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batmanisagatewaydrug · 6 months ago

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Do you have a list of good sex ed books to read?

BOY DO I

please bear in mind that some of these books are a little old (10+ years) by research standards now, and that even the newer ones are all flawed in some way. the thing about research on human beings, and especially research on something as nebulous and huge as sex, is that people are Always going to miss something or fail to account for every possible experience, and that's just something that we have to accept in good faith. I think all of these books have something interesting to say, but that doesn't mean any of them are the only book you'll ever need.

related to that: it's been A While since I've read some of these so sorry if anything in them has aged poorly (I don't THINK SO but like, I was not as discerning a reader when I was 19) but I am still including them as books that have been important to my personal journey as a sex educator.

additionally, a caveat that very few of these books are, like, instructional sex ed books in the sense of like "here's how the penis works, here's where the clit is, etc." those books exist and they're great but they're also not very interesting to me; my studies on sex are much more in the social aspect (shout out to my sociology degree) and the way people learn to think about sex and societal factors that shape those trends. these books reflect that. I would genuinely love to have the time to check out some 101 books to see how they fare, but alas - sex ed is not my day job and I don't have the time to dedicate to that, so it happens slowly when it happens at all. I've been meaning to read Dr. Gunter's Vagina Bible since it came out in 2019, for fucks sake.

and finally an acknowledgement that this is a fairly white list, which has as much to do with biases with academia and publishing as my own unchecked biases especially early in my academic career and the limitations of my university library.

ANYWAY here's some books about sex that have been influential/informative to me in one way or another:

The Trouble With Normal: Sex, Politics, and the Ethics of Queer Life (Michael Warner, 1999)

Virginity Lost: An Intimate Portrait of First Sexual Experiences (Laura M. Carpenter, 2005)

Virgin: The Untouched History (Hanne Blank, 2007)

Sex Goes to School: Girls and Sex Education Before the 1960s (Susan K. Freeman, 2008)

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex (Mary Roach, 2008)

Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution (Revised Edition) (Susan Stryker, 2008)

The Purity Myth: How America's Obsession with Virginity is Hurting Young Women (Jessica Valenti, 2009)

Not Under My Roof: Parents, Teens, and the Culture of Sex (Amy T. Schalet, 2011)

Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality (Hanne Blank, 2012)

Rewriting the Rules: An Integrative Guide to Love, Sex and Relationships (Meg-John Barker, 2013)

The Sex Myth: The Gap Between Our Fantasies and Realities (Rachel Hills, 2015)

Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Tranform Your Sex Life (Emily Nagoski, 2015)

Not Gay: Sex Between Straight White Men (Jane Ward, 2015)

Too Hot to Handle: A Global History of Sex Education (Jonathan Zimmerman, 2015)

American Hookup: The New Culture of Sex on Campus (Lisa Wade, 2017)

Histories of the Transgender Child (Jules Gill-Peterson, 2018)

Revolting Prostitutes: The Fight for Sex Workers' Rights (Juno Mac and Molly Smith, 2018)

Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex (Angela Chen, 2020)

Pleasure in the News: African American Readership and Sexuality in the Black Press (Kim Gallon, 2020)

A Curious History of Sex (Kate Lister, 2020)

Boys & Sex: Young Men on Hookups, Love, Porn, Consent, and Navigating the New Masculinity (Peggy Orenstein, 2020)

Black Women, Black Love: America's War on Africa American Marriage (Dianne M. Stewart, 2020)

The Tragedy of Heterosexuality (Jane Ward, 2020)

Hurts So Good: The Science and Pleasure of Pain on Purpose (Leigh Cowart, 2021)

Strange Bedfellows: Adventures in the Science, History, and Surprising Secrets of STDs (Ina Park, 2021)

The Right to Sex: Feminist in the Twenty-First Century (Amia Srinivasan, 2021)

Love Your Asian Body: AIDS Activism in Los Angeles (Eric C. Wat, 2021)

Superfreaks: Kink, Pleasure, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Arielle Greenberg, 2023)

#bookblr #sex edventures 2024 #sex witch library

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oh-no-its-bird · 14 days ago

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Someone ( @ohai-there ) asked me if I had any thoughts ab mdtb weeks "cultural differences" prompt, so, like, take just the copy pasted reply I gave them (+ some extra) :

I was up all night drawing birthday art and am this 👌 close to blacking out for x amount of hours so this risks being nonsensical fair warning

Uhhh culture shock my beloved, let's seee

Easy answer is the senju are very touchy feely, easily and willingly sleeps around (they face a lot less risk of bloodline theft due to rarity of the mokuton so there isn't as much ingrained cultural fear of being assulted/facing the baby shaped consequences of sleeping around willy nilly)

They can take multiple spouses and it's actually rare for the head of house to have only one wife (Hashirama is an exception bc Mito is a Princess(tm) and so to take another wife would risk offending her own clan culture, he is fine with this and they possibly often take others to bed with them just for funzies (potential hashimitoizu noises(?)))

Uhh anyways so that, they're super liberal with touch, etc. Etc.

Also they don't really do crazy deep romance and are super used to casual no strings attached flings, you have to make yourself VERY clear in what you're doing if you want to actually start a fr relationship bc otherwise many "courtship" behaviors are just like. Casual, culturally acceptable flirting and invitations to bang (the senju have a 101 different ways to proposition eachother in flower language alone.)

Meanwhile the Uchiha are on the total opposite side of the spectrum— they're like super conservative (In contrast to the Senju not having an ingrained fear of bloodline hunters, their very valuable and very vulnerable kekkei genkkei makes them prime victims, which has lead them having generations of trauma fueled insane abstinence lessons)

+ They're a noble clan and regularly interact with the Daimyo's court, so there's even more etiquette culture ingrained into them so they can send anyone into court if needed (While the Senju, who are NOT a noble clan, only ever send their main house, and so only they have to even worry about court etiquette)

They do not believe in divorce, they do not believe in political marriages (tho they do happen very very rarely, it's seen as very sad and tragic when it does) they... sometimes believe in multiple spouses, in specific situations (they can't regularly interact w the daimyo's court and not have to face it as a concept, after all)

So like. Super up tight, hella rules about how to show affection and proper ways to conduct yourselves, months long courting rituals before u even get to kissing, to sleep together before marriage is SINFUL

But they're ALSO super fucking romantic and absolutely insane about having soulmates and one true loves and are just super intense ab all that romance stuff where the senju are super relaxed in it

I think u see where this is going

Anyways uhhh

They make a village and there's tons of culture shock

Then Tobirama, being Tobirama (standoffish and cold, not especially interested in the usual wild Senju sex parties or whatever tf kind of events they're hosting in the gardens) is like, among the most "normal" to the Uchiha (from a cultural standpoint)

And bc of that, Madara maybe interacts w him more like "well he's kind of awful but at least he's not a sex FREAK like the rest of these Senju WHORES"

Umm Madara tries to court Tobirama but Tobirama sees it as him only trying to bang (?)

Which he possibly doesn't even want to do

Tobirama is like "Ah man, if only he were interested in actual courtship, but he has only given me the Senju flowers of "I wish to ravish you in the fields" and not the senju flowers of "I am potentially interest in maybe going on a date" (a proposition that a)he received not too infrequently, and so was not odd, and b) he politely rejected by accepting the flowers then showing Madara that he had planted it in red soil)

Meanwhile, Madara is like. "Wow this courtship is going so great he's accepting all my Uchiha flowers of pure devotion and innocent love in bloom"

Just in general, their clans having different flower meanings could be funny actually. The Uchiha regularly interact with court so I think they'd have to have, like, "normal" flower meanings (or else theres be some implications there of how theye gotten so far while using incorrect flower meanings in genuinely important events) so that means its the Senju who have odd meanings for flowers-- which also works, bc, like, mokuton

however many years ago, a previous descendant with mokuton told his clansmen the ""real"" meaning of these flowers,,, u wouldnt get it,,,

Another fun route could be, like, the Uchiha method of declaring ones intentions to court someone also happens to be the Senju's method of declaring a feud.

Madara tries to flirt with Tobirama only for Tobirama to understand this as Madara telling him to his face that the peace may be ongoing but he'll always hate his bitch ass !!!

#tbmd #mdtb #naruto #tobirama senju #senju tobirama #uchiha madara #madara uchha #tobimada #madatobi #birds fic talk #madatobiweek2024 #senju clan lore #senju clan

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gwenllian-in-the-abbey · 9 months ago

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Do you think that book!Alicent was a one dimensional evil stepmother and the show has fixed her by making her a sad victim of the men around her? I don't agree with this take but i see so many people argue in favour of stripping her of her agency in the show in that book!Alicent was nothing but a misogynistic caricature made by the sexist maesters.

Thanks for this question anon! I had actually been meaning to write something about the "evil stepmother" accusations that get thrown at book!Alicent because having recently re-read F&B, I just don't see it.

First of all, and I think most notably, Alicent's relationship with Rhaenyra doesn't really deteriorate completely until Daemon returns to court. Before that, we don't really have much information about the first few years of Viserys' marriage. The fandom likes to claim that Alicent was beefing with a 9 year old but that isn't really backed up with much evidence. After the account that nine year old Rhaenyra poured for her new stepmother at Alicent and Viserys' wedding (and on a seriously wtf note, helped undress her father for the bedding, but that's another topic), the next words we have about Alicent and Rhaenyra are when Alicent quips, about Rhaenyra's relationship with Criston Cole, "Ser Criston protects the princess from her enemies, but who protects the princess from Ser Criston?" And y'all? This is not beefing or bullying. Alicent is pointing out that Rhaenyra, now about 13-ish, is in a vulnerable position as an unmarried young woman. Is she also possibly picking up on some weird predatory vibes with Criston? Perhaps (which is also also interesting, considering Criston later defects to Alicent's camp)! Remember, book!Criston is only a year younger than Daemon, so anything between them would not only be completely off limits because Criston is a kingsguard, but also extremely inappropriate just based on their ages alone. Regardless, Rhaenyra is at this point surrounded by a lot of men ("many lords and knights sought her favor") and Alicent alone seems cognizant of the danger this poses.

After this, the relationship between Alicent and Rhaenyra evidently deteriorates, but we're not told precisely how, only that the "amity between Her Grace and her stepdaughter had proved short lived, for both Rhaenyra and Alicent aspired to be the first lady of the realm..." Keep in mind, this is Gyldayn editorializing without a source, and as for being "first lady of the realm," it's just as likely that Rhaenyra was jealous of her stepmother's position as queen as it was that Alicent had any particular animosity towards Rhaenyra. In any case, the book does not suggest that either of them are at fault for the breakdown.

This is also around the time that Otto gets sent home for bugging Viserys about the succession, so that probably had something to do with it, although this still does not amount to Alicent beefing with a child, as it's doubtful she brought up the situation to Rhaenyra herself, but rather she and Otto brought the issue to Viserys. And although I don't really want to get into the succession weeds here, I do want to make it clear that the expectation that Viserys would make his firstborn son his heir was an entirely reasonable one. Everywhere except for Dorne, sons inherit before daughters, and if Viserys had made it clear before he married Alicent that he had no intention of replacing Rhaenyra as heir, Otto might not have married Alicent to Viserys in the first place. There are multiple examples of men with daughters but no sons remarrying in order to get a male heir. It's the only reason Corlys offered Laena as a bride to Viserys (and, arguably, Corlys would have had the leverage to force the issue, which is perhaps one reason why he did not choose Laena). And it wasn't just Otto and Alicent-- people asked "what of the ruling of the Great Council in 101?" But Viserys basically told naysayers to shut up and stop asking. Okay.

