#like???? 'a witch made me do it' come on

[varlaisvea]

respectfully? ma'am? your reasoning for holding a tourney where the prize was marrying your daughter is the absolute stupidest thing i have heard in my travels. and let me just say, i am the vestige of coldharbour and i have heard some monumentally stupid shit in my travels. this is it. the dumbest shit i've heard.

[anethiawoods]

playing slay the princess as intended (watching your friend stream it and then roleplaying as improvised ocs for each of ur runs)

[doyouremem8erme]

i did this with my trackpad

[mashmouths]

so i started this show and it just gets worse and worseeeee not only did it lift the romance subplot directly from twilight (and not well) but they also are trying to play the forbidden love angle hard in the fantasy racism vein except it's a "cross-species" relationship between the two whitest people i've ever seen in my life and there are three people of color in the whole (first season of the) show who aren't villains and it seems that every other episode (and sometimes ebery episode and sometimes twice an episode!) there is a man physically or magically subjugating a woman and i keep waiting for the big reveal at the end to be stolen from fucking rainbow rowell

[acourtofquestions]

"You'll come back," Manon said.

It sounded like more of a threat than anything

Dorian smirked. "Would you miss me if I didn't?"

Manon didn't reply. He didn't know why he expected her to.

He'd taken all of a step, when Asterin clasped his shoulder. "In and out, quick as you can," she warned him. "Take care of Narene." Worry indeed shone in the Second's gold-flecked black eyes. Dorian bowed his head. "With my life," he promised as he approached her mount and grasped the dangling reins. He didn't fail to miss the gratitude that softened Asterin's features. Or that Manon had already turned away from him.

A fool to start down this path with her. He should have known better.

The hours that passed were some of the longest of Manon's existence.

From anticipation, she told herself. Of what she had to do.

Abraxos, unsurprisingly, found them within an hour, his reins sliced from the struggle he'd no doubt waged and won with Sorrel. He waited, however, beside Manon in silence, wholly focused upon the gate where Dorian and Narene had vanished.

Time dripped by. The king's sword was constant weight at her side. She cursed herself for needing to prove-to him, to herself-that she refused to let him go into Morath for practical, ordinary reasons. Erawan wasn't at the Ferian Gap. It'd be safer. Somewhat. But if the Matrons were there … That was why he'd gone. To learn if they were. To see if Petrah truly commanded the host there, and how many Ironteeth were present. He had not been trained as a spy, but he'd grown up in a court where people wielded smiles and clothes like weapons. He knew how to blend in, how to listen. How to make people see what they wished to see. She'd sent Elide into the dungeons of Morath, Darkness damn her. Sending the King of Adarlan into the Ferian Gap was no different.

It didn't stop her breath from escaping when Abraxos stiffened, scanning the sky. As if he heard something they couldn't.

And it was the joy that sparked in her mount's eyes that told her.

Moments later, Narene sailed toward them, making a lazy path over the mountains, a dark-haired, pale-skinned rider atop her. He'd truly been able to change parts of himself. Had made his face nearly unrecognizable. And kept it that way.

Asterin rushed toward the mare, and even Manon blinked as her Second threw her arms around Narene's neck. Holding her tight. The mare only leaned her head against Asterin's back and huffed.

Manon hadn't dwelled long on what she'd say.

And as the three hundred Ironteeth witches filed into the hall, some coming off their patrols, Manon half wondered if she should have. They watched her, watched the Thirteen, with a wary disdain.

Their disgraced Wing Leader; their fallen Heir.

When all were gathered, Petrah, still standing in the doorway where she'd appeared, merely said, "My life debt for an audience, Blackbeak."

Manon swallowed, her tongue as dry as paper. Seated atop Abraxos, she could see every shifting movement in the crowd, the wide eyes or hands gripping swords.

"I will not tell you the particulars of who I am," Manon said at last. "For I think you have already heard them."

"Crochan bitch," someone spat.

Manon set her eyes on the Blackbeaks, stone-faced where the others bristled with hatred. It was for them she spoke, for them she had come here.

jacket, then hoisting up her white shirt. Rising in the stirrups to bare her scarred, brutalized abdomen. "She does not lie."

UNCLEAN

There, the word remained stamped. Would always be stamped.

"How many of you," Asterin called out, "have been similarly branded? By your Matron, by your coven leader? How many of you have had your stillborn witchlings burned before you might hold them?"

The silence that fell now was different from before. Shaking shuddering.

Manon glanced at the Thirteen to find tears in Ghislaine's eyes as she took in the brand on Asterin's womb. Tears in the eyes of all of them, who had not known. And it was for those tears, which Manon had never seen, that she faced the host again.

"You will be killed in this war, or after it. And you will never see our homeland again."

"What is it that you want, Blackbeak?" Petrah asked from the archway.

"Ride with us," Manon breathed. "Fly with us.

Against Morath. Against the people who would keep you from your homeland, your future." Murmuring broke out again. Manon pushed ahead, "An Ironteeth-Crochan alliance. Perhaps one to break our curse at last."

Again, that shuddering silence. Like a storm about to break Asterin sat back in the saddle, but kept her shirt open.

"The choice of how our people's future shall be shaped is yours," Manon told each of the witches assembled, all the Blackbeaks who might fly to war and never return. "But I will tell you this." Her hands shook, and she fisted them on her thighs. "There is a better world out there. And I have seen it."

Even the Thirteen looked toward her now.

"I have seen witch and human and Fae dwell together in peace. And it is not weakness to do so, but a strength. I have met kings and queens whose love for their kingdoms, their peoples, is so great that the self is secondary. Whose love for their people is so strong that even in the face of unthinkable odds, they do the impossible."

Manon lifted her chin. "You are my people. Whether my grandmother decrees it so or not, you are my people, and always will be. But I will fly against you, if need be, to ensure that there is a future for those who cannot fight for it themselves. Too long have we preyed on the weak, relished doing so. It is time that we became better than our foremothers." The words she had given the Thirteen months ago. "There is a better world out there," she said again. "And I will fight for it." She turned Abraxos away, toward the plunge behind them. "Will you?"

Manon nodded to Petrah. Eyes bright, the Heir only nodded back. They would be permitted to leave as they had arrived: unharmed.

So Manon nudged Abraxos, and he leaped into the sky, the Thirteen following suit.

Not a child of war. But of peace.

[thelovesofmyentirelife]

me complaining abt witchtok lmao

remember when on witchtok (i've never even had a tiktok i'm just a witch and was whenever witchtok got super popular lmao) years ago all anyone talked abt was how deity worship+work is advanced and trickster deity this imposter spirit that constantly. one time I WASNT EVEN LIKE "THATS NOT TRUE" CUZ MAYBE THATS TRUE TO+FOR SOMEONE. I WAS JUST LIKE. "huh. that's not my experience. i was called to by a deity before i was a witch or even super in the know about all this stuff. so deity stuff was the first thing i did. it seems for y'all it's the other way around, but for me i wouldn't be a witch if i wasn't pagan. 99% of the witchcraft i do is devotional. " AND SO MANY TIKTOK WITCH PEOPLE COMMENTED YELLIN AT ME SAYIN HOW U SHOULDNT DO THAT BC ANY COMMUNICATION WITH A DEITY IS ADVANCED SHIT AND I WAS SPREADING DANGEROUS MISINFORMATION N HOW THEY WER GONNA HEX ME N SHIT. which ofc they didn't. or maybe since most of em wer self proclaimed baby witches it just didn't work lmao. but anyway now more recently i see those same witchtok ppl go back on that and be like "eh it wasn't that serious it's not advanced" and i'm like 😃🥴

[sanstropfremir]

if you could bring back one styling that you think wasn't appreciated in its time or the fans weren't ready for (but are now) or just think should be around again, which would it be? (hard round: something other than TVXQ's "Triangle" styling) (and I already know the #1 is Pink Gumby)

(kicks rock) ok FINE i won't immediately say triangle.........

my first instinct is actually something that DID get its due appreciation: arario!! it was genuinely ahead of its time (both in styling and musical composition), and if vixx hadn't done shangri-la we might never have seen a traditional/hanbok styling trend in kpop. but realistically this is kind of a tough question to answer because most trends in kpop styling have been recycled already in some way. i could say something like we should bring back the goofy looks for the early '10s but realistically that's already happened as much as it's going to without completely reverting silhouettes and clothing construction, which is not going to happen. and also i don't think most of those looks were underappreciated at the time. the most frequent type of look that is oft derided by fans and underutilized by creative staff are the infrequent forays into science fiction concepts. songs like 100%'s beat and more famously vixx's error were quite controversial for no legitimate reason, although honestly i don't remember how beat was received since vixx overshadowed them significantly (justice for 100% actually. the beat styling is better), but considering nobody remembers 100% even existed i'll consider it underappreciated. tbh in the current styling landscape of kpop my beef is less with fans not appreciating a styling (bc fans know exactly jack shit about costuming and will accept anything, even obvious garbage) and more with stylists who are unwilling to actually flesh out a concept. this applies to pretty much everything but i see it most obviously in scifi (and fantasy/horror etc, anything that's not boy/girl next door or school) concepts. one of the few cbs that i do desperately want to have a go around again is obsession bc please god can i finally have ksoo and minseok on the song, but also it's a fantastic concept that got most of the way there, it just could have been so much more interesting out if the stylists weren't cowards.

[thirteenemeraldcats]

"oh I wasn't a fan of Delilah. It made my eye twitch." Brian, I'm gonna need you to take several fucking seats. OK you wrote "all dead all dead" which is about your first cat that died.

HAH! All cat songs are good songs, Brian (those two are at the OPPOSITE ends of the emotional spectrum though 🤣)

The songs in question:

[welcometogrouchland]

What if I proposed the analysis that Belos actually has very little internal moral compass and that his veneer of righteousness has always been implied by the writers to be complete fabricated bullshit even before watching and dreaming basically confirms it.

[cigaretteparfum]

anyway, go read ikoku nikki.

[marypsue]

me, encountering a photoshoot of or interview with an actor who plays a fictional character I am Not Normal about, out of costume and character and living their life as an actor, unexpectedly and abruptly reminding me that the fictional character does not in fact exist or have a life or interiority and is in fact portrayed by a Real Fucking Person who does exist and has thoughts and goals and dreams and a whole life entirely unrelated to that nonexistent fictional character, and could hypothetically stumble across my Being Not Normal On The Internet about one of many characters they pretended to be in exchange for a paycheque: ah lads not again

[dulcewrites]

Ya know this is the third fic I’ve seen where floris has been done dirty 😭. The first one was where she was trying to flirt with Aemond and the reader for jealous and basically said to florist that Aemond fucks her different ways to Sunday, the second one was a modern Aegon fic, where she tried to fight the reader because Aegon was being an idiot, but Baela came in clutch and ripped of her cheap ass wig, and now in unnerved 😭.

Cheap ass wig omg 😭

Well I swear I’m gonna give Floris some grace. she may be a bit naive, but she’s gonna try to get her lick back!

[giverofempathy]

oohhhh i am experiencing so many little joys. feeling like im holding my life in my hands and looking down at it with tears in my eyes. everything is so beautiful

[quibbs126]

Okay so do Ovenbreak and Kingdom follow the same canon? Because I’m trying to figure out where Cookies come from (as in like are they all born or made, or if there’s some mixture of the two), and currently in Ovenbreak I have somewhat of an answer, I just want to know if I can go off of that

[acourtofquestions]

Dont be angry, Finnula said. Be smart.

[mintyvoid]

...my cookie run obsession is back =3=

trying not to burn myself out too fast, im playing like three of em.

so funny that in ob, seems they changed up how those starpieces are handed out- I still don't have enough for the next character lol. Since the swap to the star pieces, ive been at getting to pizza cookie. I think I used to be like 70 away and now I'm 1.5k LOL