#florence welch the woman (goddess) that you are

[satiricaily]

when they said god is a woman this is what they meant actually

[alexandraadavies1996]

My gods, woman, you look like Florence Welch had a baby with the goddess Aphrodite

That is probably the sweetest thing I've read all day, thank you so much x

[sigynpenniman]

Julian Bashir Playlist Time!!

Apple Music playlist (if you're a heathen and subscribe to apple music like me) here

I know that there's plenty of people making playlists, but I really feel like this is an under-utilized brand of fan content. Instead of attempting to create a list of songs that Julian would listen to, or a playlist of songs which were all lyrically directly applicable (though there certainly some of those in here) regardless of genre, I tried to create something which captured, above all, his vibes instead, by choosing songs that balance at least somewhat relevant lyrical content with the energy or feel that I associate with the character. What it means matters, but not as much as how it makes you feel. That said, I signed up for apple music and read a TON of those overwrought iTunes store album review descriptions while I was making this, so I have a whole lot to say about all my choices here. In depth explanation of my symbolism and methodology behind each song under the keep reading. (I love tumblr. I want to write 1,000 words of analysis about why I picked songs to represent Julian Bashir and some of you are gonna read it. This is where I get to pretend to be one of those iTunes music writers. I feel joy.)

Good Morning - Two Door Cinema Club TDCC's Gameshow is high on my favorite albums of all time list for nebulous reasons I myself don't really understand. It was this album, though not this song (but one that will pop up later) that actually inspired me to make this playlist to begin with, as for some reason, from the color scheme of the album cover, to the overall vibe, to the ever-present references to illness, injury, surgery and healers in the lyrics, the whole thing feels inescapably Julian to me. And with an opening like I'm a sinner/I'm the victim/I'm an alien when I'm myself/I'm a healer/I'm a fixer/I'm a present danger to my health/I'm so strong/Doing what I'm supposed to do/ There's something wrong/With somebody like me, it's hard NOT to think about Julian when you hear this song, and I can't think of a better way to start this off.

Sweater Weather - The Neighbourhood I think there's a joke somewhere about bisexual people all liking Sweater Weather, and yeah, I resemble that remark. Sweater Weather is just good. You'll notice there's a sort of chill-indie-alt-electronic thing going here, and that is very much the vibe I'm sticking with. Sweater Weather slots in beautifully, both sonically and thematically. As the singer looks to warm and protect the person he's with from the cold, you can't help but feel a loving coziness coming off of this one. It always makes me feel cozy, at least, so it's here.

Gooey - Glass Animals I have nothing to analyze here because the artists themselves have said that the lyrics of this song have no meaning, they're just meant to capture a vibe, and capture it they do. Close your eyes and ride the vibes of this one. The energy is right, I love it, it belongs here.

Blue - Mika I could probably write a couple hundred words on Blue alone, in any context. This might be my beloved Mika's magnum Opus. Opening the song with the inherently counterintuitive lyric Blue is a feminine color, Mika manages to pack it ALL into this 3 minute song: questions about gender; concepts of sadness, joy, and their intersections; of the perception of melancholy as a flaw and loving people despite, or maybe because of, those "flaws" and anything else about them; a powerful first person reassurance that made me start weeping in my car the first time I heard it; just the phrase "why are humans cruel to you." And oh boy, ARE there questions of gender. Why is blue NOT considered a feminine color? Is that a good thing, a bad thing? In 3 minutes of artful poetry, Mika manages to wrap up sadness, love, joy, pain, the feminine that exists within the masculine and the masculine that exists within the feminine, in the simple color of blue and then, in one lyric, validates it all. And on a much simpler and more obvious note, this is in fact all a philosophic musing on the symbolic meaning of the color we see Julian wearing almost all the time (when he's not in uniform, almost all his civvies are also shades of blue.) I feel like this is one of those songs that's hard to analyze because it does what music and poetry does best - communicate something that cannot be communicated any other way. With these broad themes of loving others around the things they can't love about themselves, you can decide for yourself if this one is coming FROM Julian or directed AT him, either works. I find myself struggling for exactly the words to explain this one, but listen to it; you'll understand.

Little Dark Age - MGMT Another choice with no obvious lyrical relevance, but the tonal fit was just too good to pass up. The vibes pass.

The City - The 1975 This song is one of several present because it leans on medical symbolism to get its point across, though I would be lying if I said I fully understood what that point was. But the entire second verse, apparently about the song's subject suffering from some kind of illness and reassuring him that the next one's the M.D./You'll be feeling just fine, seems somehow to transmit the discomfort of illness directly to the listener. I don't know how or why, but the effectiveness of the empathy the second half of this song elicits, in me at least, puts it squarely in the "odd medical vibes" category.

Surgery - Two Door Cinema Club THIS is the song that inspired this whole playlist, mostly because of its title and general vibe. Another example (of many) of medical/anatomical references in this album (another of the songs is called Fever, etc), this song just feels like Julian to me.

The Other Side Of Paradise - Glass Animals I really like Glass Animals. That is probably becoming obvious. Aside from its delightfully cohesive vibes, this song opens with what's simultaneously the slyest and most brazen gay lyric I have heard on the radio recently, as the male singer says When I was young and stupid my love left to be a rock and roll star/HE told me... The song seems to be about a man whose male lover left him in pursuit of fame and fortune, and eventually ends up with a woman, leaving the singer behind. It's got simultaneously subtle and obvious gay themes, it's got confused love affairs, it's got so much bisexual energy. I cannot think of anything that could be more Julian.

Sit Next To Me - Foster The People Kind of like Sweater Weather, this whole song is built around a rather cute and sweet "sit next to me," and you can't help but feel a bit warm and cozy when you listen to it. I think it pairs with sweater weather well, and slides in with the rest of the picks very nicely.

Nothing Better - The Postal Service (the original band of the lead singer of Death Cab For Cutie) Another example of heavy surgical symbolism, the very first lyric of this song is Will someone please call a surgeon. This is actually a duet, and the singers speak of their real hearts to represent their emotional ones. Something about Your heart won't heal right if you keep tearing out the sutures always gets me and always will. And it vibes good. It vibes so, so good.

&Run - Sir Sly Sir Sly's &Run is my favorite song for driving too fast. It does an amazing job of musical onomatopoeia, talking about running while making you want to run. It's a song about running out of plans and running as far as you can instead, which is all very "I'm illegal by definition so I went to the farthest possible reaches of space." And like everything else here, it just feels good. It's also one of the only highlights here that I can actually see Julian listening to.

