#nimue is uh. having a time

[aetherose]

"I am fine." Said as she looks pale, sickly almost, she's twitching, and feels like she's looking through rather than at whomever is before her whilst biting her lip so hard it's bleeding. Her head is pounding with pain and she feels ready to throw up as she tries so hard to not disembowel every last person in this camp.

[zahri-melitor]

Recent Reads:

I haven’t done a round up of stuff I’ve picked up randomly for a while so let’s have one:-

Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles: I tried this, on the back of the fact I do enjoy Mark Russell’s satire. After one issue I rapidly realised I simply don’t know enough about the Hanna-Barbera characters in this to care about the adaption going on. The premise is interesting, it’s just Not For Me.

Madame Xanadu 2008 #1-10: this is Matt Wagner with Amy Reeder on art. Reeder's art is ADORABLE and she has such fun drawing elaborate clothing all the way through this. I really enjoy Matt Wagner's ability to take old stories or concepts and breathe a modern comics approach into them, making them a lot more accessible. This is Wagner telling the backstory of Nimue Inwudu, stopping in with her at 5 points in her history (Camelot, the court of Kublai Khan, the French Revolution, Jack the Ripper London, and America WWII) and her interactions with a bunch of characters from the Magic side of DC (Merlin, Etrigan, Death of the Endless, the Phantom Stranger, Giovanni Zatara, and Jim Corrigan as the Spectre). Nimue has a MASSIVE beef with the Phantom Stranger. She does not like him at all, because he keeps turning up at some of the worst points in her life and won't help her try to evade terribly fated things. Come for the Amy Reeder art, stay for the story.

The Demon: Hell is Earth 2018: I enjoyed this. Because I don’t clean read Etrigan stuff in order I cannot remember if Etrigan is officially a Rhymer again as of Rebirth (he appears to be rhyming for fun and because he enjoys it, but isn’t bound to do so, but he’s also getting mocked by his demon uncle for using rhymes). In any case, Jason Blood and Etrigan get separated for hell-related reasons, and they’re running around with Madame Xanadu and Merlin to prevent Belial taking over Earth by invading from Hell. Good times. Lots of people die. Etrigan potentially ends up King of Hell at the end of this story.

Swamp Thing: I was going to make this its own post but heck let’s put everything in together.

Len Wein (Swamp Thing #1-13 1972): Wein's work is absolutely solid magical horror. He sets up an intriguing premise to build from and he can spin a good story. It's exactly the sort of amusing writing that keeps me coming back to, say, Warlord. Worthwhile to see the starting premise.

David Michelinie (Swamp Thing #14-18, 21-22 1972): Not as good at Wein, but definitely can tell a story. You can tell he spent time on House of Mystery given the episodic horror nature of his storytelling.

Gerry Conway (Swamp #19-20, 23-24 1972 plus Challengers of the Unknown #81-87 1977): Conway I think is the first writer who actually gets some of the specific horror you can imbue in this concept, especially around identity. I can see how his ideas could contribute to the later concepts Moore will introduce. I don't think his execution is fantastic but the hand regeneration? Yeah. Yeah that is playing with the ideas available.

Martin Pasko (Brave and the Bold #176 1955, Saga of the Swamp Thing #1-19 1982): Pasko is definitely processing things. Like, the man has an entire story that's just him responding to the Atlanta Child Murders of 1979-1981. He is very much a cynic about the innocence of childhood (or innocence in general, actually) and wants to explore the dark side of humanity.

The Phantom Stranger: these have been backups to the Martin Pasko Swamp Thing issues. Mostly I’ve found them pretty trite and a bit overly religious in places. Yes I know his entire concept is rooted in religious myth (as the Wandering Jew) but I mean more in a 'this tale has an Overt Christian Moral' way. The concept of the character is fascinating. The execution seems to be very across the shop.

Outsiders #1-33 2003: oh boy. Uh. Tomasi's fill using the original Batman & The Outsiders characters was a WELCOME reprieve to this. Okay, in terms of the main run: I tend to find Judd Winick a writer that either I'm fully enjoying or decidedly not to my taste. Outsiders falls into the 'not to my taste' category. I can see what Winick is going for in terms of 'let's make this Gritty! And Mature!' except for it's really not that gritty and his idea of making it mature is just having everyone hooking up a lot on panel, whether or not said hookup makes characterisation sense. And then he'll turn around every 10 issues or so and have some quite interestingly interrogative storytelling about Dick and Roy. (literally: you want issues #1, 11 and 21). I see what a bunch of the DickRoy shippers enjoy in this, but there's a lot of cantilevered cloud structures required to extract the Shippy Goodness out of the rest of this run.

[nebula-drcams]

@civicmuses asked: ♡ Todd & Nimue?

@captainseamech asked: ♡ Nimue x Todd :3c { captainseamech asked: (I mean to say toad btw NDNMD) }

Soft Ship Meme || Currently Accepting

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙰𝚂𝙺𝙴𝙳 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃? The way Sal and I discussed it was more of a uh, Nimue slips up about how she feels because of something the guys said IIRC { because the Brotherhood would've picked up instantly that the two of them had a thing for each other but neither was saying anything }, so she would've technically ' confessed ' but Todd would've been the one to follow up on it not long after { bc she does decide to like, run off and hide briefly thinking the worst in that moment }. So technically, I'd say Todd was the one who asked her out first. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚆𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝙸𝙽 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃 𝙺𝙸𝚂𝚂? Looks at our threads. Todd. KJFGHHFDG 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙶𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝙽𝙸𝙲𝙺𝙽𝙰𝙼𝙴𝚂? Todd, Nimue might eventually, but at the same time she likes using his name since everyone around them always seems to call him Toad or other names that she's not too fond of.   𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙲𝙾𝙾𝙺𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙼𝙴𝙰𝙻𝚂? Nimue, granted she'd let Todd help if he wanted, assuming he didn't manage to burn everything. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙷𝙰𝚂 𝙱𝙴𝚃𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝚃𝙰𝚂𝚃𝙴 𝙸𝙽 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙸𝙲? Hm. Hard to say. Nimue works as a singer with her brother so she listens to all kinds of music genres. In her opinion neither has a ' better taste ', just unique. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙷𝙾𝙶𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙱𝙴𝙳? Probably Todd. Nimue would often just curl up next to him regardless. She prefers to be as close as possible so it's not like she needs the whole bed.  𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚆𝙰𝙺𝙴𝚂 𝚄𝙿 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃? Todd, depending on the time. Nimue's not really a morning person so she struggles to wake up early to the point she can and will just go right back to sleep if she doesn't want to move. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙲𝙾𝙵𝙵𝙴𝙴? Nimue. I don't even think Todd drinks coffee { probably best, man bounces around the house bad enough as is } 𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙱𝙸𝙶 𝚂𝙿𝙾𝙾𝙽? Todd. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚈𝚂 𝚄𝙿 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙻𝙰𝚃𝙴𝚂𝚃? Nimue usually, unless Todd's trying to get her to go to sleep most likely. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚁𝙴𝙰𝙲𝙷𝙴𝚂 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙳? I feel like that's a back and forth with them. I'd say Todd probably does more often though. 𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝙰 𝙵𝙰𝙽 𝙾𝙵 𝙿𝙳𝙰? Todd. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚂𝙽𝙾𝚁𝙴𝚂? PROBABLY Todd if either of them do snore, 'cause she doesn't. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙶𝙴𝚃𝚂 𝙰𝙽𝙽𝙾𝚈𝙴𝙳 𝙼𝙾𝚁𝙴 𝙴𝙰𝚂𝙸𝙻𝚈? Hard to say, probably a toss up and it depends on the situation. Nimue's more likely to get annoyed at how Todd's treated rather than at Todd himself. 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙸𝙽𝙸𝚃𝙸𝙰𝚃𝙴𝚂 𝚂𝙴𝚇? Back and forth because those two tease each other { though more often than not Nimue does it to him at the worst times so nothing happens DFHGFDGH } 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙰𝚂𝙺𝚂 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚃𝙷𝙴𝙸𝚁 𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙸𝙽 𝙼𝙰𝚁𝚁𝙸𝙰𝙶𝙴? Oh this one's hard to say too, but it might end up being Todd.  𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴'𝚂 𝙵𝙰𝚅𝙾𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙴 𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙾𝚁𝚈 𝙾𝙵 𝚈𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂: She'd have to say meeting him, even though it wasn't like, the best way to go. But she'd still argue it's her favorite memory because of the fact they even know each other in the first place, because if she hadn't, she may have actually ended up with the X-Men instead.  𝙰 𝚁𝙴𝙶𝚁𝙴𝚃 𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴 𝙷𝙰𝚂 𝚁𝙴𝙶𝙰𝚁𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚈𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂: Fym regret? None.  𝙸𝙵 𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚈 𝙲𝙾𝚄𝙻𝙳 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙶𝙴 𝙾𝙽𝙴 𝚃𝙷𝙸𝙽𝙶: She'd change when she met him, and make it sooner. For many reasons. But that's about it. 𝚃𝙷𝙴𝙸𝚁 𝙻𝙾𝚅𝙴 𝙻𝙰𝙽𝙶𝚄𝙰𝙶𝙴𝚂 𝙰𝙲𝙲𝙾𝚁𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚃𝙾 𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴: Physical touch.

@plasticsouled mention

[limerental]

I really think nimue's story is one of the more deeply funny Witcher side character stories. like. girl is one of the few people who recognizes ciri while she's chaotically lake-hopping unable to find the right place/time and yet nimue can't do anything because the guy she's boning on the beach at the time takes her excitement over seeing ciri as a sign that she's really into whatever sex move he's doing and ciri's like "OH SORRY UH OH WHOOPSIE BYE BYE HAVE FUN"

and that missed connection then causes nimue to be so deeply obsessed with the ciri myth for decades and decades after that she ends up being instrumental to saving her.

because she had bad sex by a lake one time.

[sasoxichomoshi]

there's something so charming about hunter, but in a soothing way

it doesnt mean she cant be silly ofc, but her eyes reflect so much of her moods and personality

when she's with the eagle she looks calm and gentle and much of the expressions she makes are towards the eagle; when nimue gets the bird, when the godslayer stuns the eagle and got one of the flaps and at the end of the game when he corrupts the eagle completely there were always a close at her face to show us how worried hunter was towards her friend

it's as if the eagle highlights hunter in some way, cause if you think about it hunter is not really an important person; she's an outsider and a stranger, and eagle mother is there not only to push her forwards, but she also works like this excuse to develop what lies inside hunter - her feelings

the more i think about, like no human(oid) character in the pathless have a mouth, which is an interesting decision - may it be because the animator said "nuh uh i aint doing this" or because they had other intentions - having no mouth makes it harder to humanize a character cause to do so you work around facial expression mostly

for characters like the diver or the little guy from journey it works cause humanizing them is not the focus - they are vessels for the player to experience the message of the game, much like a blank page, but hunter is a more defined type of character, she's not only for the player to control; there are instance where she speaks for herself (literally), she reacts towards her environment (like when she groans when she hits the ground), it's a bit of "i exist in relation to others" kind of thing i dont even know if this explanations make sense

the thing is, if you gonna hide the mouth (and it's funny cause they got rid of the mouths but not of the speech), to deliver something believable you have to put extra attention in other places, like eyes (which is probably the reason why they made her eyes big, for emphasis) and corporal expression (i love all of hunter animations like ALL of them, the idles are so cool and my favorite has to be the climbing one HAVE YOU SEEN THAT CREATURE)

another aspect that locks my eyes on hunter is her color palette; she feels a bit like 60% red and 40% black which an almost dangerous distribution cause it gets near the boring looking too evenly palette, but i feel like this problem is partially solved by the color choice cause black and red is very iconic (but i see that this can be subjective, so take it with a grain of salt)

to give some examples: im typing from an nitro acer (black red palette), you can see cars with that bright red (+black of the tires), and i can name a few characters with red+black combination, like matoi ryuko from kill la kill, kaguya, that masochist from that cassino games school (she's iconic i will recognize but i wont lose my time googling it i dont wanna know details about that anime)

(also if i had to point a match for hunter from another media....... kikyo my beloved i fucking love you my gay awakening i kept watching inuyasha cause i wanted to see you on my screen omg)

but at the same time her color scheme puzzles me: what does it mean? usually color is used for storytelling or readability purposes

hunter red black contrasts very well against the greens/whites/oranges of the landscape, mostly bc it's highly saturated; but then you get to the boss fight and......

i know that the boss fights dont take as many screen time as exploration but considering that they are the action moment hmm idk the math aint mathing here

well what's about storytelling? a bit of the same problem shown on the above image; hunter shares the color scheme with the corrupted tall ones and godslayer which makes things even more confusing

(seriously am i stupid and didnt see the obvious hint everyone else saw and im just here staring at the walls idk)

that said i have come up with my own worms to explain this and it comes down to: it's not from the land/natural

godslayer and the corrupted tall ones shouldnt exist, they are not natural to this world and actually an evil twist of the reality; hunter not necessarily is corrupted, but is also not natural (from the island), she's an outsider, it's about this feeling of not-belonging

however in the end of the day the color choice is also about readability and keeping things cohesive; stretching the color palette of the entire game just to give hunter a different look would do more damage than helping, imagine changing to something not that far like a pink or yellow, things still would change drastically

in the end i still love hunter very much ma babegurl <3 sillly stupid<333 my dear blorbo<333 hope she finds a lot of hobbies <33333

[archives-of-camelot]

Lying

Characters: Eli, Evelin (@nimue-hidden-lake)

Series: Evelin Anniversary

These prompts have been on the shorter side for the last few days. But I hope the quality is decent at least. I also find myself thinking very hard for Evelin's dialogue and reactions, as this is untapped territory for me. Not just because this is something I've never written before, but also having to conjure an unknown side of her that still makes sense.

To her creator, I just hope she's still accurate on my end.

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

Click clack click click

The sounds of work once again filled the room as Eli was hunched over his work. More clients, more editing. The cycle never stopped. Clicking, sliding, reviewing, and listening. For multiple hours. The longest and most demanding projects were the reviews and documentaries. Audio had to be synced, but before anything it had to be cut down to exclude any mistakes. And the sheer length ensured it would take even longer to process and render.

Not to mention he had to submit previews to check that everything was as the client wanted. And sometimes he had to restart due to dissatisfaction. He enjoyed making and editing videos, but it was very time consuming.

His work was interrupted when the sound he was ignoring finally became too loud to disregard. His stomach.

"Guh, fine...if it'll keep you quiet" he mumbled to himself as he poked his empty belly.

He finished up an edit and made his way downstairs.

Upon reaching the landing, he was about to head into the kitchen when-

"Good afternoon"

He turned around and was met with Evelin, just getting done from feeding Pinro.

"Afternoon...?" he looked confused.

"Yes" she pointed to the clock. 1PM.

"O-Oh, right. Uh...I lost track of time" he nervously shrugged as his stomach rumbled again.

"Did you even eat yet today?"

"U-Uh, of course! Was...just about to get lunch!"

Evelin stared at him skeptically. He was a terrible liar...yet he tried anyway.

"Really?" she stepped closer.

"Y-Yeah!" he took a step back.

She wasn't convinced. Why did he even try? Who could say. Not even he knew exactly. The outcome was always the same, yet he persisted.

"Do you want to try again?" she said as she took a few steps closer.

He felt his back press against the wall as there wasn't much room to go anywhere else. And even then, she'd just catch or chase him. It was just one meal, it wasn't that big of a deal, right?

"I-I didn't miss breakfast, honest!" he was sweating.

"You don't sound very convincing" as she pressed herself against him. Nowhere to go. "This doesn't need to be difficult"

"A-Alright alright, I...might have forgot breakfast. It was just one meal though!" he finally gave in.

"There..." she backed up.

He sighed with relief. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.

"But now you need to be punished" she added stoically.

He thought too soon.

"P-Punished?"

"Yes" she nodded. "You lied, and skipped a meal. That makes me very angry" she may say, but kept her stoic expression and voice. Was she really? Whose to say. Maybe it was a blend of making sure he took care of himself, and also taking the chance to mess with him. It was one of her favorite things to do after all. His reactions were priceless to her.

"I just got distracted from my work! I'll...try and remember for next time" he tried to reason, as usual. There was no reasoning with her. She made up her mind already.

"I'm sure. But that can wait for after"

"A-After? B-But...I still got work to do!"

"But you'd love it"

He looked to the side as she called him out. Part of the reason he'd sometimes get into 'trouble'. But she had no complaints.

Before anything else could be said, she lead him into the kitchen to make sure he was fed, before taking 'disciplinary' action.

Eli forgot all about his editing for that day.

Masterlist

[wrennwyrmnest]

i’m very very curious about your arthurian retelling! who are the central characters? what do you find most interesting/exciting/compelling about them? what are your arthurian sources & inspirations (be that medieval texts or modern retellings)?

Hey there anon! Thank you so much for asking this question - this is going to be a bit of a long answer but I get the feeling that won't be an issue :D (Maybe grab a snack?)

Firstly I'll explain why I'm using 'reimagining' rather than 'retelling', namely it's because of moving Arthur and co into a high fantasy setting rather than just Britain etc. which, while of course there will be analogues, there's going to be a bigger part that other fantasy species play. Christian themes and I guess, reasonings, aren't found but linger where appropriate (Grail Quest is there but but Galahad doesn't like yk go to Heaven afterwards) as some media I've been inspired from as well as I think a big thing of Arthur's legend of moving from one world into another whether that be Pagan -> Christian or Anglo-Saxon -> Britain(* all the big asterisks there because yk fiction and history not aligning).

Characters

Oh boy. Firstly I'd like you to check out the chart that was added to the wikipedia for King Arthur's Family: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur%27s_family *how I wish this was there last year :sob:* and basically this kinda gives a good scope of characters I have 'webbed' out. I've gone to both Welsh and French texts for inspiration since Welsh includes Arthur's trips to the underworld ( ;) ) and French is when we get Lancelot and the Grail Quest. Firstly know I have taken some liberties both in Arthur's family tree as well as some creative ways that account for say multiple parents (Lancelot is recorded as being the son of a King but also as a son of The Lady of the Lake ~plot reasons~ they're separate uh, instances lets say ;) of his parents in my story). But in terms of characters whose voice I have a pretty good grasp of, their emotional arc(s) and a clear image in my mind of what they look like are (and grouped for no particular reason...):

Arthur, Lancelot, Gwen, and two others in their polycule.*

Igraine, Uther, and Gorloris.**

Merlin <- think druidic Loki vibes, he's a pain in my ass and I love him.

Hector his daughter Ser Kay.

Nimue and The Lady of the Lake.

Morgause and her son Mordred.

Madoc and his brother Mark.

Morgaen and how they were separated from Arthur at birth.

... The notion database I've created by pulling all the characters from sources comes to 258 but the above lists some uh key figures that are fleshed out as protagonists, antagonists, and anti-heroes.

(*) I'll get to Arthur/Lance/Gwen's triad a bit more below, but what I will say is that polycule is an important term here as everyone isn't with everyone, if that makes sense? But imagine found family five-man-band vibes.

(**) SO fun fact, when I watched the movie Merlin as a kid I misheard Gorlois as Goloris so I just kinda stuck with it. Unsure if that'll upset people too much though aha.

Why Tho? Exciting/Interesting/Compelling reasons why these characters have my soul.

I'm a big fan of Fairy Tales, Folklore, and Mythology. Seeing comparisons and also seeing both the Disney-fied versions but also the original tales. Arthurian legends has scratched an itch of dragons, knights, and magic that I've loved and is also shared by other stories too - which in part is why I'm spending so much time worldbuilding up front so I have a whole world sandbox to play in and tell some other tales too with it.

Why did I go with Arthur instead of say the Little Mermaid & Harpy sapphic reimagining I've got stashed? Honestly? Because he answered the call to adventure - the quest I have planned - but also because the Arthur I have in my mind, a big theme for him is Courage and doing the thing even though you're scared to which I resonate with a lot. Lancelot came stumbling in as his best friend from their squire days after disappearing for a few years for a second chance romance plot. Gwen butting heads with her twin sister had a certain, fire let's say ( ;) ), that need to pull these two dorks out of their heads while also exploring themes of empowerment. Mordred's arc which I hope to pull off as well as Zuko's was. Merlin, whom I love, was the one who revealed the world to me and really sparked the magic of it all. But then two scenes came to my mind, in full colour and with a big emotional impact.

Arthur and Morgaen's next meeting after finding out they're siblings.

Lancelot's lost memories returning and Arthur knighting the man who had turned to stone to save him.

I'll need to go through and make a full list of tags eventually but uh, lots of Angst/Hurt/Comfort mixed in with wholesome moments. I'm leaning towards potentially writing in a serial format and also doing maybe side stories from different character perspectives.

Sources & Inspirations

In terms of Arthurian specific things:

Welsh sources: Black Book of Carmarthen; Red and White books of Hergest; Culhwch and Olwen; Mabinogion; and the Welsh Triads.

Geoffrey of Monmouth, notably for Arthur's connection to the Roman Empire and characters from that region.

French sources: Le Mort de Arthur, Tristan and Iseult, Perceval and other stories such as Lancelot and the Knight of the Cart (I cackled a bit when I read that one ngl).

I tend to listen to the Myths and Legends podcast by Jason (something) who will be coming out with an Arthurian book sometime which I am keeeen for.

In terms of post-medieval things, there's a lot of nodding to fairy tales such as Tom Thumb and any story where Jack is mentioned.

Merlin the 1998 miniseries with Sam Neill. (This is the one that I misheard Golois as Goloris aha.)

The Mists of Avalon 2001 miniseries. (I haven't read the books and don't plan to support the author or that estate in any way due to the abuse she aided and abetted in).

Sword and the Stone is a classic Disney film but the main thing here I took inspiration from was to really highlight The Great Game in some way... Which is also a nod to Talesin in the Mabinogian. Also enjoyed Quest for Camelot as well.

There's a sapphic scifi retelling that I love called Once and Future.

And I also watched King Arthur's Disasters as a kid which, ngl I prefer the Welsh versions where he's a badass but this was amusing at the time.

In terms of non-Arthurian sources and inspirations, oh boy this gets quite long but basically from the above there are offshoots that I've done in terms of exploring:

Other Welsh tales.

Folklore of Europe as well as Ireland, Scotland, and Britain.

A lot of dabbling in comparative mythology and folklore as well as such as the Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index for folklore to create some original but familiar folk heroes and lore for my world.

Consuming pretty much everything on Overly Sarcastic Productions.

I've mentioned that Avatar the Last Airbender and Fullmetal Alchemist are two comparative points of media: the first being for the elemental magic system as well as just some solid worldbuilding and character arcs - one of my blocks with writing is that I have like this big epic quest, various wholesome slice of life moments, deep emotional beats, but then also some spicey scenes that come to mind; the latter is mainly for a nod to alchemy, and magitech as well as some character beats.

I've also mentioned ASOIAF and really want to highlight that there won't be any inc##t at all in my books. There will be dark themes such as abuse of power, manipulation, and there will be people who get hurt or take advantage of, but I just really don't like that plot beat at all. Hence why Mordred is no Arthur's son.

*flops* Okay thank you for sticking with me through all of that. Let me know if you have more questions or if you'd like me to elaborate on anything! Thank you again for your question, it means a lot that people are finding it interesting (helps stop the imposter syndrome voices yk?)

[rosecreates]

God installing mods was both the best and worst decision ever because now I am sitting on 7 fucking playthroughs

Here's the list:

Nimue (Durge; High Elf; White Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer) - Romancing Astarion

Raven (Lolth-Sworn Drow; Swords College Bard) - Probably romancing Minthara

Ez'ria (Githyanki; Great Old Ones Warlock) - Romancing Lae'zel

Bea (Half-Drow; Necromancy Wizard) - Romancing Gale

Lusine (Mephistopheles Tiefling; Paladin of Selune) - Romancing Shadowheart

Fortuna (Fairy {Modded Race}; Lore College Bard) - Undecided, maybe Astarion

Elrayne (Seldarine Drow; Light Cleric of Eilistraee) - Romancing Karlach

My preference for white-haired women strikes again woops (also my preference for Elves/Elf adjacent specially Drow. 5/7 (I count Fortuna cause...Fey) of these ladies are Elven just different flavors kjfgbjkgb)

I won't make them all into OCs no matter how much I kinda wanna because handling this many would be insanity.

Besides Raven and Nimue some have a bit more defined backstory than others though.

Bea is just a goofy necromancer lady who is maybe a little bit of bimbo and also trying so hard to ignore the way everyone stares at her with suspicion all the time. Also her friends are skeletons. She has no actual friends. She's an orphan and she just went ":D here's my skeleton undead friends-" cue some woman screaming in horror and she's just confused because she just wanted to show her friends :(

Fortuna left the Feywild many years ago to become a Tymora-worshipping (because Fortuna went 'You're Lady Luck? Obv Imma worship you! I vibe with you so hard!') bard in Baldur's Gate who is living her best life and is uh. EXTREMELY pissed about being implanted with a Mind Flayer tadpole. You know how Dolly Thrice throws a fit when you don't free her? Yeah. Yeah Fortuna is basically like that.

Elrayne was born on the surface and highly sheltered in a Eilistraean enclave so she didn't really understand the reality of how Drow are viewed and what other Drow have done until she hit maybe like 50 years old and she was kidnapped and tortured for being a Drow before being rescued, which is where she got the scars she has currnely (mind you she is at least 200, I hear that its only in the last century treatment towards Drow has gotten a LITTLE better, but apparently during BG2 Viconia was literally gonna be burnt at the stake for being a Drow so UH). And later on when she went on her first undercover mission in the Underdark when she was 100 and got found out and its where her eyes were damaged and the mask she wears is basically a magic artifact that lets her see better. She's not totally blind but its really hard to see without the mask. She hasn't gone on any undercover missions since but she HAS still traversed the Underdark many times to help Drow who do want to be better. She's basically in a really bad position where she tries really hard to show others Drow aren't evil and is just trying to do good but when so many of her race give a horrible rep to them and she faces all sorts of discrimination she's having doubts in Eilistraee's goal and wondering if its really worth all the suffering as even whilst she redeems one or two Drow every so often there are thousands of other Drow. And just a few bad apples can spoil the bunch you know? And changing the surface's mind isn't easy.

[gellavonhamster]

monthly media recap: august 2023

read:

The Song of Roland - I wouldn't have picked it up if I didn't chance upon a neat old copy for free. It's, uh, educational? And the translation into Russian is quite beautiful

Angélique and the Demon, Angélique and the Ghosts, Angélique in Québec by Anne Golon - still reading this series and honestly can't wait to finish it - not because I don't like the books, but because the translation gets progressively worse with each volume. Someone please tell these people there's a difference between a wolverine and a lynx, or between a guinea pig and a porpoise (I know the latter two are called almost the same in Russian, but context, man. Context. Guinea pigs don't frolic in the waves). Story-wise, however, I am still having a great time

+ currently reading the next Angélique book and Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater (the sequel to Half a Soul I read last month)

watched:

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) - honestly, I watched it because: 1) I wanted to check out the show but thought I won't understand anything without the movie; 2) Salma Hayek pretty. I didn't expect to enjoy it because it's written by Tarantino and I really, really don't vibe with Tarantino, but enjoy it I did. The hostage-taking part was actually unsettling and the vampire-fighting part was fun; the family dynamics were also good. Again, Salma Hayek pretty, which also helps

From Dusk till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (1999) - empty, skippable

From Dusk till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (1999) - now that's better, if only for the period setting. Ara Celi has perfect looks for a sweet kind girl tragically turned into a monster. I think the moral here is that if you're physically abusive to your kid, then your kid is better off being a vampire, what do you mean I'm misinterpreting?

From Dusk till Dawn: The Series (s1-3, 2014-2016) - as you could probably tell from the amount of gifsets I keep reblogging, I loved this one. Mythology, westerns, reluctant teamwork, family feels, hot people fighting and drinking blood - what's not to love? (Actually, that one character death is not to love, and the last episode is hella rushed, but what can you do). It actually isn't necessary to watch the film to understand it, but the knowledge of it makes it very interesting to compare the two and notice the cameos from the actors who were in the film. S3 kind of reminded me of Teen Wolf, which isn't much of a compliment, but this show overall had the same ambience as a lot of stuff I watched as a teen/in my early 20s (understandable, being made in that exact period), so that was nice.

Oak Thorn & The Old Rose of Love (2022) - this is like 20 minutes long but deserves to be on the list, because it's the story of Merlin and Nimue made by the director of The Green Knight, and it's beautiful

The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023) - it's good! Not "wow, incredible" good, but good, and I'm glad it is, because it's such a powerful and underrated chapter of Dracula. A slightly more detailed review with spoilers here

Woe Is No Big Deal / Раз, два — горе не беда! (1988) - rewatched this gem and dying to know if Leigh Bardugo has seen it, because this satirical fairytale/Cold War allegory was doing ~tsarpunk~ long before her

Wild Nights with Emily (2018) - that's right, there's more than one comedy about Emily Dickinson. This one's based on a play and feels like a play, which took some time getting used to, but in the end I enjoyed it

[the-ultimate-muses]

@nurturing-starlight asked: 🚑 { Bc Nimue would absolutely be wearing her oversized jacket to cover any scratches or bruises she got from her sister since they got into a fight. She'd just pretend everything's fine and not realize that she most likely has nail scratch / red marks across her cheek--} @ kaz

Send 🚑 to find my muse trying to hide an injury from the sender or vice versa (X)

It wasn't something they talked about, their home lives, both Kazuichi and Nimue coming from rather...difficult home situations, yet keeping it close to their chest despite the comfort they could be finding in one another over the shared experience. Sure she's seen him with bruises or new burns on his arms that looked suspiciously like they came from a cigar, things that he always wrote off as shop accidents because as far he was concerned, that's exactly what they were. Kaz had an accident in his dad's shop and those were the punishment result, that was all, he just needed to do better next time.

Nimue though...this was the first time he had seen any signs of violence on her person. He knew her and her sister didn't get along from what he'd picked up here and there over time, but he never thought it would be like this.

Kaz couldn't tell if he was reading to much into things with the thought that the jacket was perhaps meant to cover up more injuries, all he knew was that he hoped he was wrong as he carefully reached hand out to trace a gentle knuckle over the reddened skin of Nimue's cheek. "Hey uh, that...that luck of your got you again, huh?" Said with a sad smile, Kaz giving Nimue the chance to avoid what had actually happened while still opening the door to letting him help. She didn't have to tell him just how her luck did her wrong, she only had to let him help pick up the pieces.

[themattress]

OUAT: The Bland Fairy

I’ve been re-engaging with Once Upon a Time recently and thus naturally am going to further talk about it, and one subject I feel really deserves more attention is the character of Fiona, aka the Black Fairy from Season 6. And specifically why she failed so hard at being the Biggest Bad of the whole story the way she was hyped up to be and is just kinda boring. 

See, throughout the show there have been mentions of a mysterious someone who created the Dark Curse that is the source of so much misery, plus scattered references to things like dark fairy dust and the Black Fairy’s Wand which of course made many fans interested in who this Black Fairy was. The revelation made in Season 6 that the Black Fairy is the one that created the Dark Curse actually makes perfect sense, especially since timeline-wise the first tip-off of its existence came from an unsettled facial reaction from the Blue Fairy. And since the Blue Fairy has been a major character on the good side since the beginning, the Black Fairy as her evil counterpart and the ultimate foe that Emma must face makes sense.

And then she showed up. Despite being played well by Jaime Murray, the character we got had a major problem holding her back. Let’s go down a list of her traits to see what that is.

Powerful evil figure who was banished long ago - That’s kind of like the description of the Evil Queen we opened the show on, albeit not so “long ago”. It also calls to mind Cora’s banishment to Wonderland, the Jabberwocky’s imprisonment in Wonderland, the Snow Queen’s confinement in Arendelle, and even what befell Tinker Bell given that it was the Blue Fairy who banished her as well. The point I’m making is that it’s a generic set-up for a villain.

Lives in a dark realm - One literally called “the Dark Realm”. And that’s cool, but we already had it done twice, first with Peter Pan in Neverland and then with Hades in the Underworld.

Kidnaps children - For chronic child-nappers, we already had Rumple and Pan (ironically enough). Otherwise, we’ve also had kidnappings and attempted kidnappings made by Regina, Zelena, Cruella, Hades, and even Snow and Charming! It’s not unique at this point.

Abuses the children she kidnaps - Sorry, Pan did it first and and he did it better.

Is willing to murder children - You could probably count on one hand the amount of villains on this show that weren’t willing to sink that low. Hell, the Blind Witch made a whole career out of murdering and eating children, and she’s by and large depicted as a comedic villain!

Is a parent to Rumplestilstskin - Yep, she’s Rumple’s mother and the former wife of the man who would become Peter Pan. And I’m sorry, but Pan had stronger “Ultimate Villain” credentials. And he didn’t even need to be that hyped up as one; he just kind of was one.

Chooses power over love - How many villains have done this at this point?  Damn near all of them?  Even King Arthur did it!  It’s really not that impressive to see a villain do anymore.

Rips hearts out and controls people with them - Again; what villain hasn’t by now?

Is an important female enemy to Emma - Like Regina, Ingrid and Nimue before her, then.

Casts the Dark Curse for evil purposes - Uh-huh. Exactly like Regina, Pan and Nimue. 

Wants to break the Laws of Magic - Jafar, who made some guest spots in the very same season Fiona was in, also attempted to do that...and temporarily succeeded too! And wasn’t all that Author malarkey in Season 4 basically breaking the Laws of Magic too, given that it retconned history, forced people to fall in love with others, and had the ability to sort of bring people back from the dead? Figures; Season 4 comes back to bite the show yet again!

Used to be good then turned bad - So exactly like roughly 99% of this show’s villains.

Used to be human but now isn't - Pan, Jafar, and every Dark One ever says “hi”.

Even Evil Has Loved Ones - Fiona loves her son Rumple and grandson Gideon in spite of everything. Villains who also displayed the capacity for love include Rumple himself, Regina, King George, Cora, Hook, Greg and Tamara, Zelena, Ingrid, Ursula, Maleficent, King Arthur, Hades, Jafar, Anastasia, and even the split Evil Queen and Mr. Hyde. So not at all special.

Joins forces with Rumplestiltskin - Villains who have made deals and alliances with Rumple include Regina, King George, Pan, Zelena, Ingrid, Ursula, Cruella, Maleficent, Isaac, Hades, Mr. Hyde, the split Evil Queen, and even minor villains such as the Mad Hatter and Dr. Frankenstein. Even Hook as Dark Hook has technically worked together with Rumple!

Has a theatrical, even somewhat campy demeanor - LIKE. MOST. VILLAINS.

Becomes Mayor of Storybrooke and Henry's adoptive mother - She quite literally ripped this off from Regina. To the point where people honestly wondered if the role she was playing was originally intended for the split Evil Queen who began the same season as the Big Bad.

Proficient at psychological manipulation - Rumple, Cora, Pan, Ingrid, Nimue, Hades and the Jabberwocky all share this quality, as do Dr. Facilier and Mother Gothel in Season 7.

Engages in a back-up contingency plan - Her plan to win the Final Battle through Emma succumbing to doubt fails, but that’s OK since she has a back-up plan in motion through her control over Gideon’s heart. Clever, but we’ve seen this kind of thing from other villains in the past such as Regina, Cora, Pan, Rumple, and Jafar. It doesn’t help that Fiona sabotages herself by not sucking it up and accepting Belle as family, naturally causing Rumple to turn on her and, despite her confidence to the contrary, play a role in foiling her contingency plan.

Is killed by Rumplestiltskin - Cora was killed by Rumple in an indirect way, Zelena appeared to be killed by Rumple for a while, and of course Rumple directly killed his other parent, Pan, and would later go on to kill his Wish Realm counterpart by killing himself.

Literally everything in Fiona’s character is shared with other villains. There isn’t anything remotely original about her. On top of that, she isn’t impressively powerful (Zelena hits her with a car at one point; good luck taking her seriously after that) nor is she especially loathsome the way other villains including her own son and former husband have been. 

The only thing that makes Fiona stand out is that the crisis she causes in “The Final Battle” has the highest stakes in the series given that the endgame of her Dark Curse is that all realms but the Land Without Magic get annihilated by Dark Magic itself due to the magical imbalance created by the Savior’s fading belief (which is stupid, but I digress), and Fiona does have an interesting philosophy about why she’s justified in doing this and why the outcome is even preferable to the way things are...but sadly, this philosophy is barely explored. How could it be, when Fiona only appears in 8 episodes and she spends the majority of them just flitting around and going “Mwahaha, look at me, I’m so evil!” instead of getting to the damn point. In the end, the dreaded Black Fairy is one of the most bland and forgettable major villains in all of Once Upon a Time. Her story was better off being untold.

[nebula-drcams]

@plasticsouled asked: " ❗❗❗ " // Todd for Nimue... hehehe... i mean what--

Send " ❗❗❗ " for your muse to suddenly and unexpectedly kiss mine. || Selectively Accepting

   So it was a minor slip-up, and of course she had to slip up with Todd was around this time too. It's bad enough the boys teased her constantly, but with him now knowing, she dreaded whatever response would actually end up coming forward despite the fact most, if not all of the Brotherhood had insisted he felt the same about her. 

   How does she know that they're not just messing with her like some guys like to do? Rejection, and losing a friend was something she feared more than anything, so she had kept it under wraps as best as she could.

   Already embarrassed by the outburst as is, she had instantly taken off to hide in her room. Granted, it's not much of a place to hide when they all know where to find her, and at this point she's expecting the worst. Sure enough it's not long after she can hear Todd outside her door. 

   She's silent for a moment, half waiting for a knock, or maybe his voice, something. It's a little too nerve wracking, so much so that she's almost tempted to open the door but just before she's able to reach the doorknob, she can hear what seems to be hesitant knocking followed by his voice. 

   And of course, she does not have the will to ignore him. Not after everything he's done for her.

   Slowly opening the door just a crack, she tries to read his expression first, but too many thoughts are flooding her own mind to make a sensible conclusion. Just jumbled negative ones thinking the worst. Giving in, she opens the door further and shuts it again once he's inside. 

   She hates that she feels so guilty over this. Guilty that she kept things quiet. 

" Listen Todd- I uh. I just didn't want you to hate me or something. I know I'm not the best choice and all so- "

   It happens far too fast for her to register, but it only takes her a moment to ease into it, taking his hands in her own and loosely interwining them. Her nerves were far too shot to really know how to fully process this other than it was going to be okay. That this wasn't all some dumb joke, and for that she's relieved honestly.

   There's another moment of silence as she pulls away after a bit, only for her to bury her face against his chest and let out a muffled whine. 

" I'm sorry for keeping it from you .. "

[wonderalmighty]

   Twelve have mercy on her. 

Pacing back and forth in the spot she had asked Hildibrand to meet her at, how she plans to word things sort of spin wildly in her mind. Honestly, she would've preferred to do this in the privacy of his home, but out towards where people hardly venture in Idyllshire works just as well and it prevents Cyr from asking questions on why she may have needed him to temporarily take Gigi elsewhere for a brief period of time. 

   She almost considers making something up, a lie that just says she wanted an excuse to spend some time alone with him, but everything comes to an abrupt halt when she hears her name, causing her to look up at Hildibrand. Well. So much for trying to find an out. Alright, that's fine. Deep breaths. 

" So uh .. we've been y'know. Friends. For a long time. And you know I'm often honest with you. "

   For the most part anyway, some things here and there withheld but that's beside the point. There's hesitation, fear even, of what she's not sure, but if he's coming to the new world with her, it's only fair that he finally knows everything, or at least how she feels. Almost as if she worries her grip on him would be too tight, she carefully takes one of his hands in her own, not daring to squeeze it, as much as she'd like to for some sort of reassurance. 

" But I haven't really .. been honest with you for some time. Nor myself truly. I call you a dear friend, and you are, don't get me wrong, but there's far more to it and it's only fair that you know. Arranged marriage be damned, Hildy, I do love you. And not in a manner of ' you're my best friend ' or ' platonic ' kind of way. Nay. I'm far past that at this point. It's only fair you know, and pray, forgive me for keeping it quiet for so long. "

   There's silence as she slowly lets go of his hand, she can't exactly say it much clearer than that after all.

"You have no worries on me blaming you for keeping such things quiet...telling one they have such feelings for another is already hard enough and the fact you are how you are must mean this was a grand ordeal."

"But I would be a fool and say I did not return such heartfelt feelings...so yes I too love you Nimue and I am glad I could say those words myself."

[xluciifer]

   It's one of the few times she's actually allowed out of the manor since she's died, but that's because Damien's got her in close proximity to him for obvious reasons. While he deals with business, Nimue's left to stand around, scrolling through her phone in disinterest. That does change though, because the moment she catches Lucifer out of the corner of her eye, she looks up at him with a tilt of her head.

" Your highness? " 

   At the very least, she's been informed of the Morningstars, but she was under the impression that they never made audience with other sinners. 

" Uh. If you're here for business or something, I think the owner's currently busy right now- " { Drops Nimue in your inbox }

And she would be right. It's rare to have the head of the Morningstar family make any sort of appearance unless personal or business, or a special third reason. To see him and not know the answer; what would await his arrival? So any internal feelings of worry were understandable.

He was casual in his walk with his cane, stopping at the woman who acknowledged him before reaching the gates. He gave his normal charismatic smile before shifting into a comfortable weight against his cane.

⸺ ❝ Ah, sounds like Satan. Can never get a hold of the guy. I just had some questions regarding something buuut if he's too busy, which isn't uncommon, I guess your company will do. Know when he'll be available? ❞

[archives-of-camelot]

Dress Up

Characters: Eli, Evelin (@nimue-hidden-lake)

Series: Evelin Anniversary

Ok so wow, I wasn't able to get yesterday's prompt done in time, so here it is. Today's prompt will be done later.

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

Eli slowly worked tirelessly to finish the remainder of his secret project. It was something that was in the works for months now, and now the end was finally in sight. He'd always adored outfits and costumes since he was a child, but never did he think he'd make one himself. But things were different now.

Months of slow sure progress, one step every few weeks where possible. All that was left were the finishing touches. His mother's teachings had come full circle with each seam and hem.

It was far from easy, and there were moments he had to redo or restart completely, but the final result would be worth it.

After finishing one final step, he took a step back, and held up his reference...one of Evelin's books. He had made a costume of one of her favorite characters, from one of her favorite books.

The outfit was complete. A bodysuit decorated with shiny stitching to simulate chainmail, with a chestplate and pauldrons made from painted and polished cardboard. He'd bought a pair of leather boots, and covered the tops of the feet with the same cardboard technique, and the leggings also shared this with the knee guards. The armor was painted with silver, and was hardened with a few layers of what appeared to be resin to reinforce it and give it a shiny appearance. And lastly, a long blue scarf, almost long enough to be a sort of cape. The set was complete, even if some of his methods were unconventional for cosplay and costume standards.

All that was left was to actually put it on...which proved much harder than he thought. It was a costume yes, but...he never put much thought into how he'd actually put it on.

Nonetheless he tried. The bodysuit, then the leggings before the boots. Then the chestplate, knee guards, pauldrons, and gauntlets.

He then swung the scarf over and around his neck, and the finishing touch...the cat ears, which he still possessed from the day prior.

"Wow...could be better but...not bad..." he said as he looked himself in the mirror. "I just hope she thinks so too..."

. . . Later . . .

Evelin stepped in the door, returning from a reading session at a café. She was never much for interaction, but it was perfect atmosphere for reading. She had offered Eli to join her, but he declined. Citing he had 'something to do'. She found herself wondering what he was up to. The last few weeks he'd said this off and on.

As she finished that thought she heard a noise come from upstairs.

"What's he doing now?" she asked herself as she went to investigate.

There was no reason to be worried. Even if someone had broken in, she was confident he could handle himself. She'd seen it herself after all. So it had to have been whatever it was he was working on.

She opened the door top his room, and saw her partner struggling with some kind of getup. Reaching behind and around his body, in some attempt to try and take it off it would seem.

He would struggle for a moment or two longer before incidentally turning around, and locking eyes with her.

"U-Um...you weren't supposed to find out like this..." he smirked awkwardly. "Uh...surprise?"

Evelin didn't answer. Her eyes were wide as she came to realize who he was dressed as. The main character from her books. Tales of the Neko Warrior.

He was Aoki.

"I uh...hope it's not too bad for a first time" he laughed nervously.

"Not at all. It's perfect" she said with a nod.

He embodied Aoki so well. In speech, body language, and mannerisms. He was Aoki. As if he arose straight from the pages.

"Now I resemble your favorite person, eh?" he joked.

Evelin seemed confused at this comment and tilted her head.

"Favorite person...?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, you have his merchandise, you buy all his books, and you were even excited when it was announced the books were getting adapted into an anime this coming summer"

She now understood what he meant.

"Ah, no. While I do love the books, and Aoki's character...there's a specific reason for that" she said picking up one of said books from the dresser.

"I...uh...ya lost me..." Eli replied, confused.

"He reminds me of you" she held up a panel from the book, which showed a familiar type of scenario. Then the page after that...and the page after that. All reminiscent of Eli's behaviors and rational.

"I-I...y-you sure?"

She nodded, closing the book.

"Heh...well...I guess I spent all these weeks for nothing huh?" he said with a halfhearted grin.

"I didn't say that. It's very well made" she said with small smile as she hugged him. "But the real thing is better"

Eli felt his heart skip a beat or two as he returned the hug. It was a strange feeling. But...to hear he meant that much...it struck a deep cord with him. He didn't need to be an accomplished warrior, or posses a magical blade blessed by the moon's rays. He was Eli, and that was more than enough.

For awhile they sat there until-

"Not to ruin the moment or anything but...th-this is kinda stuffy...and I...can't take it off..." he smirked awkwardly.

Evelin chuckled as she helped him slowly remove each piece.

"H-Hey, uh...you really meant what you said...?"

"Of course Eli...or should I say...Ao-ki"

Masterlist

[storybrooke-and-cinnamon]

“As soon as he breathes the life back into me maybe I’ll consider that. For now. Why don’t we call him back here.” Nimue suggests.

“Maybe outwardly. Did he have any family or were you it? He signed that letter to Nimue love. I feel like if one of the adults in your life is the dark one it screws you up. I actually have my ex as an example for that.” Emma replies.

“I don’t have the ability to see my own future either buddy. No normal human does. It would kinda ruin the fun. So try and just focus on her for the time being okay?” She pats his upper arm. “And if you need to talk I’m here.”

Ruth fights a smile. “So you trained him then?” She guesses. “Well- If you boys are done measuring swords… Captain do you think anyone at the docks could use a horse? I don’t really want to leave Epona to the wild. She was saddled when we found her…”

“Uh no I don’t. I’m not supposed to leave without him really. Uh- wait. If I still have the book I first summoned him with I can…” Belle replies.

Ruth and Marie enter the bar. They go to grab a booth.

“Do you want to do dessert or just appetizers?”

A white haired man looks up as a darker haired man drags him into the Bar.

@storybrooke-and-cinnamon

"Up to you, I'm probably gonna get the cheapest food on the menu regardless, it's usually the least risky for sensory issues and my wallet," Marie shrugs.

Bae grins, "c'mon, you're learning how to flirt today! You need to learn how to socialize in all ways!"