, then the family has a say. 

in the present, a lot has changed, but i think marriage is most often seen as an expression of love between two people who want to belong to each other’s families. legally, you have to go through a different and unrelated process if you want to share property or whatever—like a cousin of forming a corporation, maybe, so it’s separate and deeply unromantic—and it’s likely the norm to maintain separate finances and pick a clan to which the marital household will formally belong. it’s more complicated for elite families, since politics and diplomacy are more obviously part of the equation, but i think that’s still the basic structure.

[marvinthemillennialmouse]

Gender critical dipshits like to say that they're protecting women. They say they're trying to stop the rights of women from being stripped away. They hide their true intentions behind ideas that SOUND good--so long as you don't look at the people saying them too closely because then you might see they don't really mean it.

They're lying. They just say whatever sounds good in the moment so they can assert some noble intent or altruistic purpose--but really, it's just a façade.

You know who else did that? Hell... who's STILL doing that?

The fuckin' nazis.

They called themselves socialists. They coopted populist language to build a coalition against the powers that be in order to TAKE power. And when they finally got into power, they seized it for themselves, killed anyone who stood against them or might be a threat to those already at the top, and just dropped the act. The nazis socalized nothing. They mass-privatized as much as they could. Because what better way is there to ensure that the supply chain for things like food, clothes, military hardware, hell just information all stays under the watchful eye of the fuhrer... than to put control of the whole of an industry in the hands of one or a few proven loyal followers?

The nazis lied. They're still lying. Hell one of the lies they told was that they wanted to protect women. It's a lie they still tell today. They don't want to protect women. They want to control women--specifically so they can keep them subserviently and churning out as many god-fearing white babies as possible so they won't end up "replaced".

Gender critical fuckwits do the exact same bullshit. They coopt whatever populist language they can, they amplify one another, they spread misinformation (frequently knowing it's false), and claim that it's all for a higher moral cause. Meanwhile their supporters abuse and silence women, harass anyone who doesn't meet their rigid idea of what a woman is "supposed" to look like to the point where some cis women are afraid to go to the bathroom in public lest they get assaulted by some overzealous piss-brained fuckstick who thinks "Her nose is too big, she must be a man!".

They've already made it clear they're perfectly fine with rolling back protections for gay people in their culture war against trans people. You can bet they won't stop there. It won't be long before we start hearing overtly racist remarks from prominent GC's about black people. ...if they haven't already started saying that shit.

And looky who started showing up to support the GC's--the fuckin' nazis.

Sure, they'll SAY they don't want the nazis support--though you'll be had pressed to get them to actually say the fucking words. They turn it around and try to say is the TRANZES doing a PSYOP TO MAKE US LOOK BAD when no... their garbage ideology just attracted the nazis like flies to shit. The GC's might not themselves identify as nazis, but the nazis sure do seem to agree with a lot of what the GC's say.

The Gender Critical asshats are feminists just like how the nazis were socialist.

They weren't. They lied.

And the nazis showing up to support them just kinda proves it. It's just them going "game respect game".

To pull a tweet from QandA, because the quote is very well put:

"If you need Nazis to support your cause, it's a rotten cause." - Geoffrey Robertson

[sydney-carton-of-sour-milk]

Look at this treasure I found the other day! Apparently, someone contemporary of Dickens wrote an overture based on A Tale of Two Cities, and Dickens gave it a full description! My takeaways:

I CALLED it I've been CALLING it!! The best way to represent Carton musically is with a sad, "tender and melodic" bass motif (obviously I was thinking bass guitar for reasons I'll elaborate on some day but that didn't exactly exist back then) and now I have evidence that Dickens himself seems to agree

Not that that matters much because we see the way Dickens talks about Carton here and it makes me so mad. His "mis-spent life"? "Redemption, by his noble death, of the errors of his life"? Maybe if we got an actual taste of what those errors specifically were (ones that had a profound effect on people besides himself anyway), I wouldn't feel so put off by this reductive, moralistic approach to the character (again to elaborate on some day)...but hey I'm already good at being grumpy about Dickens so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ [shrug emoticon]

Charles Darnay is exclusively referred to as Lucie's "husband" or "future husband" and is never called by name, which I find absolutely fascinating. I've never seen something like this - a male main character from a classic novel being treated as almost explicitly secondary to a female main character by the male author himself. And I get the context that this specific overture is called "Lucie Manette" but still

Off of that, how wonderful to see an overture written about and from Lucie's perspective! A Tale of Two Cities is written as an ensemble book, but if there did have to be a main character, based on screen time and the way she's the "Golden Thread" that ties most of the plot together, it would be her. So this is very refreshing, especially as contemporary work!

I'm curious about the culture of concert overtures in 19th century England. How long was this overture, and did they do accompanying visuals in the theater and/or in the programming (like illustrated ads promoting it)?

One day I'll do a deeper search about this to see if there's any other material I can find relating to it (especially the original sheet music)!