Cosmic Love - Florence and the Machine It's no coincidence that it seems like most of us who are invested in Julian Bashir are some flavor of genderqueer, be it trans, nonbinary, questioning, or something else entirely - the man's got a Gender with a capital G, and there's a whole lot going on in there. Between the words that were written for him on the page, and the words that were actually spoken, and the way he carries himself, Julian always seems caught between the white, western, and frequently toxic masculinity that the writers often seemed to want to imbue him with, and the very different, racially and culturally distinct masculinity Sid actually brought. But there's an undeniable element of the feminine in Julian too, at least by a traditional definition. The presence of this part of him at all, much less the fact that, in-universe, it's the more traditionally "feminine" parts of himself - the caregiving and nurturing aspects - that Julian seems proudest of or to like most about himself, is a large part of what makes his character so interesting, at least to me. So there was no way I was getting out of this without acknowledging that somehow, and I can't think of a better way to acknowledge a complicated relationship with the feminine side of one's own gender than with this world's own Celtic divine feminine, Florence Welch. I can't think of any better artist, at least that I know of, to represent femininity as a nonspecific ethereal goddess-concept. I basically spun the wheel of Florence here, as anything would have worked, but Cosmic Love felt very appropriate for a character who does in fact live in space. There could even be some Garashir in here, I think.

Dream Sweet In Sea Major - ミラクルミュージカル, or Miracle Musical, a sister act made up of members of Tally Hall I also couldn't leave off without acknowledging Julian's affection for classic lounge music, especially since it's the only thing about his taste in music that we actually know. But instead of tacking on some rat pack, instead I'm polishing this off with the incredibly chaotic and somehow also perfectly cohesive and calm Dream Sweet in Sea Major. It's got all of the vibes of a lounge singer but gone completely off the rails, which just seems perfect somehow. And it's also a very nice feeling to be left with, so it seems only right to put it at the end.

and if you've read all of this, I love you. Y'all didn't know I was this into music did you. but I am. oh boy. I AM.

[greatfay]

Ok so I rarely watch music videos and was very out of the loop irt Lorde’s blasé white woman nonsense until today. And then I see the Lorde cancel train starting to rev up and it’s so familiar. I said ages ago when we talked about how what was “cancel culture” before it was a buzzword originated from marginalized communities just... not engaging with problematic media and people, and only once the idea entered the mainstream (read: white consciousness) that it became something so visceral and loud and extreme. And the Lorde thing is the perfect example of how dramatic some of you can be.

But then I remember back in like 2014 when posts describing Florence Welch as a fae goddess and Hozier as a lost mortal trapped in the woods were circulating; they’d also call Lorde a “dark entity summoned by Victorian occultists” honey pls she was a cynical teenager expressing herself and now she’s a cynical rich white lady making tone deaf statements. You mischaracterized her then and you’re going to the dramatic extreme now. Nothing’s changed. And when she gets “canceled” you’re going to write think pieces blaming people of color for “going too far” in simply expressing ourselves while you lot were the ones grabbing pitchforks?

“NEVER liked her anyway” miss you have 8 Melodrama moodboard posts on your blog. It’s just a conversation. You don’t know how to have a conversation.

[firstfallofsnow]

2020 in review

tagged by: @cassandrarailly thank you so much for tagging me💕✨

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5-8 (ish) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020.

Taylor Swift lover edit: I love how the coloring turned out. The pinks, purples, and blues fit the lover era

Beth Harmon edit : nothing like having a woman look sexy during a mental breakdown... this damn trope!

Florence Welch ceremonials edit: I love how the pinks/reds look! She is a goddess

Taylor Swift cardigan edit: I really love the coloring! Such a pretty music video, loved the greens in it

Aly & AJ joan of arc on the dance floor edit: their new music is so good!! Love the music video concept. This song just makes me wanna dance

Ahhh sorry this took me forever to do! I told myself I’d complete this by the end of the month!

[the-cheshire-cat-grin]

the idea that someone could look upon florence welch’s perfect goddess face and not instantly begin to weep makes me so incredibly sad like how can you look at this woman

and not think she is the most outrageously stunning human being to grace this plane of existence

[riathenowheregirl]

Gold Dust Women: My Favorite Witchy Singers

Okay, before you burn me alive with “Where’s this certain artist?!” or “Why is this certain artist not here?!” or “Who even uses Tumblr these days?”, uhmmm me bish?? It’s my safe zone. Okay, the last question was a joke. 

Can I just say that the amazing women on this list are artists I listen to all the time. They’re my favorites, so chill (I’m open for suggestions tho). This is not Rolling Stone or Billboard magazine, it’s just ya girl’s good ol’ tumblr blog. Also, I’m not saying that all of them are literal w i t c h e s, it’s just that they portray the same aesthetic through their art and music. 

Alright, now that’s settled, let’s start.

1. STEVIE NICKS 

Do I even need to explain this? Stevie is undoubtedly the Etheral Queen of them all, the Pioneer, the O.G. Supreme whose lyrical soul and spellbinding voice echoes from the distant past to the inevitable future. Everything about her oozes with witchcraft and magic starting from her iconic top hat, to her millions of intricately made shawls, down to her platform boots. Only Stevie Nicks could pull off such Not-of-this-Era outfits and she has been doing it CONSISTENTLY. She’s in a timeline of her OWN. If you listen to her music, you would notice that every song of hers is poetry, like she’s telling a story or conjuring the unknown. She’s every witchy woman’s icon and that’s a fact.

Stevie is an untouchable yet gracious legend, we’ll always be a part of her sisterhood until the day of earth’s decay. Forever the Queen of Rock N’ Roll. 

Current Favorite Stevie Lyrics:  “ You can fly swinging from your trapeze, scaring all the people...but you'll never scare me.”  |   “Once in a million years a lady like her rises. Oh no, Rhiannon, you cry, but she's gone and your life knows no answer.”

Notice how I used the word “current”? Because it always changes depending on the state my life. Here’s a more detailed post on why I love her.   

2. KATE BUSH 

“Heathcliff, it's me, I'm Cathy, I've come home, I'm so cold! Let me in through your window!”

The eccentric beauty, Kate Bush made a genius, artistic move by writing a song about the book, Wuthering Heights, written by Emily Brontë in the 1800′s. Mind you, she was only 18 when she wrote and was the first song written by a female artist that landed on top the charts. Her voice is almost as distinctive as Stevie Nicks. While Stevie’s more nasal, commanding, wailing rock n’ roll goddess, Kate’s voice was high-pitched, alarming, ghostly, queer, and fairy-like. Everything about her is Performance Art. This is a woman who is not afraid to express herself.

For starters, you might think her music is strange and weird. Trust me, I felt the same way when I first heard her songs. But then, it began to grow on me leaving floral patterns on its path. 

Favorite Kate Bush Lyrics:  “Do you want to feel how it feels? Do you want to know that it doesn't hurt me? Do you want to hear about the deal that I'm making? You, it's you and me.”

3. FLORENCE WELCH 

This one is as obvious as Stevie Nicks. Florence Welch from the band, Florence + the Machine, is a poetess, a screaming banshee, and a full-pledged Sister of the Moon. She even started a witch coven during middle school. From her red carpet looks to her everyday outfits on Instagram, Florence vibrates powerful witch energy. Not to mention she has a song called “Which Witch” and that haunting music video for Big God with levitating women. Flo is not a woman to trifle with, I’ll tell you that. 

