#taylor could also be a blacksmith

[iamumbra195]

If Ashlyn Banner was a character in a typical magic manhwa she would be the cool mage that remained isolated in the tower for over a decade without any sort of human contact until they were forced to due to the MC’s stupidity or in her case, Aiden’s shenanigans.

She would subsequently be roped into the chaos against her will, all while trying to figure out how to properly interact with real people after all this time and trying to protect this rag-tag group of people with varying backgrounds from certain death.

Aiden would be the crown prince who hated his position and responsibilities after the war so much he decided to become an explorer. It was a risky business with so many unexplored magical lands so it was right up in his alley but his parents only agreed to let him go if he brought his cousin Ben with him as a companion. Ben would be the powerful knight who was heavily traumatized and rendered mute during the war, working on finding himself once more while he and Aiden explored the world together.

Tyler would be the promising young knight who's trying to gain some prestige in order to take care of his family. Taylor would run the repair shop their dad left them but struggled to find a lot of customers due to the stigma that a woman couldn't possibly be strong enough or smart enough to do good repairs. The repair shop was incidentally right across the flower shop Logan's parents ran while he studied something with math or science at a fancy school and occasionally came by to help.

And the Crane Cult are the Big Bad™ that are using a blood sacrifices to call on the power of a higher being or something like that. And they wear bird masks of course.

Ashlyn vs Maverick in a magic duel, when?

Kinda Part 2: Here

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

The Politics of Paternalism

The Ford Model T was introduced in 1908, and the Ford Highland Park plant was completed two years later. In 1908, 425 workers produced 10,607 automobiles at Ford. Six years later the Highland Park plant employed nearly 13,000 workers and churned out nearly 250,000 Model Ts. The technical and managerial innovations that underpinned Ford’s expanding production revolutionized the automobile industry and factory production generally. With standardized designs, the implementation of recent machine-tool technology and progressive assembly, as well as the rationalization and reorganization of work tasks following the ideas of scientific management guru Frederick W. Taylor, Ford engineers and managers realized the explosive potential of mass-production techniques. Henry Ford offered workers higher wages in exchange for obedience at the factory and sobriety and thrift at home. By the end of the First World War, Ford’s paternalism had failed, as the company retreated to the coercive and corrupt labour management techniques for which Highland Park became famous.

Though General Motors was slower to fully develop mass-production techniques, by the 1920s it wed mass production with innovative marketing strategies to fully exploit the business opportunities of a flowering mass consumer society. GM introduced yearly models, numerous makes, and financing plans that made car ownership a possibility for a larger cross-section of the population. In 1927, the Model T having become anachronistic, Highland Park was shut down and retooled to produce the new Model A. GM also implemented a “progressive” industrial relations program after the First World War, introducing group insurance, home financing, and savings plans, which encouraged GM employees to invest in the company’s stock and thus, as company executive John J. Raskob argued, allow every employee the opportunity to become a “partner.”

In Oshawa, H.L. Broomfield served as director of the Industrial Relations Department, which administered the company’s paternalist initiatives. Wages were deposited directly into workers’ savings accounts to “stimulate thrift,” and employees could bank up to $300 per year with the company at 30 per cent interest – a “thrift bonus.” The company also initiated a housing scheme, which housed 100 workers by 1927, and an employees’ association was established to handle “petty grievance” and provide workers a forum to express views on production matters. This industrial relations work also percolated down to sporting activities, including company hockey and softball teams, and the sponsorship of choir, an orchestra, and theatre. Thus the company strove “to bring added happiness and prosperity to all members of the General Motors family.” McLaughlin family lore was combined with these carefully planned industrial relations strategies to give General Motors of Canada a particularly strong paternalist tone in Oshawa. Sam McLaughlin liked to emphasize the loyalty of long-serving employees, and dinners were organized periodically to acknowledge the contributions of veteran workers. “There never was a happier industrial family than ours,” claimed McLaughlin in 1928. Linking the modern Oshawa plant with an older artisanal tradition, he continued: “It’s the old employes that keep me here. You ask Jack Gibson. I used to go and gaze with boyish wonder at the sparks in Jack’s blacksmith shop. He’s been with us 43 years. Ask Jack how we get along.”

McLaughlin enacted his symbolic authority at annual company picnics held at Lakeview Park, which had been donated to Oshawa by his father. At the 1926 picnic, McLaughlin climbed atop the bandstand to announce that, with the passing of the recent instability, GM would, “with the hearty co-operation of [its] loyal staff,” enter a “new era.” The local press claimed that 12,000 people attended the day-long picnic; two years later the press reported an attendance of over 30,000. McLaughlin partook in the planned events, presenting awards to prizewinners with his wife and in 1928 making an appearance as a softball pitcher. That year, employees attending a company reception for individuals who had served over ten years sang “for he’s a jolly good fellow” after McLaughlin’s address. McLaughlin’s paternalism, however, was little felt at the point of production. Though associating General Motors of Canada with a tradition of craft production and quality in his public pronouncements, McLaughlin encouraged a quickened pace in the Oshawa factory, which transgressed the norms of craft production and offended the sensibilities of workers. McLaughlin reminisced years later about an episode that caused several local workers to leave Oshawa for Detroit: “Old man Keddie and the Coady boys made the tops until I brought in an outside man from Brockville. He could make five tops a day whereas the Coadys and Mr. Keddie would average about one and a half. He was so disgusted they could not keep up with him that they left us and went over to Detroit.”

Above: General Motors Workers, c. 1920s. Gift of Evelyn McGrath. Two General Motors employees, Bruce Anderson and Davey Stuart, pose in front of a GM vehicle. 

Beneath the public rhetoric, a different picture existed within the General Motors Oshawa operations. In March 1928, shortly after GM shares had achieved stunning gains, Oshawa trimmers working on the Chevrolet and Pontiac lines were handed a 30 per cent wage reduction, the third reduction in six months. In response, on 26 March, 300 trimmers walked off the job. By the following day, the remaining trimmers, the entire Chevrolet and Pontiac assembly lines, and many from the Buick assembly line joined the strike. H.A. Brown, plant general manager, responded sternly to the outbreak of the strike, which had created a bottleneck in production, declaring the ease with which striking workers could be replaced. Indeed, management’s refusal to bargain with a delegation representing the trimmers – which had offered to accept half the pay cut announced by management – had sparked the walkout.

By 28 March, 80 replacement workers had been hired, but the number of strikers rose to 1,800, including 100 women sewing machine operators from the trimming room. H.A. Brown published the rates paid trimmers, apparently with the hope of capturing sympathy for the company; Robert McLaughlin had successfully disarmed a strike over twenty years earlier by using exactly such a tactic. Brown claimed the workers already had representation through the employees’ association and pointed to the company’s employee programs in claiming “there is not a plant in Canada which surrounds its employees with more ideal working conditions than exists in our institution.” A parade of 3,000 strikers and strike supporters through the streets of Oshawa on 29 March dramatically suggested otherwise, as workers voiced displeasure with recent production speed-ups and protested treatment meted out by particular superintendents and foremen. McLaughlin was vacationing in Florida when the strike broke out, but, as Heather Robertson has observed, he appears to have forced Brown to back down and thus “reinforced his personal authority at the plant.” Brown’s public rhetoric was quieted, and McLaughlin attributed the trouble to “agitators” – from the United States. M.S. Campbell, chief conciliation officer of the federal Department of Labour, met with the strike committee and company on 29 March, and within two days the strike was ended, both sides having agreed to arbitration. “Oshawa has seen the last of the worst industrial crisis in its history,” reported the Oshawa Daily Times However, a larger contest was initiated when the striking workers declared their intention to form a union on 30 March. A.C. “Slim” Phillips was appointed chairman of a committee charged with the task of arranging union affiliation. Phillips favoured affiliation with the new All-Canadian Congress of Labour (ACCL), a national trade union federation formed in 1926 and headed by Canadian Brotherhood of Railway Employees president A.R. Mosher. But the autoworkers voted to affiliate with the more conservative and established Trades and Labour Congress of Canada (TLC) upon the understanding that they would be able to organize the plant along industrial lines, not according to craft; TLC vice-president James Simpson was appointed to represent the workers on the conciliation board, and the new union was granted a charter from the AFL.

The dispute was finally settled a month later. The company agreed to pay wages in effect prior to the March reduction until 1929 models were introduced and also agreed not to discriminate against union members; however, the agreement stated that efforts would be made to close the gap between the Oshawa plant and GM operations in the United States with higher production ratios. McLaughlin, now back in Oshawa, described the dispute as a “misunderstanding” and reiterated the company’s intention to operate its plants “on the principle of the Open Shop, which,” he argued, “is … the only practical method under which our particular business can operate.” Emerging tenuously, the union’s effectiveness was quickly eroded. Slim Phillips relinquished the leadership of the local in order to become a foreman; financial troubles surfaced amid evidence that the secretary had committed fraud; and by the end of the year a competing industrial union, the Automobile Workers’ Industrial Union of Canada (AWIUC), was formed – and affiliated with the ACCL. Meanwhile, the TLC-AFL organizers proved too wedded to craft-based organization, and support for their union collapsed by the end of the year. The AWIUC, too, achieved limited success; in early 1929 the union’s Windsor branch had discovered in its ranks two spies whose reports had resulted in the discharge of twenty union activists at Ford and Chrysler, and by the end of 1929 the union was no longer functioning.