Then we have the dress incident, and at this point Rhaenyra is 14, Daemon is back in town, and there's a tourney on. Alicent wears a green dress, Rhaenyra wears a black and red one. It's interesting that in this chapter, no additional context is given to this event. Much earlier in F&B, we do learn that the High Tower is lit green to call its banners against Maegor the Cruel. The show makes this association clear, but Gyldayn does not say that Alicent did this as a declaration of war on Rhaenyra, only that "the queen wore a green gown, whilst the princess dressed dramatically in Targaryen red and black." If you've read F&B, you know that Gyldayn loves editorializing, so the fact that the association made by the show is completely omitted here suggest that Gyldayn lacked this context, or people at the time of the event simply thought it was a green dress with no additional meaning, or perhaps he expected in-world readers to draw their own conclusions (although it's kind of unlike Gyldayn to resist showing off his knowledge when he can). Regardless, after that, the people gave them the nickname the blacks and the greens, and it stuck.

Anyway, it's clear Alicent and Rhaenyra aren't getting along at this point, and they probably resent each other, but there is no mention of Alicent actually doing anything whatsoever to harm Rhaenyra, much less "bullying a child who has just lost her mother" or "beefing with a nine year old." This seems to be a complete invention. Given that book!Rhaenyra is a spoiled only child, by this point a teenager, accustomed to having her father's undivided attention, and now he has a new wife and at this point three new children in his life, it's equally likely that Rhaenyra was feeling displaced and acting out. However, instead of giving her any helpful guidance or correcting her, the trusted adults in her life reinforce her negative feelings, and as we'll see, even use those insecurities to manipulate her. As for Alicent "poisoning her children against Rhaenyra," there's simply zero evidence to back this up. In fact, what eventually happens would seem to suggest that Alicent was at least somewhat concerned about the hostility between her children and Rhaenyra. And here is when things really break down, because this is where Daemon really starts to stir the pot.

Before the tourney, Daemon had been fighting in the stepstones. He returns to King's Landing a hero, and immediately latches onto Rhaenyra. As for Alicent, "although he treated her with all the courtesy due her station, there was no warmth between them, and men said that the prince was notably cool towards her children, especially his nephews, Aegon and Aemond, whose birth had pushed him still lower in the order of succession." So who is, in fact beefing with children? Daemon Targaryen. At the same time, Daemon starts cozying up to Rhaenyra, giving her extravagant gifts, telling her stories, and doing the one thing that is absolutely sure to win over a teenager, being a hater. Daemon hones in on Rhaenyra's issues with Alicent and together they have a great deal of fun openly mocking Alicent and her children, and what Daemon called the "lickspittles" who were in Alicent's camp. This works very well on Rhaenyra because of course it does! Daemon is the cool dragonriding uncle, the handsome Rogue Prince, and Rhaenyra is eating up the attention. She and Daemon have dragonraces and he tells her she's much prettier than Alicent and strokes that teenage ego. It's also at this point that the rumors about Daemon and Rhaenyra having a sexual relationship begin, and Daemon supposedly asks for Rhaenyra's hand in marriage because "who else would take her now?" Keep in mind, she's fourteen. And whether it's true or not, Viserys exiles Daemon again. He goes back to the Stepstones, and things settle down in King's Landing.

Of course the relationship between between Rhaenyra and her stepmother is bad by this point. Her and Daemon have just spent six months mocking her and her children and their supporters. Aegon is only about four or five years old, so the beef has got to be pretty one sided, although even little kids can tell when they're being given the cold shoulder or laughed at. Rhaenyra even makes a point of always referring to them as her half-brothers, rather than simply as her brothers. Still, a few years pass, Rhaenyra is now sixteen, and it's time for her to get married. Alicent proposes she marry Aegon, and one of the reasons she gives is that they don't get along well. "All the more reason to bind them together in marriage," Alicent says, acknowledging that Rhaenyra hating her now six year old younger brother is in fact a big fucking problem. If Alicent hoped for Rhaenyra and Aegon to marry, why on earth would she poison her children against Rhaenyra? But Viserys shoots this idea down, saying "the boy is Alicent's own blood. She wants him on the throne." And yes, of course she does, but she probably also wants him to stay alive.

So, Rhaenyra marries Laenor, and after that there's really no point in trying to maintain any sort of stepmother relationship, is there? Rhaenyra is now an adult, she's married, and she's made her feelings about Alicent and her siblings very clear. At this point, Alicent has to look out for the safety of her children, who are going to be Rhaenyra's biggest rivals. And if they dislike their older half-sister, who can blame them? Again, this is a girl who spent the better half of six months laughing at them. Rhaenyra did nothing but sabotage that relationship. And if Alicent decides she's going to fight for Aegon's inheritance, she's only doing what any mother in her position would do. There's no evidence she does it for power or greed, she simply does it because she doesn't owe Rhaenyra anything and letting someone who is actively hostile to her children take the throne unchallenged, especially when that person's claim is untraditional to say the least, and seen by many as being weaker than that of her sons, would be taking a huge risk with their lives. There's nothing "evil" in Alicent's actions. Book!Alicent did not bully Rhaenyra, did not "beef with a nine year old," or "poison her children against Rhaenyra," in fact, she did what she could to bind them together, but Rhaenyra, (at least in part taking her cues from Viserys and Daemon), was simply not interested. And you know, that's fine too, Rhaenyra doesn't have to love her stepmother or care about her half-brothers. They're much younger and it's natural that she wouldn't be much interested in them. But as heir to the throne? It sure would have been a much smarter idea to cultivate those relationships.

Book!Alicent isn't an "evil stepmother" though either, after a certain point she she simply prioritizes her own children over someone who has made it abundantly clear she has no use for any of them.

#asks #alicent hightower #fire and blood #the greens #anti daemon targaryen

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cinnamonnangel · 1 year ago

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ASTRO 101 - THE HOUSES (PART II)

SEVENTH HOUSE - I BALANCE

(The Seventh House is ruled by Libra and Venus.)

House of marriage, personality and character of our partner, partner’s job

Civil partnership, bilateral relations, long and committed relationship, close friends, closely associated with, opposite side, associations, union, consultancy

Terms of relationship and behavior

Joint ventures, hostilities, adversary, rivals, competition

Traits we feel lacking in ourselves, the parts of us that are in us but have not been revealed and that we have difficulty in accepting

Lower back, skin, external sexual organs, bladder, ovaries, blood

International relations, military or civil wars, treatises, arbitrators, illegal criminals, marriage and divorce rates, foreign trade, public relations

EIGHTH HOUSE - I DESIRE

(The Eighth House is ruled by Scorpio, Mars and Pluto.)

House of death - natural or unnatural, accident, suicide, fire, drowning, diseases, corruption, crises, surgery

Sex, sexuality, erotism, desire, fantasies, fetishes, sexual life

Alteration and transformations, sharing

Heritage, money that comes to us beyond of our control, money that comes to us from others, inheritance from husband

Tax, alimony, debt, heritage, loan, lottery, gambling

Robbery, fighting, theft, slaughter, butchers, coroners, harassment, rape

The fears, privacy, feel rage towards, abomination

Psychology, occultism, parapsychology, subconscious, spiritual psychology

Genitals, groin area, colon, sex organs, gall bladder, rectum, urogenital system

International debts, international financial agreements, charges, stock certificates, interest rates, foreign exchanges, credits, fuses, mortgages, pension funds, legacies, mortality, life-critical, suicide

Surgery, morgue, surgeons, laboratories, nuclear forces, sewage, organized crimes, terrorists, detective, demimonde, arms, underground sources, cabalistic subjects

NINTH HOUSE - I ASPIRE

(The Ninth House is ruled by Sagittarius and Jupiter.)

House of wisdom, mastership, higher education, academic trainings

Cults and thoughts, abstract reasoning, moral evidence, philosophizing, religious cult, reflection, abstract thoughts

The house where we deepen the information we get from the 3rd house

Distant relatives

Society's mindset, social law rules, social and moral rules, harmony with society

Expedition, long trips, distant travels, foreign countries, foreigners, exterior, crew, communication instruments, media, broadcast

Hips, thighs, sciatic nerves, lower spine, liver, autonomic nervous system

Foreign relations and trade, courts, laws, judges, minorities, companies, advertising portfolios, religion and clergy, the country's philosophical and religious tendencies, migrations, long-distance communications, fast-moving news, broadcasting, popular culture, foreigners

Universities, airlines and transport, maritime transport, ministry of foreign affairs, flight attendants

TENTH HOUSE - I USE

(The Tenth House is ruled by Capricorn and Saturn.)

House of profession, honor, social status, public esteem, dignity, business, character, reputation and career

Glory, name, fame, recognition, way of life, purpose and power

Social roles, status in society, the part of society that sees us, social identity, prestige and title

Marital status, our partner's family, parents, father, authoritarian leaders

Skin, hair, knees, teeth, bones, joints, skeletal system, reputation

Government, the state's reputation by foreign countries, heads of state, powers, executives, leaders, celebrities, notable personages, public figures, uplands

ELEVENTH HOUSE - I KNOW

(The Eleventh House is ruled by Aquarius, Saturn and Uranus.)

House of friends, groups, associations, endowments, a circle of friends, people around us, hives, social environments and organizations

Goals, future plans, hopes, goals of life, wishes, happy news, wealth, fortune, expectations from life and dreams

Income from career, colleagues, international friendships, audiences we offer ideas, incoming wealth, gains, profits, writings

Social media, mass media and virtual communities

Endowments associations, politics, parties, establishment, the masses

Lower leg, calves, ankles, electrical impulsive of the nerves, circulatory system, elimination

Allied countries, social institutions and administrations, legislative changes, national mobilizations, revolts, revolutions, organizations, erosions

TWELFTH HOUSE - I BELIEVE

(The Twelfth House is ruled by Pisces, Jupiter and Neptune.)

House of tribulations, secret matters, troubles, subconscious, covert and covered topics, privacy, loneliness, ermitage, place of isolation

Thoughts, anxieties, and fears underlying repressed consciousness, spiritual life

The things we hide from others and are afraid to tell, our shadow sides, psychological problems

Karmic transmissions, burdens and problems we brought from the past

Secret enemy, backfriend

What kind of pregnancy our mother had, our condition in the mother’s womb and the emotions transferred to us in the mother’s womb

Fantasies and fetishes

Feet, all bodily fluids, the lymphatic system

Secret enemies, secret organizations, private affairs, spies, psychics, fortune-tellers, wizards, deep and secret affairs, criminals, thefts, assassinations, drugs, addicts, dark business people, unemployment and strikes

Hospitals, prisons, rehabilitation centers, mental hospitals, faith houses, orphanages, clinics, charities, overseas

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aifsaath · 1 year ago

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I am continuously perplexed at how a show as objectively bad and problematic as hotd keeps inspiring outstanding fanfics like yours and @gwenllian-in-the-abbey’s. Truly it’s a mystery to me, especially considering that the books covering the dance are supposed to be quite mediocre as well from what I’ve perceived. Just so you know,with that trailer out now I’m gonna completely blend out the events of the show and consider our fathers clad in red canon

@gwenllian-in-the-abbey AAAAAAAAAAAAAA, I think George's gonna order a hit on us:D

I'm glad you like our slightly destructive approach to teh canon. I'm mostly fueled by spite and my dislike for George's and HBO's complete disregard for the historical context of the stuff they draw their inspiration from (you can't do the Matilda vs Stephen showdown and expect the same sense of injustice, when your main conflict is about Viserys' imbecilic approach to rules, Rhaenyra's weak-ass claim and papa/dragons being her go-to solution to all her problems, Daemon being a chaos gremlin, Corlys' malignant ambition and the Hightowers being the only ones who actually care about the rule of law.)

