#his narnia witch slay...

[sugurugetos]

HOSHI Power of Love / Christmas Special 

[randomshenaniganery]

Magic Carrot tries to figure out who the Repressed Gay Knight has a crush on

[bloodybigwardrobe]

based on @quecksilvereyes ideas and words go look at everything they've written for narnia she's the og

why does the lamb snarl, god wonders distantly, why does it bend low as though to lunge? why does it rear to cover its trembling kin that cower at its back? how has it turned predator in its stain-free woollen coat?

lambs for the slaughter they are, these little unmarked things, stretched out on the ground-turned-altar of this battlefield. soft and afraid, nimble and eager where youth still clouds their minds. lambs for the slaughter, all of them, until this lamb grew desperate rage inside itself and found an appetite for bloodied flesh.

this lamb, hearing false godtongue speak of sickly-sweet devotion, grew teeth.

god said kill for me, die for me, bring yourself upon the enemy sword for me—clean your blade with something purer than your tears for me.

god says nothing at all now, hollowed out before the frenzied lamb.

feast on what you have slain little godling, sings the sky as its talons curve around boyish shoulders, sink your too-blunt teeth into his flesh, dig your shaking hands through to his bones. strip him bare and wear it all, pelt and blood, marrow melting on your tongue. consume and drape yourself with his remains.

kin find their brother with teeth and hands and mind inside the carnage of god’s corpse, a slain beast half-chewed and naked in the grass. they find him with the world bending its shape around new godhood, with skies bearing down to dig deep bloodied paths into a child’s back. kin find their brother, god successor, mouth smeared red and buckling legs.

god lies silent as the lambs pay witness to his death and let their brother devour him whole.

—as lucy feeds life to their witch-slaying brother, susan readies her bow to defend the brother who sits, wide eyes unseeing, choking down godmeat for their sake.

[jedimandalorian]

Ahsoka Episode 8 “The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord”: The Story, the Symbolism, and the Score Part One

As the episode begins, we hear sinister drumming, then a low rumbling as the cargo transfer to the Chimaera is completed. Thrawn orders the dispatch of two TIE fighters. Sinister music plays as Morgan receives the “gift of shadows.” As she makes her pledge to the sisterhood and the old ways, Morgan’s Theme (the Nightsister Theme) is heard. Morgan’s eyes glow green and then turn black as power is transferred to her by the Nightmothers. Morgan receives the Blade of Talzin, a reference to the sword used by Mother Talzin in The Clone Wars animated series.

Thrawn’s Theme plays triumphantly as the Ahsoka title card and the episode title appear onscreen: “The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord.” This title is an obvious reference to C. S. Lewis’ novel The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and it isn’t the first reference to Lewis’ Narnia books in the Filoniverse. The World Between Worlds itself was inspired by Lewis’ “wood between the worlds” which allows passage across time and space to other worlds.

The title of the episode does have a deeper meaning, but this may not be apparent until one has watched and fully understood what the episode is really about. The “Jedi” in the title is Ahsoka, who corresponds to Lewis’ Aslan, the magnificent golden lion who is the Christ-figure in the Narnia books, not unlike Tolkien’s Gandalf. The “Witch” in the title is Morgan Elsbeth and all of the evil that she and the White Witch of Narnia represent. The “Warlord” is Thrawn, who will travel between the galaxies just as the magic wardrobe in the Narnia books allowed passage between the worlds. Lewis’ novel is about many things, but at its core, it is a story about redemption. In the novel, young Edmund Pevensie, in his selfish desire for Turkish Delight, makes an a dangerous alliance with the White Witch and betrays his siblings to get what he wants. He later regrets this betrayal and repents of his selfishness. However Edmund’s debt must be paid. Instead of dying a traitor’s death, Aslan is sacrificed in Edmund’s place. The White Witch slays the Lion, but due to the Deep Magic from before the dawn of time, Aslan resurrects triumphantly and defeats the Witch.

Sabine Wren, whose all-to-human desire to be reunited with Ezra Bridger, led her to make an alliance with Baylan Skoll in episode 4 of the Ahsoka series. Sabine didn’t destroy the star-map because of her selfish desire to see Ezra again, and by making this choice, she set in motion the return of Thrawn and the possibility of another galactic war. By making this selfish but understandable choice, Sabine failed as a Jedi. As in Edmund’s story, Sabine is on a journey towards redemption for what she’s done.

The next scene is of Ahsoka’s ship hovering low above the traveling Noti pods. Onboard the ship Huyang and Ezra bicker as Ezra constructs a new lightsaber for himself.

“Who taught you how to build a lightsaber anyway?” Huyang asks.

“Kanan Jarrus,” replies Sabine Wren from the doorway of the workshop. She smiles at Ezra.

“He was my master,” Ezra says, his glance lingering upon Sabine for a moment. “He taught me everything I know.”

Quiet music accompanies this conversation. When Huyang says that the relationship between master and apprentice is as challenging as it is meaningful, the camera pulls in closer to reveal Sabine’s expression, which shows sadness and even remorse.

A quiet rendition of Sabine’s Theme is heard as Ezra completes the construction of his new lightsaber. When Ezra asks “Hey Sabine, Ahsoka ever teach you how to…?” he turns to looks at her and sees that she is gone.

Ezra asks Huyang what happened between Sabine and Ahsoka. Huyang tells Ezra about the Purge of Mandalore, and that Ahsoka felt that if Sabine unlocked her potential at that time she would become dangerous.

Sabine exits the ship to talk with Ahsoka who is sitting atop the shuttle as it hovers. Soft strings accompany the conversation. Ahsoka’s Theme is heard, which is then followed by Sabine’s Theme played by cellos. Ahsoka knows what Sabine did but says that she will be there for her no matter what happens next. They discuss whether Sabine has kept up with her training.

“Being a Jedi isn’t about wielding a lightsaber,” Ahsoka explains. “Train your mind. Train your body. Trust in the Force.”

Ezra exits the ship, announcing that he just finished building his new lightsaber.

The music is much louder as two TIE fighters open fire upon them and the Noti caravan. Ahsoka’s ship takes a hit. Ahsoka and Ezra levitate it to save the Noti from being crushed. Sabine and Huyang attempt to pilot the damaged ship. On Sabine’s signal, Ezra and Ahsoka hurl the ship towards the two TIEs and the wings of the T-6 shuttle clip them, destroying both of their attackers. Ezra and Ahsoka run to the site of the crashed T-6.

“Got ‘em” Sabine says to them after exiting the smoking shuttle. She surveys the damage to the Noti pods. Ezra remarks that this will slow them down a bit, but Ahsoka responds “only if we let it.”

End of part one. To be continued! Let me know what you think of this analysis so far. It’s going to be a long one.

[unendingwanderlust]

25 comments left in honor of the latest @justleaveacommentfest event! Every fic I read (and commented on) below the cut!

On this list, you'll find the fluffiest of fluff, body horror, and everything in between. Mind the tags and ratings for each fic, and don't forget to show the authors some love if you enjoyed them!

Fandoms: Tolkien, Lost Girl, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and one awesome Dracula-Barbie crossover (yes, you read that right!)

Silmarillion/LotR

Oubliette by Stramonium (Gen (Maedhros-centric), T, 1097 words)

In the bowels of Darkness, Feanor's firstborn takes an account of what is left.

Our Shared Monsters by theworldisquietheretooquiet (Eluréd & Elurín, Elrond & Elros & Maglor, Celebrían & Elladan & Elrohir, T, 978 words)

“It’s Fëanorians!” Elrohir grins. “They’ve come to steal our Silmarils and… and take us away so we never see Adar or Naneth ever again!”

3 sets of twins, 3 different forests, one suspiciously similar monster.

joy is a bird, a fragile thing by estuarie (Elrond & Elwing, G, 1003 words)

"Good day," he says and finds that his voice carries a tremor. Elwing is smaller than he remembers. "Good day," Elwing responds. Her grey eyes are wide and sad.

