#cerulean byzantine

[puppyluver256]

[Image Description: Cerulean Byzantine, a character from the artist's original series Theia Historica, underwater. Cerulean is a woman with light skin, elongated ears, blue-violet hair in a ponytail on the side of her head, and blue painted fingernails. She is wearing a long blue tunic over a turquoise turtleneck with blue sleeve cuffs, turquoise pants, a light blue belt with a silver buckle, two sets of belt ornaments consisting of blue shapes (a crescent, three circles, and stars), turquoise pants, and blue boots. She is smiling with her eyes closed, waving her arms through the water to make streams of bubbles. The background is the open water, with sunlight filtering down through the surface. End ID.]

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Man, I haven't drawn any Theia peeps in a while, huh... Welp! Time to change that! Have Cerulean doing some kinda underwater dance or something, whatever she's doing specifically she's clearly having fun :D After all, what good is it not only being a super-skilled water-specialist magician, but also being part of a group recognized as being some of the best magicians in Prismari, without getting to have a little fun with it?

💖🐶 Check out my pinned post for ways to support my artwork, among other things! 🐶💖

~Likes are appreciated, but reblogs are preferred as they let more people see my artwork! If you have something to say, feel free to give feedback in tags/comments/replies as well!~

Cerulean Byzantine, other Theia Historica concepts, and artwork © PuppyLuver Studios

[21st-century-minutiae]

Color blindness is a minor affliction affecting a bit under 9% of the early twenty-first century population. It is caused by the weakness (or absense) of some cones in the eye which degrades (or eliminates) color vision.

The most common form of colorblindness is "red-green" which has difficulty distinguishing between red and green and brown wavelengths, and often has difficulty distinguishing between blue and purple.

"Out of the blue" is an idiomatic expression meaning "unexpected." It refers to something coming out of a clear sky (referred to as "the blue" poetically).

The joke here is the swap of blue and purple, which is appropriate for the preceding color blindness diagnosis. In reality, a colorblind person would not mix up the words for the colors, and would know the expression. People in the early twenty-first century would be familiar with colorblindness (if not the specifics) and the idiomatic phrase.

[historysims4]

15 QUESTIONS FOR 15 MUTUALS (tag game).

Thanks for the tag @antiquatedplumbobs & @viktorviolettaenterprises.

Are you named after anyone? Vivienne Westwood, British designer. My mother has always loved fashion (in fact she was a seamstress before retiring).

When was the last time you cried? If we mean tears of joy, when my nephew was born a few days ago. Tears of grief when my uncle died about a year ago.

Do you have kids? Not yet, but I hope one day to have at least one (unfortunately not everyone has a baby right away and I've been married for 8 years).

Do you use sarcasm a lot? It depends on the topic and if it's appropriate. I always try not to offend anyone.

What sports do you play/have you played? As a child I did classical dance but then at the age of 15 I had an accident which unfortunately didn't allow me to continue this passion. Now I do yoga (it's not a sport but it's an activity I love).

What’s the first thing you notice about other people? The eyes ... Every human being has different colors and I love observing the various details that distinguish people.

Eye colour? Cerulean, if it rains it goes on dark green, if there is sun it goes on amber.

Scary movies or happy endings? On film? Reading? 😶...

Any special talents? I love making desserts and cakes and luckily I'm good at it 🤣.

Where were you born? France

What are your hobbies? Listen music, read historical novels and vintage magazines on old fashions, the sims (from the very first to 4).

Do you have any pets? Yes, I have a super cute mixed breed cat!

How tall are you? 170 cm.

Favourite subject in school? Art! Always loved even when I travel. I love exploring old churches or palaces, museums... My former high school professor was very good at his work and I have to thank him if to this day I remember what a Corinthian column or pediment is or Byzantine art or belle époque!

Dream job? I don't know, I've had various jobs but perhaps my dream would have been to become a screenwriter and write a vintage-style TV series or film... 

I chose to tag no one! Feel free to skip this quiz or take it 😅

[29pageshomestuckeveryday]

Homestuck, page 4,120

Examine room.

Your name is JAKE. You love movies. ALL MOVIES. You would describe your taste in film as ECLECTIC, but in truth, it isn't much less than TOTALLY INDISCRIMINATE. You bluster frequently of exuberance for FIREARMS and FISTICUFFS and ADVENTURE, though have no human company with which to share these interests. But who needs chums, when you can enjoy a top notch gander of your GALS OF CERULEAN COMPLEXION, HUBBA HUBBA. You're known to be found with your nose in a COMIC BOOK OR TWO, not that it makes you a nerd or anything, like you even CARE about that! Not a gent of your PANACHE AND SWAGGER, qualities which you would BANDY WITH APLOMB on your globe-spanning adventures, HYPOTHETICALLY SPEAKING. You would love to travel around the world, toppling any SACRED URNS you encountered. You'd be tickled by the opportunity to defile HALLOWED TOMBS everywhere, raiding them of their treasures. And how you'd give your RIGHT LEG for a shot at desecrating THE SHIT out of some real life MYSTIC RUINS for their byzantine wares. Luckily for your limb, there is a dandy set of such ruins nearby, and you desecrate them quite frequently! You are also troubled to contemplate FRIGHTENING FAUNA, and plagued daily by their regrettable REALNESS ATTRIBUTE.

