#alfred statue

[daviddawsonfangroup]

The King standing at the foot of the King...

[hailsatanacab]

A Persuasive Argument - dpxdc

"Great!" Danny says, clapping his hands together to get everyone's attention. The dinner table falls silent as everyone looks towards him. It's a full house today and, honestly, Danny's a little nervous. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I gathered you here today."

"It's dinnertime. In our house." Duke mutters, while doing a very bad job of concealing his yawn. He holds his fork poised over the braised beef, but, just like everyone else, still looks towards Danny before tucking in. It's intriguing enough to wait.

"Yeah, no one misses Alfie's dinner." Dick says, with a brilliant smile that Danny can't help but return.

"Precisely! What better time to talk to you all than when you're all actually here!"

"Wait, I thought you came round to work on our English essays?" Tim asks, blinking owlishly.

"I'm afraid I've lured you here under false pretences, Tim."

"This is where I live."

"I would still really appreciate help on that essay though, I mean, what the hell is Hamlet even about? I just don't get that old time-y language, like 'Hark! A ghost hath killed me!' - absolute rubbish, what does that even mean?"

"The ghost never kills anyone in Hamlet, he's there to tell Hamlet that he was murdered. Have you actually read it?"

"No, but it sounds like you have. Tim, I want this guy to help me with my essay instead. I know for a fact that you haven't read Hamlet, either."

"So? We don't need Jason, I've read the Sparknotes."

"Hi Jason, I'm Danny, pleasure to meet you, summarise Hamlet in three sentences or less."

"Am I auditioning to help you write your essays? I can't believe you’ve gone through your whole school life without reading it, it’s good!"

"Hamlet, along with a number of other classics, was banned in our house because it portrayed ghosts as intelligent and sympathetic beings rather than evil, animalistic beasts. I didn’t even get to see The Muppet's Christmas Carol until last year with Tim! It was surprisingly good, and I hate Christmas because everyone always argued and it sucked. But we're getting off topic. I—"

"No, no, please go back to that, because what the fu—"

"Boys, please." Bruce interrupts, looking to the world as if he wants to hang his head in his hands. "Danny, you were about to say something?"

"Oh, yeah, Mr. Wayne! Thanks!"

"Please, call me Bruce."

"Well, that very succinctly brings me to my point, because I'd actually really like to call you dad."

Nobody says a word. Nobody even blinks, all as shocked as the other, watching open-mouthed as Danny pulls his laptop out from beside his chair. Bruce can definitely feel a headache coming on.

"Before you say anything, I've prepared a 69 slide PowerPoint presentation on why you, Bruce Wayne, should adopt me, Danny Last-Name-Pending. Please save your questions, comments, and verdict until the end, thank you."

[389]

Sir Alfred Gilbert, M.V.O., R.A. (1854-1934)

[purpleangiie]

Spring cleaning at the Wayne's Manor

[goldenstarprincesses]

What do we think Arthurs first public act of fatherly affection twords Alfred was following the revolution

[talia-kane]

Alfred starts secretly dosing the manor with antidepressants and they stop wanting to fight crime

[ancestorsalive]

Photo: Statue of Aethelflaed, Lady of the Mercians, who passed away in 918. Her nephew Aethelstan, future king of all England, looks up at her.

"Aethelflaed was one of three daughters of Alfred the Great, and her name meant "noble beauty". She married Aethelraed of Mercia at some point during the 880s and while this union meant a strong alliance between Wessex and Mercia the pair embarked on a "Mercian revival" with the city of Worcester at its centre.

When Aethelraed died in 911 after years of ill-health Aethelflaed remained as Lady of Mercia and held this position until her death, making her the only female ruler of a kingdom during the entire Anglo-Saxon era. The only compromise she made was to agree to her brother Edward, now king of Wessex, taking some of Mercia's southern lands under his control.

Their father Alfred the Great had fortified dozens of Wessex towns as "burhs" and Edward continued this work, connecting his burhs with those in Mercia to represent a united front against viking incursions, and it wasn't long before this was put to the test.

A force of vikings, pushed out of Ireland, landed in the mouth of the Dee after unsuccessfully trying to take land in Wales, and asked Aethelflaed if they could settle for a time outside the old Roman walled town of Chester. Permission was granted but the Norsemen raided and robbed the area at will so Aethelflaed led a force to shut them down. She had Chester fortified and waited for the inevitable viking attack, it came and was repulsed, the Scandinavian chancers sent packing in complete disarray.

This same Norse army was brought to battle at Tettenhall near Wolverhampton where Aethelflaed's forces destroyed them. The writing was now on the wall - the vikings had to go. Together with Edward she raided deep into Danelaw territory on a mission to rescue the bones of St Oswald - who had been killed and ritually dismembered by the pagan king of Mercia Penda - from a church in Lincolnshire then brought the relics down to Gloucestershire where a new church was built to house them...more on that presently.

The burhs continued to be built, and the Dane strongholds fell as Aethelflaed campaigned hard against them. Her forces defeated three Norse armies before finally taking the city of Derby, then Leicester, before the Danes of York came to her to pledge their loyalty. The vikings in Anglia capitulated to Edward and so all of England south of Northumbria was now back under Anglo-Saxon rule.

