#in case its not obvious this is my first time drawing val

[hiemaldesirae]

diversity win! your horrible capitalist boss is trans and bisexual!

[kaledya]

Always a pleasure to see your talent! YEAH I LIKE IT ALL !🌸 _

I like the punishment for Valentino and the fact that Angel is choosing to have revenge. I think, for redemption, Charlie would not tell to her guests to fulfill revenge but if they ask and its deserved (like Val and Angel) I think she would accept without a second thought to punish the abuser/criminal for his victim.

Angel should also learn to move forward as for now, he will be free of Val and once its done, stay ptsd, trauma and mental business but its just you and yourself alone that can pull you through it. I think Angel will be a bit lost after Val death and little by little learn to breathe by himself again.

Exactly ! Use val if necessary of forget him. Perfect ! Thank you to explaining your pov!

I think for the drawing you show, the first drawing on the left where Charlie confront Alastor could be nice after or before the mission Alastor has to do with the gangs.

Alastor : I'm will kill something like 40 Sinners. Charlie : ... What did you just say ? Alastor : 40 deaths. Charlie : what ?! Alastor : This is fine. *meme*

_

Episode 6 will have so much happening ! I prepared well to not forget everything ! _

I KNOW I WANT TO GIVE SPOILERS FOR YOU BUT I CAN'T!

[*take the sacrifice and whispers* I can just say that Lolicia will have so many things happening in the same time that it will be too much and have dark consequences (until Constantine)]

And of course you are a writer too ! Don't doubt it ! If I choose to follow your storyboards  its because it was well made, logical, something worth to work with *crying in goodbye at the last storyboard I finished to follow*

Ahah the "cries on the floor for lolicia" so cute.

_

A little thing about the encounter for Constantine and Lolicia is like... trying to find a metaphor... "Huge hurricane that only one person can transform back into a wind." And harp too.

Like Daemon singing to Vermithor (dragon) in the trailer of House of the Dragon season 2.

_

Oh yes its called slice of life ! I forgot the therm thank you ! _

Shen, my baby.

And yes Constantine and his parent relationship is sad and powerful.

For Shifu and Tai, I'm always for Tai in this but I don't hate Shifu at all of course. Its just that if Shifu known himself better, if he took more importance in Uguei words, it would have never happened. Tai is a warrior of strength and tactics, like the Five Cyclones (and Kai).

And its obvious that Uguei is a warrior of  the spirit/shi will take someone more fated to be like him. Someone chill and less *fighting sounds*.

So if Shifu had opened his spirit, he knew that he created Tai just to fail Uguei test. And he just prepared Tai to be good at one thing. One ? That is not even sure will work ? So no plan B ? Because of the arrogance "I'm sure my son Tai will be Dragon Warrior". And of course Tai, when the 'NO' happened how could he understand ? All my life is plan A and I will never have my A ? What ?

Understandable!

So I that case, I'm Constantine's side. Sorry Luci/Lilith I adore you but damn, you broke your kid.

The wip story arc is very good ! Intense !

_

Honestly, a luxury and quiet ticket plane for the king !

_

So the Lucifer design (corrupted) :

So first his body.

In the different sources, Lucifer is said to be very beautiful, feminine, bat wings, ect ect. So I mixed all that.

So he has big bat wings that sprout from his back, two little red bat wings on his shoulders and two on his halo.

His halo is corrupted, shattered, and I couldn't show it in the drawing but it moves, shattered and comes back together over and over again, trying to fix itself and failing.

He has the golden scars and Morningstar symbol on his body like in your design ! And he also have the same beige goat legs that in your design (but I didn't have enough room on the same page to draw it)

In in torso, he is marking that look like an eaten apple ! If you just look like the contours of the apple, he looks more feminine. If you look like the actual shape of his body more masculine. Its like a illusion !

Hiding his private part, there is a snake face.

He has two manacles on his wrist to show that he is emprisonned in Abaddon's bowel and link to his throne and his fate.

His arms are dark like his neck, and there is one red eye on each of his forearm!

On his right shoulder and left thigh, his skin is shattered, inside its black and corruption pieces of the skin fly from it.

He has his wedding ring of course.

• When in good mood, Luci look more like a demon-like. Smiling, playful, manipulating, not caring. Its what demon are suppose to be. Dangerous tricksters !

• But when he is in bad mood (not his ultimate form) he is more an angel. Angel are inflexible and here is harsh thinking is also led by pride. So a prideful Angel.

His halo change and becomes a broken disc. (Like Abaddon has a disk with angelic writing when he takes his casual form)

The corruption get orders and try to get closer to the 'angel part' of him showing in anger. Like a reminder that his anger/envy/pride lead him to where he is.

His tail (like in your design !) shows up and the  archangels wings (but not three of them). The red little bad wings on his shoulders transforms only in extreme cases.

His clothes are not too difficult, a bit military, with a snake belt and heart symbol for his family. And heart shape opening on the back for the wings !

His hair are blond on top and red underneath! (because most people say he is redhead or blonde)

And he is still a short king.

Thats it ! Tell me what you think ! I will keep this design for AA, but of course if you want to change something or for SSAU, I will hear everything! Hope you like it !

_

For Constantine's hair, I don't know because I like him with hair loose, braids or men bun, ponytail 🌸

Make doodles for yourself with his face and different haircut to choose (like he is in the hair salon!)

Personally, even if I love drawing long hair, I think, loose hair is something more intimate and tied up with accessories or braided, or just tied, its more formal day-to-day life. (Except with short hair) I dont know it it help...

_

Thanks for the explanation of swap AU ! I was just curious !

_

Thats sweet Constantine like Hellhounds babies !

Thank you for liking my writing so much ! I love faithful readers.

Don't worry for the reviews, there is no obligation. AND THANK YOU AGAIN AAAH🌸🌸

_

Ahhah Serenity : the bigger fish...snake. Snake, i mean. Alastor : My dear I beg your pardon ? Serenity : Snake. Alastor : wth

And I'm glad you liked the overlords meeting episode ! It was great to write!

_

Abaddon in terms of age ?

I mean, Abaddon has two ages, as he is both a place and an angel. So when he is the place (the huge version of himself we see a little in the short story when he eat the sinner) is like created in the same time as Eden or something.

But his angel self, the Abaddon we know is born just after Azrael. So I saw in a post you said this :

Michael-11

Uriel-10

Gabriel-7

Raphael-6

Azrael-4

  Abaddon is here- 3,5 !

Jophiel-3

Lucifer-2.5

_

Thank you again ! For everything Take care and have a great day too 🌸🌸🌸

Yes, Charlie definitely think like that , she doesn't interfere, she ask Angel to make the decision.

-And for Angel, I really think you really think well his mental state after that arc, I seriously think you approach things in a realistic way.Angel's years of trauma and ptsd will not disappear immediately, it will heal over time.Seriously can't wait to see how the arc will work

-And yes, that Charlie and Alastor doodle might be the Inspiration how Charlie will react when Alastor destroys the gang.

So, after all, Alastor is an employee of the hotel and The hotel trying to save these sinners and give them a place where they can feel safe.But this small-scale massacre he committed goes against everything Charlie stands for.And since she accepted Alastor to the hotel, the things Alastor does are, in a way, her responsibility.

And lmao Alastor is definitely turning into a This is fine meme

Charlie may be a really kind person, but at the end of the day, she's the devil's daughter.shee also has limits and he shouldn't cross them for his own good. I hope Alastor will take his cards carefully while he's talking to her in future.

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I'm ready for episode 6 LETS GOOOOO!!

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WHYYYYY ༼⁠;⁠´⁠༎ຶ⁠ ⁠۝ ⁠༎ຶ⁠༽

WHAAAAT???! My question has been answered somewhat, but now I have more questions in my mind??

So Lolicia will experience so many things in a row that there will be so many of them that there will be dark consequences.Until Constantine...

WHAT HAPPENS?!??!???

But let's be honest now, beautiful loves also begin with tragedy uwu (Sorry, the angst lover locked in the cage inside me was let out for a moment)

-

And I'm so glad you liked the storyboards I wrote!! I am very happy that my writing was liked by a writer like you.

*Yes, goodbye story boards you were loved*

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WHATTTT???YOU MAKE ME MORE EXCITED WITH EVERY SENTENCE!!

İs their first meeting, when Lolica is almost at breaking point due to the all things happened to her,is Constsntine will be the one to lend a hand to her.The person who turns the storm into a wind, the person who turns the flames of hell into A Heat that gives comfort to the peraon??

Or perhaps, in the darkness of the deep that is a light symbolizing the hope of rising to the surface.To breathe again.

I don't know, I'm just so excited to see!!!

Yes, I saw that scene in House of Dragon, it was really effective!!

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I totally agree with what you say.Tai lung's fall is entirely shifu's fault he was Blinded by his pride And cub Tai just wanting to make his master proud, he made Tai lung believe his lies (these were lies that he even fooled himself with).

If he had listened to Uguie like you said, none of this would have happened. Uguei will never want an heir like Tai lung Tai lung's immense talent can be evaluated in a different way But Shifu ignored it. And Shifu's mistake caused Tai-lung to be imprisoned for over 20 years, unable to even move.

And yes, Shifu only prepared him for one thing, he was so intimidated by the Pride that he didn't even think about what would happen if he rejected Tai lung.

There is no Plan B and as you say, naturally Tai lung's reaction to this was not good.He's been groomed his whole life to be something, and now he's been rejected against all odds.What to do now?, Shifu never prepare him for plan B.And this was the reason why Tai lung threw a tantrum.

And the tragic part is Shifu didn't SAY ANYTHİNG.Nothing...he didn't try to object to Uguei, he dindt tried to console Tai lung He didn't say anything..

I'm sorry, Shifu may be you're a good master, but you were not a good father.

I'm really glad you're on Constantine's side!!

And even if you don't really want Lilith and Lucifer YOU broke your damn kid ,but he's getting better now, thanks to others.

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First of all, I absolutely LOVE your Corrupted Lucifer Design!🤌🤌🤌🛐✨

Seriously, the details I mentioned are really wonderful, you are very creative🛐🤌🤌🤌

-I really loved the bat wings on his shoulders and the Halo wings at the end are also very cool.And the detail of it having a shattering halo is seriously spot on.And it is very clever that her body looks like an eaten apple and this illusion creates a masculine and feminine effect!!

-Also, the way his halo is constantly breaking apart and constantly coming together is a really great metaphor!

-It's seriously cool that she has menacles on his wrists, a testament to his punishment. And it's nice that his arms and neck are black from corruption!!

-And I think it's a very nice detail that corruption comes out like a disease! break the skin and spread.

And I loved the way you drew Lucifer's hair!!

It's a really nice detail that he still wearing his ring!

-I'm really glad you detailed the good and bad mode! I think you chose very logically.And I loved the balance and distinction between good and bad mood.

-I also really loved the events behind the appearance of Lucifer's Angel part!!

I seriously think you think the way you make his transform is pretty cool, it's scarier.And I really like that you gave him a more military uniform.And seriously, snake belt or a heart/apple symbol Details are amazing

And yes, red hair, probably if I designed Lucifer completely independently, he would have red hair. He is generally described as having red/dark orange hair. That's why making the roots of hishair red is a really clever and beautiful detail.🤌🤌

-I really like your design, I think you did a very creative job.The story details beneath his appearance was one word, it was perfect!!! I seriously love every detail.I seriously can't wait to draw this version of Luci!!🛐🤌🤌

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And it really helped a lot!❤️❤️ Thank you so much for your advice about Constantine's hair!!

--And yes, one day he met one of them and showed her a little trick. After that, the puppies followed him at every opportunity and asked him to show them new magictricks.

(Puppies don't know anything about hierarchy)

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Of course I love your writing!! You bless me🛐

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Thank you for the clarification about Abaddon's age,And it makes sense to him have two different ages.And now that I know that Abaddon is one of the youngest brothers, I can die in peace rn. Lmao

Thank you for your answers and for blessing me with your wonderful Lucifer design. Have a nice day!! 🌸🫂❤️❤️

[elegantwoes]

Its time we start propagating that third tier side characters like Ygritte and Val, and history figures like Lyanna, Alysanne, Rhaenys and Naerys are the ones being given relevance when we draw parallels between them and a POV main character, also called a central part of the books by the author himself, Sansa Stark. She was created first and is the princess archetype of the story so all the apparent things Sansa stans 'steal' from these characters 💀💀 belong to her first and foremost.

Technically Lyanna shouldn’t be included in there because she isn’t a history figure, but the rest I absolutely agree with you, especially on Naerys. Like Sansa is the only person who even mentions her for the first few books. And Sansa is the one who draws parallel with herself to Naerys and wants her husband to be like Aemon the dragon knight. Like George RR Martin is hammering down that Sansa is the character who has any form of narrative connection to Queen Naerys and the romantic pair Aemon/Naerys is (almost) exclusively tied to Sansa’s romantic storyline. Sansa also deals with an Aegon the unworthy in Joffrey. He even flat out says he wants to be like him and have multiple women:

("A king can have other women. Whores. My father did. One of the Aegons did too. The third one, or the fourth. He had lots of whores and lots of bastards." - Sansa III, A Storm of Swords.

Sansa says she’s Queen Naerys and Joffrey says he wants to be Aegon the unworthy. The only one missing in this equation is an Aemon the dragon knight figure. Now who could this person be? Well I can think of someone. A young man who frequently screamed he was Aemon the dragon knight in his childhood in Winterfell. We got three people saying they are a historical figure that conveniently are stuck in a love triangle. The fandom can deny this till their faces turn blue, but clearly Sansa/Jon are a Aemon/Naerys pair.

And even though George RR Martin is extremely obvious in his parallel still certain people try to take this and make it all about their favorite character and favorite ship. If there ever was case of ‘stealing’ a parallel and storyline then this falls squarely in that category, but antis will never admit to this, because if they did they would be admitting that Sansa has something desirable in their eyes that they want to give to their faves.

Naerys will never be remotely similar to either @rya or D@ny. At most D@ny looks like Naerys in terms in looks, GRRM flat out said that, but he also said that’s where the similarities stop. She may look like Naerys in appearance, but personality wise Naerys is described to be timid and Dany is fiercer. And @rya has zero association with Naerys.

The character who shares the most similarities with Naerys will always be Sansa. Another character who is like Naerys is Cersei, but in her case it’s foil. Cersei is her darker counterpart. She does the very thing Aegon accuses Naerys of (cheating and passing her child as his). Elia Martell is also very similar to Naerys (fragile health, reproductively abused, and humiliated by husband. Rhaegar literally does what Aegon IV wanted to do). Perhaps one could argue that Margaery has a small similarity to her too, since she compares herself to Naerys and Loras to Aemon, but that’s it. There are no other characters like Naerys. Especially not the characters whose fans desperately try to steal this parallel and storyline.

[aboveallarescuer]

I know you've gotten anons about the YMBQ prophecy recently but I was wondering in what context could it be obvious for the reader that Daenerys is the YMBQ if Cersei is most likely to die or leave KL once Aegon arrives and not Daenerys. Even if Daenerys takes KL later on wouldn't he technically be the one to take all she holds dear (her power as regent)?

First of all, Anon, I think it’s interesting that you say that Young Griff (rather than Arianne) would take all that Cersei holds dear in this hypothetical scenario (that most people assume will come to pass). asoiaf tumblr fandom loved (loves?) to take for granted that Arianne would be YMBQ (after all, it was/is taken for granted that she would marry Young Griff and become his queen consort) years ago. At the same time, though, I’m not sure if you’re implying that Young Griff might actually be the one to fulfill the YMB(Q) prophecy in this ask. I actually saw this theory before. So I’m going to make counterarguments to this theory first and then address your question about how and when Dany might be revealed as the YMBQ (and if that’s what you were specifically looking for, just skip to the end, though you might be disappointed by the fact that I'm not really providing definitive answers because I have a lot of doubts myself).

In a way, it makes more sense for Young Griff to fulfill the prophecy rather than Arianne. Let’s remember what Cersei wants the most, which is shown in the beginning of her very first chapter:

She dreamt she sat the Iron Throne, high above them all. (AFFC Cersei I)

Unfortunately for Cersei, she can’t ever actually sit the Iron Throne, which is pointed out several times:

Cersei shifted in her seat as he went on, wondering how long she must endure his hectoring. Behind her loomed the Iron Throne, its barbs and blades throwing twisted shadows across the floor. Only the king or his Hand could sit upon the throne itself. Cersei sat by its foot, in a seat of gilded wood piled with crimson cushions. (AFFC Cersei V)

~

Seated on her gold-and-crimson high seat beneath the Iron Throne, Cersei could feel a growing tightness in her neck. (AFFC Cersei VII)

~

Cersei sat beneath the Iron Throne, clad in green silk and golden lace. (AFFC Cersei X)

As the first quote states, only the king or the Hand can sit the Iron Throne, which is what Cersei wants the most, since, to her, it symbolizes almost unlimited power ("high above them all"). Indeed, I would argue that what Cersei holds dear is the chance to reign supreme (“The rule was hers; Cersei did not mean to give it up until Tommen came of age. [...] If Margaery Tyrell thinks to cheat me of my hour in the sun, she had bloody well think again.”), not “her power as regent” (as you put it), which is limited by nature. After all, the king’s wife and mother can’t sit the Iron Throne. This means three things to me:

Queen consorts like Margaery or Arianne (if she actually marries Young Griff, which is far from certain) can’t take all that Cersei holds dear.