What else? You sure like to WRESTLE. Did you mention FISTICUFFS yet? You know, SCRUMS AND WHATNOT. Also, SKULLS. Gosh you love SKULLS. There is a good SKULL at the heart of any mystery, haunting its EVERY PAGE. That is what you always say. Or at least, it is what you always HOPE.

What will you do?

[coldblod23]

Silly Game Time: Combine your favorite color (the more specific the hue, the better) and a food you ate in the last 24 hours to learn your band name.

(Mine would be "Byzantine Popcorn"!)

Cerulean Ice cream sandwich! Sounds delicious...... And pretty.....

[gokitetour]

The Must visit attractions of Greece

Feel the allure of Greece's sun-kissed shores and ancient wonders! Dive into azure waters, explore myth-laden ruins, and savor olives under cerulean skies. Whether mesmerized by Santorini's whitewashed cliffs or Athens' Parthenon, Greece captivates with its rich history and vibrant culture. Plan your adventure worry-free with simplified Greece visa processes, ensuring smooth travel to this Mediterranean gem!

Here are some must-visit attractions in Greece:

1. Acropolis of Athens:

One of the most iconic landmarks in the world, featuring the Parthenon, Erechtheion, and other ancient Greek structures overlooking Athens.

2. Santorini:

Famous for its breathtaking sunsets, whitewashed buildings with blue domes, and volcanic landscapes. Don't miss Oia and Fira.

3. Delphi:

A UNESCO World Heritage site known for its ancient ruins, including the Temple of Apollo and the Delphi Theater, set against a stunning mountain backdrop.

4. Meteora:

A unique rock formation hosting monasteries perched on top, offering incredible views and a glimpse into Greek Orthodox spirituality.

5. Mykonos:

Known for its lively nightlife, beautiful beaches, and charming Cycladic architecture with narrow streets and whitewashed buildings.

6. Olympia:

The birthplace of the Olympic Games, featuring ancient ruins such as the Temple of Zeus and the original Olympic stadium.

7. Crete:

Greece's largest island with diverse landscapes, from stunning beaches like Balos and Elafonissi to the ancient Minoan palace of Knossos.

8. Rhodes Old Town:

A medieval city with impressive fortifications, winding streets, and historical sites like the Palace of the Grand Master and the Street of the Knights.

9. Corfu:

An island with Venetian architecture, beautiful beaches, and historic sites such as the Old Fortress and Achilleion Palace.

10. Thessaloniki:

Greece's second-largest city with a rich history, featuring Byzantine churches, the White Tower, and a vibrant food and cultural scene.

Conclusion

With its breathtaking landscapes and rich history, Greece beckons travelers to explore its iconic attractions. From the ancient ruins of Athens to the stunning sunsets of Santorini, each destination captivates with its unique charm. For those planning to visit, ensuring a valid Greece visa is essential to unlock these treasures hassle-free. Embrace the allure of Greece's cultural tapestry and natural beauty—it's an experience that promises memories to last a lifetime.

Read more: Norway visa Sweden visa Egypt visa

[zootycutie]

Either water with Cerulean, magma with Scarlet, or chocolate with whichever of your OCs you last did anything with if you'd rather not to others' OCs at the moment. (for the brush thing)

Here you go! ^_^

[bowl-of-shortness]

RWBY OC Color Names:

Massive shoutout to @collectingsparechangemadeeasy1, they helped a lot with coming up with these name :)

Red:

Roux, Rory, Rufus, Russell, Rusty, Maroon, Burgundy, Mahogany, Claret, Sorrell, Flannery, Vermilion, Apple, Candy, Sangria, Cardinal, Carnelian, Cerise, Cinnabar, Falu, Crimson, Wine, Amaranth, Titian, Chili, Raspberry, Carmine, Realgar, Eudialyte, Madeira, Cuprite, Rosa, Peppermint, Aster, Anemone, Yarrow, Chrysanthemum, Amaryllis, Carnation, Poinsettia, Begonia, Dianthus, Freesia, Petunia, Hibiscus, Poppy, Salvia, Tulip, Azalea, Canna, Dahlia, Verbena, Holly.

Orange:

Hari, Ginger, Spice, Blaze, Russet, Tawny, Citron, Clementine, Tangerine, Coral, Peach, Apricot, Mango, Persimmon, Sunset, Pumpkin, Butterscotch, Cider, Copper, Bronze, Clay, Ochre, Fulvous, Jasper, Sunrise, Topaz, Amber, Tiger, Carnelian, Hessonite, Sunstone, Sunny, Padparadscha, Sardonyx, Calcite, Dzi, Begonia, Canna, Cosmos, Honeysuckle, Zinnia, Autumn.

Yellow:

Honey, Blaine, Gold (Goldie), Mellow, Lemon, Champagne, Canary, Daffodil, Sunny, Jasmine, Primrose, Goldenrod, Dune, Sand, Flax, Xanthus, Laguna, Dijon, Beige, Aureolin, Mikado, Maize, Colza, Melon, Cyber, Banana, Tuscany, Ecru, Corn, Sepia, Citrine, Heliodor, Pyrite, Copal, Argonite, Sulphur, Rutile, Spiriferida, Scheelite, Calla, Jessamine, Pansy, Primrose, Lotus, Buttercup.

Green:

Viridian, Hunter, Forest, Moss, Florence, Chartreuse, Oliver, Olive, Olivia, Sage, Lime, Jade, Fern, Laurel, Mint, Tea, Kelly, Sacramento, Juniper, Pear, Shamrock, Pickle, Pistachio, Basil, Paris, Spring, Glade, Timber, Verdun, Chateau, Kaitoke, Foxtons, Kale, Avocado, Bilbao, Panache, Khaki, May, Tourmaline, Chrysoprase, Idocrase, Aventurine, Peridot, Moldavite, Zoisite, Turquoise, Malachite, Serpentine, Prehnite, Variscite, Ekanite, Tansy, Hydrangea, Scabiosa.

Blue:

Royal, Admiral, Duke, Glacious, Blueberry, Bluebell, Sky, Midnight, Frost, Ocean, Glade, Bluebird, Azalea, Denim, Pigeon, Navy, Carolina, Maya, Cornflower, Sapphire, Azure, Yale, Indigo, Cobalt, Teal, Cerulean, Lapis, Aegean, Berry, Arctic, Aquamarine, Aqua, Spinel, Chalcedony, Tanzanite, Moonstone, Iolite, Apatite, Larimar, Benitoite, Zircon, Opal, Azurite, Kyanite, Sodalite, Halite, Clematis, Salvia, Lobelia, Lupine, Veronica.

Purple:

Magenta, Fuschia, Periwinkle, Plum, Yolanda, Violet, Iris, Lavender, Amethyst, Hibiscus, Mauve, Mulberry, Orchid, Lilac, Grape, Byzantine, Helio, Floral, Thistle, Sangria, Jam, Chalcedony, Fluorite, Garnet, Kunzite, Sugalitie, Coquimbite, Kunzite, Siberite, Charoite, Phantom, Taaffeite, Tiffany, Marialite, Angel, Verbena, Anemone, Heather, Aster, Liatris, Honesty, Merlin, Wisteria, Zinnia, Dianthus.

Pink:

Blush, Sakura, Rosè, Calamine, Bubblegum, Thulian, Cerise, Carnation, Amaranth, Taffy, Rouge, Crepe, Rhodolite, Morganite, Mayala, Pezzottaite, Rubellite, Calcite, Eudialyte, Talc, Rosolite, Cerasite, Cherry, Azalea, Begonia, Amaryllis, Thyme, Hollyhock, Astilbe, Iberis, Phlox.

White:

Pearl, Alabaster, Lumi, Snow, Porcelain, Linen, Cream, Ivory, Platinum, Sugar, Chiffon, Titanium, Lace, Ice (Icey), Edelweiss, Cotton, Salt, Daisy, Frost, Rice, Howlite, Diamond, Akoya, Baroque, Keshi, Selenite, Selene, Zeolite, Caylon, Okenite, Snowdrop, Magnolia, Jasmine, Powder, Galatea.

Grey:

Grey, Silver, Steel, Stone, Pewter, Slate, Dusty, Boulder, Manta (?), Cloud, Fossil, Mink, Abalone, Harbor, Iron, Trout, Seal, Lava, Shadow, Ash, Anchor, Graphite, Fog, Lead, Gibeon, Celiom, Larvikite, Chrome, Terahertz, Brunia.

Black:

Ebony, Merle, Charcoal, Coal, Jet, Ink, Soot, Smoke, Pepper, Domino, Vanta, Onyx, Pitch, Sable, Obsidian, Spider, Leather, Morion, Hematite, Shungite, Galena, Graphite, Lodestone, Shale, Scoria, Augite, Anatase, Basalt, Blackberry, Baccara, Satin, Viola.

Total number of names on this list: 420

[thecomposerofstories]

Shades of ColourThemed Ask Meme

Red 💘

Cherry - What's your favourite cheesy pick-up line? Have you ever used it in real life?

Crimson - What quality in a person do you fall in love with?

Scarlet - Do you think people fall in love because the right person has arrived, or because the time is right (regardless of whom the person is that they fall in love with)?

Mahogany - Have you had your heart broken before?

Wine - What is the ideal true love story you have ever heard of?

Maroon - What kind of gestures do you find truly romantic?

Rose - Can you name most of your fictional crushes?

Orange🧡

Tangerine – Favourite music genre if you have one?

Rust – Song that’s on repeat at the moment?

Clay – Favourite music artist if you have one?

Amber – Favourite song of all time?

Ginger – If you could play any instrument, what would it be? (I mean personally I like to play the Mayonnaise, but I do play a pretty mean Horseradish, if I don’t say so myself!)

Yellow💛

Canary – What are three things that make you the happiest?

Flaxen – What was your happiest moment?

Lemon - What are you most passionate about in life?

Sunshine – What makes you smile?

Dijon – What’s the funniest joke you’ve ever heard/told?

Honey - What is something that you are proud of about yourself?

Butterscotch - What is your definition of a “perfect life”?

Mustard - What was your most memorable birthday?

Corn – What gets you excited about life?

Green💚

Lime - If you could be only one, would you rather be rich, famous or loved?

Sage - Do you think you are better than some other people? Do you think some other people are better than you?

Mint - What is the biggest force driving your ambitions?

Forest – Would would/could you do if you knew you could not fail?

Emerald – Are you content with who you are, or would you change anything?

Jade – What is the most inspiring quote you’ve ever heard?

Olive – Who inspires you the most?

Teal💚💙

Aqua – What is your ideal bedroom?

Lovat – If you could play any instrument, what would it be? (I mean personally I like to play the Mayonnaise, but I do play a pretty mean Horseradish, if I don’t say so myself!)

Turquoise – What is the most beautiful dream you’ve ever had?

Julep – The nicest view you’ve ever seen? Can you describe it?

Amulet – What is your favourite aesthetic?

Jules – What’s your ideal weather?

Prism – Your ideal weekend?

Lagoon – What’s your dream pet?

Juniper – What makes you nostalgic?

Winterfresh - Would you wait for the sun to rise or for it to set, and why?

Spruce - What is more important: being true to yourself regardless of who gets hurt or considering the consequences of your actions on other people’s lives?

Blue💙

Cornflower – Favourite fictional character(s)?

Ocean – Favourite Thing you own?

Sapphire – Favourite flavour ice cream?

Azure – Favourite type of clothes?

Zaffre – Favourite flower?

Navy – Favourite movie(s)?

Cyan – Favourite food?

Cobalt – Favourite Season?

Lapis – Favourite book at the moment?

Cerulean – Favourite show at the moment?

Purple💜

indigo - Would you rather know the date of your death or the cause of your death?

Violet - Would you rather see the ghost of a stranger or of someone that you love?

Lavender - Would you ever stay the night in an abandoned house that everyone claims is haunted?

Plum - If there was a zombie apocalypse, which one of your friends would die first?

Mauve - If you met a vampire, would you let it bite you for eternal life or would you shove a stake in its heart?

Mulberry - If there’s a hell, do you think you’re going there?

Magenta - Have you ever had a dream about dying?

Periwinkle - Have you ever seen a ghost, a spaceship, or anything else you couldn’t rationally explain?

Byzantine - If you came back as a ghost, what would you do?

Boysenberry - What would you do to defend yourself if someone broke into your house?

Wisteria - If you were asked to film a new horror movie, what would the plot be?

Heliotrope – If you could ask Death a question, what would it be?

White ❤

Platinum - Do you believe we make our own happy endings, or is fate responsible for them?

Parchment - Is there a film or cartoon character who is very much like you? In what way?

Egg Shell - Do you see the glass as half-full or half-empty?

Ivory - If you were given a chance to swap places with somebody for a day, who would you choose?

Cream – Which fictional world would you like to live in for the rest of your life?

Pearl– Why is a Raven like a Writing Desk?

Lace- Are you left- or right-handed, and would you want to switch?

Snow - What three adjectives would describe you

Porcelain– What is the nicest compliment someone ever gave you?

Powder - – What is the meaning of your name?

Dover – If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

Alabaster - Who’s the strangest person you’ve ever met?

Downy – Who’s the strangest person you’ve ever met?

[puppyluver256]

So! Guess who's participating in Mermay this year! It's meeee :D I'm gonna be upfront here and say that I did start working on these in April, which might be considered against the spirit of the event, but I have a long-ass art queue and I wanted to work on these alongside getting those cleared out rather than just let my queue grind to a halt during all of May. Anyway, decided to kick this off with a character I've already done a mermaid alt of waaay back when I did the Theia Myth AU. Gave Cerulean her spear this time as well (because I didn't have it designed at the time hehehe).

I also really like how the background came out, and all the ones I've gotten done thus far as well. I've saved it separately and will share them all at the end of May. :D

Commissions ~ Redbubble ~ Patreon

~If you like, please consider reblogging to show your friends!~

Cerulean Byzantine (any form) and artwork © PuppyLuver Studios

[melien]

33 DAZZLING BERRY SIMS FOR DOWNLOAD 🌈

Since my Dazzle CAS BPR is finished, I want to share all the sims with you guys as a thank you for all the love! They turned out to be so stunning and I hope you can find use for them. I’d be incredibly happy to see any of them used in other games. Have fun!

Important note: I won’t be linking all of their CC, as it’s a lot, and you’re welcome to give them a makeover anyway. Things I won’t link are hairstyles, eyebrows, clothes, and patterns. If you need a specific piece of CC, you can shoot me a message and I’ll try to find it for you.

However, I’ll link some of the essential CC - for instance, their berry skins and some things that make them unique, such as starry blushes, scars, etc. (if a sim comes with these, you’re recommended to download them, as it’s a part of who they are).

I’ll also link some non-essential CC, e.g. glasses (if a sim wears them, you can either download these, use similar ones, or don’t use any and play it as them wearing contact lenses), beards, and makeup (I’m linking it because everyone pretty much uses the same one).

TOU: Don’t claim them as your own or reupload, don’t change their face features and genetics. You can change anything else in their looks (hairstyle, makeup, clothes, your own defaults etc.) and use them for whatever you want (legacies, stories, challenges, populating your worlds). Tag me if you use them :)

Download: 

Razzie / Begonia / Hyacinth

Byzantine / Columbine / Pond Lily / Cashmere / Flamingo / Tabby

Shimmer / Flicker / Flare / Gleam / Ember

Oriole / Agate / Cassia

Carambola / Bergamot / Daffodil / Willow

Melissa / Malachite / Cerulean

Cascade / Eldoris

Zaffre / Sapphire / Harpsichord

Stellar / Serenity / Zephyr

Estella Sky

Or you can download everyone at once!

CC: 

Fawkes, Scattergenes, and Everything Nice skins (for everyone) (recommended)

Starry face blush (for Columbine), alien blushes (for Willow, Malachite, Stellar, and Estella Sky) (recommended)

Scars (for Ember and Cassia) (recommended)

Glasses (for Razzie), Round glasses (for Pond Lily), Hello Kitty glasses (for Eldoris)

Simple Life #9 blush, noseshine #2, ear blush (for everyone)

Eyeshadow, lipstick #11, S-Club eyelashes 1, 2, 3, mesh (for ladies)

Scruff 1 & scruff 2 (for Hyacinth, Flare, and Oriole)

[fionacreates]

Sorry, just saw someone beat me to the Byzantine! Maybe Ming dynasty cerulean?

[the-order-of-release]

“You have understood, and described in poetic terms, the multitudinous and turbid glimmers which constitute the prismatic art of that goldsmith-magician. Oh, what a mute and ever-changing fire sleeps within his jewels, what minute details of animals or flowers are set by him in the depths of gems! You have elegantly sung the praises of that golden flora, which is at once Byzantine, Egyptian and Renaissance! You have grasped the corraline quality of those submarine jewels — yes, submarine, for it is as if the almost-cerulean bloom of beryls, peridots, opals and pale sapphires, the colour of seaweeds and waves, has rested for a long time at the bottom of the sea. Like the rings of Solomon or the cups of the King of Thule, they belong to the caskets of cities engulfed by the sea; the daughter of the king of Ys must have worn such jewels when she delivered the keys of the lock-gates to the Demon...

“Oh, the Barruchini necklaces, those rills of blue and green stones, those over-weighty bracelets encrusted with opals! Gustave Moreau has decked the nude bodies of his damned princesses with them. They are the jewellery of Cleopatra and Salomé. They are also the jewellery of legend, the jewellery of moonlight and evening.

“ ‘And that which took place in times most ancient.’

That is the formula, as you have written, which springs to the lips when one confronts these glazed fruits, these flowers of polished stone set in gold. It is of Egypt and of the divided Roman Empire especially that these jewels of Memphis and Byzantium make one dream, but perhaps they remind one even more of the city of the king of Ys and its submerged lock-gates.”

-Monsieur de Phocas, Jean Lorrain

[thephantomcasebook]

Visual Guide to Adventurer George “The Comet” Crawley’s search for the “The Vanishing Princess” (1928 - 1936)

Luthien Tinuviel: (Elven Princess/Original Incantation)

“While exploring the throne room of the kings and queens, I found this.” The boy suddenly put up next to the masterful illustration of Lady Elfstone a large photograph of a mural upon a pearl marble wall.

Martha Levinson took a step closer as if drawn in by what she saw. It was a painting of a woman dancing by moonlight through a forest. Fireflies fluttered about her painted figure as she moved. The young woman had long raven tresses that were sown with flowers of the forest. Her figure was pale and slender with bright shining grey eyes. The loose gown she wore was cerulean and made of a fine silk that sparkled in the moonlight. For a moment, Martha was once more overtaken with the same overwhelming sense of sorrowful love for the woman in the wall mural as Lady Elfstone. She caught herself reaching out to touch the photograph. When she noticed it, the old woman cleared her throat and withdrew her hand, refusing to glance to the kid for his reaction. The young adventurer looked up at her, but yet, there was no judgement in his eyes to her emotion.

Lady Elfstone: (Last Princess of Byzantium/ First Lady of the House of Grantham/ Second Incarnation)

“Who is she?” She desperately stifled the emotion in her throat.

“This is the Lady Elfstone …” The boy read from the ancient inscription in the chronicle. “To what her real name is, I don’t know, they don’t say. She was a Byzantine Princess, the last of the Imperial House. She had fled the fall of Constantinople. How she got to England, no one knows, not even the monks of the abbey. She washed up in Wales and was found by a Tudor Lord. They said that she had never spoke of her life in Byzantium again, “fore the grief of her people’s ancestral city afire was too great”. But she was a beauty like holy sapphi … uh, well, to sum up, they say she was really beautiful. And uh, her voice was a match for even a heavenly chorus. She was kept as a prize of the Lancastrian Court in London. The monks here say that only her presence and the Grecian hymnals and songs she wove could quell the fits of madness that would overcome Henry VI, and so Margaret of Anjou kept her a prisoner in the tower.” The boy turned the page. He blew on the dry piece of parchment as he leaned close to read. “It seemed that Queen Margaret wanted to give her to the Lancastrian Heir. But on the day of their wedding, she uh, she fled, I guess. Someone smuggled her out of the castle … and she rode for Yorkist lands in Northern England. She sought sanctuary at … Downton Abbey.” The boy stopped and looked up in surprise at Martha. For a just a beat they felt a pang of something, a tiny breath upon their neck, a slender figure crowned in roses that sat upon the sofa watching them. The boy shook his head and continued.

“The monks took her in, but uh, Lords Somerset and Percy marched an army to take her back …”

“Must have been one hell of a woman.”

“Yeah, well they incurred the wrath of the Knight of the county … Sir Grantham “The Black Dragon”. He was the bastard son of Lady Katherine Percy, and Lord Percy’s half-brother, whose land the abbey was on. There was a battle on that field over there.” The boy pointed past the columned veranda at the edge of the gardens. “They outnumbered Sir Grantham’s forces three to one, but the Knight wouldn’t yield to them the beautiful Lady for any price, threat, or odds … eventually, the “Black Dragon” stood alone and surrounded, fighting his last stand by the doors of the abbey itself taking up a notched battle axe and stricken helm, but uh, he fought off waves of enemies, still unwilling to surrender the Princess even then. Oh, well, lucky for him, Edward of York arrived with his father’s men and drove the Lancastrians off Grantham’s land. But still, he was wounded, having cut down many of the greatest of the Lancastrian Knights in defense of the Lady. It says here that the monks and the Princess healed him, and there …” The boy was quiet a moment. “Sir Grantham fell in love with the nameless princess who sat up with him through the worst of it. He gave to her the name … Lady Elfstone for how she shimmered in the sunlight by the abbey’s windows.” There was a touch of a sad smile of reverence on his face as he turned the page with a crackling of ancient binding.

But then the boy didn’t say anything else.

“If I wanted damn cliff hanger I’d go to a serial, Cowboy.” Martha scoffed in annoyance. “What happened next?” She pressed.

The kid flipped through several pages, then flipped back. “I dunno …” The boy said in genuine confusion. “This is where the entry stops.”

Ilona Tepes: (Princess of Wallachia/ Third Incarnation) 

“Yeah, well if you’re freaking out about that …” the boy retrieved his leather folder. “Then this will put some hair on your … uh …” He looked Martha up and down for a moment. “Well, it’ll put hair on whatever it is you have, uh, down there.” He cleared his throat with quirk of his eyebrows awkwardly. He took the spot next to the old woman, ignoring her two clenched fists placed on her hips with a deeply grudging glare directed at him.

“Alright …” The boy cleared the air. “So, about a century after the first Lord and Lady Grantham’s deaths there was a Prince of Wallachia in Transylvania named Vlad that they called Dracul, which translates into “The Dragon”.” The boy explained. “He married an English noble woman named Ilona, I don’t know where she came from, and there isn’t a lot known about her … most of her records were scrubbed by someone long ago. But there is one thing that survived the Catholic Churches purging of the House of Tepes. A Triptych of Ilona was painted by an artist named Dresden and was send as sort of a wedding present to her husband. I don’t know where the original is, no one does, they think it got destroyed along with Alexander Grayson …”

“Oh yeah, I remember that moron. Industrialist. The dumb bastard blew up half of London with his newfangled electro power machine thingamajig. Cora and Robert were supposed to go to that unveiling, but Mary was kicking inside her, and they stayed home … about the last useful thing that girl ever did, and she wasn’t even born yet.”

“You’ll hear no disagreement from me.” The kid replied with an easy bitterness. “Either way, whether Grayson died with it or not, there is a record of it being sold to a Lord Davenport who was the uncle of Lord Anthony Strallen.” He shrugged.

“Wait? The chud who left Edith at the alter …?” She blew out a bitter scoff. “Is there anyone who owned this thing that wasn’t a prick?” She asked rhetorically. “I swear, having this triptych or whatever is more judgement on the owner at this point.” She waved off.

The adventurer glared in a long pause. “Anyway …” He pushed past her rant. “There is an insurance claim on the painting from the auction house that it was bought from.” The boy put another photograph next to the drawing of lady Elfstone over the page of the inscription.

“You can’t be serious.” Martha shook her head scratching her ear.

The photograph showed a renaissance painting that was separated in three folding parts. On the left section was a slender maiden standing in an arch by a window which had the Castle Dracul in the distance upon a field of green. She had long tresses of raven hair and cerulean eyes. Upon her lithe and milky frame was a simple dress of pure white, one slender hand clutching the skirt. To the right was the same woman standing in the same arch but by a different window which was now viewing countryside farm fields of wheat upon sloping ground. This time she clutched a red cloth over her white gown. Both depictions of the same woman from right to left faced one another, each one seemingly staring at the main painting in the center. Once more it was the same woman. But this time she was centered in front of a wall that was flanked by a piece of each adjacent window from left and right of the folding painting. She was regal with a head crowned by a golden band and a matching braided chain necklace. Garbed in a gown of red with thick white sleeves underneath, Ilona Tepes seemed a saint in the three painted depictions.

She also was the exact replica of both women that sat to her left on the puzzle desk.

“Her too?” Martha exclaimed. “Jesus Christ, Kid, how many of these broads are there?” She asked. But when she turned to the boy, he only blew out a breath with a look that was telling. 

“You’re kidding me?!”

Mina Murray: (First Female Medical Student, University of London/ Fourth Incarnation)

“So, we flash forward nearly four-hundred years later to London in the 1890s …”

“Skip ahead “professor”, I know the steps to this one, I was there ...”

“Sore subject?”

“Sore nostrils, everything smelt like piss, including Buckingham Palace. And there was shit everywhere … horse and human.”

“Then you should’ve felt right at home with amount you shovel.”

“Yeah, well, open wide, Cowboy, so you can eat some. It’s on the house.”

“With your monopoly, I bet it is …”  

“…”

“…”

Both glaring at one another, the boy slapped the scrap book packet next to the photograph of the Triptych. On the front page of the paper was a black and white picture of a young woman with a bonnet of blue with matching ribbon, leather gloves, and long overcoat that covered a white blouse. In her arms was a collection of books against her breast, with a blue umbrella hooked on her wrist. Once more, though less surprising now, the beauty in the picture matched that of the previous women on the puzzle desk. Raven hair, milky skin, slim, with demure and innocent eyes that sparkled. But what was different was that a sudden light of recognition hit Martha Levinson as she studied the paper, flipping through articles.

“This is …” The adventurer began

“Wilhelmina Murray.” The old woman finished for him. “Yeah, I remember her.” She nodded. “We met ten or twelve times when Cora was doing her first and second Season in London. She was the daughter of old Dr. William Murray. He ran Royal Bethlehem. I believe my husband and I made quite a sizeable contribution to expanding their Psych Ward. In fact, I believe they named the new wing after me.”

“They named the Psych Ward in Royal Bethlehem after you?”

“Yeah …”

“…”

“…”

“Shut up!”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“No, but you were thinking it.”

“Entry for the defense?”

“I’ll allowed it.”

“I’ve been thinking that since we met.”

“Fair enough. You know, us Southerners like our women religious … and just a bit mad.”

“Your preachers gotta learn it from somewhere, I guess.”  

With a momentary understanding reached, Martha flipped through the packet. “Yeah, beautiful girl … she had brains too. She was the first female medical student at the University of London.” She nodded. “I remember, she was always trailed by some young thing that lived in her front pocket. What was her name? Uh, hmm … Oh, right, Lucy! Lady Lucy Westenra, that’s it. She was a sleek blonde piece of bitch that one. Seemed odd that the shark of a woman hung around with such a gorgeous little lamb.” Martha shook her head.

“You seem to remember her rather well.” The kid observed.  

The old woman glared. “Like I said, I was there.” She put the papers down. “Anyway, she was hard to forget. After Robert and Cora got engaged, they started to do fluff pieces in the New York papers and one of them involved Ms. Mina Murray.” She shrugged.

“What was it?” The tone in the boy’s voice was suddenly serious.

When the woman looked over, she saw that the mentioning of Cora and Mina in relation captured his attention. It seemed in that instance that there was something about this mystery that was personal to the boy. That underneath all the intrigue and research there was a very serious reason that he was chasing this “Princess in the Mirror”. Something cold ran up Martha’s spine in a maternal six sense. Slowly, she was beginning to realize that whatever this was, it had everything to do with her family, her little girls, all of them.

When Martha answered it was with a new caution. “They were mistaken for one another sometimes. They went to similar parties during the Season and reporters approached Mina, thinking her Cora. “The New Yorker” did a fun article about Cora’s popularity in London and the mistaken identity craze between Cora and Mina. They even photographed them together … Listen, Cowboy, I shovel shit for a living, so I know what it smells like. Are you gonna tell me what’s going on here?” She asked.

“She’s dead …” He blurted out as if it was the answer to her question.

The old woman frowned. “What?” She didn’t know why, but a deep pang of hurt filled her when she heard him. The boy, morosely, turned and retrieved something from his pack.

“How do you know?” She asked in a grimace.