A lesbian romance doesn't automatically turn a story into a feminist manifesto, nor does a girlboss who's treated by the narrative as the second coming of Christ. Context matters and it's a mistake to view the Dance through the lens of modern ideals about egalitarianism.

GRRM's hubris when it comes to "Aragorn's tax policies" is just another thing that enrages me and Gwenllian, because the man completely misunderstands the medieval legal codes. Just because they were complex that doesn't mean they were fucking contradictory on their own; no one wanted civil wars breaking out each time a monarch died.

Problems happened when two countries with generational beefs worked on two different principles of succession, ie. England (male-preference primogeniture) vs France (male-only primogeniture), or if there was some dynastic fuckery that completely messed up the clear-cut succession lines with usurpations and cousin marriages (Yorks vs Lancasters).

Had Richard II (the son of the Black Prince) died peacefully without issue, the succession would have followed through the line of the Duke of Clarence, with Edmund the Earl of March eventually becoming the king (and he was Richard's heir, btw).

But that's not what happened. The son of John of Gaunt usurped the throne and it was then passed down through his line, because he was the crowned king. Now, you can argue whether or not he had any right to do the usurpation in the first place and whether or not he was the legitimate king and you bet people back then argued about that too. This ambiguity is how you create a proper narrative about actually conflicting claims. The only thing propping up Rhaenyra against her brother is the fact that Viserys is a moron.

How the fuck can I take F&B seriously and without the Dead Sea's worth of salt, when it pretty much blows Jaehaerys' posthumous dick about his wisdom when he "let" the council of 101 decide the succession (while politely ignoring the fact that Jaehaerys' own claim is legit only in the cases of either full salic or semi-salic succession, ie male-only), while never once it calls out Viserys out on his extremely dangerous decision. He gets to die venerated as the peaceful grandpa and all the blame for his incompetence is piled on Aegon II and Alicent.

Let's go through the possible succession systems, shall we?

If we follow male-preference primogeniture, the legitimate line of kings ends with Aerea because she was the eldest child of Aegon the Uncrowned, Maegor's eldest nephew. Only after she and her sister die without issue, Jaehaerys can become the king. Jaehaerys' canon ascension works only because Rhaena gave up her daughters' claims. The next in line would be Aemon and after him Rhaenys. But that's not what happened.

If we follow the salic law (male only), the legitimate line of the kings goes Aegon I -> Aenys I -> Aegon Uncrowned -> Jaehaerys I -> Viserys I -> Aegon II. This is probably what Jaehaerys wanted to ensure, since he challenged Maegor's kingship in the first place.

If a crowned king can choose his heir, then Jaehaerys was never a legitimate king and Aerea was the true queen, because Maegor, who had won his crown in the trial by combat, chose her as his heir.

What about the principle of seniority? Cognatic seniority where men and women have equal claims is out of the question since Aegon I was the crowned king, not Visenya. Male-only seniority would go Aegon I -> Aenys I -> Maegor I (uncontested!) -> Aegon Crowned This Time -> Viserys the Not Tortured to Death -> Jaehaerys I -> Aemon (only if his uncle Viserys has no issue) -> Baelon -> Vaegon -> Viserys I -> Daemon (EW).

Notice the distinct lack of Rhaenyra.

Team Black keeps mentioning the widow's law, but that's a bulk of nonsense. I suppose the misunderstanding originates from a (willful) misinterpretation of this passage. The book says:

Now, I highly doubt Jaehaerys intended for the law to mean that a daughter from the first marriage should come before the sons from the second. The wording is a bit unlucky, but I suppose the intention was to establish the legal position of the second wife and her children as united with the position of her step-children - she has the same duties towards them as if they were own, and the same goes the other way. Which would make sense. Because otherwise, no one would be desperate enough to marry a widower with daughters. Since we know that title and land ownerships have remained in the same families without changing hands once or twice since the implementation of the law, I really doubt the team black's literal interpretation of the passage was the one intended. Ffs, Viserys was pushed to marry again because he had only one daughter, meaning, this law wasn't viewed the way the Team Black wishes for. And I'm not even delving into the fact that this would be a female inheritance hack penned by Jaehaerys, if that was the case. Talk about ooc.

So, yeah, we're taking Gyldayne's interpretation of the past with so much salt our hearts are gonna fail.

#dance of the dragons #aegon ii targaryen #rhaenyra targaryen #viserys i targaryen #grrm critical #Aragorn's Tax Policy #Rhaenyra had no right to the throne and you know it #asks #our fathers clad in red

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u5an5 · 1 month ago

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Of things obtained: Once Upon a Witchlight Ep. 24 | Slippery When Wet

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! Fair warning, this post contains SPOILERS. If you don't want to be spoiled, STOP READING !

Gricko

Languages: Common, Goblin, Gigant, Druidic, Sylvan?

Class: Druid, Circle of Primal Spirits (Reflavoured Circle of Stars with focus on Monstrosities instead constellations) lvl 4

Abilities: -2 lvl1 spell slots; -1 lvl2 spell slot; -2 Wild Shape

In possession from beginning:

Primal totems (ep.1)

Alarm whistle (ep.1)

Ocarina (ep.2)

Glue dropper bottle (ep.3)

Eyedrops bottle (ep.3)

Peanut butter jar (ep.10)

banañas (ep.12)

Can of WD-40 (ep.19)

Wooden carved pocket watch (ep.20)

Items acquired:

Bag of 603 gold pieces (couldn't find it; ep.1)

Cloak of Displacement (ep.1)

Magic Face Paint (Disguise Self 1h; ep.6)

1 ticket to Witchlight Carnival (gained due Fey Pact) 2/8 (ep.7)

Witchlight wine (ep.7)

Cuddly toy spider (Spider Climb; ep. 8)

Glove puppet wizard (Illusion 3/3; ep.8)

Wooden wand (Prestidigitation 8/8; ep.8)

Blue ribbon "I dropped a beat on the Carnival street" (ep.8)

5x fridge magnets (ep.12)

Rocky Talkie (ep.14)

Mouse Harness (ep.15)

Bag of leeches full of Witchlight

Trinkets:

Golden Bell (ep.20)

19 - Vitrified eye of a displacer beast (ep.23)

36 - Rock that floats and is small enough to hide in your closed fist (ep.23)

23 - Ball-and-cup toy that plays a short, victorious jingle whenever the ball lands in the cup (ep.23)

55 - Mask that helps you remember your dreams if you wear it while you sleep (ep.23)

65 - Tiny wooden lute with cat hairs for strings (ep.23)

Clothes:

Pacts/contracts:

No ticket - after giving away his ticket to Gideon, due to The Rule of Reciprocity, his most prized possession (Hootsie) was taken away from him by Sowpig (ep.5)

With Mr Light - If Gricko was to stop talking and leave immediately he would make sure to get Snail Number Two to Gricko; Gricko did not and he might've been just humoring him to get rid of him faster (ep.16)

Fear: Groblin (2D beings in general; ep.12)

Hootsie (shrunk down and put in the Inn)

Trinkets:

90 - Set of false wooden teeth (ep.23)

Gideon

Languages: Common, Primodial, Sylvan?

Class: Fighter, Chain Brawler (Reflavoured Rune Knight) lvl 4

Abilities: -Burning Hands;

In possession from beginning:

Engineered manacles (ep.5)

Cigar (ep.10)

Really tiny notebook (ep.11)

Really tiny spectacle (ep.11)

Flask (ep.22)

Items acquired:

3 letters from Mr. Roslov (ep.1; they did NOT read it)

x5 Magical Invisibility Cupcakes (ep.3)

162 gold pieces (ep.7)

Wooden wand (Prestidigitation 8/8; ep.6)

1 ticket to Witchlight Carnival (gained due Fey Pact) 3/8 (ep.7)

Cuddly toy spider (Spider Climb ep.7)

Letter from Mrs Witch & Light (ep.8)

x2 Cuddly toy spider (ep.8)

Pixie dust (Spider Climb ep.8)

Wooden wand (Prestidigitation 8/8; ep.6)

Blue ribbon (ep.8)

Forlarrens Remorse [dagger] (ep.15)

1 banaña (ep.16)

"Engineering for Fae Dummies 101" in sylvan [book] (ep.19)

Remains of the blue scarf (ep.22; given to Torbek)

Remains of Agdon Longscarf's ear (ep.22)

Trinkets:

17 - Sheet of music that goblins find upsetting when they hear it played or sung (ep.23)

76 - Collection of baby teeth in a tiny wooden box (ep.23)

40 - Wax candle that roars and crackles like a bonfire while lit (ep.23)

45 - Bar of soap that smells like something memorable from your childhood (ep.23)

3 - Silver hand mirror with a nymph-shaped handle (ep.23)

28 - Tiny clockwork dragonfly that slowly beats its wings (but can't fly) when wound up (Gideon has seen schematics for this exact dragonfly at the end of his book; ep.23)

73 - Nunchaku sized for a pixie or sprite (ep.23)

Clothes:

Baby pink Cake Chad T-shirt at least five sizes too small (ep.3)

Pacts/contracts:

Marriage - He has to get married to Taxie after asking her to marry him in exchange for a ticket for Frost. Additionally, Frost, as show of gratefulness, will do at least one nice thing for him each day and fulfill one bigger favour once every two weeks. (ep.14) Due to him and all betrothed signing Kremy's contract he became a sole husband to all three Bixie, Zaxie and Taxie and due some additional fine print he had to marry Kremy too (ep.15) (In next 7 days, if he's 30 feet or less from people he married he gets one +2AC for each of them)

Clown kill manslaughter count:

Chuckles the Clown - after being punched in body by Gideon, which broke every rib he had, laughed himself to death (supposedly he was already dead by this time due crippling alcoholism; before the campaign)

Klutzy the Clown - got hit by Gideon throwing Impossibal at incredible speeds directly into his face. The actual supposed cause of death was deadly allergy to unspecified ingredient/s in this processed not-meat sludge (ep.6)

Bumbo the Clown - Tripped and fallen directly onto Gideon's sword hand puppet, completely running him through. Was allergic to felt, he hit the ground and he died. (ep.9)

Thaco the Clown - Was deadly allergic to peanuts and ate an unlabeled peanut butter pie that Gideon chose for his wedding. It took over 1 hour for anyone to notice (ep.15)

Kremy

Languages: Common, Draconic, Bullywug, Sylvan?

