#end of explanation. all hail the king

[judgeitbyitscover]

Southern Reach series (10th Anniversary Editions) by Jeff VanderMeer

Cover art by Pablo Delcan

MacMillan, 2014-2024

Annihilation (2014)

Area X has been cut off from the rest of the world for decades. Nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of human civilization. The first expedition returned with reports of a pristine, Edenic landscape; the second expedition ended in mass suicide, the third in a hail of gunfire as its members turned on one another. The members of the eleventh expedition returned as shadows of their former selves, and within weeks, all had died of cancer. In Annihilation, the first volume of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach Trilogy, we join the twelfth expedition.

The group is made up of four women: an anthropologist; a surveyor; a psychologist, the de facto leader; and our narrator, a biologist. Their mission is to map the terrain, record all observations of their surroundings and of one another, and, above all, avoid being contaminated by Area X itself.

They arrive expecting the unexpected, and Area X delivers—but it’s the surprises that came across the border with them and the secrets the expedition members are keeping from one another that change everything

Authority (2014)

After thirty years, the only human engagement with Area X—a seemingly malevolent landscape surrounded by an invisible border and mysteriously wiped clean of all signs of civilization—has been a series of expeditions overseen by a government agency so secret it has almost been forgotten: the Southern Reach. Following the tumultuous twelfth expedition chronicled in Annihilation, the agency is in complete disarray.

John Rodríguez (aka "Control") is the Southern Reach's newly appointed head. Working with a distrustful but desperate team, a series of frustrating interrogations, a cache of hidden notes, and hours of profoundly troubling video footage, Control begins to penetrate the secrets of Area X. But with each discovery he must confront disturbing truths about himself and the agency he's pledged to serve.

In Authority, the second volume of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, Area X's most disturbing questions are answered . . . but the answers are far from reassuring.

Acceptance (2014)

It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for thirty years, rebuffing expedition after expedition, refusing to reveal its secrets. As Area X expands, the agency tasked with investigating and overseeing it—the Southern Reach—has collapsed on itself in confusion. Now one last, desperate team crosses the border, determined to reach a remote island that may hold the answers they've been seeking. If they fail, the outer world is in peril.

Meanwhile, Acceptance tunnels ever deeper into the circumstances surrounding the creation of Area X—what initiated this unnatural upheaval? Among the many who have tried, who has gotten close to understanding Area X—and who may have been corrupted by it?

In this last installment of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, the mysteries of Area X may be solved, but their consequences and implications are no less profound—or terrifying.

Absolution (2024)

When the Southern Reach Trilogy was first published a decade ago, it was an instant sensation, celebrated in a front-page New York Times story before publication, hailed by Stephen King and many others. Each volume climbed the bestsellers list; awards were won; the books made the rare transition from paperback original to hardcover; the movie adaptation became a cult classic. All told, the trilogy has sold more than a million copies and has secured its place in the pantheon of twenty-first-century literature.

And yet for all this, for Jeff VanderMeer there was never full closure to the story of Area X. There were a few mysteries that had gone unsolved, some key points of view never aired. There were stories left to tell. There remained questions about who had been complicit in creating the conditions for Area X to take hold; the story of the first mission into the Forgotten Coast—before Area X was called Area X—had never been fully told; and what if someone had foreseen the world after Acceptance? How crazy would they seem?

Structured in three parts, each recounting a new expedition, there are some long-awaited answers here, to be sure, but also more questions, and profound new surprises. Absolution is a brilliant, beautiful, and ever-terrifying plunge into unique and fertile literary territory. It is the final word on one of the most provocative and popular speculative fiction series of our time

[c0nn0r-c0nn0r13]

“If Tim Drake was meta, his ability would be shadow travel!”

“No, immortality!”

“No, shapeshifting!”

NO. NO. NO. HE WOULD BE SPIDER-MAN. FIGHT ME.

actual explanation:

All ‘weird’ behaviour he does? Spider things. Walk with me. Sleeping in the most random places, spider hibernation. Getting in on high building as a child, sticky. Bad eyesight (thats a personal hc), spiders are nearsighted. Really smart, although arachnids have brains that could literally fit on the head of a pin, the work of scientists suggests that they have capabilities we'd have no problem hailing as signs of intelligence if exhibited by animals with much larger brains. (I copied that off safari but my point stands)

Now, you’ve read that and you’re probably like “but, Connor, thats basically nothing, why are trying pushing spider-man! Tim for meta AU’s.” Well, my answer to that is: i don’t know. But lets compare Peter Parker and Tim Drake for a minute.

Tim:

Heavily shipped with his friends (Conner, Bart, Bernard, Cassie, the rest of the young justice98 line up)

Bi

Wears red

Photography as a hobby

Skateboards

Smart

Nerd

Two (+more) friends that wear red

Peter:

Heavily shipped with his friends/people he works with (Wade, Johnny, Harry, Ned, Harley, Mary Jane, Gwen Stacy, Felicia, Matt, Flash)

Queer coded/Bi

Wears red

Photography as a hobby

Skateboards

Smart

Nerd

Two (+ more) friends that wear red

See, basically the same person. “But Connor, when would Tim get bit by the spider, or are you just gonna say he was born with it.” Yes and no, i have no idea how meta powers work in dc, so we’re going with marvel mutants, stick with me.

Tim was born with a mutant (meta) gene, but it doesn’t awaken till he’s nine and gets bitten by the spider. The spider itself is a failed lab experiment from one of the rogues. He gets bit when he’s following batman and robin. It gets him sick and he doesn’t end up following them for a while because his body is changing. The robin (1 to 2) switch happens, Tim’s still in boarding school so he can’t follow them everyday anyways.

“If Tims robin, when does he become spider-man?”

I hc Tim as gender fluid, so he goes by arachnid. Anyways, he becomes that universe’s resident friendly neighbourhood arachnid when his red robin arch happens (AND HE STAYS AS ARACHNID, NO GOING BACK TO ROBIN SHIT!) Dick still tries (and fails) to get him to go to therapy, all that good stuff. He still meets Pru, Owen, and Z. They (minus Pru) dies. You know how the red robin arch goes. Explosion and losing spleens.

Now, this had derailed so much, but i’m going to derail it even more. Anita Fite is this worlds Deadpool, and Cissie King-Jones is this worlds Daredevil. Why is this? Because i said so, anyways this is how it works.

When being trained by her mother, Cissie gets into an accident, loses her sight, that goops/ooze things makes her “see” the world like Matt does. She proceeds to relearn archery with her disability, she becomes arrowette, then retires like in canon. But later on, she can’t just sit by and let everything happen. She goes to college and gets a law degree, she quits being an actresses. She opens a lawyer place thingy. But its not enough. So she dawns the mantle daredevil.

Anita Fite’s parents get kidnapped as an attempt to draw Empress out of hiding. She comes to get her parents back, but they get killed in the process. She gets nocked out, then when she wakes up she can regenerate and can’t die. She feels like she can’t go back to young justice so she takes up jobs as merc. Taking the name Deadpool.

Why did i decide to add them into why i think tim drake’s meta ability would be spiderman. This was because i was trying to get you guys to think about my team red! Tim, Cisse, & Anita. *insert evil laugh*

I will be drawing art for this later. Good day (do you guys want more of this, because i want more of it, and have to the one make it.)

[its-callum-everybody]

I CANNOT DRAW. You see chat, I can’t draw, so I need to think of ways to share my TWST oc with the world. So instead of learning how to draw, I’ll be doing it the best way I know how: In Depth Character Analysis!

Part 1 — Basic Character Information / Relationships

Part 2 — Everything to do with her Unique Magic

Part 3 — Lore

Part 4 — Appearance

Part 3 ➤

LORE.

I love it, you probably love it. (At least I would hope so if you’re still reading this.) Lore is what makes up any good storyline. And makes up even better character because all characters have a backstory! Even if it’s something completely rudimentary. Not every backstory has to be completely tragic. But I am inclined to make my OC (Cyrielle) go through the wringer. So that’s what we’re doing!

Lets start off with some explanation about the movie she is inspired from though, shall we?

The Black Cauldron~!

Now, The Black Cauldron is framed around a young boy who dreams of being a hero. But is in charge of taking care of a pig instead. As it turns out, the pig can create visions and The Horned King (the main antagonist) wants that pig so he can find The Black Cauldron.

The Black Cauldron was the prison/death sentence type deal used to rule over the mystical land of Prydain. He was so good at being evil that everyone was scared of him, even the gods. So when they put him in this cauldron it made the cauldron evil. So now whoever finds it can grant themselves a bunch of power by summoning an undead army. The problem is The Cauldron takes up a lot of power and ends up actually consuming The Horned King at the end because it truly can’t be controlled.

So let’s straighten out one thing, which character is Cyrielle based off of???

Taran, the pig keeper and protagonist? No.

Princess Eilonwy? No.

Dallben? No.

The Creeper or Gurgi? Definitely not.

The Horned King? Surprisingly no.

The Black Cauldron and The Emperor Inside of it whom we barely know any past lore of because the movie doesn’t really tell you anything besides how evil he was? DING DING DING! WE HAVE A WINNER!

Now, while the Cauldron played great inspiration in her Unique Magic (check out Part 2 for that grand explanation) Her character isn’t precisely based ON the emperor. No. She plays OFF of him.

Cyrielle, as explained by her upcoming lore, acts as a sort of explanation as to how The Emperor (Teivel, as I named him.) ties into the world of TWST and sort of just how his legacy played out. Granted. She is still connected to him, a fact I will elaborate on later.

But now that we have that explained lets move onto phase one—

World-building!

World building is important here because I somehow have to manage to literally input the entirety of Prydain somewhere in the TWST-verse.

Now we don’t have names of continents per se, we just have the names of Nations which are on those continents and then places in those kingdoms like- you have The Queendom of Roses but inside the Queendom of roses are villages and cities like Clocktown.

Or in the Shaftlands you have characters from Harveston or Fleur City IN THE SHAFTLANDS. So most of characters are only identified by the nations/kingdoms they hails from instead of the villages. No clue how those Nations/Kingdoms are positioned geographically or how they link up.

But from what I can tell from the Wiki and a now inactive blog (thank you @twstarchives, you are my saving grace.)

They do take up entire if not certain sections of a land mass, except for The Coral Sea obviously because that going to be part of a larger ocean instead of land. Like how the North Atlantic Ocean connects to the Caribbean sea.

[ For those wondering the difference between a Sea and Ocean, here’s the summary of a googled answer:

Oceans — Larger, Deeper, more open divisions of earths salt water, typically higher salinity levels.

Seas — Smaller parts of the ocean, located where land & ocean meet, usually partially enclosed by land, shallower, lower levels of Salt.]

So I’m basically throwing darts at a board here. Except I have no idea where anything else is located. So what better idea than to just have it to not exist!

Prydain simply just won’t exist. Also. Another good reason for just not having it exist will be because at the beginning, as she and Crowley are searching for Prydain. It will make it harder to find information and throw them off the trail, red herring style, even though Prydain will still, at one point have existed in TWST wonderland.

And what better a place to put in than the Shaftlands.

“ A large country with a diverse population. Because it's comprised of several different biomes, it's home to a variety of cultures. ”

In the Black Cauldron we see a grand shot between different area. There is a drastic change between the farm at the start, The Forbidden Forest, and the land where The Horned King resides which is sort of like an Alpine Tundra. So given the difference between all there places and the fact the Shaftlands is described as large. I’m gonna say that it’s sort of towards the Northwest as pure North is very snowy according to Jack’s Wish/Birthday card but we don’t see a lot of snow. So Northwest it shall be!

That leaves me with explaining how Prydain became a lost Kingdom. And just as The Black Cauldron was never really a popular Disney film in its time, I’m going to say it worked the same for Prydain. Prydain. may have been well-known, but as time progressed it grew smaller and many of its people branched off to go to different lands or just generally lost itself. So as these people naturally went away from Prydain, along with a bit of land change from the elements over the years. There isn’t much to be noted about the lost kingdom as there wasn’t much left behind from it besides a few legends, records, and buildings. And most documents and writings left behind probably would be unable to be translated. As many of them would many be in a lost common tongue.

So thats taken care of! Onto phase two,

The Legends and Lore!

Now of course, all the villains and hero’s featured in Twisted wonderland some long, long time ago. So that’s the same for all the characters featured in The Black Cauldron. So obviously The tale of Taran, The Horned King, and The Cauldron is well known. And is probably one of the legends that was best kept alive because of how directly it impacted Prydain as a nation.

Still lesser known, but not entirely forgotten!

Which brings us to how The Cauldron, or Teivel, and Cyrielle are related. I mentioned earlier there wasn’t a direct inspiration from the cauldron in her personality. More so in her ability. Now why is that?

Because she’s meant to both reflect and go against him.

I’m adding a legend to Prydain’s catalog:

~ The Princess and The Thief

“ Long ago, in the faraway land of Prydain there was rumored to be a King so cruel, so evil that even the gods feared him. As no prison would hold him, he was thrown alive into a crucible of molten iron. There, his demonic spirit was captured in the form of a great Black Cauldron.

The King had no wives, though his mistresses were many. And with one he had a child. A princess who at the time was but just a babe. But, just in case she had inherited his evil heart, she was cast away into a manor deep within The Forbidden Forest. Through trees so thick and under the canopy so dark not even the bravest soul would dare venture in.

However, no one dared to consider that even a brave soul would not enter, a foolish one certainly would. A young lady, who laid claim to the keep of gold of an ex-nobles by trickery was the first and last of the fools. She took her goods as the good-men chased her down. Ducking into the forest on the whim no one would dare follow. Her whim was correct though it cost her much.

Loosing her gold to the vicious forest she had no chance but to re-treat. The forest forbade it, growing and churning to keep her inside as she ran in endless circles. Until, instead of the end, she came upon a grody manor to which she let herself inside with no hesitance. Wonder her delight when she found that the inside had been far kinder. Orante walls and Avant-Grade Roofs. Imagine her surprise when at the top of the stairs, peering down at her, was the most beautiful girl she had ever seen— ”

I’ll cut the story off there for everyone’s sanity but to summarize the rest The Theif (Named Verity) and The Princess (Named Enora) begrudgingly start to form a friendship to which Verity promises to help Enora escape her fate [to reside in the manor for the rest of her life] because she doesn’t want to live forever in punishment for her fathers crimes. But the son of the Nobleman whom imprisoned Enora in the manor gets word of it and sends one of his best hunters after them.

The girls attempt to navigate the seemingly endless manor through multiple magic rooms but end up having to lock themselves in the clock tower. In one last culmination, they both decide they know what they have to do. Locking themselves in a kiss as the Hunter breaks through the door. Though what he finds on the other side is two girls, clasped in each other’s arms, a sword through both their hearts as their bodies slowly eroded into nothing but blood. Which then began to form a different woman from both their forms, she removes the sword from her chest, kills the hunter. Then leaves. Disappearing nameless into legend.

As you could guess, the woman formed is Cyrielle. Though she had no recollection of these memories herself and memories she does have of her past actually fake (though no one knows that yet).

It’s a generational process of cycle-breaking.

Teival is the one who does the crimes. He does not feel sorry for anyone, and even trapped inside the Cauldron he will remain wicked.

Enora has to pay for them just as he does despite being innocent, having others fear her and her power simply because she was the daughter of a cruel man. All she wants is a life her own. Undecided by fate and fear.

Cyrielle is the one meant to break it. She is the creation of love between Enora and Verity even during their fates, having but one purpose but to do what they couldn’t, break free from fate. Still. Cyrielle is cursed just like Enora was.

She has Teival’s blood running through her veins just as Enora did. Only now it is less, only now is it covered by the spite that came from love. She can bleed out however much she likes but she will always be the granddaughter of Teival until the world decides she is not that, but just Cyrielle.

Teival’s Lamb. It was once the unique Magic Enora had. Now it is Cyrielle’s. The haunting reminder of their own power drags them back to their Father/Grand-father. Anytime they bleed, they can make it into something else, even something used for good. But will always feel evil because they have bled for it. Bled for it because it is his.

So that brings me to phase three;

Why and how is she at NRC?

Cyrielle would appear similar to how MC/Yuu does. Dragged to school by the dark mirror because she is filled with power magical abilities. In fact, given the fact the mirror may be even older than the school itself; my whole basis is that it immediately sensed someone equal to Teival’s power had appeared and immediately sent a carriage to retrieve them.

The problem is, Cyrielle doesn’t remember anything and what she does remember is [unknowingly] fake. Why is that you may ask?

Because The Manor is magic, I mentioned that earlier. Even if Enora had managed to escape there certainly would have been more precautions in place in case she did. One being a spell that made her drowsy, possibly making her forget everything that occurred so it was easier to transport her to somewhere back to the manor or somewhere with higher security.

Then Why is she so young then if this happened such a long time ago? I head you ask

She’s young because of the forest and because she, on some level, was literally created via magic. She wasn’t born, she was crafted. Meaning that she had more control over how she appears because just as the appearance of clay can be morphed so can she. She doesn’t realize this though as she would spend most time after the manor ordeal trying to find a way out of the forest. So long, that it would be modern day by the time she exited. Only to be subdued by magic that made her forget all that struggle.

And now that I’ve answered your questions let’s move into more of Why she’s there, shall we?

Now. The simple reason to the mirror would be ‘Hey. There was just a weird spike in really powerful magic energy. We should probably get that person an invite.’ And it did.

The more lore-complex, my reason, is because it’s a school of villains. The people here embody on some level what Cyrielle is trying to escape from. (Not that she knows that, *cough* amnesia *cough*).

So what better way to have her do that then to have her also make everyone go on a journey of self-exploration with her by pointing out their cruddy flaws and giving them some accidental therapy. Even though it’s hard because ninety-eight percent of the student population all suck.

But she’s going to try her best and, hopefully, by the time its over with she can be recognized not by her grandfather but as her own person, get her memories back, not have an identity crisis, get a really awesome boyfriend (Silver), and save some people from their toxic and dangerous qualities!

[krafterwrites]

Krafter Lore Masterpost

This is mostly just for people in the Eternal Afterparty server, but if anyone ever asks what's wrong with me, I can send them this post as an explanation. Here's, in roughly chronological order, a bunch of my lore

Part of my right ribs is just caved in for some reason. I have no clue why

When I was little I accidentally swished with water from a cup that had previously been used to hold water from our septic system (THE CUP WAS EMPTY AND DRY WHEN I FOUND IT AND THE WATER I SWISHED WITH WAS FROM THE TAP, I guess it just hadn't been cleaned because it was a plastic lego star wars cup). After my dad told me this, I freaked out because I thought I was going to get very sick/die. I vividly remember eating milk and graham crackers while very upset that night

One time I was watching All Hail King Julien while nauseous, and when Mort threw up in the show, it caused me to also throw up

I went to a trampoline park for some kid's birthday party, and they were putting this gas into the air to keep the park clean. It smelled bad, and it made me dehydrated. I also couldn't find the ingredients of it, so that was concerning

I dreamt I was in a McDonalds and slowly going further and further into the future of the McDonalds, eventually the McDonalds was in a creepy and evil forest and all the food sucked

I dreamt that I found Spamton and kept him as a pet, hiding him under my bed and giving him a laptop to scam people with

I dreamt that I went up and talked to some guy, and upon talking to him, the world around me faded and he said something about reality. Then I walked into a school gynasium and did some weird dark magic, which consumed and killed 8 people as part of a sacrifice. The dark magic that ate(?) them formed a big pillar, and then the pillar opened up, and the fucking Among Us imposter walked out of it. I killed 8 people in a sacrifice ritual so I could become an Among Us Imposter (Also Lulu thought I was hallucinating this because I think I forgot to mention it was a dream)

The Haunted Ring. I've already talked about this one so much, ask one of my friends about it

I dreamt that a tiny version of Scourge (Like about as high as my ankle) showed up in my room and started running around, so I trapped him under a cup and then released him outside

I went to a mini-golf course and had a pretty horrible time for several reasons. 1, it was like a hundred degrees out and there was no shade, so I was melting in the sun. 2, after finishing the golf and probably almost getting heatstroke, I got my mom to buy me so lemonade. I drank half the bottle, but it tasted funny, and then I realized that it had been expired for 3 years. I got bored, so I went over to some guy sitting on a bench to give him advice about the expired lemonade, but I stopped myself right after I began talking because I realized the guy was THE OWNER OF THE GOLF COURSE, WHO I HAD JUST BOUGHT SAID LEMONADE FROM LIKE 10 MINUTES AGO. I ran back into the golf course and hid on it because I was so embarrassed, even though I had stopped myself in time

Some anon last year kept asking me why Tails was full of love, like 4 times. They stopped sending in the asks after I said "Because he has love stored in his tails"

I got an anon saying "Krafture the flag" who I talked to for some time, and eventually found out who it was (It was Mikey and one of his friends)

I watched the entirety of Death Note in one day, I started watching it at about midnight while playing Minecraft, and kept going until I reached the end of the first half (Where L died) because I felt like I was going to die. After waking up at 2 PM, I ate some delicious fast food chicken and watched the second half. It turns out that I missed two entire episodes, though, which I watched several days later

I think that's all of the major ones, I am very tired right now though so I almost definitely forgot a few. Oh well

[andyfairfaks]

idk who made these questjojs but i answered them in notes a few months ago so here

AHKJ FANS - QUESTIONS i found these lets do them 

1. What do you think about All Hail King Julien ?

Very good

2. What episode/s is/are your favourite and why?

S2 e15 cos funny mort ha ha

S2 e5 funy mort scamrr haha

S3 e10 leanred off loads of mort c just like it idk

S5e10- Mort lore on top

s5e3- wHY DO I NEED AN EXPLANATION ON WHY I LIKE STUFF

3. What is/are your favourite season/s and why?

2 AND 3 SOO GOOFY

4. Who is/are your favourite character/s and why?

i have an order: mort willie clover pam andrew

5. Who is/are your favourite main character/s and why ?

Mort and clover

6. Who is/are your least favourite character/s and why?

BRUCE ONE EYED SIMON ROBMCTODD (NOT PHANTOM) UMM KOTO WHAT A PEDO 

7. Who is/are your favourite enemy/ies and why?

PAM KAREN PIRATES UKJ CRIMSON ON TOP

8. What is/are your favourite ship/s and why?

NONE U UGLY WHO DO U THINK I AM☠️☠️

9. What is/are least favourite ship/s and why ?

ALL OF HTEM! BUT I HAVE A TOP 3: WORT PANDY JOVER

10. What is/are your favourite OST/s ?

WHAT THE HELL IS THAG🔥🔥oh soundtrack u couldve just said song umm me and my crew big stacks i love ur toes

11. What is/are your favourite kingdom/s ?

LEMURS DUHHH IF NOT THEN CROCS XX

12. Which character/s do you want to meet the most and why?

IDK MORT

13. What do you want to change in AHKJ and why?

CLOVER MARRYING SAGE☠️☠️☠️

14. Are you making/doing fanarts, fanmixes or fanfics ?

IDK WHAT A FANMIX IS BUT YA TO THE OTHER ONES (THE STORYS ARE JOKES THO)

15. What do you think about the ending ?

MMMMMMIDDD I HATE IT I HAAAATEEE ITTT

16. Which episode/s is/are the best for you and why?

U ALR ASKED THIS..

17. Which episode/s is/are to worst for you and why?

IDK NONE

18. What is/are your favourite scene/s and why?

UMMMM

 “BUT LOOK THE LITTLE GUYS SMILING”

OH THE UMM STEALING QUESTIONS IN S5 E8

THE KIDNAPPING ASWELL

I LOVE UR TOES OBVIII

WILLIE VS HORST VS PANCHO S3E10( IM GOING FOR WILLIE)

ANY PAM EXILED SCENE

THE LALA AND MORT RUNNING AWAY FROM CLOVER S1E8

EATING WILLIE S4E7 ELOELELOELELOEL

THE DR S  NURSE PHANDTOM AND MAURICE IN S3 E5 

ok thats too many soz 

19. What is/are your least favourite scene/s and why?

Sigh… theres aload but.. 

king juliensFASHION SHOW JESUS CHRIST

….”we dont have time for-“

Sigh when like in s2e3 when maurice thinks clover ermmm.. like literally shut up mayrice common maurice L im gonna pop ur head off no she does not

Any of thise wrestling partsLIEK STOP IT STOP IT RIGHT NOW

Erm any other awkward scene to watch with my family

20. Have you ever cried while watching?

…guilty

21. Which scene/s is/are the funniest for you?

Brah i just named them funnt = fav

22. What do you think about King Julien?

Very good x

ok leave

[iolitemoth]

Give us the sweet sweet OC lore !

(GUESS WHO FORGOT SHE HAD THIS IN HER DRAFTS)

Get ready for an infodump then because you are going to learn all about this woman if I can help it /lh

Okay so her name is Cloudberry and she’s a Sky Dragon Slayer who hails from the time of the first Dragon War/Dragon King Festival. She was training to be a healer and as such was very enthusiastic to learn Sky Magic, which has some incredible healing spells. She wasn’t involved in the war at all until one day her mentor comes crashing down at the edge of town, mortally wounded. Cloudberry (going by Azure at this time, her current name will come later), shocked and grieving, goes to inform the other members of the Nest/Flock her mentor belonged to of the news, only to arrive and find every last one of them slaughtered. She performs the funeral rites and staggers off into the unknown, lost for what to do now.

The details here are a bit fudged/hand-wavy because I’ve gone back and forth on the order they happened and what even happens at all and I’m still not entirely happy with it but at some point she joins up with/is found by Acnologia and his crew, before they all got power-hungry and started killing dragons for the fun of it (also I am. Not caught up with Fairy Tail canon so I could be very wrong about quite a lot of this but whatever). She tends to stay out of the fighting, mostly sticking to healing and doing what she can for the people who took her in. Everything is slowly weighing down on her, though- the war, her loss, Acno’s stance on fighting, the Dragons themselves, etc.

Eventually it all becomes too much and she snaps, getting into a fight with Acno + his gang and he ends up landing a near-crippling blow. She manages to escape and heal herself, though there’s still a nasty scar. It’s around this point that everything comes crashing down, and she is swallowed by anger and fear and pain and what feels like unending grief, which culminates in her losing control and becoming a dragon herself.

(Now, an important thing to note here is that while the canon explanation for becoming a dragon still holds true, that isn’t the only way. Extreme circumstances and/or emotion, like with Cloudberry, can cause it, as well as extreme uses of Dragon Slayer magic, as in pushing oneself so far past their limits that their body can’t handle it and reacts by giving them a body that can. Now obviously none of these are good for someone’s mental health.)

The next few centuries are a haze of fear and grief, most of which after the Dragon War are spent fleeing from the Black Dragon/Acnologia. One day Cloudberry finds herself flying through a terrible storm. When it clears, she finds herself over open ocean, no land in sight except for islands that could only barely fit a full-grown dragon with room to spare.

After a time, she realizes Acnologia won’t find her here, wherever she is, and lands on an (thankfully empty) island and promptly has a long-overdue breakdown- or, depending on how you look at it, the end of a centuries-long breakdown that has been a long time coming.

Exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally, her magic sort of... gives out? and returns her to her human form. She’s found by a group of people who heard the commotion and arrived just in time to see her transform and pass the hell out. They bring her back to their ship and straight to the infirmary, where she’s unconscious for about uhhh *checks notes* a week.

When she wakes up, she has no memory of who she is or where she came from- and, it’s quickly discovered, has no knowledge of the language they’re speaking.

As it turns out, she’s in an entirely different world- one of pirates and miles and miles of ocean.

Also as it turns out, the person whose ship she’s on is none other than Whitebeard and his fledgling crew (this is a little before Oden joins I believe).

They get along well enough and, despite offers to let her off on an island of her choice, she eventually decides to stay. She rediscovers her love for healing and hoards as much medical knowledge as she can (that’s the dragon instinct talking- it’s a headcanon of mine that Dragon Slayers also get the hoarding instinct, but it’s different for everyone- ex. Natsu and his house full of items from different jobs).

She uses her medical knowledge to choose a new name for herself- Cloudberry. Time passes and she is one of the chief medical (is officers the right word? i’m not sure) personnel on the crew. She and Whitebeard are as close as old friends, and she looks after the whole crew like family, especially the younger members. She calls Marco nestling; changing to fledgling as he grows older. The two of them are close and bully Whitebeard about his drinking habits and not listening to his doctors.

Cloudberry is one of the few people Ace trusts when he shows up, mostly because she never pushes him to join the crew and even offers to help him + his crew escape if they want it. He declines, but the offer is still there, up until he officially joins and she knows he won’t be going anywhere unless he chooses to. It means a lot, to Ace, knowing he had someone in his corner, someone who will always be there even with pushback from everyone around them.

(Cloudberry never does agree with Whitebeard’s recruiting methods. Many potential crewmates make their escape with her quiet aid, and are far away before anyone realizes what happened. People have their suspicions, but who’s going to say anything?? {I’m not sure if Whitebeard knows or not. I think he might be in the same boat (...pun not intended) in that he suspects it’s her, but isn’t going to let on.}

Those who decide to stay are hers, in a way that’s different than they are a part of the crew. They call her Auntie, or Aunt Cloudberry, and she won’t hear a bad word about it. It’s their choice. ...Of course, that just helps them love her more.)

*There’s a lot more to it than this but it’s already long enough so I’m just going to end it here haha*

[esther-dot]

Hi Esther! Coming back to give some explanations!

To be king of a people within an existing kingdom is not Martin's invention. It is historical fact, as in the time of the great immigration in Europe different peoples (coalitions of tribes) were moving with their kings into the Roman empire.

However, in our analysis of Martin's book setup we tend to forget that the Gifts (both of them) do not belong to the kingdom, but to the Watch, which is why they declined as the Watch declined. I think that in the context of Jon being hailed as king of the FF Bran and Sansa will reaffirm the donation of the Gifts to the Watch, thus giving Jon a huge territory to rule over as a third kingdom. And I think that you are right, Jon will be in a unique position, to be able to act as mediator between the Northerners and their queen, and the FF, who are still wild. At the end of everything, it will still be very difficult for the Northerners to forget everything that has happened before, the raids and the abductions and the killings. Therefore, to accept the FF below the Wall will have to be done only if there is someone whom the Northernes will be able to trust. That person will be Jon.

Jon as king of the FF is very heavily foreshadowed. One piece of foreshadowing that points to the three rulers is, imo, their seeing the world from the highest position they can find. Jon repeatedly looks down from the Wall; Sansa from the highest tower in KL; and Bran from the tower of WF. (which is why I think that Aegon, looking down from the top of a warehouse is not the real thing). Daenerys as a ruler also receives the same handling by the author, looking down from the pyramid of Meereen. I dare say, this observation goes well with my three sword theory (yes, I am that anon, lol).

Need I point out that Mance wears Targaryen colors when he first meets Jon? Or that Jon thinks to himself "my kingdom... a blasted ruin" looking around in CB? Or that there is a castle at the Wall called Snow gate (renamed Queens gate), where the road leads from Queenscrown? And there is the Symeon Star-eyes story, which I expect to be repeated in a reversed mirror: Symeon falls madly in love with his corpse wife coming from the North and he establishes a rule of terror. Jon will fall in love with Sansa, flesh and blood, coming from the South, and their rule will be one of prosperity and peace.

I think that, in our anxiousness to see this character finally getting rewarded for his voluntary, repeated self-sacrifice on page, we expected to see him as king either of KL or WF, completely forgetting the FF. But neither ending works, because they are both sweet, and because too many objections can be raised based on the book structure and narrative. It is impossible to accomodate all loose ends with Jon as king in either positions. A small example (but others have been pointed out, some of them by you): why would the Northerners accept Jon as their king if he has dragged them to the KL genocide? Isn't that immoral? (the same question of course is 10x more relevant in the South) Isn't the overall message of the book completely f^^ed with such an ending? And what about the author's commentary on female rulership as in the stories of Catelyn, Cersei, Daenerys, Sansa? Can women not exist in positions of power without a man? Do they exist only for promoting male interests? If Jon becomes KitN he has indeed usurped Sansa's rights, which is inconsistent with everything Jon says and does since his first chapter.

Perhaps it is only me, but I think that Jon at the Wall, recognized as a ruler of the FF is consistent with his own story. It is truly bittersweet, it is rewarding, and leaves lots of space for hope, of peace, justice, growth, prosperity, even love in a manner that does no harm to anyone else. I'll be very surprised if Martin chooses something else for this character (and curious to see how he will come to it).

(continuation of this convo)

Thank you for coming back and talking about this more!

I think that, in our anxiousness to see this character finally getting rewarded for his voluntary, repeated self-sacrifice on page, we expected to see him as king either of KL or WF, completely forgetting the FF.

This is true of me. I was outraged by the show ending and thought Jon had no business being a leader of the FF, but there's a lot about how the way of life for the FF is ending, Ygritte has that song, "the Last of the Giants" and the sadness of losing what was permeates that storyline, so, permanently settling the Gift and everything that means for the FF does feel like a fait accompli.

That's also an interesting note about Mance. People have suggested he's actually Rhaegar because it's all so Targy, but I thought it was just R+L=J hints plus foreshadowing for Jon being moved by love for a woman in the future, Sansa, which fits with this:

And there is the Symeon Star-eyes story, which I expect to be repeated in a reversed mirror: Symeon falls madly in love with his corpse wife coming from the North and he establishes a rule of terror. Jon will fall in love with Sansa, flesh and blood, coming from the South, and their rule will be one of prosperity and peace.

Lovely!

Jon as king of the FF is very heavily foreshadowed. One piece of foreshadowing that points to the three rulers is, imo, their seeing the world from the highest position they can find. Jon repeatedly looks down from the Wall; Sansa from the highest tower in KL; and Bran from the tower of WF. (which is why I think that Aegon, looking down from the top of a warehouse is not the real thing). Daenerys as a ruler also receives the same handling by the author, looking down from the pyramid of Meereen.

This is interesting. I did think Aegon was real, not simply a red herring to distract us from R+L=J, but it's possible we will never know. Either way, I always thought Westeros would ultimately be under Stark rule, so Jon, Sansa, and Bran's foreshadowing works. I’m fascinated by the idea of each of the older Starks (Jon, Sansa, Bran) having a kingdom of their own to rebuild.

If Jon becomes KitN he has indeed usurped Sansa's rights, which is inconsistent with everything Jon says and does since his first chapter.

There’s dignity in your suggestion that’s very appealing to me. Rather than Jon's future being determined by family, and instead giving him the opportunity to build in his own name, on his own terms, that's a really positive outcome. I often think, but how would Jon feel about this? When considering possible future events, and so many things seem just, riddled with traps for him, things he'd never be able to overcome the shame of. That's the major barrier for me and the Jon KitN idea. If he accepts he'd feel awful for "usurping" Sansa (even if she supported him) and then post parentage reveal, he'd feel even worse.

However, in our analysis of Martin's book setup we tend to forget that the Gifts (both of them) do not belong to the kingdom, but to the Watch, which is why they declined as the Watch declined.

Yes! I mentioned that here once:

The fact that this is an old Stark grievance and Ned and Benjen had plans to deal with it is very promising. Rectifying that old wrong, making the land safe and purposeful again, that definitely seems like it would fit really well as part of the endgame.

I suppose I thought perhaps Jon would be Lord Commander and turn that over to Sansa, but if he instead, due to his relationship with the FF, oversees it, it allows him to carry out Ned's wishes himself.

Perhaps it is only me, but I think that Jon at the Wall, recognized as a ruler of the FF is consistent with his own story. It is truly bittersweet, it is rewarding, and leaves lots of space for hope, of peace, justice, growth, prosperity, even love in a manner that does no harm to anyone else.

So, in this ending, Jon and Sansa would never be able to offocial marry? How do you think carrying on the Stark line would be resolved?

[leatherbookmarking]

sits.

a curse/plot imperative hits nmj and makes him invisible (inaudible, untouchable, etc, etc) while he’s in jinlintai. he’s convinced it’s somehow jgy’s doing, so he sets to find him and make him remove it, except, of course, shouting your san-di into anything is a bit difficult when he acts as if he can’t see or hear you -- the gall, the--oh fuck and walks right through you, as if you were a ghost?! fucked up. really fucked up, alright. and he can’t summon baxia to like, cleave the bastard in half, so he settles on following him everywhere, determined to discover the way to uncurse himself (because it’s clearly jgy, cmon). and also all the atrocities and plots jgy is undoubtedly up to when no one’s looking.

he finds... things, oh that he does. and stuff. such as: what jin guangshan looks like after a merry night with the girls (jgy came to wake him up). or: how jin guangshan behaves with a barely awake girl who passed out last night, and how long it takes for jgy to politely persuade him to perhaps get up and go have breakfast, or madame jin might be cross with him. or: how jin guangshan snorts and pushes his son away, sending him straight into what looks and smells like a puddle of vomit, for some reason. etc, etc

during those very educating hours, nmj does get an answer to the immediate question of why does he allow that to happen to him?!, and the one to provide it is no one else than madame jin, who never wastes a chance to remind jgy that he’s a disgusting bastard, this is not his home, and one wrong step can send him back down those stairs, so watch your place. she’s not the only one to voice her thoughts in this manner, because a couple of cousins also always has something to say. eventually he also learns to recognize the less obvious signs of someone’s contempt -- jgy sometimes does that soulless smile or clenches his jaw and nmj initially doesn’t know why, that person didn’t say anything hateful, and then he learns to notice the facial expressions, the tone of voice, even the backhanded compliments. tl;dr jinlintai is hell, what the fuck, nmj would have beheaded half of those bastards and jgy just keeps on smiling--

i mean he does find the corpses too, okay. he does find them because jgy has to pay a-yang a visit. like this is a thing that happens,

BUT ALSO he witnesses his meeting with sect leader su -- oh his name’s minshan, whatever -- who seems to be... aware of everything that happens to jgy and fucking furious about it, and also something something society. this su minshan notices that jgy has been slapped this day, and looks as if he’s boiling inside for a moment, and then he Snaps, which -- judging by jgy’s face -- isn’t his first time.

nmj finds out about a lot of interesting things after that? such as jgy doesn’t have any place to leave for, and if he “doesn’t like it” at jinlintai, he might as well just hang himself, it’ll be quicker that way; how his sworn brothers must think they’re so great and noble but how can they be any of these if jgy doesn’t feel he can ask them for help; how jin guangshan may be his father but it doesn’t excuse him deliberately putting jgy to the most humiliating, dirty and atrocious tasks, and ordering him to kill nie mingjue is honestly too much, what, can’t he kill him himself, this old, pathetic worm? does he have to send his son? and to nie mingjue, who regards him as lower than an insect, as if it wasn’t him who saved his ungrateful ass, etc etc? it’s a very enlightening evening for nie mingjue, in short

of course sms uses slightly gentler words; but jgy tells him off for that anyway, but at this point nmj... sails off a little, needing time to... (gestures) this ALL

and like. how it ends is honestly not as important as the EXPERIENCE, like LEARN A LITTLE, NIE MINGJUE. nmj is a character that, i feel, hasn’t really been robbed of his agency and power as others have (jgy being jgy, wwx and jc losing their cores, lxc losing his home and family etcetc).

like yes, he’s been living with the looming threat of losing his mind to saber brain, but being so possessed by rage and killing intent that you explode, killing everyone around you is slightly different flavour of hell than being aware that anyone could kill you anytime and no one would care! or notice.

so all the scenarios where he loses a lot of his power -- for example his golden core, i think i had an idea like that on twt, rip in pieces -- and can witness, first or second hand, what it’s like to be jgy or jgy-adjacent, are. good. crunchy. juicy and umami. yknow?

so, does he get uncursed? does he decide to help jgy, now seeing him in a different light? does he See, and feel bad about his black-and-white views? or does he simply -- march into xy’s merry little workshop when jgy is there, drag him out and execute him in front of everyone? who knows, it could be a very interesting fic i’m not going to write, but also, hngggghhh i am sorry for saying this and i love da-ge, his firm titties and his sexey moustache to Bits, but -- yesss nmj can get brought down a peg or seven from time to time. as a treat (for me).

also, it was all sms

[dondon-deconcon]

Oohh Willie x Mort actually sounds pretty cute!! Like, you got an anxious scared boi, with possibly one of the scariest and most threatening bois. I like it!

Yeah! And like I really like the whole idea that they found each other y'know? I'm not too good with words but I'll explain the best way I can haha

Ok, so! We have Willie who suffers from anxiety and according to him has a family who's been fighting for ten generations, and we have Mort who struggles with the realization that he's this eldritch abomination and constantly has to keep the other Morts under control or else one of them could easily take over and wreak havoc. Add that onto the fact that they're both generally disliked/bullied by the other lemurs and you've got yourself a GOLD MINE of hurt/comfort right there.

Just wanted to remind people that when Willie was sad at the art show the only thing that cheered him up was seeing Mort's art.

Not to mention that Willie definitely applied to be Mort's boyfriend in O Brother, Where Aren't Thou? which sparked this ship in the first place, but I hc that Willie and Mort grew pretty close during Exiled. I mean just look at them!

He holds him so tenderly so he must care about him, which is wild because nobody cares about Mort I’m jussayin.

And the whole "Heyyy, whatcha got there Mort?" like the homie Willie just wanted to spend time with him.

I'd like to also point out that in the first episode of Exiled, Mort was planning on killing Willie along with Koto and just.. didn't? Which made me think like huh what changed Mort's mind gee I wonder.

But yeah sorry for presenting you with all this but like WE SEE THEM, ITS THERE

[hardtchill]

How do monarchies work? I have never lived in one but it seems insane.

Well, it’s quite straightforward really. 

Someone, usually a very long time ago either killed some people, won a war or just at random decided they were special and declared themselves king. The peasants were like wtf, but i mean who the fuck listens to peasants right? So the dude becomes king and forces everyone to pay him a salary for doing very little and spending very much. 

With me so far? Okay.

So the dude is king and spends money that isn’t his but then realizes that fucking is fun and will probably result in an heir. Because peasants suck he chooses a close relative to fuck because nothing is better than a familiar pussy i guess. In time the relative who somehow is now called a queen poops out a child which they call ‘very special’ which is just another way of saying, i fucked my cousin so this kid is all kinds of messed up. The kid is called a prince or a princess because reasons. 

When the king dies the first born child with a penis takes over because of the little known fact that a penis has leadership skills. If no penis baby was born the other one had to do (or the crown would go to a penis baby from another royal line). Note: very very progressive monarchies started accepting babies without penises as heirs at some point, yay for girlbosses. 

I would really like to end this explanation by saying that monarchies are a thing of the past and we no longer give titles to random ass people because of who their parents are, but alas. 

ALL HAIL KING GEORGE 

[ladyartemesia]

ঌ⊙ fic preview ⊙ঌ

Once Upon a Bracelet

Pairing: Prince Jungkook x Sorceress Reader

(Featuring Platonic Jin x Reader Friendship)

Genre: Fantasy • Soulmates • Enemies to Lovers

Predicted Word Count: 7K (Teaser is 1K)

Rating: Explicit (18+) (Teaser is PG-13)

Summary: You were born to nothing, but your powerful craft caught the eye of a charming prince.

However, his distinctly un-charming younger brother challenged your betrothal and is routinely challenging you.

Jeon Jungkook is (probably) a former necromancer and (definitely) the wrong prince...

But the bracelets tell a different story.

⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ

Prologue: Blood Magic

⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ

Blood magic was the oldest and most powerful of the ancient crafts.

The best and strongest blood crafters hailed from Dionysia, where the heart of all blood magic, the Sanguine Well, rose up from the earth. The people of Dionysia served as caretakers and protectors of the Well and, in time, reverence of the blood craft wove into the fabric of their souls.

Their culture thrived around it. Their beliefs embodied it.

Even love bowed before it.

Bonding bracelets were born of blood magic.

The ritual creation of a bonding bracelet pair marked the transition from childhood into maturity. When a man or woman reached their 20th birthday, they and their family traveled to the Sanguine Well.

Four cuts were made on the right hand. Six drops of blood offered to the water...

Then the Well would churn and rise with violence, swelling till the overflow swept over the youth who fed their blood to the currents.

When the water receded, the bracelet pair remained.

One bracelet for the man or woman who sought the well.

One for their soulmate.

Only the first of any soulmate pair (the first seeker) to perform the ritual received the bracelets. Many who traveled to the Sanguine Well left empty handed because their soulmate had offered blood first.

The first seeker’s bracelet formed fully clasped around their wrist. The second bracelet remained open and would only close for the first seeker’s destined mate.

When an unclaimed bracelet united with its true host, the open ends stretched and intertwined to form a rune.

From that moment on, the first seeker and their mate were blood bonded; their powers and abilities joined in a sacred union that was – to all known craft – unbreakable.

The strength of a blood bound pair could be quite formidable and, over the centuries, powerful soulmates rose to become great warriors, crafters, and leaders of their people…

For this reason, Dionysia did not take the gift of bonded soulmates lightly.

All proposed matches were registered and approved by the Ruling Council before an open bracelet could even be tried on by a potential partner. Both parties were required to present evidence of their commitment to one another. If the alliance was approved, the betrothed pair participated in a public ceremony where the first seeker’s intended mate would activate the bond by finally placing the open bracelet around their wrist.

The Royal Council believed this care and reverence honored the craft and the gods, thereby allowing the sacred tradition to continue.

In 900 years of recorded history, only five bonding ceremonies ended with a bracelet that did not close.

Now there were six…

⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ

Once Upon a Time...

⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙థ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ⊙ঌ

“Jin!”

Your voice echoed dismally down the dusty corridor of Silent Truth Hall. “I’m sorry…I—”

Jin whirled on you, shaking his head vehemently.

“None of this is your fault.”

“There are many reasons why this could’ve happened,” you offered breathlessly.

“There’s only one reason why this happens.”

He sighed in defeat as you rubbed your temples in frustration.

“I don’t understand. The Council gave permission!”

The Ruling Council was a sovereign governing body of three kings and three queens, one monarch from each of Dionysia’s six royal bloodlines.

“The Council isn’t all knowing… ” Jin collapsed against a nearby wall. “This is a disaster,” he whispered.

And it was.

You had no family, but all of your friends from the Academy were there.

Jin was technically an orphan as well, but his adopted family, the Jeons, were there.

Jeon Alaya was high queen of the Ruling Council, so half the kingdom was there to see her (adopted) son bond with a craft prodigy from The Wastes.

Half the kingdom, but not her blood. Not her youngest son, you thought bitterly.

The two of you were silent for several moments while your minds struggled to process the shock.

“Do you think the rumors—what they say about me—is true?” you asked solemnly.

Jin’s head shot up in an instant.

“No,” he swore, “they’re absolutely not true.”

“But it didn’t close—”

“It didn’t close because we aren’t soulmates—not because you aren’t one of us.” His expression softened. “We were a good idea… just not the right one.”

Tears begin to burn at the corner of your eyes.

On some level you were not surprised. You cared for Jin but–

Yours was not an overly romantic attachment.

It was a strong friendship—one that spanned several years. When you decided to apply to the Royal Council for bonding, it seemed…

Logical.

Friendship was an excellent basis for blood bonding. More than one bonded pair applied as friends.

You believed in the wisdom of the Royal Council—everyone did. If you and Jin were not meant for each other, then surely the Council would see it. They would turn down the application. Someone would object…

Someone did object, your mind taunted.

But you were approved.

The date was set. Announcements made. Invitations sent out. The bracelet was placed on your wrist and…

Nothing.

Nothing happened.

Jin’s bracelet remained stubbornly un-closed.

And you had never felt so mortified, so exposed… so profoundly alone in your entire life.

It was a scandal of epic proportions, one which potentially called into question the judgement of the entire Ruling Council.

“Listen,” Jin said at last, “I need… I need to clear my head and think about the next steps. I know an expert on bonding bracelets. Maybe I can convince her to help. There might be another explanation.”

His hands slid up to grasp your shoulders in a familiar comforting gesture.

“Head to my house outside the city for a while. No one will bother you there, and I’ll be back tomorrow.” He gave your arms a brotherly squeeze. “We’ll work through this.”

You nodded, extremely grateful for the opportunity to be alone for a few hours.

Jin helped you slip out the back corridor to avoid the insanity still unfolding in the Hall (where the failed ceremony took place), then you parted with a final hug and quietly walked the few miles to his beautiful manor near the lake.

Technically, Golden Starlight House was one of many homes owned by the Jeon family. This one, however, Jin shared with his younger brother…

Jungkook

Jeon Jungkook was a sore subject for you. In fact, you preferred not to think about him at all if possible—and you certainly would never agree to hide at his house if you thought he would be there.

But Jungkook left weeks ago… right after the betrothal was announced.

“I cannot stand by and watch my brother make a mistake like this.”

His horrible words echoed in your mind as you unlocked the door, prepared to simply collapse fully clothed on the chaise when—

“Shouldn’t you be off playing bride-to-be literally anywhere else?”

You turned, already knowing who you would see.

“Jeon Jungkook. Of course.” A mirthless laugh bubbled up before you could stop it.

Just what I needed right now.

Full story should be posting very soon! Please let me know what you thought of the teaser! 🥺I would really appreciate it and it really fuels my creative process! I promise I treasure every word!

Let me know in the comments if you would like to be tagged for this story!

Tagging: @lemonjoonah @xjoonchildx @ppersonna @hobi-gif @untaemedqueen @underthejoon because you ladies are my heart and I always want to show you what I did right away 🥺

Important Note: I previously published a version of this story for a different fandom (Star Wars). So if you see it elsewhere (though I have made considerable changes) I promise it’s me and I can prove it. Tagging @wwilloww because she read the original way back when 😂🤣

[flowerflamestars]

i remember that you once said something about privateer nesta could you elaborate? please? *shrek cat eyes*

WHO TOLD YOU I AM COMPLETELY VULNERABLE TO THE CAT EYES??

okay, so admittedly I don't remember the context in which I said this?? But I still SUPER super love the idea

and it matches with what we'll call the Dream ACOTAR Extended Universe Plot, almost canon.

We begin with the final battle against Hybern. Tamlin dies, closing the loop of his tragic, misspent life. Amren stays dead, a magical being on to the next adventure.

Rhysand stays dead.

He functionally (magically) threw himself on a bomb, and took the whole blast. He's not the Cauldron- and no one man could repair what it once was, but he could contain the fatal, drastic implosion of an object that was meant to endure forever, fractured into more and more peices.

Why is this important?

Because it leaves a world where Feyre Archeron- twenty-ish, romantic hero, prop, prisoner- becomes High Lady in her own, true right.

(I don't think she's necessarily good at this job, because why would she be? It's not even her fault- Feyre has no idea about how faery politics work, no real tangible knowledge of her own inherited kingdom.)

But both the men who stole her and defined her and loved her and hurt her are dead.

And it not only sets her on a journey to become, on her own, an actual character in her own life, but it galvanizes the Archeron sisters.

Feyre's basically fucking comatose after the battle. Elain has been a mess this entire time, but after that last fight with Grayson, walking into the war and stabbing a king in the throat- she is as vital and herself as Nesta has seen her in years.

Nesta just watched her father die and felt nothing- and she hates herself for it. She and Elain had taken the head of the man who stole everything from them- and she doesn't have a single regret.

Feyre screamed until she could no longer- there's so much magic seething out her it hurts to look at-

There's a dark well inside herself that could rise. But why should Nesta let it? So what, if she doesn't mourn her father? He'd never cared about her and Elain- not when they were young, too busy and important to even speak to his own children. Not when they lost everything, and he'd tried one last time to sell them both into marriages to recoup the family loss. Not after, in the starving cold, no matter what she'd tried to force him into action.

Nesta had been mourning all along a human girls human life- what is an absent, neglectful, shitty in the most ordinary of ways human parent if not a part of that lost future?

Their sister owns a fucking country- their sister is, at this minute so hemmed in by her followers no one can see her, much less comfort her- there's a war camp falling apart around them- there's Nesta, Elain, and Azriel, unhurt, upright, alive.

(she does not let herself think that an hour before she'd been ready to die and thought it right, the ending the meant to be conclusion of her story. she does not think about how she'd wished Cassian healed beneath her hands and that he had healed, that she'd wept to learn she could do more than destroy.

that she'd still been weeping, her mouth bright with his blood, when he'd pulled away, dragged himself to Morrigan's waiting arms)

Nesta Archeron is alive. Her sisters are alive. They're free, and she'll be fucking damned if this all falls apart before Feyre can heal.

Nesta turns to Azriel and asks if he can take control of the legions.

She has no time for his blank, angry eyes- she knows he's hurt, he's mourning, he's lost- but she needs him. Cassian's...down. Rhys is dead. Feyre and Morrigan are not coming out of that tent.

And he just listens. Thoughtfully. Asks what Nesta intends to do.

And Nesta looks at Elain- soft, kind, gentle Elain who'd never once wavered now when life was on the line. Who hadn't cried a tear for their father, or for the man who'd kidnapped and then married their baby sister.

The danger wasn't over- and neither had the steel faded from Elain's spine.

Nesta tells Azriel she's going to find Keir.

Nesta isn't blind- she's walked the Hewn City, spoken to the eldest darkness. She was also at the joke of a Summit- Autumn wants new territory, Keir wants to rule Night. And here Night is, weakened, a lamb to slaughter.

Nesta's not going to lose again- she's not going to give these ancient, cruel lords another chance.

Elain grabbed her hand and squeezed- the one person, always, who Nesta never need explain herself to.

Aren't the High Fae technically Morrigan's Elain asked, a bare whisper as they walked through the camp.

It went without saying yes, but Nesta had never seen any indication they respected her enough to listen to her. She made a face, and Elain made one right back, rueful. She had eyes too, after all.

They're not going to listen to us in these clothes, Elain also told her.

She was right, of course. They were High Fae, and that mattered to those vile pricks, but they'd been outfitted for flight. She would do almost anything, actually, to be free of leather pants.

Which Elain, a gleam in her eye that Nesta was learning meant magic, dreamy and happy- led her precisely to a gold topped tent, stepped inside, bowed, and asked without a trace of hesitation if Helion Spellcleaver, Lord of Day, would perhaps do them the favor of loaning them some garments.

Solid gold eyes gleaming against blood and smoke tinged dark skin, beautiful, glorious Helion, smiled.

Day-white against Night- but also, Nesta knew, taking care with her crown of a braid, the splatter of blood left on her throat, her mouth, her cheeks like fine paint- white was the color of death.

Elain covered herself completely- shawl wrapped over her hair, tucked around her neck, breathing easier now, in human modesty- but hung from a golden belt that Helion, with the clear air of someone who knew something about seers, had found, metal hammered with stars and flames, was Truthteller, the long blade without a sheathe, black metal swallowing up light.

Keir was easy to find, and in fine form, surrounded by Darkbringers, who looped back behind the sisters the second they were close.

Nesta was not afraid- she'd thrown power into the sky and it had hurt. Not in depth, but because she was still holding on- it wanted out-it wanted to devour-

Elain dipped a flagrantly rude, swallow bob of a curtsey. Nesta didn't even bother- just let Keir hail them, royal family that they were. He liked the sound of his own voice, but he was also clever- they'd come here of their own volition and now they were trapped.

She could smell the reinforcements, the utter Autumn reek.

Nesta interrupted, and asked Keir to come and swear fealty to her sister.

It was never going to get the right answer, but it had to be said. It had to be heard.

She'd been right- they'd been right- Keir enjoyed the cruelty of getting close to Nesta, denying straight to her Archeron face that no, Rhysand's bloodline was ended. It was time, it was right, for the House of Truth to once more hold their throne.

He spoke his treason aloud, looming over Nesta- close enough to touch.

So Nesta did.

She'd willed Cassian alive and whole. It was so, so much easier to remember fire, death, drowning, to push and want the revolting man's destruction.

And when he fell, silvered fire that had filled his lungs spilling from his throat, Nesta did not flinch. She looked to the next lieutenant, a frankly indistinguishable golden haired pale-eyed blandly handsome man in black armor, and asked, if he, as the new commander of the Darkbringers, would like to give a different answer.

He did.

Azriel met them halfway back to Feyre, grim mouth flickering for a second at the sight of Elain, before looking, stone-faced, at Nesta beside her, leading a crowd of the highest ranked Night Court faeries she could find.

Keir? He asked.

Dead, Elain answered, and that was that.

The Shadowsinger fell in step with the Seer, a threatening shadow to two pale beacons.

It was Azriel who actually went inside the tent. Who said what needed to said, what made Morrigan splutter loudly enough to be heard outside, before she burst out the tent in a whorl of hair, before blanching.

Nesta had just enough control not to roll her eyes. They come to swear fealty.

And Morrigan, chewing her lip with all the dignity of a child- Elain and Nesta had been trained out of such gestures at eight, what did she think was happening here? - shook her head. She's not well, it can wait.

No, Azriel said, from behind her, it can't.

He was supporting what looked like the entirety of Feyre's weight. Dead-white, blue eyes a blaze, Feyre looked blearily out at all of them like she recognized no one.

Elain, treasure that she was, came forward to take her sister's other hand, whispering both condolence and explanation.

And so the High Houses of Night knelt in battlefield mud, and swore eternal loyalty to the youngest Archeron.

It was only after they were gone that Nesta hugged her sister- hard enough Feyre protested, a fresh batch of tears soaking Nesta's shoulder even before Elain joined them.

It's Azriel, voice a little less like a phantom, who tells Feyre they're handling things. That if she wants to rest more, that's fine.

She was so clearly shattered- Nesta half wondered how much of that Azriel can literally feel/hear with his shadow...things.

Feyre protests that there's things to do- Feyre makes it halfway through a sentence about plans before she says Rhysand's name like he's still alive and collapses in on herself like a wave crashing.

Nesta and Elain tuck Feyre back into the blanket pile. Nesta manages to kiss her forehead before Morrigan is there, hugging Feyre putting herself bodily between the sisters.

They leave, and outside, Azriel is waiting.

To hand Nesta a gaudy, enormous platinum ring. The seal of the Night Court- Nesta recognizes it from shipping manifests, but she'd never actually seen it as an adult. Here, as a faery.

Her thoughts on Azriel's powers hold true, as he answers the dismay: Rhys only used it when he had to. It had passed between the whole Court of Dreams hands, there had not been a vizier, a lord of stars, since the time of Rhysand's father.

Nesta puts on the hideous ring, barely flinching at the brush of magic, it resizing to her hand.

Elain grasps her other, squeezing, and asks Azriel who is next.

They work ceaselessly, pausing only to sleep. Azriel, Nesta is quite sure, isn't sleeping at all- until she goes looking for him with a question and finds him finally, finally out cold, face tucked in Lucien Vanserra's neck.

In silence and gestures, they come to something of an agreement- and when the Night Court comes to the table to talk peace, it's with Lucien. Jurian, who Nesta immediately liked.

By the time they return to the North, there is not a Lord one who does not know the names and nightmarish qualities of all three Archeron sisters.

Feyre mourns, and learns to govern slow. Cassian goes back to Illyria and does not return for a long, long time. Morrigan becomes Feyre's second- Nesta laughs, not altogether kind, when Lucien tells her this. No one has been able to answer her as to why, if Morrigan is so powerful, why did she not fight? what does she actually do?

What answers to her questions she does find are appalling. Why does Winter block our every turn? oh, Rhysand killed more than a dozen children. Why is Summer refusing our trade? Well, Rhysand stole their ancestral pride. Why is the Hewn City so wrathful at even the slightest form of intervention? Because Rhysand had left Keir to rule alone.

Nesta doesn't want to rule the fucking court. She thinks she could leave all of these politicians to rot- but she won't let Feyre misstep her way to death, shouldering a burden of her dead mate.

There's nothing they can give Winter but apology and so that's what Nesta does. On her knees, in a gilded palace of ice, stars caught in her hair and the seal on her. Kallias, bright and young, seems to know something about inherited problems- he does not ever forget, but he forgives, at least, the Archerons.

Summer is more complicated- but Nesta does what she can. Gives them every melted, ruined piece of the Book. Offers reparations for the next millennia. Ends up paying for what she is appalled and embarrassed to learn is a two hundred year old debt for a building the head of the Night Court's armed forces- Cassian, fucking Cassian the ghost haunting Nesta- had destroyed. During a brawl. At a solstice party.

She deals only with Cressieda, and they come to understand each other very well.

Nesta was not raised for politics and bullshit- her mother wanted her to marry a crown, but Nesta wanted the family empire. Trade. The Archeron legacy, denied to a girl. She likes Summer more than any place in Prythian, and she doesn't hide that. She relearns old lessons of tide and routes in secret, before Cressieda reveals that of course, she knows who the Archerons were.

It goes well, until Morrigan finds out what she's been doing, and tells Feyre.

The youngest Archeron had been doing better. Morrigan has been right by her side, through everything. Cassian is in Illyria, and Feyre understands why, writing him letters. She writes letters to Rhys too, if only to have a way to direct the words.

Azriel, spectral and busy she sees the least of, but Feyre never doubts his presence, keeping her safe. Elain comes, drags her out into sunlight, brings Lucien and it makes Feyre happy to see them together. Nesta comes too, with them both and alone, with papers from Feyre to sign, with affection sharp-edged but true.

Feyre knows she owes them all more than can be said- she's not stupid, she knows they're keeping Night together. That slowly those responsibilities will fall to her, when she's ready.

She does not think about how much of those responsibilities is cleaning up the tangled mess of betrayal Rhysand left behind. In her head, there is only Rhys- beloved and shadowed, kind and tortured.

Until Morrigan tells her that it's been acknowledged, in public, by Night, that Rhysand was a thief, and a murder of children.

Feyre loses her shit.

Rhysand had done what he had to. Who was Nesta, to say such things? She'd always hated Rhys. Rhys had always hated her, maybe he was right- the children. Rhys had mourned them in screaming nightmares, but he hadn't hurt them-

(Feyre does not stop to think it strange, that Rhys could have nightmares of memories not his own. That he might have fractured just a bit, under Amarantha. That the Red Lady had no daemati- that was why she'd kept Rhys all along.)

The fight is as ugly as can be imagined. And what proceeds is of course, worse. Feyre says terrible things she will ultimately regret and apologize for, but what becomes clear is that Morrigan thinks that Nesta means to hold power forever.

That she's taken advantage.

And Cassian, called home by rage, believes her.

That is, more than her ungrateful sister, more than the ongoing weight of cleaning up after a man she despised for good reason, the end of Nesta Archeron's Night Court career.

She'd thought she loved him- she'd been willing to die with him- but they'd lived. This was the life, the next life, and what did he think of her? That Nesta was a power hungry snob. That she was paying too much heed to politics.

That Nesta belonged quietly at home. That she should have learned to fight somewhere along that way- a point so convoluted it made Lucien laugh- that she hadn't learned anything that mattered.

That she had no right to kill Keir, because it had hurt Morrigan.

Had he ever, Nesta would wonder later, even liked her? Enjoyed anything about her but for that magical tether, telling him he was blessed with something special?

Nesta was something special, and she knew it.

And so she returned the ring to Azriel, packed up her possessions, and left.

First to Day, where Elain had bought a house. Fury and tears both met the explanation of what happened- fury and tears that turned to getting inadvisably drunk in sunlight, when Lucien and Azriel snuck away to join them.

For the first time in Nesta's adult life, she had no obligations. Magic, money, freedom- the whole world was out there.

She stopped wearing black. Learned pants where actually lovely, when they fit correctly and weren't made of leather. Learned Azriel could laugh, and Lucien was as clever as she'd always thought.

She read books, she ate fruit, she took Helion up on several of his more lascivious offers.

She thought of Cassian, and it ached, but not enough to go backward.

Elain's house was by the sea, right on the water. The scent of salt reminded Nesta of Summer- but also of her oldest, most secret dreams. The warehouses of goods, like mysteries to solve. The account books she stole, learning by candlelight the trade in her blood.

Ten years after the war, Nesta bought a ship.

She set out to be a merchant, use what she knew, but what happened was this: Nesta Archeron did not care anymore for rules. And so when she came upon Hybernian remnants-for they were an island kingdom, even more one with the water than Prythian- pillaging a Summer town, she destroyed them.

She stole their treasure, gave much of it back to the people.

Found, unexpected, that she had much more of a taste for marauding than she would have expected. There was still trade of course- proft made and shared- but Summer needed someone willing to do some destroying out on the sea.

Twelve years after the war, Nesta Archeron became a privateer under the Summer flag, pearls in her hair and a true smile on her lips.

Things grew, as all things do. Feyre wrestled herself the reins of government, stymied by the councils Nesta and Azriel set up as much as she often was by Azriel himself out of truly petulant action. Morrigan remained second, golden blades bright as her gowns within reach. Cassian became a sort of seneschal, reigning over Illyria in Feyre's name cold and alone as the wind through the mountains.

(Feyre thought he might never get over the war, but Azriel knew the truth.)

Elain took herself wherever the future led, a sort of mediator and councilor, walking in all Courts- but always back to home, that isolated green, green cove, where Nesta would land.

When war came again, there was no great Lordly alliance, no cut-throat summit. There was a fleet of ships whose sails where edged in purple, whose announcement across the water was silver fire, whose accompaniment were monsters of old.

Violence did not touch Prythians human shore, because Nesta Archeron did not let it.

She was death on the tide, and she remembered what shores had borne her.

She had a home in Summer, a place in Day, her family across the continent- she had her ships, full of faeries from every walk of life, who wanted as she did the freedom as much as the profit, the endless, endless blue, where sea meets sky.

It was eternity, and the Archeron sisters, free, had made it their own.

[the-melting-world]

picrew

Seeing as how long I have been a HUGE fan of the airbender series (ATLA), it's actually kind of ridiculous that I never got into the fandom. Anyway, humor me while I go through each of my ocs and babble about their roles, histories, and bending styles in the ATLA universe! Also please excuse the fact that they had zero afro-textured options for hair in this one lol.

*Check under the cut for an unnecessary amount of lore.*

Kipling ~ Waterbender | Northern-style waterbending, vine/plant-bending, healing

Water Tribe Babeyyyyy

I don't really see Kip hailing from the Southern or Northern Water Tribes, but rather from a coastal village that developed after a handful of Southern Water Tribe hostages escaped one of the prisoner of war strongholds in the Earth Kingdom. I mean, if Hama (The Puppetmaster) and the plant benders from Foggy Swamp were any indication, there were water benders scattered all over the Earth Kingdom during Lord Ozai's military campaign.

Bending-wise, Kip has always been an average waterbender, whose bending is strongest when she's manipulating the water in plants and vines. When she comes of age, she is determined to advance her skills and find a way to serve her tribe more directly. So she travels to the Northern Water Tribe to seek an apprenticeship. There Kip advances her skills in traditional water bending forms (because up until then, her methods have been rather unorthodox) as well as her affinity for healing.

While Kip is up north, she does get close to Princess Yue in their healing classes. For a long time, Kip develops what she believes is a stupid crush, but eventually discovers the Princess has mutual feelings. Step aside, Sokka, you ain't the only one. Kip and Yue explore their relationship, but only briefly until the guilt and paranoia of getting caught and tarnishing Yue's reputation catches up to them. Kip ends up leaving in the dead of night leaving nothing but - you guessed it - a poem for Yue to find.

Kip happens to be one of the travelers Team Avatar meets while they're on the road. It's quite some time after the invasion of the Northern Water Tribe. This is after Yue has passed on, but before the group reaches Ba Sing Se. Both being kind of self-taught waterbenders, Kip and Katara bond very easily. Kip has a hard time being around Sokka since it's the first time she's felt something for someone since Yue. Still, despite Kip's efforts to ignore Sokka, they end up bonding over a lot of stuff, both stupid and serious. I'm not going to go into details about what went down when they inevitably learned of each other's past relationships with Yue, but yes, there were lots of emotions. A lot of Kip trying to run away and shake herself of Sokka. A lot of Sokka battling between pursuing her or leaving her alone. It's a mess. And no I still don't know how it turns out. Haven't planned it out that far.

After Ozai is defeated, Kip makes her living as a traveling waterbending instructor with her good Earth Kingdom friend, Khleo. She travels the territories, finding hidden water tribes and informing them of the fall of Ozai. She works with Khleo and the community members to open smalls schools, closely modeled after the earthbending schools in Omashu.

***

Khleo ~ Earthbender | earthbending, sandbending, lavabending

Khleo had a rocky start to their journey. Sorry, I couldn't help it.

They were born in an area that bordered on the Si Wong Desert and the mountain chain dividing the land from Chameleon Bay (where they later meet Kipling.) Naturally, Khleo picks up a little bit from each of the known forms of earth manipulation. Although they develop into a fully realized master by the time they reach adulthood, they don't ever try their hand at meltalbending when it starts to gain popularity after the fall of Ozai.

Khleo grew up poor and had to resort to unsavory business ventures with the local sandbenders in order to keep food on the table. But since they were the sole bender that could calm down the nearby volcanoes whenever they acted up, they were always regarded as a hero within the community.

Eventually, the Fire Nation finds a way to complicate Khleo's existence and they have to flee their home. First, they cross the mountain range to Chameleon Bay, where they meet the waterbender Kipling, who they easily bond with. Khleo and Kip travel together for some time until they run into Jet and his crew. Jet's lifestyle appeals to Khleo, who was tired of roughing it. But Kip takes one look at Jet and knows that he's bad news. She and Khleo part ways.

Like most of the kids in Jet's crew, Khleo blinded themself to his activities in order to survive and stay connected to a family group. But when his actions become too hard for them to go along with, they abandon the Freedom Fighters and go to go look for work elsewhere.

Khleo had set their sights on Omashu, where they believed they could earn an honest living and still practice their bending without the eyes of the Fire Nation bearing down on them. The journey was tough and Khleo had a few brushes with death, but they made it to Omashu. There they were immediately hired by a cabbage vendor who struggled in the past with keeping his wares in one piece. Khleo guarded his cabbage stand for all but a week before they were noticed by some Omashu academy trainers. They offered Khleo a job as an instructor in multiple earthbending forms. Surprised, but very willing, Khleo accepted. Eventually, Khleo was inducted into the Order of the White Lotus.

Years later, Khleo reunites with a very emotionally scarred Kipling. She stays with them until the capture of King Bumi, after which they quickly leave the city so that they can carry out the will of the White Lotus in hopes to undermine the Fire Nation's plan to conquer the Earth Kingdom on the day of Sozin's Comet 2.0.

***

Ozy ~ The Avatar Firebender/Airbender hybrid | firebending, airbending

Ozy's kind of special. He has an affinity for two elements.

He was born in the Fire Nation in a very, very small village on the coast of Crescent Island. When Ozy's parents noticed that their child was something of a prodigy, they brought him straight to the Fire Sages.

Now, there was a split among the sages. Some were loyal to Lord Ozai while others were secretly members of the Order of the White Lotus. One of the members recognized Ozy's affinity for airbending very early on and did everything they could to protect him.

Without being able to say goodbye to his parents or getting an explanation for what was happening, Ozy was sent to the Western Air Temple (you know, the cool upsidedown one) where he learned airbending with the help of older White Lotus members as well as spiritual experts like Guru Pathik (the same guru who taught Aang how to navigate the Avatar State.)

As Ozy became more and more enlightened, he came to believe that his gift was not a rare one. When he was not actively practicing the rudimentary components of bending, he was meditating on the factors that led the majority of people to believe that the ability to bend was inherited based on the ethnic and cultural group into which they were born. He thought that while this was true to some degree, additional affinities could be unlocked through the forgotten teachings of the Air Nomads.

To test his theory, Ozy went on a very dangerous journey to the Library in the Si Wong Desert, where he met and became very bonded to Uncle Iroh. Thankfully, Iroh and Ozy managed to not get eaten by the Library's spiritual patron. Later, Ozy declined Iroh's invitation to the Order of the White Lotus, instead choosing to retire to the Northern Air Temple. Thre he ended up assisting the mechanists with the construction of the flight technology (part of which had already been stolen and weaponized by the Fire Nation.) Ozy never left the Northern Air Temple to help in the fight against Ozai. Instead, he remained and became the first of the Air Acolytes, from which grows a community that later founded Air Temple Island and discovered the next child born into the Avatar Cycle - Korra of the Water Tribe.

***

Sun Bai ~ Airbender | proficient in airbending. Technically.

Bai, unfortunately, did not discover that he was an airbender until he was well into his twenties. The only way he unlocked his affinity for bending was through a traumatic event, the effects of which he managed to suppress for several years. It wasn't until Bai found himself in another flight or fight situation that he spontaneously called upon his connection to the air element. (Turns out Ozy was kind of right!)

Once Bai realized what he was made of, he made it a point to gather as much knowledge on the subject as he could. Everything that he came to understand about bending was self-taught. Meditation came more naturally to him, but even that required additional training, discipline, and theory to fully master. (He was basically the opposite of Avatar Korra, who picked up on the manual technique of airbending quite easily, but struggled with its spiritual component.)

Bai didn't really play a role in the fight against Lord Ozai. He didn't run into any of the Trio or Team Avatar. His journey didn't really start until after the war. At which point he meets General Adrenaline, and then later, Sascha of the Water Tribe.

General Rosario Adrenaline ~ Firebender | firebending, master in lightning redirection

Like Ozy, Adrenaline was another firebending prodigy. (In fact, it was Adrenaline who worked very closely with Princess Azula to hone her lightning redirection technique.) Eventually, Nali's skills were exploited to the fullest in the Fire Nation's military campaign, but long before that, firebending for her was a means to perform and entertain the masses.

Adrenaline grew up in the same circus troupe as Ty Lee! They had been best friends since childhood and ended up escaping together.

While Princess Azula always favored Ty Lee and Mei over Nali as bodyguards, she often went to Nali for "companionship." Azula kept her relationship with Nali very private. It lasted well into Azula's teenage years and got pretty serious. Though neither of them considered themselves in love with the other (just due to the fact that there was so much of a strain on them thanks to social hierarchy, and Azula being Azula) Nali developed a very deep, unhealthy loyalty to Azula, that in the end, resulted in her banishment from protecting the royal family.

After she was banished, Nali linked up with Zuko, who wasn't really all that happy about it, but Iroh steps in and gives the wise compassionate uncle lecture. Zuko folds and Nali becomes one his crew!

Nali and Azula continue to pursue their relationship. And now that it started to hinge on whenever Azula came around to fuck with Zuko's head, you can imagine how even more unhealthy and eventually toxic it became. Nali was torn between her loyalty to Azula versus her loyalty to Zuko. And Azula... didn't really care. It was a mess. Didn't end pretty.

Only after Azula was imprisoned by her brother did Nali finally wipe her hands completely clean of the Fire Nation's royal family. Not really caring what was happening in the rest of the world, she stumbled around from territory to territory, drinking, gambling, and taking up muscle for hire gigs to keep herself afloat. Until she meets and unexpectedly bonds with a very lazy monk, who needed an escort through the Serpent's Pass.

***

Sascha ~ Nonbender | weapons specialist - firearms and projectiles

Solo ~ Waterbender | Southern-style waterbending, bloodbending

Sascha and Solo were both students of Hama. Nuff said.

Although the twins soaked up much of Hama's ruthless, yet practical attitude towards survival, they just didn't inherit her very deep, eternal loathing for the Fire Nation.

They also realized that she was pretty messed up.

When Sascha and Solo were of age, they made a clean break from Hama and decided to open up a business in one of the towns along the mountainside.

Having grown up in the Fire Nation colonies, Sascha and Solo were very used to hiding their connection to their Water Tribe heritage. They blended in well and opened their garment and optics shop. It was a strange combination, but they managed to stake their claim in the community.

However, the two of them were still very clear enemies of the Fire Nation. They rebelled by getting the information out to other Water Tribe refugees living in hiding. Solo taught bloodbending in his self defense classes (which was much easier for him to pull off rather than traditional waterbending because it required less physical labor and thus did not put as much of a strain on his body.)

Meanwhile, Sascha would show Water Tribe nonbenders how to assemble firearms, which at the time, were considered still very new and dangerous technology.

Solo was happy with their life, but Sascha grew bored and restless. She wanted an adventure.

Then one day a very strange monk winds up wounded on her doorstep in the middle of the night. He's riddled with bullets - the kind of which only Fire Nation militia and Sascha herself would know how to remove and treat the damage they could cause...

***

And a treat for those that made it this far! 😜

Me!!! A water-airbender hybrid. And you're damn right I would have some hair loopies!

[fuchsiagrasshopper]

Contending the Flame VII

Author's Note: Not much to say here, but the story's content will start to go up in rating after this, so prepare yourself for some wild changes coming! Thanks as always for being such a fantastic audience :)

Masterlist

Pairing: Ivar x Reader

Word count: 2336

Warnings: language, mentions of blood, master/servant dynamic

Victory had been claimed for the sons of Ragnar. They managed to secure their hold over York, banishing the idea from the Saxons' minds that they could ever again rule the city. Hostages had been taken, and through the blood and the rain, they had seen themselves suffer their share of wounds. All battles came with a price.

Ivar had acquired his injuries, most being from arrows. After he had been tended to by healers and cleansed of blood, the damage had taken its toll and the pain had set in. He was carried to his chambers by Ubbe and another warrior. Hvitserk had not been able to lend a hand as he had sustained a spear to the leg. When first brought the news of his brother's injury, Ivar had felt a stirring of worry, and hatred towards the dead Saxon soldier. For a moment he had wished for Hel to raise the dead once more if it meant he could feed the Christian his axe. He did not want to lose another member of his family, not after his mother or even Sigurd.

The pains of war felt like a bizarre punishment after the glorious charge he had led. His body betrayed him, reminding him of his humility as a cripple once the agony of his legs joined with the burning of his battle wounds. He remembered little of the healers prodding at him and had fallen into a restless sleep, halfway between consciousness and oblivion. 

When he came around again, he was roused by the smell of flowers in the dead of night. A fire was burning low in the hearth, and as he turned his head towards the table at his side, a clay vase had been filled with those familiar purple blooms. They had a delicate, sweet smell, the likes of which he had never seen around Kattegat. The harsh winters of home were something he doubted they could have withstood. 

Ivar shifted carefully, trying to sit up when he took notice of the dip in the bed beside him. You were above the furs, sitting upright with your back against the wall at the head of the bed. Ólaug, or Catherine; he wasn't certain what to call you. You must have meant to sit down only for a moment but had fallen asleep instead. His eyes traced over the restful look on your face, a pleasant change from the terror that had been there the last time.

Remembering everything Hvitserk had told him, he was brought back to a state of frustration. He didn't want your fear, he wanted your admiration. You had passion when you spoke with him, something that had been driven out by this treacherous spy.

Ivar brought his attention back to his sleeping nun, taking in the rest of you. His gaze was drawn to the particular detail of your exposed calf. Your frock had ridden up to your knee, leaving your lower leg open to the air. He often found himself mesmerized by the beauty of women's legs, admitting only to himself that it was because of his disgust for his own. The smooth curve of your calf met a delicate ankle, that extended to a long, narrow foot. 

He wanted to feel the heat of your soft skin, and there was no battle with temptation as he brought his hand towards the exposed flesh. His rough knuckles dragged down on your smooth skin like hail against a silk sheet. The sensation was heady, and the walls of the room felt closer from the rush of lust. Ivar was emboldened. He wrapped his hand around your ankle, forgetting from your time as his thrall that you were a light sleeper.

Your head that had been tucked into your chest jerked up, and you lurched forward, startled awake by his hand. Your eyes met and Ivar could see the same fear there that took hold of an animal before it was about to bolt away. He wasn't going to tolerate that. In no mood or condition to chase you, Ivar tightened his hold on your ankle and tugged you down on the bed with harsh force. You let out a sharp gasp, unable to collect yourself before he had you trapped below him. Everything hurt, but he struggled through the discomfort as he held himself up by his arms above you.

"I did not invite you to share my bed, Christian."

"My apologies," You sputtered. "I'm only here because your brothers do not know which slaves they can trust."

Ivar let out a huff of annoyance, unadjusted to his brothers' concerns for his well-being. It was behaviour he had come to expect from his mother, and maybe Floki. "Right, a spy who is a threat to my life, and whispers in your ear."

Your eyes that had been downcast returned to his face. "Hvitserk told you?"

"My brothers tell me everything. You were mistaken to think otherwise."

He reached for your arm between them, the one covered with the cloth bandage. You were quick to snatch it away, your face coloured in shame. Ivar brought his hand up to your cheek instead, stroking below the bruise that he had yet to get a full explanation. "Stop that, please," You whispered. 

"You believe I'll hurt you, even after I've shown to be generous towards you."

"But I am only a slave, and I mean nothing to you. If you killed your brother, what chance do I have of being spared?"

Ivar frowned. It seemed the spy had filled you in on more than just the Bishop. "You know about Sigurd?"

 You nodded. "I know you murdered him, like Cain slew Abel."

He did not know of these men for whom you spoke of, but he had the unfortunate feeling that the comparison was not of flattery. Now that you knew things about him that he would not have shared likely, he felt at a disadvantage. He eased away from you, only for you to let out a cry of surprise as he pulled back.

"Ivar," You exclaimed, shoving your palm at the center of his chest so he would lie back down.

He spotted or rather felt what you had seen. It seemed one of his wounds had opened up on his side, the blood leaving a cold, damp stain on his tunic. You leapt up and over him, setting to work on filling a bowl with water. Your fast pace that you had set was dizzying. Ivar watched as you opened up the leather pouch that had been abandoned on the table until now. It contained healing supplies. Your lack of hesitation for what you grabbed proved you were capable, and you were back at his side without pause.

"Off with this, please," You instructed him to shed his tunic, and you had water touching skin the moment he had discarded the soiled clothing. "Look what you've done."

Ivar had never seen you look so disapproving. It was endearing. That you had scolded him by name had not slipped past his notice. "Ivar?"

You paused long enough in your work for your eyes to widen with understanding. "Oh, forgive me. I should not have been so bold."

He turned more towards you while you continued to work, giving a small shrug in response. "It is my name, and I am no longer your master. Perhaps you should cease with formalities."

"No, it wouldn't be proper. You are still a Prince, and leader of an army."

"Then I must insist on calling you Ólaug." 

He let out a hiss as you took the needle to his skin, halting only a moment to let him adjust to the discomfort before moving to close the wound. You shot him a small smile, and he grunted from time to time with each passing of the point through his flesh. 

"But that's not my name," You insisted as you tied off the end of the stitch, cutting away the remainder of the loose thread with a small knife.

"And it isn't Catharine," Ivar shot back. "So tell me, who are you?"

You sat back on your chair, resting your hands in your lap. They were pink and red from his blood, with dark grime under your short nails. A healer's hands. His own were rough and stained with blood, but from taking lives, not saving them.

"Why is my old name so important? This is the second time you've asked it from me."

"I've never known someone to abandon their name. Your God asks strange things of you."

"As I'm sure yours do as well," You said with no unkindness in your tone. "May I ask about the markings on your back?"

"Your men do not have tattoos?"

You shook your head, eyes wide and full of curiosity. "The body is meant to be untainted, and we should be satisfied with what God gave us."

And yet they made women cut their hair before entering a nunnery. Ivar did not say as much. You were finally allowing your guard to slip, falling back into another one of your conversations that he'd missed. 

"We do not read or write in books as you do, but we preserve our stories in runes and symbols. Tattoos are just another way to honour the Gods."

"Did they hurt?"

Ivar let out a gruff laugh. "I was born into suffering. I hardly remember what it felt like to have the colours bleed under my skin. But any sacrifice to the Gods is a privilege, be it in pain, or a life."

"I don't understand how your gods could demand the life of their people," You said, a distraught look falling over you.

"And I don't understand why you Christians nail your people up on crosses."

"It is an act of punishment and humiliation for the criminal. It should dissuade others from committing the same sins."

Ivar smirked. "But we're the savages?"

"I don't claim to be a delegate for all Christians, but I don't believe you are savages. I sometimes think we are similar."

Viking and Christian alike; impossible. "You are naive to think that."

"Maybe so," You said, coming to a stand as you started to clean up your supplies. "But this fighting for York could have been prevented if the King had settled on negotiations with you and your brothers. Our holy Father blessed us all with free will, and we chose to fight and kill, just as your people have."

"A war is a strange place to search for peace," He retorted.

You let a chuckle escape, turning to him with a face flooded in pink. It was beautiful. "Indeed."

There was a prolonged stretch of silence, neither one of them filling it until you returned to sit at the foot of the bed. Ivar liked to think you were comfortable enough in his presence for the moment that you had not felt the need to fill it with empty words.

"Is peace what you want for your people?" He prodded while shifting underneath the furs.

"I'm not in a position to speak on such matters as this is the most exposure I've seen of battle. I suppose peace is better than tending to bloody men, and women waiting at home for husbands and sons who will never return."

"And what about you? If you could wish for anything in this world, what would it be?"

Your face turned to weariness, and for a moment he suspected he had offended you. He would have offered to take the words back if it would have helped, but you chose to answer.

"I wish I was happy," You said in a voice so low that Ivar had almost missed what you had said. But he had heard, to which he frowned in confusion. "You thought I would ask for freedom?"

"Isn't that what all those in enslavement hope for?" He rebuked. 

"Before I was captured by you heathens, I was still a prisoner. This is just a different cage."

"I thought being a nun was an honour?" He couldn't help but sneer the words, but you did not appear dismayed.

"When I joined the convent, it was for a sense of duty. It brought me contentment, but there was no joy in my days." 

You brought your legs up onto the furs, settling in without regard of whom you were close to. Ivar was pleased by your unintentional behaviour, mesmerized by your fingers as you trailed them through the thick pelted covers.

"I don't understand," He spoke up eventually, long enough to break his concentration on your stroking of the furs.

"Of course you don't. You are a man, a Viking, and a prince. Your life was marked with freedom of choice the moment you drew breath. If I was granted freedom this very moment, where would I go?"

'With me', he thought but did not say the petulant thought aloud. If it was happiness you desired, then he would give it to you.

"I've intruded on you long enough. Would you like me to leave?" You enquired,  moving to stand.

"No, stay," he commanded without thinking, and the harshness of his voice caused you to flinch. Taking a quick breath through his nose, he tried again. "Tell me about Cain and Abel."

You eased back onto the bed, choosing to stay out of arm's reach as you delved into your tale. Ivar listened, enraptured by the passion that took over you in the telling. His own heart was beating with a different excitement, and he wondered how much longer he could keep his adoration from you. You were a Christian disguised in heavy frocks and gaudy crosses, but beneath all of that lurked a free woman longing to burst forth, and Ivar was going to draw her out.

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[ghostgirl19posts]

d … donkeyskin?! I must know.

Ok, so this one is based on the fairytale Donkeyskin, but it's more so of a mixture between Donkeyskin and All-Kinds-Of-Fur. In that story, the princess's mother dies but before she does, she makes the king promise that he'll remarry none who is less beautiful than she was. The king looks and looks, but none can match the former queen. And then, years later, he notices how his daughter has a striking resemblance to her late mother....

Soooo yeahhhhh, Rhoam's not gonna be a good dude in this 😬 But the majority of the oneshot will focus on Link and Zelda. Rhoam will be in the background, only making appearances for the sake of backstory and when Zelda's anxiety surfaces.

Anyway, the king proposes marriage to his daughter. This, of course, horrifies her. But she gets the idea to give him a list of seemingly impossible demands, saying that she'll only marry him if he completes them. She isn't expecting him to actually accomplish them, but he does. She gets 3 beautiful dresses, dresses of radiance and splendor that she didn't think possible. But she also orders him to get the skin of every animal in the kingdom to fashion into a cloak, thus where we get the title 'All-Kinds-Of-Fur'. In Donkeyskin, I believe the princess demanded the fur of the king's most beloved donkey, not thinking he'd actually kill it :/

Not left with any other choice, the princess takes the dresses and cloak and flees the kingdom. She ends up working as a scullery maid in another castle with everyone oblivious to her identity. However, the king hosts a series of 3 balls in a span of 3 nights. She goes to them and ends up charming the king, who now has to figure out who she is because she refuses to tell him. Although the maid who makes his soup seems very suspicious....

OK LONG EXPLANATION OVER! If you made it to the end, here's a snippet! :)

.....

Who could’ve imagined that a mere half an hour at a small banquet would be the catalyst for the chaos in the ensuing days to come?

Okay, chaos might have been a strong word, but it fit perfectly on Zelda’s side of things.

In hindsight, her mistake was going to a buffet table to peruse the baked goods. Pies, crepes, egg pudding, and her favorite: fruitcake. Her hand was inches away from a plate, intending to steal a slice, when a voice gave her pause.

“Excuse me, miss?”

He had been exceedingly handsome. Warm, bright blue eyes that practically glowed. Burnished gold hair tied back at the nape of his neck with two locks framing a strong jawline. Lips set in a small, friendly, hopeful smile, and a white-gloved hand extended to her.

“May I have this dance?”

She thought he was a nobleman, based on his finery. Maybe if she hadn’t focused so much on trying to recall if she recognized him from Hyrule, she would’ve noticed that his clothes were perhaps too fine. That he was dressed more impressively than any of the other men in attendance.

Or what an incredible coincidence it was that she met him in the very place the king was said to frequent.

But no. She determined that he didn’t hail from Hyrule, and thinking she had no other cause for concern, she naively took his hand and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor. After all, she couldn’t spend her precious 30 minutes just stuffing her face with fruitcake.

His hand found its home on the small of her back, pulling her maybe a tad closer than what was strictly appropriate. But his hand didn’t wander, and his eyes didn’t lower, and to be quite honest, she hadn’t minded the rather intimate proximity with the handsome man.

“I don’t believe I’ve seen you before,” he said by means of introduction. “Are you a princess? A lady?”

“I don’t recognize you either, good sir,” she replied sweetly, tactfully avoiding his latter questions.

He had blinked, then. Taken aback, and for good reason. Then he grinned and leaned closer.

“Who do you think I am?” he murmured, his breath ghosting over her lips. Zelda took the opportunity to angle her head away; a curious heat had ignited her blood and she needed some air.

Looking around her, she saw that they had the entire ballroom floor to themselves. The other guests in attendance stood off to the sides, watching them twirl around with a mixture of awe and surprise.

“You’re someone important,” she deduced, turning back to her mysterious partner.

He shrugged. “I suppose,” he replied cryptically as he led her into a spin.

He kept a firm hold on her hand, and he was quick to return her to his arms. Around her she heard the people gasp, her gown having caught the light of the chandelier and producing not harsh, blinding rays like the sun, but warm, luminescent tones like the star fragments her gown was modeled after.

“You never answered my question, before.”

Zelda’s breath shuddered. She had hoped he had forgotten. “Which was?”

“Are you a princess, or a lady?”

He sounded sure that she was either of the two. She didn’t blame him; not many peasants owned a gown like the one she wore.

“Is this how you go about a conversation?” she asked archly, deftly avoiding his question again. “Interrogating me about my social standing? For someone important, you lack decent manners and etiquette.”

He laughed, then. A soft, quiet but overall pleasant sound she wouldn’t mind hearing again and again. Too many men threw back their heads and positively roaredwith laughter when they were amused, mostly using their loud volume to attract attention, to have all eyes look at them and wonder what was so funny. This man, however, was more subdued, and she got the impression that he didn’t laugh often.

“I apologize, miss. My intention was not to interrogate, just to discern who you are. Unless,” he pauses, and a sly little smirk grows on his face, “you’re willing to share your name?”

“No.”

“I thought not,” he said, appearing none too surprised nor disappointed. Just acceptance, as if she told him that the sky was blue.

“Might I ask why?”

Because I’m a runaway princess. Because you could expose me and get me sent back to my kingdom in chains. Because my father will likely have a priest performing the nuptials before I can even step foot out of the carriage.

[sanctummilitis]

His kindness was not ignored. His hand was not pushed away. Their invitation was not declined.

In its process of repair, Saber had left her phone in her room, permitting it safety from any further incident. Whilst awaiting the return of functionality, Shirou’s message was confined to purgatory. For now, there was one place to go to in effort to clear her head.

Savior’s Respite. Its beauty was once meditative, and perchance it had not yet relinquished that, in light of the past two months. All-year blossoms reminiscent of Avalon, of every colour under the sun clustered within their sanctuary, fluttered in the frigid breeze that swept through. Come the end of the trail, the black ocean beneath a starry expanse stretched beyond what could be perceived by the cavern’s limited scope. down upon her knees the king sat, dress blooming all around. Throughout the city behind, merriment would fill the air, laughter spilled from the elated to usher in the new year mere hours away.

High spirits soared out of reach and whispers into her ear taunted that it were not a concern for one of the past; unnecessary, forbidden. Reserved for the living, not those who squandered that of others. Morgan’s hand slithered about her throat; slender, icy fingers ghosted her skin as though they threatened to grab hold and squeeze. Red fury turned inward burned within her chest like wildfire — frustration for having given into bad habit and letting such emotions get the better of her. On a day meant for celebration no less. Shirou’s eyes, shimmering with heartache and disbelief, bore into her from behind; betrayal incarnate from a supposed protector chiselled into his face. For this weakness that shouldn’t be in one of hailed strength and hardened from battle. Ritsuka’s blood-slathered hair tie rested in the hands layered upon her lap; testament to failure, of the hefty price charged by the world — and yet, she faced that unforgiving landscape with resolution ablaze. For proving her sister correct. Retreating to this location, it served no purpose but adhere to the older’s judgement — that rather than face those owed explanation, Arthur had withdrawn and hidden away.

Rehearsed justification were to avoid interference with the festive atmosphere, to seek peace where mayhap thoughts could straighten themselves out — if just to some extent. Beneath that tale, the reasoning was a mere half-truth — its twin one unwilling to confess to. To blanket herself in the lack of direct confirmation of her trepidation, for now, for as long as they were not undeniably demonstrated. That it would validate the voices within her head who make endless acclamation that it were the case and time would show as such. She watched the horizon separating sea and sky — it was a simple and aimless gaze that never strayed, vacant of emotion fit for a subject of hypnotic trance. So disorganized and troubled were her thoughts that catatonic she remained throughout the night. Through the echoing thuds of fireworks and the rising of the sun, its venture through the sky and descent back into rest. Black and midnight, rose and lilac, turquoise and white, gold and amber, then once more darkness claimed it all.

So lost in her own head that the first day of the year passed without acknowledgement, and the second dawn saw she’d still remained. For 39 hours, the King of Knights had been no more than a statue undisturbed and unresponsive to the world that lie beyond that featureless distance.