#a song of ice and foils

[ride-thedragon]

NETTLES AND RHAENYRA, CHARACTER FOILS.

Because I'm not an English teacher

So the question is, How is Nettles Rhaenyra's foil?

1. Appearance .

Rhaenyra is a pretty standard Valyrian beauty. Silver locks, purple eyes, quite pretty, later on in life we get the change that she didn't lose the wait after giving birth to her kids and becùase of misogyny, her beauty has faded. Features like her long hair worn in the style of Visenya and so on are also mentioned. It's giving the Realm's delight in a real sense (not the weird sense).

Nettles, on the other hand, is juxtaposed as 'ugly'. She's brown, is skinny, has crooked teeth, a nose scar, and has short hair.

The maesters like to play to damn much, basically. But they are described as almost exact opposites. Short and long hair, skinny and fat, white and brown skin, purple and brown eyes, etc.

The narrative purpose is to ultimately show their different upbringing and places in this society.

2. Status

Rhaenyra is shown to be the princess, heir to the throne and queen throughout the book. No matter what happens with her, the security and privilege she has almost always goes over what other women have. Her only real threat is the men (and book Alicent) who have personal stake in her not ascending her throne. She's also entirely spoilt as princess and heir by her father and more so her uncle.

Nettles, on the other hand, is introduced to us as an orphan from Driftmark. We're told she could've been a thief and a sex worker by the time we met her. She has no name, lands, titles, or family that we are presented with in the narrative and her backstory for better or less is a patchwork of what her life was possibly like on Driftmark.

Unlike Rhaenyra, we don't follow every salacious rumour and really don't know much about her past.

3. Dragons

Rhaenyra’s dragon Syrax was a cradle egg hatched to her, a Targaryen custom. She's also the youngest dragonrider at 7 I believe.

Nettles claims her dragon at no older than 16 years old. He is a wild dragon (a distinction given to hatched Targaryen dragons that haven't been riden and live away from the keep) and slaughters many before she claims him.

4. Virtue

The notion of virtue in asoiaf is extremely complex, especially with these two women and the vastly different backgrounds. But virginity and speculation also develops both their characterizations in the narrative.

Rhaenyra allegedly "sleeps" with Daemon to practise what she wants to do with Criston (she's 15-). In the show, it becomes obvious that she almost sleeps with Daemon and officially sleeps with Criston. Either way, promiscuity and naivety are written into her character. The only point of conflict is who is involved with what happened in these instances less than what happened. Later on her promiscuity is brought up when Ser Harwin Strong is said to be the father of her first three children.

On the other hand, Nettles' sexual promiscuity is given to her in the narrative. The claims of her being a whore or sleeping around with shepherds are claims made by men who don't know what she was doing at that time. Men who made similar claims about Rhaenyra and their involvement in her loss of virtue as well. Where these stories differ is in Maidenpool, where the assumption of promiscuity is given a different voice.

This time, maids are alluding to an inappropriately close relationship between Daemon and Nettles (yet again, he finds himself here).

5. Daemon

Speak of the devil, and he will appear.

His dynamic is important to these women and their place in the narrative. Saving one dooms the other, leaving with one isolated the other. His decisions ultimately affect one while benefiting the other.

The cruellest example of this dynamic is him letting Nettles go after being the reason she is trapped in the narrative and ultimately dooming Rhaenyra by choosing to kill Aemond instead of going back to her.

His dynamic with both was also comparable with gift giving and quality time and even inappropriate relationship he developed with both of them, notably around similar ages. ( Both these relationships have significant power imbalances).

Between them both, his affection to one affects the other detrimentally.

6. Jace

Specifically in reference to his death, it's notable that within the narrative, while Nettles is described as crying by herself in response to his death, Rhaenyra is hardened by it.

Also, as symbols for legitimacy and legacy, Jace is the reason Nettles is recognised as a dragonseed, and Rhaenyra's line is secured as her first born, but in his absence, Nettles is delegitimised and said to be not a dragonseed. Around that time, Rhaenyra is beginning to be questioned by all the men around her as well, whereas before, Jace was a notable voice in decisions.

7. Dragons in the End.

They both meet their 'end' in the narrative with Dragons. Rhaenyra is killed by her brother's dragon Sunfyre burns and eats her, killing her in front of her son.

Nettles, however, escapes the narrative on dragonback, with the stories that follow explicitly explaining how dragon fire protects her and leads her to become a deity for the burned men.

8. Children

In the narrative, Nettles has no children. Children would explicitly be a burden in her described circumstances as a mouth to feed and someone else to care for. Effectively, children would trap Nettles in a cycle of poverty and inability to experience ethe freedom presented in the narrative.

Rhaenyra is expected to have children to secure her legacy and reign. Children, especially sons, would be her greatest benefit to ensure her ascension to the throne. They are her biggest strategy and losses throughout the war because of that reason.

This dynamic carries out to a head with the death decree for Nettles. The possibility that she would have a child by Daemon is a definitive reason that her 'treason' calls for her head. A child would give her a claimant but also be proof of infidelity by Daemon. It would be a slight to Rhaenyra’s pride and grief as she at this point has lost 4 children during the war.

9. Loyalty of men

This is one of the most interesting for me because the disloyalty of men for Rhaenyra meant the loyalty of men to Nettles. When the Mootons decide not to kill her, they are traitors to Rhaenyra. When Daemon lets her leave, he's a traitor to Rhaenyra. When Corlys stands up for both her and Addam, he's treated like a traitor. Furthermore, the Mootons turn to Aegon’s side directly after because they did not obey her for two reasons, Nettles being accused and sentenced without trial, and Rhaenyra wanting them to break guest right.

Within the narrative, at that point, loyalty to Rhaenyra was a sentence on Nettles' life, and loyalty to Nettles was treason to Rhaenyra.

Conclusion.

In other ways, like the impact of their legacy, the symbols of their identity (dragons), other ways that their narratives with Daemon (the stories) play out and so on juxtapose these women against each other in the narrative. Age and innocence in both a meta and narrative sense also play into Nettles being a foil for Rhaenyra’s character. Personally I think the reason ts written that way is for Nettles to cause a Stark difference in behaviour with men like Daemon and the Mootons as well as to show the contrast of what is expected and what is to be done and what actually happens.

Hope this helps 🩷🤎

[loveisbreathinghere]

i don't think it was talked enough about how much jon's "but what i can forgive, i do" was so important to theon's arc. like he has spent all this time drowning in self-hatred and repentance, refusing to let sansa absolve him of his past actions, and struggling to reconcile these warring identifies of his. then to come face-to-face with the person who was essentially his only equal in winterfell and to hear that blatant forgiveness is so healing. who better than jon to understand the struggle to find a place for yourself in a world where your family name is the most important aspect of who you are?

jon and theon are arguably the two characters most alike to one another yet their intense dislike and competition with one another prevented any understanding or camaraderie with one another. it's such a tragedy.

for that reason, the show's lack of faithfulness to the source material is always a disappointment, but theon and jon's meeting will forever be one of my favorite moments.

[fromtheseventhhell]

Renly had seemed anxious to know if the girl reminded him of anyone, and when Ned had no answer but a shrug, he had seemed disappointed. The maid was Loras Tyrell's sister Margaery, he'd confessed, but there were those who said she looked like Lyanna. "No," Ned had told him, bemused. (Eddard VI, AGOT)

This is literally people in fandom trying to make shallow connections between Lyanna and [X character] and presenting them as equally important as parallels drawn directly in the text. In fact, this coming after Ned tells Arya she reminds him of Lyanna (in looks and behavior) feels like George cementing the importance of their likeness. Other characters might have passing similarities to Lyanna, but Arya's parallels are much more meaningful than that and are being highlighted for a reason.

[throwawayasoiafaccount]

tbh i don’t think lyanna and sansa share many (if any) parallels, and in many aspects, lyanna serves as a narrative foil to sansa. robert baratheon directly connected his unfulfilled betrothal with lyanna to joffrey and sansa’s betrothal, and we all know how that went. sansa, who was fooled by the boy she was betrothed to, refused to look beyond the surface until it was too late, vs lyanna, who was able to see beyond the surface and took actions to prevent her fate. lyanna became her own knight in shining armor and played with swords, while sansa is thee princess in the tower who wanted everything to be pretty. lyanna, the girl with the sword and shield who protected the weak, put herself in bodily harm for someone she barely knew, which caused the mad king to go after her, vs sansa, the girl who sided with cersei, a character that parallels the mad king, and joffrey, a cruel prince, ultimately dooming innocents and disconnecting herself from her stark identity in the process. it’s true that sansa has been learning to look beyond the surface and extend kindness to the ‘others,’ but how does this actually parallel lyanna? how is having the kindness trait a parallel? it’s also true that sansa does eventually end up protecting others, but i’m once again not sure if i’d call that a true parallel. and imo, sansa is an idealist, which is something i love about her, but i think lyanna was a realist who believed in chivalry and honor despite it all. as i see it, sansa will believe in chivalry and honor despite it all as well, but they’re still foils due to their starkly different starting points. and though it’s true that they are both connected to songs, sansa is a singer who sings to people who ask while lyanna isn’t stated to be one. instead, lyanna had a relationship with a famous singer, which again places them as foils. i’ve digressed quite a bit here and there, so to end things off, i want to say that while both disappeared with ‘bael’ figures, i consider them foils here as well because lyanna was doomed, but i pray and believe that sansa is not. and for god’s sake, let’s hope petyr baelish never touches sansa again. let’s also hope that sansa returns to winterfell alive, even if she gets there as a living Stone. lyanna wasn’t so lucky, returning dead and all.

