#fabletown

[callie-the-creator]

being bigby wolf’s mate would include… (sfw and nsfw)

nsfw below the cut. mdni. warnings: tried to make the reader as gender-neutral as possible, mentions of jealousy, creampie, heat cycles, aggressive smut, biting, etc.

author’s note: i cannot wait for the second game to be released. i’m so excited! 💗

sfw:

• you are one of bluebeard’s ex-partners, having escaped him and avoided decapitation in the old days. sadly though, you didn’t get to meet bigby when he was in his prime— only heard stories and legends about him— until you along with all the other fables moved from the homelands to the mundy world.

— more specifically, you were brought into questioning since you knew a thing or two about brutality against women (which is exactly what was happening with the working girls at the pudding & pie, like faith) and you helped snow and bigby’s investigation at times…

• that’s how you two acquainted yourselves.

• it should also go without saying that you are filthy rich and since you’ve grown an attachment to sheriff bigby, you came to find out that he lives in the smallest apartment in the woodlands, you’ve invited him over to your place countless times at the beginning of your relationship so he can get out of that crowded space and sleep in an actual bed.

— that and colin can be a real pain in the ass. it’s good for bigby to be away from him, even if it is for a few days.

• bigby always found you to be attractive. it was a bit part of your fairytale back in the homelands, but he tried not to show his attraction toward you…but it was hard for others not to pick on the big bad wolf after they see him tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, helping you out of cars, holding doors for you, having a special soft spot for you, all sorts of chivalrous shit.

• you two ended up being a thing a few days after the investigation about faith and the crooked man came to an end. more specifically, you were outside with bigby when all of a sudden you were pushed by a mundy and you lost your footing. luckily, bigby was able to catch you and pull you close to him, cursing the blatant rudeness of the mundy, under his breath before checking up on you to see if you were okay.

— then, what followed was you two looking deeply into one another’s eyes before you wrapped a hand around bigby’s tie and pulled him closer, kissing the sheriff.

nsfw:

• i want to say that bigby’s libido is average. nothing too unbearable, but as soon as spring rolls around, it does a complete 180° and bigby becomes the epitome of needy.

— during this time, he can be a bit rough, he gets way more animalistic than usual and there are times when bigby takes a brief vacation from work just so he can pound you all day, leaving you unable to walk on your own.

— his favorite thing to do is to put you into a mating press, so he can penetrate you deeper as he fills your hole with his cum. the alternative, of course, is him mounting you.

• he always wants to be able to mark you, in some way, whether that be by leaving bite/scratch marks all over your body or hickeys. it’s bigby’s way of telling the world that you’re already taken and satisfied sexually.

• it’s hard to hide whenever you’re in the mood from bigby because of how strong his sense of smell is. once he catches a whiff of your arousal, he almost loses all strength in his body, his mouth watering, but if he’s in a public setting, it takes every fiber of his being to go against of his instincts and you know the power you hold over him at times like this because of the way bigby stares at you, raptured with barely contained lust.

• it’s only when bigby regains his senses, he apologizes for being so rough on you (he is scared that because of how rough he can be, he’s a terrible mate and you’ll want to leave him for someone better). soooo…he tries his hardest to make it up to you by doing whatever you want him to, amping up his arm, and overall being super gentle and sweet.

[graciedart]

ves and hooke in formal wear <3

[could-they-be-a-pro-wrestler]

How successful would Bigby Wolf…

Propaganda for the mic skills:

Trash talker. He’d destroy his opponents on the mic, make them look weak and shit.

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Propaganda for the wrestling skills:

Look up any fight scene from wolf among us. Bigby can fight. And he can hold himself back (if the player wants to), so he could probably wrestle someone without going too far.

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Would you like to submit a character? Click this link if you do!

[evans-endeavors]

ODD

I almost joined Fabletown RP... Decided I wouldn't have time, but I like my nokken inspired fish man

Would've been a bartender, and offered to teach his music if someone gave him a bit of their drinks lol

Enjoy!

[caramel-whiskeys-writing]

The Big Bad Wolf Isn't so Bad | Introduction + Author's Note

Bigby Wolf fic Masterlist

Introducing...

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The Big Bad Wolf Isn't so Bad a Bigby Wolf fic

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Dedication to all the crazies desperately waiting for TWAU2

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Forgotten Princess Rapunzel

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The Sheriff Bigby Wolf

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IMPORTANT WARNINGS

There are some mentions of self-harm and r*pe within this book along with a handful of sexual interactions including oral & knotting. (also pregnancy later on)

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One day on a dangerous case Bigby, Snow and Nerissa have to go to a strange apartment. Who they find inside is the Princess Rapunzel, however she seems to have been forget within Fabletown as not even Snow recalls her story. Thanks to fate, somehow Bigby manages to help the woman grow and find comfort in the city, along with creating relationships.

[sweetcandyholic]

october 9 2024

safety

[swan-of-fabletown]

You chosen 1600's - How Bigby and Keira became Sheriff and Deputy Sherif

Remember: Back those days No TVS, No Phones, No computers and many more, and we even gone back about couple years after Fables have escape the Homelands. Also this is how Keira and Bigby cope as human beings and this was before they become sheriff and deputy sheriff, Bigby been human for over a year while Keira is been human under 3 months, so lets the story begins...

Early Morning, Keira Swan who slowly woke up, she still getting use of herself, now she change from a swan to a glamour human, she just getting things around. Keira: Oh... that's right, I'm glamoured now

Keira notice she only being glamoured for 3 months and there a lot to take in, she just got used her hands, body, clothes hair and many basic stuff, but she knows she wants to do this and forget that she got pulled feathers from a bunch of mundy children.

[jackofnines]

(via GIPHY)

[ladyantiheroine]

That feel when there’s a fictional location that’s super dangerous and would be hellish to live in but you want to go there anyway because the vibes are immaculate.

[solsticesquid]

Ooh, this was fun. I got 'asshole Bigby'...unsurprisingly. 😅😂

Who are you from the Wolf Among Us and what does that say about you? Let me ruthlessly psychoanalyse you in this uquiz while we wait for TWAU Season 2. (20 questions, 10+1 results)

[musecheerios]

The big bad wolf...

[paradisechid800]

Snow: Wait, you fought Batman? Bigby: *Trying to impress her* Yeah, He's not as scary as people say. Bufkin: *Flies out of the shadows in Batman cowl* Bufkin: I AM THE NIGHT!!! Bigby: *begins to panic* SWEET, SAINT MARTHA!!! Snow: *Suddenly wearing a Batman cowl too* Snow: Martha? MARTHA?!?! WHY DID YOU SAY THAT NAME?!?! Bigby: NOOOOOOOOO!!!! Bruce: !?!?

[graciedart]

outfits

[champagns]

lowkey need a plot based off of the wolf among us …

[adarkrainbow]

The Ultimate Fables Catalogue (C)

I know, I know, I haven’t released part “B” yet. But as it turns out, I finished the part C long before the part B, so I will release this one first. 

In this continuation of the “Ultimate Fables Catalogue”, I will cover a part of the spin-offs. To be precise I will take a look at the two Cinderella spin-offs (Cinderella: From Fabletown, with love ; and its sequel Cinderella: Fables are Forever), and the entirety of the Fairest series (including its graphic novel, Fairest: In All the Land). 

SPOILERS AHEAD! SPOILERS AHEAD! 

The Cinderella spin-offs

Cinderella: From Fabletown, with love

# The title of the series is an homage to the James Bond novel “From Russia, with love”. Cinderella’s own adventures as Fabletown’s spy evoke those of James Bond and of the Bond girls. The writer of this series, Chris Roberson, evoked the two main influences of the plot by describing the comic as “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service meets Sex and the City”. 

# Crispin Cordwainer is the shoemaker from the Grimm fairytale “The Elves and the Shoemaker”. His name comes from saint Crispin, patron of cobblers and leather-workers. 

# Cinderella mentions “an ogre and a talking cat”, referencing Charles Perrault’s “Puss in Boots”.

# Among the magical items found among the Mundies, Beast mentions the “seven-league boots” (from Charles Perrault’s Little Thumbling), a “horn of plenty” (the Cornucopia), a magical flute (I don’t have any specific reference for this one) and a “singing sword” (I don’t have any clear reference, though the “singing sword” concept appears here and there - it is the name of an Arthurian novel by Jack Whyte, and an episode of the cartoon “The Legend of Prince Valiant”, among many other things). 

# The silhouette of the tourists are seen, and while we already know of Mowgli and Cinderella, we will discover the other two to be Feathertop (see later) and the... what was originally planned to be the Huntsman and then became a Woodsman apparently (it is one of those unclear points). Cinderella in turn has her group of three spies: Puss in Boots (who likes to be known as the “Marquis of Carabas”), from Charles Perrault’s fairytale of the same name ; Dickory, the mouse that ran up the clock, from the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock, and finally Jenny Wren, whose lover Robin Redbreast was murdered - from the cycle of nursery rhymes surrounding Cock Robin (”Cock Robin Got Up Early ; Who killed Cock Robin? ; Jenny Wren Fell Sick). 

# Aladdin, and the djinn of the ring, are both from the “Aladdin” story of the One Thousand and One Nights.  I suspect his driver, Farid, to be the prince Farid from the One Thousand and One Nights story “Farizad of the Rose’s Smile” - given it is the only Farid character in the Arabian Nights I know of.

# The ghuls are creatures of Arabian folklore.

# Ultima Thule (named after the legendary island of Thule that cartographers of Antiquity believed to exist north of England) is the realm of Scandinavian fairytales, especially Norwegian, filled with trolls and talking polar bears and giant elks. Its former ruler was king Valemon, from the fairytale “White-Bear-King-Valemon”. Other inhabitants of Thule include the widow Gudbrand (wife of Gudbrand from “Gudbrand on the Hill-Side”), Askelädden (the famous Norwegian folktale character known as “Ashlad” in English), Little Freddy (from “Little Freddy with his fiddle”), Little Annie the goose-girl (from the fairytale of the same name), Butterball (from the Norwegian fairytale of the same name), as well as the ram and the pig, from “The Ram and the Pig who went to live in the woods by themselves”. 

# The Fairy Godmother is here another “archetype character” in the likes of Frau Totenkinder, Prince Charming or Jack of All Tales. She was the fairy godmother of Cinderella, but also alongside her sisters the “good fairies” of the Briar Rose/Sleeping Beauty fairytale, and she secretly worked to help Rapunzel by sending the prince rescue her. The Fairy Godmother’s perpetual fight against Frau Totenkinder has notably been the source of numerous of the fairytales: it seems to have started out by Frau Totenkinder “ruining” the fate of Briar Rose by playing the role of the “wicked fairy/angered wise woman” in the tale, only for the Fairy Godmother to retaliate by sending the prince of Rapunzel (whose witch-adoptive motive was Frau Totenkinder). The evolution of her role throughout the fairy tales is also explained by this perpetual duel: after sending Prince Charming to save Briar Rose from Frau Totenkinder’s curse, the witch fought back by killing the Fairy Godmother’s two sisters with poisoned apples (evoking Snow-White), which is why she was alone when helping Cinderella ; and the reason her spells only last to midnight is because her powers were weakened due to her actions in the Rapunzel story, all of her efforts exhausting her spells so that they could only work for a day and no more. It is also confirmed that the prince of Rapunzel is NOT prince Charming, as the Fairy Godmother “reused” the same prince to save both Briar Rose and Cinderella.

The Fairy Godmother is also very clearly an homage, or rather a dark parody, of the fairy godmothers of Disney movies. Her being part of a trio of benevolent fairies looking like little grandmothers at the times of Briar Rose’s birth is a nod to Fauna, Flora and Merryweather, the three fairy godmothers of Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, while her being the kind, elderly, grey-haired, plump godmother of Cinderella is an obvious nod to Disney’s interpretation of the fairy godmother of Cinderella. 

# The palace being made of glass is of course a nod to the glass slippers of “Cinderella”, but I wonder if it isn’t a reference to the Norwegian fairytale “The Princess on the Glass-Hill”, or something similar... 

Cinderella: Fables Are Forever

# The title of the series is again a James Bond reference, this time to “Diamonds are forever”.

# The “Shadow Fabletown”, the Soviet community of Fables living beyond the Iron Curtain and opposing the American Fabletown, is composed of Ivan Durak (Ivan the Fool, a folk character of Russian fairytales), Tugarin Zmeyevich (the Slavic character known as Tugarin or Zmey Tugarin), Meng Chiang-Nu (the character of the Chinese folktale Lady Meng Jiang), the Seven Chinese Brothers (see below), and Anansi the spider (a folkloric character from West African tales and legends)

About Tugarin Zmeyevich, the Fables Encyclopedia explains a bit more the process behind choosing this character that turns into a dragon: they explain Tugarin Zmeyevich started out as the antagonist of a folktale where he was opposed to the Rusian folkloric hero Alyosha Popovich - and in the oldest/”first” version of this folktale Tugarin Zmeyevich was “merely” a man as tall as a giant, riding a horse that had fire coming out of its nostrils and smoke from its ears. However, throughout adaptations and expansions of the tale, Zmeyevich inherited the “breathe fire and smoke” traits of his horse, and then from a fire-breathing man became a dragon. So, for the Fables comics, they decided to have Zmeyevich look like a man at first, but be able to turn into a dragon at will. 

As for the Seven Chinese Brothers, the Fables Encyclopedia also brings more information: they are actually part of a popular Chinese folktale merely known as “The Five Brothers” - which became well-known in the West thanks to Claire Huchet Bishop’s “Five Chinese Brothers” in the 30s ; but there are several variations of the story where the number of brothers change, up to seven or ten. And the idea of the five brothers being actually seven was also popularized in the English-speaking world thanks to Margaret Mahy’s “Seven Chinese Brothers” at the end of the 19th century. 

# Dorothy Gale, aka “Silverslipper” is from “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, by L. Frank Baum. Beyond her first nickname (evoking the magical “silver slippers” of the book), she is also called “The wicked bitch of the east” (a nod to the Wicked Witch of the East from the book). Numerous other characters and entities from the Oz books appear: the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion (from “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”), the Chiss, Bungle the Glass Cat (”The Patchwork Girl of Oz”) and the Spoon Brigade (”The Emerald City of Oz”). We also see in the flashbacks all four witches of Oz (Good witches of the North and South, Wicked witches of the East and West), alongside the Munchkins and the Scarecrow. 

# Other pop culture references include the line “Cheshire cat got your tongue” (referencing “Alice in Wonderland”), “Are you done quoting Donny and Marie?” (the television series of the same name) and Cindy describing the relationship of Bigby and Snow White as “That whole Cheers things”, paralleling the couple with the characters of Sam and Diane from the “Cheers” show

 FAIREST

Wide Awake

# The main character is Ali Baba, from the One Thousand and One Nights story “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”. Morgiana of the same story is briefly mentionned in flashbacks. Interestingly, in the Fables universe Ali Baba went from a thief killer to the “prince of thieves” himself, something pointed out as weird in-universe. I believe it is a reference to how in American culture at the time of the comic’s release, the name of Ali Baba was so strongly associated with thieves you often saw it being reused for a thief character. 

# The many modern USA culture references made by the Bottle Imp are too many for me to record them all.

# The fact of having the two “Sleeping Beauties” be a red-clad Briar Rose and the white Snow Queen isn’t just some fancy aesthetic choice. This plays on a common duality in fairytales between white and red that the comics itself already illustrated throughout the duo of Snow-White and Rose-Red. More interestingly, Ali Baba describing one as “the color of winter snow” and the other with “the color and heat of the first days of autumn” seems to be a play on the “seasonal” reading of the fairytale “Sleeping Beauty”, this analysis and belief that the fairytale actually depicts a metaphor for the cycle of seasons, Sleeping Beauty herself embodying nature falling asleep during the winter, and her awakening symbolizing spring. 

# The version of Sleeping Beauty’s backstory here is quite interesting because it clashes with the one presented by the Cinderella spin-offs - a “retcon” here that is present inside the main series itself, since it began with the implications that Frau Totenkinder was the one who cast the curse, being the “evil witch” against the “three good fairies” (a la Disney), but then switched to make this new backstory canon. In this version of the story, we are more faithful to Charles Perrault’s version of the tale, since we have seven fairies gifting the child and the evil fairy being the eighth. The fairies here are actually a mix between the actual “fairytale fairies”, as in French fairytale fairies, and British fairies of folklore and legends. The seven gifts here are as such: beauty (for Katrya the Pure), wit (for Sofiya the wise - though it is the “wit of an angel”, so it is actually naivity), elegance/grace for Nyura the Graceful (which is extended to being graceful and elegant in all things... including the bedroom), walth for Ionna the Gifted, the talent of singing for Alyas the Noble (though it is “singing like a nightingale”, quite literaly, so singing like a bird), the talent of writing good songs and playing music perfectly for Yeva the Lively. The last gift of not dying but falling into an eternal sleep is given by Leysa the Defender against the curse of the evil fairy, Hadeon the Destroyer - and here, as with all magic process, we receive an explanation for the why: as it turns out, Leysa could only “split” the death curse across so many people the death became a “mere” endless sleep. 

Beyond this, each of the fairy embodies a specific concept associated with fairies in general, or magic beings. Katrya the Pure is focused on purity and chastity (since her magical waters heal all knights chaste and noble) ; Sofiya the Wise is noted to have written a very famous grimoire ; Ionna the Gifted represents the “benevolent” fairies associated with darkness, since she is a daughter of the night who tames and traps nightmares (as opposed to Hadeon the Destroyer who is an “evil” fairy of darkness, shadow and fogs that rules over a typical “evil, nightmarish forest”), Yeva is strongly associated with music, merriment and parties, etc... The habit of Hadeon of turning her former lovers into objects she uses later (like into a boat) is also a very typical trope of fairy tales. 

# In a flashback, Ali Baba is seen stealing from Abd al Quadir. He is a character from the One Thousand and One Nights story “Ala al-Din Abu al-Samat” (253rd night). 

Lamia

# Lamia is of course the legendary monster/bogey-woman of Greco-Roman culture. 

# Saint George, his sword Ascalon and the village of Silene are from the legend of “Saint George and the Dragon”. Saint George seems to embody here the archetype of the “dragon slayer-hero” since he lists other famous dragons among his list of kills: the Chimaera (not an actual dragon, but the fire-breathing Chimera of Greek mythology, killed by the hero Bellerophon), Illuyanka (a Hittite dragon killed by the god Tarhunz), Tiamat (the Mesopotamian goddess-dragon killed by Marduk) and finally Vritra (the Indian reptilian demon slain by the god Indra). 

# When Beast lists the various fictional characters he becomes “like” during his various hunts for the Lamia, he mentions in order Auguste Dupin (created by Edgar Allan Poe), Sherlock Holmes (created by Arthur Conan Dole), Hercule Poirot (created by Agatha Christie), Sam Spade (from “The Maltese Falcon”) and Philip Marlowe (created by Raymond Chandler). 

The Hidden Kingdom

# The three movies seen at the theater at the beginning are “Bunny Lake is Missing” ; “Don’t Look Now” and “Picnic at Hanging Rock”. Rapunzel later compares the flying origami attack to Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds”.

# This is I think the first time paintings are hidden around in the background. In Rapunzel’s flat there are two pictures on the walls: one is the poster for Kubrick’s “Clockwork Orange”, another is a reproduction of  “The Lady of Shalott” by Waterhouse. Frau Totenkinder rather has in her flat Fuseli’s “The Three Witches”. 

# Frau Totenkinder here appears mostly in her role of “the witch/adoptive-mother of Rapunzel”. Interestingly however, while Totenkinder is the witch that locked Rapunzel in a tower, and banished her after she slept with the prince, in the Fables continuity of the role of the witch in the Grimm fairytale got split with... the Fairy Godmother, who is revealed to have been the one preventing Rapunzel’s prince from returning to her.

# In the Japanese realm of Fables, the main characters include Mayumi (who is the Kuchisake-onna of Japanese ghost stories), Tomoko (a kitsune), a bakeneko (that just goes by “Neko”) and Katagiri (a kappa). Other supernatural beings coming from “The Hidden Kingdom”, the Japanese Homeland, include: funayûrey (ghosts of the drowned at sea), tanukis, a noppera-bo, a rokurokubi, an oni, an hitotsume-kozo, several kirin... 

# When Neko first appears to Rapunzel, he imitates Totoro, from “My Neighbor Totoro”. 

# Rapunzel briefly prays to the Jizo Bosatsu. 

# Rapunzel, in her numerous travels throughout the Homelands searching for her missing babies, adopted several different identities. In the Hidden Kingdom she was Okiku, the famous Japanese “ghost” in the well. In the Ancient Greece equivalent in the Homelands she also played the role of Theseus, by slaying the Minotaur. And she is noted to have assisted to the “birth of an empire” by seeing twins by a she-wolf: they are Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of the Roman Empire. 

# The treacherous shogun Ryogan actually fulfills the role of both the jealous samurai who mutilated the Kuchisake-onna and the samurai that killed Okiku. 

# When the Hyakki Yagyo, the “Night Parade of the One Hundred Demons” is invoked, we also see among the numerous yokai tengus, chochin’obakes, an hebi, the wanyudo, and a nue. 

# Jack ends up thrown into the claws of the famous Japanese movie monster, Gdozilla.

# Lauren Beukes, the writer of this arc, listed her several inspirations as: the manga Tekkonkintreet, “The Pillow Book” ; the movies of Kurosawa, Miyazaki and Miike ; the work of the three Murakami (Haruki Murakami, Ryu Murakami and Takashi Murakami) ; “The Tale of Genji”, “Tokyo Vice” (no, not the television series, but the memoir of Jake Adelstein), and “The Illustrated Night Parade of the Hundred Demons”.

Aldered States

# The various suitors of Princess Alder include Mr. Pickles (from “The Magic Fishbone” by Charles Dickens), Trotty Veck (from “The Chimes” by Charles Dickens) as well as Farmer Giles (from Tokkien’s “Farmer Giles of Ham”). 

The Return of the Maharaja

# Nalayani is actually the past life of Draupadi, from the Indian epic “Mahabharata”. 

# There is a LOT of characters from Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book here: Tabaqui the jackal ; the dholes ; Nathoo ; Buldeo ; Pudmini... 

# Prince Charming makes a reference to the “golden ticket”, from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

# Among beings from Indian folklore, beliefs, folktales and Hindu mythology/religion we have the asuras, the pishachas, as well as a host of Hindu gods - Rama, Ganesha, Manasa, Kamadhenu, Nandini...  The Trishula trident is also important for the ending of the story. 

Of Men and Mice

# The very title is a reference to the story “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck. 

# The cubs are being read one of the Harry Potter books - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets to be precise. 

# At Cinderella’s ball, the transformed mouse ends up seducing Lady Isabelle du Lac, daughter of Lord and Lady du Lac. I wonder if it is a reference to Edmund Dulac... 

# I also believe the giant sentient humanoid rat-ninjas might be a reference to “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”. 

# The “King’s men” are the same from the nursery rhyme “Humpty Dumpty”. 

# Rama is the divine hero of Hindu mythology/religion, while Varuna is... I am a bit confused because to my knowledge Varuna is an Hindu god, not a tiger-headed fish... The only tiger-headed fish I know of is the Japanese Shachihoko... This leaves me confused.

# The Rodgers and Hammerstein’s version of Cinderella is explicitely referenced here. 

Clamour for Glamour

# Lady Maeve of Dunhollow seems to be Maeve/Mebd of Irish mythology.

# Mary, after losing her little lamb, took up gardening - and thus became the Mary from the nursery rhyme “Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary”. 

# There is an entire section of the Farm called André’s Garden, where the Mean Sunflower Kid/Mister Sunflower lives, and we see here five other Fables living in this area: Snapdragon, Old Maid Hollyhock, the Dormouse Juggler, Alderman Poppy, and a woodpecker. Given this is the living area of the Sunflower, and named “André’s garden” I am pretty sure they are meant to be part of this same Victorian book of nursery rhymes written and illustrated by R. André/R. Andre from which the nursery rhyme “Mister Sunflower” comes. The problem is that I cannot have access to this specific book, which seems to not be easily available anywhere, so I cannot actually check... 

In case you want to know, I will place here the Mister Sunflower nursery rhyme as it was revealed in the Fables Encyclopedia:

In your dress of brown and yellow

What a stiff-necked 

Long legged fellow! 

Must you stare, although the bees,

Settle on your face and tease?

Can’t you turn your big flat head

Till the sun has gone to bed?

Fairest in All the Land

# This is where Mrs. Ford was confirmed to be “the old woman at the ford in a river”, the deadly and ghostly “washing woman” from Irish beliefs and folklore.

# While not an exact reference, the seven magical swords kept in the office named after concepts (Mercy, Justice, Regret,  Rage, Judgement, Love and Wisdom) are part of a long tradition in fantasy of magical swords with meaningful names (for example, take Tad William’s trilogy “Memory, Sorrow and Thorn”). The powers and nature of Maerorgladi, the Sword of Regret, is especially interesting, as its “hunger” forcing it to take a second life for each kill is clearly inspired by a famous trend of “sentient, soul-hungering swords” in fiction which was started by Poul Anderson’s “The Broken Sword” and Elric of Melniboe’s famous sword, Stormbringer. 

# Hautboy/Cendrée, the wizard that created the seven magical sword, is confirmed to have lived in the Dark Tower, from “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower came”, before Roland actually arrived to said tower. The fact his main feats were creating buildings, magical chariots and magical weapons, makes him part of a long line of legendary magical smiths - in Fables, the main series, we already saw Weyland Smith and Daedalus appear, but I can also mention the Greek Hephaestus or the Finnish Ilmarinen. The Ilmarinen comparison is especially interesting, since the mythical ancestor of the evil swords I talked about (Moorcock’s Stormbringer, or Tolkien’s Gurthang) is a sentient, talking sword from the Kalevala. I have however very curious about the names chosen for him, both very French in nature... I think they might have been chosen at random (especially since “Cendrée” is actually the FEMALE form of the adjective “Ashen”/”Cindered”, the proper male form would have been Cendré), but maybe there is some obscure reference I am missing... though I slightly doubt it. 

# The topic of “swords that must kill” is also very frequent in Norse sagas: to quote TV Tropes, “Tyrfing of the Saga of Hervor and Heidrek, the sword of Bodvar Bjarki in the Saga of Hrolf Kraki, and Dainsleif from the Prose Edda”. Which brings me to the hero the Sword of Regret was built for, Turgo of Nor, who is the stereotypical “Norse barbarian”. He likes in a world shaped after Ancient Norse society, and he is a muscular, bearded warrior always eating and drinking, but going berserk every time he drinks too much (which is often, since he is a drunkard). However, the fact that he keeps flying into mad rages he then regrets, and that he wears a hood made of animal pelts, make him VERY similar to Herakles of Greek mythology. 

# The coat of Padarn Beisrudd is one of the “Thirteen Treasures of Britain”, part of Welsh folklore. 

# The Blue Fairy mentions the “Unseelie Midwinter Ball”. The Unseelie Court is one of the two fairy “courts” or fairy “hosts” of Scottish legends, alongside the Seelie.

# I can’t help but wonder if Hadeon’s role as a sentient, magical but malevolent red car isn’t meant to be a nod to Stephen King’s Christine.

[caramel-whiskeys-writing]

The Big Bad Wolf Isn't so Bad | CHAPTER EIGHT

Bigby fic Masterlist

Word count: 1830

Summary: One day on a dangerous case Bigby, Snow and Nerissa have to go to a strange apartment. Who they find inside is the Princess Rapunzel, however she seems to have been forget within Fabletown as not even Snow recalls her story. Thanks to fate, somehow Bigby manages to help the woman grow and find comfort in the city, along with creating relationships.

Within the month Nerissa plans out a nice evening and Dinner where Bigby and Snow can come over and get a break from working hard in the office. The main thing though is that Rapunzel can be social with only the other two people she's comfortable around. Nerissa asks for Snow to bring over some stuff to cook, and she's already started by the time Bigby and Snow arrive at the apartment. Before they arrived, Rapunzel was a bit of a panicked mess since she hadn't seen Snow in a while, but Nerissa calmed her down and gave her some work to do in the kitchen. Granted the apartment was small, but it was big enough for a dinner party of four. Rapunzel is making sure the table has all its chairs and that they have everything ready when the typical Bigby knock is heard from the door. Rapunzel opens it slowly and looks out through the small crack. Upon seeing them she opens the door fully and gives a weak smile. "Oh, it's you guys." She fidgets with the sleeve of her sweater as she invites them in. Snow greets her kindly and easily starts up a calm conversation with Rapunzel, who tries to answer honestly and hold back any anxiety that may arise. Bigby doesn't say anything and just watches the two women speak softly to each other as they keep a slow conversation while standing in the doorway. His gaze landed on Rapunzel more often than not to make sure everything seems okay with her, on the outside at least. It's Nerissa's voice from the kitchen that reminds Rapunzel to let them into the rest of the place. Snow keeps up the conversation with Rapunzel while Bigby makes his way to the kitchen.

"So, what are the drink options for tonight?" He starts looking through the cabinet to find a glass and some whiskey, hopefully. Nerissa furrows her brow at him as she keeps working on the food.

"Not even a hello, just straight to drinking huh?" As she talks to him Bigby glances over his shoulder and sees that the other two are out of earshot.

"How are things going? With Rapunzel I mean?" Bigby's voice was shallow and quiet and Nerissa half smiled at him before turning her attention back to what's on the stove.

"Worried about her are you? You know, she's right there. You could just ask her." Bigby huffs at her. Nerissa points to the spot above the fridge and he finds the drink he's looking for. He frowns as he reads the label, but pours himself a glass nonetheless.

"Why don't you just answer the question?" His eyes almost glare up at her as he speaks. Nerissa shakes her head, not seeing the face he's giving her.

"She's fine. I mean obviously she's in need of some socialisation, seeing as I asked you guys to come, but otherwise she's good." Bigby leans against the counter top swirling his drink in his glass. "She actually asked me to bring her to see her old place a few days ago. I told her I was too busy to do it, but I think she caught on that I was lying and just didn't want to bring her there." Nerissa reaches up and gets herself a glass, holding it out to Bigby for him to pour her something to drink. As he does so he replies with concern in his voice. Something that's not heard often.

"She asked to go back?... I'm glad you didn't bring her. I imagine she might've gone back into her old ways if you did." He downs half the drink. His eyes land on the back of the chair that he sees Rapunzel sitting in from around the corner. Snow is still trying to keep a decent conversation with her, one that doesn't feel pushed. Bigby and Nerissa are quiet for a while until Snow gets up from her spot and goes into the kitchen.

With that, Bigby takes his time to slowly make his way over to Rapunzel, who sits in her chair fidgeting with her fingers and sleeve. He watches her as she sits alone. Her hunched over posture, her feet crossed together underneath the chair. Normally he'd see this kind of behaviour and body language from someone he's interested in. Slowly he nears the table and does so loudly enough so he doesn't startle her. Coughing a bit, he sits in the chair across from her. Rapunzel doesn't raise her head, just keeps fidgeting. Only when he speaks to her does her soft gaze look at him through her eyelashes.

"Snow talk your ear off?" He jokes gently. He places his arms down on the table, both hands holding onto his glass. The muffled talking of Snow and Nerissa coming from the kitchen working as a white noise.

"Just a bit." She visibly looks nervous. Bigby notices this and tries to think up something to say or even do to get her mind off of whatever she's thinking about.

"Did you want a drink? I can get you whatever you want." He offers her, a faint smile on his face. He swings his feet out from under the table and to the side like he's going to get up from the chair. She shakes her head.

"No, I'm okay. I had some earlier." She can't keep her gaze on him and her eyes flicker from side to side as she talks to him.

"Nerissa trying to soften you up, eh?" She smiles slightly at his playful tease. She knows he's trying to cheer her up and keep her being social, but something in her isn't letting herself calm down.

"No actually, I just finished off the last bit of cooking wine since she didn't want it to go to waste." She hums out. Her voice is that typical soft and shy, but when she's with Bigby you can hear a bit of confidence in her tone of voice. However, this time that confidence is gone. Rapunzel keeps her gaze lowered to the table and her body language screams closed off. They sit in silence for a while, a long while actually. Bigby is now fidgeting as well, and debating whether he should stand up and get more to drink or if that would make him seem uninterested in being around her.

Bigby has been trying to think up ways to help Rapunzel, along with Snow's help, but he can't come up with anything besides going out for coffee, or lunch, or calling her on his breaks. Feeling the pressure, he lights a cigarette and hums as the taste hits his tongue. It's a good while before Snow comes back into the dining/living room to start up another conversation. She's clearly the best person in the whole apartment when it comes to talking about anything at any time. Her and Bigby keep a mild conversation and Rapunzel listens in, slowly starting to get comfortable.

Soon the food is almost ready and Nerissa asks Rapunzel to help her. While they plate everything up for their guests they quietly chat, Nerissa having her back and making sure she's okay.

"Yeah, I'm good just... Don't know when to try and say something when someone else is talking." Nerissa smiles at her roommate.

"Well I think you're doing just fine. You can't rush being social and everyone finds themselves in situations like that. Don't feel pressured to speak, you can just listen if you want to." She does that light smile that Nerissa has come to know is probably her most genuine and thankful kind of smile.

"Thanks, Nerissa." They pick up the plates and go to the table. Nerissa pours drinks for everyone and Bigby actually ends up being the talker of the night. He tells stories of Fable cases he's allowed to speak about. Nerissa hops in with some little comments here and there and she notices Rapunzel quietly finding them funny, in her own way. As time ticks on, the four of them are enjoying themselves, enjoying the food and keeping Rapunzel's mind off her worries. It's been the longest time without her anxiety taking over since she moved in with Nerissa.

Their two guests stay later than originally planned and they all start playing card games with some light music playing in the background. Snow has had a few drinks and is telling tales that could either be true or are just a part of her creative ideas. Bigby follows suit as well, feeling comfortable around other Fables for the first time in... almost forever. Somehow these three women are getting him to relax and keep the normal angry wolf at bay.

When Bigby and Snow are getting ready to head home in a taxi Rapunzel stands with them by the door while Nerissa cleans up in the kitchen. She holds her arms around herself and smiles at them with a gentle look in her eyes.

"So," Snow says, raising her head to look at her. "Have any new plans? Or ideas? I know we ask it a lot, but we just want to know what's running through that head of yours." Snow keeps her voice gentle and casual so as not to alarm her new friend. Rapunzel's smile falls as she darts her eyes back and forth trying to find an answer.

"Well... Not really but, Bigby," Her eyes land on him for a moment before going back to nervously glancing around. "He's been trying to get me out for short amounts of time. And Nerissa keeps dragging me along for drives and... well... I feel more comfortable being out in public, I guess." She squeezes her arms tightly and her voice drops to a quiet hum the longer she speaks. Bigby smiles at her, even though she's not looking up at him to see it.

"You're doing good. It's a lot to take in, but you haven't had a freak out in public yet." Snow elbows him when he says that.

"Hey, come on Bigby." His eyes widen at her words, feeling a bit bad now and apologizing.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it like that... You've come far though. We can keep going out for quick lunches if you like. Just call me." Rapunzel's eyes finally raise to look at him and she nods.

"Thanks." Snow also tells her that if she's sick of Bigby or Nerissa to call her as well and they can try and find something to do together.

"Thanks guys. I know I must frustrate you with, well, me being me. But I really am trying, and... even though I get scared easily, I can't deny that you haven't helped." The two make sure to let her know that they will keep helping her through it before finally heading out the door. Before Bigby gets in the taxi after Snow, Rapunzel shouts from the top of the steps.

"Bigby... thanks, really I... I know you don't get out much either but, it's nice having someone who understands how I feel when dealing with... life I guess." She chuckles a bit at that last part. Bigby truly was the only person she knew well enough to say that to. He's the only one who also struggles with being around other people and having to be social with them. It's almost like they're helping each other learn to navigate the world together, step by step.

Bigby smiles and nods to her.

"Don't thank me. Be proud of yourself for getting this far." Those words get a bigger smile out of her than she's had in weeks. A genuine smile, that carries a lot of weight to it, coming from her. Bigby waves goodbye, along with Snow as the taxi drives off.