“Because …” The boy held in reverence a long crimson scarf in his hands that looked tattered and damaged. 

“I was there.”

Lady Sybil “Sybbie” Afton Branson: (Contested Viscountess of Downton Abbey/Heiress to Branson and Talbot Motors/ The Final Incarntion)

But then, in that very moment … she saw it.

“Sybbie … can you come here, baby?”

The girl frowned in puzzlement gliding toward the old woman’s hands. It was the dress of sapphire and silver, the white roses abloom she wore in her glossy raven tresses, and the morning tide of a beauty unrivaled but for golden and graceful Marigold only. She gently took the girl’s delicate face in her hands and looked into her near glowing cerulean eyes that were inquisitive. Then, it was clear as day who she was looking at.

It began in an enchanted forest with an angelic maiden of pre-history. Then, thousands of years later, came a lost, broken hearted, and desperate Princess of Byzantium, the last of that ancient race. There was Ilona Tepes, finer than all of the gold and silver in Wallachia, burned at the stake for her husband’s sins. Afterward came Mina Murray, kind, smart, and a tragic pawn in many a game of worldly consequence who died in the darkness of an evil temple many leagues under the fathom’s abyss. And now, raised gently and with boundless love in the fairy halls of Downton Abbey, there was Ms. Sybil Afton Branson.

Even as her thumb rubbed the little girl’s cheekbone cherishingly, the old woman looked up to the kid who stood off to the side clasping his fob watch in hand. Then, she saw the recognition in his blue eyes of her finally seeing what he had known all along. There were so many things unspoken in one acknowledging glance that drew both back to the pictures. Then, it was clear why the boy had done all of this, why he was so terribly invested in finding the answers to this repeating curse of doom or fate.

It was a great labor, a secret mission, and a case of lonesome obsession. Whatever tormented him, the chief of these emotions which drove him on was love and fear. He knew of the fate of all these women who had shared a greater destiny and doom. And it was by great love that he feared for Sybbie’s very future. He knew that whatever waited for her, there was greatness mingled with a matching sorrow whose ending was that of despair and ruin. What strength was in the boy, however little he knew of in himself, despite what others saw in great store, he would not allow these terrible things to happen to her. With all his power, he vowed to protect one whom he cherished above all things left to him in this world.

He would not fail to save a girl he loved, not this time … never again.

Conclusion - Of the fall of the House of Grantham and it’s exiled Heirs

Many lives of the ancient past and future yet lived flashed like a runaway train that rolled without break through the infinite whose tracks were lain through her mind, heart, and soul. Tears ran down the pale cheeks of this indefinitely young creature of surpassing loveliness. In her induced state, she was all of them at once. In her consciousness was each woman of regeneration since the days before days. But also, the final incarnation, whose betrayal in the arms of a Nazi husband from the beautiful grounds of their South American estate would lead to the fall of the House of Grantham and the beginning of “The Long Defeat” of its exiled heirs.

Yet, the adventurer’s mind was not on the plight of his future children. Nor did he comprehend their and his own betrayal by one whom he loves and would search vainly for in a terrible torment of many long years of despair after her capture during the war and disappearance afterward. And further still did he not know of the terrible evil that would be found this day, and ever afterward curse him and his line of descendants with its hatred and malice. Yet, if he did have the foresight and providence for such a moment … the youth would still not budge, nor give an inch. Even if all the suffering of his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren swirled about him in a roar of sorrow and despair like a rolling river rapid, he still would not yield the maiden fair at any cost to himself or his kin.

This was clearly seen, but not yet respected by Professor James Moriarty.

(Taken from the Downton Abbey Fanfic “Medel an Gwyns”)

[particlexgalaxy-blog]

10 flower asks of your choice.

Arum-Lily: What’s the farthest you’d go for a stranger? -I wouldn’t really. Strangers make me uncomfortable.

Aubrieta: Favorite drink? -I really like teas. All kinds of teas. Tea is good.

Begonia: Favorite color? -I find blue the most appealing. Blue-grey, cerulean, alice blue, byzantine blue, teal blue, sky blue, indigo, midnight blue, aqua, ultramarine, ice blue, periwinkle, cyan, persian blue, sapphire...

Bellflower: Favorite animal? -Cats are nice

Bugleherb: How would you spend your last day on Earth? -Why would my last day be any different from any other day? Where would I be going that I wouldn’t be on Earth anymore?

False Goat’s Beard: What is something you are good at? -Drawing. I’m really good at drawing things. And painting too. They’re my favourite things to do.

Foxgloves: What’s something you’re bad at? -People. I’m not good at people-ing.

Heliotropium: What helps you calm down when you feel stressed? -My art is often my coping mechanism.

Peony: What was your first job? -Well, the job I’m working now. I’ve been there for a long time now. I reshelve books in a library. It’s nice. I don’t generally have to directly deal with people. And I know every section and where every book goes.

Pink: Where is home? -What are you talking about? My apartment is my home. Are you asking for the address? Because I’d rather that not be public knowledge...