Elrond comes to Aman and meets someone who has been lost to him.

far over land and sea by ArgentNoelle (Maglor/Susan Pevensie, G, 2471 words)

Susan dreams of music, and she knows it is not the music of Narnia. It would have both eased and angered her if it were: the bright gold of Aslan’s mane, a warm breath: these things still come to her in stolen moments. And in the years since her exile she’d said it was play-pretend when what she meant was ‘we walked out of paradise full-knowing we would never come back.’

Melui Edlothia - Sweet Blossom by KimicThranduilion (Legolas & his mother, G, 1031 words)

Elfling Legolas gives his mother cause for worry before springing a sweet surprise on her.

Our Dark Master by Corsair_Caruso (Morgoth/Sauron, E, 2263 words)

Mairon finds his Master in agony after being rescued from the predations of Ungoliant by Gothmog and the Balrogs. But only Mairon can give the Dark Lord what he needs...

an anchor in the stormy sea by frosted_violets (Gimli/Legolas, T, 2730 words)

After the battle of Helm’s Deep, Legolas breaks down. The amount of death is too much for him to bear, and he finally realizes the mortality of his traveling companions. He shuts himself away, but Gimli finds him and puts him back together.

Come Tomorrow (You Won't Find Me Here) by Lorinand_Lost (Barefoot_Dancer) (Glorfindel/Maglor, E, 2215 words)

"They are tired of ghosts, the both of them, even ghosts they love."

[Glorfindel makes up his mind to sail for Valinor, but he won't be going alone]

Bedtime Storytime for Little Legolas by amloveabledeathmo (Thrandul/Thranduil's Wife, G, 2076)

Children are always too excited to sleep when something fun is going on the next day. Legolas's mother tries her best to settle him with a story of how she meet his father.

The Life and Times of the Witch-King of Angmar by Gheyn (Sauron/Witch-King of Angmar, E, 3880 words)

"I ought to slay you where you stand," the Witch-King growled.

"Come," Sauron laughed, walking from the tomb where eight stooped corpses stood waiting.

Middle-Earth's Greatest Tourist Trap by octopus_fool (Gen, T, 4225 words)

It was always Blorbo Baggins' big dream to visit Mount Doom. Sauron, on the other hand, hasn't been able to leave Mount Doom since the One Ring was destroyed.

elvenkings by am_fae (Oropher & Thranduil, Elrond & Oropher, Elwing & Evranin, G, 1524 words)

Thranduil sat on a pier and watched the silt swirl and mingle with the clear salt of the ocean. Something tugged in his young breast: he could not name it. It was not sea-longing.

The Sea’s Fury by SunflowerSupreme (Maglor/Salmar/Uinen/Ossë, E, 3298 words)

After centuries wandering alone, Maglor is pulled from his home on the shore.

Stars by politicalmamaduck (Arwen/Tauriel, Not Rated, 3088 words)

Tauriel journeys to Rivendell when King Thranduil decides to pay Lord Elrond a visit, and amid training sessions and late-night conversations, she and Arwen fall deeply in love.

The Crane Wife by Trebia (Thranduil/Thranduil's Wife, Lalwen/Thranduil, Legolas & Thranduil, Legolas & Lalwen, M, 4347 words)

Lalwen, on sailing east, had more history to her than most would recall.

Or, if you will, why Thranduil was so bent on those gems.

So Summer Comes by potatoesanddreams (Elrond & Elros & Elwing, G, 2655 words)

Nana is so tired. Elrond can see it in her stillness, in the slump of her shoulders, in the languorous blinking of her reflection’s eyes. She has been sitting at the window since noon, but it has worn out her strength as surely as if she had gone running along the snow-laden sea-cliffs with him and Elros and the youth who came along to mind them, searching for a vantage from which they might by good fortune catch sight of Ada’s ship.

Ada said he would be home by autumn equinox. It is winter solstice now.

the light in my life by likethenight (Sigrid/Tauriel, G, 3137 words)

Nothing ever happened in Lake-town, Sigrid thought, later, nothing ever changed, and yet in the space of two days and nights everything changed.

It takes her and Tauriel rather longer than that to untangle what they feel about each other, however.

Lost Girl

Waiting for the Rain to Fall by Arbryna (Bo/Tamsin, E, 1365 words)

Tamsin isn't as confident as she'd like everyone to believe.

Solace by Arbryna (Dyson/Tamsin, E, 2209 words)

Dyson is grateful for the distraction Tamsin keeps offering him; he just can't figure out what's in it for her.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer

the face of someone (i don't know) by guin_ramble and zombiesam (Buffy/Giles, E, 6349 words so far)

Buffy, newly resurrected and in the throes of depression, seeks comfort in all the wrong places. When her despairs threatens to completely overwhelm her, she turns to the person she trusts most.

Dracula-Barbie Crossover

la petite mort by howlingmoonrise (TheDarkStoryteller) (Babie/Dracula, T, 3896 words)

“Well,” she says, long and drawn out, and from the glint in her eyes he can tell this is some kind of inner joke, kept from him. “I’ve been a diplomat, and a race car driver, and a chef, and an astronaut, and a veterinarian--”

“An astronaut,” he repeats dryly. He wants to call her on her lie - but. But. How strange. There’s no indication of a lie: no rise in temperature, no quickening of her pulse, no change to her eyes, nothing.

She laughs. “You don’t know the half of it."

[pinkhyojin]

tagged by: @moonflowerglowing @dakbees and @pumpkunspiced (so many! thanks y’all!)

Last Song: the dreamer by onf, listening rn and this song is so!!!!! when mk does his little scatting thing? slayed.

Last Movie: oh. i think the chronicles of narnia: the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe???? and i didn’t even watch it all the way through bc i was like a bottle of wine deep🫣 but i’m sooo obsessed with narnia, that’s my childhood obsession fr.

Currently Reading: island time by georgia clark. i read most of it in june on a camping trip and have been struggling to finish the last few chapters ever since😭 it’s a weird family driven, queer romance where the main cast get stuck on an island after a tsunami. i really need to finish it lol

Currently Watching: omg my happy marriage. it’s an anime on netflix and i’m slowly making my way through it but the main romance is so gooey i love it, but there is also magic and intrigue and it’s very diverting.

Current Obsession: hmmmm. angsty stuff probably. anything that makes me cry really hard. is that weird haha. WAIT. wyatt’s new and improved selfies. i’ve been losing my mind. also e-tion’s new hair cut, so good. apple cider donuts.

tagging: @rockwonbin / @dongkwan / @saitseeing (no pressure ofc)

[instantpansies]

well. alright then.

thoughts on episode one:

holy fuck that was long. hour and 28 minutes and for no reason whatsoever

so, it's tropey. especially the characters i'm just gonna go through everyone:

dot: dorothy's daughter, alright. pretty standard Sweet Girl Protagonist, honestly just a very dorothy-ish characterization, fairly caring but determined and driven. not a lot to say. likeable tho!

neddie: dorothy's son. The Child. emotional, needs comfort and protection, empathetic to animals and 'outcast' people, caring and sweet and naïve and helpless. whatever honestly he could be much worse - i'm hoping we see more complexity moving forward is all.

frank: wizard's son. Serious Nerd/Tech Whiz. ehhh, honestly. he's focused, no-nonsense, and knowledgeable, but we do see a more casual or caring side, so i guess that lends him a bit more nuance?? i like that his name is frank (homage to baum!)

scarecrow: i think it's pretty obvious whose kid he is. if frank is the Serious Nerd, junior is the Comic Relief Nerd. a literal punching bag but it's not played too far, which i appreciate. makes jokes, isn't just the butt of them. smart, and the show makes it clear, but his intelligence isn't really utilized. if anything we could call him the Useless Nerd, even. idk, i like him okay. i hope he doesn't get flanderized into a true punching bag bc there is some potential here

tin boy: yes, he's called tin boy. i know, im disappointed too. yes girl give us nothing!!! i know nothing about him and he had the fewest lines of all the gang this episode :( very unfortunate this is definitely a strike for the show :(

jack pumpkinhead's son: i don't. i don't know his name. sorry. it's probably jack. he doesn't have much more characterization than the tin boy (chill runs down my spine every time i write that), but he gets some points bc he stood up to a couple of the approximately one thousand villains of this episode. so. the scrappy one, i guess?

