#other than black and white what other color have we seen in death clothes and imagery

[anxiously-sidequesting]

every day i regret being a balance main because why do I have to wear this ugly shade of brown. with like. orange and pink.

blah blah stitching but white and red are the school colors. what is this

if necromancy is most hated by ambrose, sorcery is most hated by the shopkeepers i tell you

THIS IS SO INCHRESTING because in my playthrough experience in terms of balance colors it's either the pretty maroon/crimson/gold palette, the orange/brown/sand/pale palette, or like what this ask just said and it looks like your sorcerer lost a paintball fight

the easiest solution to this. since balance is supposed to be all of the schools, make it all of the colors. all balance wizards ✨🌈 G R A D I E N T /j

[nardo-headcanons]

Sunagakure Worldbuilding Headcanon

My last post on Kirigakure made me think of some Sunagakure Headcanons. Here they are! This is very long, but I hope you enjoy!

People and Culture

The wind realm’s population is rather decentralized, so there are a lot of subcultures, accents and customs that have developed over time. The people of Sunagakure are very intelligent and hard workers and don’t take shit from anyone. They value their independence but also recognize the use of unionizing to achieve their goals. They use rather few words to communicate amongst each other in public, but in private they can be very poetic. Also, they secretly don’t mind the stereotype of tumbleweeds rolling around everywhere in the village, because they can relate. To outsiders, they seem secretive and mysterious, but they are in reality very friendly and hospitable. Once you make a friend in Suna, you’ve made a friend for life. Gift giving, especially in the form of food or other self-made goods is always appreciated. Suna citizens are hopeless romantics, and most soap operas and sappy romance books are produced there. They love to make music and sing together. Most instruments originate from the wind realm and its citizens proudly call themselves the creators of all music in the shinobi world. The wind realm is the country with the richest culture in the shinobi world.

Politics

Recently, Suna has been plagued by an economic crisis, as the wind realm daimyo has preferably hired Konoha shinobi to get missions done. This has raised the distrust in the wind realm government and made the people more loyal to the kazekage than the daimyo. The shinobi have started to prioritize the mission over the lives of the shinobi fulfilling it, however they make sure to give their teammates a quick and painless death if they get into that situation.

Clothing and Cosmetics

Most Suna Shinobi wear long sleeves and cover their head, to protect their skin from sun damage. It’s also very common to cover your face in layers of fabric, as the Suna sandstorms can be ruthless. Light brown, grey, white and black are the most popular colors, as they allow you to blend in with your surroundings and not get detected by enemy shinobi. All people, including kuniochis, keep their hair rather short, cover it or tie them together in some kind of way. There are a lot of unique hairstyles to deal with the strong winds, as can be seen by Temari, who wears four ponytails because the winds would otherwise just destroy her hairstyle if she wore just two. For festive occasions though, Suna clothes are vibrant and colorful, with very intricate details. The most preferred fabric choices are silk and cotton. Before the recession, Suna also had a booming beauty industry, with the best moisturizers, sunblock and body wash originating from there. There is an ongoing feud between the wind realm and the water realm about who has the better skincare products. Wind realm citizens are known to always smell good and take great care of themselves. They use bidets and shower frequently. The women are rumored to be the most beautiful in the shinobi world, however many of them have to deal with orientalism and exoticism from foreigners.

Nature

Flora

A fact that a lot of foreigners get wrong is that Sunagakure is covered completely in desert wasteland. Quite a bit of vegetation is savannah and what we call mediterranean. Still a rather hot country, it is characterized by agonizingly hot summers and barely existing winters. The actual deserts of the wind realm are sprinkled with oases, around which many settlements have formed. The terrain around those oases is very fertile and most of the country’s produce is grown there. Sandstorms are not a rarity here and during these storms there are self-imposed curfews as Suna citizens know that once you get buried in a sandstorm, there is no way anyone will find you buried under all that sand. Only a few nomadic families actually travel and live outside of the oases.

Fauna

The deserts that surround Suna are filled to the brim with the most dangerous, savage animals known to the shinobi realm. The snakes especially must not be underestimated, as their venom can kill a grown shinobi within minutes. Many marionette wielders therefore use it against their enemies. The rivers of the wind realm are full of crocodiles and freshwater fish. The fennec fox is seen as a symbol of good luck and suna nin believe their mission will be a success when they see one. Aside from other cats of prey like lions, cheetahs and leopards. Other mammals include hyenas, hyraxes, macaques, gazelles, oryxes, camels, hedgehogs and sheep. When it comes to rodents, you can find desert rats, porcupines, armadillos, meerkats and gundis. Suna also has the largest spider population in the shinobi world, and you often must check your toilet and shower for any venomous spiders hanging out there. At night you can see bats flying through the sky. The wind realm sea is a home to many kinds of saltwater fish and sometimes you can visit the dolphins, that are particularly friendly to children. Mosquito stings are nasty here, and many diseases, for example those that we call malaria and dengue fever are endemic here. Wind realm citizens have a natural immunity against them and sleep them off in a day, but there are vaccinations available for foreigners.

Food

Stew and other slow cooked gravy dishes The absolute staple of any Suna nin are stews. They’re elaborate and take the whole day to cook. Every family has its own recipes (and thinks theirs is the best) it’s useful to just cut up veggies and meat, and then slow cook it until it’s done. Stews made in Suna include gumbo, adobo, maafe, and many curries. Spices Wind realm citizens have the greatest spice tolerance in the shinobi world. The greatest variety of spices is produced there, from cumin, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, pepper, chilli, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, bay leaves, tumeric and a myriad of other herbs and spices. Suna food is very spicy for two reasons: many spices they use have a disinfecting effect, and the accelerated production of sweat helps cool down the body. Most spices are sold dried to increase shelf life. Many outsiders travel to Suna to acquire spices directly from the source, thinking they’ll get them for cheap, however, the vendors charge foreigners at a hefty margin. Sunagakure is the greatest exporter of all things spices.

Legumes Legumes play a very important role in the local eating pyramid. They serve as a satiating source of carbohydrates and protein. Beans and lentils can be turned into tofu, stew, mashed or baked, peanuts are often used as a base for stew and sauces in the form of peanut butter. Roasted and salted peanuts are a popular snack in Sunagakure. The biggest buyer of Suna’s exported legumes is Iwagakure.

Cassava This starchy root is soaked and then cooked for a long time to make mash, in stews, or fried. Cassava flour also serves as a gluten free flour alternative and many Suna nin use it to thicken sauces and stews. There’s also tapioca starch which is exported into other countries. Olives In the moderate climate regions, many olive trees are grown, which are then used to make olive oil, the preferred fat source of Suna’s people. Dairy It can often be purchased from nomad families, who sell it in the form of milk, yoghurt, kefir, butter and cheese. The preferred dairy variant is goat’s dairy; however, sheep and cow’s dairy are also available. There’s a possibility that the concept of fermenting milk to make yoghurt and kefir was once brought in by Kiri immigrants, however most wind realm citizens are too proud to give this possibility any thought or think it’s just a myth. Meat Just like dairy, meat can be purchased from several families that travel though the wind realm, or on bazars. It is dried often to increase shelf life. Sweets The best chocolate comes from here. The wind realm has a few islands where cocoa beans are produced, and Suna chocolate is known globally for its rich, earthy, fruity taste. Suna Nin are also the only people that regularly take coffee with them during missions. Most foreigners don’t like the bitter taste, but Sunagakure’s shinobis have realized that the caffeine within coffee beans is useful during missions where you must stay aware for long times. The most common sweetener is cane sugar and used to make coffee candy. Wind realm citizens don’t discriminate, and even children are allowed to have them. Another sweet food, especially popular amongst children are dates. On special occasions, Baklava are offered to the guests or given as a gift. Most foreigners find them way too sweet, but just can’t say no because they recognize the effort and craftsmanship that went into making them. The most popular fruit in Suna are: pomgranate, various kinds of citrus fruits, apples, grapes and green almonds. Ripened almonds are used to make marzipan, which is another one of Suna's culinary prides. Those who try persipan, a localized version from Kirigakure, think that it is a lesser version of their beloved treat.

[reidslovely]

That's Just When You Happened

Chapter One: Red in the Face, Shy All of the Sudden

Summary: After the death of his life partner and mother of his child Tobias finds himself lingering through life with just the intent of taking care of their daughter, and teaching her everything he knows. However, one shockingly sunny teacher, will change the course he has planned for himself.

Pairing: Tobias Durand x OC/Reader

Content Warnings: Reader has a name but is given a nickname at the end of the chapter that she'll be known as for the rest of the fic mostly. There are mentions of grief and parental loss. Other than that it is pretty digestible.

Only posting this because I cannot wait for the wide release, and it'll inspire me to write chapter three.

We Live in Time spoilers ahead

Please as always reblog and comment.

Parent teacher meetings were never easy. 

He was very much used to doing this with his other half…his better half if you asked him. In the last year and a half this was not a thought that crossed his mind, what was he going to do with meetings that used to involve the both of them? 

He never considered having to do this part alone. 

Yes, he considered the implications of being a widow and a father. He discussed it in therapy as soon as he could fathom it, he even brought it up to the others in his grief group. No one had a right answer to his questions. 

‘When do I stop buying food at the market for three and start focusing on just two?’

‘When do I stop laying out her clothes in the morning? Or bring myself to put up her toothbrush?’

This parent teacher stuff though? That was not a topic he thought about till the school year started. 

Eleanor clung to Tobias as they walked down the tiled floors of the primary school. He’d put on his nicest white shirt and jeans, having been working from home in his sweats most of the day, he liked the occasional excuse to dress up. He’d dawned Ellie in her panda sweater that matched the bear she’d been so lovingly clinging to for the last year and a half. It was the last thing Almuthad bought her, and Tobias would never ask her why suddenly panda’s became her favorite animal. 

“You aren’t in trouble are you Ella?” He taunted playfully, swinging his hand that was still enclosed in his daughters as they neared the end of the hall. 

The little pigtailed girl shook her head with a laugh, whispering a small ‘no’ dragging out the last syllable. Tobias laughed nodding his head, he never knew with her, she was so much like her mother.

“I’m good in Ms. Poole’s class. She’s nice, and has a very nice story time voice.”

“Better than mine?” 

There was no response as they neared the brightly decorated door. Tobias took the smile and silence from his daughter as a quiet yes. His face feigned fake offense as he knocked on the open door. “Hello?” He asked, pushing it open slightly, revealing a younger woman sitting on the floor organizing a bookshelf. She looked over her shoulder smiling at the two of them, the brightness of her smile contrasted the dark clothing she was wearing. 

His eyes raked over her appearance against his own will. She was wearing a gray sweater tucked into a long black skirt and boots that complimented the weather outside. 

“Hi Ella! How are you hun?” 

“Goood.” Ellie smiled hugging the teacher, the panda hanging loose in her hand. It was the first time Tobias hadn’t seen her death grip on the plush, he thinks. 

“That’s awesome.” Ms. Poole smiles, patting Ellie’s back. Her eyes find Tobias’ as she stands up, Ella still hanging on her skirt. “Hey honey, why don’t you help yourself to the toy box while your daddy and I talk, yeah?” 

Ellie smiled and ran over the corner of the room, practically dumping out the box of toys. Tobias stood awkwardly at the door taking in the classroom, he could understand why his daughter loved this teacher so much. 

The room was decorated in a mix of soft greens, with dusty blue accents. It was colorful and the stars hanging from the ceiling gave a sense of whimsy to the room. “You must be Mr. Durand, it’s nice to finally meet you.” The voice pulled him out of his admiration for the room. He smiled reaching his hand out, shaking her freshly manicured hand. 

“You’re american.” 

A brief silence fell between them, before he laughed it off awkwardly. 

“Sorry, sorry. I just heard it and couldn’t..” 

“You’re fine. I am yes.” 

They were talking over each other, their voices merging together. Ms. Poole dropped his hand, standing back. “Have a seat.” She grinned, motioning around them. Tobias looked around, squatting his six-foot frame down onto the chairs mean for the year one students. Matching his movements, the dark haired teacher sat across from him in the bright white chair crossing her legs. Tobias looked over her shoulder, making sure Ella was still good and content. She smiled at him, as she curled up on a bean bag chair reading a picture book. 

“Your daughter is quite brilliant for her age.” 

Tobias slowly pulls his eyes to her face again, she’s younger than him. Somewhere between twenty-five and thirty, but he doesn’t ask. It’s rude. Besides, why should he care? 

“Thank you my..partner and I, we worked hard teaching her young. She lives to read, and art. She loves art.” 

“I know.” Ms. Poole smiles, flipping through the stack of papers. “It’s part of the reason I wanted to talk to you.” She slides a picture over to Tobias, the blank white of the back could have never prepared him for what he saw. 

“Eleanor drew this after, what I’m guessing was maybe a particularly bad day. We had a couple moms come into the class to help out with the art for the day. It seems she, maybe, felt sort of left out.”

The teacher's voice shook slightly as she talked, like she was nervous for a reaction. “I didn’t..I wasn’t aware of the situation, and had I been.” She was fighting for words, and Tobias’ hand shook as he held the paper in his. A small girl crying in what appeared to be a field of sorts. Nothing above average for what a small child of seven could do. But it broke his heart all together. 

“She’s in therapy twice a week.” It came out blunt and forceful, almost that he was pushing it off. 

“It’s good, art is a good vessel for grief. I just wanted to make you aware of that first.” 

“Why do you care? Did you like, give her a failing grade for expressing how she fel-”

“No sir.” Ms. Poole “In fact I passed her, the assignment was to draw something about your mother, and she followed the assignment.” Her calm tone eased his passive aggressive one, he’d been to quick to jump to anger when the topic was brought up lately. One of those silly stages of grief he guessed. He let his shoulders fall, almost feeling Almunt’s hand on his shoulder easing him into the conversation telling him to hear her out. 

“I lost both of my parents young, to an extent I know what Ella is going through, Mr. Durand.” She tapped her brown manicured nails on the table top. “If you guys need anything, I’m more than happy to help out. Ella is a brilliant girl, I’m sure not unlike her mother, you should be proud.”

A shaky breath left Tobias, he hadn’t been aware he was holding it. “I am.” His eye casted down to the folder that held what he could assume was more drawings. 

“Oh yes, so the reason I wanted to bring you here is outside of making you aware of..” Her eyes casted down to the picture in his hand. “We are having a art showcase and I need to pick a student from my class to submit and I wanted to put some of Ella’s art in there.” 

Tobias flipped through the drawings, some more well done than others but noticeably better than that of most kids her age. Tobias smiled, nodding his head. “Did you hear that Ellie!?” 

Eleanor ran over, her stuffed animal in one arm and book tucked in the other. She stood on her tip-toes as she listened. Tobias smiled as his daughter stared at Ms. Poole in fascination as the teacher explained what the showcase would be, and how many pieces Ella could put into it. Ella picked out what he assumed were her top three favorites. One was of their dog, the little wolf-hound mutt he and Almuthad picked out towards the end of her last treatment. Birdie, as Ella had affectionately called him.  Second was a drawing of Ella and him, at the ice skating rink, with writing above it that read “Saying hi to mommy.”. Tobias smiled as she proudly showed them to her, patting her back. Something in him told him to look up, catching Ms. Poole stared at him, seemingly admiration in her eyes. Tobias smiled back, nodding at her. 

“Oh!” Ella “This one is when Ms. Lucy was pushing me on the swings!” Ella says, handing her last pick to the dark haired teacher. 

“Whose Ms. Lucy?” Tobias laughed looking at his daughter. Ella pointed at Ms. Poole, who was laughing with a raised hand. 

“That would be me.” She laughs “I go by either, sometimes the first name is easier to pronounce than the last.” 

Lucy..everything about her was so bright and inviting, except her clothes and color pattern, he could see why kids loved her. Ella ran off back to the storytime rug. “You know for such dark clothes, you are an awfully bright person.” 

She blinked at him, almost in shock before laughing. “Well I work with little kids, I’m not that morbid, these are just the colors I feel most comfortable in Mr. Durand.” 

Tobias nodded his head, all these years later he still couldn’t talk to people. He followed her over to her desk, he looked around noticing framed pictures of her and seemingly her friends. A gold framed wedding photo of who he could only assume was her parents. Tobias watched as she picked up one of those squishy fidget balls, turning it over in her hand as she printed off some consent forums. 

“How’d you..get into teaching?” He asked, sitting in a more comfortable cushioned chair in front of her desk. “If you wa..want to tell me that is.”

She smiled at him, flashing her teeth giving him a real laugh. “I got my undergrad in psychology, I worked in child psych in my very early twenties and decided I didn’t want to experience anymore compassion burnout. But I loved working with kids, so I went back and got my masters in primary education. Moved out here with my friends about two years ago, and…” She shrugged, like that was the end of the story. She pulled the papers out of the printer, they were still hot. She signed her name verifying that she asked and gained consent before handing the warm paper over to Tobias. 

“I’m sorry for your loss.” 

He wasn’t sure why he was trying to make such small talk, he should just sign these papers, get Ella and go home. 

“It’s okay it was a long time ago, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for it.” 

“Doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.”

She nodded her head in agreement, smiling sweetly at him pressing her cherry colored lips together. He had to stop noticing these things. 

“It does, sometimes it still feels fresh. I’m sure you understand that.” She hums, looking at Ella trading out books again. “Listen, I know what it’s like to be a little girl with no mom, if you ever need someone to talk to her..I’m fine doing that.” 

Tobias looked at her, he was sure his big brown eyes were not hiding the tears well. He nodded his head quickly and pushed the paper back towards her after he had finished signing. “I appreciate that.” 

“Ms. L!” Ella yells running over holding two books to her chest. “Can I have these this weekend” 

“Ella those are he-”

“Of course you can honey!” Tobias looked over at Ms. L, who was smiling, made a note of it, putting it on the top of her planner. She passed a smile over at him, shaking her head letting him know it was okay. Tobias took Ella into his lap, holding her close as he slid the books into the bag. “Can Ms. L, go get ice cream with us?” 

Tobias was taken back for a moment before looking at the teacher who sat in front of them. “You’re more than welcome to..come. If you’d like.” 

The dark haired girl in front of them smiled and checked the computer in front of her. She took a minute and Tobias sat still, almost feeling any movement he’d take would change the outcome of her answer. 

“As much as I would love to Ellie, I’m afraid I have to get some work done. But I’ll see you on Sunday at the showcase, and you can tell me how yummy it was.” She laughs patting her leg. Tobias felt his shoulders slump again, as he stood holding Ella on his hip. 

“It was so nice to meet you, Ms. Poole.” 

“Please call me Lucy.” She smiled, shaking his hand. 