Queens claiming power in their own right but who have no claim to the Iron Throne are excluded too. In other words, Asha or QitN!Sansa (another fan theory that’s far from certain and that’s accepted as future canon) can’t take all that Cersei holds dear.

Only a she-king (that is, a queen regnant) with a claim to the Iron Throne can take all that Cersei holds dear - that’s Dany.

But then, we have Young Griff. He is a king with a claim to the Iron Throne, so he could, in theory, take what Cersei holds dear and fulfill the prophecy. However, I find that very unlikely for a number of reasons:

GRRM doesn’t highlight men’s physical appearances or objectify them in the same way that he does with women, as a lot of people have already criticized him for. He makes a point of mentioning women’s accomplishments along with overpraise for their physical appearances (though one might be generous and chalk that up to social commentary about how their society objectifies women instead of giving them their due praise for what they do). He encourages his fans to speculate about who is the YMB(Q) and pit his female characters against each other based on their physical appearances (e.g., people have criticized how Sansa stans often mention the number of times the word “beautiful” appears in Sansa’s chapters to back up their belief that she’s the YMB(Q), but the way GRRM himself wrote the prophecy lends itself to this sort of analysis) because he uses certain tropes uncritically. He portrays fat women negatively in comparison to thin women (see: Cersei (who’s said to be gaining weight throughout AFFC as she becomes more unstable) vs Dany, Lysa vs Cat, Barba Bracken vs Melissa Blackwood, arguably Rhaenyra vs Alicent). He takes an almost voyeuristic pleasure in describing women’s bodies and women having sex with women (see how Dany and Irri’s or Cersei and Taena’s sexual encounters don’t give any depth to Dany’s, Irri’s and Taena’s characters and, as far as I can tell, are mostly written to fetishize them). Consider, for instance, how 13- to 16-year-old Dany is the most sexualized character of the book series, while I’m not even sure if her male counterpart Jon is supposed to be considered attractive or not (on the one hand, he’s attracted women like Ygritte and Val; on the other hand, he’s meant to look a lot like Ned, who’s regarded as plain in appearance, especially in comparison to the hot-blooded Brandon). All of this is to say that I doubt that a man will fulfill a prophecy that remarks upon the person’s physical appearance (“younger and more beautiful”). Considering GRRM’s writing problems, a woman is much more likely to do so.

Young Griff is supposed to represent a lesser version of Dany (note that I’m talking about Young Griff as a fictional character, not as a person). After all, unlike Dany, Young Griff didn’t get to have lived experience of poverty, he didn’t get to have his skills tested, he didn’t get to apply the lessons he learned along the way, he didn’t get to take action and make mistakes and gain valuable experience and wisdom, he didn’t get to choose to stay in Slaver’s Bay solely to help marginalized people who aren’t connected to him by neither blood nor lands (which would emphasize how he doesn’t view his birthright merely as something owed to him, but rather as a means to “protect the ones who can’t protect themselves”). He could have had this sort of character development if GRRM wanted him to, but he has a different role in the narrative: he’s a tertiary character who we’re not meant to know all that much as a person or about how he would fare as king because he serves as a foil to Dany. With all of that in mind, what would be the point of having this minor character, who was introduced in the fifth book of a seven-book series, fulfill this prophecy rather than the one protagonist who the author said was deliberately written as Cersei’s foil multiple times (more on that below)?

Which brings me to a point that @rainhadaenerys made in our upcoming Dany/Cersei meta... Cersei views women with contempt because she thinks that they can only attain political influence with “tears” and with what’s “between [their] legs” (as she tells Sansa). This informs why, for example, she projects the unfounded idea that a widow must have lovers on Margaery or why she herself uses money and sex to keep her men loyal (which ultimately backfires on her). Unfortunately, it’s true that “[Cersei’s] strength relies on her beauty, birth and riches”. Because of her internalized misogyny, Cersei can’t conceive of a woman who might rise to power primarily because of her intelligence and shrewdness… Except that there is a woman who successfully conquered three cities and ruled the third and freed thousands of slaves relying primarily on her actual wit, political savviness and leadership skills rather than on sex, birthright or money… Dany. Dany is the competent, selfless ruler who could overcome many of the patriarchal limitations that Cersei couldn’t (hence why Cersei is a tragic figure). If Young Griff were to be the YMB(Q), he would simply be one of the many men (along with Robert, her brother, her father and the other Hands) who Cersei thinks wronged her and prevented her from staying in power. If Daenerys were to be the YMBQ, she would challenge Cersei’s toxic beliefs about women, which prevented Cersei from even imagining that a she-king might be the one foreshadowed to defeat her or that a woman (that isn’t her, of course) could actually be able to earn her accomplishments (just like she can’t imagine that Jaime might actually betray and kill her). Now, someone might argue that GRRM is not “woke” enough to do this, but I would disagree in this particular case. There are valid critiques to be made about how he wrote his female characters (I’ve made some points myself on the first item), but it’s still true that Dany’s character arc was written with awareness of how her gender affects her experiences. If that hadn’t been the case, AGOT wouldn’t have initially set up several men (Viserys, Rhaego, Drogo) to be claimant to the Iron Throne/SWMTW/the protagonist only to reveal that these roles are actually meant to be fulfilled by Dany, a woman. If that hadn’t been the case, he wouldn’t have had Maester Aemon acknowledge that “no one had ever looked for a girl” when they pondered on who might be AA/PTWP. So I don’t put it past GRRM to make Dany the YMBQ as a way of challenging Cersei’s entire worldview.

Indeed, I actually think that’s likely to be what he’ll write. GRRM has stated multiple times that Dany and Cersei are meant to be compared and contrasted because they were consciously written by him (specially in AFFC/ADWD) as narrative foils:

George regrets that Cersei and Dany will not be contrasted directly. (x)

~

His biggest lament in splitting A Feast for Crows from A Dance with Dragons is the parallels he was drawing between Circe and Daenerys. (x)

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Cersei and Daenerys are intended as parallel characters --each exploring a different approach to how a woman would rule in a male dominated, medieval-inspired fantasy world. (x)

~

While discussing how he writes his female characters, he also mentioned that splitting the books as he did this time meant we didn't get the parallel between how Danaerys and Cersei both approach the task of leadership, which is a bit of a shame. (x)

~

And that one of the things he regrets losing from the POV split is that he was doing point and counterpoint with the Dany and Cersei scenes--showing how each was ruling in their turn. (x)

I think Young Griff as the YMB(Q) is very, very unlikely. If it’s not Dany, then I think Brienne (who at least is a viewpoint character that we know intimately) as the YMBQ (though I doubt it because she can only take Jaime away from Cersei and, as we saw in AFFC, Cersei was willing to separate herself from Jaime once she realized that he would question and disagree with her decisions and, in her mind, threaten her influence and power, i.e., what she wants the most) or even Cersei herself (the basis of this theory is that a younger Cersei caused her own downfall by making the choices she made. It’s not impossible considering that Cersei’s unreliable viewpoint prevents her from ever taking responsibility for her actions. Still, I think it’s unlikely because she’s been positioned as a passive participant in these prophecies - someone/some people kills her children, some person takes away everything she holds dear, some person murders her. Just like there’s a valonqar to kill Cersei, I think there’ll be a YMBQ to defeat her) are more plausible candidates. However, as I said in previous answers, Dany and Cersei have lots of clearly intended parallels and anti parallels (hence why GRRM mentioned them at least five times publicly) that people don’t often appreciate (but that I don’t want to mention here because I’m saving them for edits and that long meta). I find it hard to believe that GRRM would lay all this groundwork to contrast these two queens only to reveal that a minor character is the actual YMB(Q).

Now, the question about “in what context could it be obvious for the reader that Daenerys is the YMBQ” is difficult because, IMO, I don’t feel like there’s enough information to give you a reliable answer. First, let’s recap the most common theories, which, while I don’t think should be accepted as canon just yet, are popular for logical reasons. Here’s what GRRM said about the future events in the initial outline and interviews:

While the lion of Lannister and the direwolf of Stark snarl and scrap, however, a second and greater threat takes shape across the narrow sea, where the Dothraki horselords mass their barbarian hordes for a great invasion of the Seven Kingdoms, led by the fierce and beautiful Daenerys Stormborn, the last of the Targaryen dragonlords. The Dothraki invasion will be the central story of my second volume, A Dance with Dragons. (x)

~

GRRM: Yes, three more volumes remain. The series could almost be considered as two linked trilogies, although I tend to think of it more as one long story. The next book, A Dance With Dragons, will focus on the return of Daenerys Targaryen to Westeros, and the conflicts that creates. After that comes The Winds of Winter. I have been calling the final volume A Time For Wolves, but I am not happy with that title and will probably change it if I can come up with one that I like better. (x)

~

He said that in his original plan (when he wanted to write a trilogy) the Red Wedding would take place in book one, and Dany’s landing in Westeros in book two. Now he says that Dany’s arrival in Westeros will take place in book 5, A Dance with Dragons. (x)

~

From there he started to plan a trilogy, since there were 3 main conflicts (Starks/Lannisters; Dany; and the Others) it felt it would neatly fit into a trilogy (ah!), but like Tolkien said, the tale grew in the telling. (x)

~

“Well, Tyrion and Dany will intersect, in a way, but for much of the book they’re still apart,” he says. “They both have quite large roles to play here. Tyrion has decided that he actually would like to live, for one thing, which he wasn’t entirely sure of during the last book, and he’s now working toward that end—if he can survive the battle that’s breaking out all around him. And Dany has embraced her heritage as a Targaryen and embraced the Targaryen words. So they’re both coming home.” (x)

GRRM’s words seem to indicate that Dany will go to Dragonstone ("they're both coming home") and then King’s Landing in her campaign to take back the Seven Kingdoms before she goes to the Wall to fight against the Others.

And it is quite possible that she will clash with Young Griff. For one:

Hi, short question. Will we find out more about the Dance of the Dragons in future books?

The first dance or the second?

The second will be the subject of a book. The first will be mentioned from time to time, I'm sure. (x)

For two:

"It is dragons."

"Dragons?" said her mother. "Teora, don't be mad."

"I'm not. They're coming."

"How could you possibly know that?" her sister asked, with a note of scorn in her voice. "One of your little dreams?"

Teora gave a tiny nod, chin trembling. "They were dancing. In my dream. And everywhere the dragons danced the people died." (TWOW Arianne I)

For three:

Glowing like sunset, a red sword was raised in the hand of a blue-eyed king who cast no shadow. A cloth dragon swayed on poles amidst a cheering crowd. From a smoking tower, a great stone beast took wing, breathing shadow fire ... mother of dragons, slayer of lies … (ACOK Daenerys IV)

Now, here are my observations/questions/doubts:

The “cloth dragon” receiving a round of cheers from the crowd seems to indicate that a) Tommen will indeed fall from power when Young Griff (who’s already in Westeros almost ready to attack) invades King’s Landing and that b) Young Griff will inspire love from the population.

The more obvious possibility is that the second dance of dragons refers to a Dany versus Young Griff confrontation, especially since she’s prophesied to slay the lie that he represents (that he’s not Rhaegar Targaryen's son, but actually Illyrio’s son and a Blackfyre). However, since Victarion is currently in Meereen with a dragonbinder, it’s very likely that Dany will lose control of one of her dragons to a Greyjoy (either Victarion or Euron Greyjoy himself) and then will arrive in Westeros with only two of her three dragons. Or maybe Euron will use one of the dragons to attack Young Griff and that will be the second dance (though I find that unlikely since, again, Dany is prophesied to slay Young Griff’s lie). Or the second dance could actually refer to Dany versus Euron.

There are alternative speculations to consider. Right now, the consensus in the Dany fandom seems to be that there’s already too much in Dany’s plate for her (uniting all the khalasars and being hailed as the SWMTW; going back to Meereen; meeting Tyrion, Jorah, Moqorro and other characters; maybe going to Yunkai; going to Volantis; etc) to go to King’s Landing, which led to people assuming that only Cersei and JonCon will be involved in the city’s burning. It’s even theorized that Dany might actually skip King’s Landing and go to the Wall instead. These theories make a lot of sense and aren’t implausible, but it’s hard to reconcile them with GRRM’s initial intention with Dany (though it’s also been argued that he may have given part of her initial role to Young Griff). Additionally, I don’t think timeline issues are necessarily a guarantee of what GRRM will do with Dany. He made Tyrion travel much faster than reasonable back in AGOT to have him meet Catelyn in the inn at the crossroads and to be taken captive by her. So I wouldn't put it past GRRM to do something similar with Dany by having her arrive earlier in King’s Landing than she reasonably would just because he wants it to happen. And, as much as I don’t want it to happen and even though I criticized the theory before, I don’t think it’s impossible (though it’s not guaranteed either) for Dany to be accidentally involved in the burning of King’s Landing (though there is a recent counter-theory to that as well).

Re: Cersei, a lot of people tend to assume that she’s going to die when Young Griff takes King’s Landing, but I am not really sure. I do think that her parallels with Aerys II will pay off and reflect her ending. But that doesn’t prevent Cersei from surviving Young Griff’s invasion and meeting Dany later. Cersei could escape to Casterly Rock and they could meet there. Or Cersei could later attempt to retake the capital again in another impractical plan of hers, which then leads to King’s Landing burning. I don’t know.

Does Dany have to meet everyone to fulfill these prophecies? I’m not sure. Does Dany necessarily need to meet Young Griff and Stannis to slay their lies? Does she necessarily need to meet Cersei so that the readership finds out that she’s the YMBQ? Will there even be an actual moment that makes it “obvious for the reader that Daenerys is the YMBQ”? I don’t know, Anon. It may end up being up for people’s interpretation. Dany might end up burning the Iron Throne, if the theory about her accidentally burning King’s Landing actually happens. Dany might willingly melt the Iron Throne and install a new form of government that gives the smallfolk more political influence. Both of these possibilities could symbolize the end of Cersei’s desire for absolute power, even if Cersei and Dany don’t actually meet. I’m not even sure that there will be a moment that outright reveals that Dany is AA/PTWP/SWMTW (even though, IMO, the foreshadowing is way too overwhelming for it not to be her).

Speculating about Dany being the YMBQ is fun for me because it requires delving into her characterization, her parallels with Cersei and canon material in general. On the other hand, speculating about how this would actually happen is, IMO, less interesting (though I still enjoy reading what other people have to say) because it’s hard to accurately predict future plot points with the current information that we have (and I resent how fandom already accepts so many theories as unpublished canon). Dany has too many places to be and too many things to do and it’s not certain that she’ll be in King’s Landing when it burns (though I tend to think she will for the aforementioned reasons), the second dance of dragons can refer to different confrontations, it’s not certain that Dany needs to meet Cersei (or Young Griff or Stannis) to fulfill all these prophecies and it’s not certain that Dany is going to be explicitly revealed as the person who fulfills all these prophecies. We still have two books worth of plot development, so I really don’t think it’s possible to predict how the actual events will unfold. Sorry about not being able to give more definitive answers... I actually ended up making more questions. But that's kind of the point for now.

[maade-of-stardust]

Hey Val!!! Its frisay! Its friday!! *feeling excited*

It is Friday, indeed! And since the chapter isn’t ready, yet (I think it will come out on Sunday), here is a snippet for you! 

Sander had decided to leave as soon as Robbe was surrounded by his friends. Surely, the boy would have been safer among them, and they knew him well enough to know what to do in case he needed anything. Thus, Sander’s presence was no longer requested. He had carried out his task and could go back to his place. But after all, he told himself, it was better that way. He was feeling deeply sad after hearing what had happened to Robbe's mom, and he needed time alone to process the news. As he reached his room, Sander remembered that he had to talk to Noor. Though his first instinct was to postpone again, he thought he might as well face another issue that same evening, so he backed off and went to knock on the girl's door.

The conversation was honest, although, for obvious reasons he chose not to go into details, but he told her about his past with Robbe, their years apart, and the way he was feeling since he started to work for the band. Noor was very understanding and they decided to stay friends, without benefits this time. They had smoked a cigarette together and after that, Sander finally went back to his room.

He took a hot shower, hoping it would wash away all the tiredness, sadness, and desire to disappear he was feeling in his body. It seemed like that day had lasted two months. Starting with the fight the evening before, the sleepless night, the trip with Lucas and Jens, and then the insane run in the park to find Robbe. It had been an eventful 24 hours.