boris: lion's son. The Coward/Afraid Of Everything. that's his whole entire thing. every other line is "that's scary!". it's not even the 1939 lion thing where he puts on a brave face but is still terrified (because remember? the lion was courageous all along. king of doing it scared tbh), it's just he's scared. okay.

bella: lion's daughter (they're twins). wowza. the Girl Who Can Fight. she punches, she yells, she can do anything. slay, honestly, but it's a boring tropey character. her whole thing is making fun of her brother for being scared, but not in an interesting way like she's secretly also scared and just isn't showing it. at the end this is briefly subverted and she's shown to feel similarly to her brother despite all the contradiction, but it feels kinda shallow. if they'd introduced this earlier, i'd still think it was a boring direction, but it would've worked better.

andrea: is she?? glinda's kid? or the wicked witch of the west?? or ozma???? i don't know. it was never established. she's the Mean Girl Who Just Wants To Be Included, she can do magic, it's whatever. has a good bit of potential - this trope is kind of irritating to me (idk this type of character i just don't enjoy watching. they're being irritating and unhelpful in a boring way on purpose and i just get tired of it so fast). is she supposed to be dot's rival? idk she was just kinda thrown into the middle of things. anyways, gets a Redemption Arc but is still A Little Mean, you know the drill, even down to the fingers crossed promise. like. okay.

okay that's the kids. rick (rake?) is the Down-On-His-Luck Lovable Old Man, gets 'saved' from his unfortunate circumstances by people from a utopia. very narnia cabby driver core. he does have some decent dry jokes tho, which is fun occasionally. anyways, this show is. it's nothing special. the humor is okay, i've already mentioned it, they're trying. voice acting is very hit or miss and the timing is terrible throughout, so no jokes land and banter feels flat and intense moments are reduced to 'my seventh grade youth group putting on a campfire skit' levels. also what is it with oz adaptations and sound design? the music is very repetitive and doesn't suit the tone of individual situations at times. feels really awkward.

the plot was so convoluted i can't even believe. they made a whole feature-length episode based on the premise 'andrea is mean and magics toto to new york city so now they have to save him". this did not need to be an hour and a half. there were so many sidequests and random micro setbacks and. like i said before it feels like getting blocked in an improv, which is one of my least favorite feelings. it got hard to watch after a while - i just want things to keep happening, ideally in a forward direction, but it just kept stalling and doing little spins in the middle of the road or going off to the side to look at a flower but not pick it. i can excuse filler for a while but THIS WAS A FEATURE LENGTH EPISODE ABOUT RESCUING TOTO FROM UNFAMILIAR PLACE. 90 MINUTES OF THIS IS TOO MUCH. so that was the biggest thing

some nice references to the books! the ork, like i said. andrea's circlet/headdress (which is why i thought she was ozma). the scarecrow taking falls to be a landing pad for someone else. the deadly desert.

also some just. weird shit. there were two Mean Teens (who the show and i have been calling 'the goons' who initially steal toto for money and then have a complete change of heart and just. help everyone? they're not the Two Halves Of A Whole Idiot trope, not quite, but more like a stand-in for that sort of dynamic? idk it's weird. also they just threw some crabs in here for some reason. just a bunch of crabs. your guess is as good as mine

sooo, overall, i'd rate this episode a 1:29:43 out of ten - way longer than necessary or enjoyable, forgettable characters, convoluted and unsympathetic plotline. it wasn't very good. i realize i'm biased, since this show is based around a concept i fundamentally dislike (yes i've written descendants fanfiction what's your point), but i've tried to look at it from a lens of actual analysis of presentation, not believability per se or my own headcanons. it's not very good. i'm gonna probably do this for the other episodes, but definitely in a separate thread bc this is longgggg

wahoo

against my better judgement. i'm gonna watch oz kids

ughghg

i hate kid fics/next gen aus (nothing against them per se, i just personally don't enjoy them at all)

apparently the dorothy chara is like. the daughter of dorothy and zeb???????? they are cousins!!! ?? (i could be wrong about this but that's what i've heard) and listen i am starving for zeb representation too but NOT LIKE THAT

a few minutes in and it's very awkwardly paced with too much silence and the dialogue is hard to hear and there's no subtitles. this is going to be so hard to watch

why am i doing this? bc im desperate that's why. leave me alone

also like. how many extra characters are they gonna have to introduce?? who is the mother of scarecrow's kid?? scraps???????? but i know that's not happening

[theminionjcfucked]

BB23 Houseguests as the books/plays we were forced to read in school:

Alyssa: The Great Gatsby- BORING THIS IS SO BORING. What a pretty girl makes a rich man sad? Whatever. It’s boring.

Azah: A Midsummer’s Night Dream- I mean it’s a beautiful read, but it’s confusing. Also Puck most definitely is using that flower juice to fuck with her because where are these reads coming from?!?!! Why is she going after the wrong people?!????! It’s gotta be those damn fairies.

Brent: Dracula- A older man who preys on younger women? Riveting.

Britini: Olivier Twist- very much chaotic, mischievous orphan vibes from this one.

Christian: Romeo and Juliet- OVERRATED. We get it. They’re in love and can’t be with each other. Also Romeo high key caused his own problems. Did you have to go to that ball? Did you have to marry into a family that didn’t like you? DID YOU HAVE TO KILL TYBALT? Like honestly, man wonders why he’s in trouble all the time.

Claire: The Crucible- What’d y’all say about Claire’s witchcraft? Idk I feel as though some witchery is about to take flight with this one.

Derek F: Hamlet- He’s still trying to avenge his fallen King. Man needs to let it go before he gets the whole royal family killed.

Derek X: The Outsiders- He’s Ponyboy! Man started off at the bottom as a greaser and now look at him. He saved kids from a burning building. I just hope he doesn’t lose his best friend soon 😔 He’s gotta stay golden.

Frenchie: To Kill a Mockingbird- White Savior complex strong with this one. Why is this considered the staple book for studying racial inequality? Too many racial slurs in a book written by a white person. Needs to be retired.

Hannah: The Scarlet Letter- She got unfairly labeled as being surrounded by guys and is now being targeted. Leave Esther alone. She better than you and you’re mad about it.

Kyland: Beowulf- DID HE NOT SLAY GRENDEL?? DID HE NOT SAVE THE KINGDOM FROM THE BEAST??? He is a mighty warrior and should be celebrated.

Sarah Beth: Frankenstein- Very much feels like a monster was brought to life. She’s gonna terrorize the village when she gets the chance. But entertaining nonetheless.

Tiffany: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe- This is a whole adventure. It’s exciting from start to finish. But she’s needs to be careful or she could get stuck in Narnia forever.

Travis: The Canterbury Tales- there was about ten stories with this one, and I cannot recall a single one.

Whitney: The Help- very much Miss Hilly vibes. Again, this book needs to be retired. Way too white for its subject matter.

Xavier: The Alchemist- He is brewing up something I can feel it. He’s well studied and if nobody catches him, he may just master the whole game.

[narniagiftexchange]

                                      THE WINTER NARNIAN GIFT EXCHANGE.

                                   for @hauntedthief​ (formerly @taintedcalamity​)  by  @quecksilvereyes​ .

– Nodriza? – Yes, my love? – Will you tell me a story?

Once, my love Once, there was a Queen                she had eyes as soft as a sigh                                hair all black, and curled                                a mouth, red as a rose’s most beautiful petals Once, her brother carried the world on his shoulders Once, she held this, our, world cradled                                                                              in between her ribs                                                                              and tangled in her jewellery

Once, there was a Queen                and she was the most beautiful thing Narnia has ever seen                               – twelve years old, clinging to her siblings                               the snow stuck on her lips, a gap between her teeth                               her hair in curls                               her breath stuck in her chest                                                                                                            heaving, still.

– She was a child? – They all were, my love. – And they ruled? – They did. They slayed the witch, they brought spring with them – and they were crowned. The eldest was not yet fourteen, then. – Do you think they ever really existed? – I think that without legends to believe in, there would be nothing to hope for – and no one to hope it. – Do you think they will ever come back? – Narnia called them once. Why shouldn’t she call them again? The Queen’s horn is still here. Someday, someone will blow it.