Photos courtesy of @lillieeiger

In all her songs, Florence will bind you with magic and it’ll leave you breathless. If Stevie’s songs are poetry, hers are spells you could sing out loud. Also, if you haven’t seen her house tour, go check it now! 

Favorite Florence Welch Lyrics: “'Cause I am done with my graceless heart so tonight I'm gonna cut it out and then restart.”  |  “And in a moment of joy and fury I threw myself in the balcony like my grandmother so many years before me.”

4. LANA DEL REY

Remember when Lana used witchcraft to hex Donald Trump? It was all over the news and Twitter went wild. She was later quoted saying, “I really do believe that words are one of the last forms of magic and I’m a bit of a mystic at heart.” Oh, and she also did a collab with Stevie. 

We. Stan. Forever.

There was even a time that I MEMORIZED the monologue in the music video for Ride. ALL OF IT, HUNNY. 

Lana’s hypnotizing vocals together with her sixties baby doll dresses and Priscilla Presley hair is enough to convince me that she’s not of this era. She has a deep understanding of the beauty of past generation and the looming sadness and nostalgia that comes with it. Whenever I listen to her music, I imagine myself as a rockstar’s muse who is involved with the mafia but then I decided to leave him while taking his gun and convertible. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Favorite Lana Del Rey Lyrics: “Well, my boyfriend's in the band. He plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed. I've got feathers in my hair, I get down to Beat poetry. And my jazz collection's rare, I can play most anything.”

5. LORDE 

David Bowie didn’t call her the “future of music” for nothing. Just two albums under her belt, Lorde already proved that she will one day become a legend herself. Her music narrates an unparalleled interpretation of the anguish and fleeting charm of our youth. She knows what we’re feeling because she’s been there herself and is on the road to healing just like us. 

I think the message she’s trying to say is that we’re constantly losing grip on our innocence, and that life is often wicked so we need to accept that, grit our teeth, get on with it, and make art. She can also see color when she hears music. 

In my opinion, Lorde is one of the greatest artists of my generation. 

Favorite Lorde Lyrics: “The truth is I am a toy that people enjoy till all of the tricks don't work anymore, and then they are bored of me.”  |   “That slow burn wait while it gets dark, bruising the sun, I feel grown up with you in your car. I know it's dumb.” 

6. FKA TWIGS

Honestly, FKA Twigs is literally art in living form, a celestial angel that nobody can easily decipher. This woman has more talent in her fingertips than I could ever have in a lifetime. She somehow reminds me of a young Kate Bush; fearless, experimental, with an intoxicating voice. She never stops reinventing herself and it’s beautiful.

In FKA Twigs’ world, there are no limits, just endless galaxies. She pours her whole being in all of her songs and it shows. She’s not for the faint of heart, let me tell you that. 

Favorite FKA Twigs Lyrics:  “And I don't want to have to share our love. I try but I get overwhelmed. All wrapped in cellophane, the feelings that we had.” 

7. SKOTT 

I say this all the time, but I cannot write without Skott’s music blasting on my earphones. She grew up in a “forest commune run by outcast folk musicians” and was not exposed to contemporary music until her teen years. You would notice it in her songs. 

It’s hard to explain why, but listen to Skott’s music when there’s thunder and rain outside, then you’ll know why this woman is witchy. I kind of want her to be more popular and known, but then again, I also want to keep her to myself. Scratch that, LISTEN TO SKOTT’S MUSIC NOW. 

Start with Glitter & Gloss. 

Favorite Skott Lyrics: “Like an empty canvas, hear me cry. Like a masterpiece, I'm in your eyes. Now your colors are in front of me, we're a picture-perfect oddity.”

8. FIRST AID KIT 

I fell in love with this sister duo when I first heard their song, Emmylou, while browsing YouTube. It’s one of those moments of instant magic. Klara and Johanna Söderberg are a coven of their own. I would describe their music as “Woodland Folk laced with runes and wild flowers”. 

Their voices compliment each other so much that it reminded me of Simon & Garfunkel (they even performed their own version of America in front of Paul Simon!!!). First Aid Kit has this Woodstock seventies vibe, and you know me, I live for that sh*t. 

Favorite First Aid Kit Lyrics: “ When I run through the deep dark forest long, after this begun, where the sun would set, the trees were dead and the rivers were none. And I hope for a trace to lead me back home from this place, but there was no sound there was only me, and my disgrace.”

9. ZOLA JESUS

Zola Jesus’ music deserves to be played with an orchestra inside an abandoned castle in Transylvania while it gently rains and you’re wearing a white nightgown as you roam its empty halls. Is that too much?

 Not at all. 

Like Skott, I listen to Zola whenever I’m having writer’s block. If I ever finish my book, I’m gonna have to thank them. 

Favorite Zola Jesus Lyrics: “I'm on my bed, my bed of stones, but in the end of the night we'll rest our bones, so don't you worry. Just rest your head cause in the end of the night we'll be together again.”

10. ZELLA DAY 

Photo Credits to Harper Smith

I LOVE ZELLA DAY’S MUSIC OH MY GOODNESS. My favorite songs of her are Sweet Ophelia, Hypnotic, Man on the Moon, and Hunnie Pie. ESPECIALLY HUNNIE PIE. I cry whenever I hear that song. It’s just so pure, calming, and beautiful. 

Her music belong in the psychedelic era. 

People labeled her as the “happier version of Lana Del Rey” but I think she’s in a league of her own. She deserves more recognition, honestly! 

Favorite Zella Day Lyrics: “The older we get there's an ocean of people in places we've chosen and you know how mama keeps saying “we've gotta stop the games we're playing””. 

Hope you guys approve of my list! I really like sharing stuff that I love! Feel free to message me for more suggestions, I’d really appreciate to know more witchy artists out there. We’re all in a huge coven of sisterhood. 

Thanks for reading!

Love, 

Ria  🌙

P.S.

Please follow my blog!!! THANK YOU  🔮

[boneandfur]

The Mask of Fate

Summary: when Bryce and Ari visit the Museum of Fine Arts, they make a startling discovery. Is the past truly the past? Or will Fate lend a hand? // Notes: Inspired by an edit made for me by @choicesarehard (at beginning of chapter). Much thanks and love goes to my writing pals, without whom none of this would be possible! You know who you are. // Words: 1470 // Song: Jenny of Oldstones by Florence Welch // Pairings: Bryce x MC, Ethan x ? //Rating: though this first chapter is only rated T, the rest of the work will have a hard and fast EXPLICIT 18+ rating. //AUTHOR's NOTE: if you enjoyed this, don't forget to like, comment & reblog!

PROLOGUE

Present Day

"Nox habet quod dies perdidit.” (Night holds what day has lost) -- Seneca.