Class: Warlock, Death Loa Patron (Reflavoured Undead patron) lvl 4

Abilities: -2 lvl2 spell slots

Outside of battle Suggestion spell functions for him as a cantrip

In possession from beginning:

Tophat

Skull Cane

2 gold pieces (ep.1)

at least 2 handkerchiefs (ep.3)

Compact mirror (ep.4)

Frying pan (ep.4)

Knife (ep.4)

Bacon grease (ep.8)

Cigarettes (ep.10)

Cigarette holder from Gideon (ep.17)

Pocket watch (ep.20)

Canteen (ep.20)

Items acquired:

Satchel with Carnival map and Three Rules of Feywild (ep.2)

Packet of pixie dust

Stuffed Almiraj plushie from Gideon (Minor Illusion 3/day)

1 ticket to Witchlight Carnival (gained due Fey Pact) 2/8

45 gold pieces

A replica unicorn horn filled with candy (ep.7)

A replica unicorn horn filled with candy (ep.8)

Bright orange ribbon "consolation prize" from Torbek (ep.8)

Pinecone Pug plushie x2? (ep.12)

Pinecone Pug backpack (ep.12)

Gricko's teeth (ep.12)

Frost's fingernails (ep.12)

x3 Toffie (ep.13)

Fist sized cup made from snail shell (ep.14)

Great Fiddle (ep.15)

Satchel of human bones (ep.18)

Trinkets:

34 - Fake Three-Dragon Ante card depicting a faerie dragon (he put it on his tophat beside his other two cards) (ep.23)

94 - Tasseled wine charm shaped like a sprite (ep.23)

49 - Piece of parchment bearing a child's drawing of an oni (ep.23)

100-sided die the size of a plum, cut from coal (ep.23)

1 - Cookie cutter shaped like a unicorn (ep.23)

Clothes:

Pacts/contracts:

Due possessing unspecified knowledge he didn't pay for when he "abandoned his station" has to deliver 100,000 gold pieces to Mr. Garou by the end of the month as recompensation. If he's no longer able to do so by dying, the rest of the Krew is obligated to pay it (ep.1)

Marriage -Due making his contract with his betrothed he was able to transfer it onto Gideon and also marry him himself. (ep.15) (In next 7 days, if he's 30 feet or less from people he married he gets one +2AC for each of them)

Fear: Remy Garou and his debt to him (ep.12)

Frost

Languages: Common, Celestial, Elvish, Sylvan?

Class: Sorcerer, Mystic Mind Origin (Reflafoured Aberrant Mind) lvl 4

Abilities: -8hp/24hp; -2 1lvl spell slots

In possession from beginning:

Backpack (ep.2)

Glue (totally not related to horses; ep.3)

Tambourine (ep.3)

Water skin (ep.3) full of Oasis Water (ep.20)

Small dagger (ep.4)

Peanut butter jar (ep.10)

Peanut M&M's (ep.11)

Ball of yarn (ep.11)

Buttons (ep.13)

Crowbar (ep.18)

Red ball of yarn (given to Twig) (ep.19)

Towel (ep.20)

Water skin full of Oasis Water (ep.20)

x5 vials full of Oasis Water (ep.20)

10ft pole (ep.21)

Ball of thread and a needle (ep.22)

Items acquired:

Letter to Zybilna by Madrik Roslov (ep.1)

Bag of Beans (ep.1)

1 gold piece

Morning Frost license plate (ep.12)

Pack of pixie dust (ep.12)

Sky blue T-shirt three sizes too small with "Bird Chad" on it (ep.12)

1 ticket to Witchlight Carnival (gained due Pixie Pact) 0/8 (ep.14)

Teapot & pack of Scatterleaf tea (ep.14)

Killmoulis Spectacles (ep.15)

Wand of the Pact Breaker 3/3 (ep.15)

1 banaña (ep.16)

Trinkets:

64 - Piano key carved from a satyr's horn (ep.19)

6 - Tiny pair of sharp, iron scissors (ep.19)

68 - Wooden pan flute that attracts harmless local fauna when played (ep.23)

25 - Silver fork with the outer tines bent sideways (ep.23)

9 - Chess piece shaped like a dancing satyr wearing a bishop's hat and clutching a gnarled staff (ep.23)

63 - Black executioner's hood sized for a pixie or sprite (ep.23)

74 - Copper coin with a smiling satyr's face on one side and a satyr's skull on the other (ep.23)

Clothes:

Pacts/contracts:

Pixie Ticket Pact: In exchange for Gideon marrying Taxie to get him his ticket, he will do at least one nice thing for Gideon each day and one bigger favour once every two weeks; not as much pact as bros wanting to be fair (ep.14)

Fear: Being alone, being the last one standing and going insane, being left out (ep.12)

Torbek (shrunk down and put in the Inn)

(curently indisposed due the fomorian spit he drank last episode making him enter delirium-like state of exaustion as his body tries to flush it out)

Languages: Common, Goblin

Class: Blood Hunter (Presumably tweaked Mutant)

Abilities: -3hp/??hp; 1x Dimmension Door spell

Title/s: Brigand Prince of Prismeer (ep.22)

In possession from beginning:

Old Witchlight Carnival ticket 1/8 (ep.20)

Filthy Sack (ep.20)

Items acquired:

Bloodstained blue scarf (ep.23)

Trinkets:

50 - Tiny hourglass without sand in it (ep.23)

71 - Wooden apple painted blue (ep.23)

82 - Petrified robin's egg (ep.23)

39 - Vial of viscous liquid labeled "Fomorian spit. Do not drink!" (ep.23)

64 - Piano key carved from a satyr's horn (ep.23)

Clothes:

Nice cozy pajama

Little bowties in his fur

Contraption - A big contraption consisting of weird fey machinery and containers with liquid Witchlight embedded into his flesh on his back. It cannot be removed and it activates due unknown trigger, turning him into a feral beast (ep.19)

Twig [NPC]

Languages: Common, Sylvan

Class: Warlock (most likely with an Archfey patron)

Abilities: 20hp/24hp; -1 1lvl spell slot

In possession from beginning:

Acorn Satchel (ep.20)

Inn at The End of The Road shrunk down and kept in the Satchel (ep.20)

Items acquired:

Sterling silver comb from Gideon {Inn} (ep.19; given to Twig as payment)

Signaling whistle from Frost {Inn} (ep.19; given as payment)

Ball of red yarn from Frost {Inn?} (ep.20)

Trinket Ledger (ep.23)

Torbek {Inn}

Trinkets:

Wooden mouse figurine that squeaks when squeezed (ep.23)

Set of false wooden teeth x2 (ep.23)

Tiny beehive (literal hive of bees) wig made for sprites or pixies (ep.23)

Tiny wooden stool (sized for a pixie or sprite) that gives splinters to those who hold it if they're not an owner (ep.23)

. .

Krew (The Party)

In possession from beginning:

2 gold pieces (ep.1)

Items acquired:

5 gold pieces (ep.2; for street-performing)

Wand of the Pact Breaker 3/3 (ep.15, currently in Frost's possession)

Pacts/contracts:

With Madrik Roslov: In exchange for checking if Zybilna is alright, and if true, giving her the letter he wrote, Party will get what is left from his possessions once he passes away (ep.1)

With Diana Cloppington: In exchange for riddle concerning Prismeer, with knowledge and information she was able to store about current state of it in it, Party promises to, at least, attempt to help her return to human and be reunited with Sir Cloppington; Not really Fey Pact but on their rules (ep.2)

With Palasha & Candlefoot: In exchange for bringing Candelfoots voice back they pledged allegiance with Krew and promised to come and help them if they ever need them; not as much pact as keeping true to Third Rule (ep.13)

With Clapperclaw: In exchange for retrieving their head they will transport Krew to Tither (ep.23)

With Sir Talivar: upon receiving the message wit the key to his cage he's obligated to organize an audience with Titania, queen of Summer Court for Krew

Altered states:

Boon of Willa the Wisp [effect]: (ep.17)

(All) - the Boons recipient gains a d4 and can at any time within next 24 hours roll this die and add a number rolled to one ability check, attack roll or saving throw made by it.

New rule - They can do 3 Twists of Fate to cancel out 1 Twist of Dread (ep.18)

Twist of Fate curses:

Twist of Dread curses (by DM):

(Gricko) 20 - Half of your body goes numb; you can pick which half [01:26:08 - 01:45:00]

(Frost) 13 - You turn into Klutzy [01:27:03 - 01:44:40]

(Twig) - You become a summer eladrin [01:29:40 - 01:44:40]

(Gideon) 20 9 - Your head is replaced with donkey's head; you can still speak [01:32:40 - 01:45:00]

(Kremy) 2 1 - You're incredibly unlucky all rolls are at disadvantage and so are any allies within 20ft of you for 24h [01:32:15 -

[01:2

Would you kindly...

To-do list:

Get the 100,00 gold pieces by the end of the month (ep.1)

Find out why Madrik Roslovs patron, Zybilna, stopped answering his calls for 15 years so he can die in peace, knowing her fate (ep.1)

Get to the Witchlight Carnival before it ends and find the only available entrance to Prismeer, Zybilnas domain (ep.1; completed)

Try to become Witchlight Monarch (ep.1; completed)

Find out who was the man that cut off Lexi Pott's wings, why he did that and what happened with them (ep.1)

Find a way to reunite Diana Cloppington with her with her horse, Sir Cloppington, and return them to their previous forms (ep.2)

Win Cake Eating contest (ep.3; completed)

Find a way to return Candlefoots voice (ep.4; completed)

Find some clothes for Torbek (ep.6; completed)

Keep Torbek occupied for an hour when Carnival Hands find manacles for him and take him away for his punishment (ep.8; completed)

Catch the Kenku and bring her to Mr Witch & Mr Light for her punishment in exchange for some answers (ep.9; not realised)

Get ahold of Mr Witch's Pocketwatch or Mr Light's Weathervane and keep it hostage to get the true answers to what they seek (ep.9; completed)

Get reunited with Hootsie (ep.16, completed)

Avenge Willa and find a way to free her from being tied to the Well (ep.17)

Find Brody Snake-Snake in Yon and deliver him message from his parents (ep.18)

Retrieve a key to his cage from goblin named Jingle Jangle and free Sir Talavar from it (ep.18; completed)

Take care of Harengons so they don't harrass Jingle Jangle anymore and return her truffle bag (ep.21; completed)

Retrieve Clapperclaws head, a stag skull, from Agdon Longscarf and return it (ep.22)

Get Twig all limited edition Bunko-Pops of the Krew as drag queens if they ever have a chance

Time

4th day of Campaign, 2nd day in Prismeer, Feywild, wee hours +less than 3 hours - less than half an hour later

?th of the month (?? days until The Debt deadline)

Random Info

Man whose name Lexi Pott was unable to say was going to "wake her" and she was very scared for Party meeting him. When they mentioned name Zybilna, she said they "already were too deep" (ep.1)

After Lexi Pott died, Party was surrounded by Fairy Ring made up from mushrooms (ep.1)

Tasha and Iggwilv The Witch Queen are the same person (ep.4)

Chuckles said Gideon will join clowns in Hell and become Eighth Clown Lord of Crazy Eights (ep.7)

Torbek's poem is based on Immortality by Clare Harner (ep.8)

Burly the bugbear has a twin, Hurly, that went missing (ep.9)