[horizon-verizon]

I meant the show wants to potray Aemond as Daemon's foil. Based on that, what characterization will show aemond have?

They are already foils in the show, but they are bad ones.

Aemond is just a terrible character in of himself so the entire balance and contrast that a real foil situation provides to a story.

If we want Aemond to be a better foil, then he must be like he is in the book -- openly volatile (not calm) bitter, snappy, openly disdainful, misogynist words all around, solitary, etc etc. You can have your NuAnCe by watching how he interacts with Viserys and Alicent, how Alicent tries to compliment him or defend his violence as being like a "fierce" warrior instead of the crazy bitch he is. How Viserys doesn't really pay him mind, epically with their opposing personalities and Aemond's disdain for him.

And Daemon must be shown as more of a family-only dude through us seeing him at Dragonstone with Rhaenyra and their kids. Show him with Mysaria, go back to the very beginning of the show and fix that moment with him and Mysaria so that Viserys causes her actual miscarriage. Or show us how exactly he argues with his lovers. If not the miscarriage. Just anything.

[centrally-unplanned]

I watched a Todd in the Shadows video on Madonna's post-9/11 flop album American Life recently, where she tried to be this political, anti-war artist but instead she wrote this anodyne, "consumerism is icky", navel-gazing nothing song. Imagine writing lyrics like this:

I'm drinking a soy latte, I get a double shoté It goes right through my body, and you know I'm satisfied I drive my Mini Cooper and I'm feeling super-duper Yo, they tell I'm a trooper, and you know I'm satisfied

And setting it to a music video of you in military fatigues dancing to footage of war crimes and thinking, yeah, that is gonna work! She rapped the above by the way? The 90's cast a long shadow.

Anyway that is why I now call this the "Madonna Critique":

What is the alternative you are proposing to iced lattes, and why would I care? If I drink premiere microbrews does my drink choice give my life meaning suddenly? In whatever fantasy ethno-religious utopia you are envisioning as the foil to this, people will still jog, still buy food, still live in housing, and still work jobs. Quite commonly from a laptop.

They do this rhetorical aesthetic thing of listing objects in sequence that share an affect (in this case, shallow consumerism/"bullshit jobs") and just hope the length of the list makes it seem, in its exhaustiveness, like it must be the totality of their existence. Which is silly, in between the lattes people are reading classic novels, going to church, connecting with friends, fucking their partners in those condo bedrooms. Not anyone on Tumblr, obviously, but others are. A world without lattes sounds pretty shitty tbh, there is no point here beyond the aesthetic.

Which is obvious, I know, sometimes we rant about the petty stuff here!

[dallasgallant]

Christmas headcanons-

I’m so behind, I was on time and early for the other holidays, and I’m technically still early now but when it comes to Christmas content usually you want it super early as everyone’s busy the week of. Anyways—

Time period 1. Time period 2

Two-bits house has its Christmas lights up year round, soon after their dad left they stopped taking them down. They also don’t really trust two on the roof not to hurt himself so it’s the safest bet

On years it’s not donated by Mr. Curtis’s work, the Curtis men set out to the tree lot, go to the back and start haggling for a decent enough cheap tree. They’re usually scrawny but affordable.

Dally hates when it ices on top of snow, he can aim a snowball well but if it’s frozen he turns into Bambi on ice - Two and Steve are relentless when this happens as he just keeps slipping and can’t catch them.

Johnny stays with two-bit the most around the holidays. He bounced between there and his own home, sometimes the Curtis house but mainly if they’re having everyone over.

The amount of chocolate just out for the taking in the Curtis home is unfathomable.

Soda has 100% eaten the foil before.

Pony used to play with the nativity like a farm set when he was really little, there’s a few photos of this.

Pony’s favorite Christmas songs are all the hymns and gospel songs, real old stuff. Guys call him boring for it but Johnny will sit and listen with him sometimes, even if he would take chuck berry over o’ holy night most of the time.

All of the gangs winter coats have about a million patches in them but still work well, Johnny’s has slightly less holes than his usual jacket.

All of the gang have tried to convince Pony that yellow snow was lemon flavored, unfortunately he’s a bit too observant to fall for it. - that being said they all have attempted to write their name before to varying success lol

Mrs. Curtis was the one to teach Darry and Dally how to mend/patch clothes (older headcanon of mine)

An annual professional photo around Christmas of her sons is Mrs. Curtis’s splurge of the season, the amount of awkward photos is unfathomable. The year she got a camera for herself was her favorite.

The guys will have some small stuff for the others but nothing major, most are reserved for getting something for family(if at all) most of two’s are swiped.

Think this was from a SE fic but Steve runs gifts for his ma, small stuff like fudge across the neighborhood. Then he started giving his services out to others— he and soda have a little enterprise going.

Like Thanksgiving, the curtis home is the preferred viewing space for Tv specials and Christmas episodes of shows because of their color television.

[theender36]

I got some thoughts on Sonic 3 that I wanna talk about so

⚠️ Spoilers for the movie Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024) ⚠️

Love that the riff from Live and Learn is used as a leitmotif for Shadow but also Maria was playing it on her guitar which is sad and now I'm picturing Shadow playing that riff in his head all the time

Right before Shadow busts out of containment his heart monitor starts going and then stops which I'm interpreting as his heart beating so fast it doesn't register

They didn't outright say it but Gerald is the one who hacked into GUN to revive Shadow. I don't think they addressed how he got out of prison but he probably built something in his cell

I love the running gag that Ozzie the golden retriever resents Sonic

Loved the joke about Sonic's security system (nunchucks) still working (hit himself in the face again)

Shadow has always been a foil for Sonic but the movie fully realizes the potential of that dynamic in my opinion. They both have a loneliness deep inside from losing someone they loved but Sonic was able to move on and find more family. Shadow hasn't had that chance yet

They used the "Talk about low budget flights" line!

The credits said they used the City Escape music but I must have missed it

Wild that they gave Shadow a gun and a motorcycle again and made it work this time. It probably has something to do with him doing the Akira slide up the side of a building

The CG animation really shines in this movie. I kept looking at how good the reflections in their eyes were. And the fight scenes just had so much slick movement and speed while also properly conveying what was actually happening

When the egg-drones show up, you assume they're going after Team Sonic. But Gerald is controlling the drones so they were definitely gunning for Walters

A Traveling Wilburys song during the flashback was a surprise to be sure but a welcome one. However, I will nitpick the fact that the song End of the Line came out in 1988, which would have been 14 years after Shadow was locked away

Biolizard cameo as the kaiju in the movie Maria and Shadow are watching

Eggman says something about having some unknown quality that makes him "totally undesirable to all possible genders" which suggests to me that he has tried dating loads of people with various gender identities (Woah, he's pansexual! I didn't know that!)