[lovely2lynch]

Each Girl For Herself: Citizenship, Youth Culture & Gender Representation (Week 9)

According to the Hunger Games and the reading by Jess Kavadlo, “Bedtime Stories after the End of  the World: Coming of  Age in a Future of Fear” and the slides, identifying the main fears propelling young adult dystopian literature are hunger, being left behind, not succeeding, or disciplining your family are the main fears. For example, in the movie, when Cato was about to kill Peeta, he said, "I know I am going to die, but I need to kill for my family. I need to kill for my district so they can be proud of me." He was trained to fight for his district all his life and does not want to let them down. Mentioned before, Starvation/Hunger is a fear; we see it being used to control people. By the government controlling the food source, it leads people to follow their rules to eat. Moreover, I also noted the overlap between US cultural happenings and Hollywood's dominant representation of Millennial youth. In the movie, we see that the youth are strong; Hollywood depicted them as leaders or Warriors. In the reading, it stated, "and the fantasy of saving one's self, family, and society just by being true to one's authentic identity.Perhaps most of all, we see teen Katniss Everdeen given adult status and adult responsibilities, a powerful simultaneous wish and fear for prospective YA reader" They will do anything for their district to compare; we see this in our culture as well. This highlights the thought that Hollywood sets in young teens' minds to want your family to do better, save your family from being just a number. So I think Hollywood put these accomplishments in character, and that is who a teen want to be. The youth is starting to vote and starting protests and having their voices heard and making the loud while making them known. Lastly, when examining the gender roles, class, race, and sexuality in the film, I would say that it has changed over the years. I think it has changed because when we were watching other films we never saw a female main character that took the lead. Unlike in Bonnie and Clyde or Breathless Katniss in Hunger Games is not portrayed as sexy but as a warrior or a fighter. I'm slightly confused if the reading agrees that there is less hero representation of females then there are males but I want to review this quote "overall treatment of gender, particularly for a YAseries, deserves attention, in part because it does not call for it. In the novels of secret worlds, the girl is a Hermione Granger or a Susan Pevensie—laudable, but never the title character: the Harry Potter, or even Aslan,who is male, as opposed to the villainous White Witch. Yet in The Hunger Games, the female protagonist is not demoted from the title, like Wendy Darling, who once shared the novel's name with PeterPan as Lucy and Susan Pevensie are from their own Peter, who gets to slay the wolf and is crowned Peter the Magni!cent, High King of Narnia, with authority over his siblings." Women and girls are always the supporting character, they are often behind the men and I think that a film like Hunger Games and Divergent really highlighted that women are strong and can be independent and do not need to depend on a man. They're not portrayed as sexy but as wanted for their determination and strive. In the movie, we see this in Katniss because she is the fighter and hunter, everything a man possesses. I didn't necessarily see a change in race or sexuality, but I know that they are districts that are doing well and seem to have more riches than others.

[edmund-pevensie-just-king]

(Fic)  A Mere Colt

Narnia tag list: @pevensie-trash @simply-ellas-stuff @bessfrog​

General writing tag list (from leesacrakon):  @thought-u-said-dragon-queen​​​ @hghrules​​ @icedancingdaddies​​ @seas-space-and-stardust​​ ​ @loonierlovegood​​ @mandeebobandee​​ @kai-the-person​​ @lonelygoldheart​ @icecoldparadise​

Warnings: Implied torture, let me know if there are more 

A/N: This is really short, but I was thinking about how Oreius may have been feeling about Edmund before he met him and this came to mind.

When the Son of Adam and the two Daughters of Eve first entered the camp, Oreius' original thoughts were those of hope. They were young, children, but after having his own colt, Oreius knew that children were sometimes the most powerful and valiant of people. Peter, as Oreius had come to discover the boy's name to be, held himself with much dignity and maturity for a boy. His sisters, especially the eldest, carried themselves with grace. The youngest was especially charming, he eyes bright and excited as she looked around the camp. She reminded Oreius of his son the most out of the three. However, his spirits were dampened as the three siblings and the beavers began to explain their plight. The fourth, their brother Edmund, was not in their company.

"He's been captured by the White Witch," Peter explained to Aslan, and Mr. Beaver rushed quickly to add.

"He betrayed them your Excellence!" the beaver exclaimed, running to the king and queens sides. Oreius could feel his heart fall. One of Narnia's kings had betrayed his siblings to the White Witch.

"Then he has betrayed us all," Oreius growled, stamping his hooves angrily. All he felt towards this boy he'd never met was hatred. He'd sided with the witch, their greatest enemy! Whether he was a boy or a man, he was a fool.

"Peace, Oreius." The lion's words brought Oreius back to himself. He drew himself up, standing tall as the great lion spoke with Peter, Susan, and Lucy. They blamed themselves for the betrayal of their brother. Did they not understand that the choice was his own? No matter what their treatment towards him had been, Edmund had chosen to go to the witch. It frustrated the centaur to watch his future rulers become so discouraged. To him, there was no space for guilt. Only anger.

When Aslan had sent him after the wolf and after Edmund, Oreius had not wanted to go. He felt no loyalty towards the traitor. And yet, something pushed him forward and after the traitorous king. He felt a pull- well, it was more like he was forcefully being dragged by the hair, but something was pulling him none the less. Even if he did not trust the youngest king, he trusted the word of Aslan. They stormed the camp. They slayed the troops the White Witch was keeping there, and Oreius soon began to search for the boy. He ran through the bodies of monsters and dodged past trees, keeping his eyes out for Edmund.

"Please, no!" someone cried out, followed by loud sobbing. Oreius whipped his head towards the noise, seeing the young boy tied to a tree with a dwarf pressing a knife against his throat. A thin line of blood appeared on the pale, dirty skin of the boy, and something inside of Oreius snapped. He drew his sword, knocking the dwarf's feet out from under him and cutting the bonds around the boy in one foul stroke. The boy scrambled away, his arms shaking as he tried to regain his footing. Two fauns quickly took the dwarf away and Oreius turned to Edmund, his heart still alight with anger, but all malice he felt suddenly died away as his eyes rested upon his king.

"Are...Are you going to hurt me too?" Edmund asked weakly, leaning heavily against one of the trees. His skin, once perfect and unmarked, was littered with cuts, bruises, dried blood, and dirt. He was much thinner than was healthy, and the fear in his eyes matched the way he cowered away from the centaur. He could not have been much older than Oreius' youngest colt. Oreius' heart was moved with compassion as the small boy moved towards him timidly, hunched over and small. He had his head bowed in defeat, as if he was waiting to be punished.

"No, your majesty. I am here to return you to your siblings. They are anxiously awaiting your arrival," Oreius replied. He reached out a hand and Edmund flinched, backing away again. His eyes filled with tears and he hugged himself, trembling. As Oreius saw this small child, afraid and hurt, too scared to trust even the smallest of gestures, he berated himself for how he had thought of Edmund before.

"They're angry at me, aren't they?" Edmund asked sorrowfully. Oreius sighed.

"I will admit that Peter-" Edmund flinched "-is not happy with you, but I do not believe his anger is strong enough to stop him from forgiving you for what you have done," Oreius replied. Edmund's tears finally fell and he started sobbing, burying his head in his hands. Oreius bent down and gently lifted the young boy onto his back. Edmund wrapped his arms as best as he could around the centaur's human torso, burying his face in his back.

"Let's get you home," Oreius said. "Report back to camp!" he shouted out to his troops. They rallied around him, a few of them casting surprised glances at the young boy on his back. Edmund hid his face in shame, and Oreius glared at the men. They quickly looked away, and Edmund relaxed a bit, but his knuckles were white as he gripped onto the centaur's armor. With one last look at the camp Oreius set out for the stone table, safely returning the young king where he belonged.

[bastardsunlight]

nephilim, delinquent....hero?

Name: Dante Height: 5'11" Weight: 177lbs Build: Slim, curvy, sinewy muscle

Appearance: Black hair, cold blue eyes with a vicious smile that never quite reaches them, scar over his right eyebrow

Proficiency: Firearms of any kind, hand to hand combat, longsword combat, control over an array of angelic and demonic weaponry

Specialty: killin’ demons, asshole.