Mr Witch and Mr Light got into pact for them to be able to run the Witchlight Carnival in exchange for things it wants (people breaking rules) to Hourglass Coven (ep.11)

The original owner of Witchlight Carnival was an archfey (ep.11)

Fey Pacts leave magical aura around those which they bind that are visible to fae (ep.11)

Whatever is stollen from Carnival always finds its way into Prismeer (ep.16)

The only people from Carnival who go outside its bounds are Witchlight Hands. All other creatures stay inside (ep.16)

According to Mr Light, Party is affected by Fae Magic way more than anyone he've ever seen in his life for some reason (ep.16)

Mr Witch's last words were "Mind the rule of three - future, present, past" and Mr Light's were "Find the alicorn and free the dormant Queen at last" (ep.16)

Brody Snake-Snake went to act at The Theater in Yon and haven't been in any contact with his parents since (ep.18)

Wigglewog is stated to be "very well dressed and very well dead" (ep.18)

Hags used Iggwilv's Caudron to freeze time inside Zybilnas Palace, trapping the archfey inside (ep.18)

Time works differently in Feywild (ep.18)

Torbek is at least five years older than the last time Krew saw him and doesn't have recollection of what happened to him during this time (ep.19)

The magenta liquid in Torbeks machinery is made of Witchlight, an extremely potent Feywild drug made from Witch Cup mushroom found only in deep parts of Feydark; due how hard it is to procure only the richest can afford it, like archfey (ep.19)

Jingle Jangle can only refer to herself in third person since she made deal with Bavlorna Blightstraw because she lost sense of self when she was made to be obsessed with keys but, as far as she knows, Jingle Jangle has always been her name (ep.21)

The only entities that can move between Realms of Prismeer are Hags and few guides that somehow found a way to travel between; the only one known in Hither is a pincer-clawed scarecrow, Clapperclaw (ep.21)

Tither is ruled by Granny Nightshade (ep.21)

Granny Nightshade, the hag that made Clapperclaw, gave its head to the Hag rulling in Hither, Bavlorna, and then she gave it to Agdon Longscarf (ep.23)

In Feywild, unless someone has someone next of kin or ever specified otherwise, after their death their belongings cease to belong to anyone, making taking them away and claiming as your own perfectly legal and not a case of breaking any of The Rules (ep.23)

Person of which voice Krew heard in the dream vision and Torbek heard on the table on which he was experimented on told Torbek telepathically that "They are coming", that Torbek won't be able to separate from "him" any time soon and that number 13 will have some kind of significance (ep.23)

Torbek has in the past unexplainably survived many instances of fatal situations that by any accounts should've killed him (like falling off the Harris Wheel uncountable number of times despite no one else falling off it more than once, ) (ep.23)

Total money: 817 gold pieces

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naisaspalace · 6 months ago

Text

Vedic Astrology 101 p2

Basic explanation of the houses, rulership and signification and how to read the chart (or interpret it on a basic level).

Introduction:

after explaining a little of the signs and the planets now i will attempt to introduce the houses, the rulerships and their respective significators.

i will bring the nakshatras in the next part.

click here for part one, if you wish to read it :).

The chart:

The Vedic / sideral chart has a different form of layout and from now on we will have two "designs", one is the northern form (the left side) and the southern form (the right side)

The Northern format uses triangles, the kendras (1,4,7,10) are in the middle. the difference is that the houses are fixed but not the sign

and on the southern side, the chart houses are not fixed but the signs are fixed. (picture below).

there is no "right" chart format to choose from, you can use which one is easier for you to understand, I myself use the northern chart and I will be using them for further explanations if I find them necessary but on a solid basic level, those are the charts formats.

and you can see the chart, as a circle if you wish, by using other websites like astro or astroseek which showcase the charts using a circle format independent of the system you choose to use.

The houses

classifications:

The Kendras (or Quadrants): Houses I, 4, 7 and I 0. These are highly significant houses. The Panapharas (or Successant Houses): Houses 2, 5, 8 and II. The Apoklimas (or Cadent Houses): Houses 3, 6, 9 and 12. The Trikonas (or Trines): Houses I, 5 and 9. These are highly auspicious and, along with the Kendras, determine the health, wealth, status, dignity, rise and virtue of a native. The lagna, being both a kendra and a trikona, is the most significant of all houses. The Upachayas: Houses 3, 6, 10 and II. These houses indicate struggle, competition and material achievement. The Trika Houses: Houses 6, 8 and 12. These are considered bad houses (Duhsthanas). They indicate debt, disease, loss and misery. The Ayu-sthanas (or houses of longevity) : Houses 8 and 3 (8th from the 8th). They indicate the length of life and, therefore, also the death. The Maraka-sthanas (or killer houses): Houses 2 and 7. The two halves of a horoscope: (a) Houses I to 7 indicate the invisible half and houses 7 to I indicate the visible half of the horoscope. (b) Houses 10 to 4 indicate the eastern half and houses 4 to 10 indicate the western half of the horoscope.

first house or the lagna (ascendant).

represents your body's health and appearance, character, and strength (psychical).

ruled by mars ,house of, aries, sun is the significator of the first house as it also signifies the self and the house where the sun exalts.

the second: money earned and material goods as well as the face appearance and the voice and throat.

ruled by venus, house of taurus, jupiter is the significator because is related to accumulated wealth, financial assets and speech.

the third: nervous system, siblings, short trips, communication style

ruled by mercury, house of gemini, mars is the significator because the third house is related to courage and mental ability.

the fourth: mother, emotions, family, home, origins, heredity, and ancestry.

ruled by the moon, house of cancer, moon is the significator

the fifth: love matters, pleasure, leisure, children, ego, artistic skills and intelligence.

ruled by the sun, house of leo, Jupiter again because the fifth house is related to children, education, intelligence, entertainment, cinema and drama.

the sixth: everyday life, daily work and colleagues, co-workers,health, and house of open enemies.

ruled by mercury, house of virgo, significator of the 6th House are Mars and Saturn because the sixth house is related to diseases, enemies & litigations.

the seventh: unions, marriage, other people, associations, and contracts.

ruled by venus, house of libra, venus is the significator.

the eighth: debts and crises, transformations, death, financial investments, and sexuality.

ruled by mars, house of scorpio, is Saturn because the eight house is related to longevity, joint assets of husband and wife, inlaws and their family, death and rebirth, fall and rise, occult sciences, dark knowledge, hidden things and secret affairs.

the ninth: travels, abstract and higher concepts, spirituality, and foreign matters.

ruled by jupiter, house of Sagittarius, the significators are Sun and Jupiter because the ninth house is related to long distance travels, higher education, gurus and luck in life.

the tenth: social success, professional destiny, karma, and reputation.

ruled by saturn, house of capricorn, the significator is Jupiter because the eleventh house is related to gains, profits from all sources, professional networks, friends and family wealth.

the eleventh: friends, social networks, ongs, earned gains.

ruled by saturn, house of aquarius, the significators are and the twelfth: enemies, difficulties, solitude, hidden ordeals, secrets, dissolution, subconscious, spirit guides and imagination.

ruled by jupiter, house of pisces, the significators are Saturn and Jupiter because the 12th house is related to jails, hospitals, asylums, spirituality, spiritual donations, foreign lands, imagination and the subconscious mind.

obs1: the lord of the lagna is called the lagnesh

obs2: rahu and ketu rule no house, but that depends on the author/teacher because rahu co-rules aquarius so he to some people also rules the 11th, and the same for ketu who co-rules scorpio (8th).

The end (please read)

just like the first part this was short as well, because this website has a character limiter but, i hoped i explained well enough and helped someone to understand the basics of the houses better.

for the next parts i will tell about the nakshatras and will bring charts to teach how to read on a basic level. thank you for reading <3

readings are open. click here for contact info. and please leave feedback and suggestions of posts if you desire too.

#vedic astrology #vedic astro notes #vedic astrology notes #jupiter #moon #saturn #mercury #sun #venus #vedicastrology #astrology #rahu #ketu #sideral #vedic #astrology101

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navree · 6 months ago

Note

The Velaryons siding with Team Black gets even more ridiculous when you consider that Daemon threw a tantrum (shocker) around the time of the Great Council of 101 AC when Rhaenys was even considered as a candidate opposing Viserys. This fool allegedly gathered together enough resources in preparation to rebel against the crown if it looked like Rhaenys would be selected as heir apparent instead of heir presumptive. Why she would ever forget something like that and allow Laena anywhere near Daemon is beyond my understanding.

None of the Velaryons should be on Team Black at all.

Corlys doesn't particularly like Viserys at all and has been routinely disrespected by him, not just in the matter of being purposefully led on with regards to the Laena marriage but even in how he's treated in Council. He's also absolutely got a grudge about Rhaenys not being on the throne and feeling shafted as a result, not to mention Daemon summarily executed a member of his family without trial, and the disrespect shown to his House should be enough to at least want him to remain neutral.

Rhaenys absolutely doesn't like Rhaenyra, she was deeply antagonistic towards her the second she was proclaimed heir (out of jealousy I guess????) and was also convinced that it wouldn't work out. Not to mention, even beyond how she was treated with the Great Council, look at her kids. Daemon kept Laena away from her family for a good number of years and then she died, only to behave like an ass at her funeral and get married well before was considered appropriate. Rhaenyra "disrespected" Laenor with the Harwin Strong affair and their children, which we know Rhaenys was aware of because she brings it up to Corlys. And she thinks Rhaenyra killed Laenor to marry Daemon, because Rhaenyra has deliberately made it look like she had Laenor murdered, which alone gives her every right to hate Rhaenyra until the end of time. There's no way she would agree to betrothing her granddaughters to the Strongs, there's no way she'd go to Rhaenyra's side in the civil war she predicted just because Rhaenyra hadn't burned Dragonstone down in twelve hours, honestly the character they've written likely should have agreed to Alicent's proposals because that whole "we don't rule ourselves but heavily influence those that do and wield power that way" is literally what she already does with Corlys.

Baela, again, shouldn't be on board with Team Black either. Like I said, she was shunted off to Driftmark because Daemon the Targaryen supremacist wanted to devote all his time and energy to his pureblood Targaryen marriage and subsequent pureblood Targaryen children at the expense of his daughters. And while on Driftmark, she watches Rhaenys rule it alone, act as Lord of the Tides herself. And I'm meant to think she never once thought about how Driftmark should have been Laena's by rights, as Corlys's eldest, and thus her's by rights, as Laena's eldest? She's fine being a consort, a position with considerably less power, to Jace, who she does not know at all because she's spent all her time in either Pentos or Driftmark, while her inheritance, her rights, get passed not even to her little sister, but to some kid who isn't even Laenor's? No, why should she be on board with that after her treatment and how she's been raised? Even if she doesn't have any issues with Rhaenyra herself, the disrespect shown to her and her family by Rhaenyra's faction isn't something she should look past.

Rhaena meanwhile has been treated apparently like shit by Daemon her entire life, all because she didn't have a dragon (and because Daemon is a giant flaming asshole). And like her sister, she has to settle for being a consort, but even worse, to someone who, according to the laws of their country, has absolutely no right to the inheritance he's getting, which should be either her sister's or her's. Again, even if there's no issue with Rhaenyra on Rhaena's end, the treatment from Rhaenyra's allies like Viserys and Daemon is bad enough that it should give her pause. Plus, both Rhaena and Baela were dragged to watch their father get immediately remarried to someone else after their mother just died, that doesn't engender much love towards him or his new wife, who they had only met like two days ago.

