#and then reference norse mythology with them
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
yoinkschief · 1 year ago
Note
Honestly every time I think about ‘wolf’ and ‘Nordic’ in the same sentence I can only think of Fenrir
And the consequences of keeping him chained up :)
Teehee anon you're so silly !! :3
3 notes · View notes
themoonking · 1 year ago
Text
see someone spreading misinformation about ancient greece online, gently correct them, they say "well discerning whats canon and whats fanon in greek mythology is really difficult". i am killed instantly.
12 notes · View notes
raining-anonymously · 9 months ago
Text
kennings can be such a tender thing
they can also be kind of rude
#norse mythology#read a thought that kennings are used so abundantly because people were that familiar with the stories#haven’t been the same since#i’ll be reading a poem and they’ll call loki ‘thor’s friend’ one line and randomly ‘the coward’ in the next#love all the different names…#they called thor ‘the giantess’s friend’ which is Different. in a good way#whenever i read kennings for sigyn i lose my mind a little#i i need more poetry. and prose as well. i need it all. i need to learn every ancient language and also some modern ones immediately.#‘gold is called- [lists ninety things]” hel YEAH it is tell me all about it#‘here is how to periphrase xyz’ and then you tell me a story explaining why?? thank you snorri this is all i need in life#shout out to that one guy who interchangeably used ‘loke’ ‘loptur’ and ‘loðurr’ in his poem. and then also called utgard-loki ‘loke’-#—in the second half. inclusion of lodurr (who is often regarded as a Different Guy) really packed it in xD but the translators clarified-#-‘Asa-Loki’ in the annotations which was nice#i like when they use odin-names to mean ‘god’#or when they use anyone’s name in other context to mean warrior#and how that poet uses several random jotun-names interchangeably to refer to it utgard-loki’s disguise#anyway#kennings are cool#define them by their relationships and feats and stories i am SO here for it#ALSO THEY USED ‘sons of goats’ TO MEAN. YOU GUESSED IT. GOATS
6 notes · View notes
ghost-1-y · 1 year ago
Text
Sacrifice
Surtr!Kyojuro x AFAB!Worshipper!Reader
Tumblr media
Content Warnings: MDNI, explicit sexual content, penetrative sex, oral sex (f! receiving), fingering, masturbation (Kyo), getting caught masturbating (Kyo), knotting, Kyojuro is in heat, Kyo has a massive breeding kink, lactation kink (Kyo loves your titties), size kink, pregnancy kink, pregnancy (at the end), using horns as handles, implied belly bulging, mommy kink (reader referred to as both “mommy” and “mother”), love confessions at the very end, douma being an asshole, incorrect interpretation of norse mythology, reader is given as a human sacrifice to Kyo, mentions of animal sacrifice, reader referred to as “pretty girl” sometimes, please lmk if I missed anything!
Summary: The legends stated that the mighty fire giant would one day bring about the beginnings of Ragnarok and engulf the world in flames. You had been told of these prophecies since childhood and were a firm believer in appeasing the proclaimed Ruler of Fire through worship and sacrifice – just as you had been taught by the village elders since you were a mere child. What you didn’t expect, however, was for the village to turn their back on you and suggest that what would be needed would be a human sacrifice to appease the giant once and for all.
Word Count: ~6k
Divider Credit: @/benkeibear
A/N: So sorry this took so long!! I've had a mess of a week so far. I hope the fic is worth the wait! Apologies for any spelling or grammatical errors (I tried my best).
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
A fire blazed in the heart of the village, crackling with embers floating gracefully and smoke ebbing above the tallest of houses – its heat a sharp contrast to the bitter cold of the autumn night. Members of the village surrounded the bonfire, sitting with their families as they feasted, bellies full with the meat stew that was provided for them. A single bowl was left untouched amongst each family – a welcoming invitation for the dead to engage in the festivities that were part of Vetrnætr.
As chieftain, you engaged with the families, wishing them good health and happiness as they did the same for you, before engaging in sumbel with them as you poured wine onto the grass below.
“Freyr will be most pleased by your worship.”
In a way of parting from families, you’d praise their good faith before moving on to the next family. The smiles were abundant amongst the villagers, and, once you’d made your way fully around the bonfire, you removed your sword from your scabbard and raised it high into the air.
“Today we celebrate, and are thankful to the god Freyr for a wonderful harvest. Please join me in this sacrifice, in order to show our thanks to the deities of all the Nine Realms.” 
However, before you could commit to the sacrifice – the poor lamb that was before you – a cold hand gripped at your shoulder, which made you turn in confusion.
“Perhaps I should tell you, before you engage in such an act, that the priest has some… concerns,” the man – Enmu you believed his name was – whispered. You sighed and sheathed your sword once more, your blood beginning to boil as you’d wondered what he could possibly want in the middle of the village’s celebration.
You trudged your way through the temple that resided on the outskirts of the village. The door creaked open as you walked through, and before you sat the village priest, who sat on a cushion made of feathers and animal skin. He upturned his lips upon seeing you, yet it wasn’t a true smile.
You knew he didn’t know how to, after all.
“Ah! My lovely Chieftain,” Douma drawled, “such a beautiful night to celebrate Vetrnætr, isn’t it? Although, I doubt that Freyr will grant you the beauty or fertility needed to continue your lineage this upcoming year, truly a shame,” he said, faking a pout. 
You fought the urge to ball your fists. The village elders, and, apparently now the village priest as well, had been pressing you for a child – particularly a son – however, despite many suitors attempting to lay their claim to the throne, and therefore you, none had been successful.
Despite this jab, you maintained composure, “what do you need from me, Douma? You’ve interrupted the sacrifice.” You stared him down, and he forced a small laugh.
“Oh my, a harsh tongue doesn’t suit you, dear Chief” he sneered, “You see, I have become aware of some rather concerning events – ones surrounding Ragnarök in particular,” he paused, observing you for any kind of reaction, “unfortunately, it seems Surtr has traveled from Muspelheim to Midgard.”
Your eyes widened, “how would he be able to do such a thing? He isn’t a deity–”
“–ah, but he is a jötunn, and therefore would have the ability to travel between the realms,” Douma countered, “did you never pay attention to my lessons during your youth?”
You rolled your eyes, “you speak as though we do not dedicate sacrifices to him with each solstice. You know appeasing his anger is one of my most steadfast beliefs.”
Douma hummed, “well, it appears that you did not follow through with this past solstice, my dear Chieftain – rather dedicating it to Freyr than to Surtr – and, to be completely honest, I am quite disappointed in that fact.”
The door shut behind you, and two warriors stood on either side of you. You grabbed the hilt of your sword, sensing distrust in the air.
“Do you know, Chieftain, what would be required to adequately appease the Ruler of Fire?”
You pulled out your sword and swung at the warrior on your right, an attack which was quickly blocked by his own weapon. You landed a kick to the left one’s stomach, only for it to be trapped in an unwavering grip by the warrior’s arms. You attempted to swing your sword at him in retaliation, only for your arm to also be grabbed by the one on your right.
Douma stood up and walked towards you, gripping your chin – the cold of his skin causing you to wince.
 “A proper, human sacrifice.”
A blow landed to the back of your neck, and your vision faded to black.
You awoke to a chill that laid upon your skin, feeling as though you were made of ice rather than of flesh. You were completely bare, lying on a wooden floor of what you presumed to be the priest’s sacred temple, as your vision was fully obstructed by a cloth which wrapped around your eyes. Upon moving your arms – which were thankfully in front of you and not behind, you noticed that your wrists were also bound by rope to prevent you from making any potential escape from Douma’s clutches.
Outside, you heard footsteps approaching, and the door swung open – causing you to flinch at the loud creak that sounded from it. A rough hand grabbed at your arm and pulled you up to your feet, forcing you outside where you heard murmurs of villagers on either side of you. Your cheeks flushed deep with embarrassment, the idea of your beloved villagers seeing you in such a state bringing tears to your eyes in pure shame.
“All of you, please say your final goodbyes to our beloved Chieftain – for she has volunteered to become the sacrifice that will appease Surtr and end his threats of Ragnarök!”
You couldn’t hear the cheers of your people over your pulse pounding in your ears, completely helpless as you were all but dragged along the dirt and gravel pathway before being placed on a horse. A faint rustling could be heard before you felt a rope tied around your neck.
“Be careful not to fall off, my dear Chieftain, lest your neck snap as you’re dragged along the rugged terrain by your horse,” Douma whispered to you before saddling himself onto a separate horse, and you could only assume that this rope was also tied to the horse in some way, thus forcing you to go wherever Douma led you.
You begrudgingly held tight against the horse’s mane as it went into a trot, the wind blowing harshly against your naked skin as the voices of the villagers slowly faded away, replaced by the clopping of hooves as you traversed to a place unfamiliar.
The horses did not stop, and you could only tell the passage of time as the cool of night gave way to the blazing heat of the sun that seared itself into your back. Hours must have passed, and your muscles grew sore the longer you traveled.
At some point, the horses slowed, and the sun’s heat was obstructed by a shadow which loomed above you. Again, a faint rustling could be heard before you were taking off of the horse’s back – yet the rope stayed wrapped around your neck, yet it was no longer taut if you tried pulling away from the horse’s body. You were dragged into the cool shadow, before a hand gripped at your hair.
“Such a shame you never produced a son,” Douma muttered into your ear, “you wouldn’t have to die if you were nice and fertile, my dear Chieftain.”
You could only imagine the nasty grin on his face as he pushed you forward, causing you to lose your footing and fall what could’ve been roughly two meters before hitting solid rock. You heard laughter above you before it started to fade away.
Luckily, the fall seemed to loosen the cloth which covered your eyes, allowing you to see out of one of them, yet you doubted it would be of much help as you got your bearings and realized that you were indeed alone in a dark cave, being left to starve and rot as a form of sacrifice to Surtr.
You decided, that if you were going to die anyway, that you’d at least explore the cave you were pushed into.
It was dark, yet not damp, the stone beneath you as dry as the walls that surrounded you, and you wondered if the sun somehow reached its way into the depths of this cave to evaporate the moisture. There was no life, not a single lizard or insect to be seen – although a few animal bones would be strewn about here and there as you continued your descent further into the cave.
You traversed further, being careful to not trip over any rocks or pitfalls. After what seemed to be an hour of exploration, you saw the tiniest spark of light in the distance.
Perhaps a way out? You thought, and walked closer to this flickering light, and the rather narrow tunnel you were in gave way to a large cavern – with a large bonfire in the middle, one much larger than the one in your village during the celebration of Vetrnætr. 
Unlike the blazing heat of the sun from earlier, the warmth of the bonfire was comforting, with its orange hue flickering along the walls of the cavern.
As you got closer, you heard the slightest shifting from the other side of the cavern, followed by what could only be described as a low growl. You froze, unsure of how to proceed in front of a potential predator with nothing to defend yourself with. You slowly crouched and walked towards the bonfire, and, despite your hands being tied, managed to pick up one of the smaller logs on the outer ring of the fire before dousing the tip of it in flames – a weapon, should you need to use it.
As you slowly walked around the bonfire, you found a rather peculiar sight – realizing that the growl did not come from the likes of an animal.
But who– or what was before you was certainly not human.
The being before you was huge, possibly even a jötunn. You were never one to doubt your beliefs, but the idea that a creature from another realm was before your very eyes was difficult to swallow. However, from what you could remember from your religious texts, a jötunn is the only creature you could bring yourself to categorize it as. 
The creature had large, curved horns that were sizable in their girth, and its tusks – not fangs – emerged up from its lower jaw. What’s more, it had pointed ears on either side of its head which emerged through hair resembling that of fire, locks that matched the finest gold and ruby gemstones that would cost a fortune in your village.
Unlike the face, its body looked quite human – although its very naked form boasted large, dense muscles throughout its entire body, and a cock that made you swallow absentmindedly from just how threatening its size was.
The creature was stroking its girth, thumbing itself over the leaking slit – a slight shudder escaping from its throat. It started to fuck itself into its grip, thrusting quickly as though chasing its release. Its other hand was fondling its balls – which looked heavy and full of seed, before having its hand move slightly upward towards the slightly swollen base of its cock, softly massaging it to seemingly ease the tension it caused.
Fully flushed with embarrassment, you backed away from the creature before you, each step seemingly calculated in order to escape this situation.
Is the creature sentient? It seems to be humanoid– does that mean it can think like a human? What if it’s a predator and kills me? 
Thoughts rushed through your mind, seemingly going into a frenzy as you worried about potential outcomes of this situation.
Crack!
In your panic, you managed to step on a stray twig that managed to stray from the center of the bonfire.
The creature stopped its movements, and immediately turned its head to the source of the sound.
Its amber and crimson eyes opened and glared into yours.
“F-Fuck—!”
With one glance over your naked form, the creature before you released its seed, spilling it all over its fist and shaft, with the remaining drops dribbling onto its lower abdomen. It continued to slowly rub its fist up and down its length, closing its eyes as it played with its tip up until the last of its cum dribbled out from the slit, before tensing and looking back at you, eyes widening in shock – as though it couldn’t believe you were actually there.
“I’m sorry!” the creature exclaimed, a blush so red blooming across its cheeks that it seemingly felt the same amount of embarrassment as you. It hastily wiped itself clean on the furred animal skin it was laying upon. “I– I can explain, really– just– who are you? Why are you here?” 
You were in shock, so much so that you couldn’t even eke out a full sentence. Your eyes drifted down to its cock once more, which – much to your surprise – was still standing incredibly tall and proud as it curved up towards the creature’s stomach. Heat prickled across your cheeks and down your chest as the fiery-haired being used its hands to cover itself up in front of you – sensing that you might be uncomfortable from bearing witness to such an event.
This is ridiculous, you thought, you are the Chieftain of your village – compose yourself!
“I am Y/N, leader of my village and child of a family of famed warriors,” you introduced yourself. 
The creature raised an eyebrow to you in response.
“And what exactly brings a village leader into my cave?” 
You hesitated, humiliation flooding your veins even more so than before.
“I– I was overthrown by the village priest and have been made a sacrifice to Surtr, the Ruler of Fire.”
You expected laughter from the jötunn before you, closing your eyes to hide whatever dignity you had left from what Douma stripped from you. However, instead of hearing a cacophony of hearty noises from the creature’s throat, you instead heard the thud of footsteps approaching you. 
Slowly, the jötunn reached forward and removed the bandages which obstructed your vision, loosening and pulling them away with his large fingers, careful to not touch you unnecessarily in the process.
Your eyes widened as you looked up at the giant, his eyes surprisingly kind as he looked down at you. He bunched the bandages in his hands before tossing them to the side, then continued untie the ropes that were digging into your wrists and cast them aside as well.
“If what you say is true, please inform your village that I do not take human sacrifices.”
Your heart seemed to have traveled up to your throat, its beats both fast and fluttery.
“That would imply that I could go back– wait, what are you talking about?”
Then, the creature did finally let out a laugh – a small chuckle that rose from his chest and was deep and bassy as it rose through his throat.
“My dear human, I am the one you people refer to as Surtr.” 
You stopped, instinctively stepping back – away from the creature that just claimed to be the harbinger of destruction – the one to bring flames that will engulf all nine realms and Yggdrasil itself.
You did what you believed best, and forced your body to the rocky floor of the cave, bowing in absolute submission and respect for such a being – nearly cowering in the presence of such raw power presented before you.
“Stand up, please, there’s no need for that here.”
You looked up at the being before you, rather confused by his words.
He sighed, “you humans have beliefs of me that are so far from the truth, it’s saddening.”
A pause, the only sound in the cavern being the crackling of the wood against flames.
“My real name is Kyojuro, the name ‘Surtr’ is a title bestowed upon me that I did not wish to receive. I am not going to harm you or your village, I do not wish for such evil. Whatever “priest” thought that a human sacrifice would appease this nonexistent will of mine is, to put simply, a fool.”
You let out a shaky breath, and he reached out his hand – one that dwarfed your own – toward you. 
“Stand up.”
He was smiling as you took his hand, with a gaze that was comforting and kind as he sent sparks through your skin with his touch.
The prickling heat returned to your cheeks.
“I’ll help you get back to your village,” he promised.
You froze, your heartbeat quickening once more as you registered his words.
“I can’t– please, I can’t go back, not after what they did to me,” you started, preparing yourself to beg and plead this god-like creature for mercy.
Kyojuro frowned, “I understand, but I can’t keep you here. You need to leave, I– I can’t have you stay.”
You knew it was selfish, to leave your people in the hands of Douma, but after what he did to you– after how he humiliated you.
Where the fire in your village was scalding, his was warm. Where those treated you with indifference or malice, he had been nothing but kind.
Was it really worth going back?
“I’d like to stay,” you decided.
Kyojuro stopped, each and every second becoming more and more difficult for the jötunn. Every passing moment he ignored his very obvious problem, he became this much closer to just bending you over and taking you like a wild animal. His blood was hot in his veins, and fire licked at his lower abdomen, pleasure bubbling once more to the surface as he continued to endure his heat.
“You don’t know what you’re asking of me, human,” he warned. He was using every ounce of his willpower in order to maintain his composure. His heat was going to near its peak soon, and he needed you away from him before that happened. He came to Midgard to weather it alone in his cave, and you were only making it all the more difficult.
“Kyojuro,” you uttered softly, and the creature before you let out a low growl, “will you let me stay if I…help?” 
His cock twitched, precum dribbling slowly out of the tip, with the base of it swelling up once more.
“I don’t want you to try and sell yourself to me as though you’re a piece of meat. I–” he swallowed, “I appreciate the offer, but I can’t allow you to do that.”
“Kyojuro, I want to help you. I want this,” you assured, and he balled his hands into fists, as though the rope holding him together was about to snap.
“Y/N–” he warned, and you rolled your eyes.
“Please, fuck me, Kyojuro.”
The jötunn grabbed your arm, “if– if we are to do this, you must know that I am in heat, and I–” he swallowed, “I may not be able to control myself should we continue.”
You took your hand and brushed your fingers across his tightened grip, causing slight shivers to flow down his spine.
“Lose control, Kyojuro, I can take it.”
He groaned, and with his strength, picked you up and collided his lips with yours. Your hands sought either side of his face, kissing back with fervor as he moaned into your mouth. His tusks surprisingly didn’t obstruct your access to his mouth, and every once in a while he’d nip at your bottom lip, before laving his tongue over the swollen skin and pushing it into your mouth. You let out a small moan at the intrusion, and wrapped your arms around his neck, your fingers finding purchase in his wild, fiery hair.
His grip on your body moved from your hips back towards your ass, cupping and massaging the muscle with his hands. His cock was stiff against your inner thigh, the precum spreading along your skin with each small movement. You wrapped your legs around his waist, moaning as his cock slipped between your legs and along your slit – the sheer girth of it a little worrisome as it pressed against your heat.
“Shit– so big, Kyojuro, hah–” you panted, and he growled.
“Never had cock this big before, have you? Don’t worry, dear, I’ll get you nice and ready to take me.”
He shifted your weight onto one of his arms, the muscles flexing as he shifted his other hand beneath you. Two of his fingers started rubbing along your clit, making small circular motions as his other hand groped at the fat of your ass. He lifted you up a little more so his mouth was in line with your breasts and pursed his lips around one of your perked up tits, sucking at it and licking broad stripes with his tongue. He groaned around your tit as he played with your pussy, reveling in how wet you were for him already. The mini vibrations sent electricity down your spine, and you moved your head to rest on his broad shoulder, giving small kisses to his neck as you whined from his ministrations.
“Lips feel so good, dear, love it when you kiss me like that,” he sighed, giving kisses to each of your breasts, “want to apologize for my earlier…release, you were just so beautiful…seeing you all naked ‘n presenting for me like that…made me want to breed you, pretty girl,” Kyojuro confessed, causing you to shiver as he softly whispered such filthy thoughts into your ear.
“Mmh– don’t apologize, Kyo– liked watchin’ you,” you admitted, and he let out a light chuckle, which made you lightly slap his rocky chest. He responded by giving a small bite to your breast, before licking it better with his skilled tongue.
“Yeah? You like the idea of me wanting to breed you? Getting you pregnant with my young?” he asked, his fingers moving from your clit down towards your entrance, where he inserted a single thick digit into your heat. You whined as your pussy clenched around the intrusion, and nodded in response, licking a stripe up his neck before kissing back down it again.
His finger thrust into you, curling against that one sensitive area inside of you as his thumb reached for and played with your clit. The moans that you let out echoed throughout the cavern, with the only other sounds being the shlick of Kyojuro’s finger deep in your cunt and the crackling of flames. After a while, he added a second digit, and slowly but surely worked you towards your peak, the tension slowly building up in your gut.
With one last swipe against your clit with his thumb, you came undone, your orgasm causing you to shudder and whine in his hold as he worked you through it, curling his fingers and rubbing your clit as you rode out each wave. 
“Kyo–” you moaned, trying to grind your hips down on his fingers, and he smiled before meeting your lips in a heated kiss. He continued thrusting his fingers up into your now weeping cunt, prepping you nice and good to take his much thicker cock.
He walked back toward his makeshift bed – a pile of furs and animal skins which he must’ve collected prior to his heat – and gently placed you down on top of them. His large hands moved down your thighs, rubbing softly up and down your plush skin as he stared at the slick between your legs. He lowered himself between your thighs and inhaled deeply as he tried desperately to memorize your scent. He licked a stripe up your slit, causing you to jolt at the sensation, and moaned as your taste spread over his tongue like honey.
You squirmed underneath his touch, which made him hold your hips in place as he started to devour you. His tongue flicked over your clit before collecting more of your juices on his tongue. Your hands found his horns and gripped them tightly, pushing his head further between your thighs, earning a groan from Kyojuro. He pursed his lips and sucked at your clit before licking at it in circular motions, moving his hand between your legs again and pushing two digits inside your cunt once more, thrusting in and out of your hole with his fingers. After adding a third finger, he started curling his fingers into that one spot again, his movements quick and deft as he brought you to your second orgasm. 
You moaned loudly as you came undone, legs shaking as your grip on his horns tightened, trying your best to buck your hips up into his face as he lapped up all of the juices that seeped out of your pussy. Only when you were able to open your eyes once more did you look down to see Kyojuro humping himself onto the fur pelts as he messily gathered the rest of your release onto his tongue.
“Kyo– please, I need you,” you whined, and he looked up at you with a fire ignited in his eyes. He got up, stroking his thick cock as he looked down upon your much smaller form.
“Get on all fours for me.”
Without hesitation, you rolled over and got on your hands and knees. Kyojuro kneeled behind you and placed his cock in between your wet folds, rubbing the tip up and down as his precum mixed with your juices. He shuddered before slowly pushing the head inside, causing you to tense slightly from how big the intrusion was.
“Relax for me, won’t you?” he asked softly.
You tried your best to relax, and he started to push more of his length inside of you, filling you up more than you ever thought possible. For a moment, he stayed like that, relishing in the feeling of your cunt tightly wrapped around his throbbing cock, his hips flush against your ass as you whined for him to move, please.
“Let me have this moment, dear, I– I haven’t felt something this wonderful in centuries,” he confessed, and you let out a soft mewl before complying with what he wanted. 
After a few more moments, his cock dragged out of you slowly before thrusting back in. He rocked into you, slowly at first, which was most likely for the better considering how huge he was. He growled as he thrust into you, his heavy balls slapping against your clit as he reached underneath you to hold your stomach, pressing up slightly as he fully fucked his cock into you.
“Shit– you feel that, pretty girl? Feel my cock deep inside you?” he groaned, and you nodded helplessly, letting out a whine as he continued his movements. “Feel so good wrapped around me, so fuckin’ tight f’ me.”
You choked out another moan as he started increasing his speed, his groans becoming more frequent with each thrust. Kyojuro took his hand and gently tilted your chin up so you could look at him.
“Won’t last much longer, pretty girl,” he leaned down and kissed you, “gonna pull out, promise.”
You whined, “no– please, need your cum, Kyo– need it inside.”
He moaned loudly, “you have no idea what you’re asking of me, pretty. You’d end up taking my knot–”
“I want your knot, Kyo! Please give it to me–!”
Kyojuro thrust even harder into your sopping cunt upon hearing that, “fuck, you want my knot? I’ll get you fucking pregnant, fill you up with my young ‘n get your belly all swollen, you sure you want that?”
“Yes! Please Kyo–! Please–”
With a couple last thrusts, Kyojuro shot his seed inside of you, thick ropes painting your insides white and filling you up to the brim. You moaned as you felt the warmth spread deep inside of your cunt, and, before his release could begin to seep out of your pussy, a burning stretch began inside your abused hole. Realizing this is what Kyojuro meant by his knot, you tried to look behind you to catch sight of his cock seemingly expanding inside of your pussy, keeping his cum nicely plugged inside of you.
Kyojuro was panting, his voice rough as he pulled you up onto his lap.
“Good fuckin’ girl, taking my knot so well.” He looked down at your chest as you sat in his lap, his cock still rock hard and throbbing inside your wet cunt.
“Can’t wait to see these breasts filled with milk, gonna be such a good mommy, aren’t you?” he said before taking one of your tits in his mouth and sucking at it, as though he were trying to get you to produce milk already for him, and eventually his young, to feed on.
“Kyo, I– I’m sorry, but I’m not fertile, I– I’ve never been able to produce an heir with another man,” you sighed, and his eyes looked up to meet yours. “I’m really sorry, it’s why I was thrown down here in the first place” you continued, hoping your words wouldn’t anger him.
Instead of becoming angry, he simply placed you back down on the fur pelts and brought your legs up towards your shoulders so that you were folded completely in half. He then crouched over you, keeping you locked in a mating press with him.
“I’m no simple man, my dear human,” he kissed your lips, “if I say I will breed you and fill you with my young–” he paused, thrusting deeply into your cunt.
“–I mean every single word.”
Kyojuro started fucking into you with renewed fervor, his stamina seemingly having increased despite already releasing inside of you once. His cock reached deeper inside of you, and you could swear you felt him all the way in your throat. Every single thrust of his hips had you a whining mess, taking his knot until your pussy molded into the shape of his cock.
“Fuck, that’s it, take it all,” he groaned before pressing his mouth to yours once more. His tongue plunged past your lips – prompting you to suck on it, causing him to fall over the edge again, his hips stilling as he pumped a second load of cum into your needy cunt. You whined as he didn’t stop – continuing to fuck into your abused cunt despite cumming twice, his cock still stiff and leaking with every thrust. You felt his seed sloshing around in your womb, feeling so incredibly full by both his cum and his fat cock.
“Mine,” he growled while pumping himself into you, “you’re fucking mine.”
You could only nod and whine in response, having been completely fucked dumb by his cock.
“Pregnant.” He pummeled his cock deep into your cunt, “getting you pregnant. Fuck. Gonna have a round belly filled with my young, tits swelling with milk, I’ll keep you here – gonna be the mother to my children, gonna treat mommy so well, hunt for you, protect you, everything you could ever want.”
You moaned, your cunt clenching around his cock upon listening to his promises.
“Wan’ it,” you managed, “wan’ to be a good mommy so– fuck– so bad.”
Kyojuro groaned, his cock twitching inside of you as it swelled even more. “Can’t stop thinking of my young suckling on your breasts, tits producing so much milk that all of them have their fill– shit, gonna cum again, gonna fill you up– fuck!” 
He spilled into you once more, filling your cunt up completely with his seed, ensuring that it takes, making good on his promise. His fingers flicked at your clit and your own orgasm came crashing down around you, pure euphoria flowing through your veins as you let out a silent scream from the seemingly endless waves of pleasure addling your mind.
Kyojuro rolled over and had you collapse on top of him, his arms reaching around your torso and holding you close.
“Did you mean what you said? About wanting to stay?” he whispered, slight insecurity being carried through his tone.
You gave him a quick peck to his lips, “yes, Kyojuro, you– you’ve been so kind to me, much more than anyone else in that damned village. I’d love to stay with you.”
He smiled softly at you, his eyes glowing with warmth as he cradled your head into his neck, petting at your hair as the two of you fell asleep next to the flickering bonfire.
A few months had passed, and you were waiting for your lover to return from his hunt. He had promised a large meal today, and you were excited to see what he had planned for the two of you.
You rubbed your baby bump as you cozied up next to the fire, resting in a heap of animal furs which acted as bedding for the two of you. You were surprised to find out that you were pregnant, but Kyojuro had sensed it about a month after you two had first met, and proceeded to treat you as though every step you took turned the rocks beneath your feet into gold. 
The bump was rather large for only being a few months in, and your breasts were already swelling and leaking with milk, but Kyojuro had told you that it was normal – considering that his young would be half-jötunn. He quelled your fears of labor, saying that he would help you in every way that he possibly could when it came time to have the baby.
After a few hours, Kyojuro came back to the cavern, carrying your meal over his shoulder.
“How is my love doing?” he asked with the biggest smile on his face, causing you to giggle as you attempted to get up to greet him. Kyojuro rushed over to you, ensuring that you don’t so much as lift a finger while carrying his young. He leaned down and gave you a soft kiss before dragging your meal to the bonfire and beginning to cook it.
“Mmh– Kyo? Could you help me a little bit, my tits feel so swollen,” you pouted, and his ears damn near perked up at your words.
“Oh? Does mommy need some relief?” he asked teasingly, and you nodded. Kyojuro walked over to you and knelt down, his hands reaching to massage your breasts slowly. He kneaded them and licked at the milk which dribbled out, letting it coat over his tongue. His lips wrapped around one of your tits, and he sucked slowly, moaning as he drank from you. You whined when he moved to the other tit and performed the same actions, relief sinking in the more he suckled the milk out of you.
“Taste so good, pretty girl,” he whispered before getting up again to cook the meat he brought in.
You pouted again, “need you, Kyo, please,” and he laughed.
“You can have me after we eat, does that sound okay?” he compromised, and you sighed but nodded in agreement.
You laid back and rested upon the pile of furs, smiling in contentment as you looked at the two meals that were set out before you.
“I love you, Kyo,” you admitted, unashamed by your feelings as they echoed throughout the cavern.
Kyojuro froze, glancing back at you briefly before continuing to prepare the food, trying his best to hide the blush that traveled across his cheeks to the tips of his ears.
“I love you, too, my little flame.”
Tumblr media
Taglist: @k-a-t-h-r-i-n-a, @wow-im-gay, @peanutpunchy, @love-me-satoru, @crazycatlddy, @dinosaur-crime-scene, @thisbicc, @gojoscumslut, @everyonesfinaldestination, @leehoonii-i, @kyojurismo, @briefrebelfanalmond, @izuoyarmin, @ahashiraswife, @d1gitalbathh, @homo-homini-lupus-est-1701
If your name is crossed out, it means tumblr didn't allow me to tag you! Apologies for the inconvenience.
Tumblr media
2K notes · View notes
dailyadventureprompts · 7 months ago
Note
Hello Dapper. I don’t really expect too much about this, but do you have any ideas for Wargs? They have an interesting relationship with goblins and are weird in that they’re essentially sapient wolf monsters, but I don’t think they’re ever really used that creatively.
Tumblr media
Monsters Reimagined: Wargs, wolf panics, and the Economics of Lupophobia
While the surface level answer is pretty simple (warg is a conversion of varger, an old Norse way to refer to mythological wolves like Fenrir) there's actually a surprising amount of material to drill into here on the topic of sapient wolf monsters, especially for someone like me who has a interest in moral panics and mass hysteria events. Wolves were effectively a boogyman for pre-industrial societies, a deep seated generational fear that we only recognize today through cultural relics like the big bad wolf or boy who cried wolf.
TLDR: If you want to do something interesting with wargs beyond just "wolves that talk" I'd advise playing to their folk / fairytale roots. They're creatures of embodied dread, drawn from the stuff of the feywild to sow fear among those who would travel off the path or too close to the wilderness. This lets you tell interesting stories about how the party/major characters respond to fear: Does fear of being attacked in the dark drive the party to make risky decisions that might endanger their quest? How do the villagers react when the wolves are very literally at the door, demanding just one of their neighbours as a meal in exchange for safety?
I'd also advise getting weirder with a warg's powers, playing into that fear of the unknown by doing unexpected things. The party can fight off a pack of wolves, sure, but what does it mean when the lead wolf rips off the bard's shadow and takes off into the night?
Background: If you want a window into the headspace of wolf-panic, think about the neigh omnipresent fear of sharks created by the Jaws franchise. Children who have never seen the movie, let alone seen a shark in person can become irrationally afraid of getting into deep water because they've absorbed the pervasive cultural phobia, which goes onto shape environmental policy as sharks are overhunted or killed out of spite for their perceived threat.
So it was for wolves, even after they were largely hunted to near extinction by medieval and postmedieval societies, the fear of them was so ingrained into cultural traditions that wolf and werewolf panics were a thing that went hand in hand with witchtrails. France had a country wide one as late as the 1760s and the movie based on it ended up inspiring Bloodborne. Alternatively look at the anti-wolf efforts during the colonization of the Americas, right up to the opposition to reintroducing wolves back to Yellowstone park.
On that note (and because we can't have a Monsters Reimagined without some kind of class analysis), lets talk about how these fears are propagated: On many levels it makes sense for everyday people to be afraid of wolves, they're a hunting species that can absolutely pose a danger to us, and when you're living or travelling outside the protection of a settlement you really are vulnerable to a coordinated pack of carnivores running you down.
However, the primary threat that wolves pose to humans isn't predation, it's property damage, specifically in how they kill livestock. While we can talk about individual farmsteads beset by beasts, in reality the herds that wolves were most likely to prey upon belonged to the landowning classes, powerful people who had a profit incentive in seeing wolves driven off or exterminated. This is where you get bounties on dead wolves, not just paying for the value of the hide but actively rewarding people for going out and killing as many wolves as possible to the point of it becoming a profession. This practice has existed for MILLENIA and is still active today, primarily in places where big agriculture influences governments.
It seems incidental at first but then you realize that it fits the model of just about every other kind of cultural panic: widespread ignorance and fear that just so happens to mobilize the populace in a way that financially benefits a select few. You can see the same thing happening today in england with badgers of all things, which have been identified with the local dairy industry as a threat to their herds. This is not only led them to petition the government to cull the badger population, but to put out anti-badger propaganda, eventually turning it into a culture war issure to the point where conservative mouthpieces like Jeremy Clarkson openly encourages killing and gassing badgers on sight.
Returning to the land of fantasy for now: I think it's worth taking the idea of the warg and mixing it with a few other "black dog" cultural archetypes, which can also include the creatures like the shuck or church grimm. In this instance the warg is a sort of curse made manifest, the fear of a haunted place given literal teeth. People who transgress into these forbidden spaces find themselves pursued by a manifestation that dogs them till they're exhausted and vulnerable, much like a wolf harrying its prey.
The bhargest is also of special interest here, considering how I like to relate goblins back to the feywild. You could easily see bhargests as agents of fey that feed on human fear, leading a pack of goblins or hobs that occupy the desolate lands they've called to haunt. My version of Maglubiyet would also delight in employing such creatures as his emissaries.
Going back to the vargr/ Norse mythology angle, it's interesting that most of the wolves that show up are destined to devour something, whether it be a god or celestial certanty like the moon and sun. It's like the concept of an inevitable chase is so fundimental to what a wolf IS that it became a theme of ragnarok's inevitable certantly. Consider having certan packs of wargs be offspring of some fenrir style god eater, beasts of forboding doom who's mere presence is an omen of ill times.
Alternatively, if you wanted to play on the big bad wolf angle, give wargs the ability to take on flimsy human disguises, all the better to get close to their pray and sow fear among the townsfolk. Historical wolf panics after all are not all that different than serial killer panics, and it'd be a fun twist on a traditional werewolf adventure to have the party on a creature that didn't play by the usual lycanthropic rules.
Artsource
214 notes · View notes
literallys-illiteracy · 7 months ago
Text
Project Moon Reading list
this is mt attempt at a comprehensive list of the references in Project Moon Games.
if you have any that arent listed, feel free to share them.
Lobotomy Corporation:
SCP-049 (Plague Doctor) (Speculated)
Portrait of Dorian Grey (Portrait of Another World; Mirror Of Adjustment) (Speculated)
Bible (One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds, Plague Doctor, Skin Prophecy, Flesh Idol, Burrowing Heaven, Express Train to Hell, Whitenight, Carmen)
Midsummer Nights Dream (Fariy Festival)
[Radio Station] UVB-76//The Buzzer (1.76Mhz)(Speculated)
Necronomicon//General Lovecraft (Skin Prophecy)
Colour Out of Space (Fragment of the Universe) (speculated; Thematically almost certainly lovecraft inspired)
The Little Match Girl (Scorched Girl)
Beauty and the Beast (Beauty and the Beast)
The Red Shoes (Red Shoes)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Scarecrow searching for wisdom; Warm Hearted Woodsman)
Colour Out of Space (Child of the Galaxy) (speculative)
The Snow Queen (The Snow Queen)
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (Rudolta of the Sleigh)
[Opera] Der Freischutz (Der Freischutz)
Snow White and the seven dwarves (Snow White's Apple)
Alarune (Alriune) (speculative)
The Little Prince (Little Prince)
Little Red Riding Hood (Little Red Riding Hooded Mercenary; Big and Will be Bad Wolf)
Three Little Pigs (Big and Will be Bad Wolf)
The Six Swans (Dream of a Black Swan) (Speculative)
[Music] Bethoven's Moonlight Sonata (Il Pianta De La Luna, Silent Orchestra)
[Film] Spirited Away (Mountain of Smiling Bodies) (Design) (Speculative)
Wonderlab specific:
Alice's adventures in wonderland (Red Queen, Hookah Butterfly)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Scaredy Cat and the road home)
The little mermaid (Piscence mermaid)
Midsummer nights dream (Titania)
[Conjecture/Heavy Speculation] Snow Queen or Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (Nobody Is)
Rapunzel (Tangle)
Lady in the Lake (White Lake)
Mythology and Folklore:
[Buddhist] Preta (Clouded Monk)
[Celtic] Faerie (Fairy Festival)
[German] Der Freischutz "The Freeshooter" (Der Freischutz)
[German] Doppelganger "Double Walker" (Nothing There) (thematic)
[German] Nachtkrapp "Night raven" (Big Bird) (Speculative; Personally unconvinced)
[Greek] Stymphalian birds (Punishing Bird) (Speculative)
[Greek] Pygmalion//Galatea (Pygmalion)
[Japanese] Baku (Void Dream)
[Japanese] Jubokko "Tree Child" (Grave of Cherry blossoms)
[Jewish] Kabbalah (Tree of life, Malkuth, Yesod, Netzach, Hod, Tifret, Gevurah, Hesed, Chokma, Binah, Keter, Ayin)
[Jewish] Succubus//Incubus (Porccubus)
[Korean] Urban Legend regarding "Grape Welch Soda" (An Opened Can of Welcheers)
[Norse] Yggdrasil (Parasite Tree) (Speculative: Giant Tree Sap)
[Roman] Justicia // Lady Justice (Judgement Bird)
[Roman] Laetitia (Laetitia)
[Russian]  Zhar-ptitsa "The Firebird" (The Firebird)
--------------
Library of Ruina:
Library of Babel
Do Androids dream of electric sheep? (Thematic, Achievement name)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (The Adult Who Tells Lies, Scaredy cat and the road home)
The Marvelous Land of Oz (Ozma)
Town Musicians of Bremen (The Musicians of Bremen)
The Jaunt (WARP trains)
Nosferatu (Nosferatu)
Macbeth ("And then is Heard no more")
[Film] The hour of the wolf (Tanya)
[tarot] The fool (Jester of Nihil)
[poetry] Sky, Wind, Stars, and Poem (SPB&TP mili song) (thematic)
[poetry] Orlando furioso /& Orlando Innamoratto. (Roland and related cast (Argalia, angelica, etc.))
---------------
Limbus Company
The Divine Comedy (Dante & surrounding cast)
The Wings (Yi Sang & co.)
Faust (Faust)
Don Quixote (Don Quixote)
Hell Screen (Ryoshu)
The Stranger//L'etranger//The Outsider (Meursault)
Dream of the red chamber (Hong Lu)
Wuthering Heights (Heathcliff & Co.)
Moby Dick//The Whale (ishmael & Co.)
Crime and Punishment (Rodion & Sonya)
Demian (Sinclair & Co.)
The Odyssey (Outis, Cyclops)
The Metamorphosis (Gregor)
Limbus Company - Minor References:
Peter pan (Smee)
Sherlock Holmes: (Timekilling Time Stage Names)
Scandal in time (Scandal in Bohemia)
A Case of the Gallows (A Case of Identity) (speculative)
The Adventure of three detectives (The Adventure of Three Students)
The White Scarved League (The Red Headed League)
The Clock Tower of Fear (Valley of Fear)
The Final Problem (The Final Problem)
Midsummer night dream (Midwinter Nightmare EGO gift)
The Time Machine (Hubert from TKT) (Speculative)
The Stars (Alfonso and Stephanette)
The Old Man and The Sea (Indigo elder) (Speculative)
Murder on the Orient Express (Murder on the WARP express)
Vampire the Masqurade (Casseti) (Speculative)
The Masque of the Red Death (Casseti) (Speculative)
The one who rules (Stage name "the one who lords") (speculative)
Real People:
League of nine:
Kim Kirim (김기림) (Rim)
Yi Hyoseok (이효석) (Aseah)
Lee Jong-myeong (이종명) (Yurang)
Kim Yu-yeong (김유영) (???/ Unnamed Member)
Chi-Jin Yoo (유치진). Pen name: Dongrang (동랑) (Dongrang)
Cho Yong-man (조용만) (Aneung)
Lee Tae-jun (이태준) (Sang-heo)
Jeong Ji-yong (정지용) (Young-ji)
Lee Mu-young (이무영) (Gap-ryong)
Park Taewon (박태원) (Gubo)
Kim Hae-Gyeong (김해경). Pen name Yi Sang (이상) (Yi Sang)
Park Pal-yang (박팔양) (???/ Unnamed member)
Gim Yujeong (김유정) (Dongbaek)
Kim Hwan-tae (김환태) (Nul-in)
other(s):
Agatha Christi (Grade 1 Fixer Agatha)
Kim Sakkat (Bamboo Hatted Kim)
Alphonse Daudet (Alfonso)
Vergil (Vergillius)
EGO and Abnormalities:
Midsummers Night Dream (Midwinter Nightmare) (EGO gift)
Carmilla (400 roses Anormality) (Carmilla EGO gift)
Metropolis (Resident of Metropolaris) (Speculative)
Snow White and the seven dwarves (Ebony Queen's Apple)
Pride and Predgudice (Spider of Marrige)
Poem of a dying butterfly (no.10 Crows Eye View) (A Dying Butterfly
Rudolph the red nosed Reindeer (Sandolph)
[Religion, Abrahamic religions] (Skin Prophet) (Heavenly Executioners throne) (Sign of Roses) (Heavenly Commanders Throne) (Broken Wings) (ichthys (Headless ichthys))
[Religion, Buddhist] (Ya Śūnyatā Tad Rūpam EGO) (My Form Empties)
[Folklore, Celtic] Faeries (Fairy Long-Legs, Fairy Gentleman, Faelantern)
[Folklore, German] Der Freishutze (Der Freishutze) (Der Fluchshutze)
[Folklore, Korean] The Green Frog (Blubbering Toad)
[Folklore, Korean] Dol hareubang (Wishing Cairn) (Pagoda Veneration)
177 notes · View notes
skamenglishsubs · 11 months ago
Text
Subtext and Culture, Young Royals, Season 3, Episode 3
Episode 3 picks up the day after the camping trip, and Wilhelm calls his mom to check on her. She dumps a massive guilt trip on him, maybe unintentionally, and Wilhelm is feeling a little bit down.
Tumblr media
Culture: These are Swedish studentmössor. They originated in the 1800's among Nordic university students and they wore them as a common marker. Later, they were adopted as graduation caps for high school students, signifying that they were now allowed to begin studying at a university.
Culture: Valborg, April 30th, is a traditional Swedish holiday where you celebrate the coming of spring with bonfires. It is also the start of graduation season for high school students, and graduates are allowed to start wearing their caps.
Cinematography: This season they started writing most on-screen social media commentary in English, despite those users being pretty obviously Swedish. I suspect it's because it saves them having to subtitle all of them, it makes it a bit easier for all the viewers to follow along.
Subtext: No, keeping up appearances is more important than mental health for the royal family, which is why this is new behaviour that Wilhelm has never seen before.
Subtext: As a reminder of the increased interest, here's a paparazzi intruding on school grounds. Also, where the hell is Malin? Isn't it her job to shoo away photographers?
Culture: Vintern Rasat is a classic Swedish song celebrating spring that's often performed by student singers at Valborg.
Tumblr media
Subtext: Boris cleverly offers August individual therapy, something he sorely needs.
Subtext: It's of course a bit ironic that pretty much the entire fandom hates August and has decided that he can't be forgiven or redeemed. Yes, you, dear reader. But Boris lays out a way for August to start his redemption arc. Will it work? Tune in for next week's episode!
Culture: These usernames reek of white supremacy. Norse mythology references are very popular, and 88 means H*il H*tler, so that's the kind of people we're dealing with. The show is also foreshadowing what's gonna happen at the end of the episode.
Blink and you miss it: Linda made Pabellón, a Venezuelan dish. In season 1 we didn't know where Linda was from, but in season 2 she was canonically made as being from Venezuela, just like Omar is in real life.
Subtext: I think August actually cares, Kristina is family to him too, but Wilhelm refuses to treat him as family, so he lies about how she's doing. Not very convincingly, though.
Cinematography: This is an absolutely hilarious shot with a bunch of students anxiously peering out through the windows as the dreaded enemy arrives: Skolinspektionen! Dun-dun-dun!
Tumblr media
Blink and you miss it: There's a rainbow flag on the board to the left.
Subtext: Vanessa totally knew she interrupted a makeout session between our boys. Oh, and there's a lot of purple in these two scenes, colour theory exploded with joy.
Subtext: Simon will be proven wrong, someone will be honest.
Subtext: It's also ironic that Simon joins the rest of the Forest Ridge boys pretending to have a great meal together that is totally not stiff and awkward at all, absolutely not.
Lost in translation: Simon Walter says that May 1st is a "röd dag" - a red day, which is how Sundays and public holidays are usually marked in a Swedish calendar. "Bank holiday" is the term used in the UK for public holidays. There are 13 public holidays in Sweden each year.
Culture: Första Maj is the name of the International Workers' Day in Sweden, because it always occurs on May 1st. In defence of Henry and Walter's shared braincell, most Swedes actually don't participate, but it's a bit weird to not even know what it is.
Tumblr media
Subtext: This entire sequence shows how Felice's dad tried to stick up for himself, but quickly learned to keep his head down instead and conform and roll with it. And it wasn't just the other students who were racists, the staff was in on it too. This goes for all the shit the students are doing, the partying, the booze, the alcohol, the bullying: The staff is in on it. They know. They're complicit.
And despite all of this, Poppe's immediate answer when asked how his time at Hillerska was, is that it was the best time of his life. This is why schools like this stay the way they are, why they never change, because they're very good and very bad at the same time. Trauma-bonding works, the kids will all get friends for life, they'll forget the shit and remember the good times. They'll become like him.
But when Felice learns what the school did to her dad, she decides to help shut it down, to stop the cycle of abuse. The reason she goes in alone is because she now knows she can't trust her dad, he's gonna defend the school, and she also doesn't want him to know that she snitched.
Tumblr media
Subtext: In official surveys, students from schools like this generally rate them very highly. Student satisfaction is very high. Maybe they're lying, maybe they're delusional, but they sure care more about their schools than public school students.
Blink and you miss it: REAL SUBTLE THERE, SHOW.
Subtext: Keeping with the school theme, this is how students defend the shit that goes on. Outsiders are kept in the dark, you don't tell them anything, because they "wouldn't understand", they're missing the "full context", etc. Oh, I don't know shit about fashion, but Fredrika's jacket smells very expensive.
Blink and you miss it: While Wilhelm pinned a polaroid of himself and Simon prominently on his wall, August keeps a similar polaroid of himself and Sara hidden.
Tumblr media
Subtext: Micke's redemption arc is in full swing, so why not play a song that reinforces the idea that people can change?
Subtext: August's redemption arc is in full swing, so let's cut to him nervously waiting outside Micke's place for Sara to come home, while the same song is playing. Is he gonna be a villain forever?
Blink and you miss it: Micke introduces himself as Micke af Eriksson when August introduces himself as August Horn af Årnäs. The English subtitles for some weird reason went with "Micke Eriksson of Bjärstad", but that's actually not what he says.
Subtext: Sara is pretty realistic about her expectations of her dad because she's seen this before, but this also applies to her expectations of August, because she knows that he can also slide back into his normal shitty self. Also, she's wearing a purple sweater.
Tumblr media
Subtext: In case you forgot, August's dad also struggled with addiction, and died from it, so he and Sara actually has that in common. Maybe there's hope for this redemption arc thing?
Cinematography: I don't fucking know why they included this baking scene. It serves no purpose, and I suspect quite a few people in the production have a serious hand fetish, because what is this? What is this? Also, why are Simon and Wilhelm joining what appears to be a Manor House thing with the rest of the girls? How? Why? This makes no sense! It's very cute, though!
Subtext: Oh ok, we got a social media pic that Sara could see and feel bad for her lost friendships. But man, those Hillerska aprons! On point!
Subtext: This is unfortunately a very common thing for people on any kind of psychoactive medication. How can you tell if you need medication if you feel good right now? Is it lasting or temporary? Can you trust your own brain? Either way, fantastic conversation between Micke and Sara, which starts her on her journey to reconcile with Felice at least.
🎵 I can change, I'm not the same, not forever. 🎵
Tumblr media
Culture: The official hat-on-putting ceremony where all the third-year students put on their hats, set to another traditional Swedish spring celebration song: Vårvindar Friska.
Culture: It's Valborg, so Hillerska has their own little bonfire. We saw some students with torches pretending to light it, but it's actually floating in the middle of the fountain so, uh, how did they do that? Normally, your local bonfire or Majbrasa is just a huge heap of wood that you set on fire.
Cinematography: Man, this is a pretty show. Look at that shot. The fire, the sunset, the pool reflection. The end of April is over a month after the spring equinox, so the days are getting longer, and the sun now sets at about half past nine in the evenings.
Subtext: Ok, let's do one more on-the-nose lyrics thing for when August sees Sara back at school. Yes, yes, he needs her.
Tumblr media
Culture: I had to post about it immediately after watching the episode, because setting a sex scene to Uti Vår Hage is hilarious. Everyone in Sweden knows it, most people have sung it at school, it's a cute little song about enjoying your garden, flowers, and giving your loved one a wreath of flowers. I can now never hear this song without thinking about this scene. Thanks a lot, show.
Blink and you miss it: Simon fucks Wilhelm. Yay! Versatile supremacy!
Subtext: Sara is still so suspicious of her dad's behaviour, she can't make herself trust that his current good period will last.
Subtext: Even though this dialogue is about how Simon and Sara are so different, it of course also applies to how Wilhelm and Erik were different, because Wilhelm struggles with not being able to handle his duty the same way Erik could.
Tumblr media
Culture: Alright, it's time for the actual local Första Maj event in Bjärstad. The town is probably a bit small to have a proper demonstration parade, but there's people with banners and socialist slogans, and a bunch of local organisations have joined in, including Bjärstad BK, the football club Rosh plays in.
Culture: Meanwhile, the absolutely not socialist rich kids at Hillerska are nursing their hangovers and enjoying the day off, and they're doing some yoga and playing some padel instead. As you do.
Subtext: Drugs. He looks like he's selling drugs.
Culture: These apparently confused a bunch of viewers, but they're just raffle tickets. It's one hundred numbered, rolled up, paper tickets stuck on a metal ring. When you buy a ticket you just tear it off at the perforation, and when all tickets are sold you can just break the seal on the ring and pour all the stubs in a bag or whatever so you can draw winners.
Blink and you miss it: Cute kiddo has a pride pin on his jacket.
Lost in translation: The show waited a bit with showing what it says on the banner behind them in the photo, but if you can read Swedish you immediately saw that it says KROSSA ÖVERKLASSEN - CRUSH THE UPPER CLASSES. Oh no, Simon, what have you done?
Tumblr media
Blink and you miss it: Like a pack of rabid wolves, the social-media starved Gen Z kids rush to their phones for an hour of glorious feeding on Instagram and TikTok.
Blink and you miss it: I love Vincent so much, he's terrible, but he's just so much fun! The little fist he makes as he says "kampen" just seals it.
Subtext: The show still hasn't revealed the banner text to the non-Swedish audience, but Wilhelm immediately sees it and knows how bad it is and why Farima tried calling him seven times. Also, Vincent is just on a roll here.
Cinematography: Man, this is a pretty show. Look at that shot. Look at how they perfectly aligned the hole in the window with Simon, the police car, and the entrance to their house, as he discovers that someone decided to vandalize it.
243 notes · View notes
cartoonist-in-theory · 1 year ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media
You’re walking down a long quiet road. It’s winter, snow covers the ground, the sky fades gray. All around you are trees that have long since dropped their leaves, cold and dead, waiting for spring. You stop beneath one, eye caught by a striking sight. Amid the bare branches you see a round bundle of stunning green leaves. Hanging down above you are dozens of beautiful little pearly white berries. The fruit tempts you, but you don’t dare touch. Instead you simply admire them. Life among the dead of winter. Mistletoe.
@slocotion Hi, here is my design for slocotion's patreon dyo doll contest. Her name is Haustoria of the Pale. I was very excited to put this together once it struck me. I thought of all my favorite fruits I could have used but then inspiration hit me as I was considering less common fruits and fungi. Mistletoe is used medicinally by some but the entire plant, including its cute white berries, is toxic. Since this is a longer post, I’ll include more notes on my design under a cut but to point out the most important thing, I’ve combined the nature of the toxic berries with some historical+mythological inspiration that I think echoes it nicely.
In Norse mythology, a well known story is that of the death of Baldr. Baldr was the most loved god of the Aesir, so when a vision of his death reached his parents Odin and Frigga, they did all they could to protect him. Frigga sent her servants all over the world to make every creature and thing vow to never harm a hair on Baldr’s head. All but mistletoe promised, too insignificant or too young to make the vow. After it was done, Bladr seemed invincible. Since nothing was willing to hurt him, the gods would sometimes gather around and throw things at him, watching everything bounce off without injuring him. Loki, jealous of the love and affection that was always paid to Baldr, came up with a plan to get rid of him. He had an arrow made of mistletoe and brought it to Baldr’s blind brother Hodr. He gave it to him to throw at Baldr as all the gods pelted him with objects and weapons. Hodr threw the arrow and, since mistletoe had never promised not to harm him, it pierced his chest, killing him instantly... And so Baldr was delivered to the depths of the land of the dead, looked over by Hel.
specific design notes under the cut thank you for looking!
Mistletoe is a very interesting plant to me. It’s not a tree or vine or bush, but instead its an evergreen parasite. The sticky seeds attach themselves to the branches and grow into it with a haustorium, which is a structure that lets them sap nutrients from the host plant. Haustoria’s name is a reference to this structure. “of the Pale” is a reference to not only the color of the berries but the pale gray and white landscape of winter.
Mistletoe berries are heavily toxic but also exist in winter, when other plants may be barren and “dead.” Because of that and their parasitic nature I see them as a sweet little balance of life and death. In addition to that, I use the split colors of the face/mask of Haustoria to reference the goddess of the land of the dead, Hel, who is described as having a body that is half black as death, split down the middle.
The structure of the outfit is inspired by Scandinavian and specifically Norwegian folk dresses, since I’m borrowing old Norse history for more inspiration, it seemed fitting. I also felt the style would be good to accompany the botanical and berry designs attractively.
The twin peaked hood is to further split the design down the middle, with little charms to show life and death.
I included white beads all over the outfit to represent the mistletoe berries themselves so they could stand out.
The dark side of her face is adorned with thorns and has three mournful black tears leaking down from her eye, as well as a hollow half of the center heart.
The light side is blushed and lively with shiny eyes, leaves shaped like the mistletoe leaves, red petals like the mistletoe blooms, three white dots to be the mistletoe fruit, and the center heart is full.
Her cape is white on the inside to represent the white of the berries and also the white of snow.
To cap it off, I do believe mistletoe is fitting for a plague doctor as they are still used medicinally to this day. :)
Thank you for reading everything and looking at my design! I’m very proud of her and I hope she doesn’t stretch the theme. And definitely more than anything else I hope you enjoy looking at her!
446 notes · View notes
filurig · 9 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
its been a while but new pareidolia creature!! ive been thinking of making these for a while. in case u don't know what an älgfrode is (a bit more of a niche nordic mythology creature), an älgfrode (or elgfróði in icelandic) was mentioned in hrólfs saga kraka, one of the old norse hero sagas. while the context for that was one specific character i just wanted to make moose people..
more info abt my creatures below the cut...
they wear more clothes than in the ref this is just to show their anatomy LOL. clothing is actually very important to them and textiles will almost always have a role in any tradition/significant social event. their textilework is very renowed and is one of the trades that cause some other vättar to want to trade with them as mentioned in the ref!
one potential reason for their high level of defensiveness is that their species suffers from a higher than average infant mortality rate - with time, this mortality rate has lowered from what it used to be, but when the species first appeared, it wasn't unusual for a mother to have to give birth to many calves before one even made it to adulthood. this rooted a deep set vigilance in them - even now that the rates have stabilised a bit. the high mortality rate was probably due to the affected "shift" gene sometimes activating improperly which could result in stillborns. with time and selective pressure new gene mutations would arise in the species that "counteracted" the instability of the first initial one and made the infant mortality decrease. it is, however, still a little higher than usual for similar species, and so it is traditionally encouraged to have many children.
gender roles for älgfroder are interesting - there is a strong sense of "equal strength", or "laorhgr" in älgfrode, which is important. while males are usually slightly larger than females, there is emphasis on the importance on a pair being able to stand their ground both physically and emotionally to the other and a relationship can only go ahead if a spar between two älgfroder is fair. this extends to an interesting dynamic that involves polyamory. älgfroder can be both monogamous and polyamorous, however polyamorous relationships often only arise when there is a big physical differential between two parties. the belief is that if one party is stronger than the other, that strength can be equalised if the other party is accompanied a second partner of similar strength - usually this happens between one strong male and two females on the smaller end. that way the resulting relationship has achieved "laorhgr". this ofc varies as everything does but ya. basically if you are a big strong älgfrode dating a small petite älgfrode it's seen as shameful and barbaric. there is also a bias to heterosexual relationships as it is seen as an important social duty to at least successfully raise one calf.
dhukohr are the more commonly occuring intersex condition in älgfrodar, but there is an equivalent to it for "males" where they fail to grow antlers and have very small dewlaps due to low testosterone levels - those are usually referred to as kvikohr. they are often recognised as their own gender respectively however there are many that identify as men/women too. some of these dhukohr/kvikohr are actually moreso trans than intersex - simply having utilized faerie dust in order to transition. this can be a bit of an ordeal though because usually this requires being administered it by a tomte which, depending on the settlment, can be a tense negotiation, although individuals usually have a less hard time with that.
älgfrodar and bäckahästar can hybridise and do sometimes produce fertile offspring! i would have to think more about this though erm. but i think it does and can happen. there is a sense of rare camraderie between the two species in many cases but especially so between älgfrodar and bäckahäst communities that choose to spend more time as their faun shift than their base shift - in fact a few of these bäckahästar choose to integrate into certain älgfrode settlements, but this is more of a rare occurance. most bäckahästar that possess "unishift" clothing have actually had them made by älgfrodar, or at least had the fabric sourced from them
206 notes · View notes
nilo05 · 2 months ago
Text
friendly reminder to go check out Destripando la historia if you haven't >:)
Is a collection of animated parody songs videos explaining what at first were the original stories of disney tales but now are more focussed on mythology!
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Their designs are peak the songs 10/10 animation too amazing Appart from the greek gods they also did some with norse and egypt myths and others
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
These videos also have a LOT of references in them about games, animes and stuff lol
If you dont know spanish you can find the videos subtitulated in english if you look it up ;) thats all i just love these videos i needed to share them
54 notes · View notes
samwisethewitch · 6 months ago
Text
Book Review: Freya: Meeting the Norse Goddess of Magic by Morgan Daimler
Tumblr media
I just finished a reread of this book and realized I've never talked about it on this blog, even though it ties into a lot of my content.
I've talked about my relationship with Freyja here before. She is the deity I have worked with most consistently in my personal practice, and she's been a strong presence in my life since I was a child. Even before I was interested in witchcraft or paganism, I was drawn to stories and images of Freyja.
Unfortunately, quality books about Freyja are hard to find in English. A lot of the wonderful work being done by Scandinavian scholars and heathens is only available in their native languages. A lot of English-language resources are either very academic and prohibitively expensive, or they are books about goddess worship more generally that only mention Freyja on a few pages. Freyja, Lady, Vanadis: An Introduction to the Goddess by Patricia M. Lafayllve is a pretty good beginner's resource, but it's only available in paperback, which can be a barrier for some readers.
All of this is to say, I was very excited when Morgan Daimler put out this book. I've talked about how much I love Daimler's work before on this blog -- I think they do really great research AND do a really good job of making all that information accessible for a beginner. I have several of Daimler's books on Norse and Irish deities, and all of them are resources I reference often in my practice.
This book follows a similar formula to Daimler's other books on deities, like Odin or the Morrigan. Daimler presents Freyja's mythology, folklore, associations, and relationships. There is also an entire chapter dedicated to Freyja's connection to seiðr, which explains what seiðr is and why it is important in a very straightforward way. There is also an entire chapter dedicated to connecting with Freyja as a modern worshiper.
I like that Daimler includes a section at the end of each chapter about their own experiences with Freyja. I also like that they talk about the importance of actually experiencing the gods and trusting our experiences. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that anything that doesn't match up with primary sources is wrong, and I like that Daimler takes time to shoot down that idea.
I also really like that Daimler does not tell you how to interpret the lore. Daimler presents a story, explains the different ways it could be interpreted, and leaves readers to make their own conclusions. This is a style of teaching I try to use in my own work, and I love seeing it done well here.
If you know next to nothing about Freyja, I think this book is an excellent place to start. Everything you need to make that initial connection is here.
Even as someone who has worked with Freyja for years and done lots of my own research, I found a few things I didn't know here. This book also gave me a new perspective on certain aspects of Freyja's lore. This is why it's always great to compare notes with other people.
If you're interested in connecting with Freyja or just learning more about her, I highly, highly recommend this book!
137 notes · View notes
aroaceleovaldez · 6 months ago
Note
i honestly wish rr would just write for something that has nothing to do with pjo not the same characters not the universe just go and write something new bc i really liked daughter of the deep and i think he's wrung everything out of the pjoverse yk? he's a good writer but he needs to go do something different
I agree - the problem with Rick's writing is he's heavily reliant on his writing being derivative. He struggles to write original stuff. PJO, HoO, ToA, etc are all derivative from Greco-Roman mythology/history. MCGA is Norse mythology/history, TKC is Egyptian mythology/history. Daughter of the Deep is Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea. And he's not terrible at it! The problem is that can't go on forever. He runs out of material to work from over time and suddenly the quality of the franchise tanks dramatically. Especially as he loses overarching connecting threads to tie the plots together, so it just becomes this soup of throwing references at the wall with no cohesion to see what sticks. And it's bad!
We started seeing it in HoO, also in part due to Rick trying to combine too many disparate inspirations to the main plot to begin with and didn't know how to make them mesh well (Seven Against Thebes, Gigantomachy, Argonauts, Odyssey). TKC and MCGA were okay because they're only three book series, so that's plenty of mythology to draw from with stuff left over, and the majority of their companion novel stuff is ghostwritten anyways. The shorter series span means less filler required so less mythology is used up and there ya go. In the longer series, Rick has to spend those five books filling in the gaps of that overarching plot and he runs out of material fast - that's why by the end of HoO it was just turning into blatant Marvel references. Now that we're getting into a fourth installment in the main series collection, even though it's only a three-book series, Rick has basically written himself into a corner because he doesn't write anything else. He ran out of places to go with the franchise like two series ago! So now he's just throwing literally anything he can think of at things (literally just plucking random mythological figures and pop culture references or tropes), or if he can't think of anything, apparently just blatantly lifting stuff from the community.
At this point the only possible Greco-Roman series I think he'd be able to do without it being total garbage would be a 3-book Roman series set during SoM-TLO/The Second Titan War. I don't think he should do that and I don't want him to, but based on everything that's probably just what would have the best likelihood of success. It just seems like the only place he can go. Anything else he'd have to do something actually original, and he's shown time and time again that he's not interested in doing that and isn't very good at it anymore.
102 notes · View notes
theyhavetakenovermylife · 11 months ago
Text
What Would They Name Their Children? (Headcanons)
2012!Turtles
Tumblr media
A/N: Fun fact, my great grandmother was named after Olga of Kyiv. And another fun fact, my grandparents met each other at Niels Bohr institut in Copenhagen.
Tumblr media
Warnings: None💚
Tumblr media
Leonardo:
Tumblr media
Leo would want to honor his Japanese heritage, in the memory of his father. With a great knowledge of not just Japanese culture and language, but mythology and history, Leo would have more than just a few name ideas for his future children. His future partner may very well have to keep him in check, helping him sort through the all.
For Boys:
Kenji, meaning either “strong and vigorous” or “intelligent second son” in Japanese.
Asahi, meaning “morning sun”, “rising sun” or “sunrise” in Japanese.
Kangiten, the Japanese god of bliss.
For Girls:
Haru, meaning “springtime” in Japanese.
Sanyu, meaning “happiness” in Japanese.
Amaterasu, the name of the Shinto goddess of the sun.
Raphael:
Tumblr media
Raph likes strong names. Names that make people think of strong warriors and brave leaders. For that to happen, it needs to be names that most people would know, and be able to recognize with at least a little ease. It won’t work if Raph chose a name no one had heard of before.
For Boys:
Thor, after the Norse god of thunder.
Zeus, after the Greek god of lightning and king of the gods.
Anu, also known as the Sky Father and the King of Gods in ancient Mesopotamia.
For Girls:
Boudicca, after the queen of the Iceni tribe, who led the rebellion against the Roman forces that invaded Britain.
Olga, after Olga of Kyiv, who avenged the murder of her husband at the hands of the Drevlians, while protecting her son.
Lagertha, after the Norse shieldmaiden from Norway.
Donatello:
Tumblr media
It would be no surprise to anyone, that Donnie would name his children after some of the great minds that he found himself looking up to. Just like Leo, Donnie would have so many names lined up and ready to go, that his future partner would have to help him sort them all through, before setting on the ones that they would find fitting.
For Boys:
Charles, after Charles Darwin.
Deodatta, after Deodatta V. Shenai-Khatkhate.
Niels, after Niels Bohr.
For Girls:
Rosalind, after Rosalind Franklin.
Barbara, after Barbara McClintock.
Emilie, after Emilie du Chatelet.
Michelangelo:
Tumblr media
The names Mikey has lined up for his future children, changes quite a bit in reasoning. Some of them mean something to him, in the sense that he finds the meaning of the name very important. Others are important to him, due to pop culture or, well, food. A simple man with simple thoughts I guess.
For Boys:
Keanu, because of Keanu Reeves of course. Duh.
Ace, from Latin, meaning “one”, “someone who excels” or someone of a high rank.
Bodhi, a Sanskrit name meaning “enlightenment” or “awakening”.
For Girls:
Cherry, which both could be referring to a meaning of “dear one”, but also the fruit.
Clementine, meaning everything from “merciful”, “gentle” and “mild” to the small citrus fruit.
Éowyn, because of Lord Of The Rings, of course.
182 notes · View notes
maverick-werewolf · 5 months ago
Text
Mythology Fact #1 - Sobek, Egyptian Crocodile God
NEW SERIES! Mythology Facts will explore many elements of world mythologies, but with a particular focus on Greek, Egyptian, and Norse, especially at the start.
Easily the winner of the first poll about this new series as held on my Patreon is Sobek, the ancient Egyptian crocodile-headed god!
Tumblr media
Head of a limestone statue of Sobek, as previously on display at the Met as part of a special collection; Met info on the statue head here
In ancient Egypt, like many ancient cultures, the most fearsome of beasts were highly regarded for their awe-inspiring endurance, power, and ferocity - a concept often little-understood today, as animals are now often seen as obstacles to be conquered or put out of the way, hence why it can occasionally be difficult to detail to the modern mind the relationship between men and wolves throughout history (but I'm not on that right now, so I'll stop). The people of ancient Egypt held great reverence for many animals, not least among them being the obviously very dangerous crocodile.
An integral part of life in ancient Egypt was the rise and fall of the Nile. Sobek was a centerpiece of the Nile life - crocodiles were abundant, a testament to their fertility and virility, and they were fearsome, strong, and enduring. Sobek's nature is intensely complex and his "domains," as we so often think of deities as having, were extensive, including but not limited to fertility, virility, illness, health, strength, pharonic power, military might, protection (especially protection from, essentially, bad luck), and the dangers and wonders of the Nile. By nature, he was considered animalistic, unpredictable, strong, protective but dangerous, and highly sexual, aspects frequently associated with the most powerful predators in a given region (notice all those things are also associated with wolves). Sobek was depicted variably as a crocodile and a crocodile-headed man, and holy crocodiles were kept in his name.
Given his association with the Nile and so many other things, Sobek was and mostly remained a very important figure, especially with his later fusion with/association with both Horus and Ra, two extremely important deities...
This is quite the lengthy post! More under the cut.
Among many other things, Sobek was said to have power of the fertility of the Nile's soil, as well as its waters, and thus also had great power over disease, as the Nile could also cause illnesses. Like so many ancient Egyptian deities, Sobek also had an association with the dead, being called upon to bring them sight and return their senses in the afterlife, as well as to assist in protecting them (along with many other deities, including but certainly not limited to Isis, Nephthys, and Anubis).
Sobek's strong association with fertility is found in his many epithets and even the name we use for him most - "Sobek" is thought to perhaps even come from a causative of "to impregnate" (though some scholars contend it instead means "to unite," especially in relation to the pieces of Osiris). Perhaps the first instance we have of Sobek in a text comes from the Pyramid Texts, in which a spell refers to Unis (the pharaoh) as a living incarnation of Sobek - the pharaohs were very often living incarnations of assorted deities at various times - and says that Unis "will copulate" very specifically and that he is the lord of something that would probably get this post censored, "who takes women from their husbands to the place Unis likes according to his heart's fancy."
Tumblr media
Mummified crocodiles found in the Temple of Kom Ombo; we have found mummified crocodiles of all ages, even including fertilized eggs
Now let's talk about a thing called the petsuchos. Mummified crocodiles served as images of Sobek in various forms, one of which being Petsuchos, meaning "son of Sobek." It is thought one crocodile in particular took on the aspect of the petsuchos and was kept in Shedet, replaced by a new petsuchos whenever the previous died. Following the death of a holy crocodile, a great ritual took place to mummify the creature and then put it on display, as it remained ever sacred. Living crocodiles were sometimes kept in other temples and holy places, even including outdoor pools. They were adorned with gems and fed delicacies; some were even considered attractions, as feeding the holy crocodile brought good luck, given Sobek's apotropaic nature. There was even a divine crocodile breeding center established by Amenhotep III (who pushed the Sobek cult quite energetically).
Tumblr media
There are many depictions of Sobek found throughout what we have of ancient Egypt, including many of its time periods. He is perhaps one of the oldest gods of ancient Egypt, having appeared as early as during the reign of King Narmer in the first dynasty. His importance during the Old Kingdom, as well, can be found in the Pyramid Texts. The entire region of Fayum was a cult center of Sobek, so great was his importance, the seat of which was - of course - the capital, Crocodilopolis or Shedet.
Also very worthy of note is Sobek-Ra, a combination of the gods Sobek and Ra, that appeared in very late-age Egypt in the New Kingdom (1150-1069 BC), and even continued into the Ptolemaic Period (around 332 BC to 390 AD). Sobek-Ra (or Sobek-Re if you want to go that way) may have first appeared during the reign of the first king of the Middle Kingdom, Montuhotep II, as addressed in the Coffin Texts used during the Middle Kingdom (in which Sobek is addressed as "he who rises in the east and sets in the west"). As a combination, depictions thereof often had the head of a falcon but the body of a crocodile, often wearing the solar disc and uraeus (cobra).
He combined aspects of both deities, which is also perhaps thanks to Sobek's association also with Horus. When Horus took on the aspect of a crocodile during his retrieval of Osiris's bodyparts, Sobek became associated with him, even considered an aspect of Horus. Likewise, however, Sobek also was said to have assisted Isis during Horus's birth. Such deity fusions, aspects, and deities becoming an aspect and/or appearing in various myths in nebulous forms were not uncommon in ancient Egypt, and Sobek was also combined with Horus at assorted other points. All of this continues to point to the association between Sobek and kings (pharaohs), especially when you reach the point of learning about Sobek of Shedet-Ra-Horus, but I won't go into all that here due to time constraints.
So, obviously, there's so much more to say that it's, frankly, crazy and almost overwhelming. The study of ancient Egypt is a complex undertaking, hence why we have an entire field called Egyptology. So, consider this very much a simplified overview. Hope you enjoyed the post!
And stay tuned for news and updates on a major [werewolf/fantasy/adventure/horror/epic] book release later this year! Likewise, if you enjoy mythology in general and Egyptian myth, be sure to check out my other works of fiction, including this one here--also available on Amazon.com and many other retailers. Sequel coming next year.
If you like my blog, be sure to follow me here and elsewhere for much more folklore and fiction, including books, especially on werewolves! You can also sign up for my free newsletter for monthly werewolf/vampire/folklore facts, a free story, book previews, and my other sundry projects and works.
Free Newsletter - maverickwerewolf.com (personal site + book shop)  — Patreon — Wulfgard — Werewolf Fact Masterlist — Folklore Fact Masterlist — Mythology Fact Masterlist — X — Vampire Fact Masterlist — Amazon Author page
71 notes · View notes
setzeri · 1 year ago
Note
Hello! Wanted to say I absolutely love your characters, be it the Lotta Girls but also your depictions of the norse gods. Wanted to try my hand in some norse gods and wanted to ask if you ever did any reference of them. (totally not wanting to draw one of them)
Thanks! Glad to hear that you like them. While I don't have any clear reference sheets of the characters, as their designs differ a bit from each drawing, browsing my Norse Mythology-tag gives some results. But since you asked I felt like drawing Jord and Angrboda again, two of my favorites because while they are similar in a way, in design they are quite the opposites.
Tumblr media
195 notes · View notes
lightandfellowship · 4 months ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Here's my take on a Halloween Town Vidar. He's a gargoyle with a wolf skull mask.
Design notes under the read more:
I previously mentioned in my Halloween Town Vor post that when Nomura designed Sora, Donald, and Goofy's Halloween Town designs, he took inspiration from two different creatures for each of them. Sora is inspired by vampires and imps, Goofy is Frankenstein's monster mixed with a werewolf, and Donald is a mummy and invisible man. I once again took a similar approach here, though instead of using an even mix of motifs like I did with Vor's fairy + sphinx design, I went down more of a Sora route. IMO, if you look at Sora's Halloween Town design, it mostly reads as vampire despite lots of overlap between vampire and imp design elements, with the exclusively impish details really only being his imp/pumpkin mask and maybe his clawed gloves. For Vidar, he is mostly gargoyle with the wolf motif coming primarily from his wolf skull mask, but there's some overlap of creature motifs with the claws and fangs.
Now, why did I choose to make Vidar a gargoyle? Here are my reasons:
Made of stone. References how Vidar tries to harden his heart to the harm he's potentially causing the worlds. The cracks in the stone represent his slowly crumbling will and the eventual abandonment of his plans. As well, I think him being a living statue well represents his somewhat stoic demeanor and the mythological Vidar's title as the "silent god".
Gargoyles serve as guardians of the buildings they adorn. Throughout the game Vidar was trying his best to protect people and prevent anyone else from dying, especially Baldr.
Water spout gargoyles collect rain water and divert it from the walls and rooftops of buildings to prevent damage to those buildings. Water is sometimes symbolic of darkness in the KH series (for example, the KH1 opening where Riku offers his hand to Sora and gets enveloped by the darkness the waves). So, in my mind, this function of gargoyles represents Vidar's attempts to preserve Baldr by removing the darkness from Baldr's heart.
Gargoyles are commonly found on cathedrals and churches, and I think that religious aspect of them fits Scala society and Vidar's commitment to Light fairly well.
If Vidar were to visit Christmas Town via Halloween Town, I imagine his gargoyle form would change into a sort of "guardian angel" form, but keeping some of the more demonic elements such as the horns for a more Lucifer-esque angel. Sort of like how Christmas Town Sora still keeps many of his Halloween Town elements despite donning a Santa outfit.
Reason why I chose the wolf skull mask:
Probably the most well-known event in the Norse god Vidar's mythology is his battle with the great wolf Fenrir, who he kills by ripping its jaws apart. Thus Vidar wears the top jaw of a wolf skull as a mask, as a sort of "trophy" and reference to this mythology. Of course the "real" Fenrir would be much larger than a normal wolf, but the mask is just a representation.
Now, I'll explain all of my individual design choices from top to bottom:
Tumblr media
Gargoyle Horns: There's many styles of gargoyle horns, but I decided to give him more realistic-looking animal horns to add more detail.
Gargoyle Ears: I quite like this type of gargoyle ear with the multiple rounded segments even though I couldn't find many examples of it, and I think it nicely differentiates the ears from elf/demon ears. Vaguely Rochelle Goyle from Monster High inspired, as well.
Wolf Skull Mask: Already explained, but I tried to go semi-realistic here, once again to add more detail and make it more clear what kind of animal skull this is. If this design were to actually appear in a Kingdom Hearts game, I could potentially see this mask being stylized in a more cartoony way (especially if put into the chibi mobile game style.)
Gargoyle Wings (Feathered): I originally gave Vidar the more typical style of gargoyle wing which looks like a bat wing, but I felt that style of wing in conjunction with the horns, claws, and elongated skull mask made him look too much like a dragon, which wasn't what I was going for at all. So I changed it to the other common stye of gargoyle wing, a bird-like wing. I think this also better reflects his role in the game as someone sided with Light.
Stone Skin and Hair: As mentioned, he's made of stone and covered in cracks and nicks. He's pretty much all stone (except his eyes? I guess?)
Tumblr media
Shoulder Pads? (Don't know what else to call them): I made them more pointy and curled up at the edges for that Nightmare Before Christmas look.
Shoulder Pad Design: I turned the square design on Vidar's shoulder pads into crosses. One, to reference gravestones, but also again to reference back to cathedrals and that religious aspect of gargoyles. Also, it's a subtle detail, but I added a stitched seam to the side of Vidar's coat as well.
Bandages: Vidar's original design features bandage-like cloth underneath one of his gloves, so I took that detail and just put it all around his arm. Weathered and torn for the creepy look.
Wrist Bands: In Vidar's original design, he sports two asymmetrical gloves. Here, the bandages take the place of the more complicated glove, while these two black bands take the place of the simpler glove, which was just a black, fingerless glove comprised of a main glove and two straps above it.
Tumblr media
Gargoyle Claws: Not much to say here. Can sort of double as wolf claws, but obviously without the fur.
Scala Emblem Chain: I changed the chain from a bead chain to a more grungy link chain for that Halloween look. Also, I wasn't able to depict this in a way that satisfied me, but I imagine the metal of the charm and chain being a little tarnished and scratched up.
Dirtied Sash and Coat Edge: It's not blood, just grime. Grime, tearing, and weathering for more creepy factor. His coat is pretty long anyway so I could see it getting dirty in the streets of Halloween Town pretty easily.
Tumblr media
No Boots: To show off his gargoyle feet. In his original design his pants tuck into his boots, so I don't really know what the bottom of his pants are supposed to look like. I just cinched them at the bottom to maintain that puffed-out look. Is it weird that his feet only have three toes but his hand has three fingers and a thumb? Yeah. But I couldn't get four toes to look right. Just assume he's supposed to have four.
I decided to draw this Halloween Town design in black and white this time, but if I had colored it, you can imagine the color scheme of his clothes being darker and less saturated than his original design to better match Halloween Town.
Also, this was just a coincidence, but both Vor and Vidar's Halloween Town designs feature wings, claws, and fangs, and have a sort of cat (sphinx) and dog (wolf) theme. Which I think is cute and makes them feel more like a duo. :)
That's it. Thanks for reading.
55 notes · View notes