#merthin

[miatienza]

Tidbits from World Without End by Ken Follet

Probably one of the best books I have ever read

[ss-hikaru]

I felt like this book was set sufficiently outside of Kingsbridge and following characters only tangentially related to the town that it felt like a bit of a stretch to call it a Kingsbridge novel. But I suppose as times change and the world becomes more globalised, it would be weird to contain it to just England.

I really liked Ned. He felt like a combination of all the good things about Prior Phillip and Merthin. I also liked how he fell in love with Sylvie despite his attachment to Margret.

I also liked the message of religious tolerance and the details about Sylvie's stationery/book business. I felt like I could smell the paper 😍

It was interesting how Follet inserted his characters into real life events/interacted with real historic figures. I felt like I learnt a little bit 😅

So I said the previous book was a bit predictable because it followed a very similar trajectory to the first, but this one quite often left me wondering what was going to happen next. So looking forward to book 4 now 😊

[grande-caps]

World Without End

Quality : HD screencaptures Amount : 10.216 files Resolution : 1.280 x 720 px

-Please like/reblog if taking!

[rubysharkruby]

My feelings are worthy, why do you sully them?

[viscountess-aberowen]

[katieswinforddiaries]

When watching World Without End and I see the scene I forgot about where Merthin attacks his employer because he hit his wife and I'm just here like yes! Hell yes! That is what a real man is like. They defend women not make them afraid. Plus the fact that it's one of the few times we ever see him raise a hand to anyone. Now I remember why I adore him so much.

[cardiaccadillac]

1:04. I’ve only seen clips of this show and I had sudden feelings.

[philomaela]

We never did make it to Italy. -This is much better than Italy.

[creature-song]

Thinking abt Myrdhin/Mori again, i can’t not.

Myrdhin - Merthin - Merlin

Mori - Morrigan - Morgan

Both powerful figures of magic and british/arturian myth and they are the same, Myrdhin and Mori are the same person and Merlin and Morgan are the same as well. I love how Holland weaves in other elements of mythology that make me go !!! when i spot them.

[tonks32]

Prompt “I Swear to the Maker”

Aiden Trevelyan x Cassandra

  Raised voices had Dorian stopping along the walkway that connected to the outer walls and frowning. Once again, the Seeker and Inquisitor were in another heated argument. The occupants of the Keep were all stopped, watching eagerly as the pair traded barbs while the space between them began to shrink with each passing moment.

    “I swear to the Maker, Trevelyan,” Cassandra snarled at the rogue. “If Corypheus doesn’t end up killing you in the end, I just might.”

    Dorian watched as Aiden snatched the Seeker by the arm, dragging her until their faces were mere inches apart. Merthin, the ever-faithful hound, pranced alongside them not sure who to protect. The mage leaned against the parapets wondering if this would be the moment that the heat radiating between them would catch fire and they would finally realize that the constant bickering was a by-product of their denied attraction. Much to Dorian’s dismay, Aiden worked his jaw, fighting against the words that were surely burning in the man’s throat before allowing Cassandra to jerk from his grasp and stalked away towards to forge. Merthin looked up at the rogue than to the Seeker before the hound decided Cassandra needed him most and trotted after her. The gathered crowd was equally disappointed as they continued with their day.

     Swaying in the middle of the courtyard, Aiden clenched and unclenched his hand. A fire surged in his veins, one that he couldn’t name or truly understand. The Seeker always found a way to get under his skin, driving to the brink of madness with frustration. They never could seem to have a civil conversation, even after a season and a half of constant battles and travels. They fought seamlessly on the battlefield, saved each other’s lives countless times, but a simple conversation would always turn heated until it was borderline hostile. The only time they had been completely civil to one another was when he went through withdrawals from stopping his drug habit after the destruction of Haven.

    What was it about Cassandra that constantly pushed his buttons?

    Dorian watched Aiden a moment and could almost see the question swirling in his head. “Another squabble with our feisty Seeker, I see.”

    Aiden’s glowing blue eyes snapped to the mage. “It seems that your eyes and ears are working perfectly, Dorian.”

 “Trevelyan.” Dorian stepped in the Inquisitor’s path. “Do you honestly not know what causes you two to quarrel so much?”

    “She finds fault in my leadership.” Aiden crossed his arms over his chest, scarred face filled with anger once again. “Or at least that is was this reason this time.”

    The mage shook his head and did his best to remind himself that Aiden’s upbringing made him sheltered than most. Used for the pleasures of other and discarded like a used toy left the man severely lacking in most social situations. “I assure you that is not it, my friend.”

    “What are you getting at?”

    “It’s quite obvious that you two are attracted to each other.” Dorian watched the Inquisitor jolt as if he was just bashed over the head. Patients, Dorian reminded himself as he took a step back for good measure. “There is a heat between you that burns whenever you are within eyesight of each other until it explodes pulling you two together.”

    Shaking his head, Aiden tried to understand what Dorian was saying.

    “Everyone can see it,” Dorian pressed on hoping to breakthrough. “Everyone, but you and the Seeker. It’s more than just heat that is coursing through you. It’s lust, desire. Need.”

    “No,” Aiden argued, heart racing in his throat. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

   “I can’t imagine you do know personally what I am talking about but trust me I am speaking the truth as I’ve experienced it many times in my life.”

    Stunned, Aiden mulled over the mage’s words as he thought back to the very first meeting with the Seeker. He remembered there was an ache, a yearning while she snarled and snapped at him demanding an answer about the explosion at the Conclave. Something that he had never truly felt before given the circumstances of his past. Over time that yearning turned into a gnawing, a hunger that could never seem to be satisfied.  “But… That’s… I don’t know…” Was he capable of being attracted to someone? To want them for pleasure? Outside of his years of slavery, he’d only engaged in sexual acts to prove to himself that the monsters didn’t completely destroy him. That he still had control over his body. There hadn’t been much of this heat that Dorian was speaking of. It was purely mechanical. “I don’t think I am capable.”

    Dorian’s heart ached knowing that the horrors of Aiden’s past scarred more than just his body. “Tell me and be honest. What do you feel when you’re around her?’

    “I feel…” Aiden thought for a moment and found he didn’t have the words.

    So, Dorian spoke for him, “You feel revied up. Heart pumping and jittery. You find yourself wanting to be in her presence even though most of the time it ends in bickering.” He saw the recognition in the rogue’s glowing blue eyes. “There is an ache in your stomach but it’s not for food. You thirst in you but not for water. You burn from just the mere thought of her.”

    Working his lip between his teeth, Aiden turned, shoved a hand through his thick mane of hair and let it all sink in. Even if this was all true, that he could be attracted to someone, could he capable of acting on it? The physical aspect of touching someone left a sour taste in his mouth. Yet, now, thinking of touching Cassandra made his heart pound. Aiden found himself curling his hands into a fist to ease the ache the thought provoked. “What… What do I do?”

    “Go to her.”

    “I’m not sure that’s such a great idea.”

    “Why?”

    “Look at me.” Aiden gestured to his scarred face. “How can anyone look at me and be attracted?”

    “There is more to a person then how they look,” Dorian explained. “Believe me, that woman is just as attracted to you as you are to her.”

    “No,” Aiden argued.

    “You know the Seeker, Aiden. She would’ve written you off long ago if she didn’t have feelings for you.”

    “Feelings?”

    “Go to her.”

    “I don’t think that’s the best idea.”

    “Go to her and you’ll see that I am right.”

    Aiden found his feet carrying him towards the forge before he could sort out exactly what his mind wanted to do. Part of him wanted to ignore all what Dorian said. To bury all of it and not disturb the way things were. That was predictable and safe. After a life of turmoil, Aiden liked normal. But, as his mind focused on Cassandra, a part of him wanted to know what this heat was leading to. He wanted to experience pleasure in the way everyone else had. He wanted so much when it came to the Seeker.

     Slipping inside the building, he locked the door when he found the bottom floor empty. If they were interrupted, then he would lose all confidence and bolt. Merthin laid curled up on the top stair while Cassandra paced back and forth around the area she claimed as a bed chamber. Aiden stopped to scratch the hound’s head before signaling to keep watch. He knew the moment she sensed him as her shoulders stiffened and her head snapped up. When her dark eyes shifted to him, he felt the punch of desire that spurred him forward. Taking hold of the edge of her breastplate, he had a moment to register to shock before he slammed his mouth to hers.

   He expected to feel disgust. Expected his stomach to churn with nerves. Expected his body to reject the action and shove her away. Aiden didn’t expect the warmth of pleasure to course through him as his lips moved over her. Didn’t expect to find himself craving more. Didn’t expect to be left breathless by a single kiss. Didn’t expect himself to yearn to have her hands on him.

    The force of the kiss had Aiden stumbling back until he fell back against the table. Working on instinct, he gripped her by the shoulders, tugging until there wasn’t a breath between them. The want, the need left him breathless and aching. There was a fire burning as her fingers trailed over cheeks, down his throat until she found purchase in his hair. Her lips were bruising and frantic as they drank from one another.

     Wrenching away, Cassandra stared at him, eyes blown wide with desire. She gripped the lapels of his hunting coat, pulling him closer. “I still think you’re an insufferable arsehole.”

    The corner of his mouth lifted. “And I still think you’re the most frustrating, maddening woman in Thedas.”

    “Glad we’re finally on the same page.” She smiled before diving back in.

[jadelotusflower]

December/2020 Roundup

I hope everyone is getting through the holiday season alright! It’s been kind of a busy month for me and I didn’t have much time for creative pursuits, so the reading/watchlist is a little shorter this time.

December Roundup

World Without End by Ken Follet - set 150 years after Pillars of the Earth, again in the town of Kingsbridge, this time we follow the lives of two branches of the Builder family tree - the descendants of Aliena and Jack, Merthin and his brother Ralph, and those of Tom (through Martha), Caris, Petranilla and Godwyn. But miracle of miracles, there’s a second female pov in Gwenda to provide the peasant perspective.

This is in many ways a rinse and repeat of Pillars, where the goods guys suffer and suffer until the end when the bad guys get their comeuppance, and by now it’s starting to wear on me (there is one more novel set in Elizabeathan times, but I’m not sure I’ll bother with that one). While Pillars was set in the backdrop of The Anarchy, World covers the start of the Hundred Years War and the Black Death, and the latter seems rather prescient - Kingsbridge goes into a six month lockdown at one point, and not wearing masks becomes a political issue. As always, it’s the detail of day to day life I enjoy the most about these books, and Caris trailing the English army as they pillage France, and her efforts to fight the plague are confronting but compelling.

In fact I enjoyed Caris the most as a character, but was disappointed in her ending - she spends the whole novel reluctant to conform to the social expectations of women at the time and doesn’t want to be trapped by marriage and children, and yes she unwillingly becomes a nun, but in a way that gives her the freedom to pursue her interests in medicine (albeit still constrained by her gender). But rather than her happy ending having the power and satisfaction of prioress of the nunnery running the hospital (her life’s work), Caris renounces her vows and ends up married to Merthin after all. Maybe it’s that Merthin is a bit of a wet rag of a character, maybe I just bristle at Follett’s world where men can find satisfaction in the clergy (Prior Phillip being the best example), but for women marriage is always the pinnacle despite their abilities and success in other areas.

Also, Follett Never Write Another Sex Scene Challenge.

Smallville (seasons 1-3) - This has been a year of comfort watching for many people, a time to revisit those old shows we loved because they feel familiar in a time of uncertainty. This month I started a Smallville rewatch - I was a casual viewer back in the day but only really started to get interested about halfway through (when Lois showed up), so I’ve actually never seen it all the way from beginning to end. And well...the early seasons are a slog, let’s put it that way. Bad CGI and stilted acting aside, this was a teen drama first and foremost and the early noughties was strong with this one.

I remember never particularly caring for Chloe as a character, but wow is she painful in the early seasons, pining over Clark while he’s pining over Lana, but while his mooning is just annoying, she is almost manipulative in blaming him for not reciprocating her feelings and it’s very Nice Guy and cringe.

It’s funny, I remember not being a particular fan of Lana either, but I’m actually liking her a lot more on rewatch - wearing a necklace with part of the meteor that killed her parents is metal af. It is kind of weird to see grown man Lex hanging out with these fifteen year olds - I mean the actors don’t look it, but the characters are very much minors! Twenty-somethings should not be calling a teenager their best friend! It’s particularly creepy when the minute Lana turns 18 Lex develops romantic feels for her :-/

Once they start to bring in more of the Lore it gets better - I actually got very emotional when Christopher Reeve showed up - it’s such a great scene, and the strains of John Williams’ original themes in the background made me tear up. But the core concept was always an interesting one - that when Clark arrived the meteor rocks/kryptonite infected some of the population giving them superhuman abilities - lending credulity to the Monster of the Week episodes and the murder happy teenagers of Smallville. However they never really do a deep dive into the implications of Clark’s arrival and the meteor rock essentially causing widespread mental illness that’s dealt with either by these kids getting killed or institutionalised, but maybe that’s too heavy for this type of show.

It’s also very apparent (and disappointing) on rewatch just how quickly they sidelined Pete Ross, the only black character, who is unceremoniously booted at the end of the third season. Tale as old as time.

2020 Roundup

Books read:

Anne of Green Gables

Anne of Avonlea

Anne of the Island

Anne of Windy Poplars

Anne’s House of Dreams

Anne of Ingleside

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

The History of the Kings of Britain

The Pillars of the Earth

The Sunne in Splendour

Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

The Testaments

Kathryn: The Tainted Queen

Gutsy Women

Girl, Woman, Other

The Evening and the Morning

Women and Leadership

World Without End

That’s a total of 18, a vast improvement on last year, and I’ve really enjoyed getting back to books again.

Writing (complete):

Auld Lang Syne - 3169

The Years Are Rolled Away - 6026

Writing (wips):

The Lady of the Lake - 14,493

Against the Dying of the Light - 44,021

Turn Your Face to the Sun - 2064

Total: 70,093

That’s around 7k less than last year, and I haven’t progressed as far with my wips as I would have wanted (in fact my goal was to complete the three above) but oh well, here’s to a better and more productive 2021 and all that.

See you all next year x

[archaeopter-ace]

@rebelliouswhirlpool​ asked I, L, M for this post (I saved my response as a draft and it up and vanished on me)

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)? I could probably come up with a bunch of ‘guilty pleasures’ if I spent a week thinking about it. Angst, broadly speaking - every so often I go down a rabbit hole chasing that sweet, sweet angst. I don’t know if it counts as a guilty pleasure, but as a writer, I quite enjoy flying obscure puns under the radar. Like in ‘Metamorphosis,’ when Jim mumbles his incantation as “fergluryofmerthin, daylightsmintocommand” - ‘merthin’ being a phonetic spelling of Myrddin, the Welsh form of ‘Merlin.’ Or how in an unfinished/unpublished Flash au, where Barry could turn into a pigeon, he wears a Columbia sweatshirt (common pigeon being Columba livia). Honestly, that fic never really got off the ground, I got so distracted by bird puns

L: What's the weirdest AU you've ever come up with? Maybe the above-mentioned Barry-as-a-pigeon au? It was meant to be an Iris/Linda meet-cute romcom for femslash february, but writing shippy things is still not and never has been one of my strengths, and I was much more interested in developing the shapeshifter worldbuilding, so the plot just. stayed stuck. Weirdest AU that I’ve actually posted would probably be the Eddie McDowd au for Tales of Arcadia. Steve gets turned into a dog as punishment for being a bully, and Eli is the only one who can hear him talk

M: Got any premises on the back burner that you'd care to share? I don't mind sharing this one because I don't know when I'll actually get around to it (and I may in fact have shared it before? It’s in the distant future for Don’t Listen to Kafka): Get Toby accidentally bonded to an animal companion, but make that animal Gullinbursti, the flying golden boar of Norse mythology. Now Toby has to learn how to cope with the berserker rage that comes with being connected to this mythical beast, which in turn becomes something he can bond with his Wingman over

[jaysen-vor-hee-hees]

I’m bored, so Imma write a short Siren Head fanfic.

------------------------------------------------------------

This was meant to be just a night out with the boys, my dog and I. But, apparently the woods had it’s own plans for tonight.

I come back from a quick trip to the truck to find my mates gone, and my pup cowering inside Raleigh’s tent. The fire’s just been recently lit. There’s baggage strewn all over the ground. Obvious signs of struggle catch my eye. Then I notice the blood. Splattered up the side of Merthin’s tent. 

I crouch down, swipe two fingers through it, and look at it closely. The scent is metallic and strong. The blood trickles down my fingers as I inspect it. It’s fresh. Wiping the blood off on the grass, I stand up once more. I take my torch out of my backpack, turning it on, before putting on my backpack. It feels like school camp all over again.

‘You’re gonna have to stay here bud’ I say to him, a tad sadly. He whimpers and nudges my leg with his wet nose.The cold sensation feels strange against my leg. But I smile because it might be the last time I see him. ‘I’ll be back, okay?’

But in this situation, I’m not sure if I’m saying this more to reassure myself or him.

------------------------------------------------------------

The crisp night air bites at my unprotected skin, and shivers run though me as I progress. The thick barrier of mist makes it slightly hard to see, but my eyes adjust eventually. I listen to the dirt and limestone under my feet with every step, my heart pounding in my ears. 

‘This is usually where fuckers die in horror movies’ I mutter as I sweep the torch in front of me, surveying the path ahead of me and the mist. ‘Gives me the creeps.’

I half expect to see some shadow creature walk out of the mist to come kill me, but nothing shows. I do hear movement now and again though, the movement pattern out of time to that of my own. 

I hate every single minute of this. Then, faintly, I hear a news report. ‘What the fuck?’ I mutter. How the hell are they playing news reports in the middle of a damned forest? I consider turning back, but then freeze to the spot as the sound gets closer, and closer, and closer. 

Eventually, my common sense kicks in, and I turn on my heels and sprint back to camp. Once I reach it, I bend double, panting heavily. My pup walks up to greet me, tilting it’s head.

I look at him, smiling and scratching his head. ‘I won’t disturb you for too long, okay bud? I’ve got something to investigate.’ He looks at me as if I just said we ran out of dog food.

I suddenly catch movement in my peripheral vision, and look over to see what looks like sirens over the trees. At first, I suspect this is normal, for whatever reason. But then I realise they’re moving. I grab my pup and dive behind a tent, flattening my back up against it. 

‘What the fuck..?’ I mutter, looking over my shoulder. It’s gone, to my relief, and I let my pup go, standing up, ridding of any loose blades of grass.

------------------------------------------------------------

‘What the fuck was that thing?’ I ask myself, poking the slowly dying fire with a stick. There was this creature I saw in the forest. About as tall as a skyscraper, I reckon. Had two sirens for a head, skinny as fuck arms and legs. Could even see the damn things rib cage it had that little flesh on it.

If only Simon was here. He’d know what this was all about. He always knew about this sort of shit. Always. I wish I knew where him and the others have disappeared to.

The feeling of loneliness starts to creep up on me. It fades slightly as my pup crawls into my lap, staring up at me with those cute little brown eyes. I smile ever so slightly and scratch him behind the ear. His tail kicks around happily behind him as I do so, my smile widening. 

‘What would I do without you?’ I ask him, trying to hide the fact that my voice is cracking. I’m scared of nearly everything in that damned forest, and having it so close by doesn’t help at all. But I’m going to have to find out what that thing was sooner or later.

Somehow.

——————————————————————————-

[cleganesurvivor-a]

ELINOR’S TIMELINE

280 AC: born at clegane’s keep to merthin and alyce clegane as only daughter and last child, 9 years younger than sandor.

285/6 AC: elinor visits king’s landing with her parents

287 AC: elinor’s mother alyce dies unexpectedly and leaves her children motherless

290 AC: gregor breaks elinor’s arm for accidentally dropping his helmet. it’s a clean break and luckily she recovers without any complications afterwards

293 AC: gregor marries his first wife. elinor tries to convince her to flee but fails. gregor gives her a severe beating after learning of this. the wife is murdered within the year.

295 AC: gregor marries his second wife, elinor is forced to attend the wedding and fails again to have the bride run for her life.

296 AC: elinor returns home early from visiting a friend and witnesses gregor brutally murdering the second wife. gregor attempts to kill her in the forest but fails despite causing a head trauma twice. he kills a similar looking kitchen maid and crushes the skull so badly their father thinks it’s his daughter. he covers up his eldest son’s act and pretends elinor died of an illness

297 AC: her father ‘dies in a hunting accident’

297-300 AC: elinor clegane wanders aimlessly throughout westeros with her wolfdog sandor, receiving sanctuary here and there from higher up people sympathetic to her situation

300 AC: gregor clegane is dead and alledgedly so is sandor. elinor is broken by sandor’s death and comes out of hiding more bitter than when she went into hiding. being the last clegane, she becomes the lady of clegane’s keep, rightful mistress of the tower and lands. swears fealty to tommen baratheon because staying alive is her main goal. keeps her options open with the news of daenerys and aegon targaryen floating around.

SHOW TIMELINE ( divergent from book timeline from the 297-300 AC point onward )

304 AC: elinor travels to winterfell when news of the defeat of the boltons reaches her. believing it to be the safest place, she request a meeting with sansa stark, lady of winterfell, and asks for sanctuary from the lannisters and gregor.

305 AC: elinor fights in the battle of winterfell, mainly out of loyalty for the starks. she manages to survive the entire ordeal but collapses afterwards as a result of a wound in her right abdomen and is treated. she awakes after a day and half.

[annesophiebooks]

Nous voici de retour à Kingsbridge. 400 ans se sont écoulés depuis les aventures de Tom le Bâtisseur et de sa famille dans Les Piliers de la Terre, et 200 ans depuis celles de Merthin et Caris dans Un Monde sans Fin. Et s’il y a une chose que je peux affirmer c’est que, pour mon compte, ce troisième volet n’a rien à envier à ses deux prédécesseurs. Très peu d’auteurs sont capables de nous immerger dans des sagas historico-fictionnelles avec autant de facilité que Ken Follet. Et pour retrouver un talent de conteur comme le sien, dans ce genre de littérature, il faut rechercher dans nos bibliothèques les auteurs de classiques disparus depuis longtemps. À l’instar des Piliers de la Terre ou d’Un Monde sans Fin, Une Colonne de Feu nous entraîne une nouvelle fois dans un tourbillon de violence, d’action et de voyages, dans lequel nous plongeons avec délice. Reprenant les codes présents dans les deux précédents titres, et qu’il maîtrise si bien, l’auteur nous conte au long de des 923 pages de ce livre la période, agitée mais ô combien passionnante, de la deuxième moitié du XVIème siècle, et du début du XVIIème. Marie Tudor, Elisabeth, Marie Stuart, la Saint Barthélémy, la Conspiration des Poudres, ne sont que quelques-uns des grands sujets que nous retrouvons ici et qui nous sont brillamment racontés. Guerres de pouvoir et de religions, complots, meurtres, trahisons, tous les ingrédients sont réunis et agrémentent ce roman, le tout parfaitement rehaussé à la « sauce Follett ». Les personnages et les lieux sont nombreux mais passionnants. Et c’est toujours avec la même maestria que l’auteur arrive à nous intéresser au moindre petit détail tant il arrive à le rendre exceptionnel. Comme pour les précédents, ce volet peut sans problème être lu indépendamment des deux premiers. Pour les amoureux d’histoires et de l’Histoire ce « petit » pavé saura se faire aimer comme la vraie pépite qu’il est. Une friandise riche et goûteuse dont on ne se lasse pas. Une très belle édition collector est sortie depuis le 08/11. Une excellente idée de cadeau de Noël, pour vous ou vos proches. Les britanniques ont trouvé leur Alexandre Dumas. Et nous sommes aussi conquis qu’ils le sont. (à Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, France) https://www.instagram.com/p/BqPm8uJnqqF/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=91rdyi7ubjwq

[katieswinforddiaries]

Does anyone else just watch World Without End and sit there wondering how the fuck precious cinnamon roll Merthin could possibly have grown up in the same household as his asshole of a brother?