None of the Velaryons should support Team Black at all, because the treatment they've received from people who were firmly on board with Rhaenyra's succession (or at least came on board eventually) has been atrocious since Rhaenys was first denied the Iron Throne all those years ago. And you might say "but that's petty why can't they just supported Rhaenyra because of feminism", but 1) feminism does not exist in Westeros, the concept of a movement towards female empowerement and equal treatment does not exist in this country or in the minds of its people, everything is on a case by case basis which is why Rhaenyra herself keeps to male dominated primogeniture when dealing with issues of succession 2) yeah it's petty and selfish, but this is a dynastic struggle between one (1) family. None of them are in this for altruistic reasons, everyone's looking out for themselves and are motivated by their emotions and their desires, not any lofty goals or ambitions. Everyone is selfish here, the Velaryons have the right to be selfish too especially to advance their own self interests.

#personal #answered #anonymous #house velaryon #anti team black #hotd critical #the way they wrote the velaryons on the show is just uhhhhhhhhhh Bad #the schizophrenic characterization of corlys and rhaenys...the utter lack of character given to baela and rhaena...#the shafting of laena and laenor as characters and their interpersonal dynamics...the dumb reasoning for joining rhaenyra...#i have a lot to say about the writing and the decision to make the velaryons the only main POC we get on this show #but it's all bad and part of it is that based on the writing we got from the show #them joining rhaenyra's side makes no sense whatsoever and does not work i do not buy it #i mean hell remember that pic i posted yesterday of baela looking unbothered about jace's upset on luke dying!#like that works but also it doesn't work ugh it's so dumb!

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goodqueenaly · 6 months ago

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If Daella Targaryen (daughter of Jaehaerys I) had a son with Roderick Arryn, how would it affect the Dance of the dragons and would they have any chance of becoming lord of the Vale?

It's important to mention outright that it's unclear how scenario would have affected the conception and birth of Aemma Arryn, or the death of Princess Daella, inextricably linked to the birth of her only child (again, fuck Rodrik Arryn). If we're to suppose that Daella was always going to die following the birth of her child, as her ludicrously extremely infantilized narrative would suggest, then we might suppose that such a boy would replace Aemma, which would have very significant implications for the outbreak of the Dance as it happened IOTL

I did discuss the prospect of a Rodrik Arryn-Daella Targaryen son briefly before. It's unclear, from the very limited information we have, whether Rodrik would have preferred such a son over his elder sons as an eventual heir (or whether Jaehaerys I would have nudged or outright suggested he do so, for the sake of his grandson and the future of a Targaryen-blooded potential heir to the Vale), still less what the vague Widow's Law would have to say on the matter (and still still less how his half-siblings, their children, and the aristocrats of the Vale would have seen this boy). Too, even if Rodrik preferred his first wife's sons over a son by Daella, it's entirely possible that this son would have been looked at as an eventual spouse for the future Lady Jeyne - an Arryn cousin who could be trusted to rule the vale as jure uxoris Lord Arryn (much as occurred with, say, Denys Arryn). (Whether Jeyne, who stridently avoided marriage IOTL, would have agreed to, or been forced to agree to, such a marriage is a likewise unknowable prospect.

It's also interesting to consider this Targaryen-Arryn boy's prospects at the Great Council of 101 AC. While I very highly doubt anyone would have seriously looked to Rodrik Arryn's son as a potential heir to the Iron Throne - as a female-line grandson of the king, and a (presumably) dragonless non-Targaryen (and non-Valyrian) to boot - as the only other surviving, legitimate, dynastic grandson of Jaehaerys I beyond the sons of Baelon, Rodrik may have piqued some interest of the council's attendees, and perhaps even divided votes between the leading candidates, Viserys and Laenor (until and unless he himself threw his support behind one of them, perhaps).

Again, because we have no idea whether this boy could or would have become Lord Arryn, or what his relationship would have been with his Targaryen cousins (who again may not have been his in-laws, if Aemma did not exist), or how he and Lady Jeyne would have gotten along, it's impossible to say how the Dance - if, indeed, a version of the Dance even happened - might have been affected.

#asoiaf meta #alternate universe #rodrik arryn #daella targaryen

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cupids-chamber · 2 years ago

Text

— LOVER'S DAYDREAM In dedication of the month of love, also my one year blog anniversary takes place in February 14th, Valentine's day.. Lovely timing, isn't it?

EVENT STATUS: OPEN

" CONFESSION " (CLOSED) Wonder if he'll confess, it's about time now isn't it.. wonder how he'll confess as well... LIST: Leona, Jade, Jamil

" ARRANGED MARRIAGE " Out of a line of many suiters, which one will you pick? LIST: Silver

" FORCED MARRIAGE " Well it's never pleasing being married to someone without a say, but I suppose you'll grow into it. LIST: Idia

" MARRIAGE LIFE " Marriage life may not be perfect, but being with your lover through everlasting binds, is quite the nice sentiment. LIST: Jamil, Cater

" PROPOSAL " (CLOSED) Well I wonder how he'd propose, aren't you quite curious yourself? LIST: Azul, Idia, Riddle, Leona, Kalim, Jamil

" CONFESSION NOTE " (CLOSED Him leaving you a confession note.. LIST: Leona, Malleus, Jamil

" SECRET ADMIRER " (CLOSED) Looks like you've got yourself a secret admirer.. I wonder who could it be.. LIST: Floyd, Jade, Sebek, Ace, Jamil, Riddle, Azul, Vil

" LOVE LETTER " (CLOSED) Oh what's that on your desk!... oh my.. it's a love letter! LIST: Riddle, Jamil, Malleus, Lilia

" DATING 101 " Well why not reach out to your friend on how to pursue your crush. LIST: Floyd, Azul

" RUNAWAY BRIDE " (CLOSED) Well where could the bride have gone? LIST: Jamil, Malleus, Lilia, Vil

" WEDDING " Wonder how the two of your wedding would go, shall we plan in advance? LIST: Epel,

" HONEYMOON " Well what are you plans for the honeymoon. LIST: Jamil, Idia

— RULES

FANDOMS : TWISTED WONDERLAND

RULES | OTHER ON-GOING EVENT

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courtofcrescent · 4 months ago

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Hiiiii D ❤️

Okay get ready for a long winded one. I apologize in advance and also hope you are well btw 😇

Okaaaay sooooo. I read your marriage ask, so i have a few questions:

You mentioned if MC and Mallory are the same gender then he would need to take a concubine or would need to have that conversation late to produce an heir and also that MC may be his consort but that doesn't mean there wont be other concubines.

1. If MC is a female and they are on Mallory's route, would that change anything? Or would they still want to take on concubines?

And

2. if MC and Mallory are the same gender then they would likely need to produce an heir, right?

Awwwwwkwaaard conversation to have with your husband yikes 😬 😅 especially if you are on their romance route. Can't imagine it's a great image to have in your head.

3. If MC and M are not romantic and just have a friendship and MC takes on a different lover and M also has concubines how would that work. I suppose mc can't have kids with their chosen lover? But Mallory can have kids with a concubine if they don't produce one with mc?

Or did i get that mixed up? Lol, i doubt you have an idea of what I'm on about? 🤔🤣

Also realized now after pressing send i erased the i from your name when adding the heart ❤️ 🤦‍♀️😭

I'm sorry.

----

(Here's the marriage ask in question!)

Hiii dearest Liz!

Haha don’t apologize! I absolutely adore a long ask 😆 Also I’m doing fantastic—hope you are too! And no, you're not entirely wrong. Here’s a detailed answer under the cut!

If MC is female and on Mallory Romance Path, Mal will only take (or plan to take) concubine(s) if MC doesn’t want to have a biological child of their own. Worry not, Mal won’t have any romantic—or even platonic—feelings towards the future concubine(s)! Mallory’s heart will solely belong to MC (but he’ll still fucking the concubine in this path tho, sooo yeaa).

You’re correct! If MC and Mallory are the same gender, he’ll automatically take concubine(s) to produce an heir. But just like in the first case, Mal (if romanced) won’t have any affection for the future concubine(s)! And yes, it's still definitely not a great image to have in your head lol.

If MC is female and not on Mallory Romance Path, there will be an option to produce an heir out of duty to the crown. If you choose this option, Mal won't take any concubine because the deed will be done. If you don't choose this option, then Mal will take concubine(s).

Addendum to (3): just as MC can have opinions about Mal’s future concubine(s), Mallory will also have opinions about whom MC chooses as a lover! The dynamic may vary depending on who the MC’s lover is. Official lovers of the consort are mostly treated like concubines of the ruler, with the exception that consorts and lovers are prohibited from having children together. That’s the royal law, true. But since the founding of Luxendis thousands of years ago, do you think every past consort had a squeaky-clean record? 👀👀

Sooo if your MC meets one of the three conditions I’ve stated above—(1) if MC doesn’t want a child of their own blood with Mallory, (2) if MC and Mallory are the same gender, or (3) if MC doesn’t choose Mallory Romance Path plus combine with clause number 1—future concubine(s) will always be present in the plot. This particular MC cannot avoid this whole fiasco, I’m afraid.

The future concubine(s) plays a crucial role in producing the heir to the throne. Depending on your choices and relationship, MC can sway and influence Mallory’s decision or even have the final say on who will be chosen as the future concubine(s)! The consort has quite significant power in this matter, as only a consort can officially appoint any concubine (and only the ruler can officially appoint the consort’s lovers; I discuss this briefly here).

The future concubine’s role is vital, yes. But, what could happen once the role is fulfilled? We are at the Court after all, a lot of things can happen behind closed doors, Your Serene Highness 😉

Oh btw this whole fiasco will happen muchh laterrr in the story. The heir from the concubine may be born during the main story, but the heir from the MC will not. MC's child(ren) will only appear in the epilogue!

Pheww this is long haha! Hope this clarifies what you need 😆

Thank you for the ask! And don't worry about it, you can call me Di, D, Dee, or even :D (yes the smiley face) 🩶

#yes it would be super duper awwwwwkwaaard conversation to have with your husband lol #alas this kind of baggage comes with the crown #everything in the court has consequences after all #marriage 101: rules #coc: raven #coc: mc #coc: mallory #coc: general #coc: if #court of crescent

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atopvisenyashill · 9 months ago

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If Rhaenys was the Queen, do you think Laenor and Rhaenyra would still be matched and, more importantly, would Rhaenyra have had children with Harwin Strong? Because that feels so much more dangerous.

i mean THATS THE MILLION DOLLAR QUESTION RIGHT.

okay so @riana-one said in a reply that i can't fucking find now that most likely, in the case that one of Viserys & Aemma’s kids still lived, that Laenor would marry Rhaenyra and Laena would marry the boy, and imo I think that’s likely in the case that Rhaenys ascends and becomes Queen Regnant. TBH the fact that Rhaenys and Viserys didn’t marry was kinda stupid (i mean, these people don’t need to be MORE inbred but like, what’s the point of all the incest marrying if you’re not using that to combine the claims of competing lines? but then again, we all know the reason is misogyny and purposefully cutting rhaenys' competing claim out of the family tree to ~put her in her place~). I think Rhaenys & Corlys are perfectly astute enough to realize their best option is to combine their line with Viserys.

HOWEVER. There’s a few important factors in Laenor being Prince of Dragonstone and marrying Rhaenyra that change the plot as well as their characters-

LAENOR is the Crown Prince, not Rhaenyra as Crown Princess which means there’s more pressure on Laenor himself to actually, ya kno, attempt to consummate the marriage than there is in the og canon where it’s very vague as to whether Laenor attempted to have legitimate children with Rhaenyra or whether she was so mad about the match she simply refused to bed him and Laenor went “cool idgaf” (bc….like all of his behavior in canon points to Laenor simply not giving a shit about how Rhaenyra got pregnant, and perhaps they even mutually disliked each other!)

Rhaenyra is so cavalier about having bastards specifically because her father is King and will protect her from the pushback (or so she hopes). If it’s Laenor’s mother that’s ruling Queen, that’s a much different scenario where Rhaenyra knows she’s not going to have backup.

Is Harwin even still at KL? He’s there in canon because Lyonel is on the small council and he needs to Be Useful In The City but if it’s RHAENYS who is Queen that means SHES picking her Small Council (or, I suppose, Corlys is picking her small council). How she got her crown is going to factor into what her Small Council looks like - if Aemon never died and passed the crown to his daughter he spent years acclaiming as his heir and fighting to protect her rights, that Council will look different than if the GC 101 chose her over Viserys (and how is Jae taking that), and THAT TOO looks different than if like, Viserys and Daemon both die and now the crown MUST pass to a female line. For all we know, she makes Boremund her Master of Laws because he’s been her number one supporter her whole life & he’s her dear uncle!

Rhaenyra’s life looks infinitely different if she’s raised as a daughter of a man with no seat. She might not even grow up in KL; again, depending on how Rhaenys comes to her throne, it’s possible Viserys & his family aren’t even welcome there the way Rhaenys & Jocelyn are effectively banned from KL after Jaehaerys usurps them, or that Viserys would feel awkward in KL the way both Rhaena's did. Would Rhaenys work something out with Viserys so he can live at Court or be the castellan of Dragonstone? Does Viserys decide to take Rhaenyra & Aemma and fuck off to the Vale (and does that bring Daemon to the Vale and are they welcome there??). The point there is, Rhaenyra’s childhood looking so different is going to affect the way she approaches sex, marriage, and children. I mean, if Viserys never remarries Alicent, or Aemma doesn’t die, that negates a lot of the hang ups Rhaenyra has later in life!

SO! Yes, I think it’s likely Laenor and Rhaenyra still marry. Does Rhaenyra have children with Harwin? It’s very hard to say! Because she’s not the crown princess, she doesn't have her father to cover for her, and it is legitimately treason if she's caught fucking someone else (as opposed to her fucking Harwin as Crown Princess, that's a gray area because she is the one the line descends from, not Laenor). At the same time, Rhaenyra grows up in circumstances where a woman is allowed to inherit the Iron Throne due to ~something~ and grows up as the daughter of a man without his own seat which will inevitably change Rhaenyra's outlook on her own life. Plus, if Corlys and Rhaenys are breathing down Laenor's neck and going "you need to actually attempt to fuck your wife Laenor and stop ignoring her to fuck stable boys" that may prompt more action from Laenor, not to mention that with Rhaenys and Corlys as rulers, they have a lot more say over whatever the fuck is going on in that marriage because it's happening right under their noses.

Corlys, meanwhile, does not have the motivation to simply pretend the boys are legitimate. He has the throne. He has the power. D While I don't think he would push for Rhaenyra to be straight up executed for cheating on Laenor (that is going to piss her father, uncle, and maybe mother OFF), he is not going to help her cover for it the way he does in the series.

So....IF Laenor still finds himself incapable of having children, the ting is that Rhaenys and Corlys are going to push more aggressively on Rhaenyra. Maybe this means they are stricter with Laenor (not allowing him the freedom to have male lovers at court perhaps?) OR it means Rhaenyra becomes desperate enough that she attempts to fuck someone else. The thing here is - if Rhaenyra knows its her head if she's found out, will she try to be discreet and fuck someone who is blond? Or even fuck Daemon?? Is Harwin even at court? It's hard to say! Certainly, I can see Rhaenyra feeling desperate enough to try to get pregnant through other means besides Laenor but I'm not sure she would go straight to Harwin in this scenario!

#asks #anons #the dance of the dragons #laenor velaryon #rhaenys velaryon #corlys velaryon #rhaenyra targaryen

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sansacherie · 3 months ago

Text

THE ONCE PRINCESS OF DRAGONSTONE: A RETELLING OF RHAENYRA I BY MAESTER LUTHOR

King Viserys I reigned for almost a decade before a burst belly took him in the year 111.

Between his two marriages, he had sired three trueborn children. Princess Rhaenyra, his eldest daughter by his cousin Aemma Arryn, and his younger children, Princess Alysanne and Princess Helaena by Alicent Hightower.

Viserys was twenty-six when he succeeded his grandfather. In contrast, Princess Rhaenyra was fourteen and therefore still two years from her majority. Her father was not only a man-grown but a wedded one. True, he and his queen were still bereft of a prince after enduring numerous losses. But a hale princess enabled hope of strong brothers, especially when Queen Aemma was still young and capable of getting with the King’s child. Viserys was also the victor of the Great Council of 101. Lords great and small voted overwhelmingly to support his claim if the rumors were true. No precedent existed for the princess, too young to recall Harrenhal.

Most importantly, while Viserys Targaryen had been the fifth Targaryen king, Rhaenyra would be the first Targaryen queen.

She was, of course, not the first girl to be named heir to the Iron Throne in its history. Aerea Targaryen was her uncle’s until King Jaehaerys began propagating the royal line. And while Rhaenys Targaryen had never officially been declared Princess of Dragonstone, she was of a birth that saw her considered by many in the realm as a future queen regnant, including her grandmother Queen Alysanne. However, this was different.

With the absence of trueborn brothers, Princess Rhaenyra was unquestionably His Grace’s heir according to Andal tradition, followed by her half-sisters, until she wed and sired children. However, it was well known that the Velaryons only begrudgingly accepted the outcome of the Great Council. Corlys Velaryon, an ambitious man, was most aggrieved by the claims of his beloved wife and son being overlooked. Therefore, one can see why they acted to advance the interests of House Velaryon.

Just one day after His Grace’s body was cremated in the Dragonpit, Princess Rhaenys flew to Kingslanding on Meleys. Nor was she alone. Her daughter Lady Laena accompanied her on her own mount, the mighty Vhagar. They came with a proposal, although some might be more ready to believe it a demand. The Great Council ruled that the Iron Throne must pass through the male line to his male descendants. However, King Viserys left no legitimate sons of his body. Princess Rhaenys remained of an older line than Princess Rhaenyra. She also possessed a male heir, who was still free to be used in marriage.

Therefore surely the Hand understood why there was a need to solve the matter of succession peaceably between the King’s daughters and the Velaryons.

Otto Hightower understood their perspective, but he was reluctant to accept such an agreement. While he gave Princess Rhaenyra’s position all its due honor, he was also a man who knew something of ambition. He did not want to relinquish the girl’s regency, nor was the Lord Hand blind to the fact that if Rhaenyra ascended, his own grandchildren would be first and second in line.

Furthermore, such an event would surely take months to arrange as it did before, although, of course, one could say that a war would take even longer, and be considerably bloodier.

However, they could not so easily dismiss the Velaryons. Thanks to Lord Corlys, they were the wealthiest house in Westeros. It was also reasonable to assume that the power of the stormlands would be with them, as Rhaenys was the daughter of Jocelyn Baratheon, whose brother was fierce in his support of his niece.

And perhaps most critically, they had three dragons to Rhaenyra’s one.

It is sometimes that the correct answer is the simplest one. It was the Dowager Queen who proposed that instead Rhaenyra be betrothed to her cousin, Laenor Velaryon.

Grand Maester Runcitor would record this meeting between the queen and the queen who never was.

“Let us not waste our time with great councils,” Queen Alicent is said to have told Princess Rhaenys. “Let us betroth Princess Rhaenyra to your son, and have their marriage put this matter to bed for the good of the realm.”

“A tempting offer,” the proud Rhaenys would reply. “If made in good faith.”

“I assure you it is,” answered Alicent Hightower. “Just as I accepted the King’s hand in good faith.” The implication, just as the one that Rhaenys had given by arriving on a dragon, was clear. Queen Alicent had not forgotten the rumors that arose about her virtue when she wed His Grace. The cause of such rumors could reasonably be traced to Driftmark, as they had been most wroth over the King’s choice in bride. However, such unpleasantness could be left in the past, for the sake of a marriage alliance that was dignified for both parties. The Dowager Queen held no interest in making an enemy of Driftmark, not when she had two little girls to consider. Queen Alicent feared Alysanne and Helaena being inevitable targets if knives came out over Rhaenyra’s succession.

It is not recorded how Rhaenys Targaryen responded. However, she agreed to present the match to her lord husband, after first bringing King Viserys’ ashes to Dragonstone.

Lord Corlys must have seen the sense in the offer, although he was displeased that the terms meant neither his wife nor son would rule in their own right, and that instead, Laenor was reduced to a consort. That is perhaps why he inquired if Rhaenyra and Laenor’s children would take the name of their father, as was the custom.

Rhaenyra was insulted. “Has the Sea Snake swallowed too much seawater?” She demanded of her ladies. “My sons will be Targaryens, whoever their father is.” In the end, it was accepted that they would have their mother’s name, but upon Lord Corlys’ passing, their second son or eldest daughter would take the Velaryon name and Driftmark.

Their betrothal ended with a lavish ceremony in 112 AC. Rhaenyra was fifteen, Laenor three years her senior. Being a cousin and of Valyrian descent on both sides, he was a suitable match for a Targaryen princess with no brothers.

Princess Rhaenyra did not however consider him suitable. Still fresh in grief for her doting father, she demanded to know why she must marry a cousin that she had not laid eyes upon for years when she could have any man in the Seven Kingdoms.

Why should she sacrifice the enjoyment of seeing men fight for her hand, just so Driftmark could be appeased?

“Then do it not for their sake,” Lord Beesbury, the Master of Coin. “But for the sake of your father the King.” King Viserys might have been a romantic who had wed for love, but he was not a romantic fool. He would agree with the need for Velaryons. This inevitably sobered the young maiden.

So Rhaenyra took Laenor to husband, and all agreed they made a striking couple. While the Velaryons enjoyed their hour of triumph, Queen Rhaenyra and Queen Alicent paid tribute to each other at the wedding feast. Princess Helaena was judged too little for the festivities and thus remained in the nursery. However, Princess Alysanne was old enough to attend, to her sheer delight. At one point she could be seen dancing with a laughing Lady Laena. When it came time for the bedding, Laena swapped jokes with her good sister.

The end of Rhaenyra’s regency came quickly. In 113, before a sea of thousands in the Dragonpit, she was proclaimed Queen Rhaenyra, the First of Her Name. Ser Criston Cole, her sworn protector, and Lord Commander of her Queensguard, solemnly placed the crown upon her head. Queen Alicent, beloved of the smallfolk, in turn, placed the crown commissioned for Laenor upon his own. The memory of the coronation over time would be a fond one. In Kingslanding, there was a week of celebrations that ended with a service conducted by the High Septon. On Driftmark, they perhaps would have celebrated even longer, as they toasted to Laenor and Rhaenyra. Of course, there were lords and common alike who muttered about a girl on the throne. Indeed years into the future, such discontent was strong enough to lead to a failed coup that if successful would have seen Rhaenyra take holy vows, therefore enabling her son to take the throne earlier.

It is now that we must raise a sensitive matter. Laenor Velaryon was apparently immune to the charms of women. However, desire was not necessary for duty. That being said, it was not until 115 AC that Queen Rhaenyra presented the realm with children.

As they grew, Prince Jacaerys and Prince Lucerys looked very much like their aunt, Princess Alysanne. The amity between Queen Alicent and Queen Rhaenyra had flowered into a deep affection. If the Dowager Queen resented being unable to have a son before His Grace’s unexcepted passing, she hid it well. It was Her Grace gave comfort to the young queen while she labored to bring forth her twins.

In 117 AC, when Princess Alysanne was ten and Princess Helaena was eight, their mother Queen Alicent wed the dashing Lord of Casterly Rock. It was a match worthy of a queen who was still fair and fertile. More importantly, he had no children by any previous union.

Queen Rhaenyra was not entirely pleased by the marriage. Some whispered that she resented her stepmother for attracting the eye of a man that she herself fancied as a girl. But girls have a hundred fancies, and Rhaenyra was not a girl anymore. More like that Rhaenyra was always wary of any potential threat to her reign, while Queen Rhaenyra loved her half-sisters, the connection they now shared with the Lannisters through their lady mother meant she must continue to hold them close.

Queen Alicent understood this, knowing it was a vain hope to bring one of her daughters with her. She left her weeping daughters behind with a thousand kisses and solemnly bade them to do her proud while she left for the Westerlands. Queen Rhaenyra’s face was guarded as she watched, but when it came to her goodbye, her pride broke. She had known Queen Alicent since she was a little princess, and while Alicent was still too close in age to Her Grace to be her mother, Queen Rhaenyra knew her better than she remembered Queen Aemma. “I pray that you will be happy,” she is said to have told Queen Alicent. “I know that is what our father would want.”

Sadly, the Lady of Casterly Rock suffered several miscarriages before she gave birth to her first son in 120 AC, whom she named Jaime. She was followed by a sister, Johanna, in 121 AC. The babe was named in honor of Johanna Marbrand nee Westerling, whom Alicent had become very close with. Johanna was very like Alicent, a precocious girl who had grown into a confident woman.

To Alicent’s joy, shortly after the birth, Princess Alysanne and Princess Helaena arrived at Casterly Rock atop dragons.

Alysanne had claimed Sunfyre, while her sister’s mount was Dreamfyre, the beast that once bore Rhaena Targaryen through the skies. They were, of course, accompanied by a retinue. Alysanne and Helaena were now thirteen and eleven respectively.

While Helaena was enchanted with her “sweet siblings”, Alysanne laughed at their golden hair. “Their hair matches my Sunfyre’s coloring,” she teased. That was Alysanne’s way. A teasing girl who could be as clever and sweet as she was lazy and cheeky. Queen Rhaenyra could not help but find her sister amusing, although she took Lord Royce’s advice (Rhaenyra had several years before, decided to replace Ser Otto with a vassal to her kin, the Arryns) Instead, to Lord Royce’s chagrin, Alysanne would sometimes interrupt the Small Council, heedless of propriety and the flagon in her hands. Her Grace indulged her sister, as Alysanne worshipped Rhaenyra, although she would not have tolerated herself being interrupted. After consulting with her stepmother via raven, Rhaenyra sent for suitable girls to be companions for Alysanne. However, the princess would declare these girls “boring”. She seemed content enough with having Helaena and Sunfyre as her “best friends”. Alysanne was admittedly quite boastful of her golden beast, particularly when her nephews’ cradle eggs had never hatched.

As for Helaena, she was of a gentle heart that was treasured by many. Like her sisters though, she was not without pride and could be given to sarcasm at times. When asked by one of the queen’s ladies if she hoped to marry Prince Jacaerys or Prince Lucerys one day, Helaena replied that yes, she meant to marry both.

However, when Jacaerys was twenty, he caused a scandal when he wed Alysanne. Alysanne was seven years older than him. She had married a “forgettable” Redwyne, who was good enough to get her with child before dying. Even at four, Lady Alicent was a pious thing of solemn mien.

Some whispered that Alysanne had deliberately seduced Jacaerys. The Lady of Casterly Rock was incensed by the whispers, as much as she was troubled by the breaking of a betrothal.

So was Rhaenyra for that matter. In the wake of Luke’s death, Jacaerys had become even more precious to her. However, she was angered by the dishonor Jacaerys caused. So, too was Lady Laena. The cousins had become very close over the years, but Jacaerys’ actions would make Laena considerably cool towards Queen Rhaenyra. It was perhaps just as well that Laena was now without her Vhagar, the beast dying in its sleep in 131.

The scandal also caused conflict with her brother, Ser Laenor. Ser Laenor was torn between his sister and his son, and this ended up causing more tensions in his marriage with the queen, a marriage already hurt by Lucerys’ death. Fortunately, he was able to find much comfort in Joffrey Lonmouth, long beloved to him. Joffrey had too wed and sired sons, and they had trained alongside Jacaerys and Lucerys.

Eventually, a peace of sorts was reached. In 136 AC, Queen Rhaenyra organized a match between her niece and her half-brother, the sixteen-year-old Lord of Casterly Rock. The match proved to be a success, and in time they had three children – Myrcella, Cerelle, and Jason.

Queen Alicent did not live to see the birth of Jason, however. She died in 143, after an illness that coiled itself around her body. “I want to be with Helaena again, my sweet girl,” the once-queen said to her septa and Lady Johanna as she awaited death. “I want to tell her how proud I am.” The princess had died at the age of 15. When visiting Casterly Rock, a Lannister enemy was so brazen to attempt an abduction of Lady Johanna in front of her royal sister. Helaena had done more than scream, she had fearlessly given her own body to the villain's knife so her sister could snatch an escape, however, it ended up costing her life. The realm wept over Helaena, most of all her sister Alysanne, but Alicent and Rhaenyra found anger better than tears. Grief-drunk, Alicent Hightower demanded the man’s wife and children found if he had them, so she could bathe in their blood. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra ordered that the murderer be brought to Kingslanding, where upon his arrival, it is said that she had tortured him for seven days before Ser Laenor finally put an end to him with his Seasmoke.

While dying, Alicent often spoke of Helaena. She did not however mention either of the two men that had both made her widows. Indeed, in the years after her death, some whispered that Alicent Hightower seemed to prefer her Lady Johanna during her years at the Rock, a preference that went beyond mere friendship. That being said, it is perhaps easier to speculate about the dead than the living. As for Lady Johanna, if she knew of the rumors she paid it little mind. She would continue visiting Oldtown, where Alicent’s bones were sent, once a year until her death.

It is now that we turn to Jaehaerys, the Queen’s first grandchild, born in 135 AC. The failure of his cradle egg to hatch foreshadowed what was to come – the fall of the Targaryen’s glory and bane, the dragons.

#asoiaf #fire and blood #house targaryen #pre asoiaf #my writing #house velaryon #rhaenyra targaryen #alicent hightower

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gwenllian-in-the-abbey · 8 months ago

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"Yet you toil still in service to men. Your father, your husband, and your son. You desire not to be free but to make a window in the wall of your prison."

Episodes 9

What's your opinion on the speech?

Rhaenys' speech here is a bit silly. What woman doesn't "toil in service to men" in this world? Medieval women were not even allowed to own property or sign contracts. Part of this show's problem is that some of the writers seem to be under the impression that Westeros is undergoing a feminist movement and Alicent is "team patriarchy" while Rhaenyra is "team feminism," as if Rhaenyra's own "right" to rule doesn't derive specifically from a man, her father, granting her that right, as if that same man couldn't snatch it from her on a whim. She has to toil in service to her own father, and even if she becomes queen, she will find herself surrounded by and beholden to men who will very quickly remove their support if she does not dance to their tune, and in fact we see this in the Dance, where Rhaenyra has terrible advisors but she's not really able to remove them because she can't risk them going over to the other side. And when she does attempt to assert herself against them, this is precisely what they do.

I think many people don't understand that the idea of women as an oppressed group, with solidarity across class lines, religious lines, and ethnic lines, that is, intersectional feminism, is extremely modern. Rhaenys cannot separate herself from her class interests, she lacks even the most basic framework necessary to do so. She might see her sex as a prison, but her greater allegiance would be to the Targaryen royalty that she was born into. Breaking free from the prison of patriarchy would mean also being metaphorically exiled from her own royal privilege. When it came to the council of 101, Rhaenys did not risk alienating herself from her grandfather the king in order to assert her right to the throne, instead she put forward her son Laenor as an alternative. In her marriage with Lord Corlys, she deferred to him rather than risk her status as Lady of Driftmark. Rhaenys did not pit herself against the might of the patriarchy because it would mean pitting herself against the might of the monarchy itself.

This isn't a criticism of Rhaenys. She only did what most women in her position would have done. She did not have what Rhaenyra had, the mandate of a king who had thrown the might of the monarchy behind her cause, declaring her an exception. Viserys did not sign a decree asserting absolute primogeniture because he could not pit the monarchy against the patriarchy when the monarchy itself relied on the patriarchy to uphold it. And in our world, knowing that monarchy and patriarchy waled hand in hand, many medieval/early modern queens regnant very much avoided overly associating themselves with womenhood, instead leaning into the rhetoric that they were female in body, but male in spirit. They believed that as exceptional women, they might claim a sort of honorary male status. Think of Elizabeth I's speech to the troops at Tilbury as they prepared to face the Spanish Armada, when she said:

"I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too..."

Notice how she concedes the point about her "weak and feeble" woman's body? She then goes on to say that she has the heart and stomach not of a man, but of a king, aligning herself not only with manhood, but with royalty, which is the source of her exceptional status. And this is echoed in the idea of Rhaenyra seeing herself as an exception, when Lord Corlys reminds her that if she allows women to inherit the seats of Stokeworth and Rosby, she may lose the support of lords who took her side. They were siding not with a woman because they believed in smashing the patriarchy, but rather they were siding with monarchy, believing Rhaenyra had the mandate of the old king. However that mandate could be revoked if Rhaenyra were to turn against the patriarchy and attempt to divorce it from the monarchy.

So the ironic thing is, Rhaenyra is doing very nearly the same thing Rhaenys is accusing Alicent of doing, except if womanhood is a prison, then perhaps rather than building a window in the prison, Rhaenyra has secured parole for good behavior. She could be put back into the prison at any time and is keenly aware of that. The prison of patriarchy, after all, still exists within the walled confines of feudal monarchy, and neither Rhaenys nor Rhaenyra are attempting to climb those walls.

#asks #hotd critical #rhaenys targaryen #anti rhaenyra targaryen #anti team black #but not really #team green

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