The worst part, though, was probably realizing that everything he had relied on for the past four years was just a big, fat, pile of bullshits, he told to be at peace with himself. He hadn't saved Robbe from a life of pain, he hadn't freed him from carrying Sander's burden. He had simply turned his back on Robbe. Sander had left him alone to face all the sufferings in his life.

Now, he didn't even know how he could explain to the other, the reason behind his gesture, without being laughed at. His illness seemed nothing compared to what Robbe had to go through completely alone.

Probably the best thing to do was to simply make amends, without hoping for forgiveness. In light of the facts, his explanation had become ridiculous, useless, but he owed it to Robbe. He wanted to finally be honest.

Sander wore a lilac hoodie and a pair of black sweatpants and went to bed with his computer on his lap, editing the photos he had taken in the previous days. It was something that helped him stay present, having to concentrate kept his mind from wandering.

It was almost midnight when he heard a knock on his room door, and for a few seconds, he was tempted not to open it, pretending to be asleep, but in the end, curiosity prevailed.

He moved the computer from his legs, leaving it on the bed, and went to the door, finding himself face to face with Robbe.

Sander felt his heart skip a beat. The boy had his hair down over his shoulders, and he was wearing a sage-colored sweatshirt and pants. His face was pale, tired, with dark circles under his doe eyes, but they were still beautiful.

"Robbe?" He exclaimed, sounding more surprised than he intended.

"Stop leaving me behind without a fucking word, okay?" He said, with a stern face, looking the other into his eyes, but then gave him a small smile.

Sander stepped aside, inviting him in, and closed the door. He didn't know why he was letting him in his room, but somehow, that night, after what had happened, he didn’t want to let Robbe go again. He needed his presence there.

"Sorry, I thought there were already too many people around."

"Yeah, but I wanted them to leave, not you."

Oh.

Robbe stood in front of him, biting his lower lip. He was so different from anything Sander had seen in the previous weeks, even different from what he'd seen in the car a few hours before, and it was confusing. Sander wondered how many Robbes were still to be discovered. But this version made him feel at ease. There was something genuine and familiar in him.

"Can I stay here with you tonight?" He asked, blinking his long lashes, pausing for a few seconds to rephrase his request, reading the surprise on Sander's face. "I'm not talking about sex. We can have a pajama party, but like, for adults."

Sander frowned, "It sounds a lot like sex." he said, smiling.

"Come on." He pushed his lower lip out, as an incentive to make the other agree.

"Let's have this pajama party for adults, then." Sander conceded, running his fingers through the boy’s hair. He couldn’t explain it, but ever since they had been forced by circumstances to stay physically close in the car, it was like that invisible barrier, that was keeping them apart, had disappeared, and now every gesture was natural.

Robbe was playing with the lilac strings of Sander's hoodie, twisting it around his fingers. "But on one condition. We can’t talk about our past. Only about present and future."

"Deal." Sander nodded, turning away and walking back to bed, to resume what he was doing. He slipped under the covers and took his laptop again, pretending not to observe every slightest movement of the other, who meanwhile looked around, carefully studying all of Sander’s belongings scattered around the room.

"What are you doing?"

"Editing."

Robbe had nonchalantly approached the bed, trying to look at the screen. "Can I?" He asked, pointing his index finger at the bed where Sander was sitting.

"Yes, come here." He replied, lifting the covers. Robbe immediately snuggled up beside him. They remained silent, while Sander kept editing, trying not to smile too much, and Robbe watched him work. That closeness was amazing. It felt right and Sander wished to stay like that forever.

"I like this one so much. You made me look so good."

"Are you fishing for compliments? Aren't you tired of people telling you how beautiful you are?"

Sander looked at him, raising an eyebrow, and Robbe rolled his eyes, without trying to hide his smile.

"Do you like your job?"

"I do, most of the time. You?"

Robbe sighed, pausing for a long time before answering. "It doesn’t make me feel as happy as it used to, but it’s the only thing I’m good at."

"First of all, I hardly believe it." Sander closed his laptop, placing it on the bedside table, and turned to face the other, giving him his full attention, exactly as he would have done once, during their endless conversations. "Secondly, Robbe, you're just 20. Your life has not even started yet. You can go to college and study whatever you like if you want. I know you probably feel so much older, but you're not."

Robbe slid onto the bed, lying on his back, staring at the ceiling. "I just wanna a happy, quiet life." He admitted. He didn't know what he would do without the band, the tour, and the concerts, but at the prospect of being happy, really happy, he could have given up his adrenaline addiction. "No strict schedule, no paparazzi, interviews, or people following me around everywhere."

Sander lay down on his side, supporting his head with one arm. "I bet you already made enough money to retire. You can do everything you want, seriously."

Robbe turned his face to look the other in his eyes. "Not everything." He whispered, shifting his gaze to Sander's lips. "I can't kiss you."

Sander smiled, drawing his face closer and closer. "Do it." He whispered when their lips were close enough to touch.

Robbe placed his hands on Sander's face and closed the distance that separated them, feeling as excited as when they had exchanged their first kiss. Both couldn’t stop smiling, and it was a very uncoordinated kiss at first, but then the feelings they felt for each other took over, reminding them that what they had wanted for so long, was happening.

It was sweet, familiar, healing. Their souls were quieter after that, and when they parted, they both had an incredulous smile on their faces.

"Now your boyfriend will get so mad."

"He's not my boyfriend, and what about Noor?"

"Noor's not my boyfriend either."

Robbe rolled his eyes for the thousandth time during that night, feeling the affection for the other grow a little more each time. "I know you probably think you're funny, but believe me, it's quite the opposite."

"Look at you, being so mean, and so proud of it!" Sander pulled the boy back, placing another kiss on his lips. "But seriously, there’s nothing between Noor and me. Besides, I’ll pretend you haven’t just admitted you asked around about me and her."

Robbe punched Sander's shoulder, snorting. "I saw you, idiot! You're not that subtle!"

"Ouch! So rude." He said while the other kissed him again to be forgiven.

They kept going like that, laughing, kissing, and talking until they collapsed tightly into each other's arms, lulled by an inner peace that both hadn't felt for a long time.

[heartofether]

Episode 16 - Lorelei TRANSCRIPT

[You can listen to the show wherever you get your podcasts, or go to our “Listen” page if you’re on desktop.]

VAL

Warning: This episode contains discussions and descriptions of child abuse, and may not be suitable for all audiences. For exact time stamps and a full list of content warnings, please check the show notes. We suggest you check the content warnings regardless, since this is a bit of an intense episode, and contains instances of panic attacks, screaming, and violence. Listener discretion is advised.

AUTOMATED VOICE

[VERY SLOWED DOWN] Please state your message.

[THEME SONG PLAYS.]

VAL

Three-eyed Frog Presents: The Heart of Ether.

[THEME SONG FADES TO A STOP.]

[PHONE BEEP.]

[INT./EXT. OUTSIDE OF LORELEI FOSTER’S HOUSE, DAYTIME.]

[THE SOUND OF A RAVEN CAWING IS HEARD IN THE BACKGROUND.]

AGENT JUNE

Jeez, this place smells like a zoo.

AGENT MAY

I need to introduce the recording. Interview with Lorelei Foster, at her home. Part of Operation Saturn, phase 1.2. Conducted by Agents May and June. All— [CUTTING HIMSELF OFF] June, hey, stay in the car!

[AS HE TALKS, AGENT JUNE IS HEARD OPENING THE CAR DOOR AND STARTING TO STEP OUT.]

AGENT JUNE

What? Come on, dude, I’m getting impatient.

AGENT MAY

We’ll go up to her door in a minute. There’s just—I need to ask you something first.

AGENT JUNE

Oh. Why didn’t you just say so?

[HE CLIMBS BACK INTO THE CAR, CLOSING THE DOOR. AGENT MAY SIGHS.]

AGENT MAY

[SLIGHTLY NERVOUS] You are aware of the case of Lorelei Foster, correct?

AGENT JUNE

Uh, obviously. She was a part of some coven and they all went missing except for her. She moved to this house way outside of town and refused to show her face.

AGENT MAY

Well, under the naming conventions of Valencia and Wood, the Foundation believes that Lorelei Foster is what is known as a “Beastly.” What she could be capable of—it’s not something to play around with. Okay? She could be dangerous. Not deadly, per say, but still potentially devastating in her power.

AGENT JUNE

[PANICKED SARCASM] Wow, that’s super comforting, Agent May.

AGENT MAY

Just don’t say or do anything stupid, alright? Also, if when we see her, she looks, you know, different, don’t comment on it. Act like you don’t even notice.

AGENT JUNE

That’s all? Well, don’t worry about it, then. I’ve never judged a book by its cover. I’ll just stand there and act as well-behaved as I always do.

AGENT MAY

[UNDER HIS BREATH] That’s what I feared.

[THEY BOTH GET OUT OF THE CAR AND WALK UP TO HER FRONT DOOR. IT'S A LOVELY DAY OUTSIDE, WITH BIRDS CHIRPING AS IF NOTHING IS WRONG. AGENT MAY KNOCKS.]

AGENT MAY

Ms. Foster? This is Agents May and June. We’re with the Harper Foundation. We’re here to ask you a few questions.

[A RAVEN CAWS AS THERE IS NO RESPONSE.]

AGENT JUNE

Maybe she’s not home?

AGENT MAY

I don’t believe she ever leaves her house. Look at her car. It’s untouched. I’m sure she even gets her groceries delivered, somehow.

[HE KNOCKS AGAIN.]

AGENT MAY

We do not wish to harm you or bring you into custody, Ms. Foster. We won’t tell anyone what you are or what you’re doing here. We simply believe you may have some helpful insight on Ether. Just let us ask a few things, and then we’ll be out of your way.

[THERE’S A LONG PAUSE.]

AGENT JUNE

Maybe it’s a lost cause. Well, at least we can say we tried. Guess we should just—

[AS HE’S TALKING, THE DOOR CREAKS OPEN JUST A CRACK.]

LORELEI

You do not plan on taking photographs, do you?

AGENT MAY

We’re recording this over audio. Nobody will see your face except for the two of us, we promise.

AGENT JUNE

Yeah, don’t sweat it. We’re not gonna—[STARTLED] Oh my god!

[AS HE SPEAKS, LORELEI OPENS THE DOOR THE REST OF THE WAY TO REVEAL HER TRUE FORM.]

LORELEI

Is there a problem?

AGENT MAY

Not at all, Ms. Foster. Apologizes for my colleague, he is—

AGENT JUNE

[NERVOUSLY BLUFFING] I have a fear of new people. Yup. Terrified of ‘em.

AGENT MAY

[PLAYING ALONG] It’s tragic, really. Makes our job incredibly difficult.

LORELEI

[SUSPICIOUS] Quite.

[A BEAT.] Well, you said you had questions?

AGENT MAY

That we do. May we come in?

LORELEI

I would advise against it. Terrance is a pacifist when around me, but I am unsure of how he would react to new people.

AGENT JUNE

And who is Terrance, exactly?

LORELEI

A bear. [SADLY] Used to be a friend.

[A BEAR GROWLS IN THE BACKGROUND. AGENT JUNE MAKES A WEAK NOISE OF FEAR.]

LORELEI

I am still unsure whether his calm nature is because he maintained his human consciousness, or if I have some level of control over him that makes him do as I wish. Perhaps a mix of both.

AGENT MAY

Did you make him this way?

LORELEI

That much should be obvious, don’t you think? Assuming you really know what you’re talking about, and you’re not just bluffing.

AGENT MAY

We are somewhat familiar with your kind, but we’re always looking to learn more.

LORELEI

[SHE SCOFFS.] Is that what this is? You view me as a learning opportunity? Like a sample dragged in by the biology teacher for lab day?

AGENT MAY

Of course not. We’re just trying to learn more about Ether.

AGENT JUNE

I am very curious about how you managed to do it, though, if you care to indulge us?

[THERE’S A PAUSE.]

LORELEI

[SOLEMN] I never asked for any of this. When we attempted the ritual, our hope was that by the end of it, all of us would obtain the same level of power. Valencia told me it would never work. I had quite the rebellious streak back then, though. I didn’t believe him. Perhaps I should have.

If I had known that all of that power would have been channeled into me, I never would have attempted it. Now that time has passed, I realize how useless of a power it even is. What made Ether decide to curse me with it, I’ll never know. Perhaps we didn’t speak clearly enough when we did the ritual.

I had no idea what my limits were, or how to use my abilities. The consequences, of course, were far greater than I could have ever imagined. Terrance and Abigail were both accidents. Clementine, I turned her into a spider in a fit of rage. Scott happened when I was sobbing my eyes out, and he made the mistake of trying to comfort me. I am unsure if I intended to turn him into a snake or not. By the time River was the only one left, they came to me and asked to be turned into a cat. They said they knew I was bound to do it eventually, and they wanted to choose what animal they became. I did as they wished.

[JUST AS SHE SAYS THAT, A RAVEN FLIES OVER AND SQUAWKS. AGENT JUNE STARTLES, YELPING AT THIS.]

LORELEI

[SHE GIVES A DRY CHUCKLE.] I don’t think Abigail likes you.

AGENT MAY

You mentioned the consequences were far greater than you could have imagined. Was that in reference to the loss of your friends?

LORELEI

Oh, don’t make me say it. It would have been one thing if I simply turned my entire coven into my own little petting zoo. Now, however, I can never escape my own errors, even if I were to leave them all behind. I am forever haunted by the marks my ability has left. The bear paw that has become of my left hand. The raven feathers in my hair. The spider eyes sprawled across my face. The venom that drips from my fangs and burns my lips. And oh, how disappointing having the tail of a cat is, despite how elegant I thought it would be when I was a little girl. Cats used to be my favorite animal. They aren’t anymore.

AGENT MAY

Don’t you think River would take offense to that?

LORELEI

Hm. Perhaps you’re right.

[A CAT MEOWS FROM INSIDE.]

AGENT MAY

How did you access Ether’s power?

LORELEI

The same way I’m sure most people have. We did a ritual. Just as most of them do, it went wrong.

AGENT MAY

Do you know where exactly it went wrong?

[A PAUSE.]

LORELEI

Can I be honest with you? I have had years to think long and hard about the events that transpired that night. I read through our plans over, and over again, hoping to find a way to undo it all. After all of that, I came to the conclusion that whatever fault it was—whatever slip of the tongue or missing ingredient it could have been—none of it would have mattered.

Ether chooses who to favor and who to damn by the luck of a draw. Flip of a coin. It knows no order. It will do what it pleases. It is not a person, or a sentient being—it is a random number generator that can grant unlimited power if you get lucky. It’s a lottery of stones, however. Nobody is ever really winning, even those as fortunate as the Forget-Me-Nots, or those well-off enough to never hear about Ether at all.

[A PAUSE, THEN] Do you have any other questions? I’m rather sure my pets are looking forward to their dinner.

AGENT MAY

Just one: where is the heart of Ether?

[A PAUSE.]

LORELEI

I would be careful, if I were you. I’ve heard things, rumors, about your little project. Though I doubt you fully understand the dangers, seeing as you’re just the worker bees, hm?

AGENT MAY

It’s not my place to question, I’m afraid.

LORELEI

Perhaps you should. Never does anyone any good, blindly following orders.

[AS THEY TALK, RIVER MEOWS, PURRING AS SHE RUBS AGAINST AGENT JUNE'S LEGS.]

AGENT JUNE

[WHISPERING TO THE CAT] Ah—hey! Go away! Shoo!

AGENT MAY

If you could answer the question, I promise we’ll be out of your hair.

LORELEI

Hm. I’m afraid I can’t be of much help. For years, people believed Ether resided in the sky, but that is untrue. Though, during the brief window Valencia was willing to speak to me, he did tell me he had a theory—

[AGENT JUNE CUTS HER OFF BY SNEEZING.]

AGENT JUNE

[MUTTERS] Stupid cat!

[RIVER HISSES.]

LORELEI

[OFFENDED] I would appreciate it if you did not insult my animals.

AGENT JUNE

[CONGESTED] Then tell River to leave me the hell alone. Can’t you control them, or whatever? At least use your freaky powers to—

AGENT MAY

[OVERLAPPING] Agent June—!

AGENT JUNE

I just want this damn—

[THERE’S A TENSE PAUSE AS HE REALIZES LORELEI IS GLARING INTENTLY AT HIM.]

AGENT JUNE

I mean, uh, this lovely cat, to uh…I’m so sorry, ma’am, this has been incredibly rude of me.

LORELEI

[A BEAT.] What was your name, again?

AGENT JUNE

Juh—uh, Agent June?

LORELEI

Agent June. [SHE SAYS THE NAME WITH DISDAIN.] Agent June, do you have a favorite animal, by chance?

AGENT MAY

[WHISPERING, PANICKED] Don’t say anything. Just thank her and let’s go before—

AGENT JUNE

[OVERLAPPING] I don’t know. Uh, have you ever heard of Sonic the Hedgehog?

LORELEI

[MIXED WITH CONFUSION AND DISGUST] Sonic. The Hedgehog.

AGENT JUNE

[NERVOUS RAMBLING] Yeah! I was obsessed with those games growing up, and so I went through this whole phase where I wanted a pet hedgehog really bad, but my parents never let me have one. Said I was too irresponsible, or whatever. That dream kinda, like, carried over into my adult life though?

LORELEI

[NODDING] So, hedgehogs.

AGENT JUNE

Um, sure.

LORELEI

I see.

[A PAUSE.]

LORELEI

I do hope you’re happy with that choice, Agent June.

[A HIGH-PITCHED RINGING IS HEARD AS SHE REACHES HER HAND OUT. AGENT JUNE STARTS SPUTTERING IN FEAR.]

[EERIE AND TENSE MUSIC BEGINS TO PLAY.]

AGENT JUNE

[TERRIFIED] What the—?

AGENT MAY

Shit.

[AGENT MAY IS HEARD PULLING OUT A DART GUN AND SHOOTING A TRANQUILIZER DART AT LORELEI. SHE CRIES OUT A BIT, BEFORE STUMBLING, AND THEN COLLAPSING.]

AGENT JUNE

Did you just tranquilize her?

AGENT MAY

I didn’t have a choice. Come on, get in the car. The full effect only lasts forty-five seconds.

[THEY BOTH FRANTICALLY CLIMB INTO THE CAR, SLAMMING THE DOORS AS THEY GET IN.]

AGENT MAY

Are you okay? Did she change you at all?

AGENT JUNE

[HYPERVENTILATING] No, no! But it—this really weird feeling washed over me, like, like my body was trying to fit into a smaller one, I—that was the worst thing I’ve ever felt, oh my god.

AGENT MAY

[ATTEMPTING TO SOOTHE] Agent June, calm down. You’re safe now, okay?

AGENT JUNE

Yeah, only because of you. You just saved my life. I mean, technically, I would have survived, but I would have had to live out the rest of my days as a hedgehog!

AGENT MAY

[FRUSTRATED] Maybe if you had been able to hold your damn tongue for thirty seconds, this wouldn’t have happened.

[AS HE TALKS, AGENT MAY STARTS THE CAR AND SPEEDS AWAY, THE TIRES SQUEALING.]

AGENT JUNE

I’m sorry I was having an allergic reaction!

AGENT MAY

That’s no excuse for you to have said the things you did. I told you to keep it together.

AGENT JUNE

Stop trying to blame all of this on me. I don’t care if it’s my fault, I almost just lost my humanity. Do you know how horrifying that was?

AGENT MAY

[HE INHALES SHARPLY.] No, you’re right. You’re not entirely to blame for what just happened.

If only she had at least finished her sentence about Valencia’s theory.

AGENT JUNE

[GUILTILY] Yeah, that was pretty poor timing, huh?

AGENT MAY

We’ll find out one way or another. Might have to go back to Irene Gray.

AGENT JUNE

Ah yes, the other enemy we’ve made in this town.

AGENT MAY

I guess we’re going to have to find a way to change that, then. [A BEAT.] Turn off the recording, please.

[SOME SHUFFLING AS AGENT JUNE MOVES TO TURN THE RECORDER OFF.]

[PHONE BEEP.]

[RECORDING ENDS.]

[ANOTHER BEEP.]

[EXT. LEMONGRASS PARK, NIGHT.]

[IRENE IS SITTING IN HER CAR. THERE ARE CRICKETS HEARD IN THE BACKGROUND.]

IRENE

I’m parked in front of Lemongrass Park. To be honest, I’ve never actually been here, even though it’s so close to my house. It’s small, but it’s a nice park. There’s a swing set, a seesaw, one of those metal slides that would always burn my skin during the summer. Some nice trees, too.

[REMINISCING] Do you remember when we would go to the park late at night? It was really stupid of us to go there after dark, honestly, it’s a miracle nothing ever happened. Well, I mean, you did hurt your leg that one time you fell off the swing, which I still feel bad about. It felt so serene, though. Like we were the only people in the world. We were still clinging onto our childhood innocence, and you, you were so fond of that park near your house, and I was so fond of the way you laughed. You’ll love this park, too, I think, if you ever get to see it. You always loved places where—

Wait, hold on, I think—I think Sadie’s waving at me. She’s sitting over on one of the swings. At least, I think it’s her? Not quite what I expected her to look like, but then again, I don’t know what I was expecting. She’s wearing all black, and has a striped shirt underneath her t-shirt, even though it’s hot as hell. Is this how emo kids dress these days? I think Aden said something about “e-girls” or something. [SHE SCOFFS.] Jeez, I need to start keeping track of these things. I feel so old.

She’s also wearing a black fabric surgical mask, with a white design? I’ve hardly seen people wear those outside of the medical profession—I mean, there was one time, but that was an outlier. [SHE SAYS THIS PART UNCOMFORTABLY BECAUSE THIS IS REFERRING BACK TO THE FIRST TRAILER.]

It must be her, though. Otherwise, why would she be waving at me? I have the box of film in the passenger’s seat. Avery and I talked today, and they were incredibly vocal about how bad of an idea this was, but they said I’m an adult and can make my own choices.

Avery is…well. I think they have good intentions at heart. They act indifferent all the time, and they’re incredibly mature, but they seem…I don’t know. Sometimes, there’s this, fear, maybe? That bleeds through when they speak. I think they try to hide it. Reminds me they’re still, technically, a kid.

Right, I feel kinda awkward sitting here while Sadie is staring at me. Guess I should get this over with.

[IRENE GRABS THE BOX OF FILM AND STEPS OUT OF HER CAR. SHE WALKS TOWARDS SADIE. WHENEVER SADIE TALKS, HER VOICE IS JUST SLIGHTLY MUFFLED.]

SADIE

[FROM AFAR] Irene, right?

IRENE

Yup!

SADIE

Wonderful!

[SADIE WALKS OVER TO IRENE.]

SADIE

I’ll take that.

[SHE'S HEARD TAKING THE CARDBOARD BOX FROM IRENE.]

SADIE

Looks heavy! How many photos did you take?

IRENE

[HANDING THE BOX OFF] Thank you, uh, I didn’t take these, though.

SADIE

I see. That’s a bummer. I thought I’d met a person of similar passions.

IRENE

Sorry to disappoint.

SADIE

Don’t stress it! Where did you get the film, then?

IRENE

[LYING] It’s from one of my dead relatives.

SADIE

Mm. Sorry to hear that.

IRENE

It was a while ago, so it's okay.

SADIE

They sure took lots of photos. Do you have any idea what they photographed?

IRENE

No clue.

SADIE

Well, I’ll do my best to get this developed. I’m staying with my uncle for part of the summer, and he never uses his dark room, so I have it all to myself. You know, he has this massive house, spends lots of money on rooms he never uses every time he gets a new hobby.

IRENE

Odd he chose Daughtler of all places to stick it.

SADIE

You know, that’s what I said! My professor went green with envy when I told her about it, though. She said this is a perfect town to take pictures.

IRENE

You’re a student, then?

SADIE

Yup! Majoring in photography, in case that wasn’t already clear. [SHE GIGGLES.]

Anyways, I’ll try to get this developed for you as quickly as possible. It may take a while, ‘cause there’s so much of it, so would you like me to give it to you in batches?

IRENE

That would be great, yeah. Um, thank you. Are you sure I can’t pay you?

SADIE

Oh, please, don’t worry about it. Like I said, I’m just thankful for the opportunity.

So, any other questions for me? I’m happy to answer them.

IRENE

Um, I have a bit of a weird one.

SADIE

Hm?

IRENE

Why are you wearing a surgical mask? Is it, like, a germ thing, or are you sick?

[THERE’S A PAUSE.]

SADIE

I should go get started on this.

IRENE

Um, you didn’t—

SADIE

[AGGRESSIVELY CUTTING HER OFF] Pleasure working with you, Irene! I’ll get back to you about your first batch ASAP!

IRENE

[TAKEN ABACK] Oh. Okay, then. Um, bye.

SADIE

Later!

[IRENE WALKS TO HER CAR AND CLIMBS BACK INSIDE. THERE'S A PAUSE.]

IRENE

Well, that was interesting, for lack of a better term. Sadie seems fine? I guess I just got a bit too personal with the mask thing. I mean, if it makes her feel comfortable, I don’t see why she can’t wear it. I’ll try not to worry about it. As long as she can develop the photos, that’s what matters.

Though I am kind of worried. I mean, Valencia could have taken, well, suspicious photos, assuming they’re connected to his research. I have no idea. I guess we just have to hope? Sadie seems pretty okay with minding her own business, it seems, so if I’m lucky, she won’t question it.

[HER PHONE STARTS VIBRATING.]

IRENE

Oh, hang on. Avery is calling me.

[A BEEP AS SHE ANSWERS.]

IRENE

Hello?

AVERY

Just making sure you didn’t get murdered.

[AS AVERY TALKS, THERE IS THE SOUND OF MASHING VIDEO GAME CONTROLLER BUTTONS AND JOYSTICKS.]

IRENE

[SHE SCOFFS.] Well, I didn’t. Sadie was fine. You really had nothing to be worried about.

AVERY

[DISTRACTED] I mean, it’s still a really bad idea to be meeting someone in the park this late. Daughtler is a small town, but even if we don’t have much of a problem with normal creeps, weird stuff is still kind of the norm, you know?

IRENE

Yeah, I’ve gathered that much, I—wait, hang on, are you playing video games right now?

AVERY

Dude, it’s just Stardew Valley. It’s not like I’m fighting anything.

[A RAVEN CAWS FROM THE GAME.]

IRENE

[AWKWARDLY] I don’t know what that is.

AVERY

That’s because you’re old.

IRENE

Hey.

AVERY

[OVEREXAGGERATED, FAKE] Ah no, I just got attacked! I gotta hang up, sorry Irene!

IRENE

You just said there’s no—

[AVERY HANGS UP.]

IRENE

[DEFEATED] …combat.

[SHE HUFFS.] Talk to you later, I guess.

[PHONE BEEP.]

[RECORDING ENDS.]

[ANOTHER BEEP.]

[INT. THE APARTMENT ABOVE THE OPEN EYES BOOKSTORE, NIGHT. A BUDGIE IS OCCASIONALLY HEARD CHIRPING OR FLAPPING ITS WINGS IN THE BACKGROUND THROUGHOUT THE SCENE.]

[HOLLY IS HEARD SORTING THROUGH A GROCERY BAG AND SETTING THINGS ON THE COUNTER.]

HOLLY

Is it recording?

PHOEBE

Yes, it is.

HOLLY

Cool, cool. I got eggs, by the way. I know you talked about wanting to try to make pie at some point, and you were running low, so.

PHOEBE

[SLIGHTLY OVERLAPPING] Oh, um, thank you! Um, why were you out so late, anyways?

HOLLY

Hm? Oh, just a nighttime stroll.

PHOEBE

[WARY] I see.

[HOLLY WALKS OVER, AND SITS ON THE COUCH NEXT TO PHOEBE.]

HOLLY

Alright, then. You have the next letter? I guess all that’s left to do is open it.

[THERE'S A PAUSE AS HOLLY HESITATES.]

HOLLY

You sure you’re okay with me being in the room for this? I know her letters to you were, well, personal.

PHOEBE

It’s okay, don’t worry. I—I trust you. I’m sure Grandma Doe would, too.

HOLLY

[TENDERLY] That…that means a lot.

[A BEAT.] Go ahead, then.

[PHOEBE OPENS THE LETTER.]

PHOEBE

Phoebe, If you are reading this, I assume you have successfully completed the ritual. If it was not a success, well, I have a separate envelope marked for you to read. I suggest you find it.

HOLLY

Almost want to read the other one just to see what it says.

PHOEBE

[UNSETTLED] I don’t think that’s a good idea. If the alternative was that bad, well. I don’t want to think about what could have happened to me.

HOLLY

Fair, yeah. Continue.

PHOEBE

[SHE CLEARS HER THROAT.] If everything worked as well as I hope, then you have now stepped into your role as a Forget-Me-Not. I could not be more proud of you, little wildflower. What a lovely Forget-Me-Not you will be.

I have already warned you of some of the dangers, but now that this is your reality, I am going to begin to describe it all in more detail in order to prepare you. It is nothing I have not already mentioned in previous letters, however.

Now, let us start from the beginning: why did I name them the Forget-Me-Nots? Valencia thought it to be a rotten name. Too flowery, he said it was, too delicate. I believe it to be a sophisticated name. Better than the Hungry, or whatever other titles he’s come up with.

HOLLY

The hell is the Hungry?

PHOEBE

Um, I’m not sure. I’m sure we’ll find out?

HOLLY

Let’s hope.

PHOEBE

It goes on: Anyways, I called them the Forget-Me-Nots because it is not just about their quest for new knowledge. It is about the knowledge they already have. Sure, they know where to find any and all information, but what about that which is already within them? A Forget-Me-Not cannot forget anything. Even the tiniest detail, they will cling onto for the rest of their life. I still remember what I ordered at an Italian restaurant twenty-seven years ago. It was some mediocre chicken parmesan. The sauce was a bit too bitter for my taste, but I went back there because they had delightful breadsticks.

However, this is a double-edged sword. It is not just new information you will begin to retain. If only it was that simple. A Forget-Me-Not also remembers all which has happened before. This includes all of your life up to this point, from your early childhood, to more recent events.

When I chose you to be my predecessor, this is what I dreaded most. Your mother and I always considered it to be a blessing in disguise that you did not remember much of your childhood. I know you are aware of what happened, but the specifics are far worse than I think you’ve ever processed. I would not wish memories of that horrid time upon anyone, especially you. Your poor mother, my dear Agnes, she lives through them every day.

You may be forced to confront some of the memories of your father. The sick, rotten, vile man he was. I am eternally grateful I was able to save you from some suffering when you were a child, though I am deeply remorseful for all your mother put herself through. I wish I could be there to walk you through it all, to comfort you as you remember, but the circumstances are not in my favor.

You are stronger than you give yourself credit for, however, and you do not have to do it alone. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your mother if you find yourself needing the support. You could also talk to a friend—I’m assuming you have an abundance of those, you’re far too charming and sweet to not have any. Like I’ve said, isolation will only drain you of all you are. Nothing about this process will be easy, but I would not put you through it if I did not believe you could handle it.

Take your work slowly. Do not rush into it. Allow your mind to process the—

[PHOEBE SUDDENLY STOPS TALKING. THERE’S A LONG PAUSE.]

HOLLY

[A MIX OF CONFUSED AND CONCERNED] Phoebe?

PHOEBE

I— [A PAUSE, THEN] Sorry, sorry. Sorry. It’s just. [SHE TRAILS OFF.]

HOLLY

Is something wrong?

PHOEBE

Th—the letter, it’s just, um, got me thinking, I guess. About my father.

HOLLY

[CAUTIOUS] How much do you remember of him?

PHOEBE

[SHE GIVES A SHAKY CHUCKLE.] Oh, I’m trying to avoid that train of thought. I’m scared it will all come flowing in at once.

HOLLY

Oh, right, yeah. Try not to focus too much on it, okay?

PHOEBE

No, I’m okay, I just—I remember bits of it. More vividly, now, than I did before.

[WHAT FOLLOWS IS THE AFOREMENTIONED DESCRIPTION OF CHILD ABUSE. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.]

PHOEBE

Have you seen the stuffed cow sitting on my bed? It’s so old and worn, but it’s one of the most precious things I own. Its name is Baby. It’s, um, a silly name, I know. I used to play pretend with it, though, and act like I was its mother. I cradled it, pretended to feed it. So I named it Baby. [A BEAT, THEN] I didn’t remember why I named it that until now.

My dad hated Baby, though. He hated that I was so attached to a stuffed cow, of all things. He would constantly use Baby to threaten me, holding his ability to take it away over my head, because he knew that was a quick way to make me upset. If it was his choice, I’m sure he would have destroyed it. Not sure why he never did.

One day, when he was in a bad mood, and my mom was at work, I hid Baby inside my closet. He stormed into my room, and demanded for me to give it to him. I lied and said I had no idea where Baby was, but of course he didn’t believe me. He tore through my room, ignoring my pleas for him to stop, until he found Baby and took it away. I was forced to clean up the mess he made before my mom got home.

When she did get home, I instantly went and hugged her legs tightly and sobbed. I told her that Daddy had taken Baby away, and ruined my room. She asked me to take her to my room, so I did, only to find Baby sitting on the bed, staring right back at me.

My dad came in. “Of course I didn’t take the stupid toy,” he said. “She probably just misplaced it.” My mom didn’t argue. I was outraged. How could she believe him? Looking back, however, she knew something was wrong. I know she did. Even as a kid, I could read it on her face. He didn’t give her a choice, though.

[A BEAT.] He let me keep Baby, at least. Though he warned me not to try to tell mom what he did ever again. Otherwise, he would be very upset with me.

[A WET CHUCKLE.] And I didn’t even face the worst of it. I would spend days, weeks even, here with Grandma Doe when my dad was especially bad. That’s why her and I were so close, and why I didn’t remember so much of what my dad did. My mom had to endure most of it, though. That is, until she was finally able to get a divorce. He was arrested for a few years, I never learned what for, but I hope it was for the right reasons. When he got out, my mom got a restraining order against him.

The last time I saw him was my eighth birthday. He didn’t get me anything.

[THERE'S A LONG PAUSE.]

HOLLY

I’m going to kill him.

PHOEBE

[NERVOUS CHUCKLE] I—I appreciate you caring, but—

HOLLY

[A BIT TOO ANGRY] No. I mean it. If he’s still alive, I’ll kill him.

PHOEBE

[SLIGHTLY STARTLED] I don’t know if he’s still alive. I mean, it’s not like I’ve made an effort to reach out to him, heh.

HOLLY

[A PAUSE, THEN, SINCERE AND EMOTIONAL] I’m so sorry.

PHOEBE

It—It’s okay! Really. I promise. It was a long time ago. It’s just…I’m not sure how much I’m going to remember. As time goes on. I mean, I’m sure I would have been forced to confront my childhood eventually, this is just kind of speeding up the process.

HOLLY

You can always come to me, you know. If it gets to be too much.

PHOEBE

I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, Holly. Really.

HOLLY

Of course. Anything I can do. [A PAUSE.] Would a hug be okay?

PHOEBE

[SHE TAKES A SHAKY BREATH.] A hug would be nice.

[THERE ARE FABRIC RUSTLES AS THEY ARE HEARD EMBRACING.]

[PHONE BEEP.]

[RECORDING ENDS.]

AUTOMATED VOICE

Today's quote is: "In every couple there is one who is the historian of the relationship."

Susan Sontag in Reborn: Journals and Notebooks, 1947-1963.

[OUTRO MUSIC AND CREDITS PLAY.]

[AT THE END OF THE CREDITS, THERE IS A BRIEF, HIGH-PITCHED RINGING NOISE, THAT BEGINS TO BREAK UP BEFORE STOPPING ABRUPTLY.]

[kat-hawke]

Inquisitive Acquaintances

(Following [Change of Plans])

Sea birds called to one another in the distance, circling overhead and lining up along the stone ledges of buildings and walls. The normal bustle of dockworkers and overseers competing in the cacophony of the busy harbor, the occasional bell and sound of the tides claiming the moments between. A gentle breeze rolled over the stone pathways and overlooks, the raven tresses that cascaded around the Director’s face flowing with the air as it passed by.

Leaning forward her weight rest in the elbows which propped on the knees, legs parted just enough for the hands to hang in the space between, fingers picking at the skin around the nails as she anxiously awaited the Arcanist’s arrival. She was tired, physically and mentally, and it was visible. Dark bags hung beneath the vibrant ambers, the facial features thinning faintly. So lost her own thoughts she nearly missed the woman call.

"Director Hawke.” Valerie’s tone was stiff, but not hostile.

"Valerie." Kat replied just as stiff, and neutral in tone.

"Thank you again for making the time to do this.” With a crease forming between her brows the Arcanist took a seat at the opposite end of the bench. “Shall I get immediately to brass tacks?"

"Ya' have an hour, so..." Fingers ceased their anxious picking, one hand lifting in a mock shrug that required little energy. It was preferred that they proceed right to the point of the meeting, the pair had a history of turning hostile in the blink of an eye. 

Valerie's eyes narrowed with a soft hum in acknowledgement. "An hour then. Well. The obvious question is, do you know where Alyssa is?"

She knew that question was coming and despite how much she tried to mentally prepare her self for it, hearing it aloud sent a pain across her heart. Eyes slowly shut as a deep inhale was taken through the nostrils, steadying herself to not break as she had time and time again at him. Speaking softly as she opened her eyes, looking at the ground between them she answered.

"I wish I did." It wasn’t an outright lie.

"She just left?"  Val shook her head slightly, then glanced askance to the space next to the Director.  "Apologies, but that seems out of character, even leaving the fire aside."

Shaking her head as she drew another long breath, She knew Valerie wouldn’t leave it at that. "We were supposed t'have dinner. Her turn t'cook," she begins to explain, gaze shifting to the sea below. "Went up t'her place and found, well, likely th'same ya' did. Found th'dog restin' under the nearby tree." Bending the truth, she placed the events in the wrong order.

Val's eyes flicked downward momentarily.  "He's good at staying put," she finally said, tone still neutral. "But - when?  When did all of this happen?"

"A while ago, before Winter Veil." Tone still soft, she peered over towards the woman. She knew better than to give a specific time frame. "I've been run ragged with work and still rake m'self over th'coals searching for answers. Ya'll have t'excuse my lack of exact time recollection."

"I tried to scry her when I went up there after the New Year, thought it would give me something, but all I got was static." A brief pause before the Arcanist pressed further. "There was nothing left at the scene that was useful?  In the ash, or leading away?"

"Nothin' that I could find. No. Just that....thing in her backyard. I stood there fer over an hour just starin' at it, hoping it would spark t'life and she'd come walkin' out of it. But—" Kat’s shoulders lifted in a weak and shallow shrug. "No such luck. M'assumin' yer aware of her magical—" She searched for a different word than what came to mind. "Practices."

"I am."  Val pursed her lips in thought, glancing in Kat’s direction. "But do you think that is related, or somehow the root cause? The house burnt down when a series of wards were tripped, many of which were arcane in nature."

That was unexpected, the information of arcane being present enough to push the Director’s brows together. “Arcane? I had assumed th'destruction was fel related, considerin'...” Trailing off she shook her head, finally answering Valerie’s question.

"Well. Isn't it always related with practitioners of such..." A faint hint of disapproval touched her words.

“I helped her ward her house when she moved in. Some of them - the wards - were modified when I looked at them post-fire, others were new.  Again though - is it her magical predilections you suspect are behind her disappearance?"

It began to feel as if they were going in circles and annoyance started to fester. Taking another deep breath she calmed the growing emotion, the tongue clicking against teeth before speaking, shifting her attention to Valerie. "Can't help but suspect that, no? Maybe that's wron' of me to assume. I can't help but shake th'feelin' that the level o' corruption could have caught up. Maybe it was worse than we could see on th'surface.”

The tail end of her sentence nearly caused her voice to crack, aware now of how truthful it was. But she remained disciplined, of all the people she could let emotions slip in front of, Valerie was not among them.

“Demons don't come, carry someone off, and leave no trace."  Val pursed her lips a moment, then shook her head.  "Hellfire doesn't leave behind a burnt house but no body, and it doesn't leave behind dogs. Since the Dread Gate was long dead, and I saw neither footsteps nor a body...?" Shoulders bounced in a small shrug.  "I can only assume it's another option."

"Yer assumin' foul play then?" Kat’s gaze settled on the Arcanist, peering as if searching for answers.

"I don't know.  I never thought she was the type to run away, so... what other explanation is there?"

With a low hum the Director’s lips pursed her lips and cast her gaze to the harbor below. It was clear Valerie wasn’t going to let it go, not that she could blame her, especially since she knew if the situations were reversed she’d stop at nothing to get answers. Something needed to be offered, with a soft exhale she spoke up.

"I'd be lyin' t'say it hadn't crossed m'mind either. She mentioned someone last we spoke, Remy. No' a name I'm familiar with. I wouldn' doubt she had plenty of enemies either, all things considered.” Fingers began to pick idly again as they hung lazily between the legs. "I just... I miss her."

"Remy? He was an ex of Alyssa's. The one before the Gilnean fellow that went off to war, before... you. I don't know that I'd call any of them her enemy, but. I've never known her in that way. You two were together for some time, right?"

Kat could feel her walls starting to wane now that Valerie was prodding at their relationship. Regret and guilt threatened to well up if she hadn’t pushed it down with the quick mental reminder she needed to return to work after this.

"About a year, yeah. But we kept our secrets, which I doubt comes as a surprise. Communication was neither of our stronger suits, even after all th'time. We'd just avoid certain topics, skirt around possible issues, and ignore th' more...hot button topics. Such as magical practices."

With that Val gave her own soft hum, looking for a moment to the amethyst which hung from the cord about her wrist. "It's... communication's difficult but necessary for any relationship to work long term.  Her magic seems to have very much bothered you."

A chuckle and scoff mixed as the Director shook her head faintly, hoping this wouldn't turn into a counseling. "About as much as my magic bothered her at time. We had our moments though, but I doubt ya' came out here just to dissect our relationship."

"I didn't, that's true.  But when there's a mystery at hand, you piece together the whole from its disparate parts.  I say, talking to someone who deals in mysteries."  The very corners of Valerie’s lips turn upward ever faintly, to Kat’s disbelief.

"My mysteries are, usually, more straight forward." Her own lips dropped, pursing to one side. "Unfortunately a missing persons falls to the guard, nor could I officially be involved in a investigation because of our relationship. Conductin' an unofficial one on m'own would only bring consequences."

"Well...It's lucky, then, that not all of us are thusly bound." 

The city bell sounded on the half-hour mark, drawing the attention of both women for a moment before Valerie inquired further.

"Tell me what you've done so far."

"Looked over the ruins of th' cottage, recovered Dog, kept on eye on the places she frequented just in case. There's a....former associate who is known to scry. Reached out t'collect a favor, but the results were nothin'."

"And the guards?  Have they been alerted?" The Arcanist pressed.

"I submitted a report on the destruction of the cottage, wot eva they did after that- I don' know." A half truth. She filled out a report but filed it herself under an alias.

There was silence between them for a moment before Valerie dragged her gaze to the Director. "Two things, then.  First - whatever is between us aside, Alyssa was a very dear friend to me.  I want to get to the bottom of this.  Will you accept my help?"

Turning her attention the other woman Kat stared for a moment in surprise, having expected her to sling some sort of accusation. "I know she was a dear friend t'ya' Val. I loved her, and want her back just as badly. But I don't know how I can help, I can't put m'career at risk again."

"I'm not asking how and whether you can help.  I'm asking whether you'll accept mine."  Valerie’s expression was neutral, voice steady and matter-of-fact.

Several nods followed, shallow at first but growing in volume as she wrestled back another wave of emotion. She didn’t expect to admit her love aloud, and doubly so to the present company. "Yeah- yes. I just, I'll do woteva t'get her back."

Try as she might her tone still cracked faintly as she spoke. There was no rouse here, no lie or misguided statement to lead the Arcanist. She wanted the warlock to return in some capacity, dreading going back to find the vacant dagger.

"That brings me to two..." Valerie inhaled sharply as she eyed the Director, searching for words before her jaw shut, teeth clicking softly  "Mm.  Nevermind." Rising to her feet she glanced down at the raven haired woman.  "You should get some lunch while you still have a break."

Blinking rapidly she watched the woman stand, confusion drowning out any other emotion as raven brows pulled together. “Ya’ sure?” 

Standing as she spoke her hands brushed against the dress pants, smoothing them out before tugging the bottom of the blazer to fit firmly once again.  Nodding with a quiet clear of the throat. "Yer right, I probably should. Haven't eaten anythin' at all today."

"I'm sure.  Save your health.  And in the meantime..."  Valerie’s attention turned to the far side of the docks as she readied herself to leave. "There's a small shack near the shipyard; it's run down and has words graffiti'd down the side of it - caution: sea monsters, if memory serves. If there's anything you need to leave to make it easier to work - evidence, notes, whatever - leave it there."

Following the woman’s gaze to the mentioned location Kat responded with a shallow nod and stifled hum in acknowledgement. With a few short words to arrange for the collection of the Arcanist’s canine companion they parted ways.

[ @the-real-arcanist-val​ ] [ Mentions/Relevant: @alyssa-ward​ ]

[rose-gold-romantic]

What Heroes Do: Chapter Eight

A Loki x reader that takes place during Thor: Ragnarok. Follow-up fic to Tesseract and Lokasenna .

I WOULD LOVE FEEDBACK! Want to be tagged in updates? Let me know!

@malignentmac @fandomsfanman @i-am-supermerwholoked221b@markusstraya @lafayettes-baguettes-1 @pandaqua​

I stayed the night with Val, trying to figure out how we would keep the God of Thunder safe while still remaining unseen. No plan we could come up with seemed to be working, and we grew increasingly frustrated. When the dawn rose the next day, Val took me back to my room, only to find that Loki was no longer there.

He had turned over my note, writing that he had to attend the match that evening with the Grandmaster himself, and that I would have to stay with Val for the time being. I grabbed my short sword, tying the sheath securely to my belt just in case.

When night came, Val went to go get more drinks for the match. I sat anxiously in her ship, pacing and hoping that Thor would survive. When Val returned, we took off into the air, hovering above the ring to watch the match from a safe distance. Val and I sat on the edge of her cockpit, with Val popping the cap off of her first drink for the night.

A giant hologram of the Grandmaster appeared, his jubilance obvious. “Wow! Look at all of you!” His voice echoed through the arena, the crowd roaring in response. “What a show! What a night! Who’s having fun?” The crowd cheered, waving flags and screaming their approval. “Please, I’m your host. Big round of applause for all of our undercard competitors, who today died so gruesomely. Good sports! What a show! What a night! This is what you’ve come for, and so have I.” The Grandmaster continued, his hologram gesturing around. “And now, without further ado, it’s main event time. Making his first appearance, though he looks quite promising, got a couple tricks up his sleeve. I’ll say no more, see what you think. Ladies and gentlemen, I give to you, Lord of Thunder!”

The crowd turned, their applause turning to shouts of disapproval, their booing echoing. Thor walked out onto the field, his long hair cut haphazardly and red paint in two stripes down his face.

“Watch out for his fingers, they make sparks.” the Grandmaster added, “Ok, this is it. Let’s get ready to welcome this guy. Here he comes.”

At the Grandmaster’s words, green smoke bombs blew up around the arena, covering the stadium in a green powdery haze.

“He is a creature. What can we say about him?” The Grandmaster continued, “Well, he’s unique. There’s none like him. I feel a special connection with him. He’s undefeated. He’s the reigning. He’s the defending. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… your Incredible…” the Grandmaster trailed off as the Hulk burst into the arena, his armor clanking as he waved around a giant hammer and axe.

Thor stood staring at the Hulk for a moment, before shouting out in joy.

“YES!!” he exclaimed, loud enough for even Val and I to hear. The crowd quieted, only to be re-energized by the Hulk grandstanding.

Thor pointed up to the Grandmaster’s booth, the Hulk following his gaze. Looking back to Thor, the crowd began to chant Hulk’s name, setting off more green chalk bombs. The Hulk stared at Thor for a moment, before charging at him, Thor narrowly dodging the green monster’s giant hammer. Thor tried to parry the Hulk’s blows, only to be thrown into a wall, creating a giant crater in the steel.

Thor slowly emerged, yanking the Hulk’s hammer out of the wall with him, landing a nice blow on the Hulk’s face. The hit sent the Hulk sliding against the wall of the arena, tearing up the siding as he went. Thor approached the Hulk slowly, reaching out and trying to talk. For a moment, it seemed as if the Hulk was going to stop fighting, reaching out to Thor’s outstretched hand.

It was all a ruse, however, and the Hulk grabbed Thor by his feet, throwing him against the ground several times before tossing him across the arena. The Hulk ran over, trying to hit Thor with his axe, but missing narrowly as Thor smacked him across the face with the giant hammer.  Things looked very good for Thor, until the Hulk grabbed the hammer, stopping Thor’s blow dead in its tracks. With a swing of his arm, Hulk sent Thor sailing, jumping to meet Thor as he landed on his back. The Hulk landed blow after blow, Thor helpless to get up from the onslaught. I looked away, my heart falling through my shoes. I looked back just in time to see Thor’s helm fall off, the Hulk continuing to mercilessly beat him into the ground. Suddenly, Thor’s body was covered in electricity, his eyes glowing bright blue as he threw one single punch up towards the Hulk, hitting him with an enormous crack of lightning.

The Hulk flew back, landing feet away as Thor stood and reveled in his newfound power. The Hulk regained his footing, bracing for a fist fight. He and Thor ran at each other, leaping into the air with fists poised to punch. Thor landed his blow first, another massive lightning strike accompanying it. The impact was enough to send a wave outwards, the crowd beginning to chant in Thor’s favor.

“Thunder! Thunder! Thunder!” the crowd roared, Thor approaching the slowly rising Hulk. Just before they met again, Thor stopped sparking, immediately dropping to the ground limp. The crowd made their dissatisfaction known, booing as loud as they could. Val sighed and rolled her eyes, moving to pilot her ship once more.

“What just happened??” I asked, “Why did he just drop like that?”

“The Grandmaster activated his obedience disc.” she sighed, finishing off her bottle. “Can’t have anyone beating his precious Champion, I guess.”

“So now what do we do?” I said, running a hand through my hair.

“Now, I go back to my life.” She said, “No use pretending that I would have done anything else anyway. I’ll take you back to your room.”

I laid down in bed, Loki still out with the Grandmaster. I was barely conscious when he walked in, silently making his way through the room as a shimmer of green light changed him into his sleeping clothes. He laid in the bed, moving over to place an arm over me, nuzzling his face into my neck.

“Sleep well, my love.” he whispered, his voice all that I needed to be lulled into a deep sleep.

We didn’t wake until well into the next day, deciding to lay low in our room as much as possible. It seemed Thor was fine, actually sharing a room with Dr. Banner as the Grandmaster’s favorite fighters.

“How are we going to leave now?” I asked, “Thor has an obedience disc implanted, the Grandmaster has no intention of ever letting him go, and we’re stuck here because we have no ship to leave with!”

“I’m still not entirely sure it’s safe for us to leave yet.” Loki answered, looking up from his book. “For all we know, Hela has already destroyed Asgard, or, Thanos is already on his way for me, and the Tesseract. I can’t let him have that, especially with the energy still residing within you.”

I sighed, reluctantly seeing his point of view. My mind was a tangled mess of thoughts, trying to sort out how we could leave. I might be able to convince Val to leave with us, but her insistence on not leaving, not digging up her past, made the chances of that extremely small.

The next day, the outlook was not any brighter. I was about to leave to ask Val about her thoughts when Loki was summoned to meet the Grandmaster. I came along, though not even Loki knew about it this time. I kept invisible, following with the lightest footsteps I could muster, holding my sword against my side so that it would make no noise.

Loki and Val both came up to the Grandmaster, his expression solemn and vaguely angry.

“I’m upset!” Grandmaster called out, “I’m very upset. You know what I like about being upset? The blame. And right now, that’s the mindset that I’m in. And you know who I’m blaming?”

“Grandmaster, I can-” Loki began, trying to appease the man in front of us.

“Hey! Don’t interrupt me!” the Grandmaster insisted, his bodyguard handing him a long staff. “Why are you handing me the melt stick? He was interrupting, that’s not a capital violation! Where was I? Oh.. My precious Champion has come up missing, and it’s all because of that Lord of Thunder. It’s all because of him. Your brother. Whatever the story is. Adopted, or complicated, or you know. I’m sure there’s a big history.” The Grandmaster said to Loki.

“And your Contender.” he said, turning to point to Val.

“My dear friend,” Loki said, “If you were to give me 12 hours, I could bring them both back to you alive.”

“I could do it in two.” Val countered.

“I could do it in one.” Loki said, still trying to top Val’s offer.

“Let’s stop there.” Grandmaster sighed. “You know what? I woke up this morning thinking about a public execution. But for now, I’ll settle for this sweet little, ‘Who’s going to get him first?’. So.. uh… well, you’re on the clock.” He waved Loki and Val out, and I followed them as closely as I could without raising suspicion.

“What have you done?” Loki asked Val as we left the Grandmaster’s room.

“I don’t answer to you, Lackey.” Val snapped.

Loki stopped, grabbing Val’s wrist. “It’s Loki.” he corrected. “And you will answer to the Grandmaster.”

Val broke out of Loki’s grasp, countering every next grab he attempted to make, ending with a solid hit to the face.

Loki drew his blades, holding one up. “Why would you help my brother escape with that green fool, but not (Y/N), who you seem so fond of?”

“I don’t help anyone.” Val responded, her own knife drawn. “I do as I’m asked by the Grandmaster, and I keep my head down.”

Val feigned an attack, and Loki reciprocated, their duel drawing no blood. Loki managed to hold her still for a moment, eying the tattoo on her forearm.

“You’re a Valkyrie.” Loki said, mouth agape. He disarmed the hand that he held, but it didn’t stop Val from working her way around him, kicking him into a wall. “I thought the Valkyrie had all died gruesome deaths.”

“Choose your next words wisely.” Val said, holding him against the wall with her knee.

I approached, prepared to separate them if needed, not wishing this fight to get any more intense.

“I’m terribly sorry,” Loki said, staring straight into Val’s eyes as I came up, releasing my invisibility spell. “Must be a very painful memory.” He added, raising a hand up to Val’s forehead as I tried to grab his arm.

I was locked in place, my eyes seeing Hela in front of me as if I was there. Hundreds of dead warriors lay dead all around me, their pegasi laying with them in the mud. A single Valkyrie stood in front of me, blocking the Hela’s final blade that had been meant for Val.

The vision lifted as Val was thrown back, and we all three stood gasping for air in the hallway. Val sat up, turning before I could stop her to kick Loki down.

“If (Y/N) didn’t care about you, I’d kill you now.” she said, settling instead to knock him out.

“And you!” she said, her breathing still heavy from the reliving of her memories. “Where did you come from? Did you see any of that?”

I nodded, “I saw all of it. I’ve been following you both this whole time.”

“Help me get him to my room.” She growled. “I have to go find that oaf and the Hulk.”

[brassikarts]

Continued from: https://thesistersdastorio.tumblr.com/post/173046315371/interlude-2

(OOC note: this was written, in a large part, with my spouse.  The voice change in the second part is when we switch perspectives.)

Out in the “real world” - or back in the proper order of things, as it were - Valerie had no idea that she’d been found, or that the elf had been unceremoniously kicked out of their house.  She was similarly clueless that both Edmund and Aaric had been called in to help, one grudgingly summoning the other, at a loss for what to do.  Inside of the orb (or her memories, or whatever this was; Val wasn’t entirely sure), she’d come to a most puzzling junction.

The wizard had come to a set of branch points that took the form of two small forks in the road, one extending out on either side.  By this point, Val was beginning to get the lay of the land, and had quickened her pace, plunging headfirst into the darkness less timidly.  The broad, straight path she’d been walking unyieldingly forward, without bend or curve.  The roads to the side were narrow and meandered off to the side.  The few she’d followed ended in one of the white portals she’d seen earlier, but the white doorways were all hazy, a similar kind of ‘off’ to the first one she’d come across.  Val found them maddening - nothing corresponded to any memories she’d had.  If anything, they appeared to show her, or Hani, in ‘what-if’ scenarios that had never come to be.  She’d not yet come to any portals on the main thoroughfare itself, though - if her guesses were right - more almost certainly lay ahead.

This particular split in the road, however, gave her pause.  Until now, anything off to the side had only gone off in one direction.  Was there some significance to this location, or was it random happenstance?  To the left, off in the distance, there lay one of the portals.  To the right, more darkness.  Valerie tilted her head and slowed her pace - would there be a relationship between what she saw on either side?

Ugh, that meant she HAD to go off-route, just to see whether that was the case.  Not that she’d really decided what her destination was - she had to get out of here, but thus far, no obvious means to leave had presented itself.

“Dammit, Farmer,” she muttered to herself, the sound muffling quickly as she went left and trusted in the narrow footpath to not do something awful, like drop her off of a ledge or suddenly disappear.  “Some mess you’ve gotten yourself into.  Watch this be another rubbish moving picture…”

It was fascinating, she thought, that the whole time she’d been walking, she had yet to actually experience anything that would denote the passage of time.  Distance was clearly a variable here (wherever here was), but the wizard wasn’t hungry; despite all of the travelling she’d done, her feet weren’t aching, though the familiar, pervasive sound of silence was beginning to get more noticable and bothersome.  The wizard had taken to humming, or making light conversation with herself, as a means of keeping the buzz at bay.  “It’s rather like a riverbed, isn’t it?” Val asked aloud to no one in particular, drawing nearer and nearer to the white portal.  “The way this path goes,” she continued to herself, watching her footfalls in the near total darkness as her slippered feet pressed into the dark road and sunk slightly with every step. “The way it wends around, like a river and its tributaries - oh, what’s this now?”

This doorway yielded a hazy scene of an older, dark-skinned woman woman and Val’s - Variya’s - grandfather, tilling fields among the pines of Lordaeron.  Touching the portal yielded little but the sounds of horses whinnying in the distance and birds chirping in the surrounding treetops; the couple worked in comfortable silence, each busied with their tasks.  “Well, that’s not much to look at, is it?” she asked, head tilted as she tried to place the older woman.  She was drawing a blank; that meant it was time to move on.

After an unfathomable period of time walking, the opposite portal yielded a scene of the same farmhouse, but with the fields lying fallow, choked with weeds that swayed in the wind.  “Odd,” Valerie remarked, bringing her fingertips to the portal and hearing nothing but the rush of the strong breeze, and smelling a faint hint of autumn and wilderness.  No one had been there for a long time.  She made her way back to the road, thoughts of relationships and rivers and tributaries lingering in her thoughts.

***

Well, this feels uncomfortably familiar.

Erisse recognized that she was no longer internal to herself in any meaningful sense.  Where she was instead… Ideas, possibilities took shape in her mind.  The runes built a balance, an anchor, a framework, but that was the sort of thing Edmund worried about.  He was studious, a scholar.  Even here, she smirked a bit at the thought.  How sad it must be to require those repetitions in order to use the language of creation.  She saw it, lived within it, felt it.

The smile slipped as she remembered where she wasn’t.  Focus!  There was a time for gloating, and it was once this was safely behind them.  Casting herself outward, she felt… nothing.  Until there was something.  It tried to pull her along, so instead she grabbed it, moving hand over hand as with a rope through a void of dim stars.

She multiplied as she went, iterations spanning countless hazy parallels, an illusion of infinity that was perhaps more real than anything else.  To her immediate left was a human man with her same blue-veined golden eyes; she recognized a face that had once been in her mirror, the one that had loved the Nightmare Made Flesh.  On the other side was the elf she’d been born, so young as to be almost a child, unlined by the hardships she’d endured since.  And stretching beyond both were all the variations, pulling themselves as she did along the thread of worldlines, never to meet, but close enough to eavesdrop.

Do they act independently of me? her various selves wondered as one.  Am I the only one with agency while they are pale reflections?  It felt wrong.  To her, that was as good as a mathematical proof would be to Edmund or Valerie.  Ah, no.  We’re all the only true versions of ourselves.  We must be.  But to be here, like this… we must all be deciding the same thing independently.  How clever we all are, to have figured this out.

The Erisses laughed, exchanging amused glances with one another.  At least this was interesting!  The last time she’d made a terrible decision, it had been far less pleasant.  Especially for her sense of self.

Giving up on the physical act of attempting movement, the Collected Erisse let the idea of moving carry her selves forward instead.  There would be time later, they assumed, to act as though they had substance.  But for now, there was the space between spaces, and that was nothing to exert yourself traversing.

“Valerie, I do hope you understand what you’ve done, because you will have plenty to answer for when I find you.  Especially if I miss the elections and Leylia’s birthday.”  The Erisses clenched their jaws, gliding through the space between time.

[notjournal]

sat, october 3

I am now going to write for half an hour. It’s 11:05, so I’ll stop at 11:35. Maybe this will be a useless exercise, but I think I should do it sometimes after I read, because that’s the only time I have thoughts. I have to hear someone else thinking to know what it’s like to do it myself. 

I brought my new plant in from the dining room. Its leaves were cold from the constant force of the window unit. I hope I haven’t somehow killed it already by shoving metal clamps into its soil and playing it like an instrument. Except that it was an instrument and can be at any time. That must be traumatic for the plant, and I imagine its heart giving out from fear–like a baby rabbit dying of a sudden heart attack after being dragged into the living room by a housecat. I should use only inanimate objects with my circuit board instrument, or animate objects that can give me permission to touch them. Actually, I could shovel dirt from the driveway into cups and moisten them under the tap and use those as my keyboard. I wonder how the plant conducts–is it the water, or somehow the plant itself? It must be the water. A dead, dry, desiccated plant wouldn’t conduct, right? It’s nice to think of conduct in the orchestral sense next to the electric sense: a conductor is the conduit of electricity from the dead notes on the page to the living bodies and their instruments. 

This morning, while I was half asleep, my thumb bent suddenly and painfully in half. The movement created a new crack in the wound, which my body is attempting to fill in. It’s oozing more pus than blood, so it’s taking forever to dry. I need to cover the wound and restrain my thumb so that there will be no more cracks. The wound feels cool. I can see pockets of fluid under the clear “skin”. It looks so much like a landscape that I want to paint it, or at least draw it. I’ll do that later today. The wound acts like a volcano–a crack opens up, blood oozes like lava and then dries to cover the hole. It’s fun to think of the analogy the other way around. Does lava harden to prevent infection in the earth’s gaping wound? What would infection look like? What if animals and trees and dirt fell inside the hole and weren’t consumed by heat but took root in that impossible environment, creating a new malicious biome? But the earth’s blood is much stronger than mine. It is built to burn and then to foster new life where that life’s supposed to be. My blood is not destructive enough, because I suppose then it would burn right through my skin and all of the other tiny organisms that help my body to survive (are they a part of my body too? Are they mine?). Thinking of the earth as a body makes my own body feel frail and weak, which obviously it is. I’ve learned that. My pus is a stretchy orange gel. I wonder if pus is better than blood at attacking an infection, and how the body decides which to send out. There’s a small white fleck on my wound that looks like a highlight at the right angle, creating the impression of a new bubble of fluid that worries me every time I see it.

The beeping has been going on all night, and I would love to know where it’s coming from so I could make it stop. It’s so irritating. It must be a smoke detector that’s out of battery.

My new book is about a fictional scholar studying a fictional poet. There are several things I want to think about. First of all, the women in the book are jaded and disappointed. The feminists are all looking for something that is supposedly not there, and their studies are portrayed as illegitimate. Roland’s longtime girlfriend Val wrote a paper called “Male Ventriloquism: The Women of Randolph Henry Ash” which “was judged to be a good work and discounted by the examiners as probably largely by Roland” (61). The irony is obvious, but I want to explain it to myself to see if I can get anything out of it. The paper is about how Ash’s female characters just ventriloquize the thoughts/ideas/opinions of the men and aren’t fully fleshed out people with their own thoughts and desires. They are puppets. The examiners thought that Val was ventriloquizing Roland in her paper, that she was his mouthpiece. If this were true, she would be ventriloquizing him for her own benefit–using the words of an Ash scholar to get a good mark, or whatever the standard for graduate students is. Would Ash’s female characters be ventriloquizing the men for their own benefit? Obviously it doesn’t work like that, since they’re characters of Ash’s own creation; they’re ventriloquizing him to an extent. But books don’t really work like that either, since characters can have different opinions than their author; they’re supposedly self-contained people. The women are not convincingly self-contained in this case. They seem like puppets because the things they express are too closely aligned with the views of the male characters; they do not express the things that one might expect a woman in their circumstance(s) to express. Val does not express the things the examiners expect her to express, is that it? Or is it just her proximity to Roland and her status as a woman? The irony is that the thoughts were her own; Roland doesn’t even agree with them. This is where books like this get blurry. The existence of sexism is simultaneously implied and dismissed. It’s implied because why else would the examiners discount Val’s work as being Roland’s? It’s implied because academic success evades her and she becomes a typist. And then it’s dismissed because the feminist scholars are looking for something in Ellen Ash that just isn’t there, at least according to Blackadder–“she spent a lot of time lying on the sofa, and that’s hardly unusual for a lady in her time and circumstances. Their real problem–and Beatrice’s–is that Ellen Ash is dull” (114). These are gross generalizations, and actually now that I think about it more Byatt is just writing about a sexist world. All disparaging opinions about feminism are expressed by men, and actually Fergus speaks favorably of feminists. I think it’s easier to come to this conclusion because Byatt is a woman, and a woman clearly knowledgeable about feminism, so why would she create a sexist book? The lines are blurrier in Wonder Boys. I’ve been writing longer than I meant to, so I’ll make the last thing short. I’m curious about the campus novel in general, but specifically when it’s about a fictional poet. Possession references plenty of real poets, but Ash is fictional (Crabb Robinson is real). Byatt wrote Ash’s poetry herself, and I wonder about the quality of fictional 19c poetry compared to the real thing (a different kind of ventriloquism!). I’m reminded of all the writing exercises we did in Colleen’s class. Is it a narcissistic exercise to have the protagonist obsess over poetry the author of the book wrote herself? That’s a funny thought. My brain is getting tired, and I don’t have anything else to say. I wrote for almost 45 minutes. 

[ontheoddoccasioniwritestuff]

Alliance Part 3 (Gibson x Reader)

Summary: It was wishful thinking on Y/N’s and Gibson’s behalf to hope they would remain completely undetected.

AN: I love my angry boi Alex – even after what he did to Gibson and Tommy - but when he said frog I just broke out of the film. I was nudging and side-eyeing my pal @hie-mal for the next five minutes. She slapped my arm. It was great. I love her and now I'm rambling. Also, I made the reader even angrier so that’s gonna be a good combo.

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 Trading sleeping on the beach for sleeping in a grounded trawler, Y/N and Gibson curled into the corner of the boat away from the highlanders that had joined their group. It’d been that way for their walk over to the trawler; Y/N had held back and whispered brief translations to Gibson whenever she could but due to her limited French and more limited time without the watchful stares of the others, Gibson was guessing what was happening and shaking his head or staring blankly whenever one of the soldiers spoke to him.

 The names of his other allies – Tommy and Alex – were learnt after Y/N had overheard their exchanged pleasantries while she was “sleeping”.

 He was jolted from his pathetic attempt at sleep by footsteps on the deck above him. The others were poised and one of the highlanders gestured with his rifle for Tommy to check the door. Giving into peer pressure, Tommy quietly stepped forward. A shadow passed over the ladder and Tommy pounced.

 “Nee, nee!”

 His bleated begs confused the soldiers. Tommy grabbed him and pulled him down the ladder where he landed ungracefully amongst the trawler’s new found crew.

 “Kraut?” interrogated the more suspicious of Gibson’s allies. He knew what that mean. Evidently the man did not as he looked disorientated at his captors. Alex dropped the slang and the man’s face lit up with recognition.

 “Dutch! Dutch! Merchant navy. Here to pick you up. To help you,” His broken English informed the soldiers.

 Gibson relaxed as everyone else did and Y/N pushed him gently back into their corner. The Seaman was sat up and his interrogation – albeit without the violence – was continued. Y/N learnt that it would be more hours until the boat would float, which Gibson also gathered from Alex’s annoyed expression – tied to his earlier outburst.

 BANG! A hollow gunshot sounded followed by the clatter of the bullet. The hull had a hole, letting in a stream of light. There was silence in the trawler as everyone held their breath.

 BANG! Another shot punched through the hull, two feet from the first thus it was two feet closer to the soldiers. The Highlanders scrambled to get away from it, squeezing against the others without removing their stare from holes. Gibson looked over to Y/N who was cowering away.

 BANG! A third shot appeared directly above the first. The rule of three was applied and the group were at their wit’s end. Two highlanders grabbed their rifles and went for the ladder. Tommy lifted his head and spoke in a hushed voice.

 “No! Then they’ll know we’re in here.”

 “Why else are they shooting at us?!” One of the highlanders hissed with a tight grip on his rifle.

 Tommy nodded at the hole, “Look at the grouping... Target practice.” The group looked as another hole, near the others, appeared. This confirmed Tommy’s theory but it didn’t help their situation.

 A few minutes gone, water began to slop into the lowest hole and L/N fought back a whimper. She’d left her lifejacket on the beach. But it wouldn’t help her anyway; all that would happen was that she would float to the ceiling and drown last, stuck inside the trawler.

 With a nod at his comrades, a highlander crept towards the holes to plug them. BANG! The man screamed, falling back as he clutched his face; his friends leapt forward and smothered his cries. Water still flowed in through the holes and crawled towards the group.

 Alex hissed the obvious, “We have to plug it!”

 “After you, mate!” The same highlander as before shifted away from the holes, still clinging to his rifle like it was his final lifeline. Everyone shared the same mindset and as the tide came in more water slipped into the boat.

 Another slang mix-up later, the Seaman gasped out that, even if all the holes were plugged, the trawler would need to lose weight if they wanted to float. There was no way of getting rid of the water without drawing attention to the rest of the soldiers.

 “Somebody needs to get off,” Alex said.

 “Well volunteered,” A highlander replied with heavy sarcasm.

 “We don’t need a volunteer. I know someone who ought to get off.” Y/N tensed up and nudged Gibson as Alex pointed at them.

 “They’re German spies.”

 Tommy gawked at the accusation, “Don’t be daft.”

 Alex continued to stare down Gibson, who was looking away with discomfort. Knowing that Gibson didn’t understand what was happening, Y/N settled for staring back at her accuser.

 “They’re bloody Jerrys,” Alex looked at the others with a finger still pointed at the two, “You might not’ve noticed that they haven’t said a word, but I have. They don’t speak English - or if they do it’s with an accent thicker than sauerkraut sauce-”

 “You’re daft. Tell him,” Tommy looked at the pair. Unsure of what to do, Gibson stood up against the ladder. He looked down helplessly at Y/N.

 “Yeah, tell me. Oh wait, I was wrong. They do speak. Don’t think I missed you two whispering to each other and no one else,” Alex started to get in Y/N’s face so instinctively she knelt up and shoved him back. He landed on his backside amidst the highlanders.

 “See that?” Alex pointed at her again as he took one of the highlander’s guns. Gibson impulsively pulled Y/N closer to the ladder as Alex pressed the barrel of his new weapon against his chest, hooking his stolen dog tags.

 “Tell me… Gibson and... Y/N.” The other highlanders had joined in, their rifles ganging up on Gibson and Y/N with only one other person on their side.

 “Tell him, for God’s sake!” Tommy was far past panicking at this point, praying that Alex wasn’t right as his companion’s silence stacked up the doubt. Alex’s rifle was getting dangerously close to Gibson’s face and he was starting to panic; in a quick movement, Y/N slapped it away. Immediately, one of the highlanders smacked her with the butt of his gun and Gibson cracked.

 “FRANÇAIS!” He burst, “Je suis français!”

 Tommy stared in shock as Y/N sighed, holding her cheek. A thought niggled its way into her mind: Gibson’s cover was blown but hers was not. She could leave him; she could stay on the boat while he left to let it float. Except…

 A burst of gun fire ricocheted through the trawler. With everyone’s attention on the fire, Gibson took Y/N’s face into the light and surveyed the damage: a small cut trickling blood.

 “It’s ok,” He said but he didn’t sound convinced. He didn’t even know what he was saying.

 The gunshots in the back of his mind, Alex turned on them, “A Frog. Bloody Frogs. Cowardly little queue-jumping Frogs. Who’s Gibson, eh? Y/N? More naked dead Englishmen lying out on that sand. Or did you at least have the decency to bury them?”

 “They did,” Tommy defended, “I helped them. I thought it was their mate. They were burying him together.”

 “Maybe they killed him-”

 “They didn’t kill him.”

 “How do we know?!”

 Y/N glared at Alex so fiercely that some of the highlanders were tempted to back off. She was slowly getting pissed off at their lack of logic.

 “They were looking for a way off the damned sand like the rest of us!”

 More bullets thudded into the boat, ramping up the tension and ensuring that the boat wasn’t going to get far across the Channel.

 A highlander looked desperately at the Seaman, who had been a bystander to the whole situation, “Will she still float?!”

 “Float, yes. With less weight, yes,” The Seaman confirmed again.

 “And we know who’s getting off-”

 “You can’t do that. We’re on the same side,” Tommy begged. Ignoring his comrade, Alex nudged Gibson with the rifle; hearing his breathing speed up, Y/N stepped in the way.

 “Go on, up you go,” He dragged the gun up Y/N’s chest, nearly blowing her cover too, “Both of you.”

 “As soon as they poke their head out they’ll slaughter ‘em.”

 “Better him than me,” Alex scoffed.

 “It’s not fair,” Tommy said softly.

 “Survival’s not fair!”

 “No, it’s shit,” A highlander spat, “It’s fear and greed. Fate squeezed through the bowels of men. Shit.”

 “He saved our lives. They both did!”

 “And they’re about to do it again – Go on.” Y/N and Gibson were officially cornered as Tommy was pushed aside towards the Seaman.

 “No! Just stop!” He pleaded.

 Getting more annoyed with Tommy’s relentless defending, “We need someone to get off so the rest of us can live. You want to volunteer?”

 For the first time, Tommy backed down as he came under fire, “No. I’m going home.” Y/N’s will broke. Yeah, he was a bit pathetic without a rifle but Tommy was her friend.

 “We’re not going anywhere,” She said, her voice scratchy from lack of use but low enough to pass as a bloke. In an attempt to cover up any suspicion, she licked the blood stream that had made its way to her mouth before spitting it back out. She’d seen men do it plenty of times.

 Alex’s head shot around, “You’re English?”

 “Yes.”

 Alex re-adjusted the grip on his rifle, “Don’t change nothing. You knew he was a Frog and you helped him. Go on!”

 “No.”

 “I will fucking shoot you.

 “Go on then,” said Y/N with a stronger glare.

 Alex paused, his finger brushing against the trigger. Preparing to grab the gun, Gibson slowly moved but Y/N, behind her back, took his hand and hoped he would understand that she was prolonging their time on the ship – and thus the chance of survival. In an attempt to aid translation but also for comfort, she squeezed it. He shakily squeezed back.

 “None of you can do it,” She spoke a little louder over the water sloshing outside.

 “I will shoot you if you don’t get up that ladder!” Alex matched her volume.

 “But then what?” Y/N thought before continuing, “You think the Germans won’t think to check the boat for you if they hear two gun shots in it?”

 Mulling over their long-term existence, the Highlanders look doubtful but keep their stance. So Y/N continued, releasing Gibson’s hand.

 “Water’s fucking heavy in case you didn’t notice. We aren’t going to make the difference. Even if we all got off, the boat’d still sink.”

 Alex saw the weakening will of his side, “I will-”

 “I know, shoot us,” Y/N interrupted, more annoyed, “You keep saying. But which of you is gonna volunteer to drag our corpses off to make this float? ‘Cause I don’t know about you but I don’t think we’ll be up for climbing out when we’re dead.”

 “I’ll shoot you in the foot,” Alex replied after a pause, lowering his rifle to the floor.

 “Still gonna need our feet to get up the ladder,” L/N snarked, taking another sly step forward.

 Meeting her annoyance, Alex pressed the rifle back into her chest, “Aren’t you a smart one?” He prodded her again, this time on the cut on her cheek.

 Gibson grabbed her shoulder, “Arrêtez! Ne la pousse pas!”

 “Shut up, Frog!”

 “Laisse la tranquille! Elle m’aide!” Gibson cried again, only to be silenced by Y/N holding her hand up to him.

 “It’s ok,” She assured him with a quick glance over her shoulder.

 “Ok,” He repeated, still unconvinced. Y/N looked back at her accusers but Alex’s appearance of annoyance had shifted into one of disbelief.

 “You’re a girl.”

 With calm anger, Y/N said in a semi-believable tone of disbelief, “What?”

 “Froggy here said “elle”. You’re a girl.”

 “Fuck,” Y/N let slip and Alex’s expression hardened.

 “So what? You his girlfriend?” He prodded her again with his rifle on both sides of the chest in an obscene gesture. Y/N slapped the gun away again and raised her fist at the soldier who’d hit her before to block any more attacks. Instead, the highlander looked nervous and was fidgeting with his rifle.

 “Alex, mate,” He said nervously, “I don’t know how I feel about sending a girl out there.”

 Alex wasn’t listening, “You blackmail him into keeping your dirty little secret so you don’t rat him out?”

 “Think you’re forgetting that our priority is we’re in a sinking ship and you have a gun on us,” Y/N kept her voice low then made a grab for the rifle. Alex tackled her and attempted to pry his rifle back as he sat on Y/N’s stomach, her head almost completely underwater. To the rescue, Tommy jumped at Alex to pull him off Y/N. Gibson, in turn, wrestled with the highlanders, tugging them away from his friends. The scuffle landed against the hull of the ship. In time with their collision to the floor, the ship levelled out in the water.

 “FLOAT! WE FLOAT!” The Seaman cried, leaping out of his corner.

 “START THE BLOODY ENGINE!” cried a highlander, still trying to get to Y/N. The Seaman was already crawling out of the hatch. The engine roared into life and instantly drew attention.

 Machine-gun fire spread across the hull of the boat. Y/N ducked under the water, grabbing Alex by the shirt to pull him under next to her. Sea water bit at her cut and air burned her lungs as the bullets pierced the hull nearby. Releasing the gun, Y/N covered her ears with her eyes screwed up.

 The water level rose faster with the new holes in the hull. Pushing Alex away, Y/N popped her head over the surface once the shooting had stopped, gasping for air. The rest of the soldiers were looking around at the holes.

 She felt a tug on her shoulder and saw Gibson was floating next to her, spluttering in the rising water. His hand was still touching her shoulder so she took it again to help him stand. Ignoring his anger from moments ago,  Alex crawled over to the stairs and climbed out into the well, his head poking out to talk to the Seaman.

 “You ok?” Y/N asked Gibson then spat out some water she’d accidentally swallowed.

 “Ok,” Gibson spoke over the sound of rushing water.

 “Tommy?”

 “I’m good!” He called from the other end of the boat. More gunfire hit the cabin above their heads; the soldiers ducked back under the water which was up to their waists by this point.

 “Yeah, we’re fine, thanks!” The closest highlander yelled sarcastically.

 “Fuck off, you hit me with your gun!” Alex took this opportunity to crawl back down, slipping at the bottom of the ladder.

 “PLUG THE HOLES! PLUG THE HOLES!”

 Scrabbling for the rags she’d spotted earlier, Y/N pressed them into the holes. The water was too strong though, destroying their futile attempts to keep the boat afloat. The lack of light made it impossible to find anything else to solve their problem.

 In one final go at saving their boat, all the soldiers pressed their fingers and palms against the hull. Water continued to seep through. It sloshed from above and down the trapdoor, nearly blocking their only way out. They weren’t going to make it.

  AN: Yeah, I meant what I said when I referenced the final section being split unnecessarily into two parts. And it’s gonna take a while to write it because it’s gonna be even more unnecessarily long. Sorry @firaemsen and @hufflepuff-and-feminist 

  Translations:

Arrêtez la tranquille!! Ne la pousse pas! Stop ! Don’t push her!

Laisse la tranquille! Elle m’aide! Leave her alone! She’s helping me!

[kitwallace]

Midi controller for multi-parameter designs

[this post never made it out of draft at the time, but posting it may spur me to finish the interface]

I’ve often thought it would be nice to input parameters which define multi-parameter 3D models in OpenSCAD using physical controls rather than typing in numbers. (It would be nice to have the ability to use on-screen sliders).  

I looked at LaunchControl  by Novation which is great but I fancied slide rather than rotary controls.  Korg nanoKONTROL2  has 8 slide controls and many others, has USB output and is USB powered.  This looks like like the job and at about £45 is just the ticket.

But.. I thought I’d like to build my own.  I found this tutorial from Notes and Noise which helped a lot.  The controller code Dave provides is very comprehensive but the details are tucked away in C++ code, so I decided to roll my own.  

I got six 10k slide pots from RS Supplies.  These have a throw of over 60 mm, a length I think is needed to generate each of the values in the MIDI range 0..127. Also a MIDI/USB converter  (I’m already up to £15).   I already had an Arduino Uno spare to brush the dust off. After too much time wasted getting the Arduino IDE set up with the MIDI library, getting the IDE talking to the UNO, understanding the interface to the great MIDI-OX utility, salvaging an old MIDI socket, and mis-wiring the simplest circuits (late at night), a simple single slider is now working.

Since only changed slider values are sent out, there is a problem with jitter as the A2D values are not absolutely stable.  I fixed this by exponentially smoothing the output code which I  put in the range 0.. 100  for ease of mapping to parameter values (rather than the MIDI range 0..127).  

#include <MIDI.h>

MIDI_CREATE_DEFAULT_INSTANCE();

int potPin = A0;    int lastMidiValue = -1;   float alpha=0.5;  // exponential smoothing coefficient

void setup() {   MIDI.begin(); }

void loop() {  int a2dValue = analogRead(potPin);  int midiValue = a2dValue / 10.1 ;  // to get the full range from 0...100  int smoothMidiValue = midiValue *(1.0 - alpha) + alpha*lastMidiValue;  if (smoothMidiValue != lastMidiValue) {           MIDI.sendControlChange(1,smoothMidiValue,1);      lastMidiValue= smoothMidiValue;  }

Before tackling 3D objects I decided to try the hardware on a 2D pattern generated by JavaScript and SVG based on a  three link mechanism. The mechanism comprises connected three links. The path described by a pen on the final link can be described by 3 connected formula which determine the rotation of each of the links. The formula use nine  parameters so the interface should allow the user to connect the sliders to specific parameters,varying the value over a specified range. 

The test web page uses a couple of slider controls which are attached to two key parameters R the rotation of  the second and P1 the phase angle of the third link.

Most browsers now support the WEB MIDI API.  There is a wrapper script webmidi.js to make it somewhat easier to use.  To update a parameter value and generate the curve,  we only need:

WebMidi.enable(function(err) {   if (err) console.log("WebMidi could not be enabled");   else  console.log("WebMidi enabled!");   console.log(WebMidi.inputs);

  var midi_in= WebMidi.inputs[0];

  midi_in.addListener("controlchange","1",     function (e) {$('#nodes').val(e.data[2]);refresh();}     ); });

Both Arduino code and the JavaScript need generalising to support 6 parameters.

Midi wiring

Midi wiring confused me a bit but I found this diagram helpful where Source is 5V, Sink is the TX pin and Shield goes to Gnd.

Building the slider box.

Having first prototyped the circuit on a breadboard, I stuck some header pins in a bit of stripboard  to make a HAT for the Arduino.  I was struggling to figure out how to neatly mount and wire the sliders until I talked over the project with Tom at Bristol Hackspace. Each slider needs connections for 0V, 5V and the voltage divider wire to go to an analogue input.  Tom came up with the great suggestion of using a piece of copper-backed board, with the copper length wise down the middle to make the 0v and 5v rails with holes drilled out for the third connector.  This way the board is both a mount for the sliders and the circuit board - a nice example of what I heard called the ‘Shanley principle’ by my mentor Michael Jackson. 

“In civil engineering design it is presently a mandatory concept known as the Shanley Design Criterion to collect several functions into one part.” Pierre Arnoul de Marneffe, cited by D Knuth, 1974 . A common example cited is the construction of rockets. In 1940-1945 rockets had separate components for fuel tank, outer skin, body frame . However, Saturn-B had a tubular body that was at once its fuel tank, outer skin, and body frame. 

I initially messed up cutting the stripboard to size, and then read the tip to put the board between two pieces of wood and then cut the sandwich  - obvious really.

I made a template out of a plastic lid so that I could drill holes for the pins in the base board.  To attach the leads for the voltage divider pins, I soldered each lead to its pin and added heat-shrink to ensure it was insulated from the copper side of the board.

All this went well until I tested the board.  To check that the joints were sound, I measured the resistance of each slider between the wiper and one end and was very puzzled by the result.  Instead of varying smoothly between a min of 0 and some maximum, the value increased and then decreased?   I thought it must be a wiring problem but couldn’t see how that could create this non-linear change in resistance.  Finally I talked it over with Tom at the Hackspace who was also initially puzzled. Only when we draw the circuit diagram did it occur to us that the error was due to measuring not just the variable resistance, but this in parallel with the other half of the pot and all the other 5 pots. i.e R in parallel with 10-R + (10/5). Putting this into a spreadsheet created this graph:

Despite this, each pot will still work correctly as a voltage divider which I can test when the circuit is built.

Since I now have 6 10k pots in parallel, the resistance of the bank of pots is now 10k/6  = 1.66 k which will draw a constant 5/1.66 k = 3 milliamps.  Increasing the pots to 100k would reduce that to 0.3 milliamps but I will try these pots first.

Other resources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sopfrr1830 This guy has a similar build, with a printed case with sliders mounted underneath the lid  (much better idea) and uses a special chip to get directly to USB HID using a Arduino Pro Micro  https://coolcomponents.co.uk/products/pro-micro-5v-16mhz  and a multiplexer (because there aren’t enough A2D ports)  See also https://www.sparkfun.com/tutorials/337

Joe Dusta also recommended the USB HID route but not sure how that plays with MIDI -  another approach to look at.

[shannaraisles]

Set In Darkness

Chapter: 20 Author name: ShannaraIsles Rating: M (for language) Warnings: Unpopular characterization of NPC Summary: She’s a Modern Girl in Thedas, but it isn’t what she wanted. There’s a scary dose of reality as soon as she arrives. It isn’t her story. People get hurt here; people die here, and there’s no option to reload if you make a bad decision. So what’s stopping her from plunging head first into the Void at the drop of a hat?

Absence To Grow Fonder

"What happened to you?"

Varric gave her an unfriendly look from beneath lowered brows. "Don't ask, cupcake."

Rory did manage not to laugh, but the Herald's party were looking distinctly the worse for wear. They were soaked through, all of them - Solas' staff was steaming, Kaaras had icicles hanging from his horns, and water was dripping from Cassandra's sheath. Varric squelched as he walked. They all looked very put out, apart from Kaaras, who was smiling widely.

"You look like you fell in the lake," Rory pointed out in amusement. "Except the lake is frozen solid."

"Not all of it," Cassandra said darkly, glowering at Kaaras.

The Qunari gave her his most innocent smile. "How was I supposed to know the waterfall wasn't completely frozen?" he asked her sweetly.

"Not showing off would be a good start," Solas offered in a sour tone as Cassandra let out a familiar sound of frustrated disgust. "If you will excuse me ..."

The elf stalked past, Cassandra and Varric close behind him, leaving Kaaras to field the healer's curiosity. Rory definitely noticed the way his eyes lingered on the Seeker's back. If his horns had been ears, they would have been drooping at her obvious annoyance with him. The inner fangirl, mysteriously silent during actual romance, perked up at the prospect of witnessing a canon love affair. He likes her!

"So ..." she said with a teasing smile. "Showing off, hmm?"

Kaaras turned his Fade-touched eyes back to her with a mysterious grin. "Maybe," he conceded in a playful tone, moving toward his own cabin in a crackle of frozen cloth. "I need to talk to you, anyway."

"We'll have plenty of time to talk on the way to Val Royeaux," she pointed out, walking with him.

"You're coming with us?" he asked in surprise. "I didn't think they'd let you leave Haven."

"I don't plan on giving them a choice," Rory admitted ruefully. It was in all the paperwork, but her name had been omitted in favor of the decidedly more ambiguous "healer". Cullen wasn't going to like it, that much was certain.

"Can I be there when you tell them?" Kaaras asked, hopeful mischief painting his big boyish face as he looked down on her.

"Be my guest." She chuckled, shaking her head. "I was on my way now, but I can wait for you."

"I won't be long," he promised, ducking into his cabin to change his clothes and warm up.

With Kaaras out of sight, Rory let her smile fade into a worried frown. Even from here, she was aware of the raised voices outside the Chantry. No one could swear to it, but there was a suspicion among the more level-headed of the village that Chancellor Roderick had been stirring up the resentments among the templars with the goal of destabilizing the young Inquisition. As much as she disliked the man, she almost had to admire the sheer balls it took to try this. And it was a well-thought out plan, if that was what he was doing - no matter what the Inquisition accomplished in the Hinterlands around Redcliffe, it would all come to nothing if everything fell apart here. With the templars agitating, it was only a matter of time before someone said the wrong thing, and it looked like that was just about to happen. No wonder Cullen was so visible today, seeing to business with Leliana and the quarter-master right out in the open, where he needed to be.

"What's going on?" Kaaras asked as he emerged, dry and warm once again, his great sword settled comfortably in harness between his shoulder-blades. "I've never seen Haven so on edge, not even when they thought I was a murderer."

Rory sighed through a resigned smile. He had missed the last couple of flare ups, that was true. "Prejudice against magic runs deep in this society," she told him, impressed by her own calm. "It's been going in cycles - every now and then, it flares up, and someone gets hurt. You've just not been here when it hits the flashpoint before."

"You mean there's going to be a fight?" The Qunari's hand strayed toward the sword on his back involuntarily.

"Not unless we're extremely unlucky," she advised him, nodding toward the small crowd ahead of them. "The commander's handling it."

And so he was. She'd watched the cut-scene so many times, but Rory couldn't help but be impressed by the way Cullen placed himself between the two agitators, not engaging in their quarrel but simply diffusing it with the authority he wore so well. At his order, the two groups dispersed to their duties, both sides feeling as though they had been heard, even though neither side had been given much opportunity to air their grievances. Somehow, he'd known it was all for show, and his annoyance was clear as he faced the chancellor.

"So, tell me, commander," Kaaras asked as they approached the pair. "Why is the chancellor still here?"

"Clearly your templar knows where to draw the line," Roderick sneered, but Rory was glad to note that he swallowed whatever unpleasant slur had been on the tip of his tongue as his eyes fell on her at the Qunari's side.

"He's toothless," Cullen growled in irritation, turning to accompany Herald and healer into the Chantry. "Reports of your progress in the Hinterlands have been very encouraging. Have you encountered much resistance?"

"Only from the rebel rebel mages and the templars," Kaaras told him with a shrug. "We cleared out both encampments, so things should calm down there, at least for a while. Did you get the message about the watchtowers?"

Cullen nodded in answer. "Engineers are already on their way," he assured Kaaras in turn. "We need those horses - I'd build him a castle if he asked for one."

"Three watchtowers and a dead demon is pretty cheap for a herd of good horses," the Qunari quipped and, to Rory's delight, she heard Cullen huff out a soundless laugh in response.

It was a privilege to witness these early overtures of friendship; a good feeling, to know that the inner council had shaken themselves from their cultural lethargy to tentatively begin to build a solid foundation for the troubles to come. It was also pretty good to see Mother Giselle denied access to the war room while she, the lowly healer, wasn't even questioned on her presence. All right, it was petty and beneath her, but there was something very satisfying about seeing the Chantry being put in its place.

All Kaaras was in the war room to do was answer a couple of questions about the agents gathered in the Hinterlands, and to ask a few himself about the looming visit to Val Royeaux. The big Qunari visibly relaxed when Cassandra declared that she would accompany him, but it was Cullen who kept stealing Rory's attention. He had the most inflammatory way of looking at her discreetly, and yet behaved as though nothing had changed between them. She might even have been tempted to believe those kisses meant nothing, were it not for his reaction to the reason she was there.

"Mistress Rory," Josephine said in her warm way, "as per your request, a small fund of Inquisition gold has been set aside for your errand in Val Royeaux. I hope one hundred gold will be sufficient?"

"I should think that will be more than enough, Lady Montilyet." Rory smiled gratefully as she spoke. She'd been worried about how much this trip was going to cost her; they did pay her a salary, but it wasn't extravagant. "I won't be buying much in bulk, but there are a few things that we could do with having on hand."

"What's this?" Cullen asked, brows creasing into a frown. "I don't recall authorizing you to leave Haven."

"I don't recall needing your permission, commander," she countered lightly. Let's head that off, shall we? Independent person, not a possession. "Your people will be well-served in my absence, and I won't be gone long, in any case."

"Why did I not know that you were joining this expedition?" he asked then, his frown leveling on her. The others around them saw his concern and hopefully interpreted it as being for the welfare of his troops - she saw the hurt buried in his gaze at the thought that she was running away from him.

"I don't know," she said in a gentler tone. "I've been attached to these preparations since they began. I apologize if my involvement was not made clear."

"Though another could go in her stead, this first outreach from the Inquisition would be better received with the senior healer in attendance," Josephine pointed out a little warily. The ambassador had been witness to a few angry outbursts from the commander already. "We are not simply sending the Herald to meet with the Chantry; we need to make positive contact with the merchants."

"There will be little danger to the main Inquisition party," Leliana added. "They will enter the city separate from the Herald, and stay only two nights, regardless of the length of the Herald's stay. Long enough to make contact and no more - others can be sent to finalize prospective contracts."

"Very well." Cullen sighed, rubbing his neck as he accepted that the decision was made. He locked eyes with Rory sternly. "I will assign you an escort, and you will remain with that escort. We can't lose you."

She hoped she was hearing him right. To her, that sounded like I can't lose you. "I understand, ser."

"Very good," Cassandra said then, breaking the moment before it could become embarrassing for everyone else in the room. The Seeker had a good grasp on real life romance, it seemed, for all that she was obsessed with fictional drivel. "We leave tomorrow. Leliana, you have had word from some of the Revered Mothers?"

"I have," the spymaster confirmed, moving out from behind the table. "Josie and I should take you both through the list. I'm sure the commander will want an update on the health of the soldiers before the healer leaves."

It was skillfully done, but they obviously weren't fooling anyone in the inner council. Kaaras was openly grinning as he was escorted from the room by the three women, Josephine pausing to tactfully close the door behind them. Rory winced, her mouth already working as she turned back to Cullen.

"I'm sorry, I thought you knew I was going," she apologized hastily as he rounded the map table toward her. "I keep forgetting that all the paperwork just says healer, not my na- mmm ..."

His lips on hers cut off her explanation, a single kiss more than enough to chase all thought from her mind as she melted at his touch. Despite the hard barrier of his cuirass between them, Cullen pulled her close, hungry to taste her as his hands claimed her hip, her jaw, devouring her breathless response as she rose to him, her own fingertips just barely teasing into his curls.

"Maker's breath, just the sight of you is driving me crazy today," he breathed into her, claiming another lingering kiss before he could calm himself enough to look into her eyes. "I don't want you going to Val Royeaux."

"I have to," she whispered apologetically, stroking her fingers against his warm cheek. He hadn't shaved today; the stubble prickled under her palm. "I can't give this job to anyone else."

"I know." He sighed, lowering his forehead to hers. "The Orlesian capital is not a safe place for any of us yet," he warned her. "Anyone going there is courting danger."

"I'll be fine," she promised, though she knew it was a promise she might not be able to keep. "They'll be focused on Kaaras, anyway."

"The senior healer of any organization is a tempting target," Cullen insisted firmly. He obviously needed her to understand how concerned he was to be letting her out of his sight. "Removing you would demoralize us, all of us. Evelyn and Fabian cannot replace you, and the Chantry healers cannot match your skill. You belong with us, Rory. Losing you is not an option."

"I'll stay with whoever you tell me to," she told him honestly. It wasn't as though she didn't understand that this world was a dangerous one. "I don't know Orlais; I certainly don't know Val Royeaux. But there are resources there that I can't get anywhere else, and they are becoming increasingly necessary. Unless you'd like half your soldiers pregnant or crippled with crotch-rot."

"You could make a list," he suggested, drawing his hands slowly over her sides.

"I could," she agreed. "But I won't. And we both know this is the decision you would make in my position."

"I can protect myself," he reminded her, but there was a faint smile in his eyes that assured her he understood. He might not like it, but he understood.

"You're going to make sure I'm protected," she countered in a fond tone. "Believe it or not, Cullen, I trust your judgment in this. When it comes to looking after yourself, not so much."

"I could threaten to work myself to a standstill if you go," he mused, brushing his lips to hers in a ghost of a kiss.

"Only if you want me to practice my punch on your pretty face," she threatened with soft humor, her smile deepening as his hand flattened against her spine, drawing her close once more.

"I have a better idea."

She giggled as his mouth descended to hers, lost in long moments of lip-locked loving. It seemed he preferred to make use of their privacy like this, rather than hearing a report on the health of his troops, but their time was finite. He made the effort to make it seem innocent as they left the war room, however, most likely for the benefit of Mother Giselle, who was never far from the center of power.

"... and you are leaving Fabian in charge, yes?" he asked as they stepped into the body of the Chantry.

"Fabian and Evy, yes," Rory confirmed, aware that the priestess was probably straining to hear what was being said. "I'll bring you the information you requested later."

Cullen's eyes were warm as he picked up on the promise implied in her words, though his expression never changed. "See that you do," was all he said in answer. "That will be all, Healer Rory."

"Very well, commander."

Fighting the urge to grin as she turned away, Rory directed her footsteps toward the office shared by Josephine and Minaeve, their under-appreciated researcher, listening to Cullen's boots on the stone as he marched out and into the snow. She wasn't surprised to find her path barred by Mother Giselle - stern eyes, silly hat, and all.

"Healer Rory," the Mother greeted her. "I understand you are to accompany the Herald to Val Royeaux. Quite an honor."

"Sadly, I won't have time to enjoy the city," Rory answered politely. She'd discovered that it was much easier to deal with Giselle if she thought of the woman as middle management. Never gets her hands dirty and always has to know everything. She hadn't seen the woman even light a candle with her own hands yet. "Is there anything I can collect for you while I'm there?" A new owl to suffocate holding up your ridiculous hat, maybe?

"Thank you, but I am content with what I have," Giselle told her coolly. "And your clinic ... do you require someone to oversee your assistant in your absence?"

"It's very kind of you to offer, but I've made arrangements," Rory told her, doing her best to hide her own suspicion. You'll get my clinic and my patients over my dead body. "It would be wrong of me to just swan off without making sure everything will run smoothly without me."

"Indeed." No, the Mother definitely didn't like her. "If ever I can be of assistance ..."

"I will ask," Rory assured the woman, certain she never would. "Thank you, Mother Giselle."

"Walk by Andraste's side, Healer."

Right into the flames. You first, Mother. Side-stepping the priestess, Rory slipped into the office, needing to make sure Minaeve knew who to liaise with in her absence, to avoid any more unfortunate incidents where information intended for the healers had mysteriously been forgotten by the Chantry sisters asked to share it.

Hopefully, Fabian and Evy had enough backbone between them to defend their patients against Chantry influence on their treatment, or Rory and Giselle were going to have words when she returned from Val Royeaux. Hat or no hat, if you didn't know how to wash your own hands properly, Rory did not want you anywhere near her clinic, and she was quite prepared to defend it with violence if necessary. It was probably just as well she was going to be away for a few days.