#elves vs humans

[chaotic-orphan]

A Benignant Mischief (6)

Read part one here

Continued from here

Hahahhh I finished it finally! I love my boys so much, they fill my heart with so much joy :;) @annablogsposts this obsession is all your fault! I need to make a masterpost for this... anyways, ENJOY!

*~*~*~*~*

They rode in silence back to the Kingswood as one of the soldier’s had called it. Cosimo had scrunched his nose up at that name. How can a woods be owned by a King? Nature was its own master. Besides, there wouldn’t be Elfbows there if the original inhabitants of the forest were humans. No, Cosimo had the sneaking suspicion that this was the forest Henrik had told him about in his story of Niko’s father.

Cosimo remembered his tutor, one of the Elder Elves, telling him about the histories of their people. How they would live in harmony with nature, together as one, both giving and taking in equal measures. How the humans would come like an invasive species and only ever take… upsetting the balance of the earth to build their soulless cities and castles and nature be damned. Animals be damned.

“Nothing is sacred to humans, Cosimo,” Ludwig had told him. “They are selfish creatures. They would sacrifice anything to satiate their own greed.”

Cosimo’s eyes had gone wide at Ludwig’s cautionary words. He spoke them with such hatred that was foreign coming from the teacher’s mouth. Ludwig was patient, kind, compassionate — so hearing him speak with such malice, it struck a chord within Cosimo that echoed now in his mind and his chest. Jarring, eerie and wrong.

Was he making the right choice in leading the humans to the boy that Cosimo was trying to protect? Was there any way he could possibly distract them? Sneak off and find the boy and the fox and run?

Nestor’s laugh made his chest ache, as he floated into the memory without Cosimo’s permission. Nestor and his happy-go-lucky grin. After he heard Ludwig’s take on the humans he joined the conversation, leaning down heavy on Ludwig’s shoulders. Cosimo remembers smiling as the Elder rolled his eyes.

There was only one elf who would do such a thing.

“Ah, Ludwig. You are scaring the boy.”

“I am merely teaching,” Ludwig said, the hatred gone from his voice as he straightened his spine and grabbed Nestor’s arm lifting it from around his neck. “You should know better than to interrupt.”

“Always good to be a little nosey,” Nestor said, lifting his eyes to meet Cosimo’s and winking at him. “Eh, Cosimo?”

Cosimo’s smile grew into a cheap copy of Nestor’s mischievous grin. “You should know better than to fill his head with such nonsense, Nestor. Not all elves have the freedom to be as carefree as you.”

“If he’s learning the bad he can learn the good of the humans too, no? About their music? Their art? Their love, Ludwig.”

“The boy is but a child,” Ludwig hissed, glaring at Nestor. Cosimo swallowed as Nestor’s smile fell from his face. Ludwig stood to his full height, turning his body slightly to stare at Nestor down his crooked nose. “It is better he be cautious around humans than seek them out for no good reason.”

Cosimo’s heart pounded in his skull but he couldn’t just sit by and watch Nestor be scolded. “I would never do such a thing, Ludwig.”

The two elves turned their head to look at Cosimo who was standing now too, head high, chin up, determined. “I heed your warning. You’re my teacher. I want to learn from you, and from your experiences. What reason would I have to leave court in search of humans? I have everything I need right here.”

Ludwig cocked an arched brow at Cosimo’s words, a begrudgingly proud tightness wound his jaw. “You are too smart for your age, Cosimo.”

“That’s because he has an ancient elder schooling him,” Nestor said with a cheeky laugh, slapping a hearty palm onto Ludwig’s back. “I’m heading out on a reconnaissance mission today.”

“To the humans?” Cosimo asked, ignoring the scolding glance Ludwig sent his way.

Nestor scrunched his lips up. “Sort of. More like, seeing them at a distance. If they’re close to the court we can disguise it better or hide it well, make sure the humans don’t disturb us and just walk past the court.”

“You should go do it then,” Ludwig told him. “Let me get on with my job.”

Nestor hummed sagely, nodding in agreement. “Yes. I agree. Cosimo remember to frown when he speaks so he knows you take him seriously.”

Cosimo laughed as Ludwig shoved Nestor away playfully in reply. “Get out of here.”

“I’m gone.”

Cosimo stared after Nestor who waved before disappearing from sight. Ludwig settled back down, sitting once more and gazed up at Cosimo. “What is it, boy?”

Cosimo swallowed, snapping himself out of his daze and sat back down across from Ludwig. “I just wonder what reconnaissance missions would be like.”

“If Nestor’s anything to go by, clearly it drives you mad.”

Cosimo smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “I mean being that close to humans.”

Ludwig’s gaze was heavy on Cosimo’s face, studying the young elf’s features. His high cheekbones and shrewd eyes, always busy, always calculating something behind them. It wasn’t the first time Ludwig had been left out of Cosimo’s musings, but even so… he wanted to know what the boy thought. How his mind worked. But that wasn’t Ludwig’s job.

“We resume,” is all Ludwig said. Cosimo blinked and he was staring at Ludwig, focused once more. He nodded and shifted in his seat, clasping his hands together in front of him. “We resume.”

The memory left, leaving a sense of uneasiness in its wake. Maybe Ludwig was being over-cautious, sometimes he was like that.

And the humans only ever treated us with kindness, a sarcastic voice hissed in the back of Cosimo’s mind. Take off the hood and see their true colours.

Cosimo ignored the voice and focused on the task at hand. They were amongst the trees now, coming close to the camp. Maybe another twenty minute ride.

“Everything okay, Cosimo?” Henrik asked. Cosimo took a deep breath. Everything seemed too big right now. Too much for him to grasp between his fingers and wrestle under his control. All he needed to do was find the boy. Once he saw him, he would be fine. Everything will be fine.

“I just want to find my brother,” Cosimo told Henrik, careful to remember that’s what Cosimo had told the King and his right hand. A lie. He had told them a lie, and when they found out… what would they do to Cosimo then?

When they arrived at the camp Cosimo’s heart jumped into his mouth, remembering the events that happened here yesterday? Today? That brought him back here. How Henrik was the one who kicked him to the ground and kept him there. Cuffing him, bringing him to the palace… it turned Cosimo’s stomach.

Henrik climbed off Ebony behind him, and Cosimo lifted his leg over the saddle to slide down himself beside Henrik. He brushed the hood back off his head, the earth under his feet feeling like a sigh of relief. Nikolas came over to the pair as someone led Henrik’s horse away to be tied off.

“Well, Cosimo,” Nikolas said with a sweeping gesture. “Lead the way.”

Cosimo nodded, searching for the stream he had crossed. He prayed that nobody had been through here since he was. No elf, nobody who came looking. Let the boy be there.

He crossed the stream first, then looked over his shoulder to the King and his right hand. He straightened himself, shoulders pulling back, making himself taller before speaking. “Would it be okay if I went and retrieved the— my brother before I introduce him to all of you? He might be frightened.”

Nikolas tilted his head slightly, regarding Cosimo with his discerning green eyes. Nikolas pursed his lips. “No, Cosimo. I think it’s best if we find him together. What if you get lost?”

Cosimo scoffed. “I’m an elf. I can’t get lost in the forest.”

“All the same,” Nikolas said with a kind smile and a little shrug. Cosimo swallowed and faced forward again, gathering his discarded water container and walking up the slippery bank to the trail on top. He was so close… he could run, the likelihood of the humans catching him was slim. He could disappear in the trees, come out when they had given up looking for him. The boy would be safe in the Elfbow.

Unless the elves started looking for him too. The thought unsettled him more, in which case he would be better off with the humans. So Cosimo planted his feet even though he wanted so badly to run. He had to remember who he was, he wasn’t some scared boy. He had to trust his instincts, they got him this far. Everything would be fine.

“I could do with your long legs,” Nikolas said to Cosimo with an airy laugh as he climbed the bank.

“Or maybe it’s the lack of shoes,” Henrik mused, nodding at Cosimo’s bare feet. “It gives you more grip.”

“Perhaps you humans should whine less,” Cosimo said with a smirk, which only grew when the two humans full attention was on the elf. “It seems to weigh you down more, makes you slow.”

Henrik laughed his deep heart chuckle, and slapped Cosimo between his shoulder blades playfully. It was Nikolas who spoke next: “You lead the way from here, Cosimo. Hopefully we can find your brother before dark.”

Cosimo’s smile dimmed a bit at the edges as he bowed his head slightly. “Of course. This way.”

They trekked in silence back the way Cosimo came, the trees and trail familiar, the forest floor almost guiding him to where he needed to be. Cosimo prayed that the boy be okay. That he’s safe. That the elves didn’t find him and take him back to court or worse.

When the elfbow came into Cosimo’s sight he took off into a run. “There!” Henrik and the King’s footsteps thundered behind as Cosimo ran through the thick coat of leaves with ease. He craned his neck around the tree, chest heaving to see the fox in the nook, cuddled up beside the sleeping boy. Sweat soaked hair clung to the boy’s forehead and he looked far more pale than the last time Cosimo had seen him.

“Cosimo?!”

Cosimo pressed his forehead against the elfbow under his palm and closed his eyes in relief. Thank you. I’m here to take him again.

“Cosimo?” Henrik called from faraway. “Where are you?”

Cosimo’s eyes shot open. Humans couldn’t come into the sanctuary of the elder trees. Elfbows served elves and were almost sacred in their protection. After the humans started destroying forests to clear way for cities and villages, the elder trees made a pact with one of the first elves: that if the elves protected the tree then, it would serve as protector for future generations. Or so the story went.

The court elders always made a point of telling Cosimo that if he was ever lost or scared to find an elfbow and he would be safe from humans. It only occurred to him then, that he could just hide with the boy here and Henrik and Nikolas would never find them.

The humans wouldn’t find them, he reminded himself. Elfbows don’t protect elves from elves. A smaller voice, a childlike voice in the back of his mind continued: and who are you more scared of?

“I’m here,” Cosimo called back, unsure if they would be able to hear him. “He’s here, he’s alright. I’ll be just a second.”

The fox tilted her head as Cosimo entered the small nook, and watched silently as Cosimo hooked one arm under the boys neck and the other under the boys knees and lifted him from the soil and blanket of leaves. The boy was cold and covered in a thick sheen of sweat that made Cosimo’s heart race.

Surely the humans could heal him, they could fix him. Do something! They would know more. The fox chirped at Cosimo’s heel, bowed into a deep stretch her tail swishing as she stood. Black beady eyes peered up at Cosimo and he understood that she was asking: what now? Even if he wanted to, Cosimo couldn’t dissuade the fox from following and protecting the boy. Foxes were far too cunning to be tricked by a young elf.

The boy was far more lifeless than ever, his chest rising shallowly. Cosimo didn’t waste anymore time in the Elfbow’s protection. He emerged from under a sheet of leaves to see Henrik and King Nikolas with their backs turned to Cosimo.

“Here,” Cosimo rushed out, voice hitching as his feet carried him quickly across the distance to the two humans he decided to trust. Even though this could all be a farce, Cosimo was desperate. The fox pattered along behind him.

The humans turned at the sound of Cosimo’s voice, eyes drawn to the half alive boy in his arms. Henrik rushed over went to take the boy out of Cosimo’s hands but Cosimo turned at the last moment, wide panicked eyes meeting Henrik’s stunned gaze turning sympathetic.

“I have him,” Cosimo said, tone clipped. Henrik straightened, nodding.

Nikolas was the one to move them along. “We need to get him to Artzet immediately.”

“Will he be able to fix him?” Cosimo asked, following the humans back through the forest to the camp.

Henrik leaned into Nikolas and said quietly: “Niko, did you—”

“Yes,” Nikolas replied quickly, cutting Henrik off. He glanced over his shoulder at Cosimo, but the fae had his eyes and attention fixed solely on the unconscious boy in his arms, expression tight with worry. “Now’s not the time, Henrik. We can talk more once we get the boy back to Artzet.”

“Did you see the fox?”

Nikolas laughed, low and rich. “Yes. I saw.”

“Do you think it’s coming along too?”

“I don’t think we could dissuade it even if we tried.”

Cosimo was oblivious to the conversation ahead of him as he carefully stepped down the bank of the stream and hopped it effortlessly. The fox padded along beside him, not even faltering when they emerged into the humans camp.

“Come, men,” Nikolas called to the camp. “We are to be off as soon as we ready the horses.”

They didn’t need to be told twice. Soldiers milled to action. It was a smaller party than Henrik was with so within minutes they were packed and on horseback again.

Henrik stood beside Ebony and held his arms out to Cosimo. Cosimo’s sharp eyes cut into Henrik, narrow, untrusting. Henrik tried to look as reassuring as possible.

“You can’t get on the horse with him in your arms, Cosimo. Don’t worry, I’ll give him right back.”

Cosimo worried his bottom lip before nodding with a sigh. He passed the boy to Henrik’s strong arms and hesitated before releasing the boy. He quickly climbed up onto Ebony and held his arms out for the boy again.

Henrik’s smile was kind and reassuring as he passed the boy up to Cosimo before mounting the horse behind them. The fox sat in front of Ebony’s snout as she grazed, beady black eyes peering up at the elf.

“Will the fox be joining us?” Henrik asked.

Cosimo nodded. “She will walk behind. I don’t think she’ll mind the distance.”

“Still, it is a long way to go for such little legs,” Nikolas said coming to a stop beside them. “Will she let me carry her?”

Cosimo looked at the fox who tilted her head at him. A silent understanding passed between them, and Cosimo nodded.

“Yeah, she’ll let you pick her up.”

“Come on sweet thing,” Nikolas said, crouching and extending his hands to her. The fox walked towards him, sniffing his hand before plodding up to him and letting herself be lifted. “Oh, she’s so soft. I think I’ll ride with her beside you, so she can still see you both.”

Cosimo nodded. “Of course.”

Nikolas did just that and then they set off out of the king’s wood back to palace, Cosimo holding the boy tight to his chest. Henrik put the hood over Cosimo’s head before they reached the city gates, the cloak partly obscured the sleeping boy’s face, the other pressed into Cosimo’s chest.

Nikolas had one soldier ride ahead and tell Artzet to prepare a bed for the unconscious boy. They didn’t stop for chats with villagers this time, the air of urgency within their ranks must have carried outwards because no one stopped Nikolas for a catchup as they raced through the streets. Hooves clapped like thunder with steady, rhythmic beats as they passed the village to the wealthier residential area and finally the gates of the palace came into view.

“Just hold on,” Cosimo whispered, tightening his hold on the boy as they trotted to the stables. Henrik dismounted quickly, spreading his arms for the boy. Cosimo hesitated, again, but he didn’t have time to waste. This was life or death and Cosimo vowed he would keep the boy safe. They had come too far to risk it all over Cosimo’s feelings.

Cosimo had just passed the boy to Henrik when Nikolas appeared beside them, fox at his heels. Anxiety at not having the boy close crawled thick up Cosimo’s spine along with a sudden warm feeling as he jumped off Ebony. He had only begun to take a step towards Henrik when his vision swam with an impenetrable darkness. The world swayed and his body became like lead and he was falling.

A warm chest caught him before he could make contact with the ground. Cosimo let out a startled gasp, hands reaching up to hold onto the solid person that kept him upright, his body shivering as strong hands wrapped around him, reassuring.

“It’s okay, Cosimo,” Nikolas told him. “You’re okay. You’ve had a very long day.”

“The boy—” Cosimo mumbled, his tongue heavy as he tried to push his legs to work properly so he could stand on his own. An elf leaning on a human… what would the Elders think?

“We’ll get him to Artzet, as promised, dear boy. Henrik will carry him—”

“No.”

“Yes, you can barely stand. Don’t worry, you and I will head up together. Henrik and Artzet will take good care of him.”

Cosimo wanted to protest but there was no time. Instead he fought back tears as he nodded meekly. “Okay.”

Nikolas nodded at Henrik. Henrik turned on his heel and within seconds disappeared into the palace. Cosimo turned in Nikolas’s hold, one hand fisting the fabric of the King’s tunic in a stranglehold to keep standing. He only stopped when he was standing shoulder to shoulder with Nikolas. Nikolas wrapped an arm around Cosimo, the other ready to catch him if he tried to make a move.

“Easy, Cosimo.”

Cosimo risked a step forward. He would have fallen if it wasn’t for Nikolas’s strong arm holding him up. Cosimo let out a breathy curse in elvish, frustrated at his temporary weakness. He needed to get to Henrik and the boy. He needed to make sure they didn’t do anything bad to him. What if they locked him in iron cuffs? What then?

Something scratched the back of his brain but Cosimo didn’t have the energy to focus on it or give it the light of day.

“Just wait a second, Cosimo, it will pass. Your brother’s not going anywhere.”

The air around him was thick and clammy, like there was no actual oxygen getting to his lungs, as if he was inhaling tiny amounts of iron with every breath. He wouldn’t put it past Rochus to do something like that, poison the air while Cosimo was away.

Nikolas reached over to Ebony’s saddle bag and pulled Henrik’s waterskin from it. “Here, drink this. You’ll feel better.”

Cosimo took it from Nikolas, unscrewed the bottle and drank it down. The cool liquid was soothing and refreshing as it went down Cosimo’s throat and he found the more he drank the more he wanted to drink. He finished the container of water and opened his eyes, already feeling a ten times better than before.

Nikolas grinned. “Better?”

“Yes,” Cosimo said, handing him the empty water-skin. “Much better. Can we go to Artzet now?”

Nikolas laughed and shook his head fondly. For a short, heart-stopping moment Cosimo thought the king shaking his head side to side meant no, and Cosimo’s mind conjured up the worst.

“You are a determined boy, Cosimo.”

Cosimo felt his cheeks flush pink as he stepped forward, trying to hide his reaction from the king. Nikolas stepped with him until they got to the railing on the stairs. Cosimo let go of Nikolas’s arm and placed all his weight on the railing. He could do this. He could get to the boy. He was so close to saving them.

Once they were up the stairs Nikolas led Cosimo, arm in arm, to Artzet’s clinic. Cosimo almost cried when he saw the boy, something in his arm that connected him to a bag of water. A damp cloth over his forehead.

Myshka was sitting on one bed over, observing Artzet as he worked. Henrik greeted them. “Ah, you’re here. Good.”

“Is it serious?” Cosimo rushed out.

“No, no. Boy is good, strong, healthy of heart,” Artzet replied, smiling at Cosimo over his shoulder. “He will make full recovery.”

“He’ll be okay?” Cosimo whispered, not willing to believe his ears or eyes or anything as he walked with heavy feet to the end of the boy’s bed. The fox was laying there, curled up at the end of his bed and made a noise of recognition when Cosimo approached.

“He will be fine, boy,” Artzet said again, looking to Henrik and Nikolas with a shrug. “I thought that is what I said?”

“Cosimo’s had a long day,” Henrik said. “The two of them both need some rest.”

Cosimo didn’t dare blink in case the world would trick him and make the boy disappear. He couldn’t sleep, not until the boy woke up. He had to make sure the boy was okay. That he didn’t doom them both.

“You say boy is your brother?” Artzet asked, eyes as wide as an owls. Cosimo swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. Did he catch him in a lie?

“Good,” Artzet said happily. “Then I know he will be okay. He will be as strong as his big brother, uh? Now, I set up bed beside him for you to sleep.”

Cosimo glanced up at Artzet and nodded fervently. Nikolas made a noise behind him. “Cosimo, I think a proper bed would be better. Hospital beds are uncomfortable—”

“Niko,” Henrik said softly. Nikolas sighed. Cosimo turned to look at the King. His shoulders sagged as he yielded.

“Okay. Fine, I know I won’t convince you otherwise, but Cosimo, the minute you and your brother are better you—”

Nikolas cut himself off as Cosimo crossed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around the King, squeezing tightly.

“Thank you,” Cosimo whispered. Nikolas let out a soft, shocked breath of a laugh, wrapping his arms tentatively around the elf.

“It’s my pleasure,” Nikolas replied as Cosimo stepped out of his embrace. “I will go and prepare your rooms. Artzet, I leave the boys in your capable hands.”

“Your majesty,” Artzet said with a bow.

“I’ll stay too,” Henrik said, patting Cosimo’s shoulder. “Until you’re asleep.”

“Full house!” Artzet cried, drawing the covers back on the bed beside the sleeping boy’s. Cosimo walked over to it and climbed in, thanking Artzet and Henrik as he pressed his head to the pillow. Artzet and Henrik started talking in low, hushed voices while Cosimo watched the boy’s chest rise and fall, rise and fall, rise and fall.

Alive and safe.

Cosimo did it. He rescued them. His eyelids suddenly grew heavy and Cosimo didn’t fight them as they slid over his eyes, darkness welcoming him like an old friend. Sleep took him somewhere far away, somewhere he didn’t have to think and worry and fret. Somewhere he didn’t betray his race and seek refuge in humans.

Henrik stayed even when he was sure the elf was fast asleep, his chest rising and falling softly. He looked so much younger when he was asleep, Henrik thought, without the hard crease between his brows. His jaw wasn't clenched, his face relaxed, no stubborn, steely gaze to contend with. He looked like a boy, a human boy around fourteen years old.

Already Henrik had developed a protective streak for the elf, wanting to comfort and care for him as much as the elf would allow. More than the elf would allow. The fondness in Henrik's chest for Cosimo wasn't the only recent feeling that had taken hold of him since he met the boy. There was something foreboding, unnatural, as if there was a presence watching him from somewhere unseen to the naked eye, and Henrik knew that Cosimo's presence here would only spell trouble. Still, he couldn't find it in himself to let the boy go now that he had met him. He still had so many questions to ask him; why he ran, who he was, will he stay?

All those questions could wait until Cosimo and his brother awoke. For now, Henrik pulled up a chair and rest his head against the backrest, content with watching over the newest residents of the palace.

*~*~*~*~*

Orphanage roll call (zee tag-list, lmk if you wanna be added or removed): @tippytappytyping

[ciderjacks]

infantilization

[amber-in-the-rough]

Aaravos said that humans have taught him one lesson and that is the lesson of patience. I take it that in his opinion, Xadians (the Startouch, at least) don't know patience. And thus their impatience is a bad thing.

And then we hear Janai say, "We're going to rebuild, with patience". The Sun seed will take its sweet time to grow as well as it will take time for humans and elves to reconcile and learn to live together. Janai is willing to wait, to be patient. Heh, we can say she has learned the same lesson as Aaravos and it was Amaya (a human) in most part who helped her with it.

Karim... is short-sided and impatient. Which means- he will probably achieve a lot in the short run buuut in the long run he's doomed to fail.

The worst thing is that if the Pharos being Aaravos's puppet theory is correct, then Karim's impatience will only give the sparkly elf one more advantage.

[mtg-cards-hourly]

Ghirapur Gearcrafter

The metal must be pure. The hand must be steady. The product must be perfect.

Artist: Victor Adame Minguez TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

[silvantransthranduiltrash]

Elves don’t see elves as humans see elves.

I really like the idea that elves, when they look at other elves, don’t see each other with the same kind of awe inspiring beauty as humans that would look upon elves do.

In an elves eyes, other elves look just as unremarkable as a human would find most other humans unremarkable.

The reason is because of an elf’s vision. They see everything in extreme detail, so while we humans might see unblemished skin, an elf would be able to see every minute scratch and dent that graced the elf’s skin just as easily as a tattoo.

A human will look at an elf and see perfect skin, perfect hair, perfect grace.

An elf will look at another elf and see a canvas of scars crisscrossing over the skin, telling the tale of the centuries they’ve lived.

A human will look at an elf’s face and find it as though it was cut from marble.

An elf will look at that same elf’s face and see a stark, angry scar dragging across the elf’s face.

[deadqueernoldor]

Welcome back to my revised Agenda of "elves were disgustingly tall and the shorts of the calaquendi was still taller than one of the tallest Moriquendi" Agenda

[lordgrimwing]

Friends and Family #03

“This is nice,” Maglor said, stretched out on a beach towel, as his dripping brother settled next to him, wet from running in the gentle waves with his adopted sons. He closed the novel he'd picked up at a second-hand store the day before.

Maedhros grunted, his mouth occupied by several bobby pins as he fixed his hair, recoiling the soaking braid atop his head. The whole point of pinning his hair up so tightly was to keep it out of the salt water, but he hadn’t expected Elros and Elrond to grab his hands and drag him down into a particularly large wave. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen them this happy,” Maglor continued, nodding to the boys splashing and paddling in the waves, their nearly shoulder-length hair hanging in loose, soaked clumps.

“They love it,” Maedhros said with a soft smile. He’d come up from that wave spitting sand and might have been irritated except he ended up with two armfuls of very excited peredhil. By the time he left the surf, he’d become much better at diving through waves. 

They sat in silence for a minute, taking in the scene: seagulls cried overhead, keeping a sharp eye out for abandoned snacks; the twins played along the shore, a younger elf child coming over to join them; other families staked out their claim across the sand, leaving towels and umbrellas to mark their favored spots. The beach was both busy and soothing.

“We should do this more.” Maedhros decided, rinsing his mouth out with water from a bottle and then taking several drinks.

Maglor raised his eyebrows. Fëanor nearly had a fit when they announced that they’d be taking a few days off work during the week so they could do something with the boys during their school holiday. “Who’s going to tell father?” 

His brother rolled his eyes in a way that would have had Fëanor pinching his ear if he were an elfling again. “He can take his doctor's advice and take up birdwatching,” He said dismissively.

As the eldest sons, they were privy to more details of their father's health than he appreciated.

Maglor snorted at the suggestion. 

More seriously, Maedhros said, “Maybe just an occasional weekend, then.”

They watched the boys and their new friend join a group of older dwarves building an impressive sandcastle. Maglor smiled. “We really should.”

The sun arched across the clear blue sky. Maglor called Elros and Elrond back for lunch. They ate cold tuna salad sandwiches from the cooler on a blanket Maedhros spread on the sand so they could all sit together. Elros showed the adults the blue shell Elrond found in the tide, proudly telling them about the cool shells they found over the years on the coast further south. The younger twin hesitantly asked if he could make necklaces for them all from pieces of the shell when they went back to the city. 

After lunch, the twins wanted to go back into the ocean.

“Not right after eating,” Maglor shook his head. “Wait thirty minutes.”

Elros looked like he might want to argue, but his brother grabbed his hand and demanded that he bury him under the sand so he could pretend to be a baby sea turtle.

Maedhros took off his shirt, arching his back and enjoying the warm sun on it. Their father really might have an aneurysm if he found out exactly how publicly immodest his sons got when he wasn’t there to frown at them for rolling up their pant legs. He repacked the cooler and sprawled out on the towel, stretching his long arms and legs and bumping into the other occupant. He grinned at his brother. “Join us this time,” He invited. 

Maglor picked up his book and fingered the pages. “I'll get sand in my hair,” He said. He's done his hair up in a dark half bun, leaving a loose tail down his back.

“I'll braid it for you.” He said. “The rest of us need to wash tonight already.”

“Promise not to push me under?” 

“I would never,” Maedhros laughed, recalling when, decades ago, they were teaching their younger brothers how to sail on a windy lake. Caranthir insisted that the flimsy life jackets couldn't possibly keep them safe in the waves, refusing to set foot on the light boat. When it became clear that he wouldn't trust the words of his brothers, Maedhros shoved Maglor off the edge, leaving him to flounder in the water until their three younger brothers boarded.

Maglor shuffled around so he faced away from Maedhros. “Go ahead and braid.”

The tall redhead sat up. He quickly undid the bun and set about dividing the other’s hair into four parts at the crown of his head.

They sat quietly while he worked, Maglor watching the other families.

A human woman with frizzled brown hair caught a child who looked about seven years old by the elbow. She wore a striped green and gray swimsuit with a white over-shirt and large sunglasses.  

“Oh no you don’t, Elianor,” She admonished, pulling the girl back to the family’s towels and bins of beach toys. “You’re going to be red as a beat and peeling in the car tomorrow if you don’t put more sunscreen on.” 

“Mom,” The girl complained as white ointment was slathered across her bare back and under the edges of her swimsuit. 

“Do your face and ears,” The woman directed, squeezing more of the sunscreen out of a yellow bottle for her daughter before bending down to coat her legs.

Once everything was worked in and the white layer was exchanged for a slightly oily sheen, the child was released into the water. Once all the children were appropriately protected and freed, the woman popped open a beach chair and settled under an umbrella. 

She looked over at Maglor as Maedhros began pinning the braid up like his own. “Some children never learn,” She said by way of explanation.

He said something in noncommittal agreement, a nagging thought starting to form in the back of his mind.

Her eyes flicked around their towels, blanket, and cooler. “Just the two of you then?” She asked. 

“No,” Maglor said quickly. “The twins in red burying each other in the sand are ours.”

She looked out to where he pointed. “Cute,” She said in the way he was discovering many parents did when talking about other people’s kids. She leaned back in her chair and probably closed her eyes, though he couldn’t tell past the glasses.

Maedhros patted his head like he did when they were kids. “There you go, ready for the water.”

Maglor scooted around to face him again. “Don’t get my hair wet.”

Hands raised in surrender were his only response.

He looked down at his wristwatch. Twenty minutes still to go. That nagging feeling kept eating at him. He picked up the book again, opening to where he left off. He tried to read, but he couldn’t get back into the story.

All at once, he dropped the book and turned to Maedhros.

“We didn’t put sunscreen on them!”

“What?” The other asked, blinking as he came back from wherever the warmth sent him drifting off to.

“Elros and Elrond,” He said, looking over to where the boys were just a couple heads sticking out of the sand, several other kids having joined in on burying them. “They’re part human. They could get sunburns!” 

He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten about it. He hadn’t packed sunscreen, he didn’t even think Maedhros or he had any at their homes. Such a simple, everyday thing for humans, and they’d completely forgotten about it. He dreaded to think about how painful the children’s skin would be tomorrow.

Maedhros frowned. “They’re part elf, too,” He reasoned. “Why should they get burned?”

“They might,” Maglor repeated with worry. “I should go buy some. Or maybe we should all leave so it doesn’t get any worse.”

Maedhros sighed. “It’ll be a thirty-minute drive each way. The damage is already done if it’s going to happen, so let’s not ruin the rest of the day. Besides,” He added. “They’ve clearly spent a lot of time in the water. I think they’d know if they need to worry about it.”

Personally, Maglor never thought it was too late to start mitigating damage, but his brother had made up his mind. He’d just have to deal with whatever came of it.

[thatskelebitch]

Art dump art dump art dump! Put annoying watermarks all over it :0!!

ANNOYING WATERMARK ART DUMP❗️‼️‼️‼️❗️‼️

I got some South Park stuff (mostly Princess Kenny related) and two of my last Danganronpa drawings that I really liked the results of!!

This isn't even all of my art either, I have such a fuckin backlog and a ton of doodles god i need to sort through those

[sunprophets]

rereading eragon & taking notes on it for fun and you can really tell this was written by a 15 yr old. like it’s quite apparent at times

[bam-monsterhospital]

how wet you want your fish?

looking up species in dnd land, and foolish me for thinking there's any sort of distinction in anything wizards of the coast -related.

what are the visual/aesthetic/cultural differences between: sea elves tritons water genasi nereids

none. there's none. there's no rules, there's no guides, it's all the same nebulous 'i dunno, ocean.'

at least merfolk are distinct in that they have fish tails shalarin are distinct because of their silly huge back fin. water genasi and nereids are representative of water itself, so they can be like, made of water-looking. so there's that difference between them and the tritons/sea elves. but fhasdkfl;dsa

i don't know why this bothers me so much. i go to poke around dnd land, looking at oceany elf-y species and designs to feed my ocean forever-cravings and i get met with the vague fog of dnd non-descriptions.

I have to make it clear: this isn't a dig against tritons or sea elves, or whatever. I love oceany species, CLEARLY. I just wish there was variety at all, and I'm so fuckin confused about the redundancy.

[escapistcatontheinternet]

i love the extras of dungeon meshi in how it fleshes out the world because they make it so much more evident how race affects every part of the story while avoiding the zootopia racism problem. like obv a main theme of the story is like, humanity and desire, 'to eat is to live', etc, but since the majority of it takes place in the dungeon isolated from society and thru the lens of laios, the racial aspects play out more like shadows on a wall for most of the story.

then in the extras we get comics like this

which at a glance fleshes out the racial aspects via a character explaining the racial rules of universe - humans have x amount of bones, while orcs and kobolds have more. however, if u take it less straightforwardly, it points out how the concept of 'human' is a constructed concept in the world. the fact that there are different categories of human in different parts of the world based off of what types of humanoids occur there is already a demonstration of this. in response, the bones explanation seems to kabru and the characters as an objective way of measuring humans vs nonhumans.

but obv, when the culture was deciding what humanoids were humans and nonhumans, they weren't blindly analyzing skeletons and then deciding. just visually, one can glean that orcs and kobolds look less like the ingroup of tallmen, elves, dwarves, gnomes, etc. the bones explanation appears as a justification for that immediate prejudice under a scientific guise - I'm sure that one could come up with the same number of physical differences between a gnome and an elf that they would find between a tallman and an orc. it sounds a lot better to say 'well, an orc has 230 bones while a human has 206' then 'well, an orc looks ewwww yucky yucky to me while a human looks normal'.

and what i like abt the comic is that the characters take the explanation at face value for the most part. when a contradiction is brought up in the oni, kabru can neatly slot them into the predetermined number of bones framework. bc that's kinda how it works irl - there r cultural prejudices that we can posthumously justify, and if we find something outside of it, we can twist it to fit into our predetermined binary. however, since the reader does not live in a world where there are orcs and kobolds to be prejudiced against, we can see that flaw in the cultural logic. when the party encounters the orcs, the number of bones has no bearing on their humanity. They r shown to be cliquish and distrusting of outsiders, but not any more than the elves are later in the story.

tldr dungeon meshi worldbuilding is so good

[wintersmisery]

Ignore me I’m rambling

.

.

having trouble figuring out the general social dynamics in WM. Alax’s cultural values put emphasis on beauty, elegance, mercy, grace, etc etc standard things you may think of when you think of stereotypical elves; the ilcaea people (orcs) are a people becoming united for the first time in centuries following Calamity, and as such as creating their own collective social ideas of art and exchanging ideas within holds, etc; humans occupy the standard human mold within this triad - they’re not as “dignified” as the elven folk, more boisterous + prone to conflict, not a magically inclined ppl. the thing is when you usually watch fantasy movies contrasting elves and humans, you’re likely to see grubbier humans, maybe missing an eye if it’s a crowd shot, generally looking not as “pretty” as the elves who are all clean and wearing nice clothes. And you could chalk this up to stereotypes, and many have, and I’ve seen plenty posts about elves that aren’t as aloof than in mainstream media, but I’m not going with that more generous interpretation - unless like in real life, those who are disabled or [insert marginalized group here] aren’t really acknowledged unless they’re doing it in a way that fits with mainstream boundaries, y’know being pretty, bearing their pain with grace, still trying to be as abled/mainstream as possible. Problem is, for many upper class Alax, they’re not fond of human “””encroachment””” on their land (the initial human settlements in alax were made bc they were losing a war badly and the remnants of cities were fleeing across the cold sea and now they’re starting to outlive their *oh so generous* welcome)(I mean it was generous at first, but now they’re not miserable pitiful victims anymore and you know how it goes) - they don’t like that the strongholds of orcs have effectively come together to form their own pseudo-nation - they especially don’t like that orcs and humans have started getting along so well, because now the projected image of alax’s beauty and carefully curated strength is now outnumbered by peoples who don’t value the same arts and philosophies, and feel threatened by it - and now the knives are starting to come out

And it’s a difficult mental shift to make bc in my initial idea alax was being attacked by ilcae - they weren’t top dogs in town, and humans weren’t even around, and the entirety of syn’s Befuckening was a series of accidents; people not realizing how their expectations were fucking her up until it was too late. Tragic. And now it’s … idk it feels very grimdark?? I’m having difficulty reconciling her character has developed with the socio-political situation that’s going on. She’s not the only protagonist (syn being more focused on the magical aspect of it all, ravna focusing more on the political aspect of it), so there’s another point of view with other priorities that are more socio-political than her own, but it’s still Eugh in my head

Trying to remember in my head “the general public opinion and the ideals of government are not one and the same” and “regardless of marginalized/advantaged status people are people and are both good and can act horribly”

Still don’t know how it all ties together. How it ends

Also still gotta figure out what the fuck is going on with Kireth lmao

[rosasappho]

dragon age show enticed me with this lesbian but good lord. can the matt mercer mage die i hate how dragon age does their fantasy racism i’m like suffering here

[mtg-cards-hourly]

Trophy Mage

"The tools of the past will help us forge the future."

Artist: Anna Steinbauer TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

[dunmeshistash]

Dungeon Meshi Human Interracial offspring (Mostly Spoiler Free)

As you might know, in Dungeon Meshi "human" is a term that refers to not only "tallman" (the equivalent of our world humans) but also Half-Foots, Ogres, Dwarves and Elves.

Besides the weird bone counting classification Kabru made I think one of the defining "human" aspects might be being able to have offspring with each other (unclear if that's possible at all between human and demi-human).

That said the Adventurer's Guide has some information about it that I wanted to share.

First, Humans in dungeon meshi are divided between short and long lived races, those are:

Long Lived Human Races:

Elf

Dwarf

Gnome

Short Lived Human Races:

Tallman

Half-foot

Ogre

As a general rule mixed offspring seems to be infertile but there's some exceptions.

Confirmed mixed race offspring that can leave descendants (Fertile offspring):

Tallman x Half-Foot

Tallman x Ogre

Dwarf x Gnome

An easy chart with the info! (It's not that complicated but its easier for me to see like this) (edit: added info what mixes have confirmed and speculated characters)

Seems like short-lived species can only have fertile offspring with each other and the same for long lived. Although there's no information about elves being able to have them with any other races, maybe because they live so much more than the other long-lived species (400 vs 200 & 240)

There's also no information about Ogres with Half-foot but I don't imagine the logistics to produce offspring would work there 😳

Another thing is that the Adventurer's Bible describes that the tallman have had an explosive growth due to having fertile offspring with half-foot and Ogres , so I wonder if that means their offspring are tallman too? Or are they still half-half-foot (a funny name) and half-Ogre? Unclear!

some of the confirmed mixed characters:

Corpse Retriever Leader - Half-Dwarf (Dwarf x Tallman)

Corpse Retriever Priest - Half-Gnome (Gnome x ? [Probably Tallman])

Fionil - Half-Elf (Elf x ? [Probably Tallman])

For the chart I added them as confirmed half-tallman due to their height/looks, I'm just being overzealous here.

Speculated mixed from the race portraits

In order: Half-Foot page: possibly half-dwarf | Elf Page: possibly half-foot or gnome mix | Dwarf page: possibly half-gnome.

Sources and Spoilers Bellow the cut

From the page about tallman in the adventurer's bible (p134)

From the page about dwarves in the adventurer's bible (p140)

From the page about Ogres in the adventurer's bible (p140)

Page about 'other characters' (p098)

Fionil Profile (p096)

Spoiler And ofc I did not forget Marcille! I just don't want to tag this as spoilers since that would be pretty much the only spoiler

[thethiefandtheairbender]

as a lifelong ATLA fan who narrowly had ATLA dethroned as my top show by The Dragon Prince steadily over the past 5 years, the similarities between the two have very little to do with the surface level parallels that get regularly drawn between them.

Like ATLA, TDP has Books for seasons and chapters for episodes, but unlike ATLA, which only touched on storytelling sparingly as a theme, TDP is obsessed with interrogating storytelling and history and the presence of unreliable, biased narrators throughout many of its episodes (most notably 2x05, 2x06, 3x06, 4x04, and 4x07 among them). Half of what you learn in the 1x01 intro ends up being a lie once you reach S3, with more being steadily deciphered.

Yes, TDP has different magics with people living under those umbrella terms... for the elves. Humans are coming culturally at things from a completely different angle, and the elves' connection to their primal sources are discussed philosophically in detail, informing their practices and their culture first hand, including the way they chafe against humans, who are arcanum-less. Many animals in the world are also connected to magic, which influences both their design and which ones get hunted for humans' more 'clever' solution in dark magic, including each other.

The core issue of the Puppetmaster, down to being a coercive magic formed by someone deeply resentful of their imprisonment? Said puppetmaster is the main endgame antagonist of the entire show with all of S4 onwards being exploring the ethics of controlling people against their will in various methods, and the entire show itself being a thematic battleground of fate (imprisonment) vs free will for virtually every single character.

Where ATLA mostly concerns itself timeline wise with ending the war, very little thought is shown by any of the characters as to what they'll do after the war. This isn't a problem (as it reflects the sheer domineering scope of the conflict) but even Zuko being firelord is only ever really addressed with 2.5 episodes left till the finale. TDP, meanwhile, ends its 'war' in s3 and s4 opens up with dealing with the old wounds festering between people with centuries of history, the struggles that come when people aren't able to let go and believe they're safe or mourn in a healthy manner, and the religious/cultural clashes that may occur when trying to integrate different groups of people.

TDP also has an evil father with a devoted daughter and a brother who eventually defects, but it explores the reality of an abusive parent who loves/will sacrifice for you and your right to leave regardless, even if that means leaving the sibling you truly deeply love and who loves you in turn. Which means that when you and your sibling are on opposite sides of a deep ideological conflict, it actually really fucking hurts bc we've seen first hand just how much they love each other and also how and why everything fell apart not in spite of that love necessarily, but also because of it.

Is this to say that TDP is a 1:1 with ATLA or that it's better? No, not at all, and the latter is subjective. I prefer TDP, but I think they're about on equal ground when you look at each show currently as a whole (although TDP has two seasons left to go).

But TDP takes a lot of what ATLA was doing thematically with some of its most interesting beats and then builds or expands upon them further. It talks further and more consistently about the cycles of violence; in many ways, Jack De Sena's character, Callum, begins the series largely where Sokka had ended (and he's not the most like Sokka anyway; very much his own thing); we get Faustian bargains and centuries' long grief and fucked up people who are trying both succeeding and failing at not doing fucked up things. There are antagonists, but it is very hard to actually label anyone at this point a straight up villain. Moral greyness is where the show starts, and it just continues from there.

That's not to say the show is nothing but dark and depressing - like ATLA, there's a steady thread of hope and humour even as the show gets steadily closer and closer to its 11th hour point - but the show is usually emotionally heavier. There's more blood and potentially disturbing imagery with body horror and on screen death. There's so much foreshadowing you basically can't go more than 5 minutes into any episode without having something that's going to come back around or be referenced again like 3-5 seasons later.

Just to be clear - TDP is like ATLA, but it's like ATLA in interesting ways beyond the more shallow surface level that usually gets attributed to it, while still very much being its own show and its own thing. And that is why I tend to recommend it to people who like ATLA.

Thank you and goodnight

(Also, the fandom doesn't have any ship wars, and the show is queer as fuck)