You may ask why the plot treats G.U.N. keeping the other key to the Eclipse Cannon like it's a bad thing. For one thing, the Robotniks are gonna try to steal it, and for another, I don't think a secretive yet fallible military organization having access to a doomsday weapon is a good thing

The concept of G.U.N. keeping a vault that has no records of it so that people can't visualize it to use Warp Rings is very cool and almost SCP-esque

Big fan of Shadow's solution to a telenovela love triangle being for the woman to just kill the two men vying for her affections

Love the subversion of a fight between Sonic and Knuckles with Knuckles instead relenting because he trusts that Sonic will do the right thing in the end

That being said, Knuckles desperately needs a flying island to keep the Master Emerald safe because Wade just ain't gonna cut it

There are a small handful of moments where I think Jim Carey did a really good job of dramatic acting. In particular, the final flashback to Maria's death where he manages to really show the loss and heartbreak Gerald experiences despite wearing a goofy prosthetic

Gerald turning ice-cold to Eggman when he says "You're no Maria"

So glad they did a DragonBall-style Super fight between Sonic and Shadow. If you're gonna make a movie with a bunch of CGI, you might as well go a little nuts with it

You may ask "how are Sonic and Shadow breathing in space?" The same way they do in the games babeeeyyyyy

Shadow and Gerald really wanted to kill the whole world and themselves. And once the Cannon was charged, Shadow didn't care anymore. He was totally willing to let Sonic punch a hole in his chest

Of course, Sonic comes to his senses and is willing to talk with Shadow after sparing him. I love that what changed Shadow's mind was remembering what Maria told him about the stars. That even when they're gone, their light still shines

They literally Lived and Learnt

I wish the Live and Learn sequence wasn't interrupted by Gerald giving Eggman an over-the-knee grandpappy spanking but what can you do

I'm glad that Tails and Knuckles weren't just sidelined for the third act. They show up to save Eggman, help redirect the Cannon, and then save Sonic. Would have been really awkward if they made such a big deal about teamwork only for Sonic to wrap up the conflict on his own

Tails is really chill about Eggman stabbing his grandpa in the butt and launching him into a giant bug zapper

Eggman comes to terms with his own loneliness and is willing to sacrifice himself to save the world not just because he wants to rule it but because he has someone to care about

Missed opportunity for a "Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog"

I know it's still a family friendly movie but it's odd that Tom got kicked by an enraged hedgehog moving at the speed of light and all he got was an arm in a sling

The mid-credits scene got me hyped. I can't wait to see who they have voicing Amy. And I like the decision to have an army of Metal Sonics

I hope the next movie explores more about where the animal characters come from because we really don't know much. I'm guessing whoever is behind the Metal Army is from there

Post-credits scene, of course Shadow lived but I'm hyped to see what direction they take that in. Are they gonna do the amnesia thing or will he just be stranded somewhere?

I know that using Chaos Control requires an emerald and the movies established that the Chaos Emeralds are held within the Master Emerald but it sucks they never said it except for in the Shadow Generations DLC. So uh 0/5, do better

[alonetimelover]

Hey! Hope I’m not too late for the blurb weekend requests - could you please do 29 from the six word as fluff and just banter between y/n and H? ❤️

"Where are my manners, my dear."

pairing: Harry Styles x polish!reader

summary: “I can’t believe you,” she laughed, shaking her head in amusement. “Out of all the days in a year you chose this one to be like this?” “Like what?” He teased, moving his right hand up to her cheek. He held her face in place so she couldn’t look away from him. “Like I would really like to just take you right he-”

word count: 0,7k

blurb#1 blurb#2 blurb#3

masterlist

“You’re stepping on thin ice, Harry,” YN warned Harry, eyes flexed on him. 

“How thin?” 

Harry smirked at her, feeding from how frustrated she was. They were celebrating with her family some Polish holiday Harry couldn't remember even if his life depended on it. And he was insufferable. From the minute he woke up, stealing the blanket, waking her up two hours earlier than needed, making his coffee in her mug, overseasoning the breakfast, making it inedible and to top it off, being very, and YN thought, very provoking not to leave the house. 

“It’s starting to crack, that thin.” 

YN moved to the fridge and took out all the premade snacks that she knew her grandma would be looking for in moments. She unwrapped the foil from the plates and put them on the counter. When she reached for some fresh basil and parsley to decorate the dishes with, she felt Harry’s hands on her hips, his breath tickling the skin on her neck. 

“Good thing I know how to swim.”

“You think?” She wiggled her body around to face him. “Fancy a swim?”

“With you? Always, my baby.”

“I can’t believe you,” she laughed, shaking her head in amusement. “Out of all the days in a year you chose this one to be like this?”

“Like what?” He teased, moving his right hand up to her cheek. He held her face in place so she couldn’t look away from him. “Like I would really like to just take you right he-”

“Oh, there you two are!” Interrupted the heavy accented voice from behind Harry’s back. 

YN cleared her throat and pushed Harry away. Still smirking, Harry turned around to face his best friend. 

“Babcia (granny)! There you are. I was just about to look for you.” 

“I know I’m old, but I’m not stupid, Harry.” Now it was granny’s turn to smirk. “You are a naughty boy, keeping my granddaughter all to yourself!” 

Harry blushed, just like that losing all his wit and adventurousness. Behind him, YN was grinning at her granny. Of course, it was quite embarrassing to be caught in a somehow compromised position, but at the same time, granny knew that all of Harry’s songs were about her granddaughter. And yes, she knew the meanings. 

“Yeah, tell him, granny.”

Harry turned around, glaring at YN with an open mouth and thespian shock painted all over his face. “You both against me? I’m used to YN being like this, but you, granny? My heart is breaking right here.” 

“You really are an actor,” granny laughed, patting Harry’s cheek. “Go back to the party. Out of my kitchen. Now. Shush, shush.” 

After some bickering from Harry and YN that they wanted to help her prepare everything, they flew out of the kitchen being chased off with a kitchen cloth. 

Harry wrapped his arm around YN and led them to the terrace where the party was in full swing. The grill was smoking with YN’s two uncles arguing about the rawness of the steaks above it. Her younger cousins were running around the garden, playing catch and destroying too many flowers. 

“Harry, YN! Come here, come!” Called the family’s friend - Anna, waving her hand towards the table near the middle of the deck. “We’re discussing whether or not we should go canoeing.” 

After briefly looking at each other, they moved to the older part of the family, ready to discuss whatever was worth of so much noise and outtalking. Nearing the two empty chairs, YN went for the one near her mother. 

“Where are my manners, my dear,” Harry quickly interrupted YN’s actions and moved the chair for her, wiping it from the imaginary dust, blowing the air on it to finish the act. 

The table laughed at his antics, making Harry’s smirk grow deeper in the right side of his face, dimples daring its presence there. Oh, he loved attention and the look on YN’s face. 

When the commotion cooled down and the conversation came back on its tracks, YN leaned towards Harry’s ear, whispering “I hope you know that you’re gonna pay for all of this.” 

“Oh, I’m counting on it, baby.” 

[mintydotdoodle]

spoilers up to the most recent events of riptide (ep115)

I don't know what possessed me (the spirit of Meryl Streep maybe???) but "The Winner Takes it All" works so well with the current state of Chip in the black sea. Like the idea of Chip eventually just coming to accept his loss and losing this inherit hope he's been holding so close. (which I don't think we would fully reach in cannon, but possibly something similar to how he broke down post Gillion drawing the card in the feywild with him talking about giving up in pirating to Jay) BUT LIKE STICK WITH ME HERE BC IM GONNA CONNECT TO SOME LYRICS first off : The winner takes it all The loser's standing small (Chip being physically smaller or emotionally smaller due to literally losing part of his body and some of his sanity from the black sea) Beside the victory That's her destiny (as a foil to Gillion beginning to move away from his destiny thing, him coming to accept that he was meant to lose himself in the black sea)

I was in your arms Thinking I belonged there I figured it made sense Building me a fence

Building me a home (home being both the black rose ship and albatross) Thinking I'd be strong there (Thinking is the key word here I feel, because every time Chip thinks he finds a home it can't help be swept away from him both in losing physical home and people) But I was a fool Playing by the rules

The gods may throw a dice (concepts of the whole group being pushed around by the supposed destiny and will of the gods) Their minds as cold as ice And someone way down here Loses someone dear (THIS SPECIFIC PART LIKE WOAH because it could work as both Chip's loss of his first family in the form of Arlin and Capt. Rose, and Jay and Gill losing Chip to the black sea)

The winner takes it all (takes it all) The loser has to fall (has to fall) It's simple and it's plain (it's so plain) Why should I complain? (Why complain?) (this is where those feelings of hopelessness and helplessness would come in)

But tell me, does she kiss Like I used to kiss you? Does it feel the same When she calls your name?

Somewhere deep inside You must know I miss you (Chip opening up for this moment of absolute unabashed sincerity about missing so much. Missing Arlin, missing who he once was, who he could've been, missing the life he could have with Jay and Gill) But what can I say? Rules must be obeyed

The judges will decide (will decide) The likes of me abide (me abide) (could possibly connect to Niklaus and his heart) Spectators of the show (of the show) Always staying low (staying low)

The game is on again (on again) A lover or a friend (or a friend) A big thing or a small (big or small) The winner takes it all (takes it all)

I don't wanna talk If it makes you feel sad And I understand You've come to shake my hand (i supposed final goodbye for Chip [Which I can't see actually happening])

I apologize If it makes you feel bad Seeing me so tense No self-confidence But you see (just this whole section in this self pitying apology to Gillion that he isn't who he once was, especially after Jay leaves)

The winner takes it all The winner takes it all (this part in the song and the way it's sung is so heart wrenching and I just get massive Chip vibes I cannot explain)

So the winner takes it all And the loser has to fall Throw the dice, cold as ice Way down here, someone dear Takes it all, has to fall And it's plain, why complain?