He nodded, but he’d already given her a nickname in his head. ‘Sunny.’ he just thought it fit her better. “Sure, Ms. L..” He laughs letting go of her head waving an awkward bye as he walks out, his daughter on his hip. 

“You think Ms. L is pretty.” Ella said as Tobias wiped the ice cream off her face. He furrowed his brows, staring at his daughter. 

“That is none of your business, little miss.” 

He laughed, why was his six year old reading him like this. He took a bite of his ice cream sundae looking at the time on his watch. Ella was truly, too much like Almut for their own good. “But you stare at her..you only ever stared at mommy.” 

“Well, yes she seems very nice. I was just shocked is all.”

Ella giggles and fists more ice cream into her mouth watching the kids in the play place play. “Ready to go?” He asks, starting to pack up their stuff as Ella finishes her last couple bites.  She nods her head reaching her hand out, wrapping it in Tobias’ as they walk towards the car. He let out a soft sigh, loading her up into the car seat and walking towards the driver seat. A head of dark hair catching his eye, for a minute he looks up hoping to catch a glimpse of the sun.

[kc-writes-sometimes]

Crown and Kin | Chapter Four

Ao3 Account | Masterlist

Chapter Four: The Girl is a Dragon

Word Count: 2,869

Pairing: Aemond Targaryen x Original Female Character

Summary: As Daella settles into life in the Red Keep, she begins to uncover pieces of her Targaryen heritage and the legacy that comes with it. With a significant audience with the King looming, her bond with Daemon grows stronger, but new revelations leave her questioning her place in this unfamiliar world.

Themes & Warnings: 18+, Character Death, Rape/Non Con, Future Smut, Canon Typical Violence, Canon Typical Incest, Angst, Dad Daemon Targaryen, Bastards and Brothels, Fluff, Friends to Enemies to Lovers, Canon Divergence, Dysfunctional Family, Team Black Centric, Slow Burn, Eventual Romance

↞ Previous Chapter | Next Chapter ↠

Daella of King's Landing

A few days had passed since the silver-haired boy, dusted with dragon ash, appeared in the chamber they were using. Daella’s feet had finally healed enough for her to explore the Keep, and Daemon had moved them into the chambers he had once occupied as a boy. The contrast between this room and the queen’s quarters was striking. Here, the walls were bare, unpainted stone, rough to the touch. Red blankets draped the bed, and tapestries depicting ancient Targaryen legends hung proudly. The hearth was larger than the one in the queen’s chambers, and the fire within it burned brightly. This room, with its bold colors and roaring flames, offered Daella a surprising sense of comfort.

She stood before the crackling fire, its warmth softly kissing her skin. Her eyes lingered on the tapestry above the hearth. It showed a dark-haired man, kneeling on the muddy banks of a river, his heavy fur cloak draped around him. His head was bowed before another figure—this one tall and clad in silver armor. Behind the armored figure loomed a massive dragon, its wings partially unfurled. Two women in armor stood nearby, their stances regal. Men flanked either side—some in furs, with banners displaying a grey wolf on a white field, and others in armor, their shields and banners emblazoned with the red dragon on black, the sigil of House Targaryen.

“What are you doing, little one?” Daemon’s voice cut through the silence as he entered the room, his arms full of clothes. He let them spill onto the bed, the rich colors of red, black, and gold unfurling as he sat down.

Daella glanced at him with a smile before returning her gaze to the tapestry. “What is this?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.

“That, my sweet girl, is Torrhen Stark, the King in the North, bending the knee to Aegon Targaryen. That moment began a decades-long alliance between us and the Starks of Winterfell,” Daemon explained, moving to stand beside her.

“Rose told me she was from the North, from a place called Mole’s Town,” Daella whispered quietly. “She stopped at Winterfell on her way to King’s Landing. She said it was one of the most beautiful places she’d ever seen. I asked her to take me there, but I suppose she never will now.”

Daemon smiled gently. “I’ll take you. We can visit Winterfell and the Wall, and I’ll show you part of your great-grandmother’s legacy. But for now, choose something to wear. We have an audience with the king tomorrow.”

Daella moved to the bed and began sorting through the clothes. “These are all dresses,” she said, her brows furrowing in confusion. “Can’t I wear trousers?”

Daemon opened one eye as he lounged on the settee in front of the fire. “No, you cannot wear trousers. Pick a dress and be done with it.”

She rolled her eyes, a pout forming on her lips.

“And don’t pull that face,” he added, his tone slightly teasing. “It’s unbecoming of a young lady to pout.”

“I don’t think the King would care whether I’m wearing trousers or not,” she retorted sharply.

“The King may not, but the vultures at court certainly will,” Daemon replied with a sigh, his voice heavy. He looked at her with one eye half-open. “And we need to make a good impression.”

“If it’s all about making a good impression, will you be wearing a dress too?” Daella quipped, turning to face him with a mischievous grin tugging at her lips.

Daemon sat up, his piercing indigo gaze locking onto hers, one eyebrow raised in amusement. For a moment, he said nothing, then suddenly burst into laughter. “Careful, daughter,” he warned, his smile broadening. “I could have your tongue for that.”

As he approached, Daella stuck her tongue out defiantly. His laugh deepened, and when he reached her, he placed his hands on her shoulders with playful firmness, steering her toward the bed.

“Into bed, silly girl,” he said softly. “You’ve got a big day ahead of you tomorrow.”

Daella climbed into bed, the soft mattress cocooning her as she settled in. Daemon pulled the blankets around her, wrapping her snugly in their warmth before taking his usual spot beside her. The mattress dipped under his weight, and she felt the familiar comfort of his presence. Daemon was always there when she fell asleep, but he was rarely there when she woke up. She often wondered where he disappeared to, but never asked.

He leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, his voice humming softly. With his warmth beside her and the sound of his voice lulling her, Daella’s eyes grew heavy, and soon, the world faded to black.

The next morning, maids bustled around, filling a bronze tub and setting out bread and cured meats on the table, while draping several dresses across the bed. Daella had refused to choose one last night, and now she had to face the inevitable. Reluctantly, she settled on a gown of gold, trimmed with delicate red lace. It was exquisite, regal even—but she still wished she could wear trousers. She held it up for Daemon’s approval as he sat at the table, absently picking at the food. He gave her a small nod, his expression unreadable, before rising and striding toward the door.

“Where are you going?” she asked, unable to keep the curiosity from her voice as she stood from the bed.

Daemon barely glanced back. “I have things to attend to, my sweet,” he said, pulling the door open with a soft creak. “The maid will help you dress. I’ll return before it’s time to meet the King.”

“I don’t need anyone’s help! I’m not a baby,” she retorted, racing after him.

Daemon paused just outside the door, turning back to face her with a smirk playing at his lips. He walked backwards down the hall, shaking his head, his eyes alight with mischief. “Then don’t act like one, Daella. Now be a good girl and let the maid help you.”

He spun on his heel and continued down the corridor, his dark cloak billowing behind him. Daella mimicked his words in a pout, "But I don’t want help," mocking his tone. One of the guards outside the door stifled a laugh, and she huffed, retreating into the chamber.

The maid stood quietly, eyes downcast as Daella paced the room. She cast a reluctant glance at the tub. “How does this work? I’ve never bathed in something like this before.”

The maid offered a small, patient smile. “Step in, my lady. We will start simply.”

She had been washing Daella’s hair for what felt like an eternity, each stroke of her hands careful, almost reverent. Occasionally, she picked up a strand and dropped it back into the water with a contemplative "hmm," as if something puzzled her. The once milky water had darkened, swirling like ink around Daella.

When she stepped out, the maid wrapped her in a soft robe and guided her to the mirror. Daella stared at her reflection, frozen in disbelief. A small scream escaped her throat. Her dark curls were gone. In their place, long waves of deep silver cascaded down her back, catching the light. It was the same shade as the necklace she had seen in the market. She pulled at the strands as though they might change back, panic bubbling up within her. Magic? A trick? She looked like... like him. Like a Targaryen. It felt foreign, wrong.

As if summoned by her distress, Daemon burst through the door, hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes scanning the room for danger.

“What happened? Why did you scream?” he demanded, his voice edged with concern.

“My hair!” she cried, yanking at the strands in desperation. “Look at my hair!”

His tension eased immediately. With a quiet chuckle, he approached her, moving slowly as though afraid she might bolt. He stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, pulling her close. "This," he murmured, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head, "is how your mother looked when I first met her. Before she began dyeing her hair."

His words stilled her panic. The mention of her mother shifted her focus, a sadness tugging at her heart. "Tell me about her," Daella asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Rose and Harwin… they never speak of her. I think it hurts them too much."

Daemon’s gaze softened, his chin resting on her head as he stared into the mirror. "I didn’t know her well, my sweet. But I will tell you what I can… in time." He paused, and his lips twitched into a smirk. "But not today. We’re late already. I have a gift for you, something of Old Valyria, before we face my brother."

From behind his back, he produced a silver box, adorned with the Targaryen sigil. It was heavier than Daella expected for something so small. Inside, nestled on black velvet, lay the necklace from the market, its dark hue glinting like her new hair.

"It matches my sword," Daemon said, sliding his sword from its sheath just enough to reveal the matching sheen of the blade. His eyes flicked to hers in the mirror.

"Were you following me?" she asked, her fingers tracing the delicate links of the necklace.

"I have been following you since Harwin carried you away," he said, his voice lowering. "I saw the bread you left at the orphanage door. I saw the way you braided Harwin’s hair, the way you smiled at every watchman in the city. And yes, I even saw that mangy dog you tried to convince Rose to keep." He paused, his eyes softening as they met hers. "I knew you were mine, even before Rose told me."

Tears pricked at the corners of Daella’s eyes. "How did you know?"

"The same way I knew Caraxes was mine," he said, pressing his forehead against hers for a brief moment. "I just knew."

Daemon stepped back, nodding toward the dressing screen. "Now, get dressed."

The gown felt heavy as Daella pulled it over her head. She walked out from behind the screen, the delicate silk pooling at her feet. No one would know she wasn’t wearing shoes beneath the long hem. She smiled faintly at the small rebellion.

"It’s itchy," she huffed, tugging at the sleeves.

Daemon crouched down, lifting a corner of the skirt between his fingers. "It’s silk," he corrected with a soft laugh. "You’re just nervous."

"I’m not!" Daella snapped, but Daemon’s raised eyebrow said he saw through the lie. She fidgeted under his gaze. "What if he doesn’t like me? What if he doesn’t let me stay?"

Daemon’s voice softened, and he squeezed her hand. "My brother would be a fool not to like you. And even if he doesn’t let us stay…" He cupped her face, brushing a strand of silver hair behind her ear. "Wherever I go, you go. I won’t leave you, Daella. You are my daughter.”

The stone floor chilled Daella's bare feet as she walked beside Daemon through the labyrinthine halls of the Red Keep. Servants and courtiers parted as they passed—some bowed their heads in respect, while others glanced up from beneath lowered brows, their gazes curious and probing. Whispers echoed faintly off the high stone walls, each hushed murmur a reminder of where they were headed.

Ahead loomed a pair of large wooden doors, intricate dragons carved deep into the wood. Voices—low and murmuring—could be heard from the other side. Two guards flanked the entrance, their armor polished to a gleam, the clink of metal filling the air as they shifted to allow them entry.

Daemon strode forward confidently, and Daella stayed close to his side, gripping his hand tightly. The hall they entered was vast, lined with lords and ladies on either side of a long aisle. Daella's heart pounded as she took in the scene. This wasn’t like Flea Bottom. The stares here felt heavier—sharper. Instinctively, she pressed herself closer to Daemon, seeking the comfort of his presence.

As they approached the Iron Throne, its looming figure became more defined. It was even more menacing up close, a monstrous heap of swords that jutted out in every direction, each one jagged and rusted, relics of conquest and war. Daella wondered how anyone could sit upon such a thing without being cut. Perhaps they were.

"How kind of you to finally join us, brother," King Viserys’s voice boomed through the hall, forcing a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. He remained seated atop the throne, his fingers curled around the armrests as if he could keep his control over Daemon with just a touch.

Daemon halted at the bottom of the steps leading to the throne and inclined his head, though the gesture was far from deferential. "My king."

Daella’s eyes flicked between the two of them. Their smiles mirrored one another—on the surface, they appeared like brothers reunited—but there was something simmering beneath, a sharpness in their gazes that revealed a deeper tension. The King’s eyes settled on Daella, curiosity flickering in their depths, but his attention soon returned to Daemon.

The King rose, his expression guarded as he descended the steps. His robes trailed behind him like the shadows of a man weighed down by the weight of the crown. "You requested an audience, and now you have it," he said, his tone stiff. "So tell me, Daemon, what is it you seek this time?"

Daemon dropped to one knee, the move unexpected enough to draw a few gasps from the gathered crowd. "I come to ask for your forgiveness, brother." His voice was low but steady, and the surprise in Daella’s chest matched the confusion that briefly crossed Viserys’s face.

Viserys narrowed his eyes. "Forgiveness?" His gaze sharpened. "For what, exactly?"

"For my actions upon my last return," Daemon continued, rising slowly, pulling Daella up with him as he stood and tucking her close to his side. His voice carried through the hall, calculated yet proud. "And I wish to introduce someone to you."

Viserys’s attention shifted to Daella, his violet eyes narrowing as he studied her face. "I am pleased to see you have healed well, child," he said, though his tone was wary. "But how have you come to cling to my brother in the first place?"

Daemon didn’t hesitate. "This is my daughter, Daella." His voice was firm, the words echoing in the vast chamber. "I seek your permission to raise her here, as we were once raised."

A ripple of whispers spread through the room, and Daella buried her face against Daemon’s shoulder, trying to disappear from the weight of the stares. Her heart pounded in her chest, each beat a reminder of how far she was from the shadows of Flea Bottom.

Viserys’s brows furrowed, his confusion evident. "Your daughter?" he repeated, incredulous. "I was not aware you and Lady Rhea had a child."

Daemon’s gaze darkened, his tone hardening. "Daella is not of Lady Rhea." He leaned in closer to his brother, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper, though it carried enough for the lords nearest to hear. "But look at her, brother. Look closely. Tell me you do not know whose blood runs through her veins."

The tension thickened as Viserys’s gaze returned to Daella, his scrutiny more intense now. His eyes traced her features—lingering on her violet eyes and the newly silvered waves of her hair. His breath hitched. Recognition flashed in his expression, quickly hidden behind a mask of composure. His hand reached out, gently tucking her hair behind her ear, as if seeing a ghost from another life.

"She looks just like her mother," he murmured, almost to himself, the words barely audible. His gaze softened, lost in memory.

The mention of her mother rendered Daella silent, surprise and confusion colliding within her. How do they all know her?

"How old are you, Daella?" Viserys asked, his tone gentler now, pulling her from her thoughts.

"Six," she replied quickly, before adding in a hurried whisper, "Your Grace."

Viserys smiled, a rare warmth touching his eyes. "You may call me uncle, dear child." His smile grew as he turned to the gathered crowd, lifting his hands to command the room’s attention. "Let us celebrate the welcoming of my niece, the Lady Daella Targaryen, into the family!"

There was a brief pause, the weight of the announcement settling over the crowd before the hall erupted in applause. Daella let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, her eyes scanning the room. Among the sea of unfamiliar faces, one pair of purple eyes caught hers—the boy covered in dragon dust. A small smile pulled at his lips before he looked away, his face vanishing into the crowd.

Daella turned her gaze upward, finding Daemon already watching her with a look of pride. He lowered his head until his forehead rested against hers, a gesture that melted away the knot of anxiety that had twisted in her stomach all morning.

Perhaps she did belong. Perhaps she had a family after all.

↞ Previous Chapter | Next Chapter ↠

[thesnazzysharky]

Analyzing and reviewing all the updated models in the SOUP update for SJSM

Because why not?

Specimen 2 / Gel

The guy who wants to give you your wallet. Dude is mad skinny and more skeletal now. Although, unlike the other skinny redesigns (which I will get into later), I actually don't mind how Gel looks here. Considering the fact he was most likely a human at some point, a human who most likely was on the verge of dying from starvation and thirst, I can see Gel looking like this.

Not to mention, his new animations are pretty cool too! The animation with him rising out of the goo puddle looks more interesting now and I like how his attacking animation is much more animalistic and aggressive compared to his awkward and kinda stiff attacking animation in the original HDR. My only complaint is that his rising animation should be more slower and less choppy. Otherwise? A pretty solid model.

Specimen 3 / Subject 5

The cutie patootie spiderpede. Another decent one. He has been given a bit more texture to his body and he has a much more rounded appearance overall such as his body segments and head. His legs are a bit more thinner which looks more unnerving imo. A cool little detail that was given to him is that his pincers now move! A very unnerving sight to see. I'm not a fan of how he's more bright in color and the animation on his legs looks quite janky looking. Also maybe it's just me, but he doesn't seem as big as his previous model. Other than that, this model is pretty solid and is a bit more scarier than the previous model, but it has some downsides.

Specimen 4 / Ringu

Vore ghost woman. Ngl, I was pretty scared when I saw little snippets of Ringu's new model. I thought she was going to be made into a skinny stick like some other models. While that ended up being somewhat true, like in her upper torso region, her arms, and neck, it's not too noticeable or atrocious.

Her hair has become longer, her skin has a bit more texture to it, her breasts are more pronounced, her arms are a bit longer, her hands are bit longer and sharper, her clothes are a pastel purple color, and the blood on her hands are more brightly colored.

My favorite new detail however is that instead of her legs being a solid black color, her legs are now half white half black. Giving off this cool little effect, like the black part is engulfing her legs or something.

What I'm iffy on is the color of her clothes. Why change it? Although I suppose it doesn't look bad, I prefer the old gray look. I also prefer the more dried blood look on her hands with her older model. Other than that, I actually enjoy this model more than I thought I would, especially taking into account the new floating animation that was given to her, which is a very good and smooth animation that is a huge improvement from the last one. I really like this one!

Specimen 5 / Bab

Jesus christ! We were having a decent streak going. What the fuck happened here? What were they thinking? Let's see... so they made Bab go from looking like a mannequin to looking like a stick, alright... Her head is less humanoid and looks more like a deformed cube... She has this weird texture given to her legs for some reason... Her sword is pointing downwards which makes her lose some intimidation... The holes in her face which were only visible in her death screen are now fully visible in gameplay for some reason... and because of her whole body and textures being drastically changed, you can no longer tell she's supposed to be a reference to Silent Hill... AND THEY GOT RID OF MY GIRLS CURVES!

Yeah... there's nothing redeeming here. The model just sucks in pretty much every single way. Definitely the worst model this update has to offer.

Specimen 6 / Ben

Stabby puppet guy. Now I've seen a few folks crapping on Ben, but I don't think he looks too bad. He definitely got a massive change in terms of textures, but otherwise he looks mostly the same to me. I personally like the shading that was done to his face. Makes his facial expressions really pop out and he looks a bit more intimidating overall. I especially like this shot from the trailer where the room is dark and the flashlight is shining solely on him. Was pretty unnerving on my first viewing.

Is this my idle version of Ben? No. I still prefer the original model due to the Ben Drowned and Happy Mask Salesman references being more clear and although I find the redesign to be more intimidating, I also think that it tries a bit too hard. One thing that I liked about Ben was that he seems like an ordinary and somewhat friendly looking puppet at first, before you start making a run for it once he goes after you. This one is more on the nose. Decent model nonetheless.

Specimen 8 / Deer Lord

"Deer" lord! (sorry, I had to). Funnily enough, while everyone else got the skinny treatment, it seems like the deer man got a bit wider. He also had his textures changed a bit, his snout angled more downwards with more blocky and yellow teeth rather than sharp and white ones, his height slightly decreased, and his eyes look slightly bigger.

Other than that, there's not much to say about Deer Lord's new model other than it looks great. Especially with the new textures he was given when he opens his cloak.

I still prefer the old model due to it looking more scary, thanks to the height and more thin look, but the new model is still pretty good.

Specimen 10 / Parasite

Annnnnndddd back to trash... Yeah this model sucks. I still remember first seeing this thing from Ryan J's video and laughing my ass off. The ridiculous walking animation, the over exaggerated and way too floppy arms, and the overall terrible and bland textures. Just a trash model all around... until...

They listened to the community and updated the textures! And I'm pretty sure they mentioned somewhere that the animations would be slowed down too. I still prefer the original model, but this is a massive improvement from what we previously got and I feel like I could potentially get used to this model and even start to prefer it to the old one if they get the animations correctly (not sure about the ass cheeks, but those are there too, I guess lol).

Specimen 11 / Beef Demon

Funny beef man. This one is a mixed bag to me. I really like the goat legs, the creepy arms, and horns, but everything else screws it all up. Yet again, bro has been made skinny for no apparent reason and has lost his intimidating bulky build. His head also looks too small and his eyes look too big and odd. If he kept his bulk and his head was changed up a bit, he would probably look a lot better, but for now, this model is unfortunately kinda bad. Not much else to say.

Specimen 12 / The Sickle Man

Weird ass lonely old man. We haven't gotten a full glimpse of him yet, but we do have this screenshot. He seems darker in overall color and he looks a lot more detailed with some nice shading going on. From what little I can see, he looks pretty good!

Specimen 13 / Siren

Piano keys for teeth lady. Her model seems to be the same. So not much to say there. Although we do get to see her swimming in the water! Which has its positives and negatives. The fear of the unknown factor is lost now that she's visible, but at the same time it's really cool to actually see her instead of just only seeing her model sitting on a box and then disappearing once she goes into the water.

Unknown Specimen 2 / Otto the Otter

Har Har Har Har Har. Okay. This one is definitely a step up and is the 2nd best new model from this update. The more detailed textures, the added grim, the bits of metal, his new walking animation... it's all so great! The only negatives is that his eyes don't glow and you could say that his older model being so low quality was apart of the joke and what made him so charming. So although I really like this model, there is a sense of charm that is lost from the old one. Still very great though!

Unknown Specimen 3 / Spooper

Mpreg parasite. We hadn't got to get a super close look at Spooper yet, but from what I can see, his model looks great! Mostly just the same, aside from more detail and having different colored shoes.

Other things

The specimens weren't the only things that got an update!

The subjects in the test tubes now have 3d models which look pretty great.

The old Specimen 10 has a new model and it looks amazing! Easily the best model from this entire update.

And to wrap things up, the White Cat finally has a 3d model now. Although her fatass head makes her look like she got stung by 1 million bees, it also makes her look adorable and squishable, so I don't mind. Plus I like the little transparent effect on her lower body. Makes her come across as very otherworldly.

Verdict

So, I honestly don't think the SOUP update is downright horrible like some people say. However, I will say it's definitely a mixed bag in terms of quality and I can see what people mean when they talk about how these models diminish Kira's vision and thus their charm is lost. The only models I prefer to the old ones are Specimen 2 and 4's along with the test tube subjects, the old Specimen 10, and the White Cat. All the other ones are either equal to or downright worse than their old models.

I'll wait and see until the update comes out. Maybe I'll warm up to some of these more (except for fucking Bab. All my homies hate the new Bab). Anyways, thanks for reading and have a great day.

[1moreff-creator]

Happy Birthday, Veronika Grebenshchikova!

I have a confession to make. Despite my account being themed after Min and having made several posts analyzing her... I may like Veronika just as much, if not more than Min. Ever since her introduction, this Horror Fanatic has brought a smile to my face every time she comes on screen. Literally. Whenever I see her, my face immediately splits into the dumbest grin, I just adore her far too much. There's a lot we still haven't seen about her, but in honor of her birthday, I shall give a few of the reasons I love this freak to the death, and make a sort of birthday playlist as a gift.

+The main motivation for everything she does is boredom, as stated in her conversation with Teruko on Ch 2 Ep 7. Her profile states she took on her talent to seek thrills.

+This obsession with entertainment twists her personality quite a bit. “I don't care about morals. I don’t care whether people get hurt or whether they die. I just need to be entertained”. She’s honestly such a queen.

+Her twisted morals lead to her hanging out with people based on how entertaining they are instead of, like, normal standards for hanging out with people. Arturo is example number one.

"If you become more and more irredeemable, then I'll only love you more. I want to hear all about those horrible things you did with no justification".

She would be a standard Danganronpa fan, is what I get from this line.

+She has claimed she “used to be an outdoors person”, but apparently isn’t anymore. Whether she simply got bored of the outdoors, or there was something more traumatic at play, is still unclear.

+Her profile states she likes skateboarding. I adore this fact. Why there aren’t piles of fanart where she’s skateboarding, I don’t know. Get on it, people! /j. Unless?

(Also, I like to headcanon that she used to skateboard with Whit in their time at Hope’s Peak, but she was actually really bad at it. She constantly fell on her face, but always got back up laughing her ass off)

+The upper part of her dress is black and white, colors associated with the Tragedy and horror in the DRDT universe. This is stated by Veronika herself in Ch 2 Ep 2. However, this color scheme also kickstarts what I like to call:

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

Mastermind Bingo! Ft Veronika

>She wears black and white, like Monokuma and MonoTV.

>She gets bored easily, and it drives her actions, like Junko and especially Izuru.

>She constantly psychoanalizes people, again like Junko.

>She has childish tendencies (read: likes the playground), which can be connected back to the Warriors of Hope and Monaca.

>"If I wore contacts, a wig, and different clothes, would you recognize me?"

So, thinking a bit like Tsumugi there.

>"That's why I liked horror for such a long time. The genre seeks to elicit base, negative emotions out of you, like fear, disgust, or sadness... That's exciting"

She is one step removed from outright claiming she likes despair! What is this?!

Also, liked, horror? As in, past tense? Is that implying she doesn't feel satisfied with horror anymore?

>"But after a while, fiction is only fiction..."

You look me in the eyes and tell me that's not something Tsumugi would say. She has aspects of every main-line mastermind! I wouldn't be surprised if she starts taking notes from other fangans, I'm half expecting her to start talking about "the resurrection of Divine Luck" or something.

>And that's not even mentioning things like her quote for Mai; "A girl who didn't foresee the consequences". Right, because Veronika would be the one to get the most ominous quote after MonoTV's "It's all your fault".

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

To be clear, I don’t actually think Veronika’s the mastermind. I just find it funny how incredibly suspicious she is, to the point of not being suspicious in the slightest.

+CW for self-harm for this one. It is heavily theorized her secret is "You only took on your talent to distract from your incessant need to harm yourself for fun". After all, she is one of the only remaining characters who covers her wrists and most of her body, and doing something like that "for fun"... sort of only fits Veronika, as far as we know.

+Her secret quote is: "Once something is broken, it can never be pieced together in quite the same way again. The same goes for people." Whether she's talking about herself or someone else is unclear.

+The recent Q&A confirmed the following:

•Veronika is pansexual! Congrats on getting her, pansexual community! A true win for you.

•The earing she wears (a small green triangle) was given to her by her “dearest friend”. This friend's name is apparently Alyssa Belyaeva, taking the dubious honor of having a weirder last name than even Grebenshchikova.

•Her favorite color is white with other colors, since it makes the others stand out more, and her least favorite is white by itself, since it’s “soulless”. That’s… huh. Is that meant to mean anything? Could it be she sees herself as the color white; uninteresting and boring on her own, but helps other people seem more interesting by association? Am I reading too much into this? Probably, but that’s sort of my shtick at this point.

•Her favorite ice cream flavor is funfetti. Based.

•She smells strongly like women’s perfume. I guess, why not, right? Notably, Hu smells like women’s perfume as well, but it’s apparently fainter. Doubt it means anything, but it’s there.

+Veronika can do no wrong. This is an objective truth. Slay queen (but, wait to like, chapter five. I really, really hope you don’t die at three).

And finally, like I did with Min, here's a few songs which remind me of Veronika! And as you're gonna see, my music taste sort of really aligns with the kind of songs one would assign Veronika.

CW, some of these can include topics like murder and extremely disturbing imagery.

-The Chattering Lack of Common Sense, by Ghost & Pals

-End World Normophaty, by Ghost & Pals

-Hide And Seek (English cover by Lizz Robinet), original by Ho-Ong-i

-Corrosion, by Riproducer / RIP

-Chronic Wasting Disease, by Riproducer / RIP

-The Spider and the Kitsune-Like Lion, by MASA Works (CW for this one in particular, it's really fucked up. Cannibalism, torture, necrophilia, etc)

-Hi-fi Evolution Theory, by Keu Studio (probably her character playlist song)

-What Gave it Away, by Riproducer / RIP

-Matryoshka, by Hachi

-Honey I'm Home, by Ghost & Pals

-Entomologists, by Ghost & Pals

-The Experiment, by Steampianist

-The Boy who Went to Hell, by SHUDDER

-Secrets of Wysteria, by Steampianist (CW, this one is based on real events of violent crimes)

-The Dismemberment Song, by Blue Kid

-Mad Hatter, by Melanie Martinez

-Uncanny, by Ghost & Pals

-God-ish, by PinocchioP

-I Can't Fix You, by The Living Tombstone (Veronika loves FNAF, you can’t convince me otherwise)

-Always Wanted, by MiatriSs - SayMaxWell

-The Red Means I Love You, by Madds Buckley

-Already Dead, by KittenSneeze

Alright, I'll stop there. With the final song:

-Happy Birthday! (but, like, a creepy cover or something)

[sixty-silver-wishes]

👗 for Cesare (for the headcanon ask game)

So, it raises a lot of questions for me that we see Cesare brought into the asylum in the same clothing he wears for the rest of the film. Like, what is it, exactly? Pajamas? A uniform? Just a weird outfit he happened to be wearing? Whatever the case, he was wearing it before the asylum, and Caligari keeps it on him, which is interesting, because he erases every other part of his identity. Caligari changes his name, destroys his agency, and assumedly paints his face, probably erasing his memories and restricting his speech as well. So, if Caligari is so intent on remaking Cesare's entire identity to his liking (which. ew), why would he keep him in an outfit he wore before he came into his possession? Why keep any ties to the past he's trying to erase?

I think the answer is convenience and functionality. A full-body black leotard suits Caligari's purposes in many ways. For one, if Cesare is creeping around at night, he's harder to spot for anyone who happens to be outside. It doesn't restrain movement, and provides some warmth so he doesn't freeze to death. The fact that it's black hides any bloodstains, making cleanup (ew) easier after the murderers. If he's at the fair multiple days in a row and killing people at night, it also makes sense to have something that can be easily cleaned. And unfortunately, a full-body outfit and heavy makeup may also conceal any signs of physical abuse.

The outfit may also support the image of Cesare that Caligari is presenting to his audience as mysterious and enticing, and it functions as a uniform. The black and white color scheme already evokes the idea of a uniform (as seen in many traditional uniforms of the working class), enforcing the idea that Cesare is subservient to Caligari, and helps dehumanize him to the audience, along with the makeup. Cesare is wearing something completely different than everyone else, with his features also exaggerated. If he were to come out of that box in a hat and suit instead, he would appear far more out of place as an exhibit on stage; the audience may even be able to see themselves in him, and that's the last thing Caligari would want. Hell, Caligari even gets to enforce this power dynamic by wearing clothes that are closer to everyone else's, allowing him to further paint Cesare as an outsider. While Caligari's outfit evokes showmanship and respectability, Cesare's positions him as a performer.

[thearchmanofgreenfield]

The sun began to set upon the City of Hatlynshire. The shadows returned to the emptying streets as the light slowly faded passed the horizon. Lights began to appear all over the darkened city. And even in the lonely road of Allison Street, the lamps on either side of the road came alive and lit the sidewalks in a continuous, uninterrupted line.

Lucian watched from a window on the second floor lobby as a small band of soldiers went along both sides of the road using floating poles to light the street lamps. He now felt each second go by in his mind. The number of thoughts that burdened him had only increased since the arrival of the other House children. And now the thing he dreaded most was not humiliation at the hands of his own cowardice, but the possibility of death at the hands of an unknown threat.

He sat on a chair in the lobby next to the entrance of a hallway He listened carefully for the sound of footsteps. He had not seen or spoken to any of the others since the end of their argument a little less than one and half hours prior. He was still wearing his black waistcoat. He rested his head against the small table. He felt tired. Every passing moment he began to drift closer and closer into sleep. He tried to observe his surroundings to pass the time. But all he saw were the same mundane things he had seen a thousand times already.

“Maybe this is the last time I’ll see this house,” the pessimistic side of his mind whispered. Lucian tried not to listen, but these were of course his own thoughts. He considered asking Laura whether there was a way he could play deaf to his own mind. But at that current moment he wasn’t sure whether it was the right time to ask such a thing.

Suddenly, as he was calculating the appropriate time to ask his friend a question, he heard the sound of the wooden stair creaking, the sound of cloth rubbing against the floor and the sounds of shoes hitting the ground softly. As he watched he saw people come trickling down one by one from the stairs. This time however, they were all dressed in fancy attire. Lucian saw Joe come first, he and the other boys were all wearing white shirts under black waistcoats with the same patterns of tree branches weaved onto them. They all wore coats of black but Lucian could see the differences in the details. He saw Charles wear a pocket watch attached to a golden chain, he saw Benjamin wear a bowtie and Joseph a burgundy colored necktie. But perhaps it was the Morrows who had oddest outfits, for Charles wore neck ruffles that stretched down to his chest and Willow wore a thin circular ruff around her neck. Both of them had wavy white ruffles around their cuffs shaped like flowers. All these details and variety made Lucian feel quite plain.

“If we ever come back here, I am not sleeping so high up again!” Willow exclaimed as she made her way down with the others. “The climb so damn exhausting!”

“Count yourself lucky, Morrow,” said James. “Alice and I pretty much sleep in this house’s attic. The journey there is arduous to say the least,”

“And all those guards in the halls,” said Alice before shuddering. “I swear they all stare at me as though they think I have a knife in every one of my pocket,”

“Only the ones wearing brown do that,” James. “The ones in blue are all very well-mannered. At least the ones I’ve seen,”

“You’re right; I’ve read most of their minds. The blue ones all emanated some sense of loyalty in their thoughts. The brown ones are less so,” said Charlotte.

“What do the brown ones think?” asked Alice. Charlotte paused, looked at her blankly and shook her head. Alice seemed to have get the hint, as she did not repeat her question.

They all crowded into the second floor lobby in front of Lucian, who felt quite overwhelmed. Then followed an awkward second of silence as they all stared at him. Benjamin then walked up to Lucian and, to his surprise, hugged him vigorously.

“There he is! The man of the hour!” he said shaking Lucian affectionately, who felt too dazed to reply. He then swiftly grabbed Benjamin by the waist and gently pushed him aside before he got a headache. He then blinked several times and waited silently until he could regain his sense of perception.

“Well what’s with the silence, eh?” asked Benjamin, raising as Lucian tried his best to stay upright.

“That was…not what I expected,” he said has his dizziness faded.

“Well I apologize for the handsiness,” said Benjamin, brushing his hands against his coat. “But perhaps this may be the only time we’ll have to express our felicitations,”

Lucian looked at the others standing behind Benjamin. They all seemed…calm and united. He even saw the Morrows, Mornings and Venshires smiling at him. Even Joe seemed as though he had let go of his grievances as he too looked at Lucian plainly without any signs of anger or resentment.

“I see everyone is…together. Even after all the arguments,” he said with a small smile.

“We all made amends,” said Benjamin gesturing at the others and shooting a look at Joe, who scoffed in response. Benjamin then shrugged. “Morrow was right; if we’re all doomed then it’s better to be united than divided,”

Lucian smiled. It made him happy to see that everyone was together. And it relieved him to know that there were no more secrets left to hide. “Well are we going stand here all day? Our parents are going to come down any minute now!” said Evelyn suddenly. Lucian heard a whisper go amongst the crowd. “She’s quite right. I say we continue this talk downstairs. I’m famished and this dress is dreadfully hot. O Lucian, do you have anything we can feast ourselves upon before dinner?”

“Uh…” Lucian stuttered, he wasn’t expecting the conversation to be directed at him. “Dinner’s in less than an hour, can’t you wait that long?” asked Benjamin mockingly.

Willow huffed. “No,” she said plainly.

“Well if you’re looking for treats then you're better off asking Lily,” said Lucian, trying to helpful. Willow looked at him and smiled before nodding in appreciation.

“I suggest we continue this conversation downstairs,” James interjected. “Lest we look like a bunch of gossiping little children when our parents arrive,”

“Hold on now, Venshire,” Charles then remarked, gesturing ambiguously to Joe’s side of the crowd. “Before we go, please remember that some of us are gossiping little children,”

Some people, including Willow, chuckled. The rest, including Benjamin, rolled their eyes. James put his hand over his face and even Charles seemed unsatisfied by the mixed response. Joe frowned. And Alice, once again, gestured towards the stairs.

This time the others complied without being distracted. They all began to walk down the stairs. “I’ll never understand the Morrows and their sense of humor. They seem take joy in petty insults,” said Benjamin the moment he saw both the Morrows disappear from view.

“I just assume they see it going well for them in the future,” said Lucian. Benjamin chuckled. He then patted Lucian on the back. “Well I too am famished; I suppose we should go down with the rest of them,”

Lucian nodded. He and Benjamin both walked down the stairs behind the others. As Lucian walked down the hallway and reached the living room door he could hear sounds of voices coming from inside. But amongst those voce he felt as though he heard a whisper. He turned his head towards the right and watched as the hallway kept going until it reached the large doors of the main hall. Lucian stopped and froze for a moment. Benjamin took a few steps forwards before realizing Lucian wasn’t following him. He turned and saw Lucian glued to his spot for some inexplicable reason. To Lucian though, the mere sight of the darkened hallway seemed to reignite his dread and panic. It was as if it was beckoning him to his doom, a killing chamber just waiting for its operator.

“Are you alright?”

Lucian immediately snapped out of his own mind. He turned to the source of the voice and found Benjamin staring at him with a worried. “Huh? Oh! Yes, yes I’m fine!” he said waving his hand in the air. He then turned back towards the hall. There was still something odd about it. He still felt as though it was calling him.

“Can you give me a moment? There is something I need to do,”

Benjamin raised his eyebrows, “The vagueness of that excuse doesn’t really inspire confidence,”

Lucian frowned. “Just give me a moment, I’ll be back soon. I just need to…check on something,”

Benjamin narrowed his eyes at Lucian. Fortunately, he then shrugged. “Fine, but return soon,” he said. Lucian nodded before swiftly and turning and walking towards the hall while Benjamin disappeared into the living room.

Lucian walked all the way to the hall. The doors were half-open. Lucian had never found those doors imposing before, but now he did. He looked above the door and saw the Blue Flame Lantern still burning with a mild blue glow.

Lucian touched the doors and pushed them aside, revealing the hall behind. Lucian was immediately hit with a blinding ray of evening light from the large Circular window at the back. As Lucian wiped his he looked around and saw the hall in all its glory. Each pillar and all the walls were decorated with a banner carrying the symbol of the House of Demon and a red carpet was placed down the middle of the hall. Each archway was adorned with fancy curtains and golden ornaments. However, aside from the decorations Lucian also noticed something else. He saw a banner float in midair near the back of the hall. He then saw a shadow appear and disappear from the floor. He looked over the pillars and saw two men in blue cloaks arranging the last row of curtains and banners. They had sheets of fine cloth in their hands as they levitated them onto the walls and archway. Both men seemed to notice Lucian immediately. They both stopped what they were doing and stared at him silently. Both of them then bowed while staying upright. Lucian felt quite awkward at that moment. He simply waved his hand while avoiding looking directly at the men. The men stopped bowing and returned to their task at hand while Lucian took a few steps back towards the way out.

“Don’t worry, they don’t mean any harm,” said a voice suddenly. Lucian flinched for a second. Then sighed and turned around. He wasn’t frightened, for he recognized that voice immediately. “You disappeared from their minds as abruptly as you appeared,” said Laura calmly.

“Well that’s good, it means I don’t make people dwell on me too much,” said Lucian as he walked up to Laura, who smiled in response. She then diverted her gaze to the hall.

“Did Benjamin tell you I was here?” asked Lucian. Laura shrugged, “No, Joe heard you tell Bernstein that you wanted to come here. He was about to confront you himself, but I volunteered in his stead,”

Lucian chuckled. “So he doesn’t trust me to be alone?”

“He doesn’t trust both of us to be alone. For all his amends, he still thinks you and I are hiding something. He thinks Morrow didn’t divulge enough information. His mind is a maze of conspiracies. So I think we can spare five minutes before we go back. Don’t you?” Lucian nodded. At this point he was not surprised by Joe’s paranoia. In fact, his mind told him that there was a good chance that he was listening from behind the hall.

 “I see it’s all very…regal,” she said. Lucian could tell from her expression that it didn’t quite fit her taste. “Do you think it’s a bit much?”

“I was never one for noisy spaces,” said Laura. “They remind me too much of people’s thoughts. Most minds tend to be like horribly cluttered living rooms. So much chaos with no semblance of organization,”

Lucian paused for a moment, thinking about what to say next. “Well…I personally enjoy the details,” he said in the most casual way he possibly could. “It gives everything more…character,”

Laura chuckled. “I get enough of that from people. But I suppose Charlie would agree with you,”

“How are things between you and Charlotte? Has she forgiven you yet?” asked Lucian, changing the subject as swiftly as he could.

Laura’s expression darkened. “Like Bernstein said, we made amends. Yet she still refuses to talk to me. And maybe she’s right to do so,”

“She has to come around eventually. We have to work together if we have any chance of surviving whatever is coming,”

Laura stared at him. But her expression was not positive. “Why do you act as though that is a certainty? You yourself said that it is only a possibility,”

Lucian paused again. He knew she was right. “Well it’s better to be prepared right? In case of the worst?”

“Perhaps don’t remind always dwell on the worst outcomes. You could use a bit of optimism,”

Lucian sighed. “I’ll be optimistic once this ceremony is over and it is revealed that that the threat is not coming. Until then, I am nothing but worry,”

Laura grinned. “Although, if we are safe then that would mean all this strife and quarrelling was for nothing,” Lucian scratched the back of his head, realizing that that was also true. “I suppose you’re right,”

Just then, both of them heard the hall doors open. Lucian turned around and watched as the imposing figure of Lira, dressed in black with her raven perched on her shoulder, marched into the room. But as she opened the door Lucian saw Joe stagger into the hall beside her as though he had been pushed. Both Lucian and Laura took a step back as Lira entered. The two men in the blue cloaks saw Lira and bowed. Lucian looked at them, there seemed to be something different about them and they way they bowed to Lira. Even Laura stared at them a though their mind resonated different thought. Was it respect? Fear? Lucian didn’t think the Gratousy feared anything, much less one person.

Lira waved her hand in a rather authoritative way and the men once again stopped bowing and returned to their task. Lira then turned her attention to Lucian and Laura.

“There you are!” she said with a rough frown. “What are you doing here?”

“N…Nothing!” said Lucian, trying to be more confident. “We were just talking?”

“Well you and Hatly can go talk somewhere else, and stop pestering these men,” said Lira glancing at the Gratousy soldier for a moment. She then looked at Joe, who was straightening himself after seemingly being pushed aside by Lira, and smirked. “Not like your conversation was free from prying ears,”

Lucian and Laura put their heads down and slowly walked out of the room. But as he walked he went passed Joe, who despite being embarrassed by the fact he had been exposed by Lira, still frowned at Lucian.

“What are you looking at? Sad that you didn’t hear anything that proved you right?” asked Lucian. Joes took a deep breath and answered in a snarky voice. “No, just wondering why Hatly was so keen to talk to you in private. You all should at least try acting less suspicious, or is that too subtle for you?”

Lucian was about respond, but Lira then chimed in. “I can still hear voices behind me!”

Joe and Lucian went silent, neither wanting to anger Lira. They simply walked out alongside each other whilst staring at each other angrily. Once they were out Lira flicked her fingers and the door closed behind them. Once they were out, Joe did not continue with his insults, he simply scoffed before quickening his pace and walking away from Lucian. Lucian stopped walking and watched as Joe disappeared into the living room.

Once Joe was gone Lucian slowly walked towards the living room. His mind was preoccupied by why Lira had been so keen to get them to leave. But as he approached the corner of the hallway Lily appeared from hallway leading to the staircase.

“Oh good, there you are,” said Lily stopping once she saw Lucian appear in front of her. Lucian rolled his eyes.

“Why is everyone so keen to know where I am?” asked Lucian with a sigh.

“Well while it may not be a surprise in your case, I would wager it would be quite inconvenient to have an initiation ceremony without the initiate,” said Lily.

Lucian raised his eyebrow at Lily unimpressively; at that point, her mean humor did not even phase him. “Are mother and father still upstairs?” he asked. Lily shuddered, “Thankfully yes, I managed to escape mother’s clutches once she finally forced me this tight, drab excuse of formal attire!” she said whilst pulling on her grey waistcoat. “Hopefully Lucy and Lid prove to be more of a nuisance than me so I can rest before she starts pestering me again!”

Lucian raised his eyebrow and looked at Lily, “I doubt it, few things are as much of a nuisance as you!” he said in an attempt to mimic Lily’s method of insulting. Lily simply frowned. She was unimpressed.

“So, I imagine you’re here cozying up to the others after that whole debacle earlier?”

“We made amends,” Lucian said plainly crossing his arms. “We agreed to work together should the need arise and harbor no animosity,”

“Well it seems you forgot to invite me to this peace talk,” said Lily smugly with a wide grin. “Well I suppose it gave you more time to spend with little old Laura Hatly, didn’t it?”

Lucian blinked. “What is that supposed to mean?” he asked, confused as to why she would mention that name specifically. Lily glanced at him with narrow eyes, as if she was determining whether Lucian was lying to her, which made Lucian even more confused and uneasy. Then her eye glanced over in the direction of the staircase for a moment; she then simply smiled and shrugged. “Nothing! Nothing at all,”

Lucian looked at the staircase. He saw some people come scurrying down the steps, some little people. Lily quickly slid behind Lucian as the twins Lucy and Lid came barreling towards them. Lid immediately embraced him by grabbing his waist while Lucy slowed down and stopped about a foot away from him.

“Caught you!” he exclaimed as he tightened his grip on Lucian. But even at his full strength Lucian only felt mild discomfort.

“I wasn’t aware we were playing a game,” 

“Well I say we are, so we are!” said Lid fiercely. Lucian simply shrugged accepted his little brother’s words without argument.

“We’re only a playing a game until he loses,” said Lucy spitefully under her breath. Lidian immediately turned his head and gave her a dirty look. “Well at least I don’t cheat, unlike some people!”

Lucy huffed and crossed her arms. “Bold words coming from a little crook like you!”

“Alright then!” Lily interjected before Lid could respond. “Putting aside our mutual dislike of following rules, where is mother and father? Shouldn’t you two be with her?”

“She told us to run along because she wanted to talk to Morgan’s mum,” said Lucy. “And father and Uncle David both went to get Grandfather. They said it might take some time,”

Lucian then realized he hadn’t really thought about his grandfather being at the ceremony. Frankly, he found it hard to imagine his grandfather leaving the library. Lily then escorted the twins to the living room, leaving Lucian in the hallway by himself. Lucian was about to follow them but a few moments later Lucian once again heard footsteps coming from the staircase. This however, sounded like a large crowd. Lucian then watched as the adults appeared from the top of the steps and started pouring into the hallway he was standing in. He once again thought of bolting towards the living room, but it was too late lest he wanted to look suspicious.

Leading this chaotic parade was his mother, Janice, who was in the midst of conversing with Mrs. Jeanette Bernstein, just as Lucy had stated earlier. With them was also the little one, for Lucian saw Morgan holding Jeanette’s hand, Oliver being held by Mrs. Morrow and Oliver holding the hand of his father Eustice. Once they were all in the hallway, they stopped walking and stayed as though they were waiting for someone. Meanwhile Lucian simply backed himself a wall next to the corner. But even his pathetic attempt at hiding didn’t seem to matter, for Janice noticed him immediately.

“Lucian? What are you doing?” she asked looked at him confusingly. Lucian immediately felt awkward. But he tried to act as casual as possible. “Nothing, mother. Just catching my breath,”

“Shouldn’t you be with the others? Where are they?” asked Janice. “They’re in the parlor,” Lucian answered plainly. Janice opened her mouth to say something to Lucian, but then Jeanette interrupted her, “They can wait,” she said softly in a low volume. She then gave Lucian a sympathetic look whilst Morgan stared at him blankly. “Had a little disagreement, eh?”

Lucian shook his head despite knowing Jeanette was partly right. But that didn’t seem to convince Jeanette. “There’s no reason to deny it, they happen all the time! You’re going to have to get used to arguing with those people once you take your father’s seat at the Table,”

Lucian chuckled nervously, for he did not like to think about how he was destined to one-day sit at the Table of the Great Houses, with thousands of lives resting on his hands. Janice seemed to sense that sense of uncomfortableness for she immediately directed Jeanette’s attention towards herself. “Perhaps we should not talk about the Table yet. Henry still has a good few decades in him, wouldn’t you say?”

“I could’ve said the same about old Uly,” said Jeanette in response. Janice paused. “But it’s convenient to be prepared,” Lucian became curious at the mentioning of Ulysses Everton. He also noticed Jeanette move her eyebrows at Janice in a rather odd manner. He leaned a bit closer in a way that wouldn’t appear suspicious.

“It is a shame though,” Jeanette continued. “No one seems to know where old Everton’s son had gone to. Leonard and the Gratousy had every member and official in the entire Circle interrogated! And yet no one knows!”

“The boy is probably still mourning, Jean!” Janice insisted. “He will come around eventually,”

Jeanette sighed. “Well he better, because I hear the Nobles over in Everton are in a bit of tizzy over this whole affair. That includes your own family, Janice”

Lucian saw Janice’s gaze stray away from Jeanette. Her face went grim. She still maintained her positive composure, but it was clear that she did not wish to talk about it. “Well, hopefully they’ll be fine!” she said in a much plain and subdued voice. Jeanette seemed to pick on Janice’s tone. For she did not go on with that topic.

“Oh that poor boy Marcus. He and Lira used to have such a friendship!”

“You used to train them both, if I am not wrong?” said Janice. Jeanette looked at her with a somber look. “Yes, when old Uly heard I was teaching my daughter the Gratousy way he insisted that his boy be taught the same. Oh, they used to be quite inseparable back then. He even gifted her a pendant for her initiation!”

“What ever happened to that friendship?” asked Janice, now thoroughly invested in Jeanette’s story. Even Lucian found it very intriguing, given what his thoughts on Lira. Jeanette paused for a moment, as though she did not want to say it. Yet before she could even open her mouth to reply, another woman approached them. She had bush-like hair that was platinum blonde, so Lucian immediately recognized her to be Marilyn Morrow, Willow and Charles’ aunt.

“Well what seems to be the discussion here?” she said. Both Jeanette and Janice got rid their serious expressions and replaced them with smiles. “Oh nothing! We were just talking about little Lucian’s future, now that he is about be initiated,” said Jeanette gesturing towards Lucian, who was confused as to why Jeanette would suddenly change the topic of their discussion. Marilyn gave Lucian a kind glance and Lucian replied with the same even though he did not mean it. He wasn’t sure what to do next so he just simply leaned against the wall and listened.

“And I was just stating that my son still has a long time left before becoming Baron. Henry still has some vigor left in him. And so does Leonard and Eustice, wouldn’t you agree?” said Janice, who also seemed to abandon the subject of Ulysses’s son.

“Why I would!” said Marilyn. “But I doubt my brother would be as effective as he is if I wasn’t by his side. And I could say the same for Henry,”

“What do you mean?” asked Janice. “Henry has David by his side,”

“David’s fine, yes,” said Marilyn hastily and uncaringly. “But I still think the Table would’ve benefitted if you had taken your seat with the rest of us,”

Janice sighed and rolled her eyes. “We have already discussed this; you know why I couldn’t accept it. There is no place in the Table for stray nobles with no experience in governance,”

“Don’t sell yourself short now, Jan” said Jeanette, who unraveled part of her coat revealing the hilt of a gun she had kept in one of the pockets. “Some of us come from much more…common places,”

Both Janice and Marilyn stared at Jeanette awkwardly. Lucian himself was starting to feel uncomfortable. As their conversation continued, he realized that they wouldn’t mention anything of importance while he was close by. So he silently tip toed his way to the corner of the hallway whilst leaning on the wall. Once he reached the corner, he turned and tried to go towards the living room. But to his dismay, the moment he stepped onto the middle of the hallway he immediately ran into Lira. Lucian was almost knocked over as Lira’s body bumped into him with a slight thud. Lira seemed to lose balance as well, for she took a step back in order to balance herself. Once they both did Lucian looked at Lira nervously, “Sorry!” he said weakly. Lira said nothing. She simply frowned and rudely pushed Lucian aside before making her way over to the adults. Lucian peeked over the corner and saw Lira whisper something into Marilyn’s ear. Both Mr. Hatly and Mr. Angelmore, both of whom had been talking with each next to the staircase; suddenly turned their heads towards Lira. Marilyn then whispered something to her in response and they both nodded. Mr. Hatly and Mr. Angelmore then whispered into the ears of the people around them. Lucian could almost feel the air around him becoming heavier. But just then, Lucian yet again saw someone come down the staircase. He watched as his father Henry, along with his Uncle David, walked down the stairs slowly. Walking between them was Wren, who had one hand on his walking stick and the other around David’s shoulder. His attire was completely different. Lucian had rarely ever seen him in anything other than his standard black robe. He now wore practically the same uniform-like attire as the rest of men. Lucian saw him talking to both his sons as they made their way down the steps but he could hear what the old man was saying. Janice then walked towards the slow-moving trio in order assist them and Lucian followed closely behind.

“You know, boy, you must really practice your footing. You remember what your Aunt Morticia said about your posture, don’t you?” Lucian heard Wren say with a mildly disappointed and judgmental look. “Yes I do, father,” said Henry swiftly. Wren then looked at his son’s face for a moment before shaking his head in deliberation.

“Although I must say you look quite good. Possibly even better than I was at your age! A strong and handsome young lad at least in image!” Wren continued with a laugh before patting Henry on the back with the same hand he used to hold his walking stick. Even Lucian could tell Henry was starting to feel quite awkward. Henry glanced at his brother, who himself did not seem to know an appropriate response as he simply shrugged blankly. “Uh…thank you, father,” Henry said with a half-hearted smile.

Once they walked down onto the hallway Janice tried to help David with supporting Wren. But David simply waved his arm at her silently whilst holding Wren’s arm over his shoulders. Janice took the hint and backed away. She then walked around them to Henry’s side, where she leaned into his ear in order to tell him something. The other looked on as though the sight of such an ancient person intrigued them. They looked at Wren in awe and admiration, as though he were a rare relic of bygone era. Wren didn’t seem to take notice of anything that was happening around him for he seemed to be preoccupied by own thoughts.

“Now that I think about it, perhaps it is time you think about marriage, Henry. After all, you can’t expect me to last forever now can you?” he said whilst staring into the distance.

Janice paused mid-whisper, her eyes wide with sudden shock. Henry froze. Even David suddenly stopped walking and almost made Wren lose balance. Lucian could see the others in the hallway look away with expressions of pain and pity. Even the little ones like Mabel seemed to share the uncomfortable feeling. Wren seemed confused as to why David stopped. Henry gulped and looked over to his brother as they both exchanged glances, neither expecting that Wren would say such a thing so suddenly. David then mustered some quick thinking. “Well father, I think our Henry is not yet ready for such things. Give him time,”

Wren raised his eyebrow, seemingly perplexed by David’s words. “Hmm, perhaps you’re right, lad. Henry never did do anything well while in a hurry,”

David winked at Henry, who smiled sincerely in return.  He then turned over to Janice, who seemed to have recovered from the initial surprise and shrugged whilst smiling in amusement. There moment was cut short however when Wren tugged on David and urged him to keep moving, “Come on, boy. I have a dinner to get to,”

David sighed before continuing to walk Wren down the hall. Henry and Janice both held hands as they walked closely behind. The rest of the crowd seemed to gravitate towards them as they formed into a group and continued with their chatter. Lira momentarily peeked her head into the living room and Lucian heard a her shout, “Get to dinner!” in a very authoritative voice. She then walked away coldly and a moment later, Lucian’s peers began to trickle out of the door. Lucian stayed near the wall, most of the others seemed to pass him by without so much as a glance as they were all preoccupied by their own conversations. But, as Lucian expected, Lily immediately came up to him with Lucy and Lid each holding one of her hands.

“What seems to be the matter?” she asked whilst nudging the twins towards the dining room. Lucian huffed and Lily gave him a fake sympathetic look. “Oh, upset that I left you here by yourself?”

“No,” said Lucian bluntly while wearing a fake smile. “Not at all,”

“Well then wh…” Lily began, but before she could continue with her snarky statements, she was immediately pushed aside by Luin, who came running at her from the hallway in the direction of the staircase.

“Out of my way!” he said after pushing Lily aside, sending her staggering forwards. Lily grabbed onto the wall and stopped her erratic movement before she lost balance and once she composed herself, she then gave Luin a very strong frown. Luin simply rolled his eyes and turned to Lucian with an ecstatic smile, which Lucian found very unusual.

“I DID IT!” he said with great enthusiasm. “Did what?” asked Lucian with his eyebrow raised. “I SOLVED IT! The code you gave me!”

It took Lucian a few moments to understand what Luin had said. Luin himself seemed so surprised by his own ability that he started rambling. “It was all so simple! Of course they’d only use the first variation because adjusting the series would make little to no…”

Luin went on and on in his rambling. Yet Lucian did not pay any attention. Once Luin’s initial words had sunk into his skin, he felt a wave of surprise and excitement wash over him. “Well do you have it with you now?” asked Lily hastily, she too seemed to forget her earlier anger towards Luin in favor of restless excitement similar to that of Lucian’s.

Luin paused, he then took a deep breath and opened his mouth to answer but before he could make a sound, they were all was nearly taken aback by the sudden sound of Lira’s booming voice. “WHAT are you all still doing here?” she asked whilst peeking her head out the dining room’s arched double doors. All three of them were rattled by Lira’s booming voice and her cold, angry expression certainly did not help. Lily immediately stopped abandoned their discussion and trotted her way to the dining room in a panicked haste.

“No, but I hid it in my room for safe keeping. I can’t simple wave it around here if you don’t want our parents seeing it. I’ll reveal it to all of you once this whole thing is over,” Luin quickly whispered before he too disappeared into the dining room. Lira then narrowed her eyes at Lucian, who tried his best to walk past her in a casual manner whilst avoiding her steely gaze. Once Lucian was inside he noticed two men in blue cloaks standing on either side of the door, Lira looked around the hallway one last time before walking back into the dining room. As she walked, she made a gesture with her right hand; the two men in cloaks then marched out of the room in unison and closed the doors behind them.

Lucian looked around the dining room as he made his way to his seat. The dining room was possibly the third largest room in the house aside from the library and the hall. It was a rectangular room with a curved ceiling. It walls were cream colored with dark wood trim. The walls were adorned with portraits of ancestors lost passed and ceiling was decorated with an elaborate mural depicting scenes of the Arylmoor from Circulion myths and tales. Lucian had been told a particular eccentric and fairy tale obsessed ancestor of his had painted that mural by hand more than a century ago, yet despite its age it still looks very exquisite.

However, the dining room’s most glaring feature was of course the dining table itself. It was very long, large enough to fit nearly forty guests. It was made of pure mahogany, covered by a white tablecloth and surrounded by cushioned chairs. Of course, Lucian could barely remember any normal occasion where such space was required. Yet throughout the past two days, as he looked at the table and saw nearly all the seats filled, it rather fascinated him. He walked to the middle of the table and took his seat next to Lily, who sat next to the twins, who in turn sat next to their mother, who sat next to Henry, who sat next to Wren. To Lucian’s other side was his Uncle David followed by Luin. He noticed a patter similar to this repeating across the table. Directly on the other side of the table to him was Alice.

Placed all along the middle of the table were a large assortment of large silver plates and cloches.  At the very end of the table were two neat towers of plates and a neatly arranged assortment of silverware and wine glasses. Janice then stood up; she extended both of her arms before clapping loudly once. The plates at the end of the table slowly began to rise from the ground and float in the air. Janice then waved her hands around in the air and plates flew slowly in a line across both sides of the table, which each plate landing neatly in front of each person. She then clapped her hands again. The silverware then began to rise and again it obeyed the waving of her hand and came flying across the table landing neatly in all the correct places. Janice then proceeded to do the same thing with the glasses. Once she was done the rest of the table erupted in polite clapping.

Lucian and the others then took a linen napkin and placed it on his lap. Janice sat down and flicked her fingers. The silver cloches all opened and floated a few feet above the table. And as they flew upwards they revealed the vibrant, steaming dishes that laid beneath them. A very fragrant aroma filled the air; it was so pleasant that it nearly made Lucian drool out of impatience. But he tried his best to keep his composure as Henry then stood up. He took his wine glass into his right hand before summoning a bottle of wine with his left. As the bottle uncorked itself and tipped over, pouring wine into Henry’s glass at a steady pace Henry smiled at the table and began his speech.

“Um…before we begin I would like to toast to my son and the last dinner he shall have as a boy!” he said, he gave Lucian a passing glance as he then turned to the rest of the table. “For tomorrow he shall dine as a man! I hope that today serves as the beginning of a dawn of a new time for both the Great Houses and the Circle. I have no doubt he shall make a fine statesman,”

Henry went silent. Lucian began to lean backwards on his chair. In all honesty, he had expected more from his father’s speech. He put his head down and tried to avoid eye contact. Lily seemed to notice her brother’s pathetic display for she put her arm on his shoulder and shook him back and forth. “Come on! This is no time to hide and whimper!” he said. Lucian then realized he had not heard Henry sit. He lifted his head out and saw his father, still standing with his glass still full. Eyes glistening under the candle light. Lucian realized that he was not done.

“But perhaps more than this,” Henry suddenly started again. Lucian saw him glance over to Wren, who was oblivious to everything happening around him. His gaze then fell directly on Lucian. “I am very proud of how far my son has come. How far we as a family have come. And the thought of what great feats we are yet to achieve under my son’s watch only heightens my pride and my joy,”

Lucian went still, his mouth half open. He could see his mother Janice wipe her face with her linen napkin. Henry paused again, it seemed as though he didn’t know how conclude his speech. The entire table waited with glasses in hand. But Henry didn’t say another word. Finally, it seems as though Lily became impatient. For she swiftly rose from her seat whilst holding her empty glass in the air. “TO LUCIAN!”

There was moment of confusion in the table. But after that moment passed, they all lifted their glasses and yelled, “TO LUCIAN!” with laughter in their voices. Henry then sat down and dinner officially began.

Lucian often found dinner a boring affair. As he slowly made his through his meal, he was patted on the back by her uncle David and he received congratulatory glances from everyone who sat on the table. Even Joe, who sat near the edge of the table and stared at Lucian with a plain expression, gave him a small nod. And though he turned his face back towards his plate almost instantly Lucian could’ve sworn he had cracked a tiny yet sincere smile.

“Should we tell them now?” asked Lily. “About what?” asked Lucian whilst digging into a piece of lamb with his silver knife and fork. Lily gave him a flat book, “About the letter!” she whispered at him angrily.

Lucian looked around the table, particularly at the adults. They all seemed to be engaged in various conversations. Even his own parents were having quite loud conversation with the Bernsteins who sat directly across from them with all three of their ravens standing on wooden perches behind their seats.

“By the Moor, this is positively delicious!” said Leonard speedily making his way through a reasonably large slice of meat pie. He would occasionally float bits of it to his raven, who snapped it out of the air with almost supernatural precision. “Even Stygius likes it!” he said cheerfully. “It’s wonderful, Janice. Truly wonderful!”

“Why thank you for the kind remarks. Leonard, but I doubt you truly think it’s that good,” said Janice humbly with a blush.

“No, no dear!” Henry said chiming in. “You mustn’t underestimate such high praise! After all, this coming from the man who tastes Jean’s cooking every day!”

They all laughed. Lucian himself found the conversation boring yet fascinating. It was not often that he was able to see his parents acting like this. The day before, Henry had been absent during dinner and today he and the other adults had been notably more serious. To Lucian, this was first time Henry had shown visible, worriless happiness since he had arrived.

“Does he think nothing bad is going to happen tonight?” his mind pondered. “Or is he simply enjoying the moment before things get too hectic?”

Lucian’s mind drifted into a web of speculation. But it did not stay that way for long. For Lily’s voice rang in his ear just before his mind drifted too deep. “Well? Are you going to answer me anytime soon?”

“Can’t we wait until after dinner when our parents aren’t around?”

“I doubt we’ll have the time to talk before we’re all carted off to the ceremony. And once that is over who knows how long we’ll have before we leave to Moor knows where!” Lily whispered angrily.

Lucian once again turned his attention to the rest of the table. He could see Carlyle Hatly, who sat less than three seats across from him and Mr. Angelmore, who sat near the end of the table opposite to the one his own father was seating in. Lucian did not know whether he was mind was being read or his words were being heard. Mr. Angelmore didn’t seem to be listening to him as he seemed to be more preoccupied by his meal. Mr. Hatly was also listening in on Henry’s conversation with Mr. Bernstein.

“But we can’t just say it here!” Lucian argued. “Even if I whisper Joe’s father will definitely hear me. I can’t think it either since Mr. Hatly will know the moment he looks my way!” he said as he tried to think of other things that occupied his mind, like the meal which he aptly returned to enjoying.

“Neither of them are paying any attention to you!” said Lily gazing across the table. She then looked at the Hatlys, specifically at Laura. She then gave a swift glance towards David, who sat next to her. He didn’t seem to be paying attention to either of them. Lily then leaned closer to her brother and whispered in his ear. “Perhaps you can tell Laura by using your thoughts,”

“What?” asked Lucian with his mouth half full. Lily groaned, “Just get her attention. Once she looks into your mind, you tell her about the letter. See, simple!”

“And how am I supposed to do that?” asked Lucian. He gave a glance to Laura. Lucian’s concocted no method in which he could reasonably get her attention without Mr. Hatly taking notice. Lily rolled her eyes at him. She then glanced at the table and smirked. “Well maybe you can feign an accident,”

“Hmm?” asked Lucian. But before he could say anything else Lily directed her attention towards Lucian’s wine glass, which Lucian had filled with water. She then tilted one of her fingers from underneath the table. Lucian saw his glass sway and tilt for a moment. Unfortunately, he only had time to gasp and reach out as the glass fell on the table and made a distinct cling sound as it spilled its contents all over the table, including around Laura’s plate.

Laura let out a gasp and recoiled when the glass spilled all over her side of the table. Charlotte, who sat on the other side of Laura, was also startled and immediately took her hands off the table. Lucian panicked and paused for an awkward moment. He then swiftly pushed his chair back and stood up. Taking the napkin on his lap into his hand.

“SORRY!” he yelled whilst wiping the spilled liquid off the table.

Mr. Hatly swiftly turned his head; he did not seem too thrilled when he was met with the unappetizing mess in front of his daughter’s plate. “What happened, boy?” asked Mr. Hatly in a rough and angry voice.

Lucian’s mind unfortunately did not perform well when it came to last minute excuses. Luckily, Lily had his back. “His hand knocked down the glass by accident. You see, it was an ill-conceived attempt to reach for the meat pie. Unfortunately it was in fact, ill-conceived,”

Lucian gave his sister a very angry frown. But thankfully, his mother Janice seemed to believe her. “Oh it’s alright! It’s a just a silly mistake! The boy probably feels jittery from all the nerves!”

Mr. Hatly raised his eyebrow at Lucian. He then looked at Laura. “Its fine, father,” she said as she too started to wipe the water away with her own napkin. Mr. Hatly gave her a concerned stare before shrugging and returning to his meal whilst still giving Laura momentary glances. Lucian leaned closer to Laura as they both wiped the table.

“Sorry for ruining your plate, blame it all on my sister,” said Lucian, he tried to keep his mind as blank as possible when he noticed Mr. Hatly looking at him with his side-eyed glance.

“Don’t worry, it’s hardly any issue,” said Laura with a sincere smile. Charlotte huffed and rolled her eyes at those words. But she was ignored. Lucian then saw Mr. Hatly divert his gaze back to his plate. At that moment part of his mind flooded with doubts on whether his actions were further compromising the future. Should he tell the others? Should he tell the Hatlys? Lucian thought about all the people who sat on that table. And in that brief moment he mustered his courage and shook away his doubts as he stared Laura directly in the eye and thought in what he considered a low volume.

“Luin solved the letter,”

Laura’s eyes immediately widened. Charlotte also seemed to hear something. For she let out a surprised gulp before she stopped eating completely. She then turned her eyes on Lucian. But Lucian did not repeat his message.

“Tell the others once dinner is over,”

Lucian then swiftly wiped away the rest of the spilled water before sitting back down without a word. Mr. Hatly then turned to Laura and asked her something the moment Lucian sat back down. Lucian saw Laura smile awkwardly at her father before whispering something he could not hear. For a moment, Lucian thought Mr. Hatly had heard his thoughts. But thankfully those thoughts were dispelled when he saw Mr. Hatly shrug and return to his meal once Laura answered his question. As Lucian then proceeded to return to his meal, he saw Laura give him a wink once her own father was no longer watching her. Lily noticed this gesture as well.

“See? I knew it would work,” she said smugly. Lucian however did not see it the same way. “There were better ways in which you could’ve done that,” he said with a frown. Lily however, did not see it that way. “Well by the time it would’ve taken you to find a ‘better’ way, the ceremony would’ve been over. It’s better to improvise in the present,”

Lucian groaned. But Lily simply scoffed in return. Lucian then heard the sound of a chair rubbing against the floor. He saw Mr. Morrow, who sat several seat away to his left, suddenly get up from his seat. Lucian and the rest of the table watched in silent confusion as Mr. Morrow then walked over to where Henry and Janice sat. He then leaned in and whispered something into Henry’s ear. Lucian then saw Henry and Eustice bicker using quietly for a moment. Mr. Morrow then simply turned back and walked silently to his seat where he sat down once more as though nothing had happened.

“What happened?” Lucian thought as his mind flooded with dread.  “Did the Morrows see something in the future?”

“What was that about?” asked Lily, but Lucian had no answer. Moments later, Lucian heard the sound of silverware tapping on glass. And when he looked at to where it came from he saw Henry tapping his spoon on his glass, calling for the attention of the entire table.

“Well now that we’re all gathered here I suppose I should make an important announcement,”

A few confused looks emerged from the table. The only people who seemed to know what Henry was talking about was Janice and Mr. Hatly. “But Henry, I thought you said we’d wait until after the ceremony,”

“Sorry, Carlyle. But Janice and I thought it best that we did this now since everyone is together,” said Henry bluntly. Lucian him gesture his eyebrows towards Mr. Morrow. A gesture, which made Mr. Hatly go silent and a gesture that, further deepened Lucian’s worries.

“What’s the announcement, Mr. Demon?” asked Willow as a light chatter sprang up across the table.

“Well, we were just thinking that…uh” Henry began whilst glancing at Mr. Hatly, Mr. Bernstein and Janice several times. “…You children have been all getting along quite well now, haven’t you?”

A room fell into uncomfortable silence. Which Lucian could tell definitely was not what Henry was expecting. He was starting to feel quite awkward. Yet, to the surprise of both of them, Willow spoke up. “Why yes, we’ve so far had a swell time here! Right, everyone?” she said whilst glancing around the table with a wide grin. Moments later, Lucan saw Benjamin stand up. “I say aye to that!” he said quite firmly.

“As do we!” said James and Alice suddenly. Lucian felt quite taken aback. “As do we,” said the Mornings.

“How wonderful!” said Janice. She then nudged Henry on the shoulder with a look of pride on her face. “That means our Lucian must be quite the host, yes?”

Silence came once again. But this time it seemed to last a lot longer. Lucian was looked at the expressions across the table, remembering all the arguments they had had over the past few days. He could only see conflicted faces. And as he silence persisted, he could tell even his own mother’s smile was starting to falter. 

“I can vouch for that!” said a quiet, subdued voice. Lucian turned his head and Laura with her hand raised. “I think Lucian’s a wonderful host,” she said whilst giving a sincere look before turning to the rest of the table. “I mean, I would definitely call it an enlightening experience, wouldn’t you agree?”

After a quick moment of awkward silence, a wave of agreeable chatter enveloped the table. Laura once again gave him a sincere look.  Lucian felt his worries completely melt away from his body. He felt as though he could blush.

“Splendid!” said Janice, who seemed more excited than Lucian. She then nudged at Henry, who had simply stayed paused up until that point, again. Henry jumped the moment Janice nudged on the shoulder, it was as though he had suddenly woke up from state of deep pondering. He looked at Janice with an expression of bewilderment. Janice gestured towards the rest of the table by rolling her eyes widely.

“Oh um… right,” Henry then said abruptly as his mind seemed to recall what he was supposed to do. “That is quite fantastic of you all to say. Mrs. Demon and I thank you all for your kind words,” he then paused again. It seemed as though he did not what to say next. “But…uh…what we were thinking of was…uh…”

“A holiday!” David suddenly said. Lucian saw his father let out a sigh of relief the moment his uncle spoke for him. “Your parents have been discussing on a little leisurely excursion to the countryside,”

“THE COUNTRYSIDE?” Lucy and Lidian exclaimed ecstatically at the same time. Unfortunately, that was not the feeling that resonated from the rest of the table. There was a confused silence from the children. Lucian knew that all of them understood what his uncle truly meant. Yet it seemed as though none them had quite expected him to say it in such a way. “But why?” asked Luin.

“Well…” said David turning towards his son. He clearly hadn’t expected such a drab response. “We thought why not spend these last summer days in the countryside, hmm? Now that Lucian’s initiation is about to come to a close tonight what better way to celebrate than basking in the sunny Baronies?”

Several of the children looked at David with doubtful faces. It was clear that none of them were yet to be particularly sold on his improvised pitch. Lucian was beginning to worry whether the adults were going to suspect them of knowing something they shouldn’t. Then Mrs. Morning spoke up. “Well, what’s with the silence? Is there a problem? I never thought I’d see a child who didn’t want to get out of these smoggy, pest-ridden streets, much less a table full of them!”

The children still stayed silent. Now it seemed as though no one knew how to reply to Mrs. Morning. “Well, not at all mother!” said Arthur. “It’s not like we do not want to go. It just seems quite…abrupt. That’s all!”

“Well it is happening, whether you like it or not,” said David taking on a stricter tone. “We already came prepared. All the cars have been fitted with the appropriate luggage and Mrs. Hatly, Mrs. Venshire and Mrs. Angelmore have all been sent ahead of time…”

There was small but audible gasp as Lucian saw the Hatlys, the Venshires and Joe all look at David in disbelief. He saw Laura turn towards her father with her mouth open. “You told me and Charlie that mother was feeling unwell, that’s why she didn’t come here!”

“I apologize dear, but that was a lie,” said Carlyle bluntly without looking his daughter in the eye. Before Laura could say anything David banged his fork on the table with a loud thud, which instantly brought the table’s attention back onto him. “That’s enough of that. There is no use arguing as it is already done. We will make our way to Direwood Station once this ceremony is over, understood?”

There was a reluctant yet collective nod from the children. David frowned but returned to his plate. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you all seem frightened for no reason. We know this trip is a bit uncalled for but it’s nothing to get so worked up over. Wouldn’t you agree, Meredith?”

“Wholeheartedly, David. Wholeheartedly” said Mrs. Morning whilst twiddling with her fork. None of the children said a word, none dared say what they truly knew. Lucian saw David gesture his hand towards Henry as though he were taking a bow whilst still being seated. Henry seemed thoroughly satisfied by his brother’s display “David was always one for pitches,” he said proudly.

Lucian and the rest of the table didn’t exactly feel the same way. For the rest of dinner there seemed to be an odd silence. Lucian felt an unnerving feeling almost the entire time. Even the adults seemed to feel the negative shift in the air for a few minutes later Mr. Bernstein called a triplet of fiddles from outside and had a blue caped soldier play them in midair while they ate. Yet the music, however pleasant it sounded, still did not dispel the feelings of suspicion and doubt. But despite the fact that those things persisted within the children, the adults seemed to have no such feelings.

“Oh I wish I could get down more than two glasses of wine tonight,” said Leonard rotating his half-empty glass while looking at the fiddles. “We all do, Bernstein, we all do,” said Harold Venshire.

“Well keep wishing, gentlemen. Because I will not have a pack of drunkards in my son’s ceremony,” said Janice while she too drank from her second serving of the red liquid.

“I’m not sure about you, Jan. But I plan to drink myself to sleep once we’re on that train,” said Mrs. Morning.

“Well, I think we can all be a part of that plan!” said Henry cheerfully followed by a wave of laughter. Dinner did not last too long after that. As Lucian finished his plate and put down his silverware Henry ordered the fiddle player to leave the room. Soon the rest of the table also finished out the last morsels of food left on their plates. The last one to finish was Oliver, the youngest Morrow child. And once they were all done they pulled back their seats almost in unison and stood up. They then slowly made their way out of dining room one by one in a semi-organized manner. The two guards who had stood outside the room go marching back into it once they all had left. Yet Lucian was only barely able to make his way onto the hallway when Laura, who approached him from behind, immediately grabbed him by the shoulder and pushed him aside.

“What did you say to me before?” she whispered hastily. Next to her stood Charlotte, who seemed equally as curious.

“Luin solved the letter we found,” Lucian whispered back. Laura raised her eyebrow out of intrigue, a expression riddled with questions. “Well did he tell you want it means? Does he have it with him?”

“No, he left it in his room. He can’t tell us all right now with Lira and the adults nearby. Can you two spread the word to the others while ceremony is still ongoing without Lira or any of the adults hearing you?”

“Without hearing what?” said a deep voice suddenly. The Hatlys both turned around as Lucian saw the looming figure of Lira slowly approach them with her raven perched neatly on her shoulder. “Is there something you do not want me to hear, Lucian?”

“N...No! Nothing at all” said Lucian. He then lightly punched Laura in the shoulder in order to divert her attention towards him. “Right, Laura?” he said with casual whilst in his head he muttered in his thoughts. “Tell the others to gather on the fourth floor,” he had no way of knowing whether the Hatlys received his message as Laura muttered, “Right!”, in a nervous voice. Lira then turned her gaze towards Lucian.

“If that is the case then I doubt it’s worth talking about at this time. Perhaps you’d accompany me to the hall; your parents have allotted some time for me to put you through some final preparations,”

Lucian gulped. “I supposed you’re right,” he said half-heartedly. Lira then turned around and walked slowly to the hall and Lucian followed her. Before he left, he gave Laura and Charlotte a swift nod. “Tell as many as you can!”

He did not stop to see whether they nodded in return. As he silently walked behind Lira he also walked past Lily and Luin, both of whom stood next to each while engaged in some sort of discussion. They saw him paas by but instead of stopping, Lucian once again only gave a swift nod before gesturing his head in the direction of the Hatlys. This seemed to confuse them at first but Lucian could not elaborate, for when he took a glance back towards Lira he saw her raven, Blackfeather, facing towards him with its black beady and abyssal eyes staring directly at him. Lucian gave the bird an angry frown in an attempted to mask the unnerving feeling he got. The raven simply tilted its expressionless head in response but Lucian assumed it felt the same way.

Lira led him into the hall and closed the doors behind her. And it was at that moment that Lucian got to see the room with all its decorations. It now seemed as though every arch, pillar and wall was decorated with banners, a large red and white carpet ran down the middle of the room and at the very end of this silk lined path was a stone pedestal, which had a golden chalice and glistening silver dagger placed it a neat fashion on top of it. But more noticeable than that was the long table which ran parallel to the entrance. The table had a large, neatly organized and towering pile of white cloaks on one corner while the rest of the table was occupied by a row of masks. Each with eye holes, no mouth and large, branch-like horns protruding out from both sides. Lucian had seen those masks before and they too slightly unnerved him. Alongside the masks were top hats with either a black or a grey strap running around the bottom of the crowns. Their mere presence seemed to add a bit of whimsy to the whole display.

“I assume you were taught the basic steps,” said Lira in a bored and uncaring tone. “Yes, I was. I’m supposed to walk up to the stone and cut my hand using the dagger. Then I’m supposed to pour the blood into the chalice, right?”

“Quite accurate, although you are supposed to paint the mark of your house atop the stone with your blood first. Like I showed you yesterday,”

Lucian stared at the stone pedestal. Part of it glistened due to the light coming from the large circular window behind it. “How long will this last? The ceremony?” 

“That is difficult to say,” Lira said sternly. “Once you drink the blood it tends to have an odd effect which can last quite a while,”

Lucian almost hurled inside his mouth. He had been too focused on cutting with his hand with a dagger that he had completely forgotten that he had to drink his own blood. “What do you mean ‘odd effect’?”

“It is…” she began. It was as though she found it difficult to describe. Which Lucian found odd given Lira’s plainspoken nature. “…a confusing experience, to say the least. You will see things that you may not understand and things that may look frightening. But thankfully for you it is short and painless. It shouldn’t last more than fifteen minutes. The rest of the ceremony won’t last long after that. If we are fortunate we will done it less than an hour so we can make our swift leave,”

“To the countryside?” asked Lucian with false enthusiasm. A tone that Lira seemed to take notice of, “Yes,” she said in sterner voice than before. She then sighed before speaking in a calmer voice. “I suppose I don’t need to tell you why we are leaving. You already know that,”

“Yes I do. We’re running from something we’re not even sure is real,” Lucian said bitterly. Lira seemed to take offense with that statement. “Do not judge the future as though you understand it. What the Morrows see can be real. And that is all that matters!”

“Well it clear they can’t see everything, can they?” said Lucian raising his voice. Lira gazed at him with a surprised look as she seemed a bit taken aback. “They couldn’t see what happened to Mr. Everton, or his son! They couldn’t stop him dying to a bomb, how can you be sure they’re right now?”

Lira went silent. Once Lucian’s anger subsided, he saw the expression of pure fury in her face. She lightly took one-step forward. Lucian wanted to take a step back but he couldn’t move. “Do not talk about Marcus that way,” she said in a voice cold enough to freeze the very sun. Lucian wanted to run, but he decided to stand his ground and meet Lira’s star with his own. “How do you know that we won’t die tonight? How do you know that I and all my peers won’t end up like Mr. Everton?”

“How do you know about Mr. Everton? Is there something you are hiding from me?” asked Lira is return leaving Lucian’s questions unanswered. Lucian paused, his courage started to crumble at the sight of her imposing aura. “I…I…uh,”

Lira looked into the distance and scoffed. “We are wasting time! Just obey the instructions you are given! Do not compromise anything by revealing information you have no right to reveal! Am I clear, Demon?”

Lucian scoffed and crossed his arms before turning away from Lira. “I cannot understand how you can so willingly keep your own brothers in the dark,”

Lira paused again, “Its better if they did not know,” she said somberly. “I was taught to put the wishes of the Great Houses before my own. It would beneficial to everyone if you learned that as well,”

Moments later, as Lira and Lucian stood staring at different directions in total silence. Lucian heard the doors to the hall open. And when he turned to face them he saw his mother’s head poking out from the partially opened doors.

“Is everything going alright in here?” Janice asked with a smile. Lira gave Lucian a momentary glance before turning to Janice. “Yes, quite alright. Lucian here was just having some doubts about our course of action once the ceremony is over,” she whispered casually.

Janice turned to Lucian, her face radiating compassion with a slight but visible undertone of fear and worry. She pushed the doors open some more and walked to her son. She then placed her hand on his cheek.

“Oh I know it can be quite frightening. But if the time comes, I know you shall persevere! As long as you follow what the Morrows have said, everything shall fine. You just have to believe that, alright?”

Lucian felt his heart sink to the very bottom of deepest pit he could imagine. His mind was conflicted and he did not have the heart to tell Janice the truth. He did not have the will to say that he had divulged secrets that he shouldn’t have, that he had compromised every future the Morrows had seen prior to Lira telling him the truth. But part of him trusted both Willow and Charles. Part of him trusted his friends.

“Yes, mother. I do,” he said as he embraced Janice. Once he was done, he quietly walked away to the middle of the hall. He needed to compose himself. He needed to think.

“I did not wish to speak to him about this earlier. I was afraid it would worry him. Now I’m starting to regret that decision,” said Janice as a tear hung over the edge of her eye and Lira placed her hand on her shoulder.

“Do not worry yourself, Mrs. Demon. Lucian seems to have become far more…confident since yesterday. I’m quite sure he is ready for whatever may come our way,”

Janice smiled. “Thank you, Lira,” she said softly.

Lira smiled as well before he then swiftly turned her attention to the doors. “Perhaps you should call the others inside. I think Lucian and I are done with our preparations,”

Janice quickly compassed herself. “Ah yes, I should,” she said as she hastily turned around and made her way to the doors leaving Lira standing alone by herself.

Finally, there Lucian stood, gazing up at the intricately carved ceiling of the hall. His things he dreaded were now a little over an hour away and he felt the weight of uncertainty more than ever before. All his past talk and positive thoughts seemed to melt at the realization that there was no ignoring the situation now. No more time left to contemplate and reassure. He then thought about his friends and his family, and there he found his determination. Everything was going to be fine; he just needed to believe it. And he as he heard the sound of dozen feet pounding on the floor behind him he took a deep breath. Yes, he did believe it. The lives of his peers rested in his hands, and he was not going to disappoint them.

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[waitingforwinterwinds]

A Clash of Kings - 12 DAENERYS I (pages 170-184)

Dany rides through the desert on a horse with no name, finds an abandoned city, and unlocks Jorah's backstory. Jhogo makes contact with Qarth.

-

"Why should I fear Pono?" Dany objected. "He was Drogo's ko, and always spoke me gently." "Ko Pono spoke you gently," Ser Jorah Mormont said. "Khal Pono will kill you. He was the first to abandon Drogo. Ten thosuand warriors went with him. You have a hundred." No, Dany thought, I have four. The rest are women, old sick men, and boys whose hair had never been braided.

He was nice when you were his boss's wife, now you're just some lady who once tried to steal away his right to rape and slave as he liked. He's not even a bloodrider duty bound to see you safely to the dosh khaleen.

"They are mine," she said fiercely. They had been born from her faith and her need, given life by the deaths of her husband and unborn son and the maegi Mirri Maz Duur.

hmmmm... *reassesses theory on "the souls of the sacrifices used to wake the dragons being recycled into dragon souls" now with the idea that one of the dragons is ensouled by Mirri directly and not by Viserys.*

(Like, thematically and by naming convention it would make sense to be Viserys' soul, but on the other hand, he's been dead for donkey's yonks by this point.)

Her hair had all burned away in Drogo's pyre, so her handmaidens garbed her in the skin of the hrakkar Drogo had slain, the white lion of the Dothraki sea. Its fearsome head made a hood to cover her naked scalp, its pelt a cloak that flowed across her shoulders and down her back.

*gasp* Kimba! No!!! We were robbed by the show.

Their mounts subsisted on the tough brown devilgrass that grew in clumps at the base of rocks and dead trees. Dany sent outriders ranging ahead of the column but they found neither wells nor springs, only bitters pools, shallow and stagnant, shrinking in the hot sun.

yeah, sounds you are in 'dig for potable water' territory now. If you had cloth to filter it, you could filter the stagnant water, and use the dead trees to boil it clean, but in a desert like that, surface water is not what you want to be holding out hope for. You gotta dig.

"Aegon's dragons were named for the gods of Old Valyria," she told her bloodriders one morning after a long night's journey. "Visenya's dragon Vhagar, Rhaenys had Meraxes, and Aegon rode Balerion, the Black Dread. -"

Huh, neat. So named after as in those were the same names, or named after like Drogon after Drogo, with small changes?

... RIP Doreah.

Dany went to Ser Jorah one morning as they made camp amidst a jumble of black wind-scoured stones. "Are we lost?" she asked him. "Does this waste have no end to it?"

I imagine traveling exclusively by night makes navigating by stars easier, but there's no mention of it, are they legit just following the comet? How long is it going to be in the sky for? How long has it been there already?

Dany looked at the horizon with despair. they had lost a third of their number, and still the waste stretched before them, bleak and red and endless.

Not gonna lie, that's actually a better survival rate than I was expecting.

How long the city had been deserted she could not know, but the white walls, so beautiful from afar, were cracked and crumbling when seen up close. Inside was a maze of narrow, crooked alleys. The buildings were pressed close, their facades blank, chalky, windowless. Everything was white, as if the people who lived here had known nothing of color.

It would be interesting to know if the building were always only white because it reflects the light and heat, or if there was coloured paints and pigments on the walls long ago which have been long sun-bleached to whiteness, or if the Dothraki who once invaded stole everything of colour.

"What shall we seek, Khaleesi?" asked Jhogo. "Whatever there is," Dany answered. "Seek for other cities, living or dead. Seek for caravans and people. Seek for rivers and lakes and the great salt sea. Find how far this waste extends before us, and what lies on the other side. When I leave this place, I do not mean to strike out blind again. I will know where I am bound, and how best to get there."

Good girl, now that you've had the chance to stop and think you're thinking smart.

Rakharo was back first. ... Dany gave him charge of a dozen of her strongest men, and set them to pulling up the plaza to get to the earth beneath. If devilgrass could grow between the paving stones, other grasses would grow when the stones were gone. They had wells enough, no lack of water. Given seed, they could make the plaza bloom. Aggo was back next. ... Dany thanked him and told him to repair the gates. If enemies had crossed the waste to destroy these cities in ancient days, they might well come again. "If so we might be ready," she declared.

Somewhere in the multiverse, Dany and her khalasar stayed there, in their city of bones and grew into a small but prosperous little community. And no one hurt or betrayed or enslaved them ever again.

"ugly humped creatures that dwarfed any horse." CAMELS!

The pale man with the blue lips replied in guttural Dothraki, (...) The bald man with the jewels in his nose answered in the Valyrian of the Free Cities, (...) The woman in the lacquered wooden mask said in the Common Tongue of the Seven Kingdoms, (...)

That's interesting* each of the three speaking to Dany in a different language, like they're trying to appeal to a certain aspect of her through their use of the languages they share with her.

*New drinking game, y'all take a sip anytime the Reader says "that's interesting" XD

[freetriumphwasteland-blog]

Top 5 Reason Why You Should Wear Emerald Gemstone?

Introduction What is Natural Opal? Natural opal is a type of silica that forms in the earth's crust. It occurs as a result of heat and pressure, which causes the mineral to become amorphous (without any long-range order) and translucent. The chemical composition of natural opal is SiO2(silicon dioxide), but it can also contain other elements such as water, sodium or potassium--and sometimes even iron! The Mohs scale measures hardness on a scale from 1 to 10; diamonds are rated at 10 while talc is rated at 1. Natural opals fall somewhere between 6-7 on this scale; they're fairly hard but still very fragile compared with other gems like diamonds or sapphires...which means you'll want to be careful when wearing them! Types of Natural Opal There are three main types of natural opal: black opal: White opal and fire opal. Black opals have the most color play and fire, while white opals have less color play but are still very beautiful. Black Opal: This type of natural stone has a dark background with bright flashes of color that can be seen when the stone is moved or tilted in different directions. The brightness depends on how much light it receives so it's best to keep them out in the sun as often as possible if you want them to glow brightly! White Opal: This type of natural stone has more subtle shades of blue than black or fire but still has some interesting properties when it comes to reflecting light back at us from different angles (which makes them look like they're changing colour). Fire Opal: Fire Opals are similar in appearance to Black Opals except they tend towards reds rather than blues/greens; however unlike other types there isn't any colour shift when moving around which means these stones don't require much maintenance aside from keeping them clean so dust doesn't collect on top." Effects of Natural Opal -Hope -Protection -Emotional balance -Creativity Benefits of Natural Opal Opal is known for its ability to reduce stress, anxiety and depression. It can also enhance self-confidence, clarity of thinking and creativity. Uses of Natural Opal Natural opal has many uses. It can be used in jewelry, feng shui, crystal healing and home decor. Care and Cleaning of Natural Opal Avoid harsh chemicals. Abrasive cleaners and solvents are not recommended for opal as they can damage the surface of your stone. Clean with lukewarm water and mild soap. If you do not have access to distilled water, use bottled spring or distilled water instead of tap water when cleaning your opal jewelry. Dry with a soft cloth to prevent spotting or staining from moisture trapped between the stone and metal setting (if applicable). Mineral oil or baby oil may be used periodically on the backside of an unset opal to prevent cracking due to dehydration if you live in a dry climate such as Arizona where there is little humidity in winter months when temperatures drop below freezing point at night time but rise above it during day time hours when sun shines brightly overhead without much cloud cover overhead so it's impossible for rain clouds overhead--which would provide some relief from dryness if they were present--to give off any moisture drops which might otherwise fall down onto earth's surface below ground level where we live here in order avoid getting too hot under direct sunlight exposure during daytime hours only leaving us exposed without any protection against heat radiation coming directly down onto our heads causing potential damage over time through prolonged exposure until eventually causing brain cell death resulting ultimately lead death. Instagram Gallery 8039 348 3619 341 7300 299 5254 239 5986 251 5025 563 6070 510 9245 461 4886 212 2731 10 3046 34 2975 665 7257 773 6019 642 2549 56 5119 656 3718 966 8357 706 Recent Posts - What to know before wearing a Garnet stone? - What is Blue Sapphire? Why Blue sapphire is the most Powerful Gemstone? - Can I wear Emerald stone (Panna) without consultation? - Unheated Ruby vs. Heated Ruby Opal For you - 16.12 Carat Oval Shape Natural Fire Opal Rated 5.00 out of 5 ₹32,000.00 ₹16,120.00 - Natural 13.75 carat 14.90 Ratti Opal stone GII India certified Rated 5.00 out of 5 ₹10,999.00 ₹5,125.00 - 10.50 Carat Cushion Shape Natural Fire Opal Rated 5.00 out of 5 ₹100,000.00 ₹52,500.00 Contact Us FIND YOUR BEST STONE FROM BELOW COLLECTION Blue Sapphire Yellow Sapphire Emerald Ruby Opal Amethyst Catseye Blue Topaz Yellow Topaz Feroza Garnet Malachite Pearl Red Coral Akik White Coral Peridot Citrine Aquamarine Round CVD Cushion CVD Oval CVD Princess CVD Heart CVD Emerald CVD Radiant CVD Asscher CVD Baguette CVD Pear CVD Marquise CVD Round HPHT Cushion HPHT Oval HPHT Princess HPHT Heart HPHT Emerald HPHT Radiant HPHT Asscher HPHT Baguette HPHT Pear HPHT Marquise HPHT 1 Mukhi 2 Mukhi 3 Mukhi 4 Mukhi 5 Mukhi 6 Mukhi 7 Mukhi 8 Mukhi 9 Mukhi 10 Mukhi 11 Mukhi 12 Mukhi 13 Mukhi 14 Mukhi 15 Mukhi 16 Mukhi 17 Mukhi 18 Mukhi 19 Mukhi 20 Mukhi 21 Mukhi Gauri Shankar Garbh Gauri Shankar Savaar Sidhha Mala Jaap Mala Indra Mala Ganesha Ganesha Read the full article

[evarocha]

Since I was a child I make things with hair. I grew up in a 3 streets/9 blocks town. We had no traditional art materials other than a 5 colored pencil box. I had the impulse to create and I did it with whatever material I had. I made drawings with my hair or objects with it. Even thou I started to use hair just as an available material, as it was also soil, for instance, through life I naturally developed it as a metaphorical material: hair was for me a metaphor for life and death. As life, as nature, hair grows as it grows the branches and leaves of a tree. It has an element of vitality [vita/life]. Hair holds sensuality and eroticism.  Hair holds a dichotomy of life and death: if attached to the body it is inviting to the touch and has a quality of sensuality that is undeniable, once cut, it immediately causes aversion to the touch. The inviting sensuality of it is such that, once a religious vow is done in many religions the hair is shaved to show renouncement to the pleasures of the world. It is a renouncement of the body, to eroticism. “Eroticism is the approve of life even in death” [George Bataille].  In the place where I was born, there was 1 cemetery, where one could buy a grave. The ones that could not afford a grave were laid in some designated graves and, after a time, their graves were opened and their remains were thrown in a collective grave. It was a concrete grave, a concrete box covered by a ‘lage’ of two concrete tops. I, and other children, liked going there when the collective grave was opened and the dead were thrown in it. Sometimes we scared each other by making hairballs and throwing them at each other.  We knew anyone in that 9 blocks city and recognized them by their hair.  In the collective grave, I would always look for Maria. Maria liked beads. When I found her body in the water well, I recognized her by her beads before the men pulled her body from it. I made her a necklace and throw it in the collective grave. Hair stands for me for humans, for individuals, and for the collective. 

Later in life I moved to São Paulo. I was in theater, and I created a hair rosary for a play: Olimpo dos Orixás, written by Jayme Compri, where I performed Mainha, a cabocla [indigenous + black + white] spiritual leader from Brasilândia. While doing research on that play and in Brazilian religious syncretism, I thought again of hair as the material that was significant. That necklace rosary was to signify the collective spiritual and also the loss of unity due to the imposed religiosity in terms of power. Due to having worked with Eugênio Barba, founder of the International School of Anthropological Theater during the International Theater Festivals in Brazil, I got interested in how theater and art, in general, were recording, in an anthropological way, culture and time. I had not seen art in a context of a gallery or museum until I was 19 and moved to São Paulo and visited the Museu de Arte de São Paulo. I was fascinated but it. I questioned what all that represented and how that related to my world. I got inhibition to create after seeing that art done with oil paints and bronze. They were expensive materials. In 1998-2002 I lived in United States and visited other museums. I was amazed and shocked by Pre-Columbian Art. That art, so called artifacts, were of a different art material and looked down on a scale of power. It was difficult being an indigenous descendant and seeing that art from that perspective and loss. At that time, I got interested in visual arts. I could not transfer my undergrad studies from Brazil to the US to study arts, so I transferred and adapted it to an Interdisciplinary Studies degree. When talking about Brazilian syncretism and defending papers for class lectures in I used my Rosary made from hair again to talk about Brazilian Afro and Indigenous syncretic Religions and its effects on art. I created other objects from hair at that time, after seeing burial cloths in pre-columbian galleries, especially in 1999 when I visited the Metropolitan Museum. I got interested in using hair as a cloth material, but was discouraged due to the repugnance that it causes.

When living in the Andes of Peru, in Baños del Incas and Cajamarca, in 2005, the materials of my childhood that were natural to me became again my material -- since I did not have a Eurocentric pressure in relation to art. I started to create freely. That direct connection with cultures that had been creating art in pre-Columbus, pre-colonialism, was very liberating! While teaching theater in an international school, I asked some campesinos [indigenous descendants of the Andes] to learn their art. Upon returning to the United States and, again visiting pre-Columbian art galleries in museums, and while seeing those objects old or reproduced, and while not seeing art by indigenous peoples' descendants in modern or contemporary galleries, I saw how our art-history was inexistent. The effects of colonialism were also felt in our possible/impossible participation in the arts. I became a volunteer to give tours of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. While a European descendant could find a concise art-history timeline, an indigenous descendant could not. At the same time, I started a non-profit to help the inclusion of Latinos, indigenous descendants mostly, in the arts. I, we, would became invited to participate in the arts during Heritage Month only. Many artists struggled to be included. Many were creating in their own tradition and that too became a difficulty to be accepted. Even thou I was always creating, it was not my intention to enter in a career of being an artist. I liked to create and created with my own my materials -also due to the lack of funds to use more 'noble' materials. They were not meant to be seen. Many times, I made drawings with my hair. My first work shown in a gallery was made from hair [in photo: Eaves" 2011]. It was an invitation to participate at the 6th Biennial International Miniature Invitational Think Small at Art Space in Richmond, VA . My work was featured in an article by Amy Richie, due to the curiosity to that material choice and her eyes as an art-historial to associate it with Ingres. That European connection was still a reference to seeing the art, in that case done by me not intending that connection. In 2011 I created other works with hair. In 2013 I created an installation, "Fodder::Beauty" at Art Space which I did with hair again to comment on women, beauty, and feminicide. 

When allowed, rewarded my very first solo exhibition by the Taubman Museum, I search for funds for art, but that is always rewarded to the same groups, or for institutionalized artists being rewarded by institutions. As an artist and indigenous descendant, I understood from all angles the process of a historical exclusion that had created the impossible art-history timeline for our artists. I decided to create my solo exhibition mostly from hair. In “HAVE YOU SEEN the Dark Parrot” I propose a dialogue on the connections of historic and contemporary UNSEEN cultures lost under a disempowered art-history, consumed as othering objects, and the connection to issues such as the UNSEEN women of indigenous descendant consumed or sold as fetishized objects. I used hair as my material for a human element and/or a collective urn.

[photos: “Eaves” 2011, “Altar Cloth” detail 2022, “Barbara Ora, Rosary” [1993, 1999, 2011] 

[regret-breathing]

@codsfish @bulldog-butch @perditionanddiatribes

ive been asked to define The Schema.

so im watching supernatural for the first time this year, havent gotten very far so i’ll assume this only applies to what ive seen (seasons 1-5), but after about ten or so episodes i started noticing a pattern with the women in the show, specifically with how they’re positioned based on hair color. Now, according to eric kripke only 3 hair colors exist for women. Blonde, black, and dyed red. i think there is One brunette woman in the show but i dont remember her name, just that i was shocked by seeing her.

for some reason, the show insists on dividing hair colors along surprisingly hard and fast lines, every woman in the show (except one) falling along the following three archetypes:

Blonde — The Ideal Woman. Angels sent from heaven to be perfect and beautiful and take care of men. Blonde women can do no wrong and have no flaws, and should they die it is TRAGIC. How could the lord bear to take one of these perfect beautiful angels away from us,,, they deserved a long life and many children and a nice man to be fucked by and not a scrap of agency. if by some horrifying fluke of fate or temptation, one of them DOES do something wrong, feel free to fuck and/or murder them at your discretion. notable examples; mary, jo, ellen, 90% of Nice Woman Supporting Characters, etc.

Dyed Red — NO NATURAL RED HAIR EXISTS. These women are Dangerous. Maybe theyre a wildcard you can never fully trust, maybe they’ll help you, but only to their own ends, maybe you love them and they betray you. Whatever it is, no matter how cool and sexy they are, WATCH OUT. these women are CAPABLE OF HARM. but oh my gosh theyre so cool,,,, 😮‍💨 notable examples; Ana, that one policeman in the episode with the hunters what kill people, etc.

Black Hair (usually dyed) — either EVIL or DEAD. the dregs of society. Mean women. Women of no virtue. When they die itll be their own fault for sinking to sin and corruption, and yknow what maybe society is better off with these horrible EVIL temptresses dead. bottom line, these women cant be trusted for anything other than sex and betrayal and having really pretty eyes usually for some reason. notable examples; that werewolf who died after sam had sex with her, ruby 2, meg 3(?), every woman sam has had sex with post-jessica, ALMOST EVERY DEAD GIRL, ALMOST EVERY EVIL WOMAN, etc.

now i know youre asking; what about meg! what about lilith 1 and2! what about ruby 1!! they’re all blonde and evil!! but consider them for a moment—

meg 1 has dyed blonde hair, but every time she appears before she dies she has *dark black roots* that are highly visible:

this is a subtle bit of foreshadowing imo, proving she’s capable of evil AND that shes trying to scam mr padalecki. watch out!!!!

now lilith might be seen as a proper breakage from form, seeing as every time she appears she has blonde hair. but crucially, the first time she appears, when she’s possessing that little child, we’re supposed to primarily feel bad for the child, specifically when lilith leaves the childs body and the kid warns the boys. the real stick in the spokes is lilith 2, who looks like this:

personally i dont see this as a break from the schema but i think it’s up to interpretation. i think lilith 2 counts because while her death isnt tragic and she certainly doesnt possess the fine patriarchal virtues of most blond women in the show, her death IS a thing we should feel bad about, seeing as its what kicjstarts the apocalypse and frees satan. that and she’s sort of supposed to be a wolf in sheeps clothing type of deal almost like meg. she appears in a white dress, rail thin, with an almost too perfect face, primarily as a smokescreen. to futz with the characters and the viewers perceptions. again, up to you if you think shes a break, but i dont personally.

now ruby 1, lets call her laurel lance ruby, shes a fun one:

(image of both rubys because im gonna bring up ruby 2 in this too)

laurel lance ruby is of course another dyed blonde because this isnt the actress’s real hair color but thats not what im gonna bring up. ruby’s a fun case because shes not just scamming the characters, shes scamming the viewer as well. so, the crucial thing for me is how the audience is supposed to feel about her. sure shes a little sketchy, sure shes a little dangerous, maybe shes a red hair candidate, but we the audience are SUPPOSED to empathize with her, to feel her frustration when the hunters dont trust her, her annoyance when her plans go off the rails. we’re supposed to be rooting for her, and more importantly, we’re supposed to be upset when shes overtaken by lilith in the confrontation. we’re supposed to be sad when shes lost, or at least sent back to hell briefly. that to me counts as a death, and imo counts as a tragic one. now ruby 2 is more obvious, ruby in her True Form narratively speaking. shes gone full scammer mode shes mask off we’re supposed to be suspicious of her, shes no longer scamming both us AND the boys, but primarily just the boys, so we are meant to be offput by her. personally i found myself shocked when ruby, a sympathetic character, broke my schema by appearing with black hair and from my perspective making all the right calls in the war on satan, but then WHAM her scheme is revealed and the schema corrects itself when she turns out to be a betrayer AND then dies in a way where we’re supposed to cheer. i miss ruby she was a fun character :(

so all this to say, there are a number of characters that *bend* the schema. but the one that so far in my watch has broken the schema fully is LISA.

i have only seen as far as the season five finale so, no spoilers pls, but if she dies my schema will at least be corrected from Broken back to only Bent. but as it stands she shows NONE of the signs of a typical Black Haired Woman within the schema. she’s a lovable character, we’re meant to root for her, she shows little to no signs of typical Black Haired Woman traits like infidelity or other signs of major sin or corruption. there’s some light implied promiscuity, but never on screen and only many many years before the show began, by the end of season five she has done no wrong by the shows typical definition! she shows no sign of imminent betrayal, she makes no move to harm the boys, she has all the qualities of Blonde Hair within the schema, right down to being boiled down to a bioessentialist “mommy you can fuck” stereotype! she should by all rights have blonde hair!!! so at my point on the timeline i have to assume that EITHER;

1) her death is imminent. beware the doom that follows her lest ye be caught up in it. beware, dean winchester.

or 2) FROM THIS POINT FORWARD THE SCHEMA IS MEANINGLESS.

i logically should have very little issue with lisa, but hoooooo i am PEEVED that shes breaking my schema. when she appeared the first time i was SURE shed die by the end of the episode and when she didnt i was THRILLED!!!! finally a beautiful black haired woman was FREE. a win for the recovering goths everywhere. but now? with her breaking my schema at every turn???? HOO i am peeved. vexed even. hough i am peeved.

so yeah. thats the Schema from seasons one through five. forgive some of the more sexist lingo, when working within my enemy’s text i must resort to using their lexicon.

sometimes i forget just how much supernatural hates women and then i rewatch and im like oh right supernatural fucking loathes women

[jadeittic]

Hi, so if your doing wednesday request ,may I request Xavier Thorpe x wednesday twin brother please?

DEATH OF ME

XAVIER THORPE + MALE!ADDAMS TWIN!READER

In which Wednesday Addams notices that her twin brother might have developed an interest to a familiar artistic schoolmate of theirs.

WARNINGS: swearing, really shitty bcs idk how to write but here u go anyway

YN Addams was known for lots of things. Number one was being Wednesday Addams' twin brother - and being her twin brother came with its pros and cons, but it was bearable (he once almost died due to lack of oxygen due to being locked in a coffin after he dropped a colored pencil on Wednesday's bedroom floor).

Nevertheless, people would expect YN to be a lot like his sister; gothic, obsessed with death, or just to simplify; a gothic sadist.

Gothic, yes, but not too much. YN would rather be naked in public than wear anything with color. One drop of anything other than black or white in the Addams' household and you're dead. Literally.

The obsessiveness with death was up to Wednesday, that's her job. YN Addams was almost the complete opposite. Black and white clothes still make an appearance all the time, but at first glance you wouldn't even spare a thought thinking he'd be an Addams.

One thing that Wednesday dislikes about YN a lot is how he doesn't act as creepily as she does. He was...sweet. Which was weird, considering he was an Addams. YN had this open personality which was just free and happy. He also has this side where if you mess with him, or just piss him off in any way, expect a Wednesday Addams male version. And let me tell you, you do not want him to get mad at you.

And Xavier never really cared about that. Ever since the Addams twins transferred due to...past stuff in the last school, YN caught the artist's attention. He just stood out in the family, is all.

--

FIRST DAY AT NEVERMORE

YN sucked at navigating. Wednesday left him to check out her room with her new roommate which she dreaded to have. YN's been wandering around, trying to find the principal, or just any student at all, when his eyes spotted a boy. this boy had his hair fallen down, almost reaching his shoulders. Blazer's sleeves rolled up with a paintbrush occupying his hand. He was painting.

YN walked up to him and looked at the ladder he was on and hoped that this mysterious boy would notice his presence without him needed to say anything, which didn't work.

"Hey?" YN asks, already seeming to be losing patience in a short amount of time (something the Addams have). YN failed to notice the earbuds he had on due to his beautif-- long hair. He seemed to not see the boy underneath him, until he saw a hand appear in his sight.

Taking off his earbuds and stepping off the ladder, he looked over t the person and took a good look.

"You new here? Haven't really seen you around," he asks, eyes wandering around YN's face. His eyes, which held some sort of emotion he couldn't really place a name on. His hair, plain black, yet so beautiful, such as his clothes and eyes. His lips, placed in a natural frown- Why was he looing at his lips?

"---where they are?" He was soon pulled out of his trance when he saw the soft lips he was just staring at move. Shit, had he been caught?

"Excuse me?"

"I was asking if you know where these classes are? I just transferred here and i have absolutely no idea where anything is." God, Xavier thought he was adorable. Wait, what? Xavier Thorpe, Nevermore's sappy teenager has found an interest to another person whose name he hasn't even known yet?

Xavier saw a chance and he took it. He wanted to know more about this mystery new student in his school. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to have a school crush again, am I right?

"I could give you a tour around the school, if you'd like. I'm free in about an hour." YN wasn't sure with what his answer would be. Would it be worth it? If he'd be honest, he thinks the boy in front of him was a fairly attractive man. Mind you, we get a school tour, and a chat with him.

"Sure. YN Addams.”

“YN Addams…like the Addams family?” Xavier wasn’t trying to be rude, let alone offend YN. He was just…surprised?

YN continued to ignore his question, as he waited for his name. The name he's been wanting to know since he first talked to him.

"Oh- uhm, Xavier. My name's Xavier Thorpe." Xavier Thorpe. It had a nice ring to it, if YN would be completely honest.

"I'll wait for you, Xavier Thorpe."

--

Ever since then, they've been inseparable. As so would say, "Thorpe and Addams, what an unusual pair", was now old news to them. Little did they know they've been yearning for love. Love for one another.

At this point, Wednesday had noticed. The long stares at each other when one isn't looking, their seats getting closer and closer by the day, And oh god, don't even make her think about the desperate gazes at their lips. It was like she was watching some romantic show, which she hated. A lot.

Wednesday wanted to talk to YN about this, but of course, he'd be busy because he'd be 'hanging out with Xavier at his shed', and that he'd be 'making it up to you soon, just don't worry about it, yeah?'.

Now was the perfect timing. Now with Enid gone somewhere around the school, Xavier busy being in detention, YN was just hanging out with his sister. Wednesday's been writing for the past hour, and just couldn't stop herself from asking,

"Do you find Xavier Thorpe intriguing?"

Looking up from the uninteresting book yn got from his sister’s desk, to her shadowed eyes, which held interest into her brother’s answer to her question.

“What?”

“Do you like him?” there’s no way YN is going to get away without answering her question, should he tell her? Not that she’d care, but YN was just worried. Which again, might not be an Addams trait.

“Tell him.” what?

"what?” YN repeated again. Wednesday never really took anyone’s emotions to heart, constantly just ignoring them and would sooner forget them. Why was she telling him to tell Xavier?

“Go. Tell him what he needs to be told.” it was like Wednesday was begging for her brother to leave and tell Xavier. She’s been there in the ups and downs of their friendship and she’s noticed their feelings develop into something bigger. She’d never admit it, but she really does hope it works out for her brother and her… friend?

After a long moment of silence, YN stood up from his spot and headed to the door. He could no longer feel the stare of his sisters while he walked through the empty room. A moment of gratitude was shared in the silence, they both will remember that forever.

God, YN didn’t even know what he’d say. What if he makes a complete fool of himself? Would Xavier hate him after he finds out? would he still even accept YN as a fr-

Knock, knock, knock.

YN realises he’s never left the room, he was just in front of the door, completely overthinking his whole situation. YN's forgot about Wednesday being in the room, until she pointed out that someone has knocked the door.

What YN didn't expect is that Xavier was at the door, Xavier Thorp, knocking at Wednesday addams’ room door. Why?

“Oh, hey. Figured you were here, can we talk?” Xavier wants to talk? about what? Was it the same reason YN wanted to talk to him about as well?

Walking out of the room and closing the door behind, the pair refused to look at each other. It was as if they were both nervous about something. Well, YN was. And Xavier didn’t know that, neither did YN know Xavier’s been feeling nervous ever since the start of the day.

“What’s up?” YN first spoke up. Fuck, the silence was deafening. YN just wanted to tell xavier how he feels and just kiss his soft li-

“I’ve been wanting to tell you this for a really, really long time, and I am so fucking sure you’re going to hate me for this. I just like you, like a lot. And its not just in a platonic and friendly way, I like you romantically and I just want us to be more than what we are now. You can hate me it’s fine, I just wanted to tell you-“

“Xavier-“

“About how I feel because it’s just so hard keeping my feelings when you’re being so stupidly perfect. your stupid hair, your stupid eyes, your stupid lips that I just want to fee-“

“I like you too.”

“See? I like you too! And I just hope, I just really hope that you’d- what did you just say?”

“I like you too, Xavier Thorpe.”

Wide grins were painted on the pair’s faces. So wide their cheeks were starting to hurt, but they couldn’t care less because of what just happened.

“You do?” Xavier’s eyes were going glossy, in disbelief that this is all happening. The love of his life-YN Addams, likes him back. YN nodded sheepishly, now embarrassed that Xavier knew.

“You’re going to be the death of me, YN Addams.”

[writingforatwistedworld]

Phantom bride event-Player is their last option Pt.5

Characters: Epel Felmier, Ace Trappola, Riddle Rosehearts

Self-aware au

I do not take any responsibility for you reading this no matter which age group you are from!

WARNINGS: Yandere themes, violence, murder, killing, blood, death, possessiveness, imprisonment, kidnapping, obsession

Oh dear.... oh boy....

Ok, you enter, make him think he ascended to haven because he can see you in such clothing and then crashes like a caffeine addict after they don't get enough of their stuff after realizing that... well... you are more or less a sacrifice

So, Epel is panicking, you are proposing, the world ends in his eyes

All these hours upon hours upon hours of praying just to see his God die is something he had hoped to never witness

But, oh happy day, here we are

If you were just here proposing then he would just have the urge to... uh poison and put you into a glass coffin

But congrats! He is way too scared for your safety to do that

One good thing at least....

Epel is devastated

Even if he could move he would still be absolutely useless!

A small, weak guy like himself could never change anything about the situation

And look at the competition! She is literally royalty!

But, oh well, even royalty can be disposed off

The poisoned apple is a powerfull tool after all

Do not understimate him

Once he is free again he will find a way to harm her and keep you to himself. Only him. Him. Him alone. Did I mention he will find a way to bind you to him?

Oh uh…. how about we call a doctor?

My man over here looks everything else but good

Why? Can't you see the color of his face??!

All I can say that he plans to show Crowley his opinion on sending you as the last DEFENSELESS person

He painted the roses red, And many tears the crow shed, He dare not to stop, Or spare a drop, …. (Cheesus!!! What the heck did I create here??!)

But *ahem* bloodlust aside, he is terrefied

What if you get hurt?

Or even worse, you might even mean those words!!!

And he is also at fault for your situation!!!

If only he had tried harder! If only he didn’t try to act all above and better than her...

And also, for some reason he feels like he is failing you

Not only as a friend

But also if he was someone responsible for your safety

Then again, he was raised with the believe that you are the true ruler, the hidden monarch, of the Queendom of roses

So in other words, you got a friend who will end anbody if you wish so

Oh and also, he will lock you up for your own safety. Just some unimportant information here.... RUN!

I have never seen him so pale

No joke, all the blood which rushes up to his head when he is angry (QUESTION MARK) Gone.

My man has gone pale

Red Queen? More like white Queen!

*sigh* When will I ever get in my head that the live-action… ok, moving on

But then again you could die

So his worries are somewhat understandable

If only he wouldn’t feel so guilty….

He made a promise to Draconia, to save his dorm member and failed

Now you had to pay the price for his pathetic attempt at saving Lilia

Fire is a bit useless if your opponents are ghosts….

Oh and his dreams could die just now

Riddle knew that loving the hidden monarch was a bit much even for Queendom of Roses standarts but it is what it is

The Queen likes the crow red, If he saw black instead, He’d raise a fuss, And the crow under us, Would quickly loose his head…. God, I need to stop…

Safe to say that Crowley is in danger like never before….

And maybe uh... leave the place before he forces you upon that throne back home because then that was your last free second

[ct-multifandom]

the REAL scary part of this episode

I know we’re all excited about Luka secretly knowing the truth, and how hilarious CrocoJagged was, but this episode dropped a much, much more subtle bomb that scared me more than anything. I’ve already seen people talking about it so some of this will be repeated, but allow me to lay some puzzle pieces out on the table.

This. This drawing. What. The. Heck. Is. This. Adrien’s blue eyed mother and green eyed, brown haired, smiling father? Something is super fishy.

I saw someone mention Adrien’s line in Simon Says, “you’ve got her eyes”. I’m aware that this line is very different in different dubs, but in English, he tells Ladybug that her eyes remind him of his mother. Ladybug’s blue eyes. We were all so confused by why he would say this, but I think we finally got our answer. It was just a subconscious slip of the tongue on his part, and he didn’t even realize anything was wrong, but oh boy could it mean everything.

After seeing all this is I was shaken and I started re-evaluating everything we know about Adrien’s family. First up: when have we actually seen Emilie in the show?

And here I noticed something that looks like it could be very clever trickery. We can probably safely say that she did indeed star in Solitude as the opening credits of the film suggest. But. Everything related to this movie is in black and white. Interesting. When else do we see Emilie? In a coffin. With her eyes closed.

And here, in Andre’s repressed dreams box? We’d assume that that’s the same person, but notice the black blazer.

Just the type Amelie Graham de Vanily wears. Who has green eyes. And looks identical to her deceased sister. And even has an oddly similar name. And just so happens to be conniving, scheming about something that we don’t know about yet aside from it being related to the twin rings. Let’s pull up some pictures of Emilie from around the Agreste household.

All green-eyed and white blazer-ed. This is the woman who Gabriel looks up at obsessively, who holds Adrien’s hand and makes him smile... but who is she?

Here are some statements I believe to be true:

There is a blue eyed woman and a green eyed woman

There is a white blazer woman and a black blazer woman

The blue eyed woman is Adrien’s mother

The green eyed woman served as a mother figure to Adrien and a partner to Gabriel

There is a green eyed, black blazer wearing woman alive and scheming against Gabriel

We don’t know the eye color of the dead woman, but her blazer is white

Let me also bring to attention Amelie’s son, Felix, who looks exactly like Adrien, and Felix’s recently deceased father, who is a mystery.

I don’t have any solid theories as to what this suspiciousness all adds up to, but here are some ideas:

Emilie and Amelie have such similar names because sometimes, when we think someone is saying the name of one, they’re actually referring to the other and hiding it in plain sight

The woman in the opening scene of Solitude is Amelie, not Emilie, the main star

The woman in the coffin has blue eyes, thus is Adrien’s true mother

Kinda crack-y: The five-petaled brooch on the white blazer is a disguised miraculous. All charged miraculous have five separate sections, and the butterfly and peacock, both in the possession of the Agrestes, are brooches. We know Gabriel sells a copy of this design in his store since it became Vanisher’s akuma object, and the only other jewelry design we’ve seen from him has been a copy of the fox miraculous.

Cont. I’m not sure if we’ve ever seen the peacock miraculous actually disguised on Gabe, but it’s possible that either the jewel in the cabinet is his disguise mode and the flower is the green eyed woman’s, OR that’s her disguised peacock miraculous and the one she’s wearing in the photo is her disguised butterfly.

The blue eyed woman used to wear a black blazer, and the green eyed woman used to wear a white blazer, but after the blue eyed woman’s death, she was dressed in the other’s clothing and the green eyed woman donned her clothes and replaced her

The deceased man Felix calls his father is the green-eyed man Adrien remembered in his wish

I know how much you guys love hearing sentimonster theories, but the show is clearly foreshadowing something here, that’s undeniable. The peacock miraculous has been in the family for what, fifteen years? At some point it was used until it broke, and supposedly that’s what killed the woman in the coffin. What do we have here? Two boys with different parents who look exactly the same, two women who look exactly the same save for one trait, twin rings shrouded in mystery that the GdV family really wants back for some reason, a devoted bodyguard who never speaks, an even more devoted secretary who’s been around forever and whose last name means “without a heart”, a blue eyed man obsessed with serving and protecting a woman to the point of madness, and last but not least, the fifteen-ish y/o boy who doesn’t remember his childhood and feels like he was literally made to be his parents’ image of perfection.

It could even be more than one of them. You know that whole thing about how kids can only use the special power once, but adults don’t have that limit? Maybe making one true human using the miraculous is enough to break it, but maybe it’s not. Maybe you need to really exert it to hit that barrier.

This is all just me spitballing, so I’d love to hear other people’s ideas, but there is, without a doubt, something mad suspicious going on with these people. Keep in mind that I also don’t remember every line of dialogue from the show. There could be stuff disproving me, or stuff that was cleverly said in a vague way on purpose to hide the truth. Otherwise, I hope the episode Gabriel Agreste could shine some light on our missing puzzle pieces such as the rings, the movie Solitude, the mysterious Tsurugi family, and even the Bourgeois.

[from-a-reckless-writer]

ii. secret.

read on ao3

Lena Luthor dies a villain.

Her death took out half the population in the vicinity. A blinding white light piercing through the National City skyline. A deafening boom heard 5 cities over. An explosion so great, even Supergirl was knocked dead.

And so, Lena Luthor dies a villain.

Alone and young. And so, so bitter. An accomplice and ally to Lex Luthor.

Some would even say she was a greater, far more cunning, far more terrifying force than Lex.

There were rumors that the woman had magic at the end of it all. That no one person could be capable of that much destruction without the help of something inhuman.

But well, rumors were all it can be, especially when all possible witnesses perished along with the Luthors.

******

Weeks later, Andrea Rojas holds a memorial event for Lena Luthor; protesters burn the venue to the ground.

Months later, Supergirl returns to the world. More radiant than ever. More alive than ever. Stronger. Better.

Years later, National City recovers fully from the whole catastrophe.

Supergirl is reported to most frequently be seen in the memorial square for the fallen victims. A dozen paparazzi pictures of the caped heroine quietly walking, sometimes whispering under breath.

Praying, somebody on a CatCo article comments. She’s always praying whenever we see her there.

****** The closet doors burst open and out steps Alex Danvers.

A colorful stream of expletives coming right along with her, “Fuckin’ fur coats, goddamn hangers, fucking hitting me in the face—”

“Took you long enough,” a familiar voice greets her, “where the hell have you been? And why are you so...dirty? If you track mud on my carpet I swear to God, Alex—”

“I was cleaning your grave, okay?” she snaps, setting down a bucket filled with various cleaning supplies, that Lena’s just now noticing, on said carpet.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Alex huffs about, crossing her arms, “You don’t have to make a big deal about it. I don’t want to do it again, it’s a bitch for my back pain. I was just pissed about the graffiti. You’d think people would have better manners than defacing the grave of a dead woman. If only they—”

“Thank you, Alex,” she cuts her off, a shy smile gracing her face. She really doesn’t want to hear about the rest of it. And if Alex doesn’t want to make a big deal out of it, then no big deal shall be made.

“There’s coffee in the kitchen,” she says then, and Alex just nods, grabs her bucket of supplies again and turns to leave.

Although not before saying, “Remind me again why you let Kara win? With the portal?”

Lena just shrugs, dark hair escaping out of her messy bun at the movement.

“She said she’s always wanted to go to Narnia.”

Alex shakes her head, rolls her eyes, “Whipped.”

And well, that sounds about right.

******

There’s a documentary on Netflix about the Luthors. Lena’s face in black and white, on the preview banner, a big red X drawn over it.

Kara snaps the remote in half.

Lena reaches over the blanket, grabs her hand, flicks the TV off with only a swish of her fingers and a glitter of sparks.

“C’mere,” she says, tugging gently, till she has a lapful of Krytonian draped over her. Lena traces her fingers over the crinkle between Kara’s brow, smooths them out, thumb dragging across lips till it pulls to a soft smile.

“We know the truth,” she tells her, “and that’s enough.”

“It’s not fair.”

Nothing ever is.

******

“How’re the kids?” She asks, one hand whisking eggs, the other holding the bowl steady.

“Oh, you know, asking me a thousand silly questions a day. Driving Alex crazy. Never letting me sleep. They’re perfect, really,” Kelly says, and Lena hums in response. Before she catches Kelly popping a blueberry in her mouth, a crime punishable by Lena Luthor’s death stare.

“Those are for the muffins.” A foam covered whisk points dangerously to Kelly’s chest.

She raises both arms in surrender, palms opening, dropping the remaining three blueberries onto the counter.

“You know, I’ve seen you do it a thousand times, yet it still doesn’t fail to surprise me.”

Lena concludes she’s talking about the baking tray hovering in the air, a feet away from them, greasing itself. Or maybe it’s the soup at the stove with a ladle stirring itself.

“What can I say,” Lena quips, smirking, “I’m magical like that.”

******

Andrea finds her on a Tuesday.

One minute Lena is reading quietly on her front porch, the next, there is an explosion of sound in her living room. She throws open her door, magical energy sizzling at her fingertips.

The sight that greets her stops her in her tracks. Acrata pinning Supergirl down, their coffee table destroyed. She sighs internally, she loved that coffee table. It was a wedding gift from Nia and Brainy.

“I knew it,” Andrea whispers, her grip slackens around the hero's throat. She stands up slowly, as if afraid that if she moved too fast Lena would disappear. She leaves Supergirl gasping on the floor; materializes in front of Lena in a cloud of black smoke.

“I knew it. I knew it. I knew it.” She sobs into Lena’s blouse, arms wrapped tightly around her. Lena embraces her on instinct, her eyes closing briefly, before opening up again to check on Kara dusting herself off.

“Andrea,” Lena croaks, “you can’t tell anyone.”

You can’t tell anyone I’m alive. You can’t tell anyone how I tricked Lex, how I saved Supergirl, how I saved National City.

“Nobody will know,” Andrea promises her.

******

There is a cottage by the woods that nobody else sees, where every Sunday a blonde woman rips apart pieces of wood with her bare hands, where a pale woman with even paler hands grows crops from the barren earth within seconds, where the closet hides cities instead of clothes, where a dead woman and a hero spend their lives in bliss.

******

It has been ten years, her hair is more gray than blonde now, her skin more wrinkled than smooth, her hearing though? Her hearing is still better than ever. And it has been ten years since she’s heard that tell-tale whoosh of a cape, it’s been a decade and still, the sound brings her the same thrill, the same adrenaline.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Supergirl? Or should I say, Superwoman, now?”

And oh-

She did not come alone.

Lena Luthor is set gently down on the balcony.

If Cat Grant wasn’t Cat Grant, she’s sure she would’ve already suffered a heart attack from the mere sight of a woman long dead standing breathing and alive in her home. She would’ve shrieked and demanded answers.

“I need a favor,” Kara tells her, stalking closer, hand on her hip. Cat would’ve laughed at that if this were some other time. No need to play the intimidating game with me, Kiera, she would’ve said.

“What is it?”

“I need you to break a story,” she tells her. “You, Cat. I want you, and nobody else to cover this.”

Cat raises her brow at that, she already has an inkling as to what the story might be about.

“A story hmm? This better be good, if I’m to come out of retirement for it.”

This time it’s Lena Luthor who speaks. Cat has been dying to hear what she has to say.

“It’ll be good," she promises her, "It’ll be better than good."

Kara crowds closer to Lena, then; wraps a protective arm on her waist. Cat watches frozen as Lena's index finger lights in flame. What a sight they make.

"You’ll be telling the entire world the last Luthor’s secret.”