#celtic writes

[celticwolfie]

Chapter 2 of Growing Pains is out! 

Summary:  After waking in the early hours of the morning and being slightly disappointed with the lack of being able to catch something at the river, you decide to try your hand at fishing at one of the lakes your found in one of your hikes. Unfortunately, you do not know what lurks under the surface of the waters. Wordcount: 4,056

[llyfrenfys]

I'd like to preface this with that this is a screenshot of a post I saw a few days ago in the #welsh tag and that the OP has since deleted this post, but the sentiment is something I'd like to address since I see a lot of parallels with this kind of thinking in other contexts, such as in LGBTQIA+ rights conversations.

So, the most obvious elephant in the room is the idea that Welsh is super widely spoken in Wales now and that it isn't in as much danger as other Celtic languages. This idea is wishful thinking at best and erases the very real danger that Welsh is in and that it could be lost just as easily as Irish or Scottish Gaelic. Cornish (which is related to Welsh) actually did die out and has had to be revived. To make a metaphor out of this, we classify languages on a scale of non-threatened to endangered in a similar way to how we classify species.

Here are the statuses of Welsh and Irish as of 2010 (above) and the statuses of Lions and Tigers (below).

On paper tigers are more 'in danger' than lions. But that does not mean that lions are suddenly not in danger at all. The little bracket above CR, EN and VU labels all of these classifications as threatened. It isn't (and definitely shouldn't) be a competition of 'who is most in danger' because you do not want the thing you care about (whether it be a species or a language) to be in danger.

To come back to the original screenshot "they* [Welsh speakers] have always had the means and the ways because the English didn't beat or slaughter them for speaking it"- on the most basic of levels, this is just incorrect. The Welsh Not was a wooden token hung around schoolchildren's necks if they spoke Welsh in school. If someone else spoke Welsh the Not would be hung around their neck. At the end of the school day, whoever was wearing the Not would be beaten and caned by their teachers. I needn't go into much detail but there have been concerted efforts to beat Welsh out of schoolchildren. With the lions vs tigers metaphor, making the claim Welsh speakers have never been beaten for speaking Welsh because they always had the means and ways, while Irish speakers were beaten and never had the means or ways is like claiming poachers have never shot lions, only tigers. Bottom line is, lions and tigers are both victim to poaching and both species have suffered as a result. Similarly, Welsh and Irish have both suffered language loss and both need conservation efforts in order to survive.

(*sidenote- the consistent use of 'them' and 'they' in the original post is definitely indicative of a 'us vs them' sentiment which is a deeply unhelpful attitude to have when it comes to endangered languages and the Celtic languages in particular)

I see parallels with LGBTQIA+ rights in this situation. When equal marriage came in for gay and lesbian couples in the UK in 2014, many allies began to act like gay rights had now been achieved and that gay issues had been done, they're solved. Except, they really weren't (and aren't). Progress has been made in Wales and undeniably Welsh is doing the best out of the living Celtic languages. But that doesn't mean Welsh has been saved or that full equality for Welsh speakers has been achieved. It very much hasn't. The sentiment of the post in the screenshot is not conducive to helping Irish or Scottish Gaelic. Putting down Welsh speakers and erasing Welsh-language history will not save Irish or Scottish Gaelic. Pretending Welsh has had it easy in some kind of lap of luxury is a deeply harmful and bogus claim.

I'll address the tags under the cut as this post is getting long.

To address the tags, personal feelings ≠ an accurate reading of a situation. Nor is it praxis, for that matter. Why is pride in Welsh different/less good than pride in Irish? Is it the assumed proximity to England? If so, that's a terrible claim to make. Not only that, but Scotland is also next to England- does that make pride in Scottish Gaelic the same as pride in Welsh according to this metric? It's a ludicrous thing to say and deeply insensitive to the needs of Scottish Gaelic and Welsh speakers, who cannot help any current or former proximity to England.