Demon father, angel mother—bad combo. Dante’s lot in life is cursed from the very beginning. The first seven years (a lucky number for most, but not the sons of Sparda) are filled with joy, a loving family and a magnificent manor called Paradise on the outskirts of a sprawling city. The beautiful Eva gifts unto her sons a pair of amulets, and their father, Sparda, offers a weapon, made specially for each of them—a fitting set of gifts for a future no one can predict.

Mundus, the demon king and once Sparda’s blood brother and best friend, finds the happy family and does what demons do best. He tears the still-beating heart from Eva’s chest and sends his demon horde out to pursue Sparda, who has escaped Paradise with Dante and Vergil. The boys are sent to St. Lamia’s orphanage, which is run by witches, sympathetic to Sparda. He asks them to weave a spell that wipes his sons’ memories, leaving instructions to tell each a different story of how they lost their past. Sparda returns to Mundus, to throw him off the scent of the Nephilim sons which will be the demon king’s downfall. To Sparda is given eternal torture and agony, but the seeds of his vengeance are sewn.

Vergil is adopted immediately, by a wealthy family who provides for his every want and need. Dante, the younger twin, is fiery and spiteful, and cannot seem to behave himself. Mundus tracks down the only known son of Sparda and kills those who collaborated with the traitor, installing his own demonic headmistress and staff to torment the boy.

When Dante begins “seeing demons,” they medicate him. When he begins to lash out physically, they restrain him. When he realizes that his “caretakers” are vicious demons, he summons Rebellion and slays every last beast, bathing the orphanage in blood. He is not crazy. He is not gifted.

Dante is cursed.

There is no place in this docile world for a fiery young man who sees devils and fights with a twisted claymore. The foundation of revenge is built upon his shoulders, but at what cost? Such a thing has weight; it crushes down on one’s heart, hardening it to stone.

It is this way in which Kat, a young witch, finds him on Bellevue pier, having just awoken from a night of wild debauchery and “sexual deviance”—most likely.

Characterization: Dante is a young, bullheaded jackass with a chip on his shoulder, an ax to grind and the means to swing it. He is aggressive, flirty, overtly crass, and has a penchant for terrible puns and one-liners that will leave bystanders (assuming they’re not demons) rolling their collective eyes. At heart, he is nothing more than the product of an extremely abusive childhood, years of psychological manipulation, and a grudge he cannot remember—Dante is a scared child who wields awesome power, but can still get in over his head.

Bonus facts: Dante is left-handed. He is a DEEPLY closeted bisexual–the man is in Narnia.

tag: slouchingtowardlimbo

Classic Dante

[jessthewerewolf]

Let's talk about Narnia

Yesterday I've watched the Narnia trilogy (anyone knows if they're gonna make other parts? I'm still waiting for the Silver Chair)

The lion, the witch and the wardrobe:

OH MY GAWD THE NOSTALGIA

I just realised it was made 13 years ago (feel old yet?)

Edmund you stupid boy... I'm dissapointed

Is that James McAvoy? Well hello there

I hate the witch but daaaamn Tilda u slay! YAS QUEEN! WERK THAT HAIR

The CG wasn't as bad as I thought but the wolves were sooo ugly

I feel like Lucy didn't do much, but oh well, she was the Cute Kid (also, why was she given a dagger? Has she ever used it? I don't even remember)

I liked how Peter held his sword, I mean you could clearly see he wasn't used to it and didn't train much before the final battle

We had a mandatory redemption arc - ok fine but I still don't like you Edmund

Was the Witch/Peter fight too extra for is it just me?

aaaand Aslan Saves The Day no.1

Did Aslan eat the Witch or what? I still don't know

When siblings got crowned I totally saw Hogwarts founders in them (Edmund you little shit u Slytherin for shure)

When they found the wardrobe again I was like NOOOO PLS STAY THERE even though I knew how the movie ends

Loved the professor

Ughhhh the soundtrack! So good!

Prince Caspian:

Okay, so I have to point out that I've watched this move about 20 times - it was the only movie I had on my mp4 so I'd watch it, like, once a month or so.

Fuck you Miraz

Oh is that Peter Dinklage?

The ruins would be a perfect place for a photoshoot

Okay Edmund I like you now, we're cool

Why do they still don't trust Lucy?

Better CG, noice

Well hello there Caspian (hell yeah he's my ultimate crush, just look at him! So dreamy). Also, I've watched too much simplynailogical so everytime he showed up I was like BEYYYYYN! WHERE'S MAH TEA?

Fuck you Miraz

Loved Peter and Edmund's fighting skills, you could feel that they got trained and felt comfortable with swords

Also loved siblings' change from "the hell??? I'm a what now???" to "hell yeah we're back. MAKE ROOM FOR YOUR KINGS AND QUEENS"

Of course we had to have a conflict so Caspian and Peter don't like each other

The whole scene with the Witch was so chilling, like wot wot is she gonna come back? Caspian don't be an idiot pls, Peter no pls not you too. Yas Edmund save 'em!

The final fight was very pleasing to watch, clever tactics and it was so cool when trees showed up and just destroyed everything

Still feel as if Lucy didn't do much

aaaaand Aslan Saves The Day no.2

You go u funky little water man!

We had the mandatory redemption arc - didn't really care about Glozelle or Miraz's wife (fuck you Miraz)

Didn't really like kiss but oh well

The ending was kinda bittersweet but I still liked it

Again, ughhhhh the soundtrack! Sooo good!

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader:

Not so nostalgic as the previous two movies, didn't remember much

Eustace was very annoying

Loved how comfortable Edmund and Lucy were in Narnia

Also loved Edmund's respect towards Caspian. He was like "okay man you're the king, I'm just here to help" He's changed so much since the first part.

Finally Lucy does something! She fights with a sword, she's the first one to fight off her demons (Aslan helps of course), she's the voice of reason aaaaaand she shot the sea monster in the eye - and it was moving; u got some skill Lucy!

YAAAAS CASPIAN! UGHHHH SO HANDSOME! Just look at him!

I mean... them hair! Them beard! And those dreamy eyes! *btw do you guys have this feeling when you see someone and you're so shocked because you forgot how fucking attractive that person was? Yeah, that's how I feel about Ben*

Costumes were sooo beautiful!

Honestly I didn't really care about the plot, because I didn't really like the movie overall - I was there to see Caspian and Lucy being a badass (but the whole "I wanna be beautiful like Susan" thing was so frustrating)

Oh Edmund you silly boy, you had to imagine the most creepy/grose sea monster didn't you?

The CG was meh

Who cares about Eustace really?

I didn't like the star-lady, I felt sth was up when she told them the lords were fighting each other so they got cursed and in the previous scene it was showed that they didn't even had any kind of blades near them (their swords were still in scabbards)

aaaand Aslan Saves The Day no.3 (kind of) -> I appreciate how it was mostly about the siblings + Caspian defeating the evil and not Aslan, so that's a plus

The ending felt more definite rather than heyyy we got some story left (because who cares about Eustace)

Overall, I have a special place in my heart for the Narnia Chronicles (but only for parts 1 and 2) because they are tied to my childhood. It's so amazing how watching it makes me feel 10 again, how it brought back some good memories and how it made me realize I'd most definitely show it to my future kids (it has some nice life advices).

Anyway, that's all from me. Thank you for reading.

[thats-what-sidhe-said]

I am having a great desire to write Narnia fic, but I am having trouble figuring out just what I want to write, so here is something from my rough draft folder. I have not decided if I want to polish it and put it up on AO3, but I do like it.

It wasn't more than a couple of months after the coronation when Edmund went for a walk up the coast from Cair Paravel and decided to explore the woods. The castle had become a bustle of activity as all sorts of people brought in furniture and hangings and stoves. Lucy found a treasure room under the castle and added a few old candlesticks to the collection. Horses had moved into the stable and the kennel was being renovated under the direction of one large, greying wolfhound. Mrs. Beaver’s sister had taken a position as the castle's housekeeper and cooked meals for them daily while a colony of rats did the washing and kept the castle free of dust.

Edmund was quite grateful, of course, but it did feel like he wasn't needed at all. A small band of bandits had been sighted up the coast, but Peter took a couple of Men and a few of the big Cats and ran them off without even asking if Edmund wanted to go.

So he went exploring. The woods were lovely and thick and cool. He climbed a tree, but it was squat and thick and didn't offer much of a challenge, though he took note of it as a possible napping spot. He spotted a small cliff, maybe thirty feet up, with thick jutting rocks that would make good foot and handholds. He went up it quickly, but as he pulled himself over the top, a low, gravely voice said, "Hello, boy king."

Edmund squawked and slipped backwards and grabbed the edge of the cliff just in time. The creature leaned over Edmund as the boy looked up. The sun shone behind it, but there was no mistaking the outline of a wolf's head. The creature chuckled. "I mean you no harm," the wolf said. He took several steps back to give Edmund room to climb onto the grass above.

Edmund stood up and rubbed his hands against his pants to get the dirt off them. "Hello," he said cautiously. The wolf was as tall as he was. His coat was grey and black and his eyes dark.

"Ah, I had been meaning to meet you, young King Edmund, and here you are, saving me the trouble," it said. "I am Norgrim."

"It's good to meet you, Norgrim," Edmund said politely. "What did you wish to speak to me about?" He straightened his back and tried to look royal, wondering if it would be better to brush the dirt off his tunic or leave it and hope Norgrim didn't notice it. Were kings expected to be clean after climbing?

"Let us walk," Norgrim said. "You are close to the cliff and I fear you may take a tumble." He stepped to the side and made room for Edmund to join him along the path into the woods. He walked slowly along the path. "This is a tumultuous time in our kingdom," he said. "There are many rapid changes and many people returning from abroad, where they have lived in exile while the White Witch reigned."

"Yes," Edmund said cautiously.

"We know of times like these, in my pack," Norgrim said. "Stories have been told of kingdoms rising from the ashes of cruelty, breaking free of old bonds."

"Oh?" Edmund said. "I should like to hear these stories."

"You may well," Norgrim said. "And I shall tell you the others - of kingdoms that try to rise from the ashes and stir up old fires instead."

"And which do you think we are?" Edmund asked.

Norgrim chuckled. "It is too soon to tell. But I should like it to be the former and I should like to be a part of it."

"And what are your plans for Narnia?" Edmund said warily.

Now Norgrim laughed outright. "Oh, do not worry, young King. I do not want to take your throne. I would like to ensure you keep it."

"How?" Edmund asked.

"The Witch had many spies amongst your people. Some have joined you freely. Others, I fear, may be serving another master."

"Who?

"Not everyone suffered under the Witch, you know," Norgrim said. "Some profited greatly. It is possible they may try to rise against you, or that they may try to take revenge for what you have done. In either case, you are in danger."

"But you can help," Edmund said, still suspicious.

"There was a great Wolf that worked for the Witch," Norgrim said. "The head of her secret police. Do you know his name?"

"Maugrim," Edmund said, and his voice was nearly a growl himself.

"Yes," Norgrim said. "He was my brother."

Edmund drew in a sharp breath.

"There was no love lost between us," Norgrim said. "He brought shame upon our family. But I know who he had dealings with. I know the people who spied for her, hunted for her, killed for her. I can find them for you. I would like to repair what damage can be undone, if you will permit it."

"I'd have to talk to my - I mean, I'd have to talk to the Council," Edmund said.

"Of course," Norgrim said. "Shall I return with you?"

Edmund wasn't certain how this was supposed to be done, but they did have space for Norgrim to stay, if the Council (himself, his brother and his sisters) didn't have time to meet just yet. "I don't see why not."

They arrived at the castle a little before suppertime. Someone must have spotted them from a window, since Peter waited in front of the steps, sword belt strapped on. "Edmund," Peter said. "Who is your guest?"

"This is Norgrim," Edmund said. "Norgrim, this is -"

"Sir Peter Wolf's-Bane," Norgrim said, in his low, gravely voice, and it was nearly a snarl.

"Yes," Peter said calmly. "Are you here on business?"

Edmund's eyes darted between Peter and Norgrim. "Yes," he said quickly. "He has a proposal for us. Can the Council meet?"

"Tomorrow morning," Peter said. "Susan won't be back until late. Did you need a place to stay for the night?" he asked Norgrim.

"I believe I can find lodgings," Norgrim said. He yawned hugely, showing all his teeth. "I will see you on the morrow." He walked off and Peter and Edmund went inside the castle.

"By the Lion, where did you find that one?" Peter asked.

"In the woods," Edmund said. "Rather, he found me."

"Hm," Peter said.

"Hm what?" Edmund asked.

"Nothing," Peter said. "What did he want?"

"I'd rather tell you all at once," Edmund said. "Come on, let's have supper."

---

They assembled in the morning in the Council room, which just had a table and four chairs at the moment. They didn't use it often, and rarely with visitors, so it was low on the list for decorating.

Peter, Susan and Lucy took their seats at the table. Edmund fetched Norgrim and brought him to the Council room. (Susan made a note about getting a baliff for that.) The cold stone walls and stone floors gave the room a prison-like feel.

"The Council recognizes King Edmund," Susan said.

"Queen Lucy, Queen Susan and High King Peter. This is Norgrim of the Southwest Pack here to discuss a matter of national safety." And so Edmund explained it to his siblings as Norgrim had explained it to him. He called on Norgrim to clarify a few points as he talked. The gist of it was this: that the White Witch had many spies planted in Narnia; that these spies and others loyal to the Witch might attempt to stir a rebellion or offer revenge; that a team was needed to prevent this from happening.

"There are many who lost family in the war," Norgrim said. "Some feel that they have been wronged."

"Your brother was Maugrim," Peter said. Edmund looked at him in surprise. He'd forgotten to warn Peter about that.

"Yes, Sir Peter," Norgrim said, in a quiet, deep voice. "Do you know what it's like to lose a brother?" His head swiveled toward Edmund and he snarled most horribly. Edmund jumped back and Peter was on his feet in a second, sword drawn. Norgrim turned his head away from Edmund and laughed. "Oh, do not worry, young king," he said to Edmund. "My brother was a foul beast and his slaying was a blessing upon my pack."

"You're welcome," Peter said wryly. He sheathed his sword, but kept his hand on the hilt.

"But you can understand, I think, how a many could be driven to violence at the loss of a loved one," Norgrim said.

Peter nodded slowly. Lucy frowned. Susan kept her face neutral and continued to take notes. "Thank you," Peter said. "We will let you know of our decision." This was a dismissal, so Edmund escorted Norgrim back to the hall and rang a bell so Auntie Beaver could take him downstairs.

"I think that went well," Edmund said, feeling very awkward.

"Perhaps," Norgrim. "I thank you for your part, in any case."

Edmund returned to the Council room and took his seat. "Shall we discuss it?" he asked, lining up possible arguments in his head.

Peter shook his head. "No."

Edmund stared. "What, you want to go right to the vote?"

"No," Peter said. "There is no vote. I will not allow this to happen."

"We have to vote," Edmund said. "We agreed we'd decide things as a Council."

"Most things," Peter agreed. "You may take a vote, if you'd like. If you vote yes, I will override it."

"You can't do that," Edmund said, looking at Lucy and Susan.

"He can," Susan said. "It's in the laws we agreed to. The High King has final call over all decisions."

Edmund turned back to Peter. "I can't believe you," he said with disgust. "I thought things were going to be different. I thought we were going to trust each other."

"I do trust you, Ed," Peter said. "I just don't think you've thought this through."

Edmund shrugged. "What's to think about? It's just police."

"No, it's not," Peter said urgently. "You're talking about going after people who haven't committed any crimes. That's not police, that's Gestapo."

Edmund stared at him. "Gestapo?"

"The secret police in Germany," Susan put in.

"I know, but what's Germany to do with anything? We're in Narnia. We left the war behind. Germany might as well not exist from here," Edmund said.

"Well, I remember Germany and we're not going to be that. No police unless a crime's been committed," Peter said.

"They have committed crimes!" Edmund protested. "They worked with the Witch!"

"Mr. Tumnus worked with the Witch," Lucy said.

"We wouldn't prosecute him, of course," Edmund said.

"Do we pick and choose who the law applies to, now?" Peter asked sternly. "Shall those who find favor with us be pardoned and those who oppose us imprisoned?"

"Well, no," Edmund said. "I guess we'd have to apply it to everyone."

"Shall I sign a law, then, saying that anyone who ever worked for the White Witch shall be punished? What do you think, Ed? Imprisonment? Whipping? Banishment? Which would you chose?" Peter demanded. Edmund looked pale.

"Stop it, Peter," Lucy cried out.

"'Do you know what it's like to lose a brother?'," Susan said, almost too quiet to hear, but in the empty room, the words echoed.

Edmund stood up, but Peter grabbed his hand. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, Ed," Peter said. "I swear. But we can't do this. You understand, don't you?"

Edmund nodded. "I understand," he said wearily.

They called Norgrim back up to the Council room. All four of them stood up. "I'm sorry to say that we can not accept your petition at this time," Peter said.

"I see," Norgrim said. "Well. I thank you, Queen Susan, Queen Lucy, Sir Peter Wolf's-bane." His eyes landed on Edmund. "And the Traitor King."

"You will speak to my brother with respect or I will take your tongue," Peter said, his voice even and level even as he put his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Norgrim eyed him. "I am not so easy to kill as my brother." He grinned, showing fangs as long as Edmund's hands. "Someday you will find that out. But not today, I think." He nodded his head at Edmund. "King Edmund," he said. 'We will meet again." And he left the Council chambers.

[highqueen]

Giantslayer (pt. 1) [Edmund Pevensie]

Summary: When you enter Narnia, your only companions are a Gentle Giant and a ginger cat. After hearing about four human Kings and Queens of Narnia, you decide to pay them a visit. You never expected for them to take a strong liking to you, especially a certain dark-haired king. Requested by @abbeylou7

Word Count: 1,563

Note: Ahh, this took forever, I am so sorry! I plan on making this a two part or three part imagine so the prompts you requested should come in then.

Warnings: None.

One and ½ Years Ago. Earth.

Clouds drift across the azure sky as you lay on a grassy hill, far away from home, the cause of many problems in your life.

Your parents want you to go to college and follow in their footsteps, while you want to do what you want to do.

“Why do they have to decide for me?” you mutter to yourself. “I wish I could go someplace where I can be whatever I want. A doctor, a lawyer, a defender of justice. I wish I could...I could run away.”

The idea starts to take root in your mind and you sit up. Something sparks in your eyes and you push yourself to your feet. Cupping your hands around your mouth, you shout at the view below you. “I will run away! I will do what I want! My parents won’t be able to stop me!”

You start to march down the hill, fists clenched and chin up, telling yourself that you will do this.

But then the strangest thing happens. As you stomp, you find yourself moving higher and higher, the forest below you getting smaller and smaller. Looking down at your feet, you scream as you see that there is nothing beneath you. It is impossi–

And then you plummet.

The ground rushes up towards you, wind whistles past your ears, you hear screaming and realize that it is coming from you.

“Help! Someone, help!”

You stop.

Inches above the ground, about to break every bone in your body, you jolt to a stop.

You stay there, hovering in mid-air, taking shallow breaths as you try to wrap your mind around everything that just happened.

You only fell when you thought that it was impossible. But it really is happening, no question about it. Your mind, although highly creative, could never conjure up anything as real as this. The fear, the panic, the quick beats of your heart proves that it is quite real.

With that thought, you start rising again, this time without you moving your feet.

As you get higher into the sky, you expect it to be cold, but not this cold. You enter into a layer of clouds and you start to feel wetness on your skin. The dampness combined with the cold makes you lose all feeling in your twenty digits. Shivers move throughout your body and your teeth chatter.

It is then that you realize you are no longer moving.

Three weeks ago. Wild Lands of the North.

The sound of your sword sliding into its sheathe fills the quiet, night air. You look up at the fourteen feet tall Gentle Giant before you, Rowanweaver. He is one of the few giants who don’t eat humans, and for that you are eternally grateful. It was Rowanweaver who found you in the snow a year and a half ago, it was he who rescued you from freezing to death.

He and a talking ginger cat named Patrick have been your only companions since you arrived in the Far North, the northernmost lands of what you would call a continent.

“Are you done?” Patrick, who goes by Trick, slinks out of the shadows cast by the tall trees.

Rowanweaver nods. “We are finished, Trick. It is time for us to return to our home.”

You and Trick sit on Rowanweaver’s shoulder as he walks towards your home—a set of caverns in the side of the mountains.

“How has that country been?” you ask.

“Narnia?” Trick waits for you to confirm before replying. “Last I heard, the White Witch is dead and there are four rulers of the country. They’re supposed to be related by blood.”

“Siblings, then,” Rowanweaver says.

“Yes.” Trick pauses before turning to look at you, amber eyes glowing in the dark. “And there’s something else.”

You sit up straighter at this. “What is it?”

“I’ve heard that they’re like you.”

“Human?”

Trick licks a paw before nodding at you. “If that’s what you call yourself, yes.”

You are about to speak when Rowanweaver’s deep voice fills the air. “We already know you want to see them,” he says.

Trick grins, white teeth showing as he jumps off Rowanweaver’s shoulder. As usual, he lands paws first. The cat pads into the caves you now call home. His voice bounces off the stone walls as he says, “It’s about time we paid respect to the Kings and Queens of Narnia.”

Present Day. Narnia.

“Edmund.”

As Edmund ducks under the centaur’s sword, his eyes dart to the side to Mr. Beaver.

“Yeah?” He says, grunting as he swings his sword at the centaur.

Beaver eyes the metal blades warily even though he is standing a safe distance away. “You and your siblings have three visitors. Peter would like you to go to the throne room as soon as possible.”

Edmund quickly maneuvers his sword to block the centaur’s swing and pushes back before twisting his wrist. The centaur’s weapon flies through the air and clatters against the stone floor, landing a few inches from Mr. Beaver’s feet.

“Changed?” Edmund asks.

“No. These visitors have come from far away. Peter doesn’t want to keep them waiting.”

Sighing, Edmund sheathes his sword. He wipes off his sweat with his shirt and walks towards the throne room with Mr. Beaver.

On the way, he asks, “Where exactly are the visitors coming from?”

“Your brother did not say,” Mr. Beaver replies.

Edmund walks into the Great Hall and makes his way to his siblings who are already sitting on their thrones. He unhooks his sword from his belt and leans it against his own throne before taking a seat.

“Where are the visitors coming from?” Edmund asks Peter.

“Very far north. They’re close to Harfang–”

“They’re giants?” Lucy asks. “But aren’t they usually man-eating ones?”

“Not all of them.” Peter gives his siblings a small smile before turning his attention to the entrance of the Great Hall. The large wooden doors slowly swing open and Peter says, “You’ll see.”

The floor vibrates with each step the giant takes. Edmund studies the giant and notices a girl about his age sitting on the giant’s shoulder. A ginger cat sits on the giant’s other shoulder. The three of them look tired and dirty. As the giant walks closer, Edmund sees red dots on the giant and girl’s clothes—definitely blood. He shares a look with Lucy before returning his gaze to the giant.

Roanweaver bows before the Kings and Queens. You jump off his shoulder and bow too. Trick does the same, bowing as well as a cat can bow.

“Rise,” says the blond King, the one who Trick had told you was High King Peter.

“Welcome to Narnia. We are very honored to have you all visiting from so far away,” the eldest Queen says.

“Your Highnesses,” Trick says, “It is an honor for you to accept us here.”

You watch the dark haired King—King Edmund—look you up and down. You know the three of you didn’t look the best, having fought multiple giants on the way down to Narnia.

“It looks like you got into a little trouble on the way here,” Edmund says.

Grinning, you finger the hilt of your sword. “They look worse than we do, Your Highness.”

As Edmund opens his mouth to speak, Susan cuts him off. “I assume you will be staying for a few days and you all look tired from your journey. We can prepare some rooms for you to stay in.”

“Excuse me, Your Highness, but Trick and I think this one,” here, Rowanweaver gestures to you, “might have to stay here longer. She’s human, you see, and came to this world over a year ago.”

Peter’s eyes grow wide and Susan gasps a little.

“You’re from Earth too?” Lucy asks.

“Yes, from England,” you reply.

“Oh! What a coincidence! We’re from Finchley. Have you heard of it?” Susan asks.

You nod, recalling things you heard about Finchley back on Earth.

“Since you’re from Earth too, I suppose you should stay longer. Besides, the Wild Lands of the North isn’t known for being very hospitable, especially towards humans,” Peter says.

The seven of you converse a bit more until a fawn enters the Great Hall and announces that the rooms are ready.

As you, Rowanweaver, and Trick leave the Great Hall, King Edmund’s voice stops you for a few seconds.

“You never did tell us your name,” he calls from across the hall.

You say nothing until you are almost out of the hall. It is only as you pass the large doors do you toss your first name over your shoulder, right before the doors close behind you with a bang.

“She’s interesting, Peter,” Susan says.

“Did you see her sword?” Lucy asks, “It looked really heavy.”

Edmund thinks of the large sword you carried. “It probably was used to harm giants more than to do close combat like we do. When you’re slaying giants, you want to be able to slash and chop things pretty well.”

“Our swords aren’t good for that. We’re better at agility than pure force,” Peter comments.

“Hm… That’s true. I would like to fight her someday.”

Susan looks at Edmund, curious at his interest in the girl. “You’ll have all the time in the world, Ed. She’ll be staying here for a while.”

[bpellerin]

Kids who enjoy reading? Imagine that...

Great little rant in the Boston Globe magazine about summer reading programs libraries have.

"In June, my 6-year-old son got very excited about our town’s summer reading program, in which kids who read for a certain number of hours vote for a movie that gets screened at the library. For several days, he reminded me we had to track the time we spent reading and check boxes off his chart so he could participate. But then he spent time with a California friend whose library’s summer reading program offers passes to Disneyland. A free movie suddenly seemed lame by comparison. He lost interest in the program and, for a while, in books, too.

Across the Commonwealth, public libraries encouraged schoolchildren to read this summer by offering prizes, often related to the big screen or sports, for those who met the minimum number of hours or books. In Arlington, we had the free movie. In Boston, if you read three books, you were entered into a raffle for Red Sox tickets. Maynard’s raffle was for a new bicycle.

There’s nothing wrong with movies, or sports, or amusement parks — or with programs aimed at spurring children to read. What’s wrong is the underlying message that books are a chore and that kids who endure them deserve payback.

Why, I wonder, are civic programs framed around this assumption? Is it because most kids don’t like books? Because adults don’t like them, either? Or because parents and educators and even doctors talk so much about The Importance of Reading that we have forgotten it once was (and still could be) a widely enjoyed activity?

Couldn’t agree more. But also: What else did you expect? The entire North American educational culture has been slowly but surely moving in the direction of making everything related to learning a chore for many long years now, with the result that kids grow up not valuing playing with their imaginations because that won’t be on the test. It’s been so long now that many of those young kids’ parents and teachers were raised that way. Kids are surrounded by people who think learning and reading is a hassle to get over with so we can get back to sucking screen.

Children start pre-school programs earlier and earlier; it’s not uncommon for two- or three-year-olds to begin their pre-K education in school-like settings where parents very much expect they will learn skills that will give them a leg up when the time comes to start junior kindergarten. Once there, little kids are swallowed up by an educational machine that makes them sit in rows and pay attention to what the teacher is saying. Oh sure, there’s play involved. But the playing is relentlessly didactic, because the adults involved worry about educational achievements above just about everything else.

I’m all for educational achievements. But they don’t come from programs designed to measure and track children on flowcharts designed by a committee of educationators. Real learning happens when children themselves want to learn, in settings where their natural curiosity hasn’t been dulled by overly didactic programs.

In plain English: If you stick your toddlers and young children in a classroom and make them drill (with a song! and a dance! or a screen!) until they can regurgitate something measurable, you will kill their natural curiosity and make them think that everything you want them to do is a chore.

I have three daughters whom I’ve been homeschooling since birth. They are now 10, “almost 9” and 7. If they went to school they’d be entering grades 6, 4 and 2. But if you heard them speak or read out loud, you’d think the eldest was half-way through high school already. Both parents are writers, and we both put a lot of emphasis on reading, writing, and oral expression. This is not to boast (well, OK, but not much), but to illustrate my point.

My kids don’t have to sit around learning things for much longer than 60 or 90 minutes a day, which we tend to break up in chunks of 20-30 minutes, in between which they are allowed to stretch or play or read. They don’t have goals to meet, as far as their educational achievement goes. I do, but they don’t know what the goals are. They just keep learning stuff until I send them off. They’ve never had to take a formal test in their lives, and I believe it’s one of the main reasons why they are still excited to learn things, especially if it involves story-telling. (Math and piano practice, not so much.)

When they are not made to sit down and listen (i.e. the bulk of their average day), they are left to play by themselves. We don’t tell them what to do, we let them figure out their own games. They also read a lot. For fun, I mean. They have books we assign to them (we loosely follow a classical education curriculum and their assigned reading books tend to be classics of literature), but they are free to pick anything they like for their free reading. They have library cards and they use them like little fiends.

Our local library branch has one of those summer reading clubs where the kids earn stickers and small toys every time they finish a book – and then they get entered into a draw for a free book. I never pressured my kids to join it, but they’re all enrolled. And they love nothing better than to rush there to tell Kelly, the friendly and incredibly patient custodian of the kids’ section, about the books they’ve read.

They don’t do it to get the toys and stickers, although they enjoy those. Nobody would read three novels just to get stickers. If baseball tickets and Disney passes aren’t enough to entice non-reading kids to get lost in a book for fun, stickers certainly won’t do it. But my kids really do enjoy the reading, precisely because to them it’s not a chore.

One important point: with very rare exceptions we do not insist that they finish a book that doesn’t interest them. Instead we ask them to explain why they don’t like it. The explanation does not have to convince us but it must be coherent and grammatically correct. Some books are terribly dull, and often it’s a matter of taste whether we like a style or not. Sometimes a person isn’t ready for a particular title, for no obvious reason, and they’ll like it a lot a year later. Heck, it took me three tries and a dozen years finally to enjoy Les Misérables, who am I to push Little Women on kids who aren’t, at the moment, digging it?

Fortunately, for parents of children who are not so keen on reading, there is a remedy, and it involves getting your kids immersed in stories. Here’s how you do it: If they are young (it helps a lot to start this when they’re babies), read stories out loud to them. Not just bedtime stories either. Real stories that involve character development, heroes slaying beasts and people succeeding despite long odds. When our kids were little we read all the Dr. Seuss books to them, over and over again. We eventually graduated to the Narnia Chronicles, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Swallows and Amazons, that sort of thing. It didn’t matter that the kids were too little to understand the story. The point was for them to get used to hearing stories. To fill their little heads with sounds, poetry, rhythm, and images. We didn’t shy away from stories that featured bad people and tragedies. Real life is full of those and little ones need to know this, provided the stories make moral sense and preferably end well, because nightmares are no fun.

Nowadays we still read out loud to them. We also let them listen to audiobooks until their ears fall off. They now insist on doing some of the reading we do themselves, which is something we encourage because it lets them practice speaking properly and also because it gives us a chance to spot problematic words and correct their pronunciation where needed. We let them watch movies (not educational TV programs; those are banned around here), and every now and then we’ll pick up a screenplay and act it out together. Macbeth is a favorite; you should see the delight they take in impersonating those witches.

The result of all this is that my kids love being immersed in stories. When they play freely they often re-enact movies they’ve watched, and they have their own parallel Harry Potter universe. Their imaginations are engaged and they eagerly seek out new stories.

It’s never too late to engage your children in good storytelling. But you have to do it with them. Kids have a very annoying habit of ignoring what we say and paying attention to what we do. If they never see us excited about a story, they’ll just think we’re trying to get rid of them when we send them to read. Watch movies together and discuss them – play with alternate endings, ask them how they’d want certain characters to behave instead, and see where their imagination takes them. Don’t expect too much at first. Treat imagination like a muscle; if your kids have already spent a few years in a school system that privileges measurable achievements over free play, they’ll need some practice. But the payoff is amazingly worthwhile.

Plus you’ll save loads of money on Disney passes.