Thus, autoworkers’ efforts to organize the Oshawa plant were cannibalized by the AFLTLC’s rigid adherence to craft distinction and the organizational frailty of the industrial union drive. Of course, the widely attended company picnic in the summer of 1928 demonstrated that, under the auspices of a beneficent Sam McLaughlin, General Motors of Canada continued to play a significant role in structuring the public life of Oshawa autoworkers; indeed, James Pendergest has written that “the company killed the union with kindness.” Conflict at the workplace persisted, nonetheless, and in 1929 Winnipeg Labour MP A.A. Heaps read correspondence in parliament from GM workers claiming that wage cuts, speed-ups, and intimidation had returned to the Oshawa plant

- Don Nerbas, Dominion of Capital: The Politics of Big Business and the Crisis of the Canadian Bourgeoisie, 1914-1947. University of Toronto Press, 2013. p. 178-181

[deepinmummymatters]

How Surname Meanings Can Reveal Your Family's Story

Most people have a given name, a first name, and a surname or family name. Sometimes, they have a middle name (ex. Robert). The surname meaning are one of the best ways to learn about a person’s heritage and history. They can tell you a lot about your ancestors' occupations, areas, or physical traits. Origins A surname, or family name, tells you much about your family's history. It can reveal the occupation of your male ancestors (Smith, Blacksmith) or the work your female ancestors did in their homes, as with the name Miller or Taylor. It can even tell you something about your ancestors' physical appearance, as in the case of Italian surnames such as Rossi, which describes someone with red hair, or the Polish last name Baszetti. Most surnames began as occupational or locational, distinguishing one person from another. Occupational names often describe the work your ancestors did or the tools they used, such as Smith, Baker, Blacksmith, etc. Others are derived from geographic features such as hills, rivers, and woods, and others are patronymic surnames based on one's father's name, such as Johnson or Macdonald. Many ancestors also changed their names or took on an alias at some point. This can add to your family tree's complexity but provides clues about your ancestors' lives. Meanings Studying surnames, called onomastics, can reveal much about your family history. You can find clues from the meaning of your surname and variations in spelling over time and from different cultures. For example, the Irish surname MacDonald or the English surname Fitzpatrick can indicate your family's connection to Ireland and England, respectively. Similarly, many geographic surnames, like Hill or Wood, may indicate the location of your ancestor's home country. You can also discover more about your ancestors through the meaning of occupational surnames, such as Smith or Miller. Alternatively, descriptive surnames, like Broadhead or Brown, can give you an idea of your ancestor's physical features. For instance, the last name Brown could mean your ancestor had dark hair or was strong. Other surnames, like Swift or Armstrong, can point to a particular hobby or sporting event. Lastly, patronymic surnames like Johnson and Jones can help you identify your male lineage. Variations One of the biggest frustrations for genealogists is sifting through records and finding multiple ancestors with the same name. Often, this is because of variations in surname spelling and pronunciation. In addition, many different types of surnames follow specific naming conventions. Some surnames are occupational, meaning they reflect a job or skill of an ancestor. Others may be descriptive, describing physical characteristics or personality traits. It’s important to remember that spelling was fluid in the past. This should be considered when searching for ancestors, especially in older documents. This is why it’s helpful to use Soundex searches when searching records. It’s also a good idea to keep an eye out for names that have been anglicized. For instance, a simple change from German to English can completely alter the name. Etymology Surnames can help you learn about your family history and the lives of your ancestors. They can reveal a person's occupation, where they lived, and their relationship to other members of the family (such as Johnson for "son of John" or Magnussdottir for "daughter of Magnus"). Often, people were given surnames that indicated their profession or a trait about them. For example, Smith means a blacksmith or someone who works with metalwork, while Miller indicates an ancestor who worked in food milling. Other occupational surnames include Taylor, which implies a person who works in the clothing industry, and Baker, which references the work of baking. In some cultures, a surname can reflect a physical characteristic such as hair color or height (Rossi for red hair and Bassetti for short). This type of descriptive surname is called a patronymic. Surnames can also reveal a person's religion, such as Kilpatrick (follower of Patrick) or Kilbride (follower of Bridget). Surnames could be based on place, such as Lincoln or Bayer, and could even be a name referencing a city or region (Lincolnshire, England; Bayern, Germany). Descriptive A person's last name can describe their appearance, occupation or status. For example, a person with the surname Best could be a zoologist or be associated with the color black (an English adjective derived from the Middle English word beste meaning "beast"). Occupational and locative names identify people by their jobs or where they live. The latter is an especially useful tool for those who wish to locate ancestors who may have left their home country to find work. Matronymic surnames refer to a person's mother's name rather than their father's. They're most common in cultures where a man's full name is his father's first name with the suffix -son or -dottir added for gender identification, such as Iceland, where a male's full name is Jon Sigridarson and his daughter is Anna Jonsdottir. Using a name map and comparing surname distribution throughout history can also advance your research.  Read the full article

[wildfirehq]

CHARACTER NAME: dorian smith CHARACTER FACECLAIM: aaron taylor johnson CHARACTER AGE/DOB: november 1st 1988 / 35 years old CHARACTER PRONOUNS/GENDER IDENTITY/SEXUALITY ETC: he/they, non binary, bisexual/romantic CHARACTER FANDOM (if relevant): n/a OC OR CANON: oc IF RELEVANT, PLEASE COMMENT ON ANY IMPORTANT CANON DIVERGENCES: n/a WHERE THEY ARE CURRENTLY LOCATED & ANY IMPORTANT ALLIANCES OF NOTE:

mostly located in the commonwealth but also travels to the other settlements. loyal to the crows first and foremost. IMPORTANT CHARACTER INFORMATION TO NOTE AND SHARE (this could be important headcanons for initial plotting, mini bios etc, supporting docs etc):

dorian grew up spending his time between family in both england and scotland. the son of separated parents who both had very different ideas on how to raise their son. dorian's father was involved in politics in england and wanted his son to follow that path. however, dorian's mother was quite the opposite. a more free spirit that encouraged dorian to follow his heart rather than have to make something of a legacy.

in a way, they both kind of won. if only because dorian, more than anything, just wanted to make his family proud of him. he wanted to please them all. which made for a bit of an overachiever type of personality.

dorian went on to become a blacksmith, setting up shop in scotland, eventually coming to own and run his own shop called the morgul forge. he only gets to run the place a couple of years before the apocalypse hits and changes everything.

he sets up a safe space within the space of his shop, mostly because he not only makes weapons, but could successfully wield them too, so was able to defend his little patch.

eventually, the leader of what comes to the the ice court (a prison taken over by a gang) reaches out to dorian and they build a tentative alliance. mostly with dorian providing weapons and training for those within. but it works in both ways, because it means he gets knowledge on the group and the building. (very helpful when kaz brekker and co come knocking in the winter of 2013).

throughout the apocalypse, dorian importantly has an alliance with thea kincaid. the two were childhood friends/rivals/all that complicated shit. but in all honesty, dorian has always cared deeply for her. yes, it took the world damn near ending for him to realise how intense those feelings were. and a bit longer to admit them. but it's fine, he got there eventually. don't look at them, they're a bit useless ok?

alongside thea, dorian works with the crows from then on, even going so far as to follow them stateside when they leave. and look, they stole a whole ass boat okay so he was able to take a LOT of stuff from his shop with them.

he's even set up the forge again in the commonwealth, making weapons and helping to train people.

ONE SONG THAT HAS YOUR CHARACTER VIBES:

mastermind by taylor swift

ADMIN ANDY APP.

[allsassnoclass]

hi hazel i'm late but if you're still in a chatty mood, what are your favourite 5sos/mashton headcanons? -taylor

@jbhmalumm omg sorry for the delay! i was unpacking stuff today

headcanons for rpf are fun because our "source material" doesn't provide a lot of detailed character information in the same way that a book or movie would and we're completely fictionalizing them anyway, so you can make basically everything up! so here are a few little tidbits, some of them more inspired by the actual boys than others

When on tour, Ashton loves going out to explore! He's gained a new appreciation for seeing the world after the pandemic locked everything down, and he tries to stop somewhere in every city they visit. Often, this is something as simple as going to breakfast with the boys and the crew. Michael, on the other hand, usually doesn't come with because he is the band homebody. He loves travelling too, but tour was a bigger adjustment for him and he needs time to be alone and chill. Calum will almost always go adventuring with Ashton, and while Luke does so more often than not, he's also more likely than the other two to stay back on the bus or hotel.

Ashton offers the boys massages whenever any of them have a knot in their muscles, and he's the most knowledgeable about how to take care of their bodies if they push them too far. He encourages all of them to take ice baths, although Luke is the only one who enjoys it

They're all decent cooks at this point, but Calum is amazing at cooking eggs. For some unknown reason, no one's eggs can match his, even though Ashton or Michael are a little bit better at cooking everything else. Luke has a specific type of cookie that he makes that the others love. The recipe is a very closely guarded secret to ensure that no one else learns how to make it better than him.

Michael and Ashton are wonderful at picking up exactly where they left off. The whole band is given how comfortable they are with each other (and how little time they spend apart) but Michael and Ashton might have less text or phone conversations when apart, but be able to pick up mid-conversation as soon as they get back in the room together. They also really enjoy doing two different things while in the same space together.

It's an inside joke that Michael was Ashton's original friend before the other two entered the picture. He uses it to win arguments even if it has absolutely nothing to do with the initial discussion.

my favorite romantic scenario for mashton is a slow and steady build where both of them are aware of it the entire time, but also scared of what could go wrong. both of them think it's just a little crush, then that their friendship and the band is too important to jeopardize and that the mutual attraction will shift to regular friendship, then after a few years they realize that the romantic feelings aren't going away and that they have nothing to worry about. once they're together, they're together. there's never a question of how permanent it is. they go from being friends directly to being life partners.

then because I'm going to the Renaissance Festival tomorrow, here are some ren fest headcanons!

Michael is the one who suggests that they go, because Michael absolutely loves the food and theatrics and fantasy elements.

Luke is the only one who dresses up at first in a simple shirt and trousers combo, but each year his costume gets more elaborate and the others slowly start to add costume pieces to their wardrobes, too

the first year they go, they stop by a hurdy gurdy performance and Calum becomes obsessed. all of them get the last song stuck in their head and hum it while walking around the fest, but calum finds a spotify playlist of hurdy gurdy music as soon as he gets home and saves it

They all spend an inordinate amount of time watching a blacksmith make a sword. Ashton says that he would love to learn something like that and asks the vendor about the blacksmithing process. Michael immediately googles blacksmithing classes near them and looks up how to build a home forge in the garage if Ashton enjoys the first class

Calum's favorite food at the fest is soup in a bread bowl. Ashton loves talking to all of the different vendors about their products. Luke really loves the street characters and pauses to watch as many little performances as possible. When they sit down for official shows, Michael somehow always gets picked for audience participation portions

Michael goes home absolutely sunburnt after every day at the festival. he also usually goes home with the most merch out of any of them, including a sword one year, some intricate maps, various leather pouches, dragon figurines, and other little trinkets, papers, and things collected from street performers

sleepover weekend

[blackboar]

Every rebellions, plots, conspiracies, and seditions against Henry VII, by chronological order.

1485: Henry VII becomes king after his victory at Bosworth. Two hundred men from the Calais garrison flee to Flanders.

1486: attempted murder against Henry VII at York. The Stafford brothers rebel and take Worcester, while viscount Lovell rebels in Richmondshire. Eventually, the Stafford brothers are captured and one executed, while Lovell flees in Flanders to the court of Margaret of York, dowager duchess of Burgundy.