Aethelflaed died at Tamworth in 918 and so will be forever associated with the town, but she was carried down to Gloucestershire to be buried in the church she had built for St Oswald. Unfortunately the monastery there fell into decline over the centuries, was dissolved in 1536, then almost completely destroyed during the English Civil War. Nobody knows where Aethelflaed's resting place is now, but the ruins of St Oswalds are as good a place as any as a pilgrimage destination for those wishing to follow in the footsteps of the Lady of Mercia." - Source: Hugh Williams via Medieval England on FB.

Photo: Statue of Aethelflaed and Aethelstan at Tamworth Castle, by EG Bramwell, unveiled in 1913.

[nauticalparamour]

Writing Update

Going to try to do these a little differently from now on... I'll probably just edit and then reblog moving forward. Here is the update as of November 2024:

All Too Soon — Salazar x Hermione. My poor neglected WIP. Hermione finds a time portal in Hogwarts that takes her to the time of the Founders after midnight. I've got this fully plotted out, hope to have it finished up this month. | 8/10

Tribulations — Alfred Nott x Hermione. AU Was meant to be a one-shot set in the Trials Universe where Tom sends Alfie to deal with Hermione, instead of himself. But, it's turned into something massive, and I assume it's going to be around the same length as the original, but slow and unusual updates, seeing as I'm just writing when other obligations are fulfilled. It's turned into one chapter per ritual. | 3/9

Pretend to be Nice — Cassius Warrington x Hermione. One-shot where Ministry workers Cassius and Hermione have to interface with one another | December?

Linen & Curls — After ending up unexpectedly in 1977, Hermione learns that there is more to her than she knew. Embraced by the Black family, how will she handle living under their rules, especially when they insist there is no way for her to go back to her proper time? Or, are they just wanting to keep her as a useful pawn, to further the family's aims? Rabastan x Hermione. Sloooow Burn. Time travel AU multi-chapter | 47/71

Arms Full of Lullabies — Theo x Hermione. A little epistolary story that I am mostly mentioning because I miss the pairing | Winter/Spring?

Red Right Hand — OC x Hermione, Time Travel AU, Hermione Raises Tom. Light rewrite/grammar update and posting to AO3 | 32/45

Season of the Witch — Draco x Hermione, Football AU, Non-Magical AU, Or Is It? I'm still plotting this one out, but I am guessing it will be 15-20 chapters. | Winter/Spring

Unnamed — Draco x Hermione, Cinderella AU. One-shot | Spring

Unnamed — Marcus x Hermione, I would like to write another common trope, I'm thinking Accidental Marriage? Multi-Chapter | May 2025

Cruel, Tenderly — Rodolphus x Hermione, Multichapter. A dark story, whose plot has been clanging around in the back of my mind for ages, wondering if I will ever get the guts to write it. Not sure if anyone would actually want to read it. Spying with Polyjuice has it's consequences | 2025

I’d love to hear if you have any of these you are really looking forward to 💕 Or, are there any pairings that you have been missing?

You can see what was completed since last time below the cut:

Trials — Tom x Hermione | Complete

One Point Perspective — Marcus x Hermione | Complete

Think Twice — Marcus x Hermione | Complete

Sleeper — Theo x Hermione | Complete

Undercovers — Fenrir x Hermione | Complete

Go Away — Lucius x Hermione | Complete

Informants — Fenrir x Hermione | Complete

Bigger Boys & Stolen Sweethearts — Marcus x Hermione | Complete

Widow — Thorfinn x Hermione | Complete

[whipbogard]

Anyway

I’m done with BTAA.

Prayer circle for everyone 🥲

[castelnou]

sculpture by alfred boucher (detail)

[nosferatufaggot]

In the universe in which Bruce Wayne and Joker are in a public relationship and are a power couple, I gots some thoughts.

So, Bruce visits Joker in Arkham or whatever. Like brings him flowers or something, I dunno. And someone says something about how they cannot BELIEVE billionaire Bruce Wayne would spend his time with someone who is mentally unstable enough to be in Arkham. Well, said someone's buisness suddenly fails when for some unbeknownst reason, Wayne Enterprises stop financially supporting said buisness.

Some time later, Joker and Bruce are at a gala. Bruce Wayne expierences autism 100 moment and someone goes ableism about it. Just a passing comment. And then after the rich socialite party, maybe two nights after, Joker doesn't kill them, but he sure does psychological torture.

[of-fear-and-love]

Some of the matte shots from Saboteur (1942)

Associate art director Robert F. Boyle Illustrations by (according to imdb) John DeCuir, Dorothea Holt Visual effects by John P. Fulton

[wesavegotham]

I think it's really disappointing that instead of deconstructing Batman in a new way (Alfred is dead and Bruce isn't rich anymore, so now he has to do all the mature and traditionally female everyday tasks like cooking, cleaning and taking care of your family members by himself for the first time in...ever. In a way destroying the image of the cool and edgy Batman who usually didn't have take care of these pesky tasks because another, more mature and motherly character like Alfred or aunt Harriet was doing it for him) Bruce is still being deconstructed in a way we've seen for over a decade at this point: Is he turning insane, is he better off alone and will DC push him to the point where he'll start killing (the Joker)?

The potential to do something new is there, but it's not really being used.

[divinekangaroo]

Finishing the Dark Knight and cannot stop laughing: Nolan's ability to finish a movie is like Sting's ability to finish a song.

[postcard-from-the-past]

Alfred de Musset's statue in Paris

French vintage postcard

[worldofmetahumans]

A status competition? Yes yes, this is a very special event on World of MetaHumans! You better check it out right now. :wink: :tada: