#sing great dragon palace

[showamagicalgirls]

Mirrors are an important recurring motif in early magical girl stories.

Sing! Great Dragon Palace (うたう！大龍宮城)

[gulnarsultan]

[Request]

This post was inspired by @floatyflowers blog.

🐉Yandere husband Jaehaerys i Targaryen and female cousin reader.🐉

~ You were born on Dragonstone in 32 AC, the first and only child of Prince Maegor Targaryen and Ceryse Hightower. You were the precious jewel of your parents. Your grandmother Visenya Targaryen adored you. The dragon egg left in your cradle hatched and a baby dragon with ruby ​​red and gold scales and dark blue eyes emerged from inside. You named your dragon Starlight.

~ Ever since you were a baby, your grandmother Visenya has taken you flying on her dragon. Vhagar seems to really love you. You have a special bond with your grandmother. She teaches you the history of Valyria and the High Valyrian language.

~ Your father Maegor always carries you on his shoulders, arms and back. He always calls you "baby dragon". You love watching him train. Whenever you are watching, your father Maegor shows off. You and your father have a wonderful father-daughter relationship.

~ You have a wonderful mother-daughter relationship with your mother Ceryse. It is important for the two of you to do activities such as combing your hair and braiding it in different ways, reading you stories, teaching you how to embroider, and walking in the garden together. She never forgets to sing songs to you while she strokes your hair.

~ Your parents and grandmother worry a lot when you are sick. Your health, safety, and happiness are their top priorities.

~ You get along well with your step-uncle Aenys, his wife Alyssa, and their children. You are especially close to Jaehaerys and Alysanne. Playtimes together are organized by your families.

~ You were loved by the common people and the Lords and Ladies of the great houses. You were loved and accepted by everyone because of your beauty, kindness, and intelligence.

~ Prince Jaehaerys has been in love with you since you were both children. He always makes gestures like giving you small gifts, holding your hand, and kissing your cheek.

~ Your father's second marriage was a heavy blow to you. Your grandmother's support especially upset you. To be honest, you distanced yourself from your grandmother for a while.

~ After a while, things got better between you. However, your father still held grudges against you. After a while, your older cousins ​​got married and it ended in disaster. Rebellions started and your uncle got sick and died soon after. Your father came and usurped the throne.

~ You stayed with your father when he was in a coma. You were angry and resentful towards him. But he was still your father. Shortly after your father woke up, your cousin Aegon killed him.

~ Several events happened in a few years. Your father's second wife and the house were destroyed. Your cousin Viserys was killed on your father's orders. You lost your grandmother Visneya and a year later your mother Ceryse. This was a great grief and loss for you. You helped your cousins ​​Jaehaerys and Alysaane escape and escape.

~ Your father married three more women. However, they were also unsuccessful in producing an heir. After this, he turned his full attention to you. He forbade you from leaving the palace or riding your dragon. You could not even leave your room without his permission. One evening he came to your room and apologized for everything. The next morning your father was found dead on his throne. You could not help shedding tears for him.

~ Jaehaerys returned and ascended the throne shortly afterwards. He asked you to stay in the palace and support him. You were not in love with Jaehaerys, to be honest. However, you loved him as a cousin and a friend. And you liked him. A few years later, the issue of Jaehaerys having an heir was discussed. Jaehaerys came to your room one evening and proposed to you.

~ You were surprised by the proposal, to be honest. However, Jaehaerys was a truly persuasive man. You were soon married with a magnificent wedding. You were not allowed to ride your dragon without him. There were servants who watched your every move without you knowing and reported it to the King. You were always surrounded by guards and ladies-in-waiting. Jaehaerys spent all the time he had left after his duties with you. He worshipped you. He silently got rid of his rivals.

~ He would never raise his hand or voice to you. His punishments were emotional. He was a master of manipulation and guilt. He made sure you spent most of your time with him. You had more than one child together. Jaehaerys was obsessed with seeing you with a round belly full of his child.

~ Your children inherited their father's obsession with you. They all wanted your attention, your love, your approval. They all had different shaipe attitudes.

[neptuneiris]

brooklyn baby (01/?)

i've got my eye on you

pairing: rockstar!aemond × fem!reader

summary: you go with your cousins to a concert of the band "Dragon Dynasty" in Brooklyn, although you are not a fan of the band, the guitarist catches your attention.

word count: 7.7k

series masterlist • next part

hello beautiful people, here I am again with a new fic! I'm so happy and very excited to start this, I hope you like it a lot, that you enjoy it and I'm looking forward to your support and your comments that I always love to answer:) seriously you guys are amazing!

I still don't know how many chapters this story will have but it won't be more than 10, so wait for them. thank you very much for reading loves, enjoy!

warnings: none yet.

He is so majestic.

It's the first thing you think when the band finally comes out on stage and the concert starts, causing the screams of a bunch of girls all around you all over the place, all of them joined by your cousins, Baela and Rhaena.

You don't even understand how the three of you managed to make it to the front, just Baela and Rhaena acted in survival mode and started dragging you all over the place, making their way through the crowd to get face to face with all the band members.

And now… you're sure that by the time this is all over, tomorrow the two of them won't have a voice because of all the screaming.

At first you thought it would just be another band that doesn't have a big audience and that even though it's a band you don't know, you'd still have a good time. Although it's not like it was an option not to come, your cousins literally forced you to.

However, you're surprised to see that the place is full and all the girls are going crazy, as well as your cousins already made sure to tell you all about the band, tell you what you need to know and show you their favorite songs all the way here.

Basically the band, Dragon Dynasty, just debuted at the end of last year and is already getting some pretty good recognition.

And not only for the music, but also for the appearance… peculiar, of all the members.

When Rhaena showed you pictures of all of them, either as a group or individually, you understood the obsession of both of them. They all have platinum hair and look as if they had stepped out of the very palace of the Greek Gods, all absolutely attractive and very sexy.

And now seeing them in person, just a few feet away from you, is very different from seeing them in their social media photos.

The lead singer, Aegon Targaryen, is the one who introduces all the band members and starts the concert. And every time he approaches the edge of the stage, the girls again scream, as they scream at every verse he sings.

Then Rhaena records and focuses more on the bass player, Luke, with his short platinum hair and sitting on one of the speakers, focused on his notes. While Baela, of course, focuses on the drummer named Jace, Luke's older brother.

You understand from the great information your cousins gave you about all of them that they are all brothers, except that Jace and Luke are cousins of the vocalist Aegon, the piano guy and the guy who plays the electric guitar, the last three being brothers.

You focus for a moment on the piano guy, who from Baela's information, he is the same age as Jace. He definitely has an incredible resemblance to his brothers and from time to time he smiles towards the crowd, or rather towards the girls, who of course scream and go completely crazy with those simple gestures.

But when you look at him… the guitarist… you immediately can't take your eyes off him.

When your cousins showed you the pictures of all of them, it was precisely him who caught your attention the most of all, Aemond Targaryen.

At first you thought that his pictures with that aesthetic on him were just for the band, as a way to draw attention, however, Rhaena explained to you that he doesn't really have a left eye.

In some photos he has a black patch on and in some others he doesn't, so instead there is a shiny ocean blue stone, like a sapphire, inside where his eye should be. And when Rhaena explained to you that this is how he really lives, it definitely caught your attention a lot more.

But not only for that, also for his style of clothes, whether they were black or black with white, as well as his expressions in the photos did not really show much.

In all of them he didn't look at the camera, he was always looking away with a serene and serious look at the same time, to show himself in the same way every time he looked at the camera with his guitar at all times and his platinum hair long and completely loose.

And now to see him in person… he still looks the same way, serious and completely focused on his guitar, except for his brothers and cousins who focus on the audience from time to time, but not him.

And just like that, you can't take your eyes off of him, as if he were an invisible attractive force, delighted by the way he focuses on playing his notes, his fingers moving across the strings and his bare arms showing you some tattoos on his pale skin.

Everything about him… it's just alluring, sexy, mysterious and at the same time… dangerous, as if it's not right to involve you somehow with him, but being so striking and exciting at the same time.

"They're great, huh?"

Baela shouts to you over the music, with a huge excited smile, as you nod, really unable to stop focusing on him.

"Yes, they are."

Actually the band is really good, regardless of the looks of the members, because what looks.

The songs are like a mix of Arctic Monkeys, The Neighbourhood, Cigarettes After Sex and some Lana del Rey type instrumentals, they also have more danceable songs in the style of The 1975, but all with cool guitar and drum instrumentals.

You really like them, the style of their music is to your liking, but again… you can't help but focus on him.

The concert lasts a little more than an hour, where during some little intermissions, you saw how he was lighting a cigarette and playing the guitar at the same time, so it was more and more impossible to take your eyes off him, listening how sometimes the girls were shouting his name and he was greeting them back with a simple nod of his head, that being enough to drive them crazy.

And by the time everything ends, the vocalist Aegon starts to say goodbye to all the members with an euphoria and an energy that he gave off all over the audience so that they would react in the same way.

"I want to hear loud cheers for our drummer, Jace!"

Baela screams like crazy next to you, leaving you completely stunned, as well as more girls around you, while the mentioned stands up from his seat and waves goodbye to all of them, smiling.

"To our pianist, my little brother, Daeron!"

More shouts, as he also waves goodbye with his hands and with a charming and flirtatious smile to all the girls, moving closer to the stage, that making many girls come closer to the edge, wanting to touch him, as he laughs and takes several of them by the hand.

"To our bassist, Luke!"

Rhaena is now the one who leaves you stunned from your left ear, as more girls shout, while the boy smiles and looks a little shy, looking very cute, waving goodbye to all of them with his hand, then lowering his gaze with his cheeks slightly blushing.

You see how Aemond next to him gives him a friendly tap on his shoulder, watching him with a small half smile and looking somewhat amused by his behavior, that catching your attention a lot, since you didn't see him smile much towards his audience.

"Now for our guitarist, Aemond!"

You clap, but don't shout, seeing how immediately the place is filled with screams and more applause, realizing that even though he's not very expressive and doesn't react much to the audience, still the girls are completely crazy about him.

And you don't blame them, it's obvious that's because of how incredibly handsome and sexy that man is.

However, even so he doesn't react much again to his applause, only waves goodbye with one of his hands, really watching everyone expressionless, reading on his lips as he says "thank you" and then turns around and picks up a bottle of water.

You bite your lips, still watching him, when finally Aegon gives the closing.

"And at last your server, ladies!" says the vocalist in a flirtatious manner, again the place exploding in cheers, "That's been all Brooklyn, thank you so much for having us. See you next time, we love you guys!"

He does get closer to the audience, instantly the guards react to take care of him, while he takes everyone's hands and also takes some bracelets or necklaces that the girls give him, while he smiles and blows kisses.

The rest of the members start to leave the stage, while Aegon continues to take all the screams and those little gifts, really getting along very well with the audience, to finally after a few moments, say goodbye and leave the stage.

"Did you like them?"

Rhaena asks you as the three of them stand, waiting for all the other girls to leave the not so big but not so small club.

"Yes, their songs are fine," you nod to her.

"Their songs or the guitarist rather?" Baela asks you with a mischievous look.

"Oh come on," you give her a look of few friends, still nerves giving you away.

"I knew it!" squeals Rhaena with a huge smile, "I knew you weren't more asking about him than the others for nothing."

"And I don't blame you," adds Baela, "With those tattoos who wouldn't be crazy about him?"

"But you like Jace and he doesn't have tattoos."

"Aemond is fine, like exaggeratedly fine," she clarifies, "But I feel like I wouldn't stand a chance with him, plus he's too serious and too closed off for my taste," she explains.

"But Y/N did like him," Rhaena says, folding her arms, watching you with a huge smile.

You roll your eyes, amused.

"I think the same as Baela, I feel like I wouldn't be able to get close to him, he looks very… serious and distant," you say finally, " Beside it's not like I'm going to get the chance, he's just a guy in a band that I liked, just like I like Harry and Zayn from One Direction or Alex Turner from Arctic Monkeys."

"Oh he's so hot," Rhaena says with a little giggle.

"Who of the three of them?" asks Baela.

"The three of them."

You nod, more than agreeing with her.

"Anyway…" says Balea, "Turning our focus back to this band, maybe you can get close to the sexy guitarist tonight."

"Hm?" you say instantly not understanding, looking at her confused.

Then from her bag Baela pulls out what appear to be three rectangular sheets of paper, but when you look closely, they are actually three tickets to who knows what.

"These are tickets to the band's after party," she says excitedly.

At first you don't finish processing anything, watching her like a fool, when Rhaena squeals more than happy and in disbelief, instantly grabbing you both by the arm to rush out of the club in the direction of the party, while you're still processing and asking Baela how she got those tickets.

"Savings," she tells you simply and without much explanation.

Leaving the club is a bit difficult because of all the other girls who are also trying to leave, when the three of you are already arriving at the corresponding small pub where the after party will be, which in fact is right behind the club where the band gave the concert, so getting there doesn't take any time at all.

Once outside the pub, there are other girls waiting to get in, all excited and impatient, some of them have their own band t-shirts and posters for the band to sign. And at the entrance there are two huge men, asking for tickets and complying with security protocol to let them in.

"Help me take a picture with Luke when it's my turn, please," Rhaena asks you.

"Sure."

"Me too," Baela says instantly, "With Jace."

"Okay," you tell her amused.

Then finally all three of you hand the tickets to the seemingly bodyguard, only to enter without any trouble as you go through security protocols as well.

Rhaena shakes you by the arm excitedly, trying to control herself, as the three of you walk into the place, where you instantly recognize those platinum hairs spread all over the pub, already receiving the fans.

The place is considerably spacious, it doesn't feel as suffocating as at the concert and there's definitely more room to move around despite the fact that more girls are constantly coming in to meet the guys.

The bar is free, there is light rock music playing in the background and there are more bodyguards watching out.

You see how all the fans line up and wait their turn with each respective member, being the first to recognize the vocalist, Aegon, who more than smiling signs T-shirts, posters, hats and even phone cases. Also the pianist, Daeron, who takes selfies and also signs.

But when Rhaena identifies Luke, she quickly squeals and prepares to go to him with her T-shirt ready to be signed by him in hand, as does Baela, focusing on Jace.

You walk Rhaena over first, promising Baela to keep an eye out for her for when it's her turn with Jace, then start lining up, trying to calm your cousin's nerves as you sense she'll throw up at any moment or be unable to speak coherently to the bassist.

Then when Rhaena gets distracted on her phone, setting up the camera for pictures, you instantly think of the guitarist and start looking for him.

However, the only ones you see are Aegon, Daeron, Luke and Jace, with no fifth long platinum hair. Confused, you go back over the whole place, really him nowhere to be seen, realizing that there are girls specifically with posters of him, also just like you looking for him, all of them confused and disappointed.

And you don't understand, isn't he supposed to be here too?

You find it strange that out of all of them, it is him especially who doesn't make any appearance, while all the other members do attend to their fans, apparently not worried about the absence of their guitarist or anyone else actually, just the fans.

Inevitably you also start to get disappointed, but you immediately focus on Rhaena, as her turn will be soon and she insists that you help her calm down, giving her encouragement and support.

When the time comes.

The boy, Luke, is actually very sweet, instantly giving his full attention to Rhaena, who acts just as shy as he is, looking excited as the two gently embrace, while he asks her name and introduces himself to her as well.

He signs her T-shirt, also her phone case, all while they both talk, to then move on to the selfie and finally the photo, while you watch with a small smile as the boy's cheeks blush and Rhaena is more than excited and nervous at the same time, hugging him and smiling for the photo.

"This is my cousin, by the way, Y/N," Rhaena shyly introduces you to him as they both separate.

"Oh, hi Y/N, I'm Luke," the boy says to you with a charming smile, not being able to cause you more tenderness, "Thanks for coming."

"Hi," you say smiling, "Nice to meet you, Luke."

You take advantage of the moment and also take a selfie with him and Rhaena, where the three of you come out all smiles, without his cheeks stop blushing, and then pass the next fan.

Rhaena can't stop smiling, again shaking your arm excitedly and on the verge of collapsing with happiness, as she quickly goes through the photos, announcing that she will upload them to her Instagram stories this instant.

You laugh and then she heads off to line up to meet Daeron now, while you now head to Baela.

Unlike with Rhaena and Luke, you can clearly identify your cousin's flirting methods and surprisingly Jace reacts completely to her, looking just as flirty as she does, talking in her ear and both of them very close to each other.

You take their picture and get excited for your cousin, seeing how both of them even after the picture talk to each other, still very close, with that clear interest in the body behavior of both of them, but more of him towards her.

And you don't blame him either, no doubt your cousins are very beautiful, you always tell them every day and they tell you too.

At the end Baela also introduces you with Jace, he also looking very nice and friendly like his little brother, just not as cute, but very sexy.

Then after finishing with Jace, Baela turns to Rhaena, getting her in line to meet Daeron where both of them will now help each other with the pictures, so you head to the bar, taking a seat on one of the stools, observing everything and taking the opportunity to order a free drink.

"Can I have a gin and tonic, please?" you ask the bar tender.

"Of course," the man says politely.

While he prepares your drink, you take the opportunity to check your social media, entertaining yourself for a moment and also looking at the time, realizing that it's almost midnight, so you'll probably be home by two in the morning.

You let out a long breath and at that moment the bar tender hands you the gin and tonic, you thank him and start drinking, relaxing and keeping your eye on your cousins.

When at that moment you remember him again, Aemond, so hopefully you look around the place again, looking for him, but you are surprised to see that there is still no sign of him, really confusing you.

The girls who were also looking for him before, line up to take pictures with Aegon, but like you, they also seem to be looking for him, without success.

It continues to seem weird to you and you feel really disappointed, just realizing in that instant how terribly disappointed you are, as if you've been a fan of his for months, when you've only just met him tonight, telling yourself what the hell is wrong with you.

So time passes, you watch as your cousins after meeting Daeron, head to Aegon, nothing really being quick as they take their time with each fan, until you finish your gin and tonic, not ordering anything else as you must be driving and stand at the bar, waiting.

It's until a few minutes later that you decide to go to the restroom, asking the bar tender where they are and he points you to a hallway at the back, instantly thanking him and heading that way.

You see how in the hallway there are four doors and you head to the two at the back, having the signs for the women's restroom and men's restroom, but when you try to open the door, it doesn't open, being occupied, realizing that it's only one restroom instead of several.

You let out a long breath, as this is common in small pubs, having to wait in the hallway, leaning against the wall for the girl inside to come out.

Again you distract yourself with your phone, holding back the urge to pee, trying not to get desperate, glancing from time to time through the hallway entrance at all the girls out there, being able to see your cousins from this distance, not long before it's their turn to meet Aegon.

You bite your lips and continue to wait, when as you are leaning between the wall and under the frame of one of the other doors that you have no idea where they go, it suddenly opens and you almost lose your balance, stabilizing yourself instantly and moving away, watching the person with some surprise and shame.

When the nerves and the surprise invade you completely, seeing that it is him, the guitarist.

He really looks at you without any expression on his face, while you place the appropriate distance between the two of you in this small hallway, still looking at him surprised and like an idiot, instantly telling yourself off to act normal, still watching him carefully.

And how could you not? The man is absolutely beautiful.

Compared to the concert, you have him face to face, his features being more than perfectly visible, admiring the shape of his lips and nose, as if it had been carefully carved, then nervously observing his intense blue eye and his sapphire eye, looking amazing and beautiful to you.

Then you quickly observe his various tattoos on both arms, recognizing a musical note, tree branches, birds, a moon and other figures you don't instantly identify, but you notice perfectly how he has a dragon on his shoulder.

Again you look him in the eye, getting instantly nervous because he is already watching you intensely, looking away from him because of the same nerves, having no idea how to really react since he doesn't move, neither do you and you feel unable to speak, feeling a lump in your throat.

He is simply too handsome and too sexy.

You think in the midst of all your nervousness, when the two of you are simply there, not far away but not too close either, suddenly feeling the hallway too small and feeling out of nowhere suffocated, not understanding what's wrong with you.

"Are there many people out there?"

He asks you suddenly, definitely not expecting that, as he stands still in the doorway, watching you, while you barely process the sound of his voice, watching him like an idiot for a moment.

React!

Your mind reprimands you, really not wanting to embarrass yourself with him, much less when he's just asked you something.

You clear your throat and control yourself, to look back towards the center of the pub, where there are indeed a lot of girls and there are many especially who want to see him. You bite your lips and return your nervous, attentive gaze to him, realizing that he hasn't even come out into the hallway, keeping himself hidden in that room.

"Yes," you finally say to him, trying to sound like a normal person, not letting your nerves completely get the better of you.

He lets out a long breath, then averts his gaze from yours and you watch as he carefully peeks out of the doorframe, this catching your attention, as he inspects everything and honestly looks a little irritated, which you don't understand why.

And at that moment you don't know if you should, considering he still wants to keep himself hidden, but also Baela's voice tells you: bitch, take advantage and talk to him, you literally have him right in front of you!

Yes, that's something she would tell you if she saw you now.

"You're not a fan of being among so many people?"

You ask him softly, overcoming your nerves, but again you feel your heart leap in your chest as he looks at you again.

"Not much," he answers you.

And at that moment, you only admire more of his handsome features he offers you as you stand face to face with his profile, actually making you very nervous. And his answer actually makes sense to you.

He on stage is very calm and quiet, so now having to be among all the fans, it really doesn't seem to be his strongest suit.

"Still a lot of girls are looking forward to seeing you," you tell him softly, "They all look very excited."

You see how he frowns a bit, not saying anything back to you, which alerts you a bit since you really don't want to ruin this opportunity by talking to him, even though it seems you already have, but… what did you say wrong?

He continues to look at you like that, so intensely, when then you see perfectly how he looks you up and down, definitely making you more nervous than before, and then you see how he puts his hands in his front pockets and leans on the door frame casually.

The image couldn't have infarcted you more, as he does everything in a calculated manner, movements so simple that they already completely steal your breath away, only for him to tilt his head and continue watching you with that intensity, but now also curious.

"And you don't?"

He asks you with that soft but so manly voice that makes you part your lips, completely weakening your legs, watching him for a moment without understanding while he watches you expectantly, but still with that sexy demeanor.

"You weren't expecting to see me?"

Oh my God.

You think, unable to answer him, your voice right now not working, much less when he continues with his burning gaze in your direction, now having no idea how to behave.

However, you know you must be behaving like a fool in his eye, so you force yourself to answer him but truthfully.

"Actually," you start to say, trying to control your nerves, "I'm waiting for the person in the restroom to come out," you point your gaze to the door, to again watch him.

Then he too watches the restroom door for a moment, to again focus on you, watching perfectly as he presses his lips together in a soft, thin line and then you see what appears to be a small, barely visible grin appear.

And even though you didn't see him smile much during the concert, nor does he do it in his band's promotional photos, now that you see him do it and only meters away from you, the man couldn't look more beautiful to you.

"Hm," is all he says, turning back to watching you like that, his gaze completely attentive and burning, all his attention on you.

Holy shit.

That's all you can think, watching him without taking your eyes off him, just as he does with you, again feeling the space suddenly very small and the air hot.

When suddenly, you see perfectly well how he opens his mouth to say something, taking a step forward, calling your full attention, but at the moment he does that, a girl at the beginning of the hallway shouts his name at the sight of him.

And that's when chaos breaks out.

The girl quickly heads towards him, excited, instantly being followed by a bunch of other girls, all holding caps and t-shirts for him to sign, wasting no time and completely breaking the spell between the two of you.

You watch Aemond again and he's already watching you, but instantly he starts giving attention to all the girls, being surrounded by all of them, to which you can't help but feel disappointed because the moment is over, since... you don't know what the fuck was going on a few seconds ago with him but you were enjoying it.

When at that moment the door to the women's restroom finally opens, a girl coming out of it but now being difficult to get back to the center of the pub because of Aemond and all his girls obstructing the way.

You head for the restroom, suddenly feeling that same attentive and burning gaze on your back again for a few seconds as you close the door behind you. You take all the time in the world, trying to calm your heart rate and trying to stop feeling your hot skin, processing what happened out there with him, really taking a considerable amount of time.

You realize you need Baela's advice, thinking about texting her right now and getting her to give you techniques so you don't get nervous, but you doubt she'll text back if she's still getting to know the rest of the members of the band.

However, you don't know if you should ask Aemond for a picture or not, not being very sure about it, but you know that if you don't ask him for a picture or an autograph, you will regret it tomorrow.

You let out a sigh, looking at yourself in the mirror and telling yourself that you have to control, that you shouldn't act like a fool and that you should behave as normal as possible, not letting your nerves get the better of you.

In the end you don't text anyone, you gather your courage and finally come out of the restroom.

The first thing you see is how Aemond is still there, only now with few girls, in fact finishing signing an autograph for them, to which you watch him carefully and attentively, again having no idea whether to go back to the center of the pub to find your cousins and get their advice before going back to him or ask for his autograph here, taking advantage of it.

But you don't even have anything he can sign for you, except your phone case.

However, the time to think and decide is over when the girls take a picture with him and then start to walk away, all of them looking at him with that excited gaze and of complete desire, while Aemond looks at them one last time and... he watches you again.

And there you have your nerves again, but you don't let them get the better of you, lowering your gaze for a moment, thinking quickly about what to say to him, feeling again that tension between the two of you now that you are alone again in this small hallway.

And at this, Aemond decides to act fast, considering the after party isn't over yet.

"Do you want me to sign something for you?"

He asks you while directing all his attention towards you, with those fucking movements he makes that aren't that big of a deal but completely steal your breath, standing completely still and watching him carefully.

Talk, act, react!

Your fed up and annoyed mind tells you, also Baela's voice if she saw you at this moment, so that's what you do, however, again you respond with the truth and with shame.

"Yes, I'd love to," you look at him nervous, "But I don't really have anything for you to sign."

"You bought tickets to our after party and you didn't bring anything the band can sign for you?"

Oh God.

You think on the verge of collapsing in embarrassment, as he again looks at you between slightly confused and curious.

"Well, I didn't know my cousin had bought tickets to meet you. It was actually her and my other cousin who brought me to the concert," you explain, trying not to show how really nervous you are, as he tilts his head in your direction.

"So you're not a fan," he assumes and you're so embarrassed that he's right.

"But... you were still amazing tonight," you tell him instantly, being terribly honest, "I liked your music and will definitely listen to it often."

He nods slowly in your direction, apparently now understanding you, watching you even with that curiosity and again that small, barely visible grin appearing on his lips, watching him run you from head to toe, not being able to make you any more nervous than you already are.

"Hm," he says in nod, "That explains why you didn't jump on me the second I opened the door."

You let out a nervous little laugh, looking away from him for a second.

"Disappointed?" you ask him a bit amused.

"Just a little."

You smile softly in his direction, not showing your teeth, as he continues to make you nervous and make you feel as if the space between you is very short and the air is hot as he continues to watch you like that, as if inspecting you and as if he wants to see right through you.

However, you know that the moment can be broken at any moment if more girls come looking for him, so you don't get your hopes up too high. When suddenly he averts his gaze and points you to the door through which he left a few moments ago.

"It's our break room," he tells you, "There are new t-shirts and posters in there, if you want I can sign one of them and give it to you."

Oh my...

You feel the excitement run through you, definitely not expecting that, starting to feel your heart rate accelerate, but you instantly get yourself under control and tell yourself that no way are you going to pass up the opportunity.

"Well, if it's no problem," you nod to him.

He starts backing away, as he heads for the door.

"Come."

And you don't hesitate to follow him.

He opens the door for you, watching you intently and again with that intensity, to which you again feel like your heart will probably jump out of your chest, from excitement and also from nerves, to finally enter the room.

You don't even know why but a shiver runs through your whole body, bristling your skin, as he closes the door behind you and walks past you, his arm gently brushing yours, feeling for an instant his burning skin.

He heads towards a table, while you watch him attentively and take a look at the room, not big but not small either, seeing how there are numerous backpacks, sound equipment, tables, chairs, a couch and also a table with snacks and bottles of water.

There are also the guitar cases, identifying his guitar on the couch, where he was probably sitting playing before, hiding from everyone out there. The noise here is less, you hear more the background music than voices, actually this space being very calm.

"What do you prefer?"

You suddenly hear him say to you, instantly causing you to stop surveying the room and focus on him, who is already watching you intently, pointing out the caps, t-shirts or posters on the table.

"Or do you want all three?" he observes you with that grin.

Focus, Y/N. You can do it.

You tell yourself, not wanting him to affect you any more than he's already affecting you or you'll ruin this moment by letting yourself get carried away by nerves, which is just what you don't want.

So you try not to focus too much on his mannerisms when he's talking to you.

"The shirt is fine," you point out to him.

You're not a big fan of the caps and posters you like but on this occasion... you're going more for the T-shirt.

"You're sure?"

"Yeah."

You choose the T-shirt in your size while he picks up a pen, then you hand it to him and he starts writing.

"What's your name?"

"Y/N."

"Y/N," he repeats slowly as he writes it down.

This sends a wave of excitement and nerves throughout your body because of the way he has said it, concentrating on his writing, while you watch him intently, still finding the shape of his face and also his hair majestic, looking more majestic having him right in front of you.

You really don't understand what's wrong with him but God... he's really beautiful.

"So you're not a fan hm?"

He says to you as he finishes signing and hands you the shirt, instantly placing a nervous little smile, taking it.

"Actually no. My cousins brought me, they were both very excited and needed someone to drive."

At this he again looks interested and turns around to lean against the edge of the table casually, crossing his arms, watching you, while you stand next to him and almost have to lift your whole head up to him so you can look him in the eye as you talk.

"You don't live in Brooklyn?"

You shake your head.

"Manhattan."

He frowns slightly.

"Manhattan?"

He repeats and you nod, watching him curiously for a moment as you watch him think in silence for a few seconds, then again watching you curious and confused at the same time.

"And why your cousins didn't buy tickets for the concert we're giving there next Friday?"

"Oh," you go blank for a moment, but react instantly, remembering, "Well, they did want to buy tickets, but they had credit card problems and by the time they fixed it, all the tickets were sold out and they bought the Brooklyn ones," you explain.

He doesn't say anything else to you for a few seconds, watching you intently, as he has been watching you all along, so intently that you feel your legs go weak, to which you nervously avert your gaze from him and look at the T-shirt in your hands, seeing his autograph.

And all you can think about is how crazy Baela and Rhaena will go when you tell them this.

"Pick something for your cousins," he says suddenly, making you look at him again, "I'll sign it too."

"Oh, sure, thanks."

You tell him with a nervous little smile to start choosing, beginning to believe that you'll never really stop feeling nervous in his presence, much less if you're both alone in this room.

For Rhaena you choose a poster for her, as she's a big fan of having lots of them of her favorite artists and sticking them all over her room, while for Baela you also choose a t-shirt.

You notice how Aemond walks away for a moment as you look for Baela's size, then return and begin to sign that for your cousins as well, again watching or rather subtly admiring his face of concentration as he begins to write.

"Here," he gives you everything, finishing.

"Thank you very much,"

You tell him sincerely, as he straightens up completely again, setting the pen down on the table and leaning back against the edge of it.

"You're welcome," he nods in your direction.

You look away, having no idea how to say goodbye to him, you don't even want the moment to end even though his gaze on you makes you feel so nervous, but for obvious reasons, your cousins must already be looking for you and you know he must be out here to attend to more of his fans.

"Hum... then I'll see you... out there, I guess," you smile at him, starting to walk away, "This was very kind of you."

"Wait."

He says to you suddenly, stopping your step, standing in front of him, as you watch him take a few more steps towards you, completely alerting you, but seeing him take a hand to the back of his pants, watching as he takes something from his pocket, confusing you but completely getting your attention.

Then his eye watches you back, his gaze so intense and so penetrating, as you watch him with your lips parted, this suddenly closeness suffocating you too much, not helping anything that the two of you are here alone.

However, he places his hand between the two of you, handing you something and when you look at it, confusion overtakes you further, seeing that they are tickets to his concert as they have the words 'Dragon Dynasty" printed in large letters on them.

"These are tickets for the concert in Manhattan, next Friday," he says softly, still hand them to you.

And even after explaining, you still don't finish processing anything, as he continues waiting for you to take them, while you continue to stand still and watch him like an idiot, slowly beginning to understand.

"B-but...

"Take them, Y/N," he says again, softly, watching you expectantly.

Take them? Just like that? For free?

You immediately deny, staring at him in confusion.

"No, but... I-I...wait, you...

"It's fine," she assures you, interrupting you.

"But you can't do this or can you?" you ask him totally bewildered and surprised, not believing it.

"Of course I can, in fact I'm doing it now," he tells you as if it's the most normal thing in the world.

But you continue to watch him confused, not understanding why he is doing this with you especially, again feeling the nerves invade you and the hot air hit you mercilessly, not being able to think straight.

"W-what? But...

"What is it?" he asks taking a step closer to you, stopping your heart for a second, "Don't you want to see me again?"

My God...

No. You can't do it anymore. It's right there when you lose it completely.

The way he has asked you, watching you completely attentively and with that barely visible grin, his body starting to invade your personal space, slowly leaning towards you, the space between you both ceasing to exist and all of him embracing you completely.

That delicious manly cologne hits your nostrils, also the slight smell of cigarette, everything about him being so alluring, so sexy, so mysterious and dangerous somehow.

And he does it all in such a calculating way... he doesn't even do it all that fast, he does it all slow, just the way he wants to catch you, while you slowly start to let yourself be carried away by him as well.

With your heart beating too fast, you look at the tickets in his hand and slowly raise your eyes to look at him, when he is already looking at you and just like that.

Don't you want to see me again?

His question repeats in your mind, at that moment no longer taking anything else into account. Because he is clearly flirting with you, and why do you not do the same?

"Do you want to see me again?"

You ask him in your soft, low voice, to which he only leans a little closer to you, that grin returning.

"Isn't it obvious?"

He tells you in the same way, his voice soft, low and completely calculating, his answer surprising and thrilling you, watching perfectly as he watches between your eyes and your lips, his eye completely full of desire, while you do the same.

You wonder what it will feel like to kiss him, how he will reciprocate, if soft or hard and if you will also feel his hands on your body, caressing you.

The atmosphere feels tense somehow, as you both start to invade each other's personal space, at the same time as your hand takes the tickets, all hot air and suddenly feeling that need to touch him, to kiss him, to feel him closer to you.

However, just as the small distance between the two of you starts to disappear, with all his delicious scent and his whole alluring body enveloping you completely, just at that damn moment the door suddenly opens.

You jump all the way back, scared and surprised, as the two of you stare at the door and Aegon is the responsible for the interruption.

"Dude, why are you still here? Cole's going to kill you if you don't come out this instant, you know? It's crazy out there, there's girls crying, they want to see you and you-oh....

He stops talking suddenly, barely in that instant realizing your presence as well even though you're standing next to Aemond, feeling embarrassment run through all your body, as he realizes what was probably going on here when he watches you both with his lips parted, so you lower your gaze in shame and bite your lips.

"My bad, sorry," he says and then slowly places a mischievous smile, now watching you and Aemond continuously, "I interrupted something, didn't I?"

You listen as Aemond clears his throat, no longer feeling the closeness of his body against yours, while you feel the embarrassment more.

"No," he tells him in a more serious voice and nothing compared to how he was speaking to you before.

"Oh," Aegon says again and you pluck up the courage to finally get out of here.

"Thank you," you say to Aemond without even looking at him, hurrying out of the room.

With all the things he signed in your hands and also the tickets, you don't even look at Aegon when you pass by his side, feeling so embarrassed and starting to feel your cheeks very hot, not bearing to be in his presences anymore.

And you don't even look back, you just run away, not being able to believe that you were about to make out with him, the sexy guitarist, Aemond.

You immediately look around like crazy for your cousins, seeing that Baela is taking a picture of Rhaena with Jace, so you quickly head towards them, acting normal, waiting for them to finish and by the time they do, you hand them the t-shirt and the poster.

"Where were you?" asks Baela confused.

"In the restroom and I got this for you," you say without much detail, the memory of Aemond's beautiful face near you still so fresh.

"Why are you so red?" asks you now Rhaena confused.

"I drank a gin and tonic," you lie, acting totally unconcerned with Aemond's lips about to touch yours still present .

"Did you talk to the sexy guitarist?" asks you Baela excited.

"Yes," you say acting unconcerned.

"And?"

"Nothing," you say with a shrug and she looks at you disappointed.

If only she knew.

But nothing ends there. Both of them now want a picture with Aemond even though they already have each his autograph, so you decide to wait again at the bar and they follow you, waiting for him to show up, you for anything in the world wanting to be near him again with your cousins around.

When then Aemond finally comes out of that hallway, appearing in the center of the pub with Aegon by his side, instantly you and him exchanging glances without even expecting it at all. And even with the embarrassment, you quickly avert your gaze from him, as the both begin to be surrounded by more girls, among them your cousins.

You're not sure exactly how much time passes, until finally Baela and Rhaena are satisfied and the three of you leave the pub, with half an hour left before the after party is over, but it's too late now and you have to drive.

However, before the three of you get in the car, you pull out the tickets that Aemond gave you for free and extend them to them.

"These are tickets for the concert in Manhattan, Aemond gave them to me," you say and then head for the driver's seat door, unlocking the doors.

And then all you hear as you start to leave your cousins behind are their screams.

During the whole ride, neither of them leave you alone, wanting to know exactly in detail what happened with the guitarist, Baela more than anything else feeling offended that you lied to her when she asked you if anything happened with him.

But when you tell them about everything and also about how the two of them almost kissed, she doesn't feel upset anymore and screams excitedly together with Rhaena, both surprised and unable to believe it, also unable to believe about the free tickets.

Luckily the questions don't last for the whole ride, so you also have time to think about him, Aemond, everything that happened with him and pretty much everything about him not leaving your thoughts alone as you drive from Brooklyn to Manhattan.

[recklessfiction]

The Many Happenings within the Palace

The Queen has given birth to a wolf. Her screams had echoed through the halls, only to be joined, after a moment, by the high, pitiable cries of the animal. He is a good lad, named Roderick by his grandfather. You wonder at the father, who, indeed, it could be, as the king died many years prior and was, decidedly, not a wolf.

A lord from a neighboring kingdom visited in the winter. His manner was jolly and his behavior most cordial. Many a lady had their eye on him, and you could see, through his swagger, that he knew it too. His face did nothing to deter them, as you had perhaps thought a skull might, but the ladies saw no issue with his lack of flesh. Indeed, they seemed to find the empty pits of his eye sockets most appealing.

A witch has put a curse on the princess. She sings, night and day, for hours on end, standing at the window of her boudoir. At first it was pleasant, a sweet voice rising over the city. All would stop to listen, enraptured by the sound of her songs. Then the fighting broke out, among heroes and kings, their minds lost to her voice like she was a siren. War would have broken out had the Queen not stepped in. The princess still sings, but her voice has become a mere croak and painful to hear; you cannot imagine the pain she goes through. The physician says she has done such damage to her throat that she will soon lose the ability to speak entirely if the curse is not reversed. You are still looking for a knight brave enough to go after the witch.

You have been given a quest to gain the favour of a dragon. On paper, he is no king, not even an earl or a lord, however he has claimed much of the land to the West as his own and the people have made no move against it, rather they seem to have accepted their strange new ruler with open arms. The Queen has asked you go to him, present yourself as an emissary of this court and ingratiate yourself with him. It is expected that you will be gone for some time but you have yet to start packing.

As it so happens, the court's jester, Harriett, has just pronounced herself to be Bjorg, the great goddess of Death. She did so during the new wolf-prince's christening, bursting into flame during a comical rendition of Ave Maria. Her face after this was a struggle to look upon, but her quips, though spoken with the voice of a dying old man, still had the court in shambles.

Another man has been lost to the woods, an old farmer just down the road from the Monastery. You saw him standing at the treeline when you went to look into it, but you did not dare approach, not when he was looking at you in that way, and certainly not when you saw the child standing just behind him. You told yourself you would not fall for their tricks, their temptations, again. But their attacks are beginning to move dangerously close to the Abbey. You will need to mention it to the Queen and the Bishop before you leave.

The Lady Carolina has finally presented herself to the court! You had heard that she had arrived perhaps four months ago, a ward of the Queen but no one had seen her. She had arrived in the dead of night and had been hastily brought to her rooms. There has been no concrete word of why she had come, only gossip to which you pay no mind. A fortnight ago, she joined in the anniversary celebration of the King's death. She is just as you thought she might be; lovely and with eyes that, while bright and bewildered, were intelligent and watchful. The rumours of her bright blue feathers and fine golden talons were not amiss either and you found yourself watching her for much of the night. It is a shame you will be gone on your quest before you have another opportunity to be introduced but perhaps when you return, you might inquire as to her health.

[ladyloveandjustice]

My Top 12 Favorite Anime of 2023 (and more)!

This was a great year for anime, so here's a long list of my top 12 (including some bonus great anime). If you get tired of clicking the review links, check out my anime overview collection for all of them here.  You can also check out my list of favorite manga here!

Some of these are ongoing, so consider those only a review of the first cour-- no official endorsement on the rest because it hasn't aired yet!

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury (Season 2)

When I listed G-Witch in last year's top anime list, I prayed the show wouldn't betray me. Fortunately, it didn't! Though the final half of the show was a bit rushed, it remained must-see, compelling sci-fi full of exciting twists and turns. And I adore the well developed romance between the robot-piloting protagonist and precious girl, Suletta, and her fierce fiancé, Miorine.  Whether you’re here for starcrossed queer lovers, robots wrecking each other, tense battles between opposing political factions, or morally-horrifying moms on a revenge spree, you’re in for a treat.

See my full review here.

Yuri is my Job!

Hime is roped into working at a cafe where the waitresses playact as students of the fictional all girl’s school from a beloved novel series. However, Hime finds her co-worker, Mitsuki, has an inexplicable grudge against her. Thus begins a tangled web of romance and wounded feelings among the girls in the cafe! Yuri is My Job seems like a fun comedy boasting a cast full of quirky lesbians, but then reveals itself to be a complicated and fascinating examination of performance- as it intersects with queerness, girlhood,  and the desire to be “likeable” and “cute". It's top-tier lesbian drama full of fraught relationships and it's absolutely worth a watch.

See my full review here.

The Apothecary Diaries (still ongoing, review is for the first cour)

Though it's still going, I have to sing the praises of this dazzling anime about a saavy apothecary who uses her medical expertise to solve the many murders and betrayals in the Emperor's palace. MaoMao is a fantastic lead, a poison-obsessed gremlin who's whip-smart, deadpan, and fun to follow. The Apothecary Diaries has intrigue, well-developed characters, and an impeccable atmosphere. It tells a great range of stories, from romantic triumph, to bittersweet tales of recovering from grief, to pure tragedies. I'm totally hooked.

See my full review here.

The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady

When Euphie is dumped by her fiance at a ball, the oddball princess Anis rescues her.  Euphie becomes Anis' assistant in her quest to develop magical tools. The girls also start to develop feelings for each other, while discovering a conspiracy among the nobility. I'm always desperately in need of cool lesbians having action-packed fantasy adventures, and Magirevo delivers. The characters grow in entertaining ways, we get to see them fight dragons in killer action scenes, and the romantic development is completely satisfying. It's a simple story at its core, but the lovable characters, joyous queerness and jubilant execution make it a great watch.

See my full review here.

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls' Story (Season 2)

In the second season of the anime about girls homoerotically golfing while dealing with the mafia and ludicrous family drama, Birdie Wing remains a bombastically absurd sports anime that is fun all the way through. Please come watch these girls get ridiculous sports  injuries, scream their super golf attacks, experience extremely extra plot twists--and be super gay with each other, of course. The finale didn't go quite as hard as I wanted (and the romance is more subtexual than I wanted), but you need to allow yourself to experience the madness of Birdie Wing.

See full review here.

Skip and Loafer

An endearingly dorky, earnest, and driven girl moves from her small town to Tokyo. While she struggles to adjust, she befriends a nice popular boy who's got some baggage. Skip and Loafer is a show that’s like a warm hug. It's sweet, entertaining and funny. It handles adolescent struggles with tender nuance. There's a emphasis on kindness, connection, and looking past stereotypes and misconceptions. It also includes a trans character who's treated with respect (and is a great character in general!) Let this show touch your heart.

See my full review here.

Undead Murder Farce

An immortal woman has had most of her body stolen by a mysterious man. Reduced to a head carried around by her maid, she teams up with a half-demon man to track the thief down while solving supernatural mysteries all across Victorian England.

This a fun, campy mystery series starring three asshole weirdo protagonists,  it’s bursting with supernatural creatures and literary references. We've got Sherlock Holmes, The Phantom of the Opera, Carmilla and more...along with a vampire murders and werewolf drama galore. UDM is a wonderful romp with stylish, slick direction... and it’s unexpectedly really gay.  I’m aching to see more of these scrappy misfits and their adventures.

See my full review here.

Migi & Dali

A story of twins who are pretending to be one kid in order to fool their foster parents and find out who killed their mother. It starts out as an utterly absurd comedy becomes a impressive and genuinely tense murder mystery that is incredibly moving at times, all while keeping up it’s signature brand of goofiness. There’s genuine commentary on abuse, the damage you can do to children by forcing perfection on them, the struggle of being a foster kid, grief and recovery and more. There's also some great character development. It's a weird one, but it's absolutely worth sticking with.

See full review here.

Pluto

Somebody is killing the most advanced robots in the  world and murdering humans alongside them. A robot detective is trying to track this killer down, but he might be compromised as well. Pluto is a tense, tense, tightly plotted robot murder mystery that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Through robots, it explores the idea of being a tool in a corrupt system, and tackles subjects like war, imperialism, and the nature of hatred. It's a masterful psychological thriller with stunning animation and a rich story.

See my full review here.

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

This anime approaches the story of Scott Pilgrim and Ramona's seven evil exes from a brands new angle, and the results are great. We get a exploration of relationships and regrets, the messiness of communication and connection, the trials of becoming an adult, all with the signature goofy video game antics. Characters neglected in previous iterations finally get their due, new facets of the story are explored, queer relationships are delved into more, girls kiss...and it's all accompanied by phenomenal animation and a killer soundtrack.

See my full review here

Soaring Sky! Precure

Sora lives in a world called Skyland and wants to be a great hero. When rescuing the kidnapped baby princess, she falls through a portal to earth. There she meets her fellow magical warriors, and as Precure they protect the princess from the villains!

This vibrant, warm-hearted adventure got me back on the Precure train! This series boasts a lot exciting firsts for the franchise--the first official male cure, the first main cure that's eighteen years old- but above all, it has a lively team of characters with who have an entertaining dynamic and enjoyable individual journeys. It's often very funny, the baby has a surprisingly good character arc, and it's bursting with magical girl (and boy) goodness! It's also not afraid to give you an emotional gutpunch when you've been lured into a false sense of security by all the fun times. If you're new to Precure, this is a great jumping on point, and if you've watched it before, this is a series you won't want to miss.

I'm in Love with the Villainess

Rae is reincarnated as the heroine of her favorite dating sim. But she has no interest in romancing any of the boys- she’s head over heels for Claire Francois, the snooty villainess.

Villainess may not be as polished--storywise or animation-wise-- as these other entries. It's a messy series, it has plenty of problems...but it's also very fun, and it touched my queer little heart like no other. Queer people get to indulge in our imperfect faves too, and the silly shenanigans, blatant lesbian wish fulfillment, honest advocacy for queer people, and the joy and earnestness of the series works for me!

See my full review here.

Some Other Great Anime:

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (still ongoing, review is for the first cour)

Frieren is a long-lived elf who was once part of an adventuring party that saved the world from the Demon Lord. But now her friends are passing away and the world is moving on. She decides to retrace her old party's journey so she can understand what she's feeling.

Frieren is both an interesting examination of what happens after the hero saves the world, as well as a meditation on mortality, grief,  and the endless march of time. It takes you on a quiet, beautiful and sometimes touching journey though a pastoral fantasy world. There's some breath-taking animation and excellent atmosphere to enjoy.

See my review here.

Spy x Family (Season 3)

Spy x Family is pretty much staying the course from when we last checked in,  though this season gives a lot more attention to Yor, and I love the cruise ship arc and all the ridiculous fights she gets into a lot! That arc contains some of my favorite gags of the series too (like Loid’s  attempts to be a cool dad). Otherwise, Spyfam has settled into a series that intends to be around for the long haul, so don’t expect too much forward plot momentum. And Yuri (the man, not the genre) unfortunately still exists. Overall it was good season and remains a fun  adaptation. Yor, please step on me.

[chaifootsteps]

so chai I'm definitely not gonna watch that new ep sinsmas but can you summarise what happens in that ep? also pls only show octavia clips so I could cheer her on

1. Stolas mopes and whines and tries to call Via, but Stella won't let Via pick up. All the while, Blitzo is the most loving, supportive boyfriend known to man, giving Stolas a job and cheerleading even as Stolas imposes on him and cries about how he isn't rich anymore. Eventually, Blitz gives his freeloading ass a job manning the phones.

2. Strawman homophobic bitch wife hires I.M.P. to kill her husband who left her for another guy but when they get there they don't go through with it because the gay guys are sweet and warmly lit and happy with their kids, and Blitz pictures himself and Stolas and Via and Loona because only women deserve to die for cheating.

3. Via sings a song about how Stolas abandoned her even though he's been trying to call all month I guess.

4. Stolas has a meltdown and trashes I.M.P's office, says he was an idiot to trade his life for all this, runs off to see Via.

5. Andre meets him at the palace, taunts him, Stolas beats the shit out of him and Andre retaliates and almost kills him until I.M.P. shows up.

6. "Get your hands off my bottom, bitch!"

7. Big anime fight sequence ensues, Andre makes the hydra from Hercules a dragon out of ice, Loona attacks using her feral wolf form that's never, ever been alluded to and I'm assuming only exists to curry favor with the fortune cookie crowd.

8. "The prince's knight needs his sword!" I'm tired, boss.

9. Millie's irritable and throwing up, gee, I wonder why.

10. Blitz saves Stolas, they kiss, never mind all the sexual coercion and abuse.

11. Via swoops in, shoos Saturday morning cartoon villain Andre away, then goes no contact with Stolas like we saw in the leaks.

12. Scene ends on Stolas crying his eyes out in the snow. Great emotional cliffhanger to end the season on, right?

13. NOPE! Christmas party at Blitz's apartment!

14. Millie's pregnant.

15. Stolas goes out to the balcony to smoke, Blitz creeps after him like the kicked dog he's become and shyly asks to bum a cigarette, Stolas is a bitch some more. "When have you ever asked?"

16. Stolas says that they're even stevens because Blitz saved him from the dragon, acknowledges that all of this was his choice at least, Blitz talks about Barbie Wire the Tool who was edited out from her mother's death scene and how much he misses her.

17. They have a romantic dance on the balcony, stop talking about the book deal or all the times Stolas made Blitz feel like shit, says Viv somewhere in the world as she stamps her foot.

18. Blitz hugs Stolas, Stolas looks apathetic about it. End of season.

[witchofthesouls]

Okami and Transformers crossover??? ideas thoughts??? Maybe with the best girl Miko???

I had several (a lot) ideas about a crossover between them:

One, Team Prime find themselves in Japan, and Miko becomes a tour guide. Something calls out to Optimus, and its a massive cherry blossom tree in full bloom. He shares a 'feeding the animals' moment with a white wolf with peculiar red markings. The wolf disappears without a trace. Miko leads them to the shrine dedicated to Nagi and Shiranui. Miko sees Optimus staring at the statue of Shiranui and later on leads him to the Cave of Nagi. She's a descendant of Nagi and Susano, so she's well-aware of Ammy.

Two, crossover with the soulmate au with Miko/Tarn where the Jasper Trio had been cyberformed. Miko's yōkai ancestress serves the Dragon Palace under Ryūjin , and since the Great Divide, there are no full-blood yōkai residing in the world of humans, but their descendants are able to live there and humans are still able to travel across worlds. Due to her many runs Elsewhere, Miko is now capable of tapping into a yōkai form that followed her cyberization. Amaterasu, origin of all that is good and mother to us all, searches for someone to allow her passage into the elusive, ever-moving Dragon Palace.

Three, the Divine Instrument Tsumugari is actually a Primal Artifact. Megatronus Prime's. The legendary bloodline of which Nagi was descended was actually one of the Primal descendants that followed the Fallen. That's why Tsukuyomi was able to fully seal Orochi and could only be moved by someone of the bloodline: Susano was Primal-descent. Megatronus was Prima's opposite yet equal. It's no surprise that Tsumugari, reborn from the slain Orochi's blood, would then accompany Amaterasu's journey to slay evil across Nippon. Tsumugari now sleeps somewhere in Japan, and the Star Saber resonates out to search for its lost brother. The lost sword awakens once more as Unicron stirs and its solar twin sings.

Four, Transformers Prime is actually set the world of Okami. The inhabitants of Nippon believe the Cybertronians are a kind of Celestial Beings or new type of yōkai/demon. The Autobots and Decepticons must navigate a strange world where higher beings and otherworldly spirits roam the earth, sea, and sky. And capable of bringing them down. (Miko is here, too. She's guiding the Heavenly Beings, the Autobots, across the land. The Cybertronians are adamant that they're not from the Celestial Plains and think their transformation sequences and technology would speak for themselves. It doesn't. This Earth is rich with the supernatural and magic, so Miko gets more adamant that they're Heavenly Beings. Waka is no help either.) It doesn't help that the origin of the brush gods is actually Megatronus Prime, who split himself to seal the planet. His physical self to chain the Unmaker as his immense cosmic power remained as Celestial Beings to act as a counterbalance and protect the world. That's why Amaterasu is able to wield the diverse cast easily. Much like Prima, Ammy is the Sun.

[ozaitheestallion]

Oh y’all want a dark AU?

There’s a universe where Lu Ten didn’t die and therefore Iroh didn’t go on his massive character development journey motivated by grief that made him see the world in a new light.

There’s a universe where Iroh and Lu Ten return to the fire nation palace triumphant and with Iroh not disadvantaged by grief, there’s no room for Ozai to try and sway/get rid of Azulon to claim the throne.

There’s a universe where Zuko, who always showed signs of being a kinder, softer person, still speaks out in the war room meeting and must fight the Fire Lord in an Agni Kai for his insolence.

In this universe where Lu Ten lives, this Fire Lord is likely Azulon but considering his age and fondness for his eldest son, there’s also a decent chance that the Fire Lord is Iroh.

Best case scenario, Azulon is the Fire Lord and little thirteen year old Zuko is in the wonderful position of having to fight his grandfather who is old as hell but also a highly experienced and vicious war lord who is responsible for most of the horrors that happened during the 100 Year War. Given how Azulon treats Ozai, it’s safe to say Azulon would not be tremendously gentle on Zuko in the event he didn’t die of a stroke mid-fight, which would also not be great for Zuko.

Not so great scenario, if you subscribe to the “Ozai’s fighting experience comes from fighting Agni Kai’s on behalf of his old ass father” fan theory that’s been going around for a while now, then Zuko is back where he started and still has to fight his father. We all know how that goes.

Worst scenario, Iroh is the Fire Lord and Zuko must now fight him in an Agni Kai. Reminder that in this universe Lu Ten is alive and so Iroh hasn’t gone though his significant character shift. This is not gentle, funny, loving, tea-addicted Uncle Iroh. This is “dragon of the west, butcher of Ba Sing Se, scariest mfer in the four nations and fully drinking the Fire Nation kool-aid” Iroh.

Just some food for thought if you’re wanting to draw/write something angsty and need inspiration ✨

Btw if you come into my silly little late-night post that I made purely for fun with arguments and insults, I’ll banish you to the void just a quick heads up.

[pineapple-cheese-bread]

Alright fellas Ice hybrids go!

Cotton a Mud/Ice hybrid (named before I realised what environment cotton grows in but I'm in too deep to change it now). A rather imposing figure, Cotton doesn't talk much and others don't really talk to him. He works as a guard in the Skywing Palace (Upon personal request of one Swallowtail) being the only none Skywing (or Sky hybrid) to be a guard in the palace. He's engaged to Swallowtail and Alpine wearing their feathers to show it. (Swallowtail and Alpine wear a horn band with Sapphires to represent Cotton). The three of them met during a time of uncertainty for hybrids in Pyrriha, they bonded and have stuck together ever since.

Evening and Fox sand/Ice siblings (ignore the fact Evening is not a Sand or Ice name once again I am in to deep to change it, also I made Fox a bit more chonky then he originally was but I love it) Evening is several years older then Fox, they don't have a close relationship but at most they do care for each other. Evening teaches the history of the Sand and Ice kingdom at the school in their hometown.

Fox participates in illegal fights at the Scorpion Den, he's currently dating Hydra after she beat his ass in a fight, they get along really well.

Reflection a Hive/Ice hybrid and husband of Tulang. Reflection has memory loss often relying on writing down what happens in a day as well as what others tell him. This has caused mild amounts of paranoia as he has no way of telling if what their saying is true unless he deemed it important enough to write down.

Illusion and Hare a pair of Night/Ice hybrids living in an Ice kingdom village called Where-the-colours-collied, a village not to far from where the remains of the Great Ice Cliff used to be. The village is full of dragons from different tribes and hybrids (The Populis is still mostly Icewings and Ice hybrids). Hare and Illusion don't stand out but they are the only Night/Ice hybrids in the village. Illusion goes to JMA. Most of the students and teachers believe he's Black with White stripes, only a few dragons know that his scales change colour, his boyfriend Starfall is one of them.

So firstly, I changed Hares colours because her original colours where picked from an OC that belonged to one of my old friends. I'm no longer friends with them and didn't like how the colours looked, her new colours are picked from Auroura pictures. Hare was born under an Auroura but doesn't have any powers, instead she uses the old old way and uses the stars to predicted events, most think this is unreliable but they shut up real quick when she gives them a wack.

Finally Lupine another Mud/Ice hybrid with no relation to Cotton. Lupine lives in the unnamed Village where all vanish, he was running from an arranged marriage with a Mudwing noble. He is now happily married to Sparkling, Fir and Vampire wearing one of Vampire bats feathers as a show of this. Lupine provides entertainment for Sparkling's bar have an almost angelic singing voice.

I'm really proud of how these guys look now that I'm more confident in drawing Icewings, I'm extra proud of Cotton and Lupine look now. I also really like Hares new colour pallet I think it's more pleasing to look at then her old one.

Imma start working on the next batch soon since I got a new note book now.

[waterfire1848]

An au where, instead of an asylum, Azula has to work at the Jasmine Dragon?

Hello, anon!!!

1. Azula really believes that Zuko is going to order her dead. As she’s sitting in her room with guards all around her (basically home arrest for child soldiers) she almost knows that she’s going to be killed. She waits and waits and waits until two new guards arrive and bring her to the throne room. She expects there to be an audience there with Team Avatar ready to watch her die. When she's brought to the throne room though, no one is around except Zuko. (Azula: Wanted to watch my execution alone, brother? Zuko: Execution? Azula: Yes. I'm not an idiot. I know you want to kill me and dragging it out like this is just cruel. Zuko: I'm not going to execute you. Azula: And if you think for one second that I'm just going to take this lying down you-wait, what? Zuko: I'm not going to execute you. I want to give you the same chance I had at finding some kind of peace. Azula: Why do I get the feeling I'm going to wish you had just killed me?) Turns out, Zuko arranged with Iroh to have Azula sent to Ba Sing Se and work in the Jasmine Dragon as a waitress. She's sent over, given a uniform, told that the Dai Li constantly have eyes on her and sent to work.

2. She hates it. She hates it so much. Everything about being a waitress is hell to Azula. She hates the outfit because she feels like she can hardly move in robes and it makes her feel vulnerable to attack. She hates the green color all around her and on her uniform because it's the color of the enemy. She hates her uncle for constantly being upbeat and cheerful and kind. She hates the customer because a good number of them treat her like trash (Azula has had met a few karens in her first couple weeks). And, most of all, she hates that she's here instead of in the palace. (Iroh, writing a letter to Zuko: I think Azula is doing very well here. She is really learning about the simple life and connecting with people. I- Azula, outside in the restaurant: WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?! Customer: Your tea is cold! Azula: That doesn't mean you get to spit it all over me!!! Iroh: I may have spoken too soon).

3. One day, while everyone is working, Iroh sees a mom come in with a baby on her back and a toddler in her arms. The mom is trying to get the toddler to order but he's too shy. Azula, who's at the front, much to Iroh's shock, doesn't get angry or order the mother along. (Mother: I'm so sorry. Li, we practiced this. Tell the nice lady what you want. Li: I...I don't know. Azula: Do you want to point to it on the menu? Li: *Nods* Azula: Here *Hands him a children's menu* point to the picture you want.) After the family leaves, Iroh goes up to the front and asks Azula about the interaction. Azula makes it a point to say that she didn't act any differently with the family then she has before but it's incredibly obvious that that interaction was something else. However, when Iroh tries to ask again, Azula brushes him off and leaves for her break. (Iroh: Niece, there's nothing wrong with- Azula: I don't want to hear it, uncle. Iroh: I'm just curious. You showed great kindess to that family and I don't really know- Azula: I know what it's like to have adults yell at you when you don't know any better. I might be a monster, but I'm not horrible enough to yell at a child when he's trying his best.) That's the day Iroh really does start to realize the best way to help Azula.

4. From that day on, Iroh starts to see a different side to Azula. Rather than just noticing her snapping at some of the rude customers or rolling her eyes at him or glaring at the Dai Li, he starts to notice that she’s kind to the kids that come into the restaurant, she’s more awkward around kids her own age (unless they get rude), and she tends to be more hesitant when she sees happy families come in. It doesn’t take long for Iroh to connect the dots. Iroh pulls Azula aside after she’s officially been there for almost a year and tells her about a celebration that’s happening in town, giving her the night off to go since he’ll be closing early anyways. Iroh honestly doesn’t know what she’ll do but he’s not totally surprised when she comes along with him for the festival. It starts off slow and cold (not that Iroh expected Azula to be jumping up and down with joy), but as the night continues Azula starts to get more and more comfortable. (Azula: Uncle! You have to try this. Iroh: What is it? Azula: They say it’s Mooncake. It’s delicious.) She even gets into a few conversations with some other teenagers in the city and spends the night hanging out with them. Iroh remains awake until Azula comes up, looking exhausted. (Iroh: Are you okay, Azula? Azula:…. Iroh: Azula? Do you need a healer? Are you okay? Azula: Of course I’m okay! I’ve never had that much fun in my life! We got so much food-father would have killed me if he saw me with so much but they were happy! They told me to keep eating! OH! And we ran across rooftops! And it wasn’t even for training! Iroh: 😊).

5. The original proposal was that Azula would remain in Ba Sing Se with Iroh for a year and a half and then Iroh would report back about if Azula needed to stay longer. The evening Iroh sat down to write the letter to Zuko, spoke with Azula about her thoughts. (Azula: I’m not ready. I need to stay here longer. Iroh: Are you sure, niece? You could return back to the palace and- Azula: Nope! I’m not mentally prepared enough to go back. Iroh: If you’re sure.) Azula does have some reservations about what she tells Iroh after he sends the letter because what if Ba Sing Se isn’t that great. What if she was just so desperate to go home that she was missing how awful the city is? What if the next day, or week or month everything turned awful? (Teenager: Zula! We’re heading out! You coming? Azula: I ummm…Iroh: Go ahead, niece. Just be back an hour after sunset. Azula: You’re sure? Iroh: You deserve a normal life for a while. I think you really want one. Azula: Thanks, Uncle).

[viviennevermillion]

I like to believe that when you enter Malleus' castle, at first it looks like a really elegant and slightly intimidating place. It's a big gothic castle on the tallest mountain in the area and the only way to get up there is flying or using a staircase that was probably made in hell and destined to destroy the bones in your legs. If we ever get a Briar Valley event I can just see Malleus looking at his guests and going "oh well you guys don't have any wings and I don't have brooms ready so I'm going to accompany you as we walk the stairs together :)". Bonus if it's Idia and Azul.

The walls inside the castle are cold, ancient stone and there's all sorts of expensive carpets and curtains in the hallways. The place is lit up by chandeliers and candle holders and otherwise the only light source is the frequent lightning outside. It has this mystical fantasy charm.

But the more time you spend in there the more you realize that the Draconias are fucking insane.

First off, all offices in the castle have the exact same layout and it makes you feel like you're walking into the same room just decorated differently. The windows are are always behind the desk and facing east even when there should be a fucking wall there because there's another room right next to it. Magic.

There's a statue that talks but got on everyone's nerves so hard that the Draconia family regretted putting it in the castle. It's unfortunately such an architectural fuck-up that it functions as a pillar that would make an entire wing of the castle collapse if removed so they decided to just tape its mouth shut.

The treasure hall contains a glass showcase and Maleficia is like "this is a weapon our most treasured warrior Lilia Vanrouge used to decide the course of a battle long ago that saved all of our people" and it's just a wooden stake that still has some dried blood on it and you're like "tf did he kill with this? A vampire?"

There's a secret treasure hall inside of the regular treasure hall and the entrance only opens when you collect parts of a clock from different rooms all over the palace and place it into the large grandfather clock in the treasure hall. The Draconia family and Lilia are the only ones who know this mechanism but it's completely useless because they can just teleport in and out of it regardless. For some unexplained reason they repeatedly forget this and do the super complicated mechanism anyway.

The bookshelves in Maleficias office contain the entire "Draconia Chronicles" where each family member just documented their life experiences and there's Malleus' weird af great granduncle Malgus Draconia who just writes about how he climbed into the piano in the music hall once and met the god of death who gave him a treasure map of the Scalding Sands and sent him on a wild goose chase after a "long lost treasure stolen from Briar Valley" and all he came back with was a weird tree he could supposedly communicate with and a small bust that is most definitely cursed but everyone conveniently ignores the way it makes the castle distort sometimes.

They're just like "oh yeah this happens sometimes no biggie"

The castle has all sorts of hidden passages and one of them leads to a path in a cave that splits in two. One of the paths leads to what Malleus calls "the catacombs" and never elaborates on but you can hear creepy singing coming from it. The other leads inside the mountain to the Draconia family's dragon hoard. Listen. I need you to understand that every member of the Draconia family had a dragon hoard full of jewels and gold. You enter Maleficias' and it's like you're in Kalim's treasure vault. And then you enter Malleus' dragon hoard. And it's just the weirdest fucking place you've ever seen. Because Malleus has a very different definition of what he considers a treasure so you got golden goblets and gemstones lying around right next to parts of GaoGao Dragon-kun he replaced, a macaroni necklace Lilia taught him to make when he was like 7 and some rocks he found at the side of the road when he snuck out of the castle. It's a big pile of everything Malleus has ever owned and especially received from others and whenever he sulks, he just climbs on top of it and lays down.

When Malleus first came to NRC, Lilia and Silver had to convince him that he definitely does NOT need to bring his entire dragon hoard.

"But Lilia, how am I supposed to feel at home in this school if I don't at least bring this 7 feet tall GaoGao Dragon-kun statue I commissioned for my last birthday?"

He was pouting and Lilia was just gesturing wildly like "I don't know how to make this clear to you but this will not fit in your room-"

Speaking of Malleus' quarters....oh boi. Malleus' room at NRC is a temporary residence and thus looks relatively normal but Malleus' room at his castle is a 200 year old testimony to his complete and utter boredom while being locked in the castle for most of his life and it looks exactly like that. The interior design is elegant and princely but there's a whole pin board full of hyper realistic drawings of Malleus and GaoGao Dragon-kun and Lilia flying through the sky over Briar Valley and eating ice cream together and he has Twst Lightning McQueen bedsheets. He doesn't know who Lightning McQueen is, he's never seen the movie, Lilia got these for him 5 years ago from the mall in Shaftlands and Malleus thinks it's another foreign treasure given to him by his guardian. Lilia has also never seen the movie and doesn't know who Lightning McQueen is.

There's a corner where the walls and floor are basically charcoal because it's where Malleus practiced breathing fire as a kid. They've offered renovating it like over 50 times by now but Malleus keeps insisting he "likes it that way because it reminds him of an abandoned building"

There's several stringed instruments including one Malleus just utterly ruined in an attempt to "create his own version of a violin" where he tried to replace the strings with spinning wheel thread.

There are stone equivalents of action figures of the Great Seven and one plastic figurine of GaoGao Dragon-kun from the Twst version of a Happy Meal 12 years ago and a spreadsheet with the tarot readings Malleus made for them. He has a handmade tarot deck where every card is just designed with drawings of thorns and lightning. The Tower looks "accidentally" like one of the towers of his castle.

The wall over his desk has a chalk attempt of Malleus trying to play tic tac toe against himself and failing.

One corner of the room has a pile of gold and jewels he sits on when he doesn't feel like going to the dragon hoard right now.

[des2dream]

Appreciation For MLP Generation 5🦄💗

By the time My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic ended, I pretty much expected there to be another generation by the next decade and it mainly helped with there being leaks of concept art from 2018. Originally, it was going to be a reboot of G4 with The Mane Six meeting each other all over again (and Twilight being an Earth Pony, Fluttershy being a Unicorn, Pinkie Pie being a Pegasus) similar to the second generation of Monster High and I'm so glad they didn't go that route. After 10 years, I didn't need to see these ponies become friends again after seeing them grow for NINE seasons! In 2021, I saw leaked images of the upcoming G5 movie (the one with Sunny, Izzy, and the iconic tennis ball) and I was immediately taken in by the art style. I was even more intrigued when I found out that an MLP fan artist (Imalou) was working on the movie too! As soon as My Little Pony: A New Generation arrived at Netflix, I had such a good time with it. It was a great introduction to G5's main characters, I enjoyed the story, and I loved all the songs. The animation was great too considering it was the first time MLP went fully CGI (unless if we count animation for commercials, the Hello, Pinkie Pie! mini series, or any other 2-3 minute animated shorts).

Nearly a year later, we had two series for G5 air around the same time. Make Your Mark aired on Netflix as 22-minute episodes taking place after the recent movie in the same CGI style. Tell Your Tale premiered on YouTube as 5-minute shorts that also take place after the events of the recent film and mixes with the timeline of the Netflix series in a unique 2D animated art syle. With these shows we were given new characters like Misty, Sparky the Dragon, Posey, and Opaline who is not only the series' antagonist, but an ALICORN as well! Yes, Miss Opaline Arcana is a menacing fire alicorn who aims to control Equestria's magic while Misty is working under her wings for the first half of the series until she joins the new Mane 5 as the sixth member to help take her down. We even get a handful of characters from the 2021 film to reappear in both series. As for our new Mane 6, I enjoyed them. Sunny Starscout now having restored Equestria's magic is encouraging to keep ponies together while also learning to control her new alicorn powers. Izzy Moonbow continues to be joyful, positive, and creative as she's so happy to have new friends by her side. Hitch Trailblazer still manages his job at being Maretime Bay's sheriff, but now he has new responsibilities to Sparky and his new Earth Pony magic that also gives him the ability to talk to animals. Princess Zipp Storm and Princess Pipp Petals have moved out of their palace in Zephyr Heights into Maretime Bay where Pipp has opened a new singing salon and Zipp is taking the role of a detective where she wants to know more about Equestria's new magic. As for Misty Brightdawn, she was such a delight through and through as she went from a villain's sidekick to a hero with such good character development.

Unfortunately, things weren't always peaceful in a G5 world. Fans weren't too kind with both series (and even the movie a little bit) especially since it took place in the same timeline/universe as G4. They weren't happy with the stories, they weren't happy with the recast (despite that being very expected), they weren't happy with the characters, and they weren't happy with the overall vibe G5 was going for. There weren't even that many toys being sold compared to G4's run. I do understand where they're coming from because there were some problems with G5 that I couldn't ignore. Some of those problems include the magic system, how Equestria fell after Twilight's reign, the return of Spike and the dragons, and Opaline's backstory. There's a recent villain named, Allura (a winged snow leopard) who was introduced near the end of G5's run and it's a shame because audiences were just given some of her backstory before the generation's cancellation. While Generation 5 had it's ups and downs, I found it pretty disrespectful that it got so much hate for "not living up to G4's standards" or people just not wanting to accept change and still cling onto G4. I know G5 wasn't perfect, but it's not fair that it got hit with so much distaste when MLP has had WORSE media back in the day (My Little Pony: Newborn Cuties says hi). Even though this generation lasted for a few years, I'm grateful that we had ANY media with these ponies and I wish they were given a proper sendoff rather than being cancelled. Thank you for everything, My Little Pony Generation 5! Hoof to heart!❤🦄❤

Artists: PONE177 (Rivin Octaver Brush), briannacherrygarcia, Amy Mebberson, Ink Key Studios, Imalou, & abbytabbys

[fateandloveentwined]

poetry lines befitting MCS and XJY

These are mostly chinese tang shi and song ci poetry quotes, with a great biased amount from Su Shi because OP doesn't know better. Crude, 5-minute english translations below. There are lines I semi-made up or adapted from fandom/cpop songs (that is, most of Xiao Jingyan's lines), ngl OP is rather embarrassed of them because they aren't good at all looking back now but we'll just leave them here or else XJY would end up with zero quotes.

梅长苏 Mei Changsu

想那日束髪从军，想那日霜角辕门，想那日挟剑惊风，想那日横槊凌云。 ——夏完淳

Think to the day I tied back my hair and enlisted. Think to the day the horn rang at the frostbitten tents, think to the day I danced my sword making the sound that deafens the wind. Think to the day I took to the lance, and it pierced through the skies, rising higher than the clouds. — Xia Wanchun

将士百战身名裂。 向河梁、回头万里，故人长绝。 易水萧萧西风冷，满座衣冠似雪，正壮士、悲歌未彻。 ——辛弃疾

The warrior fights a hundred battles, yet what remains is his severed reputation. He looks to the bridge over the river, thousands of miles back, past acquaintances forever gone. In another life, over the howling of the west wind and the cold Yi rivers, the banquet sits, clothes adorned in snowlike white. The courageous man strides through the blizzard, the song of lament never ceasing. — Xin Qiji

零落成泥碾作尘，只有香如故。 ——陆游

The plum blossoms wither and drift to the ground, crushed into earthly soil and dust. The prevailing fragrance is what remains. — Lu You

亦余心之所善兮，虽九死其犹未悔。 ——屈原

So long as this is what my heart longs for and treasures, though I die nine deaths, my heart does not regret. — Qu Yuan

君臣一梦，今古空名。 ——苏轼

Lords and lieges ebb into nothing but a dream; in the river of time transcending present and past vain titles remain, cast into the void. — Su Shi

无波真古井，有节是秋筠。 ——苏轼

The heart is at peace like the ancient well that does not ripple; the integrity is as the autumn bamboos, steadfast and unfaltering. — Su Shi

舳舻千里，旌旗蔽空，酾酒临江，横槊赋诗。 ——苏轼

The warship moves a thousand miles, ensigns enshrouding the sky. He pours out wine by the riverside, holds out his lance, and writes verses as he speaks. — Su Shi

对一张琴，一壶酒，一溪云。 ——苏轼

Facing but a guqin, a jug of wine, a stream of cloud. — Su Shi

江山如画，是我心言。 ——风起时

The rivers and mountains of the kingdom outstretches before me, as moving as in art: this is my heart’s will. — from the song “Feng Qi Shi”, when the wind blows

战骨碎尽志不休，冰心未改血犹殷。 ——改自《赤血长殷》、王昌龄

Bones completely crushed from the battle, yet aspirations unwavering. The heart has not changed; the blood flows red still. — adapted from the song “Chi Xue Chang Yan”, the noble blood flows red, and poet Wang Changling

袖手妙计权倾变，敛眸笑谈意了然。 ——改自《赤血长殷》

With folded arms, he devises labyrinthine strategies. The sceptre of power sways and shifts. He shrouds his gaze modestly, and in conversations of small smiles, he discerns the intention of men. — adapted from the song “Chi Xue Chang Yan”, the noble blood flows red

萧㬌琰 Xiao Jingyan

潜龙一朝御风翔，长歌挽弓射天狼。 ——《长喑》

The submerged dragon rises one day to ride the winds. Singing high and long; the bow is drawn pointed at the invading Sirius. — from the song “Chang Yin”, the Long Darkness found here

挑灯殿阙思悄然，闻钤行宫寝无眠。 ——改自白居易

Awashed in the raised lamps of the imperial palace, thoughts whisper in grievance. The bell rings at the Jiu’an grounds, and he lies abed sleepless. — adapted from The Song of Everlasting Sorrow by Bai Juyi

驰骋沙场繁华梦，谈笑鸿儒君臣纲。 ——改自《致陛下书》、刘禹锡

Dreams soar in the flurrying gallops of the battlefield, flourishing dreams of splendour and joy. In pleasant dialogue with scholars, civility obliges polite smiles into the etiquette of lords and lieges. — adapted from the song “Zhi Bi Xia Shu”, a letter to Your Majesty, and Liu Yuxi

铁马并辔封疆，几回魂梦游；更鼓落夜未央，笔下兴亡断。 ——取自《长喑》、《赤血长殷》

Armoured horses riding in parallel at the borderlands — how many times has the soul wandered to such dreams of the past. The hourly drums sound ceaseless across the long night; under the emperor's brush, the fate of prosperity and declination writes. — adapted from the song “Chang Yin”, the Long Darkness found here, and “Chi Xue Chang Yan”, the noble blood flows red

揽尽山河只手倾，昂冕袖手瞰苍生。 ——改自《长喑》

The future of his kingdom sweeps into a tilt of his hand. With crown upheld, he folds his arms in his sleeves awatching humanity. — adapted from the song “Chang Yin”, the Long Darkness found here

咫尺抚眉峰，万丈叠远峰；梦底枕笑纹，惊风掀水纹。 ——《致陛下书》

Up close, the furrowed brows are smoothed. Ten thousands of feet stretch before him, converging into mountains at a distance. In the deepest dreams, the markings of a smile lie; he stirs up the wind which marks and rips tides in the tumultuous waters. — adapted from the song “Zhi Bi Xia Shu”, a letter to Your Majesty

Two (three) things to note:

My dying obsession with Su Shi, sorry I can’t help it that perhaps over half of the all the poetry I know is from him;

To be really fair, my favourite description of Mei Changsu is 运筹帷幄之中，决胜千里之外, used in describing Zhang Liang in Si Maqian's Records of the Grand Historian. He orchestrates masterplans in the tent of the army; he determines the victory of the battle from afar, thousands of miles from the front.

As for my favourite depiction of Lin Shu, it is definitely Su Shi’s description of Cao Cao: 舳舻千里，旌旗蔽空，酾酒临江，横槊赋诗。 The warship moves a thousand miles, ensigns enshrouding the sky. He pours out wine by the riverside, holds out his lance, and writes verses as he speaks. Xin Qiji’s verse above just fits the entire story of Mei Changsu so much, it deserves a mention.

I was assembling/making these lines up for something back then and so just listed whatever came to mind (for reasons I know not I kept on listing stuff for MCS, but maybe XJY was the typical good emperor kind of person so wasn't as inspiring coming up with quotes for him).

If there are lines of poetry you find really befitting the two characters, we're more than interested starting a thread here just for that purpose.

[somethingclevermahogony]

WIP Tour Tag!

Finally getting to this! Thank y'all for the tags @paeliae-occasionally, @illarian-rambling, @willtheweaver, and @topazadine!

For the sake of simplicity I'll be showing you around a single city, the Grand City by the Lake, Labisa.

(There is a 99.9999 chance that I missed at least one typo, please be forgiving haha)

Stop 1: The Serpent Road

You find yourself walking down a worn and dusty road, one which stretches far behind you, curling serpent-like through the forested hills, as well as farms and villages, eventually vanishing into the looming Red Cedar Mountains. At first glance you may believe it to be little more than a wide dirt path, but as you look closer you can see the faint outlines of cobblestones, laid in times long forgotten, their surfaces sanded down by centuries of feet, hooves, and wagon wheels. Other travellers surround you, many dressed in strange clothing, some are Kishite some come from far more distant lands. They have come to partake in the Festival of Humbalibal, Goddess of the Mountains. Performers draped in the skins of leopards and boars, dancers bedecked with bells and ribbons, and poets bearing harps and drums ply their trade. Over the excited chatter, they sing of great heroes and tragedies, of beautiful Hiru and sorrowful Lat. Through the people, on either side of you are steles, dozens of them, some as small as a child, others as large as a house, pillars of stone their surfaces carved and chiselled with decrees of kings and queens, living and dead. Gods and beasts glare down at you as you pass beneath their stony gaze. Woe the Thief, Woe the Murderer, Woe the Traitor they seem to whisper. Or perhaps the whispers come from the lips of the heads, their eyes plucked by birds, cheeks sunken, skewered upon the poles of pine wood which line the roadside, their crimes scrawled in black coal upon their foreheads. To your left glittering under the mid-day sun is Lake Shebali, its massive expanse seems to swallow the horizon. White-feathered shorebirds stalk black sand beaches and weave amongst reeds. Ships bob lazily at the docks, grandest among them is the royal barge, a floating palace, its two masts extend high into the air like two massive trees. Beyond the docks you can see the fishing village, humble buildings of mud and timber, racks where fish dry, and leather cures. Children run between the houses whooping and crying, waving sticks and dolls of hair and cloth above their heads. Neither you, nor your fellow travellers have the time to ponder as to their games.

Stop 2: The Outer Walls of Labisa: The Black Walls of Tamel and the Serpent Gate

This rural scene does not hold your attention for long, for now you have reached the walls of Labisa. They tower above you, their stony surface rising 70 ft, and almost as thick, each one of the tens of thousands of blocks is the size of a horse. The lowest stones are made from black basalt, dragged from the looming mountains. Above these are yellow limestone, the surface of the stones each lovingly carved with scenes of animals, forests, battles, gods, and spirits, most so worn by the ravages of time that are all but incomprehensible. One could spend a lifetime inspecting all the images. The upper most layer and the towers placed at regular intervals are made from snowy marble. Long ago these walls had been built by the demigods Tamel, Sadaric, and Mikrab alongside thousands of workers and artisans. These walls had been made to withstand all enemies from armies to dragons. No tree or shrub grows against the imposing stone, nature kept at bay by fire and bronze. Before you, rearing high above, are two gargantuan stone serpents, one is crooked, its snarling face cracked. Any of the excitable travellers will tell you that the story goes that it was Narul that cast down the serpent while fleeing from the city with the fugitive princess Ninma. How any one person could do this, you do not know. But now is not the time chat, you are approaching the gates. Doors of thick cedar, 30 ft tall, freshly painted, as blue as the sky, bolts, and rivets of bronze glimmering in the sun. Guards stand on either side, inspecting the wagons and carts as they pass through. They wear armor of bronze, scaled like dragonskin. Their tall helms are bedecked with red feathers. In their hands are gripped spears, shields of bronze and oak hang from their backs. They stand stern and proud, these are not the men of Hutbari, untrained and inattentive, these men serve Akard, King of Kings. As you reach the gates they look you over. After a thorough but quick glance, they beckon you inside.

Stop 3: The Grand Square and The Tomb of Tamel

You enter a grand square, larger than most villages. Tents and makeshift ovens have been placed around the square to feed the hungry people. Honey cakes, stretched flatbreads, snails, sausages, olives, wine, beer, fried fish, fruits, nuts, fried dough, cups of stewed beans, dozens of different choices, each with a hungry crowd jostling for the next spot in line. The smell of fried foods hangs heavy in the air. Surrounding the square are buildings, many are beer halls from which sounds of laughter and twangs of harps emanate. Still others are brothels, men and women hang from windows cooing and calling to passers-by.

Musicians blow on flutes and pound at drums, while men dressed in naught by ram's skin, their faces and bodies painted, dance their arms raised above their heads, their eyes rolling in their heads as if in a trance. Sages awe children and terrify adults with streams of fire and crackling electricity which arcs from their fingertips. Exotic animals pace in cages under the curious eyes of Kishite children. If you look closely among the crowd, you may notice hillfolk, short and broad, their thick fur and long arms easily distinguishing them from their human neighbors, or perhaps you might see the amethyst hair of an Ikopeshi, or rarer yet the great winged form of a kiriki, their feline bodies draped with beads of amber and bone.

Laborers are hard at work, constructing a massive stage at the center of the square, here is where priests from the Temple of Humbalibal will perform odes and songs in honor of the goddess. But it was what lies beyond that catches your attention. At first you assume you must be hallucinating, for it seems that somehow a mountain has sprung up here in the middle of a city, complete with lush forests and trilling birds. As you draw near, you can see marble steps among the greenery leading up to the summit, three hundred feet above you.

This is the Tomb of Tamel, built to house the bones of the founder of the city. What appears now as a massive mountain, is in actuality a tiered structure, composed of thousands of stones, concealing a burial chamber within. As is the tradition of the Kishites, the tomb has been covered by soil and planted with a lush garden, fed by manmade rivers, the water drawn up from underground sources. Entire orchards of fruit trees inhabit each rounded tier. Tamel alone has been given the honor of being buried in the city, the tombs of his successors dot a nearby mesa. While magnificent in their own right, none can match the grandeur of this tomb. Kishites pour bowls of crimson wine at the tomb's base, libations in dedication to the spirits said to guard the dead king's bones. A man approaches you, offering you a bowl for a small fee. However, as the crowd grows you are quickly forced to continue on with your exploration of the city.

Stop 4: The Temple of Humbalibal

The city is marked by three hills, aside from Tamel's Tomb. The first of these, which stands opposite to the square, is the Temple District. As you walk up with stone steps, statues of many armed gods and animalistic spirits dance on either side of you, freshly painted with vibrant shades of red, green, yellow, and blue. Dozens of temples flank the steps, some little more than huts, others grand structures of stone and wood. The smell of burning incense combines with the aroma of sacrificial fires and of the city below. The greatest temple lies before you, dedicated to the patron of the city, Humbalibal. The red doors are swung open to allow all entrance. Priests and priestesses, devotees of the Mountain Goddess, go about their work, some tending to the statues, others kneel, their heads bowed in reverence, hands raised with palms flat in silent prayer to the watching divinities. Their white robes swish as they walk, their horned headdresses click and rattle as they walk, adorned with pins in the shape of poppies. Also, among them are many of the city’s sages. They are recognizable by the ivory circlets rested upon their brows, traditionally sourced from the dwindling Kishite elephants of the southern cedar forests, though increasingly, the city’s ivory supply is reliant on the elephants of Namut.

The great statue of Humbalibal, sits within the eastern alcove. As with the other various statues and reliefs that fill the great altar room, Humbalibal is painted with garish colors, her skin the color of ice, her nude form draped in iridescent dragon skin. The muscles and veins in her four powerful arms have been carved with loving detail, as have been the curling ram horns which sprout from her jet hair. Her silvery eyes, creased with the cold fury of the avalanche, look down at the mortals milling around her feet. Opposite her in another alcove sits a simple wooden throne, it is from here that the king of the city listens to the concerns of his people. Between the throne and Humbalibal, sits the grand altar where sacrifices to the goddess are made. The flame there has burnt, uninterrupted since the days of Tamel. At that moment another one of the temple doors is opened and six cattle, five geese, four sheep, three pigs, two gazelles, and a lioness are guided into the temple, flanked by priestesses wielding knives of cruel obsidian. Rather than sticking around to see the sacrifices, you decide to travel on to the next part of the city.

Stop 5: The Markets

You descend one of the other staircases, winding back down into the city proper. You can see ships approaching on Lake Shebali, carrying yet more visitors to the already crowded city. To the north, hugging the Black Wall, you can see the so-called Lower City, named for its elevation rather than its position on the map. It is marked by many small, cramped hovels of mudbrick and straw, interconnected through various doors and halls to form a sort of hive. There is no such thing as a private home in the Lower City. A man could walk from one end of the district to the other without ever stepping onto the street. Peasants lie on their roofs, chatting, trading, and playing games of dice. There are fewer travellers there, for it is there the city's poorest live. There are no statues, the beer halls are puny, and the shops ill-supplied. Yet cramped and humbled as the lower city may be, you have heard stories of how it once looked under the reign of the previous king, Hutbari, crumbling and filthy. Under the reign of King Akard, no longer do children pick through piles of rubbish, no longer do disease and fleas run rampant, nowhere else in the city are the praises to Akard sang so loudly.

In front of you, to the south, can see the palatial hill, rearing high above the city, the Blue Walls, those that separate the hill and the palatial olive grove from the rest of the city. You decide to head in that direction to see the Palace for yourself, but first you must pass through the Market Districts. Called the 26 Streets, these form the economic and production backbone of the city. The streets are as follows: The Potter's Street, The Perfumer's Street, The Weaver's Street, The Butcher's Street, The Slaver's Street, The Bronzesmith's Street, The Coppersmith’s Street, The Carver's Street, the Brewer's Street, The Vintner's Street, The Jeweller's Street, The Plantbrew's Street, The Scribe's Street, the Ropemaker's Street, The Tanner's Street, The Spicer's Street, The Painter's Street, The Dyer's Street, The Stonemason's Street, The Fishmonger's Street, The Carpenter's Street, The Basket weaver’s Street, The Papermaker's Street, The Musicians’ Street, The Farmer’s Street, and the Candlemaker’s Street. Your path through towards the castle will take you through the first three: Potter's, Perfumer's, and Weaver's. You start with the Weaver's Street.

As with the Square, the market streets are bustling, crowds of people, mostly visitors, rush to gawk at and purchase bits and pieces of Labisian clothing. Garments of silk, linen, and wool of every color are waved by enthusiastic shop owners and hawkers seated in front of the flat-topped brick and wood buildings that function as store, workshop, and home. The shops are colourfully painted with blues, reds, and greens, in the hopes that their bright tones will draw in curious patrons. The pungent smell of dye lays over the distract like a blanket and the squeals and clicks of the looms and wheels fight to be heard over the many chattering voices.

You may have heard of the state of these streets thirteen years ago, when Hutbari and before him, his predecessors reigned. Then mounds of various kinds of filth had formed stinking barriers along the road. Human muck had clogged the streets, bodies of livestock, broken pottery, and every other imaginable pollutant rendering the market district and the surrounding city a stinking cesspit of disease. There were and are tunnels beneath the city, meant to carry waste out of the city. But these had been neglected for years, with monarch after monarch failing to delegate the duties of their upkeep. Upon taking the throne Akard and his new court had undergone a disgusting and arduous quest to see that the tunnels were returned to their former functionality, and the grime removed from the city. This was later derisively called, The Shit War. Methane gas, collapsed tunnels, and dark things living below the city made the endeavour a nightmare, one which claimed the lives of many guards and even a nobleman or two. And yet after 3 long years of constant work, the city was cleaner than it had been in the last 90 years.

This is not to say that the city is in anyway perfect. As you pass into the Perfumer's district The smell of dye is quickly overwhelmed by a headache-inducing melange of fragrances. Jugs and bottles of dozens of sizes, from the size of a child’s palm to the height of a grown man, line the street, images have been painted on their surface to advertise their contents. Perfume is of immense importance throughout the lands of the Green Sea, but especially in Kishetal. No person leaves their home without first scenting themselves, slaves are typically the only exception. Indeed, among some peoples like the Makurians and the Korithians, the Kishite people were thought of as feminine for their love of perfume, adornment, and their extravagant bathing practices, even the presence of public toilets was at times considered to be unduly opulent. As you look at the various decorated perfume bottles, a thought occurs to you. You recognize visitors from Korithia, Shabala, Makur, Ikopesh, Knosh, and beyond, but there is a group that is missing. Despite being one of the largest and most wealthy kingdoms you see no one from Apuna. Perhaps it’s not surprising, after all Labisa is currently war with Apuna.

At least that is what you think at first, until you look closer. There are Apunians here, slaves. They follow behind Kishite masters or else can be seen cleaning the streets and do other kinds of menial labor. Many are missing eyes, a hand, a thumb, or other parts. Kishite Palaces have a long and proud tradition of mutilation when it comes to their prisoners of war. You quickly avert your attention, but it lands on something else, the figure of a woman, sat in an alley, her knees tucked beneath her chin, her eyes hooded. At first you assume she is a beggar, though thus far they have been a rarity in this city, until you see the pustules. Her face and arms are covered in hundreds of angry red swellings, her teeth are chattering, her eyes vacant. Disease is an inescapable reality of living in a city, particularly one as massive as this. There are no hospitals or hospices, and in favor of the festival most of the temples have temporarily banished those being cared for there. And so, the ill gather here in the Perfume District, where the sweet smells may in some way cover the smell of pestilence.

In recent years Pyrian Fever become an increasingly dire problem throughout the domain of Akard. Though Kishites may not know what bacteria or viruses are, they have managed to identify where this particular outbreak originated from. As is often the case, war is a flashpoint for plague. Some of the same prisoner's war and slaves, you had previously noticed, brought the deadly disease with them. Now every slave is inspected for any signs of disease, but it is too late, they sickness is already here. You notice the plantbrews, medicine women, marching up and down the street, tending to the sick who huddle in alleys and under doorways. Some of the treatments seem to be working, certainly the disease seems less virulent than it has been in the past. Even still, you take note of the warnings scrawled on wooden boards. " Enun Nadolul Na Lumiga" "Do not touch the sick." You quickly decide to move on from the perfume district.

Soon enough the smell of rose and cinnamon declines, replaced by the earthy scent of clay and the sharp tang of kiln smoke. Potters line the streets, hawking their wares, hands stained with the rich red brown of freshly fired earth ang glaze. From tiny, ornate perfume bottles to massive pithoi, many of which you recognize from the previous district. The pots, jugs, and jars are adorned with intricate designs, some depicting scenes of daily life, others abstract patterns that seemed to dance around the curves of the vessels, still others are unglazed, fiery orange or ashy grey. A group of Korithians, immediately recognizable by their short colourful kilts and their long-braided hair, are gathered around one such shop, gawking at the erotic imagery that adorns those particular bowls and plates. You stop to look for yourself, though you quickly find that the going price is far too high for your tastes.

As you leave the Market Districts and approach the Palatial Hill, you enter the area where many of the richer families dwell, minor nobility, and wealthy merchants. Here too are the grand estates were visiting dignitaries stay. Buildings of stone and cedar wood, one, two or even three stories tall. Their surfaces painted and carved with stylized frescos of nature and festivity, curling palms, and leaping gazelles alongside bell-adorned dancers.

Kishite nobles, lounging in front of their homes, sipping wine, and eating dates and olives can be seen dressed in expensive clothing, their hair bedecked with many beads, ribbons, and rings, their necks and wrists choked with chains, collars, and baubles. Their robes are made from silk and soft linen, purple, red, and saffron yellow, their hair and beards are slicked with scented perfumes. Some wear capes and cloaks of lion and leopard fur.

The Kiriki Gates now stand before you.

Stop 6: The Palatial Hill

The Blue Wall separates the Palatial Hill from the rest of the city, while considerably smaller than the Black Wall, at only 32ft in height, it is no less magnificent. The wall itself is made from limestone. Unlike the carved surface of the Black Wall, the stones of the Blue Wall have been sanded and smoothed until it almost seems to sparkle in the afternoon sun. Even the cracks and gaps between the stones have been filled in to create a uniform surface. It is named for the upper most layer of stones, each one painted with a mixture of cobalt and copper to produce a vibrant blue. The only break is the Kiriki Gate, named for the two massive guardians which stand at either side, stone statues of Kiriki, each larger than an elephant. Kiriki are bull-horned and winged lions with the human-like faces. They are culture is secretive, their language indecipherable to most humans, yet they are seen on occasion, you had even seen earlier at this very festival.

While the statues are immobile, the same cannot be said of the guards, eight of the, standing on either side of the open cedar doors. They carry spears and axes, and massive shields in the shape of hourglasses. As you approach one of the guard's holds out his hand. You place a small tablet, no larger than a postage stamp in his palm. Carved on its surface in miniscule writing is a number of Kishite glyphs. This tablet acts as your permission to enter the palatial grounds. After a minute he nods and steps back. He does not return the tablet, this particular privilege is only being afforded, once.

You walk through the gates, head respectfully bowed. It is as if you had just been transported miles away to the countryside. An olive grove stands around you, gnarled trunks twisting and turning. Many of these trees have been here for hundreds of years since the time of Tamel and his children. Currently the workers and caretakers are lounging by ponds and pools, a handful are pruning and attending to the trees, but overall, with the harvest still being months away, the Palatial Olive Grove is tranquil. A few of the laborers wave as you pass by. Stags, gazelle, pheasants, and other peaceful creatures roam through the rows of trees, their presence meant to simulate a rural farm or hillside orchard. A gazelle approaches you, hoping for handouts, upon finding none it goes back to nibbling at the grass.

You spot a small stone shrine tucked among one particularly thick grouping of olive trees, you are not sure which god it is meant to honor, for there are no markings on the alter. Before the shrine is a ring of stones placed on the ground. You immediately recognize this structure as one of those in which Kishite dead are placed, allowing their flesh to be reclaimed by nature before their bones are buried or placed in tombs. However, this particular ring has never held a corpse, rather this ring is used as part of the naming ceremony performed on Noble Kishite children upon reaching the age of 4. The child is made to sleep here, and upon awakening, they symbolically rise up from their "old life".

Beyond the olive grove you enter an area filled with fig, pomegranate, regalu, and quince trees. You even spot a peach tree, still a rarity this far west. Myrtle and laurel trees also make an appearance, their trunks seemingly wrapped in grape vines. The fragrance of these trees mingles with the dry scent of earth and old wood. A few more workers, dressed in simple linen wraps, tend to the trees, and prune the vines, their movements slow and deliberate.

You spot a number of terraces built into the hill side; great blocks of limestone topped with soil. Here is where the king's plantbrews grow their stock, exotic berries, tubers, and flowers.

The ground is crisscrossed by stone pathways, like the one that you are walking on, however it seems that most of the laborers choose to ignore these, instead walking over grass and roots.

The White Wall waits before you.

Stop 7: The Palace

The last and smallest of Labisa's three great walls, at only 24ft is The White Wall, which separates the palatial complex from the rest of the hill. In similar fashion to the Black Wall, the White Wall is made from massive blocks of stone rather than many smaller bricks like the Blue Wall, the lintel above the king's gate is the single heaviest stone in all three of the walls, at nearly 20 tons. The White Wall is the only one with stones that were not quarried in Kishetal, rather its stones were sourced from the original homeland of Tamel and his followers, Shabala. Each massive stone was transported by ship, barge, and finally by rope and manpower over hundreds of miles to the top of the hill, thus while the wall itself may be the smallest, its construction was arguably the most expensive. At first glance you might be confused as to why it is called the White Wall, the stone used is a pale grey, distinctly not white. The name comes from a thin layer of marble tiles that once covered the entirety of the wall, placed there by Tamel the Second, the last monarch of his namesake's line and the last king of a united Kishite kingdom. The tiles cut from the ruins of Arkodian temples, their capture viewed as the symbolic end of the war that had ravaged both Kishetal and Arkodai for decades, the single most destructive war in the recorded history of the Green Sea.

The tiles were stuck to the walls, with the plans for the white marble to be painted not only with images of the valiant heroes of Kishetal, but also those of Arkodai, their faces meant to stand guard over the palace as a memorial of the terrible war. After the last of the tiles had been placed but before the first of the paint could be applied, Tamel the Second was assassinated by his own son, Kerim. United Kishetal died with Tamel. Kerim cancelled the plans to paint the walls.

After Kerim was himself, killed by his younger brother, Farut, the tiles were taken ripped down and instead used to decorate the tomb of Tamel the Second. If one were to venture to the mesa where the royal tombs sit, the tomb of Tamel the Second would be easily identifiable by the snowy white Arkodian marble which still peaks from under the greenery.

The King's Gate is surprisingly plain, there are no great guardians looking over you as you pass under the massive lintel. The eyes of the guards burn into you as you pass, though they do not stop you.

The main palace along with the other palatial buildings function as a miniature city of sorts. The royal residence, a temple, storage buildings, a smithy, a pottery workshop, several workshops reserved for the palace weavers, two different sets of kitchens (and several massive outdoor ovens), the slave quarters, the bathhouse, and the stables are all contained within the White Wall, forming a large palatial citadel dotted with oleander, chestnut, and beech trees. The nobility and their guests who visit palace bathed in the grand bathhouse which stands directly beside the palace, constructed from polished granite, built atop an ancient spring, its interior is decorated with exotic plants and birds, carvings of dancing gods and heroes adorn the walls, and steam curls constantly from its high-set windows. Three similar though decidedly less extravagant baths can be found in the lower city, open to the people of Labisa. The palatial slaves make do with a large pond which lay at the edge of the courtyard.

The palace stands like a fortress atop the rugged hill, its thick stone walls towering above, as imposing as the demigod Tamel the First, who both ordered and assisted in its construction. Built from massive limestone blocks and mudbrick, it seems to have risen from the earth itself, sturdy and timeless. At six stories tall, it is the highest structure in all Labisa, save for the Tomb of Tamel. The outer walls are fortified with battlements and defensive towers, making the palace not just a seat of power but a stronghold overseeing the sprawling city below. Black soot still scars the walls, a grim reminder of Barunaki's brutal raid during Akard’s coup, when soldiers snuck in, murdered Hutbari’s children, and accidentally set the ancient structure ablaze. Only heroic effort saved the palace from complete destruction.

As you pass through the massive stone gate, you enter beneath an arch adorned with reliefs of lions, leopards, and horned men. Inside, the vast central courtyard opens before you, its stone floors smooth from centuries of footsteps. This space, often the site of ceremonies and rituals, is now empty—the king is far to the south. Yet, the palace is far from abandoned; at least two hundred nobles, along with their servants and slaves, occupy its thousand rooms, overseeing its care and performing sacred rites.

The halls are vast and labyrinthine, easy to get lost in. The lofty ceilings are supported by cedar beams and painted columns, every surface intricately adorned. Walls, pillars, ceilings, and even floors are decorated with colorful cloth, carvings, and frescoes. The murals depict royal processions, epic battles, dragons, divine figures, and tales from the Age of Glass and Metal, drawn from "Ti Jali Chasma," the Great History. You pause to admire a fantastical depiction of an ancient city, its twisting, impossibly shaped buildings a testament to the imagination of the artisans. Peeking into some rooms, you find many to be storage spaces, filled with pithoi and vessels holding oil and grain. One door nearly costs you your head, as the Chief of Wine glares at you with a spear in hand, clearly protective of his charge. Hastily, you move on, climbing stone stairs worn smooth from use, the center dipped from countless feet. Banquet halls line the next level, each filled with ornately carved furniture inlaid with pearl and ivory. Large hearths and massive braziers warm the rooms, the scent of smoke and wood blending with resin, stale perfumes, and the earthy smell of stone. Light filters through narrow windows, casting sharp contrasts of shadow and brightness across the floors. As you ascend further, you pass thick wooden doors fitted with bronze, marking private chambers—most are closed, and you wisely choose not to linger. The throne room is at the heart of the palace, both intimate and imposing. A raised platform holds a richly adorned stone throne, carved from black rock streaked with gold. Frescoes and tapestries line the walls, depicting heroic figures battling savage beasts. High above, barely visible, are the words of long-dead kings carved into the ceiling, some written in dialects so ancient only a handful of scholars can decipher them. At the back of the room are doors leading to upper floors, reserved for the royal family and palace sages. As you approach, a guard blocks your path, his stern expression and sharp spear making it clear that your tour ends here. As you leave the palace, the painted eyes follow you. Descending the palatial hill along with stern guard, you are guided back towards the bustling city. Somehow in your brief time away, the streets have become even more hectic, alive with color and activity. With the festival’s opening drawing near, you ponder your options for the time being. You could choose to explore the vibrant market districts, engage with the locals, or simply enjoy the lively atmosphere, the city offers a myriad of experiences. Perhaps if you can find a good beerhall or city corner, you may just be able to hear one of the many tales of Princess Ninma and the giant Narul. Regardless, the festival promises to be a grand affair, the likes of which no other city in the region can match.

I hope that you enjoyed your tour!

Tagging @kaylinalexanderbooks, @melpomene-grey, @mk-writes-stuff, @elizaellwrites, @unrepentantcheeseaddict

Also gonna go ahead and leave this one open

@patternwelded-quill, @persnickety-peahen

@elsie-writes, @the-ellia-west, @the-octic-scribe, @the-golden-comet

@finickyfelix, @theprissythumbelina, @autism-purgatory, @diabolical-blue , @tildeathiwillwrite

@katenewmanwrites, @leahnardo-da-veggie

@drchenquill, @marlowethelibrarian, @phoenixradiant, @pluttskutt

@dyrewrites, @roach-pizza, @rivenantiqnerd, @pluppsauthor

@flaneurarbiter, @dezerex, @axl-ul, @surroundedbypearls

@treesandwords, @skyderman

[utilitycaster]

did companion quests this morning before driving for two hours for nothing (site visit that got fucked up) so I'm going to send some emails but first let us recap because it is a WILD series of events I have had.

Went to the Necropolis (I always start singing The Church's Metropolis in my head when I say "Necropolis") to lay flowers on Emmrich's parents' graves while he talks to me about lichdom. I'm aware of the consequences thereof though I know it's a ways off, and learned wild new things about Hezenkoss, but specifically it sets up such a fascinating conundrum. Great job; it's fun to play this as a Mourn Watcher who isn't a mage, incidentally, because the dialogue actually handles that scenario gracefully for once.

Went back to the Lighthouse, where Lucanis and Davrin were getting drunk and swapping stories. They're bonding! Finally!

Went to Dock Town to go to dinner with Neve, who is like "Hal's not there so sorry we're skipping stones" and this turns into her having an epiphany on the case with Aelia. It's a good moment and I'm going to talk about it later because...

Lucanis's companion quest (which, as I understand it, is NOT available if you chose to save Minrathous) is also in Dock Town; Teia and Viago have information that's too hot for Treviso so they meet you in the Cobbled Swan instead. They reveal that Caterina's ring was thrown out, which is NOT a thing Illario (only Dellamorte present) would do, which means it's a signal. At this point, Spite takes over and addresses Rook and you go into Lucanis's Mind Palace Prison and it's INCREDIBLE. Genuinely one of the most intense and wild social encounters. I have like 5 memes in mind for later. Literally the only criticism I have is that as you go through the four "locks" (insecurities slash traumas slash Lucanis being more than a little suicidal) is that the Veilguard Team Insecurity should have been represented by Davrin rather than Harding; ngl I missed a lot of Harding's mixed feelings about Spite because that's very early in the game and I tended to do Rogue + Mage partners for quests early on and wasn't as good at eavesdropping on Lighthouse conversations so I kind of missed Harding's trepidation, whereas Lucanis and Davrin's animosity is made much more central. But Caterina and ESPECIALLY Neve (who, because I'm romancing neither Lucanis nor Neve, gets some UNHINGED commentary from Spite) and Illario are all flawless encounters. And THEN after you convince Lucanis to work with Spite and most importantly that he deserves to live and stop punishing himself forever (fun fact! the comedy mask options, which usually aren't my bag? feel really natural and good here, which I think makes sense, as a person who has irl talked more than one person, including myself, off both some dark emotional paths and also bad trips, usually not at once) you both come to and Viago and Teia are like why are both of you dissociating. focus up. A+ quest only one note.

I then returned to the lighthouse where Neve has Emmrich do necromancy on a Shadow Dragon's skull, which is all very nice, and THEN immediately Lucanis is like. Rook! I baked a pie that is Neve's favorite! Have I fucked up everything ever? And, of course, I was like "please for the love of the maker, in whom Rook doesn't believe* tell her how you feel." Anyway this rules.

I think I'll have to finish the full playthrough to give final judgment, and I do think saving Minrathous would be interesting, but from what spoilers I know and from what I've said previously about Neve I think saving Treviso is genuinely the stronger story. Like, on a main story narrative level Treviso is more defenseless and the Shadow Dragons are screwed but Minrathous itself isn't nearly as fucked up by the dragon attack as Treviso would be, but also the Dock Town folks rally better than the Antivans do and that extends very much to Neve and Lucanis. Neve is furious and heartbroken, but she shows up to the story deeply cynical and there's something extremely rewarding about having her come back and say "I knew it, I can only rely on myself, people always let you down, everything sucks and the work will never be done" and to, through persistent work and patience, show her that sometimes people fuck up or let you down and they didn't mean to hurt you and sometimes they can make amends (to the point that we are on quite good terms now!) whereas if you abandon Treviso something breaks in Lucanis and never really recovers. Like, both of them are very pragmatic, but Lucanis does, deeply, want to see the best in people despite everything, and Neve is already, as I said, very cynical and self-reliant even before she's hardened. Also frankly she comes into the story somewhat more mentally well having not immediately been in a torture prison experiencing demon possession for the past ten months. Not that anyone here is mentally well, the reason I'm so obsessed with this story is because "a bunch of highly competent bisexuals with extreme perfectionism issues and various flavors of anxiety and depression move into magical co-op housing, fight god" is, you know, kind of my whole deal, but Lucanis is much more fragile than she is to start.

*I literally played Mourn Watch entirely for the Old Kingdom/Locked Tomb/General Goth Tendencies of it all, and also because I saw a chart that said it was one of the less popular factions and so I was like well then, I shall pick that one, but I cannot stress how much as a Jewish person it speaks to me. Like wow a focus more on ritual and works and importance of knowledge and duty as opposed to faith? Thinking cremation is a weird death custom? The belief that there is a particular importance and selflessness in the work you do to lay the dead to rest? Kind of meh about the main religion of much of the surrounding world but must admit the aesthetic fucks? Anyway. Highly recommend Mourn Watch.

Also btw I learned no one knows what Vorgoth is (which is very funny because we know what he DOES, he executes people who do high crimes against necromancy) but we don't know if he can fuck. He DOES collect landscape paintings? Also if you're Mourn Watch Myrna is kind of mean to you and it's pretty great.

[westeroslive]

𝘈𝘙𝘊  𝘐𝘐,  𝖶𝖠𝖱  𝖥𝖮𝖱  𝖳𝖧𝖤  𝖣𝖠𝖶𝖭  :  𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘂𝗲.

the  oldest  child  of  the  once  great  valyrian  freehold  -  a  most  glorious  and  powerful  stronghold  filled  with  wealth  almost  as  golden  as  the  never  -  ending  sun  that  shines  upon  them.  volantis,  the  city  -  state,  that  was  never  united  in  the  essosi  empire  and  stands  strong  in  its  secluded  individuality  has  a  dreamlike  quality  in  their  hot  air,  their  nights  separated  from  days  through  daylight  alone  -  it  is  never  asleep  like  their  port.  sitting  on  the  throne,  guarding  their  influence,  are  the  scions  of  the  old  blood  ⸻  while  the  doom  caused  the  collapse  of  old  valyria,  its  descendants  still  wield  the  power  in  many  places.  behind  the  black  walls  of  eastern  volantis,  only  noble  families  hailing  from  the  lands  of  dragonriders  -  the  closest  to  the  valyrian  court  in  contemporary  existence,  not  even  essos  or  the  targaryens  compare  -  utter  commands  that  have  consequences  over  their  city.    

and  yet,  while  volantis'  old  blood  is  closer  to  the  true  legacy  of  old  valyria ��-  with  their  rituals  and  prayers  to  the  old  gods  of  the  freehold,  these  noble  families  look  with  envy  to  the  targaryens  and  their  dragons  when  all  the  they  have  are  petrified  dragon  eggs.  the  volantenes  holding  court  in  their  ancient  palaces  feel  temper  heating  up  as  the  air  surrounding  them  as  they  watch  their  former  territories  thrive  under  the  emperor,  a  crimson  burning  to  overthrow  and  take  back  what  once  was  theirs.  

                                                                                        and  so  it  goes  ...

behind  the  black  walls,  thick  stone  isolating  the  old  blooded  aristocratic  families  from  the  other  noble  houses,  the  temple  dedicated  to  the  old  gods  of  valyria  -  the  holy  place  of  worship  -  prepares  the  final  steps  to  bring  forth  the  doom  of  house  targaryen  and  the  essosi  empire.  the  sweltering  heat  does  not  reach  into  the  heart  of  old  volantis,  and  still  the  air  is  heavy  with  something  unusual  -  phenomenally  ominous  but  promising  ...  magic  swirls  all  around  the  temple  ⸻  atmosphere  packed  as  it  enters  the  bodies  of  the  scions  of  old  blood  -  it  is  in  the  air  they  breathe.  darkness  reigns  as  only  the  flickering  candlelights  provide  a  faint  glow  -  the  fossilized  dragon  eggs,  three  distinct  colors:  onyx  black,  moonlight  silver  and  a  copper  bronze,  shimmer  with  their  scales  ⸺  the  hatchlings  inside  long  dead  turned  into  stone.  a  relic  from  the  past  -  the  cause  of  anguish  and  hostility  for  the  volantene.

all  it  takes  is  three  willing  children  of  the  old  blood  -  human  sacrifices  to  bring  forth  the  higher  mysteries  of  life  ⸻  blood  sorcery  to  awaken  the  dragon  eggs  and  bring  them  back  to  where  they  belong  -  soaring  high  in  the  sky  above  the  essosi  continent.  a  magical  ritual  that  takes  the  lives  of  three  nobles  with  the  blood  of  dragonriders  in  exchange  for  three  dragons  to  be  ridden  ⸻  the  start  of  something  new,  a  new  dawn  for  volantis  -  for  its  blood  of  old  valyria.  with  the  low  murmuring  chants  and  spells  in  the  background,  blood  of  each  sacrificial  lamb  gets  poured  over  their  designated  egg  ⸺  the  singing  becomes  louder  as  the  temple  heats  up,  nearly  as  scorching  as  the  sun  itself.  and  then  the  holy  site  is  in  flames  -  the  spectators  do  not  burn  as  the  fire  licks  their  skin  but  nothing  more  ...  in  the  midst  of  it  all,  the  shells  of  the  petrified  dragon  eggs  crack  ⸻  all  it  took  was  blood  magic  to  hatch  three  dragon  eggs,  the  rare  few  that  were  found  behind  the  black  walls  of  volantis.  it  was  naive  to  think  it  was  only  this  simple  -  that  harnessing  the  power  of  magic  would  listen  to  the  commands  of  nobles  who  lost  touch  with  it.  in  a  matter  of  days,  the  dragons  grew  larger  ⸺  full  -  sized  and  hard  to  contain  within  their  circles.

but  for  now,  volantene  nobility  controlled  three  dragons  that  could  conquer  kingdoms.

𝘈𝘙𝘊  𝘐𝘐,  𝖶𝖠𝖱  𝖥𝖮𝖱  𝖳𝖧𝖤  𝖣𝖠𝖶𝖭  :  𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿  𝗼𝗻𝗲.

citizens  of  the  yellow  city  raise  their  eyes  up  to  the  sky  ⸻  three  dragons,  the  first  seen  over  the  golden  pyramids  in  over  a  millenia,  seemed  more  like  a  mirage  than  a  threat.  so  the  whispers  from  their  sister  city  was  true,  the  wise  masters  muttered  solemnly  in  their  council,  that  dragonfire  of  old  valyria  had  brought  the  bay  to  heel  once  before;  for  the  king  of  mereen  had  himself  fallen  in  the  horrifyingly  short  siege.  the  wise  masters  of  yunkai  did  not  share  the  hubris  of  the  ill-fated  meereen  king,  and  hastily  opened  the  gates  to  their  pyramids  for  the  three  dragonriders  and  their  steeds  of  midnight,  moonlight,  and  copper.  if  the  masters  were  surprised  to  hear  the  volantene  accent  that  greeted  them,  their  smooth  faces  did  not  betray  it  to  be  so.  

the  eastern  cities  of  essos  had  fallen,  one  by  one,  in  shock  and  fear  of  the  mere  presence  of  dragons  that  certainly  did  not  venture  across  the  narrow  sea.  messengers  raced  across  the  dothraki  sea  in  their  thousands  ⸻  eager  to  take  leave  from  scorched  earth  to  find  answers  or  some  form  of  certainty,  for  what  was  the  use  of  sacrificing  one’s  freedom  to  an  emperor  if  not  for  some  form  of  protection?  but  the  few  riders  that  made  it  through  the  forest  of  qohor  were  met  with  mockery  and  ridicule.  the  peninsula  knew  that  only  house  targaryen  stood  upon  dragons  and  rule  over  the  lands  of  the  west  ⸻  a  feat  that  even  their  beloved  pentoshi  emperor  could  not  achieve  for  himself.  the  cries  of  griefstricken  yunkai’i  messengers  fell  upon  deaf  ears,  as  qohorik  ladies  gossiped  with  their  myrish  and  pentoshi  traders  of  the  scorned  imperial  princess,  and  the  younger  sister  who  had  stolen  her  dragon  groom.  yunkai’i  lordlings  prayed  to  the  gods  of  ghis  under  their  breaths,  for  perhaps  the  roars  of  three  dragons  could  swallow  the  singing  of  red  priests  —  and  the  night  fires  to  pale  in  comparison  to  the  sapphire  flames  of  midnight,  moonlight,  and  copper.  

                                                          and  fire  continued  to  rage  in  the  east.

prayers  to  the  old  gods  of  ghis  seemed  to  have  been  answered  in  a  fortnight,  but  not  in  the  way  that  the  yunkai’i  messengers  had  wished  for.  the  youngest  of  the  king  of  meereen’s  son  had  been  smuggled  past  the  heavily  guarded  walls  of  qohor,  and  as  the  story  goes,  the  words  of  a  young  princeling  weighed  far  more  than  those  of  terrified  tradesmen.  a  small  boy  of  ten  and  three,  with  dark  curls  and  sallow  cheeks,  stood  in  front  of  a  room  of  priests  of  the  black  goat  ⸻  tears  in  his  eyes  as  he  retold  the  story  of  his  father  riding  into  battle  in  order  to  defend  his  land  only  to  be  met  by  relentless  dragonfire.  princeling  spoke  of  three  dragons  of  the  colour  of  midnight,  moonlight,  and  copper  that  circled  the  pyramids  before  the  siege,  and  the  familiar  volantene  voices  that  had  demanded  for  a  meeting  with  the  king  from  atop  their  monstrous  steeds.  princes  from  houses  vaelaros,  vhassar,  and  qhaedar  ⸻  the  proudest  of  the  old  blood  ⸻  spoke  passionately  of  the  return  of  the  valyrian  empire,  and  their  rights  as  scions  of  their  forefathers.  however,  the  priests  looked  upon  the  young  prince  in  pity  —  no  doubt  traumatised  after  the  death  of  his  family,  had  entertwined  the  tale  of  balerion  the  black  dread,  vhagar,  and  meraxes,  as  they  descended  upon  westeros  under  the  command  of  the  conqueror.  poor  boy,  the  priests  murmured  after  little  prince  had  taken  his  leave,  in  the  midst  of  his  fiction  there  was  still  truth;  the  volantene  must  pay  for  their  insolence  at  the  emperor’s  court. 

a  grand  procession  marched  out  from  the  great  walls  of  qarth,  stopping  only  to  allow  the  young  prince  of  meereen  to  give  witness  to  the  conclave  of  the  bearded  priests  of  norvos.  unlike  their  qohorik  counterparts,  the  priests  grew  grim  at  the  mention  of  dragons,  although  they  do  not  raise  the  alarm  -  instead,  whisper  amongst  themselves  of  the  wrath  of  the  true  gods  against  the  pretenders  of  old  valyria.  no  doubt  believing  the  dragons  as  an  apparition  of  the  nine  hells  that  were  brought  forth  in  sin.  they  do  not  know  how  right  they  are.  still,  it  is  not  in  the  culture  of  the  norvoshi  to  influence  or  participate  in  the  dealings  of  sinners  outside  of  their  walls  ⸻  so  they  looked  upon  the  young  prince  with  pity  and  said  their  quiet  prayers,  although  they  do  not  say  a  word  in  support  even  as  he  leaves  their  hallowed  grounds.  

once  the  young  prince  arrived  within  the  walls  of  golden  pentos,  the  prince  regent  -  younger  brother  of  the  emperor  -  was  quick  to  act.  imperial  messengers  were  dispatched  across  the  lands  to  the  western  cities,  and  most  importantly,  the  youngest  of  the  emperor’s  siblings  was  placed  upon  the  swiftest  ship  of  the  imperial  navy  with  a  course  straight  to  king’s  landing.  the  mention  of  dragons  were  altogether  ignored,  for  the  imperial  prince  regent  was  of  the  same  mind  as  the  priests  of  qarth  ⸻   the  poor  child  is  to  be  consoled  for  his  troubles,  and  none  must  scare  him   by  accepting  his  strange  visions  of  living  dragons  as  true. 

there  was  no  grand  fanfare  or  welcoming  balls  as  the  emperor’s  brother  set  foot  upon  westerosi  soil  for  the  first  time,  but  instead,  a  direct  and  unwavering  path  to  the  essosi  quarters  within  the  red  keep.  it  only  took  one  short  conversation  between  the  emperor  and  his  brother  for  all  to  realise:  they  are  to  sail  home  at  dawn.

it  was  a  shame,  then,  for  if  they  only  were  to  look  up  at  the  stars,  they  would  see  three  winged  creatures  reflected  against  the  moon,  as  all  the  dragons  upon  the  dragonpit  dozed  on.