"Tell me why you dragged me to a dusty museum on this nice, sunny day again?" Bryce laughs as Ari pays for their tickets, fixing her with a charming smile. "We could be out there playing Ultimate Frisbee."

"There's something I want you to see. Come on, slow poke." Ari digs her finger into Bryce's ribs, tickling him. "Eek!" The nearest museum docent, a girl with bright pink hair and a grandma cardigan, turns to stare as Bryce pulls Ari into his arms and rubs his nose against hers.

"There's more where that came from later, you beautiful, infuriating thing." His voice is a thing of beauty: honey and the echo of the tides, blowing over the bare flesh and warming her, like a tropical breeze blowing through the palms beside a white sand shore. "Doctor Riversong. Now, what's this special surprise?"

Ari tosses one dark ponytail over her shoulder, and winks, beckoning Bryce towards a door near a statue of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine. "I know a guy."

•••

The back room of the museum is entirely too dusty for his tastes, and climate controlled. They couldn't have splurged for an upgrade? Bryce is wishing at this point that he'd thought to bring a wool sweater, he certainly owns enough of them living in the Northeast.

"Cold, Dr Lahela?" There's something about this 'guy' that sets all the hairs on the back of Bryce's neck distinctly on end, for all of his friendly manner.

"How do you know each other again?" Bryce barely moves his lips against Ari's ear, and yet Raines responds, his voice a liquid dark thing, smooth as a hand grasping silk sheets in pleasure -- or exquisite pain.

"Let's just say we have a mutual interest." Raines lays his hand over a panel on the door, and it slides open.

The smell of the little room is fresh and bright, like citrus and sunshine, for all its cramped space. Ari tugs at his hand, and Bryce allows himself to be led to a long aisle, made up of glass cases. Inside are the bric-a-brac of a world gone by, ranging from iron sickle knives to a doll with stone eyes, a child's plaything. Each has a small label, dated anywhere from 2000 BCE to 1600 CE.

Bryce moves along the glass cases, peering at the minutiae of lives lived thousands of years in the past. Ari has moved beyond him, talking with Raines. All of a sudden, he stops. There, in the case, is a bull's horn, gilded and flaking, bored with holes in a line. He knows what it is even before Raines speaks. "A bullroarer."

"Yes, you certainly know your history, Dr Lahela!" Raines sounds faintly amused, and Bryce feels soured, though nothing in Raines's manner is condescending.

He feels that he must have it, he must touch it. It's mine, Bryce thinks, although he knows it cannot be. He can almost feel the weight of the thing in his hands, and he knows the low roar it would make as it swoops through the air.

"From the height of the Minoan Empire, about 1600 BCE. That particular item was found in the ruins of the Palace at Knossos."

"You mean, like the Minotaur and Icarus?" Bryce takes a step back from the glass, although it pains him to do so. "That's just a myth. I'm a doctor. We believe in science, and what we can prove."

"You can't prove anything here, Doctor Lahela. These human memories, how precious, how fleeting they are." Somehow, it sounds like an incantation.

Raines removes a teak chest from one of the cases, weathered by time. The bronze lock crumbles in his hand. When he opens the case, the scent of labdanum is in the room, sweet and dark as vanilla and rich earth, like a woman who has just sat down after a bath, combing oil through her thick dark locks.

He then draws out a wax tablet, mummified and preserved by the centuries. "This was found in the ruins of old Ostia, buried under the foundations of a house near the shore. Some fishermen dragged it up in their nets in the late nineteenth century. It is a miracle it still exists."

"What does it say?" Ari strokes one fingertip over the lettering, entranced.

Raines raises a brow, reading aloud. "'Is that a stirgil in your toga, or are you just happy to see me?' Some things never change. Moving on..."

As Ari and Raines move on to the next case, Bryce hangs back. There is something about the teak case that fascinates him, like a medical curiosity. He crouches down level with the box. On the inside, there is lettering in Latin, almost too faint to make out. Medicae... Numidia. Something glints in the box, and Bryce removes it carefully.

It is a scalpel made of polished bronze, etched on one side with a drawing of a boy leaping over a bull, like the fresco he saw back in the hallway. When the world was new, when myths were made, oracles were spoken, and gods walked among men.

The smell of labdanum is back, and black storax, thick and sweet as the guava paste his mother would make for mochi. In the polished bronze, Bryce can almost see a woman, staring back at him down the centuries, dark eyed and skinned.

She was a medicae... of Numidia. At the house with the sign of Epione. In Ostia, where the blood oranges grow.

Bryce can almost see her turn her head to meet his eyes, as if to say:

Remember.

•••

In Ostia, there is a blood orange tree, under the sign of Epione, the goddess of healing. She is called Felicitas by the Romans, and her high priestess never turns a soul from her temple door. Harper grew up on the streets of Subura, back in Rome, where she learned the art of the medicae. She came to the port city of Ostia nearly two decades past, back when she was yet a girl, back when the blood orange tree was only a sapling, a reminder of the home she would never return to.

At night, when the locusts sing in the trees and the priestesses of that stone house wash the doorstep with salt water, Harper's lover comes to her in dreams. She will wake in the dawn-light, when the sun has not yet risen over the bay, and listen for the song of the nightingale; just as it sang beside their bedroom window, back in Subura, when they were young together.

(Back before the Legion, back before Ostia, before her hair began to turn gray, before her bones started to ache when the seas turn green with the coming storm.)

Beside her, the bed is cold, the place where he would lie is empty. Harper will roll over in her bed and reach beneath it for a chest made of teak and ebony, filled with the scrolls he has sent her. Each is like a precious jewel, a memory, hoarded and kept sacred. She will take out one at time, into the courtyard to break her fast.

(With sweet wine from Hispania, and blood oranges.)

Harper breaks the wax seal of the letter with a flick of her fingertip, and she smells the scent of him, her man; as though he sits beside her at the table, drinking watered wine and eating sticky figs, his deep blue eyes never leaving her face.

You get this crinkle between your eyes when you think too hard, my love, he will whisper, and press his thumb there, caressing the strain away.

(But like the space beside her in bed, Harper is alone at the table. She does not like to think about how many years it has been, or how many lines she can see beside her eyes in the beaten bronze mirror.)

She unrolls the carrying case carefully, wind and salt have done their wear and tear on the waxen leather packet. Out of the case falls a spring of fauna, and Harper carefully crumbles it in her palm, holding it to her nose to breathe in the strange scent. It is not a plant she knows, or has ever known before. If she did not know him better, she would think that he had a lover out there, in the far flung reaches of the Empire, and she would not blame him: it has been years since last they held one another.

(Yet a promise is a promise, and she has kept it, in her fashion.)

Under the same stars, in some far-flung corner of the Empire, Harper can picture him: sitting at his writing desk beneath his hospital tent, her man:

Ethus...