This could also just be my continuation of my obsessive Chip and musical theatre agenda, who knows?

[x-blue-spring-x]

I SAW U HAVE REQS ON BESTIE AND I HAVE THIS IDEA FLOATING IN MY HEAD

ITS SOFT

SO FUCKING SWEET OMGGGGG

AND THE SONG STRAWBERRY MENTOS

P P P PLEASE GIVE IT A LISTEN

IT CAN BE ANYONE U THINK FITS😗😗 I JUST NEED LIKE A QUICK RAMBLE IM

im dying

I love this so much pookie!

I’ve finally written a lil angsty thing for the king of angst Satoru who is the love of my JJK life. I hope you like it 💘

“Do you want a candy?”

Suguru blinks at you, violet eyes faintly surprised.

“I’m sorry?”

You hold out a little packet of pale pink sweets, squeezed tightly into a foil wrapper. Glossy and saccharine, they glint up at him from your palm.

Suguru had been desperately swilling a crumpled and warm bottle of water into his mouth, following a particularly nasty exorcism. The truly abysmal taste of the curse is so potent, it’s nearly made him dry heave twice on the walk back to the subway station. Usually he can tolerate it without complaint, he’s probably one of the only people to know what swallowing a curse is like, but today was difficult.

Nagging thoughts loiter at the back of his mind, ones without the usual honour or ambition others have come to expect from him. Plaintively he wonders what life would be like without having to consume the worst of humanity every day, whether he’d still feel fulfilled by reading his favourite novels or skipping stones on a sunny autumn afternoon spent on the banks of a river. Suguru doubts it.

He’s alone in this quest and for now it’s a noble one. But you’ve noticed something is wrong, seen the way his throat bobbed uncomfortably with each passing step, while his stomach churned. It’s rare to for Suguru to allow a chink in his armour, even less common for another person to be around to spot it. It warms the ice cold negativity in his chest, heals some deep wound festering from the inside out.

Suguru accepts the little candy, his long lashes curling over his gaze as he smiles in thanks. Strawberry flavour, soft and delicate just like you are. You don’t make a fuss of it, carrying on to the subway like nothing’s happened. In reality you’ve brightened his entire day with just one small gesture. But the artificial sweetness is enough to disguise the foulness of the spirt he absorbed.

Suguru sees you in a new light that day, one painted with perfect pink bathed clarity. On the way back to his apartment he buys three packets of strawberry mentos, making a mental note to distract Gojo with one of them before engaging your attention again.

While the candy rests on his tongue, the world is back to shinning simplicity, good versus bad righted as they should be.

Also, the scent reminds him of you, bringing a dazed look to his features from time to time.

That, will be more difficult to hide from Gojo.

[lemoncrushh]

The Entertainer II - Track 10 - Light Up Inside

Summary: What if it wasn’t the end? What if Sky did actually see Harry at the Forum in the early 80s, and he saw her too? What if fate took hold of them both, and they realized their journey was not over? Set in 1981, Harry and Sky’s story continues with more music, more romance, and a few more twists and turns.

STORY PAGE

Track 10 Word Count: 3.8k+

Read The Entertainer

I wasn’t prepared for the sight before me. Up until then, the nicest hotel I’d ever stayed in was the one in Santa Barbara. But that one didn’t even compare to this room.

The bed, while still a King size, looked enormous to me. The entire wall behind it was covered in flocked burgundy wallpaper, the rose-colored comforter making it look like a massive flower in the center of the room. On top of the bed were two white, plush robes and matching slippers sat at the foot of the bed. And just ahead of me, to the right of the bed, stood an iced bucket with a bottle of champagne.

As I stepped inside, I watched Harry walk to the far wall where he opened the coordinating gold flocked curtains to reveal the most extraordinary view of Los Angeles. Then he removed his suit jacket and laid it on a nearby chair. It was then that I noticed the glorious Christmas tree in the corner, all decorated in colors that coordinated with the room.

“Wow,” I breathed as I walked forward and dropped my clutch on the chair.

“You like it?” he grinned. “Oh, wait! Look here!”

He opened the door to the bathroom and waved for me. I gasped when I saw it.

“A jacuzzi?”

“Yeah. I reckon that’s a bit sexier than the bathtub,” Harry smirked.

I covered my mouth, astonished at the entire gesture. Harry took my waist and pulled me to him, his hands sensually crawling up my back. My entire body suddenly felt both hot and cold at the same time. Fever chills erupted down my arms, and I felt light-headed.

“I had fun tonight,” Harry murmured, his face so close, his breath touched my lips. “But I’m so glad to finally have you to myself.”

His mouth covered mine in a passionate kiss. It was the kind that dropped the floor from underneath my feet and sent my heart soaring. If any kiss ever revealed what he was feeling, it was that one. 

“How about some champagne?” he grinned.

I nodded.

I watched Harry walk around the bed and grab the bottle. Tearing off the foil, he somehow managed to pop the cork with such precision, I knew he had to have done it many times before. Then he took two glasses and filled them, holding one out to me.

“What are we toasting this time?” I asked, taking the glass from him.

Harry shrugged. “Tonight? Christmas? Us.”

“All of that sounds good.”

I lifted my glass and brought it to my lips, the bubbly drink filling my senses. Harry’s gaze was locked on me, and I suddenly felt hot again. Turning away, I walked to the window.

“It’s really beautiful from up here, isn’t it?” I asked.

“Sky…” I heard him say behind me.

“Hmm?”

His arms enfolded me before I even knew he’d walked up behind me. I shut my eyes as I felt his chin on my shoulder.

“Baby…” he murmured in my ear.

“Yes?” I whispered.

“Why do you keep doing this?”

“What am I doing?”

“It’s like…every time I try to take a step forward, you retreat. I don’t understand.”

“I do?”

I heard him sigh before he took the glass of champagne from me, setting in on the nightstand.

“What is this?” he asked. “You walk away from a toast to look out the window? At the party, you just walked off the dance floor after the song I requested. What’s going on?”

I stared at him, unable to speak.

“Look, I know I fucked up. I made a promise to you, and I broke it. And I’m so fucking sorry, Sky. But I was still here. I showed up. I requested that song for us to dance to, but you thought I was ‘making up for something’ like I was buttering you up so you wouldn’t be mad at me. But that’s not what that was at all, and honestly, it hurt me that you thought so.”

I felt like I’d just been punched in the gut.

“Harry…”

“And it’s not just tonight,” he continued, running a hand through his hair. “It’s like…every time I try to be open with you, to let you know how I feel, you back away or change the subject. Or you treat it like it’s a joke.”

“Harry, I had no idea!”

“Didn’t you? What was that ‘Mr. Romantic’ comment for?”

“I didn’t mean that as an insult,” I argued. “I thought it was sweet.”

“Sweet?”

“Yes. You were being sweet and romantic. It wasn’t a joke to me.”

Harry threw up his hands and sat on the bed.

“I just…don’t know how else to show you how I feel about you. But…it’s like I keep hitting a wall.”

Slowly, I walked towards him and stood before him.

“How…how do you feel about me?”

“Jesus, Sky, I thought by now you knew.”

I knelt before him and took his hands, rubbing the backs with my thumbs.

“Tell me,” I demanded.

“Tell you?” Harry scoffed. “I have told you loads of times.”

“No you haven’t.”

Harry chuckled in disbelief. “Singing ‘Endless Love’ to you while we danced wasn’t a giveaway? This room doesn’t convey any message? Jesus, I wrote a fucking song about you, Sky!”

“You did?”

Running a hand down his face, Harry let out an exasperated groan.

“Who the fuck else do you think ‘Drunk on Her’ is about?”

“It’s…about me?” I asked, remembering my conversation with Halo.

“I get lost in her misty blue eyes Just one more way to make me realize She’s all I want, I can’t get enough I’m drunk on her.”

As Harry sang the lyrics to me, I suddenly felt foolish. He had been telling me how he felt all along.

“I can feel myself starting to fall No way I could stop it at all Not sure I’d want to anyway.”

Though it was a fast-tempo rock song, Harry sang the bridge to me like a ballad as he rose from the bed and pulled me up with him.

He held me so close, our lips almost touched while he ran his fingers across my jaw. I licked my lips and bit my bottom one, wanting him so badly to kiss me I could taste it.

“Sky…” he said, tracing my top lip with his thumb. Then he nudged my bottom lip, popping it out from between my teeth.

“Baby…” he murmured as his thumb grazed my bottom lip. “I love you.”

The rush of excitement and relief flooded through my bones, and I nearly cried. A small sound escaped my throat as I looked him in the eyes.

“I love you, too.”

His mouth covered mine instantly, the hunger imminent on his tongue. I kissed him back with fervor as my fingers tangled in his hair.

“I’m so sorry,” he moaned against my lips.

“Don’t apologize,” I breathed.

“It’s just…,” he muttered. “I’m not…very good at saying it. Even though I wanted to say it so many times. I thought I was doing better at showing it.”

I looked at him, his pouty lips wet from my kiss, his eyes telling me how he felt.

“You did show it,” I admitted. “But sometimes…it helps to hear it.”

“Yeah…” he nodded. “Yeah, it does.”

“I love you, Harry.”

The dimples dipping in his cheeks, he beamed at me before kissing me again.

“I love you so much,” he declared in his sexy, breathy voice as he leaned his forehead against mine.

I desperately fumbled with the buttons of his shirt, eager to remove him of all clothing. Assisting me, he unfastened his cuffs and shrugged out of the shirt, tossing it on the floor. As he kicked off his shoes, I stepped out of mine, one stubborn buckle wanting to give me trouble. When Harry’s hands found my waist again, he quickly slid them down my hips and lifted my dress. Then grabbing my thighs, he hoisted me up, my legs swiftly wrapping around him. We laughed when he lost his balance and fell backwards onto the bed.

“Was trying to be sexy,” he smirked. “Reckon I’m outta shape.”

“No you’re not,” I said. “You’re perfect.”

Harry let out a sigh as I kissed his neck. His hands still on my thighs, he slid them up and down my bare skin, his fingers teasing my panty line.

“Fuck, you really do drive me crazy, babe.”

“What do you think you’re doing to me?” I asked.

A low growl rose from his chest as I pressed myself against him. Then he sat up, his eyes heavy with lust, and lifted up my dress. I raised my arms so he could pull it over my head, then he dropped the slinky fabric onto the floor as his eyes caressed my body.

“You’re the one who’s perfect,” he breathed.

His hands slid up my hips to my chest. I closed my eyes as he touched me, his thumbs delicately grazing my nipples. When I felt his mouth on me, I moaned, threading my fingers through his curls.

I threw my head back as he continued to devour my breasts, my insides quivering with desire. Suddenly, Harry surprised me by shifting on the bed.

“I wanna taste you,” he growled, laying me down on the pillow.

I watched in awe as he pushed the robes off the bed and settled himself between my legs. Then he looped his fingers through the sides of my panties and pulled them down, just enough to reveal what he wanted.

His warm breath on me was the first thing to ignite the fire, but when he swiped his tongue, I nearly lost it. My toes curled, and I wasn’t sure how long he planned to tease me like this, but he seemed to be enjoying it.

“Mmm,” I finally heard from him after a few more laps of his tongue.

Panting, I watched him remove my underwear the rest of the way. When he seemed satisfied, he grinned up at me before resuming his tongue exploration.

This time I lifted my legs, happy to be rid of my panties. I closed my eyes, reveling in the sensation. Before I knew it, my legs were trembling and I felt a tightness in my core.

“Oh my God!” I cried out. “Harry!”

I felt him hum against me, triggering the sensation to its peak. I called out his name again as he continued to pleasure me through the orgasm until I finally went still.

Breathing hard, I pushed the hair back from my face. Harry crawled up my body with a cheeky grin.

“Was that nice, my love?” he asked, wiping his chin.

“Nice…doesn’t describe it,” I exhaled. Then I slapped my arm over my eyes. “Holy shit.”

Harry chuckled that sexy low way that always turned me on. Then I felt him kiss my shoulder. I shivered at the contact, my body erupting in goosebumps.

“Fancy a dip in the jacuzzi?” Harry asked.

“Now?” I lowered my arm and looked at him.

“Why not?” he smirked. When I continued to stare at him, he rose from the bed, grabbing our champagne glasses. “We can take these with us, since we haven’t enjoyed them yet.”

I couldn’t resist. Everything he did was endearing. With a smile, I followed him into the bathroom. Just one press of a button brought the jacuzzi to life. Harry removed his pants while I cautiously stepped into the hot water, the sensation reviving the goosebumps on my skin.

“It’s warmer than my pool, I take it,” Harry quipped when I lowered my body into the water, letting it reach my neck.

“Tease me all you want,” I scoffed, my eyes shut. “This is heaven.”

“Hmm, we’ll see about that,” I heard him say before he stepped in beside me. But I grinned when I heard him sigh.

“Told you,” I said, opening my eyes.

“You were right,” he nodded. “Except it’s missing something.”

“What?”

He pulled me to him, his hands pushing the wet ends of my hair from my shoulders.

“This,” he said before kissing me softly.

“Mmm, agreed,” I smiled when our lips separated.

“How about a proper toast now?” asked Harry, reaching for our glasses. Handing me one, he looked me in the eyes. “To you and me. For finally saying what we feel.”

“I’ll drink to that,” I declared, raising my glass.

“I love you, Sky.”

“I love you, too, Harry,” I beamed.

He squeezed my free hand under the water while we took a long sip of our champagne. I was no expert, but I could tell it was the good stuff. The bubbles went to my head faster than the ones in the jacuzzi. Finding one of the jets, I turned and pressed my back against it, letting the pressure relieve some tension. Taking another sip of champagne, I shut my eyes again.

“Why’d you move away from me, babe?”

“It feels good on my back,” I grinned, my eyes still closed.

I heard the water slosh as Harry moved. I thought he was coming to sit beside me, but when I felt my legs move, I opened my eyes. He sat facing me, my legs crossed over his.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Now we both have one,” he replied, moving his torso. Then sitting back, he sighed. “Does feel good.”

“Told you,” I said again, raising my glass. “Heaven.”

“Look at you, enjoying the finer things,” Harry chuckled.

“Hey, I never said I didn’t like to be pampered,” I remarked. “I just wouldn’t let myself get used to it, you know?”

“I do know,” Harry nodded. “You’ve always been down to earth.”

“Thanks for noticing.”

“It’s one of the first things that appealed to me. Besides the music, of course.”

“Would you have still liked me if I wasn’t into music?” I inquired, intrigued.

“Hmm,” Harry tilted his head. “Interesting question. I reckon I would have. At least I would have thought you were cute and funny. And still down to earth.”

“Oh okay,” I acknowledge before taking the last gulp of my champagne.

“I can’t imagine I would have fallen in love with you, though,” Harry added.

“No?” Slowly lowering my glass, I looked at him.

“Probably not. I mean…there are certainly other things I like about you. But I’m not sure I would have even spent so much time around you if you weren’t a music fan. Hell, you probably wouldn’t have even come to see my band.”

“Good point,” I commented.

Harry shrugged. “And if you had, you would have just been a tag-along with Halo, and I would have thought of you as just another girl.”

“That’s kind of sad,” I pouted.

“Well, good thing that’s not what happened, then,” Harry jabbed with a smirk.

Setting his glass down on the bathroom floor, he began to run his hands up and down my legs.

“Your love for music has always been a turn-on for me,” he conveyed.

“It has?”

“Of course. Sometimes at those early shows I’d feel myself getting a boner just knowing you were in the audience.”

“Get out!” I squealed, splashing water on him.

Harry giggled. “I’m not exaggerating. I’m surprised you never noticed.”

“Well…” I stammered, feeling myself blushing, “if I had, I doubt I would have thought it was because of me.”

“You still don’t know the effect you had on me, do you?”

Harry continued to caress my legs as his green eyes stared at me. I quickly set my empty glass on the cold floor and cleared my throat.

“So…Harry…”

“Yeah, babe?”

“How were you able to request that song? At the party tonight?”

“What do you mean?”

I caught the way his lips threatened to grow into a smile, like revealing a devilish secret.

“It just magically started playing after you showed up and kissed me. You wouldn’t have had time to ask the deejay to play it.”

His mouth breaking into a grin, his dimples on full display, Harry looked down, then back at me.

“I had a hotel employee go ask him before I went in,” he confessed.

“You did?” I gasped.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “The timing wasn’t planned though. I had no idea when he’d play it. It just…worked out that way.”

Unable to come up with the right words to say, I just stared at him.

“I picked that song,” Harry continued as he traced circles on my knees, “because I wanted you to know it’s how I feel. I mean, yeah, I was trying to be romantic, but…ever since that first night you came over to my place…ah, what the fuck am I trying to say?”

I scooted closer to him then, my legs nearly wrapped around him. I reached out to him, running my hands from his shoulders and down his arms. Then I took his hands in mine.

“I knew I loved you then,” he confessed, his eyes sincere. “Like, I felt it. But I was afraid it was too soon. Then that night when I got on stage with Stargazer, and I saw you in the audience, sat at our little table…God, I wanted to tell you that night so bad.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. I was afraid you’d think it was the adrenaline talking and not me. I was so turned on that night.”

“Yeah, you were,” I grinned.

“I can’t help it, babe,” he admitted, pulling me even closer. “When you’re around I light up inside.”

“That’s how I feel about you,” I said, playing with a curl on his shoulder that was still dry.

“Then last weekend…” Harry’s words trailed off before he laughed and slapped a hand over his forehead. “Oh shit, no wonder.”

“What?”

“I was trying to figure out why you didn’t say much about the new song. I reckoned you were just embarrassed or uncomfortable.”

“Harry, I swear! I didn’t know! I hadn’t been paying too much attention to the lyrics. I was more excited about watching you.”

Harry chuckled. “That explains it then. Kinda bruised my ego a bit, but it’s alright now.”

“I’m sorry. Wait…so…did you actually tell me…that night…after the song…”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I did. You hadn’t mentioned that either, so I sorta hoped maybe you hadn’t seen me.”

“I did. I just…” I traced a tattoo on his arm. “I thought it couldn’t have been just for me. Because you hadn’t told me yet, and I…oh, damn.”

“We’re a couple of idiots, huh?”

I laughed as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Not anymore.”

I kissed him then, deeply. He moaned against my mouth as my tongue met his. I ran my fingers down his chest, feeling his core muscles tighten as I reached his stomach.

With a gasp, he released my mouth and ran his tongue down my neck. His fingers tangled in my hair and my nipples came to life when they grazed his chest. I felt his erection grow beneath me as I pressed against him, earning more moans.

“Baby…” he breathed, his eyelids heavy and his pouty lips open.

I kissed him softly then, unable to resist his wet lips.

“Let’s get out now, baby,” I whispered. “I’m feeling rather pruney.”

Harry’s mouth grew into a sexy grin just before his eyes opened.

“Are we continuing this on the bed?” he asked.

“I certainly hope so,” I quipped, rising from the hot water.

Harry slid his hand up my leg before pushing himself up. Then he stepped out of the tub and reached his hand out to me to help me out. Grabbing a towel, he wrapped it around me, then carried me to the bed like he had that night after our dip in his pool.

His lips covered mine with a kind of passion that spoke volumes. I felt his unspoken words down to my toes. When our lips separated, his eyes continued the conversation as he unwrapped me like a present. I opened my legs to him, inviting him with my own silent words. As his eyes burned like dark emeralds, I felt his warm, moist body press against mine.

“I love you,” he said, just before he entered me.

I couldn’t stop looking at him. He was the most beautiful, most wonderful man I’d ever known. And now he was all mine. He loved me, and I loved him.

We’d made love many times before. But this time, it was different. This time I didn’t have to wonder if he’d ever feel the way I did. This time I wasn’t hoping he would say those words. This time…I knew he wouldn’t leave.

As I laid in bliss afterwards, my head on Harry’s chest, I listened to his heart beating in time with mine. It made me smile, a perfect testimony of our love. I felt Harry’s touch on my back, his fingers gently caressing me up and down, easing their way to the curve of my hip.

“I love you so much, Harry,” I said aloud.

His hand stopped its caress while he lifted my chin to look at him. His eyes sparkled with the glow of the Christmas tree lights.

“I love you, too.”

“Thank you for everything tonight,” I told him. “You really are incredibly romantic and…I’m so lucky.”

“I’m the lucky one, Sky,” Harry protested. “To have found you again.”

“Harry…”

Turning onto his side, he pulled me into his arms. He tucked my hair behind my ear, a gentle gesture that always made me feel special.

“I’m so happy, baby,” he added. “So happy that we met again. That you weren’t taken, or that you didn’t scream and tell me to piss off.”

I chuckled as I lifted my hand to his face, my pointer finger running across his stubbled chin.

“I’d have never done that,” I said.

“Well, I didn’t know,” Harry shrugged. “You could have been married for all I knew. Shacked up with some rich bloke. I wouldn’t have blamed you.”

I thought of Alan for a second, quickly dismissing the thought with a groan. I felt Harry’s chest rise and fall as he took a deep breath and let it out.

“I’m so happy you’re in my life again.”

I smiled. “Me too.”

“You’re actually the biggest part of my life now.”

“I am?”

“Of course. I already told you I think about you all the time. You’re everything to me, baby.”

If he had more to say, I didn’t let him finish because I covered his mouth with another deep kiss. I’d never felt this way before. Yes, I had been in love with him long ago, but to know he loved me back was a completely different feeling. It was…intoxicating.

“Harry…” I cried against his lips.

“Yeah, babe?”

“I believe I’m drunk on you, too.”

He chuckled low as he rolled us over

“I’m so glad,” he smirked, his hands traveling down my sides before giving me a drunk kiss once again.

“Need your lovin' here beside me (Shine the light) Need it close enough to guide me (All my life) I've been hopin' you would find me You're the biggest part of me…”

Songs mentioned:

Ambrosia - The Biggest Part of Me

Taglist: @fkinavocado, @daphnesutton, @freedomfireflies

MASTERLIST | KO-FI | FEEDBACK

[first-of-her-nxme]

interpretation of a song .

have fun when you read it !!!!!

song : it´s always summer under the sea

lyrics :

It's always summer, under the seaI know, I know, oh, oh, oh

The birds have scales, and the fish take wingI know, I know, oh, oh, oh

The rain is dry, and the snow falls upI know, I know, oh, oh, oh

The stones crack open, the water burns

The shadows come to dance, my love

The shadows come to play

The shadows come to dance, my love

The shadows come to stay

so , this is the most beautiful song , I read it in the book , there´s a sad sweetness in it ............

back to the point , this song was told by patchface shireen´s friend.

and we know that : patchface is foil of jaqen and shireen is foil of arya , and somehow patchface is telling a future events .

when you read the song , you understand that it is talking about the return of the dragons , also about the sea .

let me explain : we said before that arya and jaqen will sail and they journey will be across the sea so patchface is telling us some of what will happen :

It's always summer, under the sea : summer means happiness , peace , warm and love .

The birds have scales, and the fish take wing : the birds here means dragons , fish : a boat .

The rain is dry, and the snow falls up : I think it´s desription of sadness,bitterness, death maybe .

The stones crack open, the water burns : dragonnnssss hatching

The shadows come to dance, my love: dance of dragons : war between two targaryens : danny and jaegon.

The shadows come to play: when we speak we say let´s play a song : here the dragons will play the song of ice and fire .

The shadows come to stay : hereeeeee there´s dragon will stay alive , there´s targaryen will stay .

you remenber when arya left westeros with a targaryen dagger ???

accoding to hotd the prophecy is written on that dagger so it mean that the dagger must belong to the prince who was promised when the right time comes .

hear me out : I interepted the song with arya and aegon but also it can be with aegon and danny and their future affair ....

I believe that grrm songs is always related to arya : jenny of oldestone ; the dornishman wife goddd that song is full of hints , my featherbed ..........

about songs : do you know :

arya means song , this is is not a coincidence hhhhhhh

millie brady you will be my favourite older arya :

I wish there´´s another version of got hhhhhhhhh.

to another post

Hello darling!

Are you sure this is the book version of the song? Because it reminds me the song written by GRRM for the show. Or am I wrong?

Anyway, thank you for another raven :) I interpret Patchface's riddles a bit differently. I will try to explain it as best as I can.

"It's always summer, under the sea : summer means happiness , peace , warm and love ."

I agree that summer means good things. Though I also think that summer here means the end of the magical winter. It is always summer so it means the winter is gone for good, there is no danger that this particular magic will ever bother people again.

"The birds have scales, and the fish take wing : the birds here means dragons , fish : a boat ."

Yes, birds mean dragons but also Targaryens. I mentioned it in another answer: GRRM compares Jaqen to a raven from the Citadel meaning that he is unique, clever and strong. And Patchface here refers to that special bird: he has scales which means he is a dragon, a Targaryen.

The fish on the other hand is a reference to Arya. Arya is said to be swimming like a fish. Shireen who is her foil is jokingly compared to a fish when she is teaching Davos. So, fish is a child, a young girl, Arya. I suppose Arya will fly on a dragon with Jaqen. It can also mean she will warg a bird like Bran.

Now , this one is very important:

"The rain is dry, and the snow falls up : I think it´s desription of sadness,bitterness, death maybe ."

In the books it goes like this: "Under the sea, it snows up,” said the fool, “and the rain is dry as bone.

It snows up is the opposite of snowing down, so it's the opposite of winter. Here, the snow uncovers the earth, so the winter is retreating. And why is this happening? The answer is in the second part: the rain is dry as a bone. The rain here means the Rain God who is mentioned in the prologue to A Clash of Kings. The Rain God is GRRM's version of the Storm King from Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. In the show he appeared as the ice zombie, the Night King. It was D&D's creation and they made him by merging a couple of characters and legends from the books and by giving him the stereotypical fantasy villain/monster appearance. Of course, in the books he is something else entirely. He owes a lot to the aforementioned Storm King aka elvish Prince Ineluki. He is not a cartoonish monster, he is a complex character who brings the winter to avenge his people. In ASOIAF some of his traits were given to Rhaegar and some other to Jaqen. So, the Rain God here is Jaqen. He is dry as bone because he is dead. When you are dead only bones remain of you after a while. So this is the saddest part: when Jaqen dies, winter disappears for good. I think it will be a sort of self-sacrifice because GRRM hints at it in other parts of the books.

It's so silly that D&D commissioned GRRM to write this song for the show but then wrote off certain plots that are mentioned in the song. I guess it's typical for HBO writers.

The stones crack open, the water burns : dragonnnssss hatching

Here I agree with you, it's about dragons. The second part can also be about wildfire which burns even in the water.

Now, this part:

"The shadows come to dance, my love: dance of dragons : war between two targaryens : danny and jaegon.

The shadows come to play: when we speak we say let´s play a song : here the dragons will play the song of ice and fire .

The shadows come to stay : hereeeeee there´s dragon will stay alive , there´s targaryen will stay ."

I agree that this is a reference to the dance of dragons and the battle of ice and fire. It also refers to blood magic of Asshai. Perhaps you remember the ritual performed by the maegi in the first book. She called the shadows and among them was the shadow of a direwolf. It might have been Ghost. So she did something that impacted the whole journey of Daenerys and perhaps directed her on the path leading to the dance of dragons. Now, Patchface sees that Melisandre is using the same magic and he tries to warn maester Cressen but nobody understands him.

You are right. Patchface songs are about Jaqen and Arya. Daenerys's fate and her romance with Jaqen is foreshadowed in her dreams.

I'm not sure if Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon are the best sources to learn about future books. I agree that they make many references to the books but they also change many things, they merge characters, they change the prophecies and so on and so forth. Some things they do may be very helpful but others are their creation only and even contradict the books.

Thank you for another interesting message. I like your Arya fancast though I admit I have Maisie's Arya stuck in my head :)) Maybe not season 7 and 8 Arya but I blame D&D's writing.

Cheers!

[morally-grey-girlbosses]

Propaganda under the cut.

Betty Grof:

okay so picture this. you're a graduate student living with your fiance and he finds a magic crown that drives him crazy while he has it on. you run away frightened during this initial incident, and he never sees you again. one thousand years later he regains his self after being consumed by the crown and makes a time portal to apologise. you leave him in the past for him in the future and jump through the portal. you beatup an antimagic monster and dissapear. you become the apprentice to a powerful but mad wizard and steal his powers in a magical ritual, rendering him normal and you with the key components of magic - madness and sadness. you girlboss around for a while, you steal your boo's magic crown to try reprogram it and create an ai clone of yourself inside of it, but your plans get foiled but his vampire sort of daughter and her science nerd girlfriend. the ai of you and the him inside the crown hang out though. you try to go out on a date with him so he remembers. it doesnt work. after so many failed plans you eventually decide to try and just approach him as him. you've changed, so has he. maybe betty and simon are gone but magic woman and the ice king can have a future. his roommate freezes you and uses you as a magic battery to cast a horrible spell that transforms the world into an elemental landscape, where individuals are overwhelmed by their elements. he and some other guys save you and unfreeze you. you come up with a plan to reverse the elemental spell, and get the other guys to do your bidding. you betray them and cast a time spell to stop him from ever putting on the crown. you get foiled and sent to mars. the guy whose powers you stole is now the king. as penance you have to fill a pit with sand grain by grain. one of those guys and his brother are trying to save the other guy and you go through a freaky temple with them, where you confront how much you've given up for your lost fiance. you learn the wrong lesson. you summon the elder embodiment of chaos in an attempt to harness its power. it doesnt work. the world is going to be destroyed. you and he and one of those other guys are being digested in golb's belly, reverted to your original forms. you reunite with him - not magic woman and the ice king, betty and simon. you make out a bunch. harmony through song punches a hole in the chaos god's belly and you can escape. you stay. his crown has reverted to its base wishing state. you push him through and make your deepest wish. you wish for the power to keep him safe. you become one with the chaos god, merging with his very being. you are betty. you are golb. you have the power to keep simon safe, and you have lost yourself for it again. but it is done. the end of the world is over. he will go to the ends of the multiverse to search for you. you are gone. yeah i just think shes kind of a girlboss and definitely morally grey and itd be cool if she was here

Evelyn Wang:

Homophobic mother learns to accept her gay daughter by acquiring multiverse powers. Goes a bit over board with the nihilism at one point and ruins everyone's (everywhere all at once) lives but fixes it in the end. Makes her husband (the sweetest man in the world) sad multiple times in the movie because she feels her life would have been better without him but eventually realizes she hit the jackpot. A girlboss because of how much of a girlfailure she is ("Most people only have a few significant alternate life paths so close to them. But you, here, you're capable of anything because you're so bad at everything. You have so many goals you never finished, dreams you never followed. You're kiving your worst you.”)

[not-poignant]

Birthday Spotlight - Ash Glashtyn

[27th February - Pisces]

Ash Glashtyn, the fun-loving, cheerful, highly-sadistic and hypersexual Unseelie waterhorse from the canon Fae Tales series, adopted brother of Augus Each Uisge, and eater of humans, has been a beloved and then polarising character among readers. He's been a star in a couple of stories, but mostly he exists as a comedic, sexual, dangerous foil to his composed, sinister brother.

Ash Glashtyn is a monster who is ashamed of being a monster, but when he's a human, he normally has way less internalised issues with himself, and just wants to make the most out of life! He lives big, loves travel, loves everyone, but doesn't want any romantic relationships out of life. This boy will fuck everyone, and finds everyone stunning and beautiful and worthy of his time, but he's solidly aromantic and isn't planning on sexually cohabiting with anyone (with the exception of Strange Sights and The Wildness Within!)

An unlikely mediator, annoyingly charming, human loving, relentlessly curious, intensely protective, and appreciator of the sensual, Ash is one of the most 'human' of the Fae characters, and I've been happy to have him by my side for over ten years.

I’m a mess . . . I don’t even know. I’m not made for all this high political bullshit. I’m not made for any of it, Augus. I’m just some dude, you know? Just some guy. I’ve been waiting for things to go back to normal ever since you went missing.

The Court of Five Thrones

Shadows and Light - (fanfiction) First mentioned in From the Darkness We Rise, and his first official appearance in Into Shadows We Fall, Ash was a beloved character early on despite being on the enemy side and loving the worst villain in the story. An affable and obvious victim who just wanted the best for his brother, Ash struggled to come to terms with the fact that his brother needed to be defeated, and was vital in securing the win/victory for the good guys, even as it meant ruining himself in the process.

The Wildness Within - (AU) The truly sane part of an OT3 featuring Augus, Gwyn and Ash, Ash managed to keep his brother grounded, get Gwyn out of shackles, stop Gwyn from running away in the human realm, and keep Augus from losing his mind when the Raven Prince kept throwing obstacles into their path. Ash was the compass point that kept them on the path to their true north in this story, and we'd not have the relationship we have between them, or the happy ending, without him!

From the Darkness We Rise - (fanfiction) Mentioned only.

Game Theory - (canon) Ash's first canon appearance is also an intense one. The first time we meet him he is drugged out of his mind, the second time he loathes Gwyn, and is drunk, and the third time he punches Gwyn hard enough in the face to break his cheekbone.

The Court of Five Thrones - (canon) Ash works on a book called 'how to lose friends and my brother by trying to be so overprotective while not listening to anyone.'

The Ice Plague I - (canon) Ash, having reconciled with Gwyn, joins the ensemble cast as Julvia's unlikely protector, and a watchful, compassionate eye on the group.

The Ice Plague II - (canon) Ash, starving into insanity like his brother, Augus, doesn't have a good time.

The Ice Plague III - (canon) We learn Ash's heartsong as he loses it, and meet the Glashtyn for the first time. Not a fun guy, it turns out! Or super fun actually, if you like songs about rape and torture. Which the Glashtyn does!

The Wildness Within - (AU) An OT3 of Ash/Augus/Gwyn, Ash here is his waterhorse self, and this story imagines a world where Augus saves Gwyn from his family, and he and his brother learn how to deal with a semi nonverbal torture victim, and become an unlikely polyamorous triad.

Quid Pro Quo - (AU) Gwyn/Ash. A mostly PWP series of Gwyn finding Ash in the human world, and being coerced-persuaded into sex that has a lot of overstimulation. A lot of hurt/comfort and aftercare moments.

Strange Sights - (AU) Ash/Augus. The 'Ash rapes Augus and nearly ruins their entire relationship' one that features dark!Ash and vulnerable!Augus. This one is probably one of the darker longfics I've written, and it's the only story I've thought about deleting. Eventually I decided not to, and I still think it has some of the most beautiful writing in it. A lot of Ash perspective, for people who enjoy that!

The Shaking Shape of You - (AU) Augus/Ash oneshot, in the world of The Wildness Within. This one's porn, folks.

Tumblr Prompts - Fae Tales - (AU and canon) Ash is in a couple of these! In one, he's an unlikely companion while they all go grocery shopping in the human realm, in another, Augus reads to Ash.

Unwound - (canon) Part of the ensemble cast here, his best chapter is the one where he gets Gwyn high on marijuana and Gwyn gets the munchies.

The Ash and Gwyn Interludes - (canon) Chapters where Gwyn and Ash work to reconcile between the events of The Court of Five Thrones and The Ice Plague. Features rare Ash canon POV chapters.

Ten Minutes and Ten Minutes More - (AU) A Mosk/Eran PWP oneshot where Ash gives Eran 'advice' on how to basically sexually assault Mosk. He has black hair in this one, and looks as sinister and dangerous as his brother.

The Augus and Ash Interludes - (AU) Written in 2013, these started off as canon and some quickly became not canon. But features very sweet or silly or angsty moments between Augus and Ash.

Tumblr Prompts - Fae Tales AUs - (AU) I don't actually remember these O.O Very 'I have no memory of this place' Gandalf quote.

When the Tables Turn - (AU) Augus/Ash, Ash is a detective who decides he wants to rail drug trafficker and crimelord Augus Each Uisge. I never finished this, but it was fun

The Best of Broken Resolutions - (AU) The Architect AU (Gwyn/Augus), in which Ash is a member of a band, and gets way too drunk and manages to make his presence known even in this story.

Salt Water - (AU) Ash/Augus. An 11k Id Fic with magical healing cock. Augus is raped by Stertes (yes, that one), and Ash fucks him better e.e

The Day the Ferris Wheel Came Down - (AU) Before Spoils of the Spoiled even existed, I played with the idea of a high school AU here!

Underline the Silver - (AU) An upcoming Augus/Corbyn Prince omegaverse story, where Ash will at the very least be mentioned.

A fun-loving, booze-loving, human-loving, upbeat-appearing quick-thinker, who always looks on the bright side, is ready to back a friend.

Pansexual, aromantic, and loves everyone. Enjoys sex and making connections, but also is happy to move on and make more going forward.

Loves his brother so much. SO much. Too much? He'd say there's no such thing!

Memes

If cheerful emo manifested into a human person

Redheads have all the fun

What? The cheerful guy sometimes has some deep-seated issues that he's not really talking to anyone about? O.O

Most memorable in the canon for his internal conflict around eating humans but needing to eat them. He loves humans so much that he spends most of his time living with them, something Augus and most Unseelie fae view unfavourably.

An unlikely friend of the Nain Rouge!

If he's going to be attracted to another core Fae Tales character, it's going to be his brother first, and Gwyn second, but only in the AUs.

Getting himself half-killed by The Raven Prince

Betraying his brother to save his brother's life, and that creating bitterness between them.

Using pop culture references around Fae who are all talking like Victorians.

This guy can fit so much alcohol in him!

Betraying Gwyn, but not to save Gwyn's life. The mutiny in The Court of Five Thrones goes down as the biggest turning point for his character in the entire canon.

Ash always has auburn hair except in a single oneshot AU, Ten Minutes and Ten Minutes More.

Always cheerful, and that cheerfulness always hides a darker and more sexual side.

Fucks - does he ever fuck

Kinks are always some variety of overstimulation and overwhelming his partners with pleasure.

Curious about people

Protective over those he perceives as vulnerable, including the humans he eats in the canon!

Ash was initially conceived as a foil to the idea that 'all Unseelie fae are evil' in the same way that Crielle was conceived as a foil to the idea that 'all Seelie fae are pure and good.'

Ash Glashtyn's personality is based on actual folktales connected to the Glashtyn. He has been described as capable of great good and great harm, but he's also been described as a waterhorse capable of extreme evil and sadism. He's actually considered more sadistic than the Each Uisge, which I kept as a trait. In fact there is one story where the Glashtyn in human form stabbed long pins and needles into unsuspecting children and women through their buttocks, breasts and other fleshy parts.

The reason Ash looks the way he does was part of a complex storyline that never came together, which frustrates me, but otherwise Ash and Augus would look very similar so I needed something to differentiate them more easily! Plus I really loved the idea of a character who doesn't look immediately kind of 'dark and forbidding.'

Ash has been one of the most polarising characters. During the Shadows and Light era, most people loved him intensely. During the Game Theory era, people became split. People who never read SAL generally hated him until the very end of The Court of Five Thrones.

Ash's heartsong was a secret that only Augus knew for almost a decade. Even I didn't know it for a little while. I always told myself and others that the only time we'd all learn what it was, was when he lost it. When I knew what it was, I told everyone it began with an A. Only one person out of about 100 guesses got it right. :D

I mean, we’re not dead or being actively tortured so it’s like…prospects aren’t all bad.

The Ice Plague II

[laurelsofhighever]

Mercies

Characters: Cullen x F!Trevelyan Rating: T Warnings: none

If she had made the road even half an hour earlier, she would have been too far down the mountain to turn back, or to do anything more than maybe hear the screams on the horizon. Perhaps she would have ridden straight into the arms of the Elder One, and Haven would not have gone up in flames. In Your Heart Shall Burn as seen through the eyes of Maighread Trevelyan and Commander Cullen

A faint aurora still wound across the sky above the mountain, but the lurid green slash of the Breach itself no longer loomed like a tyrant over the valley. In its place, Haven glowed in the light of half a dozen victory fires, the carousing people spilled out from the chantry and the tavern as sparks and song drifted into the clear sky, giving thanks for their lives and for the Herald that had delivered them from uncertainty. That she wasn’t among them, enjoying the free flow of ale and wine, was not remarked upon. The days after the mages had arrived had been fraught enough that most now fell into their cups with abandon, letting their worlds shrink to the next round and the next dance and the next bawdy joke from their mates; the Herald filled too much space for that, a larger-than-life presence much like the Prophet Herself, to be invoked but never looked upon, spoken of in tones of reverence for her deeds but always at the next fire over where her conversation could not carry.

Her horse was not in the stable. Cullen had suspected when she retreated straight to her cabin on their return from the temple, her protests of exhaustion plausible enough but with something furtive in her refusal to join the festivities that had made his heart clench with dread. If he hadn’t been worrying over her condition, watching more closely than was perhaps proper, then he would have missed it.

Now, he slid like a knife through the masses of Haven’s denizens, his air of unapproachability honed by years at the Gallows and made even sharper still by the headache driving a knot between his brows. He did his best to curb his glower when his soldiers raised their mugs to him, but dared not linger of invite conversation. For the time being, there was no need to cause panic, but as the fires burned on and he gradually ran out of places to search, only part of his mind was occupied with the logistical nightmare that would be caused by the Herald deserting them at their moment of triumph.

A mage alone in the world was a target, and for her especially – he knew well how some would pay to have her head, what spans they would reach to take her off the gameboard. From what Leliana had hinted, several assassination plots had already been foiled by her agents, though she hadn’t mentioned particulars and had been adamant – above his objections – about keeping the Herald in the dark for the sake of the task at hand. Perhaps if she had been made aware…

The image of Crows with darkened steel blades thudded in his chest, and he hurried on.

At last, on the very edge of the buildings leading to the main gate, he found fresh hoofprints in the churned mud, a trail that led down towards the shore of the lake and the dim, retreating shadow of a cloaked figure leading a laden horse. The pair disappeared behind a spur of rock as he squinted into the dark to make sure, and he recognised the path as the one taken by hunters on their way to forage in the lower valley. It linked back to the road half a league on, straight down the mountain. He broke into a run. The thin, frigid air sawed in his lungs and made his head throb as the last of the village fires dimmed behind him, his armour clanking, his boots a heavy tamp through the crust of ice that had formed over the powdery snow.

He knew the moment she heard him, because she turned and unslung her staff one-handed from the rest on her back. A spell fizzled to life at its tip, a brief flare of golden energy that illuminated the flat lines of her features, her shoulders squared up for a fight, before recognition lighted into shock and it died without a sound, leaving them both once more to the dim, undulating glow of the veilscar.

Read the rest on AO3!