Additionally, proximity to England ≠ worse. I know it's a popular internet joke to hate on England because of English attempts to eradicate the Celtic languages, but when the joke becomes praxis, it does not help. England ≠ a place devoid of Celtic languages either. Many English counties near the Welsh border actually have communities of Welsh speakers, such as Oswestry (Croesoswallt) in Shropshire. Cornwall is also home to many speakers of revived Cornish. It does a disservice to Celtic speakers in England to insinuate that proximity to England taints or corrupts them somehow. This is how ethnonationalism starts and we ain't about that.

And "#it feels a little.... blehhhhh you were seen as sophisticated and english enough and you assimilated however the Irish and the Scots? #brutish animals that need to be culled". So, this is arguably one of the worst things to say about a Celtic language- or any threatened language in general. First of all, the 'you were seen as' - 'you' is very telling. The switch from 'them', 'they' to 'you' indicates that this sentiment is aimed at Welsh speakers directly. This was likely a subconscious thing that OP wasn't thinking about when they wrote this. But it does indicate unhealthy feelings of jealousy and bitterness unfairly directed at Welsh speakers, who are also struggling. This righteous anger at the decline of Irish and Scottish Gaelic would be better directed at efforts to help promote those languages- some useful things to get involved with are LearnGaelic, similar to DysguCymraeg but for Scottish Gaelic or supporting channels such as Irish channel TG4 by watching their programmes.

The idea that Welsh speakers were or are 'sophisticated and english enough' is insulting and carries with it a lot of baggage of how any of these assumptions came about. Welsh speakers were definitely not seen as sophisticated. Where Welsh was 'tolerated', it was treated as a curiosity, a relic of a bygone age. Classic museification which all Celtic languages and cultures suffer from as well. Welsh was not tolerated in any legal sense since 1535- with English becoming the only valid administrative language and the language of Welsh courts after England annexed Wales into its Kingdom. Monolingual Welsh speakers suddenly had no access to any legal representation, unless they learned English. This is no voluntary assimilation- it is an act of survival for many speakers of minoritised languages to 'assimilate' into the dominant culture, or else risk losing access to legal security and other kinds of infrastructure. You need only ask any non-native English speaker living in an Anglophone country what that process is like. Welsh people did not see English incursion as an opportunity to become 'sophisticated and english enough', they had to assimilate in order to survive.

The "Irish and the Scots? #brutish animals that need to be culled" is also painfully misrepresenting a very complex social and political process that unfolded over the span of hundreds of years. The phrasing itself of 'brutish animals that need to be culled' speaks to righteous anger at the damage done to these languages and cultures, but it reinforces negative stereotypes about the Irish and Scots themselves. It also is more complicated than a simple English hatred of anything non-Anglo, since the English conception of particularly the Irish changed a lot over the centuries. It was (and still is) rarely consistent with itself. See: the enemy is both strong and weak. The very earliest Celticists were by and large, Anglos or French.

Ernest Renan (1823-1892) for example, was an early French Celticist who published La Poésie des races celtiques (Poetry of the Celtic Races- English translation) in which he says:

"... we must search for the explanation of the chief features of the Celtic character. It has all the failings, and all the good qualities, of the solitary man; at once proud and timid, strong in feeling and feeble in action, at home free and unreserved, to the outside world awkward and embarrassed. It distrusts the foreigner, because it sees in him a being more refined than itself, who abuses its simplicity. Indifferent to the admiration of others, it asks only one thing, that it should be left to itself. It is before all else a domestic race, fitted for family life and fireside joys. In no other race has the bond of blood been stronger, or has it created more duties, or attached man to his fellow with so much breadth and depth"

Yeah. This guy (unsurprisingly) was a white supremacist. Note that this sentiment is being applied to all people considered Celtic by Renan- Irish, Welsh, Breton, Scottish, Cornish, Manx etc. None unscathed by the celtophobia of the day. In this period, Celticity was romanticised (yet disparaged at the same time). It is less 'brutish animals' and more 'archaic, time-frozen peoples' in this period. Of course, 'brutish animals' attitudes towards Celticity did still exist, but it is disingenuous to act as if it was this attitude alone which drove English celtophobia. Like many things, it is always more complicated and never clear cut as it might seem.

I'll bring this to a close shortly, but returning to OP's suggestion that the Welsh assimilated and the Scots and Irish did not, is also incorrect in that some Scots did have to assimilate to survive as well. The Statutes of Iona (1609) required Scottish Gaelic speaking Highland chiefs to send their sons away to be educated in Scots and/or English in Protestant schools. Many did as the statutes required, which led to further language loss in the Highlands of Scottish Gaelic. These are acts of survival- and not ones always taken willingly.

This has been a long post but it's one which I felt I wanted to address. There's no need for infighting between speakers of Celtic languages over who has it worse. There isn't any answer to that question, nor is it a good use of time or energy. All in all, the Celtic languages have suffered greatly over the years and its only just now that some of them are turning a corner. If you care about these languages, put your energy into something good. Only through active work will these languages be saved for generations to come.

[gingersnaptaff]

HI me again back with another Welsh law bonanza. For some reason I don't know, u guys really liked the Gwenhwyfar divorce post I did a few weeks back, so allow me to shed some light on how divorces worked as well as marriage payments, and the role of a queen in Welsh law. (Which doesn't have much on it but is FASCINATING.)

Also, I am SUFFERING from cramps so I apologise if I ramble.

First off, Marriage Laws.

So, as previously discussed there were two ways a woman could marry: she could either be given by her family, or she could elope. Now, a woman who eloped would still be entitled to the same monetary payments as a woman who was given in marriage by her kin,

So, the Dues Payable are as follows: Amobyr, Cowyll, Agweddi, Gwaddol, Argyrfreu, and Wynebwerth.

I'm gonna cover Amobyr and Cowyll today, as well as do a lil write-up about Queenship so yeah.

It's a maiden fee! Now, this and the Cowyll are BOTH maiden fees, however, they differ as Cowyll - and we'll get onto it later - is a fee maybe to the lady herself. Sort of a wedding morning gift, I guess. 'Sorry I slept with u, or not, have some money.' Which, is extremely crass.

The Amobyr was fixed to a lady's status and it goes from King, Chief Bard or Storyteller, Chief Officers (so a Distain, which is what we Welsh would call a Seneschal), Minor Officer's daughters, Uchelwyr (so knights or lords), and then your middling noblemen, to peasants, foreigners, and slaves.

It's essentially equal to the revenue the father would get for his land, but EVERY SINGLE WOMAN would get it, regardless of status. High-born or low. The amount's payable regardless of whether you have one penny or seven thousand.

Now, amobyr could be recovered by suit as it was payable to the King and was essentially like protection money. If you made off with somebody's amobyr you were in BIG TROUBLE. HOWEVER, and I really love this fact, the King's daughter's amobyr would be payable not to him BUT TO THE QUEEN, as well as other daughters of high rank like your Pencerddau, chief groom, etc.

Amobyr was payable once a couple had cohabited for the first time, and even had to be payable if a man boasted that he'd shagged a woman and gotten her pregnant, but actually hadn't. Presumably because a) these laws are BIG on honour bonds and things and because you'd lied you'd tarnished that woman's honour and your own, and b) you'd kinda claimed that Lady as yours because you've made her unchaste.

Because it's a maiden fee it - like the Cowyll ' could only be paid ONCE. No more, no less. If you were a widow or wanted remarry, you can't get the amobyr again. Also, if you'd eloped with a dude and your family had caught you before you'd consummated your relationship they didn't have to pay cuz you're still a virgin. Also, if you were raped then the rapist had to pay amobyr to your family in recognition of that.

Finally, a lady who'd had a fling which had resulted in a bastard child* but she hadn't declared who the father was, then she was responsible for the amobyr. However, if she HAD declared who the father was then he had to pay the amobyr instead.

The Cowyll, as I've already said, is a personal payment to the lady that's made on the first morning after marriage.

Now, in North Wales it's always given as money even if you're a King's daughter, BUT if you're in the South then you get la lovely chunk of land. So if you married a prince of Gwynedd, bad luck, just money for u. If you married a Prince of Deheubarth then you are QUIDS IN! (THAT'S YOURS FOR LIFE BABYYYYY)

(Ignore the Agweddi for today. Or don't. Think of it as a tantalising glimpse into the next law I'm gonna cover.)

Cowyll is both paid to just married women AND those who were violated against their will. The wife / lady who had been violated had the right to specify what they wished for their cowyll to be in service of. If she didn't then it just went on stuff for the couple, so I'd imagine whatever the medieval equivalent of IKEA flat pack furniture would've been, that would've been what they'd have chosen.

Also, it's kept entirely separate from the husband's property so he Could Not pinch from it, or use it in service of himself. You couldn't even be deprived of it if you'd had an affair or did any naughty business. That's YOUR MONEY AND BY GOD YOU CAN KEEP IT. Even if you divorced your husband or he you, you would be allowed take your cowyll with you.

Now, finally, QUEENSHIP.

(Particularly handy if you are, like me, doing an Arthurian-inspired, Welsh-set novel and you GOTTA KNOW WHAT GUINEVERE DOES.)

There is not a lot on it because it isn't something that's studied that much (idk why. Wales has tonnes of cool Queens even if they didn't become regent) but we make do with what we can!

You, as King, could marry ANYBODY (Within reason, nobody is marrying a peasant girl) within what would be termed your Cenedl (that's your family.) or out of it.

Kings, we know, often married their first cousins, or second cousins to keep the balance of power within Wales (you gotta remember Wales wasn't united back then! Gwynedd, Powys, and Deheubarth fuckin squabbled like dogs over bones, and Do Not get me started on the littler kingdoms like Arwystli or Senghenydd.)

Seriously, Gwenllian ap Gruffudd ap Cynan (Gwynedd) eloped with Gruffydd ap Rhys (Deheubarth) and they were like distantly related. Or, Gwenllian's brother and v famous boi, Owain Gwynedd married his first cousin, Cristina (and, in doing so, ensured that after his death Gwynedd would have a power vacuum because of squabbling that wouldn't be sorted until Llywelyn Fawr took the throne and overthrew his uncles. It's always fuckin Gwynedd. Even Gwenllian's son, The Lord Rhys, married one of his first cousins, who was also named Gwenllian.)

*Gets slapped with a wet fish* Sorry, I was rambling.

Now, kings did also marry for political alliances. Gruffudd ap Cynan himself married Angharad ferch Owain (can u sense a theme with the names?) because she was from a well-off, noble family who had ties to the Anglo-Saxons when Gwynedd was in a bad spot with the Norman's. Llywelyn Fawr married Joan, the illegitimate daughter of King John of England, when relations became... tense, shall we say.

So, lemme go over some stuff regarding laws real quick before I tell u why I've highlighted these three ladies. (Cuz they're fun and I'm in love with them- uh, you what?)

So all the Codes (North, South, Mid) attach the following to the Queen: a steward, priest, chief groom, door-keeper, and a handmaiden. In Gwynedd she was also given a page, a separate cook (presumably because of poisoning attempts), and a candle-bearer (would LOVE to be that. No joke.) Whereas in Deheubarth she was given a groom of the rein, a sewer, and a footholder. (For all u lovers of the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi out there this is a win for u.)

The line of Cunedda which (and, fuck me, I can't believe I'm saying this) IS BASICALLY ALL OF THE KINGDOMS OF WALES allowed for transition of royal dignity through a the female as well as the male. That means u could contest ur throne using your mam's blood and status as well as your dad's. Owain Glyndŵr, as I have previously mentioned, did this when he started his rebellion against Henry IV, as his mother descended from both the houses of Gwynedd and Deheubarth and his father descended from Powys. Truly, the people's Prince.

Now, a queen had her own privy purse (Go her), and one-third of the income the king received went to the Queen for her personal use. She also received land grants that went directly to her.

Now, finally, why tf did I highlight those three Queens that I spoke about earlier? Okay, so, Queens couldn't be regents, BUT they absolutely could and did use their power in any way they could.

Angharad ferch Owain was the mother of Owain Gwynedd, Gwenllian, and Cadwaladr. Owain Gwynedd ruled Gwynedd after his dad died in 1137 and led Gwynedd to become Wales' most successful kingdom at that time. He is also the reason why the Prince of Wales is called the Prince of Wales. ANYWAY. He and Cadwaladr had a falling out in 1143 and Angharad, not liking the way Cadwaladr was being treated, took his side. (Dunno why, he killed her step-grandson, Anarawd. Like, Angharad pls. Priorities, del.)

So, Owain ordered his son, Hywel, (yes him of bardic fame) to BURN DOWN Cadwaladr's castle in Aberystwyth. Cadwaladr, enraged, hot-footed it to Ireland where he and the Vikings invaded Gwynedd in an attempt to make Owain give him his lands back.

Angharad supported Cadwaladr by allowing him to beach his forces in her lands of Abermenai in Ynys Môn (Anglesey.) and also tried to intercede on her son's behalf with his brother. Anyways, the brothers were reconciled (for a brief period. Cadwaladr was aligned with the Normans so he remained a thorn in his big bro's side.) and Angharad lived until 1162. Her death led Owain Gwynedd into a melancholic spell.

Gwenllian ferch Gruffudd ap Cynan waged war against the Normans during the Great Revolt. Fighting against the Normans was very much a family affair for, you see, her brothers Owain (previously mentioned cousin-marrier) and Cadwaladr also waged war against the Normans at this time, and their dad, Gruffudd ap Cynan also fought against them SO HE COULD BECOME KING OF GWYNEDD. After her husband left Deheubarth to go and plead with her father for troops and aid men flocked to her and they waged a guerrilla war against the Normans until 1136.

This pains me to say but a Welsh lord betrayed Gwenllian after the Normans - seeking to win back the territory that Gwenllian and Gruffydd ap Rhys had recovered - waged war against them. She and her two eldest sons, Morgan, and Maelgwn died. Morgan in battle, and Maelgwn and Gwenllian were beheaded at Castell Cydweli.

After her death, South Wales rose in rebellion against the Normans. Her brothers, once word reached Gwynedd, invaded Norman-controlled Ceredigion (which was Deheubarth's territory.) and won back Aberystwyth, Llanfihangel, and Llanbadarn. The Welsh battle cry for many years was 'Dial Achos Gwenllian!' Revenge for Gwenllian.

Finally, Joan, Lady of Wales. She's referred to as Siwan in Welsh. She was the daughter of King John (as previously said.) She often mediated between her father and her husband, Llywelyn Fawr. The Brut y Tywysogion writes: 'Llywelyn, being unable to suffer the king's rage, sent his wife, the king's daughter, to him, by the counsel of his leading men, to seek to make peace with the king on whatever terms he could.' I'll probably do a full post about her at some point but yeah, she's cool!

Anyways, hope u enjoyed this!

Okay, hywl fawr!

[voiceoftheoldways]

All worlds share the life of Yggdrasil, connected through this reaching bough to all other things. Yggdrasil is the reality of our interconnectedness and interdependence. And ignorance is like the folly of an oak leaf believing it may sever itself from the oak without detriment.

[gregrulzok]

Fae Encounter Tips

1. Always be polite, smile, stand up straight, make eye contact. If you MUST count their fingers to ensure they're a fae, be very careful to do it subtly - staring for too long is very rude.

2. When they ask for your name, do NOT give it. Say "I cannot give you my name, however you may refer to me as [Insert Fake Name]".

2a. "Ainsel" (short for "Me Aan Sel", meaning "My Own Self") is a good fake name - any Fae trying to use said name to put a spell on you will only end up applying it to themselves. However, beware that this comes from a fairly famous fairytale, thus older and wiser Fae may be aware of the trick and not take kindly to it.

2b. A Fae may also extend their hand to "take" your name - the handing over gesture further solidifies the power they are taking over your identity. Do your best to avoid the handshake, even with a fake name - consider wearing an iron/silver/metallic ring. Not wanting to touch the Fae with it for fear of hurting them can be a believable and polite excuse.

2c. Do not ask a Fae for their name - they might take it as you trying to claim power over them. Ask them how you may refer to them, instead.

3. Do not refer to Fae as such directly to their face - call them one of the euphemistic terms, such as "Good/Fair/Blessed/Wee/Hill Folk", "The Good Neighbors" or "The People of Peace". Remember that "Fairy" and subsequently "Fae" is a shortening of "Fair Folk", designed for humans, and is essentially impolite slang.

4. Do not accept any gifts or favours. Fae do not give gifts without expecting something in return, and you do not want to owe them anything if you can help it.

4a. Accepting food will forever bind you to their realm - you will not be able to find your way back, and will soon forget your human life. This might be something you want - I can't make that judgement call for you.

4b. Decline politely - do NOT say thank you (as even without accepting the gift/favour, this will count as a debt), but do acknowledge their generosity. Have a good excuse ready.

4c. Should you, unwittingly, end up owing a Fae something, be sure to put out a dish of cream/milk as soon as you return home. Hope that they accept it as payment.

5. Do not follow a Fae to a third location. You never know when you'll be able to get back from it - even if a Fae is not malicious or mischevious, time does not pass for them as it does for us - you may return home to find that centuries have passed.

6. Do not lie, do not be rude, and do not yell - do try and use double-talk and thick quickly on your feet. Fae thrive on technicalities and loopholes, and exploiting them yourself will not be considered rude.

7. Ensure that the Fae doesn't owe YOU anything, either - insist you aren't able to help them if they ask, do not save them if they appear trapped, etc. A Fae owing you is no less dangerous than you owing a Fae - unless you're in DIRE need, make your best effort to leave the encounter with neither of you owing anything to the other.

8. Once you return home, check to see that nothing is missing, that nothing is broken, that your pets are safe and their fur isn't tangled, watch for small footprints or various little items that weren't there before - if you did everything right, there should be no signs of Fae interference.

8a. If you do find signs of Fae interference, put out an offering far away from your house as soon as possible.

8b. Items left by Fae in your house should be given back with said offering - loudly acknowledge their generosity and that you simply can't accept their offer. Return home quickly. Consider putting a horseshoe on your door.

[justaz]

i desperately crave full power merlin. he was messing with time when he didn't even know one (1) spell, imagine what he could do at his peak bc i genuinely believe we never saw that. a man said to be the embodiment of magic?? said not to have magic but to be magic?? god just imagine it, wielding power like an extension of himself, taking down armies with a wave of his hand, not uttering a single word, traveling through the wind, carried by the elemental magic and reappearing halfway around the world in a single moment, traveling the same through time, reappearing in greece centuries before the romans invade, reappearing in the aztec empire before colonizers landed on their shores, reappearing in new york as cars fly past him and buildings reach up to the heavens.

[bugwolfsstuff]

I really wish we knew more about Laufey in Norse myth

Because like

HOW DOES SHE FEEL ABOUT WHATS HAPPENING TO HER SON? WHAT WILL HAPPEN?

Like does she mourn him for what has been done? Scorn and pretend he doesnt exist because of what he will do?

WHAT DOES SHE FEEL?

The fact that Loki uses her name instead of Farbauti's interests the fuck out of me

[raven-runes]

Samhain is the time to open ourselves to the past, to let our ghosts walk with us, dwell with us and haunt us before letting go and watch them slip back into the night.

May the time of your haunting give way to the time of your healing. 

May the time of your healing give way to the time of your blooming. 

May your ghosts slip gently into the night. 

A very prosperous Celtic New Year to everyone. 

Athbhlian Cheilteach faoi mhaise dhaoibh go léir!

[felixschokehold]

My biggest ick about a lot of typical fantasy readers are the ones who complain about the "fake names that are pronounced wrong" and then it's just a list of Celtic names that have always fucking existed

They're not "wrong" babe you're just a fucking idiot

[celticwolfie]

Chapter 4 of To Be Hunted is out! Summary:  Even though you are injured, you are not going to let that stop you from tacking down that vampire that has been evading you in your territory. However, things take a turn when you are the one that is hunted. Word count: 4,052

[a-strange-inkling]

moodboard for an original work of mine 🍃🍂

[teecupangel]

There are sooo many good animal Desmond ideas out there... But no one thinks about horse Desmond.

He would be the mightiest of steeds. Maybe he would be a war breed like a Friesian or a hunting breed like an Akhal-Teke?

Horse Desmond would be a wild horse at first I think. No one would be able to keep him contained. But maybe he could be tempted to stick around if say... A certain ancestor popped up. Or perhaps they needed a lift? Most probably away from angry templars- or even more likely if you go for ezio- single fathers trying desperately to keep handsome Italian men away from his precious daughters?

You would have no problem escaping when your horse isn't afraid to free-run. >:}

And darn it if he wouldn't be the most loyal mount! Kicking and stomping would-be horse thieves and templars like it's a hobby!

Oooh what if he was a water horse/kelpie?

Horse!Desmond is like… a creature that happens every so often and graces this Tumblr every few months XD

Here’s the first horse!Desmond ask I got.

The Desmond is a horse in Auditore ranch ask that can go either EziAlt or EziLeo.

And the Desmond is a horse in Valhalla ask.

I’m actually unsure if there’s more but these are the ones I was able to find. XD

So let’s go for water kelpie in this one!

I’m kinda imagining Desmond like the water kelpie in Shin Megami Tensei:

But he’s gonna be a pure white kelpie with golden eyes.

Water kelpies have the ability to shapeshift into humans but they’re easily caught because they have seaweeds for hair and they supposedly haunt the almost all water masses in Scotland and the kelpie is said to be a being that appears in both Scottish and Irish lore so there’s a high possibility that Shay and Liam would know about them.

And that’s why Shay is absolutely suspicious of the hooded man that appeared in the homestead one random day.

He spoke to Achilles for a long while and he just… starts living in a small shack near the docks.

Shay wouldn’t have been so suspicious of him had he not smelled like… water… all the time.

He has no other way to explain it.

There was something about his scent that reminded Shay of the stories his father used to tell him the mythical beasts and monsters that haunt Ireland.

They had also traveled to Scotland quite a few times during Shay’s time with his father and their ships, having a close relationship with a merchant that goes there. They get more money if they accompany the merchant to Scotland so Shay knows a bit.

The unknown Assassin that only goes by the name Desmond reminds Shay of one of those stories.

No.

The stories of those who stay in the waters to drown humans.

And then…

Lisbon happened.

He tried to do the right thing.

And he fell in the cold waters.

That’s when he saw it.

A white kelpie with golden eyes.

The same eyes as Desmond.

He wakes up in Desmond’s shabby shack.

And finally sees Desmond without a hood.

… his hair was made of seaweeds.

Shay was in the presence of a kelpie.

But why…

Why did the kelpie save him?