[starcourtscream]

name:   stephanie

zodiac:   leo

height:    5′2″

time: 3:54 PM

favorite band / artist:   fleetwood mac, lord huron, the police, my chemical romance, spice girls, britney spears, cyndi lauper, david bowie, florence welch, hilary duff, kate bush, madonna, phil collins, enya, heart, journey, rod stewart, etc. i love music okay

last song i listened to:   eternal flame  ---  the bangles

last movie i saw in theaters:  ...i actually forget oops

last thing i googled:   lavender recipes

other blogs:  malia tate @changedback​

why did i choose this username:  it’s a direct canon quote and not a cookie cutter variant of ‘banshee’, ‘wailing woman’ or anything i have to substitute with x’s ( thank u stiles stilinski, s6e1 )

following:  370

average amount of sleep:  4 lmao

what i’m wearing:  free people jeans, t-shirt from pioneertown california & navajo patterned blanket cardigan ( and knit socks it’s freezing )

dream job:  actress / model

dream trip:  italy, greece, australia & ireland

favorite food:  dark chocolate, pomegranates, figs, pistachios, pizza ( AUTHENTIC sicilian style ), roasted butternut squash, classic greek salad, dried turkish apricots, medjool dates  ...  lots of fruit

play any instruments: clarinet in elementary school but only because it was mandatory

eye color: hazel

hair color: caramel brown

languages you speak:  english but i want to learn italian & greek

random fact:  i’m a medium

describe yourself as aesthetic things:  pomegranates, flower crowns, garnet crystals, rose gold jewelry, ancient architecture, cats, rosy sunrise, glowing volcanic lava, creeping fog, the full moon, unsculpted clay, stoplights at night, the ocean at night,  shimmery eyeshadow,  blood red lips, rose petals, pearls, neon lights, the desert, botanical gardens, marble goddess sculptures, prismatic light cast by stained glass

describe your muse as aesthetic things: shadows, hot pink glossy lips, leather jackets, glazed white eyes, echoing screams, midnight fog, the woods, flowing strawberry blonde curls, ancient texts, oak trees, vanity mirrors, spilled wine, mythology books, butterflies, persephone symbolism, scribbled mathematical notes, detailed sketches, alabaster scarred skin, lush lips around fruit, shattered glass, autumn leaves, tarot cards

TAGGED BY:  taken from @forgedvoid ! TAGGING: @vanishcd @coyoted @joneshead @criedwxlf @boysarcasm @girlcoyoted @anticheryl @endheir @maskedsocio @kegstandking @spikybat @haeretik​ @hereticdefied​ @disregardsorders​  &  anyone else who wants to ! say i tagged you xoxo

[bog-nymph]

People I would like to know better. I was tagged by @junomarlowe, my ineffable wife <3 

ONE / name/alias: Kristin, K, Goose, Sissy, Punk, Lionblood.

TWO / birthday: March 11th.

THREE / zodiac sign: Pisces sun, Taurus moon, Sagittarius rising. The rest of my chart is a lot of Capricorn, and more Pisces and Taurus, because duh. 

FOUR / height: 5′10.75″, which everyone thinks is actually 6″. thankfully it is not, as I already cannot find pants that fit me. WHY is everything ankle/cropped length these days? tell me.

FIVE / hobbies: Writing, embroidery, podcasts?? (literally my wife’s answer. but also mine), reading (either intensely, or not at all). This autumn I want to get back into the embroidery, and knitting. My most enjoyed pastime is walking and staring at the trees. I’d love to get back into photography, also. [I don’t really believe in hobbies. I just do things that keep me not insane.]

SIX / favourite colours: royal purple always and forever. That colour green. Rich blues, millennial pink, emerald green, deepest red. Pre-raphaelite colours plus rose quartz, basically (also courtesy of my wife. #wifemind)

SEVEN / favourite books:  Or books/stories that I love deeply. Are they the same thing? Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery; Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke; all the Wimseys by Dorothy L. Sayers; Hild by Nicola Griffith; Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (the audiobook is the best way to consume it); Harry Potter (mostly 3, 4, and 6) by that woman (ugh); An Ordinary Princess by MM Kaye; Beauty by Robin McKinley; The Outlaws of Sherwood, also by Robin McKinley; so many more that my brain cannot deal with this right now.

EIGHT / last song i listened to: If she wants me, by Belle & Sebastian.

NINE / last film i watched: The new Downtown Abbey movie. I was not thrilled but was not displeased. I missed Rose. But there were a lot of nice moments. 

TEN / inspiration for muse: the weather, the sky, the trees, the wind; the scent of freshly-mown grass, and of crisp apples; any and all water; the moon; goddesses and witches; my grandmother; my now-dead cat, which is killing me; my wife @junomarlowe; Florence Welch; the Pre-Raphaelites, who also drive me insane; female warriors; JOAN OF ARC; George Eliot; Jane Austen; folk music, folk-art, folk-everything; Botticelli paintings; Egyptian religion; graveyards.

ELEVEN / dream job: bestselling author/happy gardener. more realistically, employed by some sort of community-based or at least -focused art gallery of middling size, with enjoyable colleagues and enough but not too much pressure from the outside world, wherein I get to design exhibits and also engage in public programming. 

TWELVE / meaning behind your url: Ten years ago (which is impossible to comprehend) I fell into a bog while on a photoshoot with @partybasilisk, one of my dearest friends in the world. She started calling me a bog-nymph; I had short hair and was much thinner then, and seemed to fit the role. I’ve always been fascinated by bog bodies and bogs in general. I’m very Scottish, so it’s probably something in my blood.

THIRTEEN / top 3 ships: public shipping makes me faintly uncomfortable, but just assume I wish everything was 200% more canonically romantic and gay (@junomarlowe is just writing these for me now. it’s not plagiarism if it’s your spouse, right? Let’s just say that the ineffable husbands are ineffable).

FOURTEEN / lipstick or chapstick: Burt’s Bees chapstick. even tho they were bought by clorox, which is evil. I’ve been addicted for over 15 years now, and there are worse vices in this world. I hope.

FIFTEEN / currently reading: Listening to Over the Top by Jonathan Van Ness. Do yourself a favor and read this, or, better yet, give it a listen. It’s always amazing to have an author narrate their own work, to read their words in the cadence they imagined. I feel so SEEN by this fellow queer person. Beginning to read both The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield, which I’ve meant to read since it came out 1,000 years ago, and The Confession by Jessie Burton, who is a gem of a human being and an incomparable writer.

I tag @oftwodarkmoons, @partybasilisk, @yearofthetrialsizedovebar, @bienenkiste. You’re my most active mutuals, two of you are some of my best friends in real life, and I’d love to know more about you! 

[snowcalling]

some quotes that affect me

“You are a woman with a man inside watching a woman. You are your own voyeur.” – Margaret Atwood

“If I am worth anything later, I am worth something now.” – Van Gogh

“O God, that I were a man! I would eat his heart in the marketplace.” – Beatrice, Shakespeare

“You can’t choose what stays and what fades away.” – Florence Welch

“Kiss me and you will see how important I am.” – Sylvia Plath

“Just because you are soft doesn’t mean you are not a force.” – Victoria Erickson

“I do not see the world at all. I invent it.” – Kafka

“Don’t you ever tame your demons – but always keep them on a leash.” – Hozier

“Even the eyes of gods must adjust to light. Even gods have gods.” – Nicole Sealey

“She wears strength and darkness equally well; the girl has always been half goddess, half hell.” – Nikita Gill

“The lot of emperors is most unhappy, since when they discover a conspiracy, no one believes them unless they have been killed.” – Domitian

“Everything alters me, but nothing changes me.” – Salvador Dali

“I feel entirely dehumanised by the sun now and wish for fog, snow, rain, humanity.” – Virginia Woolf

“Half gods are worshipped in wine and flowers. Real gods require blood.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“There is nothing that cares about you less than the ocean in the dead of night.” – Amrit Brar

[atomheartz]

Rest Stop ( Billy Lee Smut )

Summary; Billy Lee and his wife spend the night at a rundown motel just outside of Vegas. But he can’t keep his hands off of her.

Word Count; 2294

Fandom; Bad Times at the El Royale

Characters; Billy Lee, OFC ( Cynthia Lee - played by Florence Welch )

Notes; I might have gotten carried away. And this is probably the dirtiest thing I’ve ever written. And yes, yes, Billy Lee is a toxic character, blah blah blah. Don’t idolize his behavior, this relationship, and all that stuff. And thanks to @explainamerica for suggesting two smut prompt lines for this fic. They’ll be in bold. Enjoy!

It wasn’t often Cynthia grew tired from all the walking she did. She found it freeing, with the wind in her hair and the sun on her skin. When they walked through fields, she found herself running her hand along the flowers and tall grass, a smile gracing her lips. And when her lover took her hand, brought to his lips, and whispered his affections, she could feel her heart race. But when she did grow tired, she always felt safe in her husband’s arms, and he carried her without question. Then, she could lay her head on his chest, with her ear over his heart, and even drift off to sleep in the comfort of his embrace.

Billy had always been so good to her, treating her like a queen and loving her when no one else did. He never let her out of his sight, and he always kept a hand on her. He knew their hands fit so perfectly together, like she was made just for him. And nothing was going to take her from him. Not another man, not the world, nothing. To him, she was perfect, the ideal woman in his ideal world. She was his queen, his angel, the one thing that kept him living. To lose her would be losing his lifeline, and no one was more protective of her than him. And no one loved her more than him, he made sure of that.

One night, while staying at a rundown motel just outside of Las Vegas, Billy watched from the bathroom as Cynthia brushed out her wet hair. They’d just gotten out of the shower, and she looked heavenly in her white towel. Her back was to him, and the marks he’d given her the previous night still visible on her neck. Quietly, with his own towel around his waist, he walked over to her, climbing onto the bed so he could wrap his arms around her from behind.

“Baby?” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her neck.

“Hm?” she hummed, setting her brush down on her lap.

“Have I ever told you that you’re the most beautiful woman in the world?” he asked, his hands resting just under her breasts.

“Mhm, you did last night, you animal.” She brought one hand to his hair, running her fingers through it gently to mind the possible knots. She felt him chuckle against her skin as one of his hands traveled farther up, and then under the towel. She closed her eyes, letting her head fall back to rest against his shoulder once he began to fondle and massage her left breast.

“And what, sugar, did I say after that?” he whispered, kissing just below her ear.

“It’s all kind of a blur, Billy,” she said, using her free hand to grip his wrist, though it wasn’t tight. A breathy moan escaped her lips as she felt his index finger and thumb roll her nipple, a chill running down her spine.

“Is that so, baby? Anything I can do to help you remember?” He pulled his hand back from under her towel, a small smirk gracing his lips when he heard her whine softly.

“Mm… I’m fresh out of ideas. Maybe you have some?” she asked, releasing his wrist from her grip.

“I’ve always got some ideas for you, baby. Gonna make you feel like the queen nature wanted you to be,” he murmured against her skin. He pressed kisses down her neck and onto her exposed shoulder, bringing one hand to rest against her neck. His other hand slowly untucked her towel, letting it pool around her waist so it exposed her chest. He paused, watching as goosebumps rose on her skin, and the cool of the air had her press against him.

“You are the most beautiful creature on the face of this earth, angel. And you’re all mine,” he purred, gently nipping at her neck. He began to suck on her skin, groaning softly when he heard her whimper.

“You’re so gorgeous, like you were carved from marble by the finest hands,” he whispered, his free hand caressing her stomach, her skin soft to the touch. His kisses trailed over her shoulder, and as he nipped at her skin, his hand reached up to massage her breast again.

“Does that feel good, sweetness?”

“Mhm. It feels so good, Billy,” Cynthia whispered, shimmying slightly to push the towel off of the rest of her body and onto the floor. She smiled when he groaned, removing his hand from her neck to bring it to her other breast, rolling her nipple between his thumb and index finger.

“You know how much I love making my baby feel good.” His right hand trailed down from her chest, down her stomach, and to her core. With a gentle tap to her thigh, he watched her spread her legs for him, and he used his middle finger to trail down her slit.

“Oh, baby, you’re so wet for me. All for me.” His thumb circled her clit, and he smirked as she bucked her hips. He pulled his hand away, bringing his finger to his mouth to lick it clean.

“And you taste so sweet, like the fruit from the Garden of Eden. And you know I’m dying for a taste,” he whispered. He let go of her, then shifted to lay himself down on the bed beside her. His own towel had begun to loosen, but he paid it no mind. The only thing he cared about, in that moment, was getting his hands on his goddess.

“Come here and give daddy a taste.” He beckoned her over, then reached for her arms to help situate her to where he wanted her. He set his hands on her thighs, pushing her down as she grabbed the headboard to keep her balance.

“And baby, you know the rule: don’t cum until I tell you,” he growled, watching her nod quickly before he set to work. The tip of his tongue traced over her slit, parting her folds so he could brush it over her clit. Her soft gasps and hip bucks spurred him on further, with him flattening his tongue over her core. He kept her pressed against his face, lapping at her folds like a man starved. And he had been starved. He hadn’t had her all to himself for days.

“O-Oh, oh Billy….” she whimpered, her legs quivering and her heart pounding. She let go of the headboard to grip his hair, rolling her hips as he groaned under her. His fingers dug into her thighs, and she moaned, tilting her head back as his nose bumped her clit.

“Baby, Billy, I’m close….” she whispered, exhaling sharply when she felt him pull back.

“Cum, baby. Fuckin’ cum all over my face,” he demanded, then pulled her back down onto him. He began to suck on her clit, grunting as she pulled on his hair.

“Oh god…. Oh fuck…. Oh, Billy!” Her eyes squeezed shut as the pressure building between her thighs pushed forth. Her whole body shook, yet Billy continued to lap at her folds, coaxing her through her orgasm. When she finally began to settle down, he was quick to move them around, holding her close to his chest as he sat up against the headboard.

“Fuck, I forgot how sweet you tasted, baby,” he murmured, brushing her hair from her face, “and I’m far from done with you. I haven’t had you all to myself in days,” he whispered, tilting her head up to press a passionate kiss to her lips. One of his hands cupped her face as he kissed her, his own heart pounding in his chest when he felt her return the kiss. He took the opportunity to shift them around so she was on her back beneath him, and with his free hand, he discarded his towel. He felt her hands on his cheeks, and he leaned into her touch, moving both of his hands to her legs so he could wrap them around his waist loosely. He pulled back from the kiss, a small smile gracing his lips as he drank in the way her fiery hair fanned out on the pillow. He brought one hand to her core, using his thumb to rub circles onto her clit once again, smirking as her hips bucked upwards. Then, as gently as he could, he gathered some of her slick onto his index and middle finger, then brought it to his length. He pumped himself a few times, groaning quietly, before guiding himself to her entrance.

“You ready, baby? You remember our rule?” he asked, slowly dragging his tip over her slit.

“Mhm. I remember, baby,” she said, rolling her hips in anticipation. One of her hands gripped the sheets as she felt him push past her folds, deliciously stretching her for him. A quiet moan escaped her lips, yet it turned into a whine when she felt him still.

“If you want it, beg for it,” he growled, his hands pinning her hips down onto the bed.

“But baby, that’s not fair….” she protested, inhaling sharply as his grip on her tightened.

“I never said I’d play fair, darlin’,” he whispered, “now beg.”

Cynthia felt her face heat up, the fear of a full body blush fresh in her mind. Her eyes traveled downwards to where their bodies connected, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

“Billy, baby, please…. I need you so fuckin’ bad. I need you to make me feel good. It’s been days since you made me feel like your goddess. I need it so damn bad���.” she whimpered, her tongue darting out to lick her upper lip.

“That’s a good girl,” he praised, pulling back a bit to thrust into her. He watched as her back arched off the bed, encouraging him to move. He snapped his hips, grunting quietly as she wrapped her legs tight around him.

“Fuck, you feel so good, darlin’. I’d forgotten what it felt like to have you clench around me like this,” he said as he continued to thrust into her. One of his hands let go of her hip, and he took both of her wrists into it, pinning them above her head. He leaned down to pepper her neck with kiss after kiss, sucking and nipping on her flesh as he went.

“Yes, yes yes! Fuck, Billy, feels so fuckin’ good, baby,” she praised, arching her back again as he snapped his hips again and again.

“Who do you belong to, baby? Tell me who you belong to,” he demanded, his thrusts growing faster, yet sloppier.

“You, baby. I belong to you,” she panted, digging her nails into her palms, “I belong to Billy Lee, and only Billy Lee.”

“That’s right. You’re mine, and ain’t no one gonna change that,” he grunted. grinding his hips against hers. Then, he moved to press a deep kiss to her lips, pulling out of her entirely and letting go of her wrists. His free hand dropped to his length, pumping it quickly until he groaned against his lover’s lips, releasing over her stomach. He bucked his hips, working himself through his own orgasm before he pulled back from the kiss.

“I’m still not finished with you, baby,” he breathed, moving down the bed to rest on his stomach, his head between her thighs. He pressed a kiss to the insides of her thighs before dipping his head down, licking a bold stripe up her folds.

“Shit, baby….” Cynthia breathed, one of her hands gripping his hair as he parted her folds and ate her like a man starved once again. She felt the tip of his tongue trace and dance around her swollen clit, making her body jolt. She could feel the familiar pressure building between her thighs, her breath hitching as he started to suck on her clit. She felt him ease two fingers into her, curling them upwards in order to hit her sweet spot.

“S-Shit, Billy, baby, please let me cum. Please, please, please let me cum,” she begged, squirming under his ministrations.

“Fuck, how could I say no to that? Cum for me, baby. Cum for daddy,” he whispered against her.

As if on command, her toes curled, and her fingers gripped the sheets, and his hair, respectively. Her hips nearly bucked off of the bed as her vision went white, with spots dancing in front of her eyes. Her heart pounded against her ribs, and she could feel sweat drip down the sides of her face. Once her vision cleared, she saw Billy smiling down at her, his one hand brushing her hair away from her face.

“You’re such a good girl for me, baby,” he whispered.

“Only because you’re so good to me,” she murmured, closing her eyes as she leaned into his touch.

“Because you deserve it. Just lay right here, and I’ll go grab a cloth to clean you up with, and then we’ll settle in for the night, okay?” he asked her gently, and she nodded. She felt him leave the bed, and she yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. Her eyes fluttered open only when she felt the wet cloth on her abdomen, and they closed once more under his gentle touch. She tuned out most everything in the room until she felt her husband beside her once more, wrapping his arms around her smaller frame.

“Get some rest now, darlin’ angel. You’ve earned it,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her hair.

“Mhm. God, I love you so much, Billy Lee.”

“And I love you, too. No man will ever love you more than I do. I can promise you that.”

[ghost-skeletons]

answer 21 questions and tag 21 people 

i was tagged by @byrons-bysshe , thanks! ♡​ 

nickname: vic, vicky and jessica (yeah, it's weird) for some people

zodiac: scorpio sun, aries moon and gemini rising!

height: 155 cm or 5'1'' (i'm really short')

last movie i saw: a quiet place

last thing i googled: hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have- but I have it

favorite musician: probably Florence Welch and Amanda Palmer

song stuck in my head: I’m Liyng To You Cause I’m Lost by The Paper Kites 

other blogs: i have another tumblr, but i only use it when i need to vent, so i won't share it here

do i get asks: it's very rare, but when i do it's usually from @byrons-bysshe (i'd love to get more asks tho!)

following: 60

followers: 22

amount of sleep: 7-8 hours usually is enough for me

lucky number: probably 13

what i’m wearing: black shorts and a pink cropped, i'm basic most days 🤷

dream job: i'd love to be an archeologist, a funeral director, a forensic pathologist or a psychiatrist!

dream trip: obviously a cemetery tour around the world, it would be amazing to learn different peoples death rituals!

favorite food: i can't choose a favorite food...but i love broccoli and carrots!

play any instruments: i play the ukulele, but not very well, i hope someday i learn the violin

language: my native language is portuguese, but i can speak english and a bit of french

favorite song: i hate choosing favorites, but my favorite at the moment is Various Storms and Saint by Florence + The Machine

random fact: i hate my hair, but i love styling it!

describe yourself in an aesthetic: i couldn't do this alone, so i asked my friend to help me, here it goes:

Death Positive Enthusiast™

Dark humoured. Realistic and aware of our inevitable deaths. A nice type of asshole. Wears hippie inspired clothes but is a goth dead deep inside. Wants to have a funeral home + fave YouTuber is a Funeral Director. Enjoys art, cemeteries, dark forests and the paranormal. "The truth is out there, but so are lies". Wants to be blessed by Gillian Anderson and the immortal goddess Florence Welch.

[shade-without-color]

Since I feel like trying something new, like a director’s commentary but in writing, I wanted to talk about my new little story “I want you to come and say everything to me”, though I may do for You Go whenever you go here, which I am pretty long in thoughts in my A03.

It is very funny, because I feel like that story is an evolution of what I am working on for the past projects: like ‘You go Whenever you Go” and ‘To Enchanted Lands and Beyond.”, allowing such romanticism from To enchanted Lands, and yet feeling human aspects of growing up- which is to find your inner voice amidst societal perceptions like my canon divergence Riku in YGWYG

So today I am gonna talk about the influences of that story and how I shaped it!- First up Dance Fever!! ❀。* ₊°。 ❀°。❀。 ₊°。 ❀°。❀。 *₊°。 ❀°。

Florence + The Machine: Dance Fever

-Yes all hail King Florence Welch- I have been listening to Florence + The Machine since I battled with painful lung infection a few years back, as a way to cope with the pain I have from staying at home, and being shitty about myself on why I suffered (I say How Big How Blue How Beautiful helped me to express my tumultuous relationship with my ex-boss, seeing that truth and being ruled- I would say Queen of Peace, and What kind of Man were my anthems until that album)

So Dance Fever came to me like last February with her single “King” which was such a bop, and I am like ooooohhh new music from King Florence.

So it was ‘My Love’ that really sealed the deal for me, as I was coping with the grief of an ex colleague ghosting on me-I played that song too religiously everytime it is on my spotify or my old-ass iPod. It has painful lyrics wise, but the music is upbeat (Similar to Mitski’s Laurel Hell, which I liked)

She released her tagline of her album as ‘A fairytale in 14 songs’ which is such a cool premise as Florence said about a woman and her relationship with ‘performing’, which deal with societal pressures and all. And I think that story dealt with that expectations of others and how to break away is felt through in this story

In fact I chatted with Danica that one of her songs “Dream Girl Evil”, was my theme song for Midoriko when she shared her head canon on how they met, which I wrote the idea of the field, bopping to that song over and over again, which bleeds through the story which Midoriko do not want to be perceived as that ‘goddess’ and ‘holy’ figure but a human, and yet she is planted to that perception, the lyric- “I am no Mother, I am no Bride, I am king” is bled into Kirinmaru calling Midoriko his king-not only adding to the fairytale aspect of it, but it is subverting gender roles which is fitting for our couple, ‘My Love’ fits all of the emptiness Kirinmaru felt being trapped by all.

It was that strange little fairytale-esque album which bleeds through the whole story, which you can see in its veins, which I hope you get to listen to it.

[the-cheshire-cat-grin]

i think the biggest difference in my attraction to men and women is that when i simp for a woman, it's in reverence, but when i simp for a man, it's in fury. for example

me @ florence welch: angel woman. love of my life, absolute goddess among humanity. i would give my entire soul to her.

me @ current male crush: WHY ARE YOU SO HOT?? WHY ARE YOU SO GODDAMN PRETTY??? IF YOU SMILE ONE MORE TIME IM GONNA FUCKIN LOSE IT

[djeebus]

January 6, 2018

Shake It Out

Performed by Florence and the Machine

Written by Florence Welch and Paul Epworth

From Wikipedia:  Welch elaborated the songwriting process of the song adding that it can be compared to a really good hangover cure.. She stated, "I wanted to just shake something out, shake out these regrets, shake out these things that haunt you. It was one of those songs that came in about half an hour and when you've got a hangover, it is almost like a hangover cure. You're like, thank you! I don't want everyone to think that I always write songs with a hangover! Cause I don't, I really don't. But with this one I have to say there was a bit of one lurking in my mind as I wrote it. It was like I was trying to write a hangover cure.  Shake It Out is a four-and-a-half-minute gothic pop and rock song which contains swelling, gospel-flavored pop, with churchy organ and pounding drums setting a cathartic scene for Welch’s fiery singing.

And the glowing reviews of its composition just continue on from there, gushing about its anthemic quality and the sheer ecstasy of her voice conjuring up spiritual rebirth.  The lyrics themselves are riddled with cliches but the delivery just takes away any part of you that might find it trite.  It’s the sort of song that was meant to be recorded at Abbey Road and stands tall among its contemporaries from there.

Holy shitballs, is this one a punch in the gut.  I like to think it’s easy to pick out one great and resonant moment from any good song, but this one…  Obviously, I liked it from the first time I heard it.  It’s everything I love above all else in song: a well crafted rhythm with the absolute perfect voice accompanying it.  Did I mention the voice second?  Oh, I’m dead wrong.  This woman, this elemental goddess brings the goods from the first line to the very end.  

My personal moment of “wow, does this ever evoke the feels” is in the first verse: And I've been a fool and I've been blind I can never leave the past behind I can see no way, I can see no way I'm always dragging that horse around

All of his questions, such a mournful sound Tonight I'm gonna bury that horse in the ground

A call to arms, indeed.  Cut the ties that bind and get rid of them for good.  Bury them and walk away.  When I felt things, it was deeper and more meaningful than “she” ever did.  And time is healing up the damage that’s done to my well-being, but there are days… and even writing this, reading these gushing reviews about the force of nature that is Florence Welch.  This isn’t just sonically beautiful, it’s epically beautiful.

Regrets collect like old friends

Here to relive your darkest moments

I can see no way, I can see no way

And all of the ghouls come out to play

And every demon wants his pound of flesh

But I like to keep some things to myself

I like to keep my issues drawn

It's always darkest before the dawn

And I've been a fool and I've been blind

I can never leave the past behind

I can see no way, I can see no way

I'm always dragging that horse around

All of his questions, such a mournful sound

Tonight I'm gonna bury that horse in the ground

So I like to keep my issues drawn

But it's always darkest before the dawn

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa

And I am done with my graceless heart

So tonight I'm gonna cut it out and then restart

'Cause I like to keep my issues drawn

It's always darkest before the dawn

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

And given half the chance would I take any of it back

It's a fine romance but it's left me so undone

It's always darkest before the dawn

Oh whoa, oh whoa...

And I'm damned if I do and I'm damned if I don't

So here's to drinks in the dark at the end of my road

And I'm ready to suffer and I'm ready to hope

It's a shot in the dark aimed right at my throat

'Cause looking for heaven, found the devil in me

Looking for heaven, found the devil in me

Well what the hell I'm gonna let it happen to me, yeah

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa