#narrative collection

[thesunkillerr]

Standing on Ceremony

Not far from Westgate, Faerûn - 1471 DR

- Arezah

"You can't just ignore him, Arezah."

"I think I can, actually."

"Okay, why then?"

The quiet that followed was visited only by the crackling of a dying fire in the hearth. Arezah sat on the edge of the bed, leaning over her knees as she glared into the embers, a modest letter flipping between two fingers. Black hair stuck to the back of her neck as it spilled over her shoulder like a tipped pot of ink. She wasn't in the chatting mood. Then again, she rarely ever was.

"Arezah." Myv'ryna persisted as she snaked an arm around the aasimar's bare waist, pressing her lips against the scars covering Arezah's spine as her skin tensed and flushed in reaction. "Talk to me, don't stray so far from me."

"He made his decision." Arezah griped, her brow furrowing as she removed Myv'ryna's arm from her waist and stood up in one smooth movement.

"You know he didn't have much of one. Are you really still punishing him for doing something decent?" the drow ventured, sitting up on one arm as she watched Arezah toss the letter back on the writing desk. Another request to the pile, only this one with "Arezah" written in shaky script.

"You know damn well that's not the reason, don't play coy. You're just as much to blame." Arezah snapped, her back kept to Myv'ryna who only pouted in response.

"Prickly."

"I am not punishing him," Arezah replied quietly, crossing her arms as she began to pace. Her bare feet padded against the stone flooring while Myv'ryna watched with a mildly amused expression as if she knew something Arezah didn't. She hated that expression.

"I'm not," Arezah repeated firmly as if trying to convince the drow who remained silent. "He's a grown man, he doesn't need me any more than I need him. Besides he told me he wanted to live a quiet life, and we both know that's not possible when I'm around."

Arezah turned her gaze back to the dying embers as the winter chill spread across her bare skin. An early winter breeze carried the smell of the city into the tower, gelling the sweat that still clung to the small of her back. She stopped pacing while a chill worked up her spine.

Was she creating distance? Punishing Zholl for making a decision without her?

Unceremoniously Arezah dropped two new logs into the pile of coals, shuffling the embers underneath. The heat licked at the wood creating new orange fingers of flame before the hearth came alive with light and warmth.

What's that about the apple and the tree?

"It can't hurt to read it, Rez." Myv'ryna's voice called Arezah from the edge once again, her words curling like a crooked finger. It might have worked if she had been any other creature. Arezah's expression darkened as she glared over her shoulder at her worst other half and her honeyed words.

"Please stop making me repeat myself, Myv'ryna." Arezah spat her name, the disdain causing the Syndicate Captain to wince. It was easy to forget that the drow she'd spent much of her life working alongside wasn't invulnerable. No, Myv'ryna was many things, but impervious was not one of them. It was too easy to forget that. Guilt bloomed in Arezah's chest as she watched Myv'ryna sit up turning her back to Arezah as she pulled the rumpled sheet around her shoulders.

Arezah was directing her foul mood to the wrong party and she knew it.

"I told you to save the Charm for our clients. I know you mean well but do not cause me to resent you." Arezah gritted her teeth before she grabbed the swath of blue silk she used as a robe. The quiet once more settled over the room as Arezah sat in the ruined velvet armchair positioned before the fire. Brooding of course.

"Why don't you read it." Arezah breached the silence first, leaning her chin on her knuckles, golden eyes reflecting the firelight. "Just in case. You know. I still care about the green idiot, and I suppose his new purple idiot."

"Technically, the tiefling would be an indigo idiot, Rez." Myv'ryna retorted, the smirk obvious in her tone. "Still, I shall read it before taking further advantage of your grace."

"Spare me." Arezah replied with an eyebrow lifted as she watched the dark elf cross the chamber. The thin fabric of the sheet outlined her lithe figure in the dim lighting, summoning the deeply rooted fire Arezah carried for her. Yes, she could leave that charmed tongue of her's at the bottom of the Sea of Swords but there would always remain that pull. The desire to reach out and touch the passion that swelled between them, even if she would get burned every time.

As Myv'ryna retrieved the letter, she moved to sit across from Arezah. Yet pale fingers gently caught Myv'ryna's wrist, pulling her into Arezah's lap while the sudden movement caused Myv'ryna's hold on the sheet to slip. Before Myv'ryna could pull away, Arezah wrapped her arms around her naked waist. Forehead against her arm, Arezah closed her eyes breathing in the floral scent of her lover's skin. Gentle ashen fingers ran through Arezah's jet-black hair.

"Are you ready?" Myv'ryna murmured, brushing Arezah's tresses to the side as she pressed her lips to the back of Arezah's neck. Goosebumps rippled over her skin before the aasimar silently nodded her head.

Myv'ryna cracked the moss-green seal of the parchment before unrolling the small scroll. She began to read.

"Dear Mum."

Arezah stiffened, and Myv'ryna massaged the back of her neck.

"I hope you can afford me an old joke. You know I could never resist teasing you just a bit. I know you told me not to write to you but Lyerii owed me a favor so I'm calling it in."

"Lyerii snuck this nonsense in? Would've thought such a menial task was below her." Arezah grumbled while Myv'ryna smacked the back of her head, shushing her.

"I hope you and Myv are doing alright, not fighting too much. Busting heads and headboards as always. Anyway, I'll get to the point. The Solstice is coming, and I know how you feel about celebrating anything beyond a job well done, but this year is different. Cahya and I want to invite you to come stay with us during Midwinter. I just finished furnishing the "Arezah room" as Cahya keeps calling it. He won't admit it but I think he's as excited to see you just as much as he's nervous you'll actually come."

Myv'ryna's voice hitched as she read Zholl's words, surprisingly well knowing his handwriting Arezah noted. Opening an eye, Arezah watched Myv pause, taking a deep breath. Emotions filtered through her scarlet eyes as she compartmentalized her feelings for Zholl. It was clear she missed him.

"You don't have to--" Arezah began before Myv held up a finger, continuing to read Zholl's letter.

"Even if you don't come, we'll be thinking about you. I keep telling Cahya not to get his hopes up, but really I think I'm more telling myself that. I miss ya, Rez. It's been a while since I've seen you, but Myv tells me that you're doing well. Working day in and day out to make sure we are taken care of, which I hope you know you don't have to do that. Cahya helped me start my own carpentry business, so now the nearby city keeps us stocked with all kinds of food and necessities for the low price of fixing an occasional stool or fence. I know what you must be thinking, but I've improved quite a bit from what you probably remember. I'm happy here. It's peaceful here. You deserve peace too, even if for a little while. Alright, this letter is long enough, and Cahya is starting to get antsy. We are reading a book together, a bunch of fluffy fairytales by the Mmirg sisters but Cahya loves 'em. Don't tell him I told you. All my love, all my salt. Zholl."

"You've been writing him?" Arezah asked after a measure of silence.

"Yes," Myv'ryna replied plainly before she folded the letter and placed it on the small wooden end table beside them. "He's like a son to me, and I am willing to admit that. You've been sending them allowances?"

Arezah felt the familiar turn in her stomach that so often visited her during moments of cold realization. When the lust of the bed chamber wore away, and the quiet of the night returned; there were so many secrets between them. The unknowable chasm between them had been built by forced invulnerability. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't bridge that space. Arezah wasn't sure they ever would.

After all, who were they without the armor of their secrets?

"Bring me my parchment and seal."

On The Edge of the Shilmista Forest

- Zholl

He couldn't believe his eyes, yet there written in the familiar script were the words;

"Received your letter. I shall arrive outside of Riatavin within the fortnight. Burn this."

Even without her signature, it could have only been one person to write such a formal letter that echoed with a vague threat. Rez actually responded. After six years of silence aside from the scraps of sentimentality from Myv, she had finally reached back. How many letters had he sent along with his correspondence with Myv'ryna and Lyerii? Had he kept count, Zholl was sure it would have been an embarrassing amount. Not to mention the letters he would never send.

His heart was in his throat as he reread her words, and without further hesitation, he took a deep breath before hollering loud enough to wake their nearest neighbors ten miles out.

"CAHYA SHE'S COMING! SHE'S ACTUALLY COMING!"

[david-talks-sw]

Dooku didn't leave because of the Jedi.

At least, if you're going by George Lucas' word.

In deleted scenes of Attack of the Clones, when we learn about Dooku's departure and his values, there's no mention of the Jedi or "the Jedi Order as an institution".

And every time Lucas refers to Dooku's disenchantment and reason for falling, he doesn't mention the Jedi.

"When you realize that Dooku is Darth Tyranus, it explains what Darth Sidious did after Darth Maul was killed: he seduced a Jedi who had become disenchanted with the Republic. He preyed on that disenchantment and converted him to the dark side, which is also a setup for what happens with Anakin." - Mythmaking: Behind the Scenes of Attack of the Clones, 2002

"[Dooku is] one of the few Jedi who became disenchanted with the Republic and left the order and he is leading a separatist movement." - Vanity Fair, 2002

"I wanted a more sophisticated kind of villain. Dooku’s disenchantment with the corruption in the Empire is actually valid. It’s all valid.  So, Chris plays it as, 'Is he really a villain or is he just someone who is disenchanted and trying to make things right?'" - Starlog Magazine #300, 2002

He probably meant the Republic/Senate in that last one, but you get the point. And you're seeing the pattern, right?

Dooku's problem isn't the Jedi, it's the Republic.

He's become disenchanted with a system that - according to Lucas' prologue in the 2004 book Shatterpoint - worked for 1,000 years...

"For a thousand years, the Old Republic prospered and grew under the wise rule of the Senate and the protection of the venerable Jedi Knights."

... but has been rendered ineffective because of 1) senators becoming corrupt and 2) corporations gaining political power.

"But as often happens when wealth and power grow beyond all reasonable proportion, an evil fueled by greed arose. The massive organs of commerce mushroomed in power, the Senate became corrupt, and an ambitious named Palpatine was voted Supreme Chancellor."

That's the message Dooku runs on, when he rallies the systems to form the Separatist Alliance.

"By promising an alternative to the corruption and greed that was rotting the Republic from within, Dooku was able to persuade thousands of star systems to secede from the Republic."

The Jedi aren't really a factor in his decision to leave.

Why would they be? Their political status isn't very high, they're virtually powerless, as illustrated by the film's narrative and stated repeatedly by Lucas.

On the contrary, as we already established in this post, Lucas full-on confirmed that Dooku actually carries the sympathies of most of the Jedi. Again:

Most Jedi agree with Dooku, ideologically.

As far as the Jedi are concerned, the politicians are effing up the Republic, and it sucks because the Jedi see this but aren't allowed to interfere in the political process. They have to resort to looking for loopholes in their mandates to actually get stuff done.

That's what that whole "she's a politician" scene is meant to hint at. In the commentary of Attack of the Clones, Lucas uses a similar turn of phrase as he does with Dooku.

"[This scene gives us] a chance to talk a little bit about politics and the Jedi’s disenchantment with the political process, due to the corruption and the ineffectiveness of the Senate." - Attack of the Clones, Director’s Commentary, 2002

Considering all this, it becomes clear that the intended narrative surrounding Dooku's decision to leave the Order is not:

"The Jedi are dogmatic and asleep at the wheel except for Dooku, who is ahead of the curb and sees the system is flawed, so he left."

It's actually:

"ALL Jedi see the system is flawed, Dooku's the only Jedi who decided to take it a step further and leave the Order so he can try to get into politics himself and change things."

That's why they hesitate to accuse him of murder.

That's why in an earlier draft of the Attack of the Clones script, by the end of the second act, Mace STILL has his doubts that Dooku would sign a treaty with the Trade Federation to attack the Republic.

As far as the Jedi are concerned, Dooku is out there fighting the good fight, making noise because whenever they try to protest it falls on deaf ears... until his betrayal on Geonosis.

After all, let's not get it twisted: the Dooku we're introduced to in the films and The Clone Wars, isn't really just Dooku anymore.

He's Darth Tyranus.

A point Lucas makes sure to highlight in his Shatterpoint prologue:

"Unbeknownst to most of his followers, Dooku was himself a Dark Lord of the Sith, acting in collusion with his master, Darth Sidious, who, over the years, had struck an unholy alliance with the greater forces of commerce and their private droid armies."

It's not about doing the selfless thing for Dooku, anymore. He's knowingly part of the problem.

He's all about ambition, now. His personal goals are things like overthrowing Sidious and becoming the most powerful Jedi.

"[Anakin's] ambition and his dialogue here is the same as Dooku’s. He says “I will become more powerful than every Jedi.” And you’ll hear later on Dooku will say “I have become more powerful than any Jedi.” [...] It is possible for a Jedi to want to become more powerful, and control things." - Attack of the Clones, Director’s Commentary, 2002

"If you put two Sith together, they try to get others to join them to get rid of the other Sith. [When revealing the truth to Obi-Wan], Dooku's ambition is really to get rid of Darth Sidious. He's trying to get Obi-Wan's assistance in that and help in that, so that he and Obi-Wan could overthrow Sidious and take over." - Attack of the Clones, Commentary Track 2, 2002

Y'know? Selfish things.

Dooku - like all other Sith, and like the very corporations and Senators he had sworn to destroy - is consumed by his own greed.

[myuminji]

the bride walked down the aisle to where the groom stood, and there they exchanged their vows in front of the altar...

[devilsainz]

she ate with this concept here

bonus

i hope they dont get mad at me for screeshotting them but feel free to contact me if youre the acc and want this post deleted

[demodraws0606]

I refuse to believe Cyberpunk DeadBoy and Jackpot SadGirl's name being literally the fucking same isn't intentional like

Not just because the names are similar but the songs are too ??

Both of them are songs that are angry at the world for it's societal norms and how it pushes down indeviduality. Both of them have meta-commentary about the musical landscape (Maiki-P's obvious but like Syudou referencing Sand Planet in the song)

Both of the card sets for the event have Mafuyu and Rui just kinda looking...dead inside. For Mafuyu we know why, but there is no reason why Rui has such a dark expression.

Both of them are restricted as well, Rui's voice being silenced with the mask and Mafuyu being controlled by strings.

Idk, the ourples are weird

[chrliekclly]

oh charlie kelly loose identity tied to emotions nd changing on a whim we're really in it now....

[rainedroptalks]

What is it with fantasy high and girls dying before their lives ever began. How we can never really know who they are, or who they could’ve been. Brennan Lee Mulligan I will find you

[fluentisonus]

chiens-loups

[anghraine]

jenndoesnotcare replied to this post:

Every time LDS kids come to my neighborhood I am so so nice to them. I hope they remember the blue haired lady who was kind, when people try to convince them the outside world is bad and scary. (Also they are always so young! I want to feed them cookies and give them Diana Wynne Jones books or something)

Thank you! Honestly, this sort of kindness can go a really long way, even if it doesn't seem like it at the time.

LDS children and missionaries (and the majority of the latter are barely of age) are often the people who interact the most with non-Mormons on a daily basis, and thus are kind of the "face" of the Church to non-Mormons a lot of the time. As a result, they're frequently the ones who actually experience the brunt of antagonism towards the Church, which only reinforces the distrust they've already been taught to feel towards the rest of the world.

It's not that the Church doesn't deserve this antagonism, but a lot of people seem to take this enormous pride in showing up Mormon teenagers who have spent most of their lives under intense social pressure, instruction, expectation, and close observation from both their peers and from older authorities in the Church (it largely operates on seniority, so young unmarried people in particular tend to have very little power within its hierarchies). Being "owned" for clout by non-Mormons doesn't prove anything to most of them except that their leaders and parents are right and they can't trust people outside the Church.

The fact that the Church usually does provide a tightly-knit community, a distinct and familiar culture, and a well-developed infrastructure for supporting its members' needs as long as they do [xyz] means that there can be very concrete benefits to staying in the Church, staying closeted, whatever. So if, additionally, a Mormon kid has every reason to think that nobody outside the Church is going to extend compassion or kindness towards them, that the rest of the world really is as hostile and dangerous as they've been told, the stakes for leaving are all the higher, despite the costs of staying.

So people from "outside" who disrupt this narrative of a hostile, threatening world that cannot conceivably understand their experiences or perspectives can be really important. It's important for them to know that there are communities and reliable support systems outside the Church, that leaving the Church does not have to mean being a pariah in every context, that there are concrete resources outside the Church, that compassion and decency in ordinary day-to-day life is not the province of any particular religion or sect and can be found anywhere. This kind of information can be really important evidence for people to have when they are deciding how much they're willing to risk losing.

So yeah, all of this is to say that you're doing a good thing that may well provide a lifeline for very vulnerable people, even if you don't personally see results at the time.

[reactionimagesdaily]

do you have any reaction memes for when someone (either genuinely or a scammer) messages with a wrong number

Real talk I never answer the phone if it's from a number I don't recognise. Only exception is if I'm expecting a call, but otherwise?? man I don't know you why do you have me on the dial

[curiousitycollective]

Traumagenic origin coining + paired term

Eisogenic/Eisotraumagenic - a term for collectives/systems/plurals or members who feel they formed from the trauma of experiencing symptoms of mental illness or other disabilities such as intrusive thoughts, hallucinations, pain, or seizures.

This term is specifically about the trauma of experiencing the symptoms themselves.

From the ancient greek word εἴσω • (eísō) - inside/within

Eisogenic collectives can present and form in many ways and there isn't one set experience or roles to take, however some collectives may:

Have members whose identities or pasts are connected to symptoms like intrusive thoughts, delusions, or hallucinations in a way that recontextulalizes them. Such as a collective with intrusive thoughts about violence splitting a member that is a soldier or warrier

Have members whose dissociative barriers affect the amount of pain they experience as a way to cope with things such as chronic pain, migraines, or sensory overload

Have dissociative barriers that change how different members experience the same disorders

Roles or the ability to front may be tied to symptoms or recovery from them

Eisogenic and eisotraumagenic mean the same thing however both are equally as valid as some may wish to emphasize the fact that trauma is involved

The paired term is eisotrauma, meaning trauma that happened due to experiencing symptoms of mental illness or other disability.

There's some extra notes on why we wanted to coin these terms under the cut. Also huge shout out to @moonpool-system whose coining of the term nourigenic inspired us and also for giving us tips on how to get started.

We created these terms because as a collective whose been disabled our entire lives and experienced severe mental illness from a young age we wanted a way to refer to the trauma of experiencing psychosis and intrusive thoughts as well as chronic pain.

Our first experience with trauma focussed therapy was about dealing with the trauma that came from experiencing OCD and psychosis, and both of those as well as having experienced chronic pain our entire lives has greatly effected us and our formation

Because these experiences are intrinsic to existing in our body and brain there are many ways healing from and living with it is different from the trauma we experienced from outside our body.

And we've never really had a term to discuss it so we have to awkwardly talk around the gap in language making starting conversations about it much harder. We're hoping that having these terms makes it easier to have conversations about these experiences

[kerryweaverlesbian]

What's your favourite *drumroll*...

Also which one do you pledge right now to include in some way in your next faneork that includes Sam. I hope it's gators.

[vamp-bites]

Watched I Saw The TV Glow last night, got very excited about the Buffy the Vampire Slayer references in it and then left the theater in a trance like state, doodled this when i got home

[anotherramblingfangirl]

It genuinely sticks with me in Battle Ground, that Harry “Refused a Red Court Ceasefire Because He Learned They Exploited Kids” Dresden, when he realises the Paranet rumours that Winter Fae are yanking kids is true and Molly is complicit in it? Molly who is cackling in absolute manic delight as she commands those kids into the shitshow that was the Chicago battleground?

He directly implies those abductions may not be a bad thing after all. That’s all he says, to the effect of huh those rumours were right and that works out well for us here.

Harry who has also heard from Fix, Meryl, Lilly, Ace what the Winter Court does to changelings they lay claim too through heritage (it taking the Summer Knight’s direct protection to free them).

Like?? Maybe it could be partly excused during the battle, he’s dipping very deep into the Knight mantle and doesn’t react to several things as he should there. Enough so I do think that’s a deliberate element of the mantle influencing Harry’s character.

But if this doesn’t get addressed at all henceforth, at least some sort of objection to Molly even or bringing it up at least on does she use kids like that more often?? Then that is a very frightening moral decay in him to not only genuinely not care but say it may not be a bad thing.

If it has already been I can’t remember it.

[hunxi-after-hours]

oooh. if folks are interested in Chinese dance from traditional to modern, you might be interested in 《舞千年》 Dancing Millennium, which is a 2021 Chinese variety show produced by bilibili + 河南卫视 Henan Satellite TV (YouTube link here, bilibili link here).

there's a flimsy gesture at an unifying plot (collecting twelve dances across Chinese history to be included in an imaginary macguffin), but the show is really about throwing budget at a selection of dances and operatic excerpts with enthusiastic cinematography. my personal favorites are 《越女凌风》 performed by 陈奕宁 Chen Yining of the 北京舞蹈学院 Beijing Dance Academy (sword! dancing! SWORD! DANCING!!) and 《盛世双姝》 performed by 华宵一 Hua Xiaoyi and 王家鑫 Wang Jiaxin (just... trust me on this one. it's less than three minutes long and utterly mesmerizing). there are also a selection of folk dances and excerpts from dance operas, and everyone is, naturally, ludicrously talented

I'll be honest, I skipped most of the plot and just watched a 纯享 playlist of the dances, but the dances themselves are really cool!

[saber-monet]

okay i found a visual representation for revision!! ( and self concept too)

So imagine you're one of these little guys in the grid. Whenever you make the active choice to change your self-concept or revise an old story or situation. You can send that information to everybody else in the grid.

In a previous post (x) , I talked about my experience with revision, and how once you decide to change the story/person/event

"everyone shares that new memory with you"

Everyone is part of the collective consciousness. So when you make a change to your life story and decide "yep, this is how it went", that new information gets fed into the grid and it becomes part of other peoples memories as well. It becomes part of the "updated" collective consciousness

And also with self-concept.

Once you decide on new self-concept with new character traits. You feed that information into the grid and it becomes part of other people's perception of you as well.