[sacredsistersthree]

lessons from The Morrigan today, in whatever big or small way they appeared:

you are a warrior, even when your fight seems small or insignificant to you. you are always a warrior, even at rest. your fight is lifelong and you are fighting it.

while it may hurt your heart to acknowledge, you are nourished by death. things must die just as you must eat. plants die, animals die, you live on their death. be grateful to their sacrifice and do not shy away from it. give thanks to it.

you are favored. this does not make you special or unique- it simply means you are loved, just like every spirit is loved. it does not extinguish your struggle, but you can let it push you through your struggle. be inspired by it, do not rest on it.

[divine-crows]

To be a Goddess is to be more than a mother.

There's Goddesses who are wreckless. They want to prove their power-- their worthiness, to the world. They are wild as youth and strong-willed.

There's Goddesses who first had to experience hate and cold in order to learn that despite loss, despite upbringing, and despite everything; they can fight for a kind, better world.

There's Goddesses who learned to be a rock to others. Holding hands of screaming mothers. Stilling their tears and turning their hearts to stone so they can live on through war and grief and loss.

There's Goddesses who covet sovereignty. They teach us to command ourselves. To form our own fate out of the putty of life. They see the potential in our hearts and set it free.

They are strength, and virtue, and love, and everything you could possibly imagine. They're not a box to be pushed into. They define their own path.

[bookwells]

BETA READERS WANTED!

Hi all!

I’m in the process of writing my 1st Debut Dark Paranormal Romance and am on the hunt for FREE Beta Readers to read my 2nd draft. I’m currently editing my 1st draft and should have the 2nd draft ready to go mid December. I know it’s close to the holidays, but I would prefer Betas that can do a read through within a 2 week period once I give you access.

My book, The Goddess Calls, is a story set in modern day America. It is about a woman who finds herself on a whirlwind journey to find what she truly is.

Book Blurb:

Kinley had a fulfilling career, her own home, and fur babies to come home to.

What more could she ask for? Oh right, maybe a love life…

The dating scene was slim pickings for a full figured, 27 year old.

A chance meeting with a handsome stranger would put into motion more than what Kinley bargained for. Not only would she gain love, friends that would do anything for her, but she would finally realize that she was not who she thought she was.

With light comes darkness and with that darkness comes a realization that magic exists and that she has no idea what she is. A dark entity from the past will threaten her new found happiness and her life.With light comes darkness and with that darkness comes a realization that magic exists and that she has no idea what she is.

Will Kinley be able to learn who and what she is in time to save herself and her new found family?

The threads of fate are unwoven. The song of the Goddess is calling. Will the Chosen be able to reclaim all that she has lost?

If you would like to join my writing journey and become a Beta Reader for me, please follow the link below, read the information, and fill out the form. At this time I’m not looking to pay Beta Readers, so if that is a deal breaker I completely understand!

[devouredbyflame]

Beginner Guide to Automatic Writing and Channeling Deities

One of the ways in which you can open up to the Gods is by channeling as well as automatic writing. I know the gut reaction for most people is to think “only some people can do that but I can’t.” I assure you that it is easier than most people think it is and if only because it is a part of our innate nature as humans.

The process is simple yet there are a lot of things that you need to let go of to get started.

It is important to note that not every automatic writing or channeled message in the beginning is going to make sense. It takes a bit of work not just for you to get used to hearing what the message is but for the Gods Themselves to use your brain and use language that makes the most sense to humans.

Considering Deities do not have a tongue nor do They have language, They have to use the words that you have stored in your brain. They do not pluck Them from outside of your brain, though it is possible the further you get into channeling and possessory work, the more language you don’t normally use may come up in Their response. So if you are only getting images, words, or feelings in response to your questions, do not worry – you are not incapable and you are not doing it wrong. In fact, the feelings are going to help you in knowing when a Deity is actually speaking to you versus when your brain is making stuff up.

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