1487: Lambert Simmel's rebellion. A Yorkist conspiracy proclaims a commoner Lambert Simmel to be the escaped earl of Warwick from the Tower (Edward Plantagenet, nephew of Richard III and Edward IV). He is proclaimed 'Edward V' in Dublin by the Anglo-Irish aristocracy and joined by 2,000 german mercenaries led by viscount Lovell and his cousin John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln. With a mixed german-irish force, Landing in Lancashire enjoyed limited defection in northern England (mainly lord Bolton of Scrope, lord Bolton of Masham, and Sir Thomas Broughton). Their ~8,000 force is beaten at Stoke by a Tudor army led by the king and the earl of Oxford. Death of Lincoln and Lovell, Simmel is spared. Before the rebellion, Henry VII preemptively jails some key Yorkists, including his mother-in-law Elizabeth Woodville and his brother-in-law the Marquess of Dorset.

1489: Anti-tax rebellion in Yorkshire. The rebels led by Sir John Egremont murder the earl of Northumberland and take York before dissolving at the arrival of the royal army. Egremont flees to the court of Margaret of York.

1491: At Cork, a man proclaims that he is Richard of Shrewsbury, the disappeared second son of Edward IV. His true identity remains unknown. ‘Richard’ receives immediate support nonetheless from some Yorkists such as John Taylor, a former supporter of the duke of Clarence (Edward IV's brother).

1492: 'Richard' land in France, where he was welcomed by Charles VIII, who is at war with England. Henry VII retaliate by an invasion from Calais and sign the treaty of Etaples. Charles VIII agreed to stop supporting English rebels and give the Tudor king a pension.

1492: The peace treaty is unpopular in England, and 'Richard' is welcomed in Flanders by Margaret of York and Maximilian of Habsburg, ruler of the Burgundian estates. Maximilian is angered by the separate peace Henry VII made without consulting him. He recognizes him as the rightful king of England. The news of Richard's survival and reappearance began to be known in England and test the allegiance of Henry VII's subjects.

1493: Henry VII retaliate by imposing a blockade on the Netherlands. Counter-measures ensued, leading to an embargo from both parties, which lead to riots in London. 'Richard' assists at Maximilian's coronation as Holy Roman emperor and is promised support for his restoration. Scotland and Denmark recognize his legitimacy.

1494: Maurice Fitzgerald, earl of Desmond, revolts against the Tudors and leads a rebellion in Munster.

1495: an essential group of plotters is arrested. It consists of the king's own Chamberlain and the most powerful knight in England, Sir William Stanley (he was mighty in Cheshire and had £10,000 of reserve in cash at his castle of Holt). Lord Fitzwater (important Calais official and landowner in East-Anglia), Sir Simon Mountford (significant landowner in Warwickshire), William D'Aubeney, Thomas Cressener, Thomas Astwode, and Robert Ratcliff. They were mainly former supporters of Edward IV, and some had connections with duchess Cecily's household. Sir Robert Clifford, one of the plotters, betrayed the entire plot and was pardoned. Others were fined or executed, like Stanley.

'Richard' prepares to invade England by East-Anglia with a force of exiled and Flemish mercenaries. Stormy winds scattered his forces and made him land in Kent, and his force of 300 soldiers is beaten by the Earl of Oxford at his arrival at Deal. He flees and lands with the remainder of his troops in Ireland, where the revolted earl of Desmond joins him. Their combined forces fail to take Waterford. After this defeat, 'Richard' and his supporters arrive in Scotland.

1496: restoration of trade between The Netherlands and England, as Henry VII join the Holy League against France. The earl of Desmond also makes his peace with Henry VII. A Scottish army invades England as 'Richard' promised to give Berwick £50,000 to the Scottish king James IV. Little result ensues except for some small raidings.

1497: 'Richard' marries a cousin of the Scottish king, Catherine Gordon. As the king of Scotland makes a truce with England, he tries to land once again in Ireland with Sir James Ormond's support. However, Ormond's murder led to the failure of the uprising, and 'Richard' flee from Ireland with three ships. Taxation for the Scottish war led to the Cornish rising. A blacksmith, Michael Joseph, leads the revolt with lord Audley and brings many gentrymen from Cornwall to rebellion. The rebellion extends to neighboring counties as the rebel take Exeter and march to London, virtually unopposed. A 25,000 royal army face some ~15,000 rebels at Blackheath, near London, and triumph. Once again, the earl of Oxford's vanguard is instrumental for the victory against the rebel. 'Richard' finally land in Cornwall, hoping to bolster his support with the Cornish's discontent. An uprising in his favor occurs (second Cornish rebellion), and his 8,000 men fail to take Exeter. His attempted fleeing after the encirclement of his forces by the Tudors led to his capture at Bealieu abbey.

'Richard' confess he is an impostor and a Flemish by the name of Perkin Warbeck. He and his wife are welcomed at court.

1498: 'Richard' tries to escape court and is captured and jailed in the Tower of London. 1499: A Cambridge scholar by the name of Ralph Wiford dreamt that he would become king if he claimed he was the earl of Warwick. His uprising in East Anglia failed, and he is executed.

Edmund de la Pole, earl of Suffolk and brother of the Earl of Lincoln (thus nephew of Richard III), leave England for Flanders after killing a commoner in London before agreeing to come back.

The French hand over many supporters of 'Richard' in France, including John Taylor. Many are executed, but Taylor's life is spared.

An attempted escape made by 'Richard' and his cousin Edward, earl of Warwick, fail, and they are both executed.

1500-1503: Henry VII lost his wife in childbirth and two sons (Arthur and Edmund). Dynastic fragility ensue as Henry VII have only one surviving male heir.

1501: Edmond de la Pole and his brother Richard flee for the Flanders. Henry VII promptly jail their brother, William, with Sir James Tyrell and Lor William Courtenay. Royal officials are sent in East Anglia to monitor the de la Pole affinity. Sir James Tyrell 'confess' before his death the murder of the Princes in the Tower for Richard III.

1504: 'treasonous' talks between Calais officials. They argue about who would be the successor for a declining Henry VII and hesitate between the duke of Buckingham and the Earl of Suffolk, omitting Henry VII's children. 1506: The Habsburgs deliver Edmund de la Pole to Henry VII, who jail him at the Tower of London. In exchange, Henry VII loan them immense sums of cash, such as £108,000 in April.

1509: Henry VII dies, leaving the crown to his adult heir, Henry VIII.

I might have missed some small, aborted plot, but there it is.

With this chronology, it's evident that the War of the Roses (or, more accurately, the war of the succession crisis of 1483) didn't end at Bosworth. Henry VII could have been overthrown in 1487 or the late 1490s. There is also a clear distinction between the rebellions of the 1480s and those of the 1490s. The plot following HenryVII's advent is mainly coming from RichardIII's basis of power. It's his men (Lincoln, Lovell, many northerners), his bases of support (the North and Ireland) who try to overthrow the first Tudor. The plots of ''Perkin Warbeck'' known in historiography, were perilous for Henry VII. Most of his dynastical legitimacy comes from his marriage to Elizabeth of York. A true surviving son of Edward IV would nullify this and put into question the support of every former servant of the late Yorkist king. Hence, Henry VII tried to depict 'Richard' as an impostor and to demonstrate that the Princes of the Tower were dead. Still, he couldn't convince everyone and had to resort to force and the systematic use of a spy network.

Some of those plots might have been exaggerated. The 1504 Calais plot was undoubtedly not a carefully crafted conspiracy but more a manifestation of Henry VII's difficult succession. This chronology also doesn't show the dubious role that many magnates had during this period of unrest. The loyalty of Lord Abergavenny (dominant in Kent) was put into question, as was one of the earls of Derby in the 1490s and Lord Daubeney. Henry VII didn't have many magnates on whom he could truly count.

As you can see, Henry VII was never wholly free from dynastic uncertainty. At his death, Richard de la Pole was still free to push his claim if his brother Edmund died. Henry VIII himself was very wary of potential claimants toppling him. His execution of Edmund de la Pole in 1513 and the duke of Buckingham in 1521 are the best manifestations of this insecurity.

[even-love-unreturned]

Meanings behind Chain of Iron chapter titles (part I, Ch1-15)

1. The Bright Web

From Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s sonnet “Body’s Beauty” (1866), alternatively titled “Lilith”, written to accompany his painting Lady Lilith.

Of Adam's first wife, Lilith, it is told (The witch he loved before the gift of Eve,) That, ere the snake's, her sweet tongue could deceive, And her enchanted hair was the first gold. And still she sits, young while the earth is old, And, subtly of herself contemplative, Draws men to watch the bright web she can weave, Till heart and body and life are in its hold.

2. All That Turns

3. Bitter and Sweet

4. A Good Name

From “This Marriage” by Rumi, date unknown.

May these vows and this marriage be blessed. May it be sweet milk, this marriage, like wine and halvah. May this marriage offer fruit and shade like the date palm. May this marriage be full of laughter, our every day a day in paradise. May this marriage be a sign of compassion, a seal of happiness here and hereafter. May this marriage have a fair face and a good name, an omen as welcome as the moon in a clear blue sky. I am out of words to describe how spirit mingles in this marriage.

5. The King is Dead

“The King is dead, long live the King“ is a well-known traditional saying, and is the first thing that comes to mind, though I’m not convinced that this is the particular source for this title.

6. Things To Come

There are way too many possibilities for this one to narrow it down. I’ll put two of them here:

One the poem “The Flesh and the Spirit“ by Anne Bradstreet, published in 1650. An excerpt:

In secret place where once I stood Close by the Banks of Lacrim flood, I heard two sisters reason on Things that are past and things to come. One Flesh was call’d, who had her eye On worldly wealth and vanity; The other Spirit, who did rear Her thoughts unto a higher sphere.

And the other is “Frost at Midnight” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, written in 1798. An excerpt:

So sweetly, that they stirred and haunted me With a wild pleasure, falling on mine ear Most like articulate sounds of things to come! So gazed I, till the soothing things, I dreamt, Lulled me to sleep, and sleep prolonged my dreams!

7. Tread Lightly

Perhaps “Requiescat” by Oscar Wilde, written in the 1880s. In the poem, the speaker speaks of and to an unnamed woman, who is buried and cannot hear.

Tread lightly, she is near Under the snow, Speak gently, she can hear The daisies grow.

All her bright golden hair Tarnished with rust, She that was young and fair Fallen to dust.

8. To Bring a Fire

Most of the references I can find for this are Biblical passages, but none exact.

9. The Scars Remaining

Most likely from “Christabel”, an unfinished narrative ballad written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge from 1797-1800. The ballad focuses on a young lady named Christabel and her encounter with a strikingly beautiful stranger called Geraldine, who claims to have been kidnapped from her home. Christabel takes Geraldine in to share her bed, and they spend the night together. The story also involves Geraldine putting a spell on Christabel that leaves her unable to tell anyone about what they do or what Geraldine’s “true form“ is.

Brings to mind a certain other strikingly beautiful character in TLH who also does spells to a similar effect, doesn’t it?

This excerpt that includes the phrase “the scars remaining”, however, is about Christabel’s father and his long-lost friend with whom he had a falling-out, but who also turns out to be Geraldine’s father.

They parted—ne'er to meet again! But never either found another To free the hollow heart from paining— They stood aloof, the scars remaining, Like cliffs which had been rent asunder; A dreary sea now flows between;— But neither heat, nor frost, nor thunder, Shall wholly do away, I ween, The marks of that which once hath been.

10. The Damned Earth

Likely from Edgar Allen Poe’s poem, “Lenore”, published in 1843.

Avaunt! to-night my heart is light. No dirge will I upraise, “But waft the angel on her flight with a Pæan of old days! “Let no bell toll! — lest her sweet soul, amid its hallowed mirth, “Should catch the note, as it doth float up from the damned Earth. “To friends above, from fiends below, the indignant ghost is riven — “From Hell unto a high estate far up within the Heaven — “From grief and groan, to a golden throne, beside the King of Heaven.

11. Crowns and Pounds and Guineas

From an untitled poem (but often identified by its first line) by A. E. Housman, included in his poetry book A Shropshire Lad, published in 1896. According to Wikipedia, this collection sold “slowly at first, it then rapidly grew in popularity, particularly among young readers. Composers began setting the poems to music less than ten years after their first appearance.”

When I was one-and-twenty I heard a wise man say, “Give crowns and pounds and guineas But not your heart away; Give pearls away and rubies But keep your fancy free.” But I was one-and-twenty, No use to talk to me.

12. Requiem

A requiem is a mass for the repose of the souls of the dead, or a piece of musical composition in honor of the dead. It’d be impossible to narrow this down to a specific quote, though.

13. The Wintry Wind

Likely from “The Withering of the Boughs“ by W. B. Yeats, published as part of his poetry volume In The Seven Woods (1903). Each of the three stanzas of the poem ends with the following two lines:

“No boughs have withered because of the wintry wind, The boughs have withered because I have told them my dreams.”

14. The Flaming Forge

From “The Village Blacksmith“ (1840) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poem makes use of the image of “the flaming forge“ twice.

And children coming home from school Look in at the open door; They love to see the flaming forge, And hear the bellows roar, And catch the burning sparks that fly Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

[…]

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend, For the lesson thou hast taught! Thus at the flaming forge of life Our fortunes must be wrought; Thus on its sounding anvil shaped Each burning deed and thought.

15. Walk by Daytime

From poem V in “A Dark Month” by Algernon Charles Swinburne, written in May 1881.

Dreams that strive to seem awake, Ghosts that walk by daytime, Weary winds the way they take, Since, for one child's absent sake, May knows well, whate'er things make Sport, it is not Maytime.

Part 2 (chapters 16-29) here.

[beggingwolf]

an anon just submitted basically an entire fic to me on my main pens blog (@rimouskis) and I absolutely must share it all with you. thus:

with all of this talk about “Malkin’s legendary loyalty to Sid” and people trying to undermine Sid’s captaincy from within... how badly do I want a medieval AU of “Crown Prince/young King Sidney and his knight protector Geno”? so badly. they meet when Geno (son of a blacksmith from a far-off land, already making his living as a travelling swordsman-for-hire among grown men despite being barely nineteen) is hired to be the bodyguard of Prince Sidney (the very serious and very babyfaced eighteen-year-old ward of King Lemieux, actually the son of peasants who was chosen by prophecy to be heir to the kingdom when he pulled a sword from a stone as a child or whatever). there is some initial tension because Sid is sulking over what he sees as the insinuation that he can’t take care of himself in hiring a bodyguard, so he misjudges Geno as just some simple hunk of muscle at first and in turn Geno is like “well this guy is obviously a pompous brat”, so there’s friction between them until something happens where Sid realizes how keen and smart Geno actually is and Geno realizes that Sid is actually kind and humble but just takes himself very seriously, and suddenly they’re best friends. Sid appreciates that Geno isn’t afraid to rib and tease him and treat him like a normal person which is refreshing, and Geno appreciates how Sid treats him like an equal and doesn’t boss him around or look down on him like others do. Sid opens up about how he misses his parents and his sister but he has to be here because it’s his destiny to be a part of something bigger than himself; this is a bonding moment in which Geno talks about missing his family but choosing to leave his homeland because he wanted more adventure and opportunity than a place like that could provide. They do everything together. Sid asks Geno to teach him advanced swordsmanship and archery stuff because he wants to be more than just a figurehead king someday, and offers in exchange to help Geno develop his under-practiced writing skills so he can send letters home to his family — this leads to long combat practice sessions in the afternoon sun and late-night lessons huddled together in the castle library by candlelight. Sid ends up demanding that Geno be knighted after his quick-thinking and bravery in the midst of some accident saves the life of Sid’s sister Taylor when she is visiting — King Lemieux agrees, on the condition that Sid do the knighting ceremony himself “as practice for when you are king” and the tension of THAT whole sequence is off the charts, Geno kneeling and pledging his loyalty as Sid taps his shoulders with his sword and bestows this upon him. But they never do anything about this tension because they’re best friends, and besides with their stations in life and everything else there’s just nothing that would be possible, surely.... Anyway when Sid is like 22-23 the King dies (or is somehow incapacitated) and he suddenly has to ascend to the throne. Not everyone thinks he’s ready for it (he feels so unsure himself, inside) and there are those within the court who don’t believe in the prophecy or still see him as a weak and naïve boy, who seek to undermine or usurp him and put themselves on the throne. He has a small circle of trusted knights (Tanger, Flower, Duper, other assorted Pens cast members of the author’s choosing), and he makes Geno his right-hand advisor/chief tactician and de-facto second in command, but beyond that it’s so hard to know who to trust.

The kingdom has been going through some rough years and there are troubles and tensions with other nearby lands, and the crown and the expectations of destiny feel heavy on his head... but even after all these years some things never waver, and one of those is the steady presence of Geno standing beside him or at his back, wearing his colours, ready to personally go to war against any threat that comes Sid’s way, physical or otherwise — not to mention the fact that their relationship is one of those rare parts of his life where he feels like he can be Just Sid and be valued for that, rather than having to rise to his destiny. Meanwhile Geno has long since accepted that he has devoted every part of his heart to his king, his Sidney, who has over the years only grown more regally handsome (rather than boyishly pretty like he was at the start), more proudly sure of himself and defiant of all expectations. They both wonder if there might be something more to how they each feel about the other, but will they be brave enough to risk their friendship and that vital loyalty to try for something more, in the midst of such a dangerous world where so many people are looking for anything they can find to bring down the king? That’s for the author to figure out.... ([Sponsor statement] This pitch brought to you by: the idea of how incredibly sexy it would be to see Geno go beast mode swinging around a big ol broadsword)

anon... you marvelous creature, you. 

we LOVE a medieval/fantasy AU. also, because I need to make everything about wolves: consider Geno being from a race of werewolves, where he can shift into a wolf to protect king and country. 

maybe, too, there’s some bias in the Lemieux kingdom (or even in the Russian kingdom) about werewolves, and Geno expects to never really be given his due in life, treated as lesser than. 

but Sid looks at him differently. sid sees him, even through their language barrier, even through their differences, and it forges a trust and loyalty in Geno that will never waver. Sid looked at him like someone worthy, and Geno will always remember it.

I LOVE a good power imbalance and I love the idea of both of them having a leg up on the other; Sid thinks it would be an abuse of his power as Geno’s liege to openly covet him, to ask Geno to be his. and Geno, as a powerful (perhaps werewolf) warrior who’s pledged to protect Sid’s life, thinks it would be an abuse of his raw physical power to want someone like Sid. 

(better yet if Sid keeps having to court other nobility because the kingdom wants to find him a match and we get some Jealous Geno content. delicious.)

of course we’d need some absolutely wonderful battle scenes of Geno protecting Sid with that broadsword or, when it REALLY gets serious, shifting into a wolf with terrible teeth and claws that prowls around Sid threateningly. 

and, then, Sid tending to the (superficial) wounds Geno earns during fights, where the tension between the sparks dangerously like a flame near dry brush. 

better yet... a scene where Geno is incapacitated or captured, and SID comes to his rescue, using the techniques Geno taught him and he then perfected. Sid gripping Geno roughly, hauling him away to safety, growling—like HE’S the wolf—that he’ll never let Geno be taken again. 

[96thdayofrage]

The Original Karens: From Emmett Till’s Accuser To The White Woman Who Sparked The Tulsa Massacre

Written by Clay Cane

In this current climate of protests and demands for justice, the entitled and indignant white women known as “Karens” appear to be falling apart.

From Amy Cooper, whose over dramatic 911 call on a birdwatching Black man blew up in her face, to Lisa Alexander, who was shocked to discover that no one needs her permission to write “Black Lives Matter” in chalk on their own property, Karens are in a rage. Not even a camera in their face will stop their toxic entitlement, which has led to a string of viral sensations.

When thinking of the country’s experiences with white supremacist violence, the discussions are typically centered around men. However, white women have historically been at the helm of this terror, using their tears and imaginary delicateness as ammunition for victim hood and ultimately destroying lives or at its worst, taking one.

Once upon a time, even the slightest hint that white womanhood may be in danger resulted in the lynching of Black children or a thriving town full of Black families being burned to the ground.

Here are some of the most horrific stories of Karens going wild before the term came into existence.

Sarah Page

There has been a lot of talk around Tulsa, Oklahoma due to this month's 99th anniversary of the tragic race massacre that took place there in 1921. Many people may not know the race massacre began with a 17-year-old named Sarah Page.

Page was an elevator operator in what was called the Drexel Building in downtown Tulsa. On May 30, 1921, reportedly, Dick Rowland, a 19-year-old Black shoe shiner, was getting on the elevator to use a segregated bathroom on a higher floor. He allegedly tripped when entering the elevator, accidentally grabbed Page's arm and she reacted by screaming. Rowland fled but the police were called. The next day, Rowland was arrested and word spread that a Black man assaulted a white woman.

According to the 2001 Tulsa Race Riot Commission Report via The Washington Post, Rowland was accused of assaulting Page “on a public elevator in broad daylight."

Within 18 hours, the Greenwood district of Tulsa, also known as Black Wall Street, was annihilated. In 1921, The New York Times described the massacre as “one of the most disastrous race wars ever visited upon an American city.”

No one knows what happened to Sarah Page or Dick Rowland after the massacre.

Fannie Taylor

On January 1, 1923, 22-year-old Fannie Taylor began screaming outside of her home. A neighbor rushed to the distressed white woman only to find her beaten and bruised, yelling for her baby. Miss Fannie claimed a Black man broke into her home and attacked her. The neighbor searched her house to find the baby safe and no signs of a break in.

Rumors quickly spread that Taylor was raped and robbed by a Black man. Taylor’s husband, James Taylor, gathered a group of men to find the imaginary criminal, even calling on the Klu Klux Klan for assistance.

A pack of 400 terrorists headed to the neighboring area, an affluent Black town in Rosewood, Florida, accusing any Black man they could of the crime. Fannie’s fraudulent tears was the excuse these envious hellions needed to purge out their rage.

Their first victim was Sam Carter, a local blacksmith, who was tortured and hung. They eventually began looking for a man named Jesse Hunter, who they claimed was an escaped convict.

The Black residents of Rosewood fought back but there were many casualties, including Sarah Carrier, a woman who did Fannie Taylor’s laundry. She was shot in the head, according to History.com. Her son Sylvester Carrier was also fatally shot.

The race massacre lasted for a week, burning Rosewood to the ground and killing countless Black people.

As for Fannie Taylor, she reportedly had an affair with a white man who beat her, which is why she had been found abused that night. She thought it was better to accuse a Black man of assault then to take accountability for her own actions.

The 1997 film Rosewood, directed by the late John Singleton, depicted the massacre.

See the clip below of actress Catherine Kellner as Fannie Taylor.

Eleanor Strubing

In December of 1940, Eleanor Strubing, a wealthy white woman in Connecticut accused her 31-year-old Black chauffeur, Joseph Spell, of raping her four times and throwing her into a river. Spell was arrested within hours and immediately sent to jail to wait for trial.

The New York Times famously ran a story with the headline, "Mrs. J.K. Strubing Is Kidnapped And Hurled Off Bridge by Butler; WOMAN KIDNAPPED; HURLED OFF BRIDGE." The article claimed he “confessed after 16 hours" of questioning.

Spell was facing 30 years in prison.

Thankfully, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and its head lawyer, Thurgood Marshall, represented Spell. Marshall and his co-counsel proved evidence that Strubing lied. She, in fact, had consensual sex with Spell and jumped in the river because she was terrified that she might become pregnant from their affair. In her mind, the only option was to accuse Spell of rape in order to justify a possible pregnancy.

An all-white jury found Joseph Spell not guilty, which was shocking for the time. Nonetheless, if this accusation would have been made in the South, Joseph Spell certainly would have died by public lynching.

Wil Haygood, the author of Showdown: Thurgood Marshall and the Supreme Court Nomination That Changed America, wrote about the ruling, "It was a miracle. But Thurgood Marshall trafficked in miracles.”

Strubing, whose father was an investment banker and the former governor of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, suffered no punishment for lying under oath. Her husband, John K. Strubing, died in 1961 and she remarried to John W. Barclay. Stribing died at 92 years old in 2000.

Joseph Spell moved to East Orange, New Jersey after the trial. It’s not clear when he passed away.

The 2017 movie Thurgood was based on the Joseph Spell trial. See the clip below of Kate Hudson as Eleanor Strubing.

Carolyn Bryant

In August of 1955, 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant accused 14-year-old Emmett Till of touching her and whistling at her in a store (he reportedly had a lisp and was unable to whistle.) Till, who was visiting from Chicago, was in Mississippi for the summer spending time with family. Within hours, he was kidnapped from his uncle’s home. The child was tortured, mutilated and thrown into the Tallahatchie River. His naked body was weighed down with a fan blade.

Carolyn’s husband, Roy Bryant and her brother-in-law J.W. Milam, the terrorists who lynched Till, were found not guilty by an all-white jury.

In the 2017 book The Blood of Emmett Till by Timothy Tyson, Carolyn Bryant admitted to lying and claimed that she actually didn’t remember what happened that day in the store.

She is still alive today, living in Mississippi at 86 years old. Emmett Till would have been 79 years old on July 25 if it wasn’t for Carolyn Bryant.

The 65th anniversary of his death is August 28.

Victoria Price and Ruby Bates

Before The Central Park Five in 1989, which would become the Exonerated Five in 2002, there was the Scottsboro Boys in 1932.

On Mach 25, 1931, a group of Black and white teenagers were riding freight trains looking for work, which was common during the Great Depression. The white teens wanted the Black teens off the train and a fight broke out. The white teens attempted to forcibly throw the Black teens from the train. In defending themselves, the Black teenagers instead kicked the white teens off the locomotive.

The angry white teens went to a local sheriff who demanded the train be stopped.

Nine Black teens were removed, ages 13 to 19. However, two white women, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates, were also on the train and spent their time wrongfully accusing several of the Black boys of rape.

Similar to the Exonerated Five, that one accusation stole the innocence of nine Black children.

The teens were jailed in Scottsboro, Alabama: Haywood Patterson, 18; Clarence Norris, 19: Charlie Weems, 19; brothers Andy Wright, 19 and Leroy Wright, 13; Olin Montgomery, who was nearly blind, 17; Ozie Powell, 16; Eugene Williams, 13, and Willie Roberson, 16, who could barely walk due to severe syphilis.

The all-white and all-male jury trial was over in a matter of days and all of them — except 13-year-old Leroy Wright — were found guilty of rape and given the death penalty. There was no evidence of course since Bates couldn’t identify the men she claimed raped her.

The NAACP and the International Labor Defense (ILD), the legal wing of the American Communist Party, joined the case. By November 1932, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Scottsboro defendants had been denied the right to counsel. Shortly after, Ruby Bates admitted she lied.

Nonetheless, the back and forth with the courts continued for years.

By 1936, Haywood Patterson was convicted of rape and sentenced to 75 years. In 1948, he escaped from prison and made it to Michigan. The governor refused to extradite him to Alabama. By 1951, Patterson was convicted of manslaughter after a barroom brawl. In 1952, he died of cancer. He was 39 years old.

In July of 1937, Clarence Norris was eventually convicted of rape and sentenced to life in prison. He was paroled in 1946 and moved north, where he married and had children. His autobiography, The Last of the Scottsboro Boys was released in 1979. He passed away in 1989 at 76 years old.

In July of 1937, Andrew Wright was convicted of rape and sentenced to 99 years. He was released in 1950 at 38 years old. Charlie Weems was also convicted of rape and paroled in 1943. He spent the rest of his life in Atlanta. It’s not clear when or if Wright and Weems have passed away.

Ozie Powell’s rape charges were dropped but he pled guilty to assaulting a deputy, which happened while in custody. He was released from prison in 1946. After spending four years on death row as adults, all charges against Willie Roberson, Olen Montgomery, Eugene Williams, and Leroy Wright were dropped.

It is not known how or when Willie Roberson, Olen Montgomery, Eugene Williams, or Ozie Powell died.

After being released, Leroy Wright, the youngest, went on a national lecture tour and then joined the Army. In 1959, according to PBS, Wright accused his wife of having an affair, fatally shot her and then committed suicide. He was 41 years old.

As for Victoria Price and Ruby Bates, Price never recanted her testimony and died in 1982 at 77 years old. Bates had the privilege of going on a speaking tour, bizarrely, for the International Labor Defense (ILD), which defended the Scottboro Boys. She claimed to have lied because she was "excited and frightened by the ruling class of Scottsboro." Bates died in 1976.

[propsandmayhems]

illicit affairs (pt. 2)

here is the second part of my jordelia fic inspired by illicit affairs by taylor swift! 

a/n: there is kissing and implied sex in this part 

part 1 | part 3 | part 4 | read on ao3

A drug that only worked / The first few hundred times

The night was still clear by the time Lucie had shown Cordelia the new chapter of The Beautiful Cordelia and they had made plans to meet the next afternoon to train. Will tried to insist on having the carriage brought around to take her and James back home, but Cordelia eventually persuaded him to allow them to walk, explaining how she wished to take in the rare night without rain. They were walking arm in arm, and had just turned off Fleet Street when James finally spoke, “Would you care to join me for a nightcap when we get back?”

Cordelia knew what this would lead to. On the night of their wedding, when they were finally alone, he had brought the subject up. “Daisy,” he began, resting on the chaise lounge in the sitting room of Herondale Manor, where they were spending a week for their honeymoon. He had changed out of his wedding gear and was relaxing in white shirtsleeves and black trousers. “If I asked you to accompany me to my room, what would you say?” 

At first, she just gaped at him, astonished at his forwardness. Next, she felt a rush of anger toward him, for assuming she would just give herself to him if he asked. Then she remembered the night at the Hell Ruelle, and how it felt so good to lose herself in James, even if it wasn’t real for him. “I would tell you yes, James. The entire Enclave already believes we’ve consummated our marriage, so what does it matter?”

He let out a short laugh and lazily reached out his hand. “Well come here then.” 

She stood from the sofa she had been lounging on and made her way diagonally across the room to the chaise James was lying on. He had his head resting on his right arm, and his ever-present bracelet sparkled behind the edges of his hair. His left arm was held out across his body, waiting for Cordelia to take his hand. She had changed out of her wedding gown before they departed the Institute, and she was wearing a tea dress in dark green - another one of Anna’s selections. Before they left, Lucie had also helped her in locating all the pins in her hair, and her curls now fell loosely around her shoulders. She reached James and placed her hand in his. “Would you like me to help you up?”

“I’m quite comfortable here. Why don’t you sit?” 

“On your lap?”

The only illumination in the room came from witchlight sconces that lined the walls, and they caused James’s eyes to glimmer in a way that reminded her of the stars in the sky over Cirenworth. “Yes, if that’s alright with you.” 

She gave him a nod and hitched her skirts up with her free hand. James watched her with half-lidded eyes and tugged on her hand. “Bring your leg over,” he instructed. She settled on top of him, legs on either side of his waist, her skirts billowing out around them. “Are you okay with this?” He asked, and her heart warmed at him continuously checking in on her. 

“Yes, although I do believe it would have been a better option to retire to the bedroom, this chaise is quite narrow and I feel like we are going to tip the boat.” 

This brought a small smile out of him, “I can assure you, the chaise is quite stable.” 

“What, have you tested it out with someone else?”

His smile fell, and she thought she saw hurt flash across his expression. However, he blinked and it was gone. “No, you-” he began, then stopped. Disconnecting his eyes from hers and raking them down her body. Unclasping their hands, he moved both of his hands to rest on her thighs under her skirts. He brought his eyes back up to meet hers, and for a moment she thought she saw real desire reflected in the shimmering gold, “just let me know at any point if you want me to stop.”

With that, she leaned down and captured his lips in hers. She brought her hands up to tangle her fingers in his inky black locks. She gave a few strands a gentle tug and was successful in raising a low moan from the back of his throat. He moved his hands further up her thighs, leaving a trail of fire on her skin wherever he touched. His roaming hands came to rest on her lower back, his fingers fanning out so that he was gripping her hips. Her breath hitched and her lips parted, surprised at the new sensation. James took this opportunity to deepen the kiss, slipping his tongue into her mouth. He tasted of champagne and the sweet icing from their wedding cake. 

She untangled her hands from his hair to begin working on the buttons of his shirt. The top two were already unfastened and her surprisingly steady hands made quick work of the third before James broke away from her with a groan, slipping his hands back from under her skirts. Leaning forward, he pulled sharply on his cuffs, popping the buttons off. He then took his shirt by the collar and ripped it over his head, sending the remaining fasteners Raziel-knows-where. Cordelia dropped her jaw and barely silenced a giggle that was rising in her throat. “James! By the Angel! Bridget is going to find those buttons and she’s going to know what we did in the sitting room!”

James, his torso now bare, had once again reclined into the soft fabric of the chaise lounge. He flicked his eyes up to meet hers, and his eyes expressed the same intense wanting as they did that night at the Hell Ruelle. His eyes seemed to be glowing as if they were made of the same molten gold a blacksmith would use to craft a sword. He reached out a hand and twirled a firey curl around one of his long pianist’s fingers. He used the grip on her curl to tug her down close to him and with a gasp, she lurched forward. Quickly, she placed her hands on his exposed chest to prevent their heads from bumping into each other. In her new position, she and James were nearly nose to nose, their breath tangling together. He moved his other hand up to join the other in tangling in her hair, as his eyes searched her face. When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper and sounded as if he was struggling to form any words at all. “Well, Daisy, as you said before, what does it matter?” 

With that, their lips collided together once again with a renewed fervor. Shortly after, James finally led her to his bedroom where her tea dress was abandoned and they explored every inch of each other. 

Since that night, they had spent many more evenings together. Just as she had the first time, they always justified their escapades with the same whispered phrase; what does it matter? And at first, it didn’t - Cordelia would let herself slip away and become a part of James and he a part of her, as whenever they were together she felt that he truly desired her and none of this was a lie or a sham. Yet, recently she couldn’t deny how he looked at her during the day; as if they were just two friends sharing a house. Everything she did to try to draw his attention only raised a simple ‘you look beautiful’ from him. 

She continued to look forward as she answered his question. “No, James, not tonight. I’m tired and I have plans to train with Lucie early tomorrow.” This was a lie - she was not tired at all and didn’t have to be at the Institute until lunchtime tomorrow, but it was the first time she had refused his offer and it had the desired effect on him. He stopped short, the movement abrupt enough that it caused her to swing to face him as their arms were still intertwined at the elbow. 

Looking down at her, he scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion. “Is everything alright, Daisy? Have I done something to offend you?” 

Cordelia yearned to take his face her hands and smooth the crinkles out of his eyebrows, but she forced herself to remain still. Keeping her voice as casual as she could, she replied, “No. It’s just as I said before, that I am tired.” 

James opened his mouth to reply, but quickly closed it. With that, they once again started forward to finish their walk home - now surrounded by a thick silence.

[weemsbotts]

All That Glitters is Not Gold: Stories from the Mine

By: Lisa Timmerman, Executive Director

In 1889, the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine opened and operated, eventually changing ownership from the Cabin Branch Mining Company to the American Agricultural Chemical Company before its closure in 1920. After the devastation of the Civil War, the discovery of “fool’s gold”, aka iron sulfide, was a boon to the local economy as sulfur was an ingredient in items such as soap, glass, rubber, fertilizer, and the production of gunpowder for World War I. While companies and businessmen profited from this venture, the 200-300 laborers, including children, risked their lives for small wages and often unsafe working conditions.

In 11/1899, the Fredericksburg Free Lance described the operations with predictions for its future, “Three shafts have been sunk about 140 feet deep, and tons of ore are gotten out daily by a force of 60 men. The ore is shipped by the company’s own 7 miles of well built narrow gauge road to a point in the Potomac River. The sum of $500 to $600 is paid by this firm [Dedrick & Co.] weekly for labor. The whole surrounding country seems a bed of pyrites ore and a bright future is before Dumfries.” The mine became a major industry to the area with 70 buildings (company store, blacksmith shop, hen house, icehouse) and employed both black and white persons but housed them separately. Crews worked the mine in 10-12 hour shifts as the mine operated 24 hours a day, pay ranging from 50 cents (children’s daily pay) to potentially $4.25 a day/shift. Crews consisted of blasters, persons who ignited the dynamite and supervised others, powdermen responsible for carrying and placing blasting powder, muckers who loaded ore into wagons, cart pushers who transported the ore to the surface, and timberman who provided stability to the shafts with wooden. The mine employed children to sort the ore into piles based on size. The Mine generally assigned black persons to lower positions and the wages did not reflect the reality of supporting a family; instead, the Cabin Branch Community (Hickory Ridge, Joplin and Batestown) supported each other and relied upon being self-sufficient by growing crops, hunting, and taking multiple jobs. One unidentified black woman in her 50s noted, “…His father was one of those that worked in the mines and of course it was hard work. They would go in there and stay for…he couldn’t recall whether it was days or months because he was so young. He remembered his dad going away, staying for a long time, and finally coming. And then, he could see him coming from the distance and he would see him covered with the soot and grime and all. And it just seemed like he was gone forever…” Another person remembered, “Everybody was really blessed an not really deprived…They were a self-contained community. They were pretty proud of…the fact that they pulled together and they could make it together.”

(Cabin Branch Mine Coupon Book, Coupons worth 10 cents)

Accidents certainly happened with reports appearing in local newspapers. On 06/13/1903, the Alexandria Gazette reported “A colored man, named Smith, about 40 years old, was taken to Washington from Dumfries, early last night. Smith was suffering from numerous injuries…In the mine there is an incline railway on which cars weighing 1,200lbs when empty are need to carry the ore to the opening of the mine. Smith was struck by one of these cars, by so severely injured that Dr. William P. Canton surgeon for the company, deemed it necessary to have him taken to Washington.” Mr. Smith suffered from a broken right leg, both shoulder blades dislocated, and a splintered upper jaw. Turning to a transcribed partial list of laborers compiled by Ronald Turner, we find two potential Smith’s – Bord Smith and Robert Smith, both noted as laborers further identified by their race. While the prognosis for recovery was good, deaths also occurred in the mine, and the resulting court cases provide an enormous wealth of information about mine operations.

In the case Quinton L. Hutchinson’s Administrator vs. Cabin Branch Mining Company, Climenia Hutchinson, the widow and mother of their infant child, sued the mine for 10,000 in 1909, “…a large and ponderous mass of stone, slate, mineral and earth fell from the side of the said mine and in and upon said plaintiff’s intestate, without any negligence or fault on the part of said plaintiff’s intestate, and by such falling in of said stone, slate, mineral and earth so negligently permitted to hang loosely in and about said mine and the sides thereof, the said Quinton L. Hutchinson, plaintiff’s intestate, was injured and crushed about the body, back and hips and so injured that he died shortly thereafter, to-wit…” Physicians examining the body noted he had bruising over his entire abdomen along with displaced segments of his spinal column, with ruptured internal blood vessels caused by pressure of the material. The plaintiff called upon many laborers in the mine to testify regarding the day of the accident and the conditions of the mine, including Mr. J. Clarence Williams, born “Well, Dumfries is as close as I could get at it”, as Mr. Williams was present at the time of Mr. Hutchinson’s death and personally knew him. The mine employed Mr. Williams as a mucker, receiving a 1.50 a day/shift, he testified to the condition of the mine and the chain of command – the defense questioning his experience and specifically asking about the race of the men working near where Mr. Hutchinson died. Frank G. Williams, race not identified, worked the machine, and received $2.00 a day/shift – he was with Mr. Hutchinson at the time of his death. “Well, of course, I know he was killed, that’s all. A piece came over on him and he hollered, and for a second or two, I didn’t know hardly what had happed for a second or two.” An estimated two-ton piece of ore or slate fell and pinned Mr. Hutchinson. Based on witness testimonies and mine policies, the court instructed the jury to determine eleven issues, ranging from workplace safety to the possible negligence of Mr. Hutchinson – however, the jury needed to determine if the mine could have averted the accident after discovery of any supposed worker negligence. The jury awarded Mrs. Hutchinson assessing her damage at $1750.00. Cabin Branch Mining Company quickly appealed and won when the Prince William County Court reversed the decision, stating the judgment was erroneous, and ordered Mrs. Hutchinson to pay the costs “…expended in the prosecution of its writ of error”, a total of $357.55. According to our records, the family buried Mr. Hutchinson in Dumfries Cemetery, born in 1882 and died in 1909.

(Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine, 1907, National Park Service)

Many of the men interviewed lived in or near Dumfries and worked in the mine for over ten years – some even continued working for the company but not in the section where Mr. Hutchinson died. White miners lived in Dumfries, some rented from the Merchant family (now the Weems-Botts Museum), while the black laborers in the records noted they lived as close as they could to Dumfries and identified it as home although the town remained segregated. By 1920, the mine no longer operated due to a variety of factors, ranging from a marked decrease in demand of gunpowder after WWI and the discovery of cheaper sulfur elsewhere.

National Park Services owns the property today and you can even walk the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail leading you to Quantico Creek and other foundations of the Park’s past life as a mining industry. While there are scattered traces of the Mine operations and even a burial of one of the miners, we rely upon oral histories, court records, letters, folklore, and other sources to help tell the stories from the mines. 

Note: April is rushing in and The Weems-Botts Museum is ready with three virtual opportunities! From preparing for the cicadas with your family & friends to having a tea basket arranged for you, we are here to provide interesting, varied, and delicious programming! Click here to find links to all of our seasonal programs! 

(Sources: HDVI Archives: Cabin Branch Mine Newspapers transcribed and compiled by William Schneck, 04/29/2010 ; Payne-Jackson, Arvilla and Sue Ann Taylor, Prince William Forest Park: The African American Experience, National Park Service National Capital Area, 06/2000; Turner, Ronald R. American Agricultural Chemical Company & Cabin Branch Mining Company Workers Dumfries, VA 1910-1920, accessed on 03/24/2021 via http://pwcvirginia.com/sites-structures.htm; National Park Services: Prince William Forest: Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine (1889-1920), https://www.nps.gov/prwi/learn/historyculture/cabin-branch-mine.htm; )

[braincoins]

Unusual Halloween Movies

Tired of Jason, Freddy, and Michael? Want something new this year? Boy, do I have some treats lined up for you! I’ve used JustWatch to list the streaming options (though these are US streaming options; I maaaaay be up for some streaming fun on Halloween...). I’ll tell you right now, this list can almost perfectly be broken into three categories: Horror-Comedy, Sci-Fi Horror, or International Horror.

American Mary -  A medical student drowning under tuition debt finds a lucrative practice when she enters the world of body modification. ngl, I remember liking this movie but it’s been a bit since I saw it, so for the CONTENT WARNINGS I’m going to straight up rip the MPAA here: Rated R for strong aberrant violent content including disturbing images, torture, a rape, sexual content, graphic nudity, language and brief drug use

Ava’s Possessions - Ever wonder what life is like once all your demons have been exorcised - literally? Now that Ava is free of the demon that once possessed her, she’s out of a job, down a few friends, and facing charges for the acts of violence her demon did. The only way to get out of trouble is to go to the demon-equivalent of AA. CONTENT WARNINGS: mostly blood and bad language; some mild sexual content 

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon - A journalism grad student interviews a young man in training to be the next slasher killer, ala Jason/Freddy/Michael. An absolute treat of a movie for anyone who loves slasher films; it’s about 3/4 mockumentary, 1/4 actual horror film when she realizes that, no, really, he’s going to go kill all those co-eds. CONTENT WARNINGS: Blood, gore, naked boobs (”Ugh. Is that REALLY necessary?” “Now, Taylor, who’s telling this story?”), sex, occasional panty shots (because, again, slasher films). 

Bubba Ho-Tep - OH MAN another one I had to go back and add in ‘cause REALLY NOW. Elvis is in a nursing home (at least, he says he’s the real Elvis) and he and JFK (who is played by Ossie Davis - who you will note is NOT white) have to fight off a resurrected mummy who sucks the souls of the living out of their assholes. Bruce Campbell stars. HOW IS THAT NOT AWESOME ENOUGH FOR YOU?! CONTENT WARNING: Um... look, I think you kinda already know what sort of content to expect given what I just told you about the story.

Bulbbul (Netflix Original) -  (Hindi Language) During the 19th century Bengali Presidency, something - or someone? - is haunting the woods around a lord’s estate, killing men in gruesome ways. The lord has left his estate in charge of his young wife, while his younger brother, who’d been away studying in London, returns to hunt down whatever is causing these mysterious deaths. CONTENT WARNINGS: child bride, blood, and what Netflix calls “sexual violence”, meaning a rape scene so graphic (despite not showing any nudity or genitalia) that it is GUARANTEED to make you uncomfortable. The movie was written and directed by a woman, so there is nothing intended to be “sexy” about this at all. If you can make it through that scene, though, there is a definite payoff for it. (Or should I say “payback”?)

Eli (Netflix Original) - A young, incredibly sick boy with a fragile immune system is brought by his parents to a clinic for an experimental treatment that may be their last hope. But all is not as it seems within the walls of this place... perhaps literally. CONTENT WARNINGS: mostly just language, a few mild jump scares. People get set on fire at one point. No biggie. 

Errementari: the Blacksmith and the Devil (Netflix Original) - (Basque Language) Based on a Basque folk tale. Eight years after the First Carlist War, a government official comes to a small, impoverished Basque town asking after the blacksmith. Everyone tries to warn him away; the blacksmith is an evil, evil man. But he is on the trail of some Carlist gold that might be in the smithy, and the prospect of the gold wins him some helpers. And while everyone is distracted by that, a young orphan girl manages to get onto the blacksmith’s property. And what she finds there, no one could have expected... CONTENT WARNINGS: I took a screenshot of Netflix’s list of warnings just because it amuses me:

[sings “One of these things is not like the others...”]

Europa Report - Look, I really can’t recommend this enough for fans of found-footage features and people who can stand slower-paced, constantly-building terror. An international mission is sent to investigate Europa, one of the moons of Jupiter. (Those of you who are fans of real-world space exploration know that Europa is considered a prime target for extraterrestrial life within our solar system.) Contact was lost with the mission for a long time, until the data streams came flooding into Earth all at once. And what they showed... CONTENT WARNINGS: Like I said: slower pace than most horror/thriller movies. It builds slow and steady. There’s really not much in the way of blood and gore, though; an excellent example of terror without resorting to buckets of red corn syrup.

Event Horizon - Hellraiser in Space? Hellraiser in Space. Except the Lamentation Configuration is a fucking SPACE SHIP. Also, props for genre-savvy cast. CONTENT WARNINGS: EYE SCREAM. Blood, gore, and, no really, THE EYE THING. Did I mention the gore and the blood? Oh, and language. And blink-and-you-miss it nudity & sex.

Grabbers - Strange creatures are attacking a small Irish coastal town and the only way to protect yourself is... to be drunk? CONTENT WARNINGS: I mean, it’s Irish and everyone’s drunk, so bad language (by American standards) is a given. That’s... really about it, unless you have a tentacle phobia.

Green Room -  An up-and-coming punk band show up to play a gig and realize too late that they’re playing at a Neo-Nazi club. And when they happen to see something they... really shouldn’t have, it becomes an all-out fight for survival. Same director as Murder Party, though this movie was made later with a much better budget. CONTENT WARNINGS: Violence, blood, gore, and yes, some dogs die because they were trained to be vicious attack dogs by Neo-Nazis. :( Also, the most important content warning of all? PATRICK STEWART PLAYS A NEO-NAZI. (You think I’m joking, but for someone who grew up with him as Jean-Luc Picard, it is downright unsettling to see, okay?)

Life - Think Alien meets Europa Report (above). The six-member crew of the International Space Station are given a sample from Mars that might contain actual extraterrestrial life.  CONTENT WARNINGS: Blood. No, let me say that again: BLOOD. Sounds of bones breaking. Alien creature entering someone’s mouth and killing them from the inside (probably through a combination of choking them/asphyxiating them on their own blood/devouring their blood? It’s not clear, it’s just UNSETTLING).

Murder Party - This is what happens when snobby art school brats try to kill someone. (Read: it doesn’t go well.) Fuckin’ bop of a Halloween song over the end credits, too. Also, at least two characters are canonically bisexual. Same director as Green Room, though this movie was made first (with a much lower budget). CONTENT WARNINGS: bad language, blood, gore, nudity, mild sexual content (the nudity is supposed to be “artistic”). The dog probably DOES die, given the circumstances, but it doesn’t happen on screen, at least? And the dog gets some pretty decent comeuppance first... Also, 1000000% accurate cat representation. 

The Perfection (Netflix Original) - A former cello virtuoso (virtuosa?) gets in touch with her former teacher and meets his new star pupil. An instant connection is formed between the two women... or is it? (Yes, there are lesbians!) CONTENT WARNINGS: oh chaos, where do I start? Bugs under the skin, hacking off body parts, blood, gore, mild sexual content, sexual abuse, and the movie itself is complete and utter MINDFUCKERY. Did you like “Tales from the Crypt” as a kid? You’ll probably dig this. 

Ravenous - With apologies to all Native Americans, but at least they did get actual Native American actors for those parts (George is played by a Pueblo actor; his sister Martha is played by an actress of Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee descent). A soldier who won a questionable victory during the Mexican-American war is given a hero’s status and then an exile to a remote fort in the Sierra Nevadas. Not long after he arrives, a would-be settler arrives with a harrowing tale, calling for help for what few survivors there are of his wagon train. The two friendly Native Americans at the fort issue warnings that go unheeded, of course. CONTENT WARNINGS: Blood, gore, cannibalism, PTSD.

Slither - James Gunn’s 2006 Feature Movie Directorial Debut! He wrote it, too. An homage to B-movie gore flicks like you’d see at the drive-in. I am just copying and pasting the IMDB summary ‘cause I love this movie too much to be concise about it: A small town is taken over by an alien plague, turning residents into zombies and all forms of mutant monsters. (Oh, but don’t forget the nasty, slithery blood worm things!) CONTENT WARNINGS: Nasty, slithery blood worm things. GORE, BLOOD, GORE, GORE. A very uncomfortable sex scene. Michael Rooker.

They’re Watching - An American TV crew filming what is essentially “House Hunters: Eastern Europe” stumble into superstitions, folklore, and... TERROR!! MWAHAHAHAHA. No, seriously, I LOVE how it’s basically “What if some HGTV crew wound up waaaaaaaay in over their heads, in a horrible and bloody way?” CONTENT WARNINGS: Blood, gore, and NO WI-FI.

[youknownnothingjonsnow0303]

A gendrya fanfic called “lover” with 18 chapters each one is named after one Taylor Swift song of her album “lover”, the story is told form aryas POV. Each chapter can be a different story:

1- I forgot that you existed: Arya talking about the girls that used to make fun her when she was younger.

2- Cruel summer: Arya meets Gendry just after her father death.

3- Lover: Well... I mean, this is their song. But I like to think that this song can be a chapter since the proposal to the wedding ( even her bows are here).

4- The man: This is a great song of ~actually~ every woman on the GoT universe. So it can be a girl conversation with Arya, Daenerys, Sansa, Margaery ... SISTERHOOD.

5- The archer: Ok, listen to me. This is Arya after she said no to gendry proposal.

6- I think he knows: Arya and Gendry playing around. Modern AU. This really has smut potential 👌🏽

7- Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince: OK so this one is Gendry and Arya after forge!sex - before the war. They wake up together, lay together and talk about the past.

8- Paper rings: The second propose after Arya comes back to Westeros. This time she proposes to him. He says yes.

9- Cornelia street: Modern AU too. Basically what the song says. If they broke up she is never going to walk on the street they live together. It can be set after a fight.

10- Death by a thousands cuts: We had talk a lot about gendry after the proposal... but i think Arya is sad too (LOOK AT MAISIE FACE ON THAT SCENE) this is Arya on the boat you guys. Trying to have a good time exploring and bla bla bla, but she misses her blacksmith and you know... missing him is death by a thousand cuts so she comes back.

11- London boy: Modern AU. Arya is the most northern girl in the whole north till she falls for a southern boy and well, she stars to like different things.

12- Soon you’ll get better: ok, this one as YNTCD are very specific songs on this albums, but I been thinking about this song a lot on the gendrya universe. I think that this could be Arya or gendry with a mother figure.

13- False god: SMUT. THAS IT.

14- You need to calm down: like a said very specific song. But you know, girls night out, something funny. Also, this one talks about the necessity of the media to compare women. Just like every one did with Arya, Sansa and Daenerys in the last season.

15- Afterglow: THIS IS ARYA WHEN SHE GETS BACK FORM “WEST WESTEROS “ THIS IS ARYA SAYING SORRY TO GENDRY.

16- Me!: Modern AU. Just before they friendship becomes relationship, Arya gets drunk and says to Gendry reason why she is better for him that any other ex girlfriend. ((Something like “hey, who would you date better than me? You make swords, I actually use them, you see... we are perfect for each other” and he smiles and says “yes, indeed”))

17- it’s nice to have a friend: Gendry, Arya and Hot pie. In any universe.

18- Daylight: the last chapter should be Arya and Gendry being happy with they new born baby.😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

[flirting-with-psychology]

Where did 2017/18/19/20 start for you? 2017: At my mom’s house I think

2018: I think also at my mom’s house

2019: Uhh I can’t remember

2020: At a 20′s party Did you move houses? Where are you living now? 2017: I moved into a house with some of my friends from school

2018: I moved into a different house with different friends from school

2019: The first time since starting college that I haven’t moved

2020: I moved back in with my dad at the end of the year because my roommates weren’t taking covid seriously Did you get a new job? 2017: Yes I did!

2018: I got some independent projects and an internship

2019: Nope…

2020: No but I got to leave my job Were you taken on Valentine’s Day? 2017: No

2018: No

2019: I wasn’t officially taken but I had a date!

2020: Yes :) Did you get married or divorced? 2017: No

2018: No

2019: No

2020: No

Did you find any new friends? 2017: Yes, a few

2018: Yes

2019: I think so?

2020: A couple Did anybody disappoint you this year? 2017: Cadence kind of did

2018: Plenty of boys did and some friends did too

2019: Hiring managers did

2020: The whole world did Who got really close to your heart in 2017? 2017: Cadence and Captain were already there but they got closer, possibly Guacamole

2018: No one really

2019: The Magician became my boyfriend

2020: My boyfriend Did you find a new hobby? 2017: Yes, Metal Earth models. Although it’s possible I started that in 2016

2018: I don’t think so, unless you consider shopping a hobby. But even that’s not new

2019: Got a little more into jewelry making

2020: Dice making Where did you go on holiday? 2017: I went to London with my mom

2018: I didn’t

2019: I went on a birthright trip to Israel

2020: Harry Potter World What was your most expensive purchase? 2017: A mattress. Or rent, but that’s not really a purchase

2018: My gold Brighton heart necklace 2019: Plane tickets?

2020: A car

Did you change your appearance this year? 2017: Not really. I got better at makeup though

2018: Got a little fatter

2019: Gained weight. I tried to dye my hair but it didn’t really take

2020: Got fatter and my hair got longer Did you change mentally? 2017: Maybe got a little more stable after the whole Bryant ordeal

2018: Maybe a little more feeling stuck in my ways

2019: Felt more frustrated with my job situation but lost some FOMO since getting a boyfriend

2020: More anxiety Did you learn anything new this year? 2017: Yeah, all my spring semester classes

2018: Yeah at my jobs and internship

2019: Learned about having a boyfriend

2020: Not a whole ton but learned how to make dice and learned about Subaru Foresters and about covid What were the best moments? 2017: London, screening my film, graduating

2018: Singing maybe, or having fun with friends

2019: Seattle was fun, the birthday escape room was fun

2020: Harry Potter World

What was the best present you gave to somebody? 2017: My mom’s buffalo magnet

2018: Oh man I feel like I had a really good humor present but I can’t remember what it was

2019: A downton abbey bell for my mom or a cool album for my boyfriend

2020: Solar system necklaces The best present somebody gave to you? 2017: My friend gave me a Loki action figure

2018: Probably my speaker from Hanukkah

2019: Dating me

2020: My companion cube die from my boyfriend Things you could have done without? 2017: Surgery. I mean I probably couldn’t really have done with out it, but I could have done without needing it in the first place

2018: Half the stuff I bought at Macy’s

2019: Lol same at the Macy’s crap. Also unnecessary critiques of my weight and constant job pressure

2020: The pandemic Which song most reminds you of this year? 2017: Evermore?

2018: Waving through a window

2019: If I Were A Jolly Blacksmith

2020: Epiphany The most delicious meal? 2017: IHOP cupcake pancakes

2018: Zucchini spaghetti

2019: Rueben’s pretzel bun grilled cheese and sweet potato fries with garlic aioli sauce. Too bad they closed!

2020: Giordano’s Pizza The most impressive book? 2017: Mistborn series

2018: Here Lies Daniel Tate

2019: I didn’t really read anything impressive

2020: The Hunger Games series The best film? 2017: Coco

2018: A Star Is Born

2019: Uhh Rocketman?

2020: Idk Best time spent with: 2017: Some of my friends who are back in town

2018: My roommates

2019: My boyfriend

2020: My boyfriend The best album? 2017: Anastasia the Musical

2018: Can’t pick, there were a lot of good musicals

2019: Lover by Taylor Swift

2020: Folklore by Taylor Swift Which was your favourite month? 2017: May

2018: August or September

2019: October 

2020: January What do you want to change in 2018/2019/2020/2021? 2017: Actually work out ever, get a job in my field, finish my Harry Potter spellbook

2018: Get a boyfriend, lose weight, be happier

2019: Get a fucking job

2020: Get back to normal and get a better job How would you rate this year? 2017: Pretty good

2018: Ok

2019: Ok

2020: Most times I don’t blame the year, but fuck 2020

[alltheworldsinmyhead]

                                         FLORIAN THE FOOL

                                                             ao3

Time flies and it does not wait for anyone. But theirs are years well-lives, so Gendry supposes it's all right, in the end // Gendry gets to watch his Arya grow old with him. It feels like a blessing.

gendry’s pov of the white fawn

Clearing the air, I breathed in the smoke

Maybe you ran with the wolves and refused to settle down

Maybe I've stormed out of every single room in this town

Threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it's morning now

It's brighter now

I once believed love would be burnin' red

But it's golden

Like daylight

- Daylight, Taylor Swift

***

Sometimes, when it’s raining outside and the kids are deep asleep, curled on top of one another like a litter of pups, Gendry takes Arya’s hand and they dance slowly in the middle of the room, swaddled in darkness. Nothing fancy – mostly, they just sway side-to-side, her cheek leaning on his chest and his chin resting on the top of her head.

It’s very quiet between them.

This always reminds him of kneeling on the cold, soft mud in front her, underneath Raventree, when they were told to ask gods to bless their marriage. He did not believe in gods then and he does not believe in them now; Old or New or Red, they don’t seem to listen to mortals’ wishes at all. But despite that, he bowed his head dutifully and, against everything, did ask for one thing and one thing only-

Let me love this woman right, please. Just let me love her like she is supposed to be loved.

It is a prayer, but it’s also more than that; it is a promise.

Arya, with her hair chopped short and desperate eyes, trying to convince him she is a boy.

Arya, bow in her hands, swift and nimble on her feet, running through the woods like a fawn.

Arya in yellow silks and with flowers on her head, so young and so fucking gorgeous it hurt. Arya, saying she is his, claiming him as hers.

Arya hovering above him, her eyes shining in the dark.

Arya on her back, face all red, hair stuck to her forehead and crying in pain, her hand clasping his so hard that bruises form on his fingers.

Arya, ankle-deep in cold, cold river, holding Ben under his armpits and lowering him into the water and raising him up over and over again as he wiggles in her grip, giggling.

Let me love her like she deserves to be loved.

*

Jory only falls asleep if someone sings to him and it takes them way too much time to figure it out, probably because none of them have any fucking idea what they’re even doing and so the thought of ever trying lullabies have somehow never occurred to either.

But one yet another sleepless night, Arya, more tired than sane really, lays their screaming, screeching baby on the bed between them and begins to rub comforting circles on his belly with her eyes closed as she opens her mouth.

Six maids in a pool

They're of noble blood

One Fool, but great, on the shore

He'd seen that flower full of love

"She'll be in my garden" - he'd sworn

And then there is a sudden silence, blissful silence except for Arya’s low, rough voice and the sound of crickets outside as Jory’s eyelids flutter and shut. Soon enough, he’s deep asleep, clutching Gendry’s index finger with one of his tiny fists.

They stay frozen, afraid to move, to even breathe, in case the baby will wake up, but it does not happen and Gendry slowly tears his gaze away from Jory, so relieved and overjoyed, about to just pull Arya against his chest and kiss her senseless-

But Arya looks down, still like a lake, tears rolling down her cheeks one by one.

‘’Arry.’’ – he whispers hopeless, at loss of what to do. His heart beats so loudly in his chest that he’s sure she must hear it.

‘’It was- it was Sansa’s favorite.’’ – she lets out with a shaky breath, hunching over and hiding her face in her hands. – ‘’Florian The Fool and Jonquil.’’

Slowly, so, so slowly, Gendry grabs her wrists and lowers her hands down and cups her face, wiping tears from her cheeks with his thumbs. She’s so skinny, so sad lately, worn to the bone.  

‘’It’s just so hard now.’’ – she admits quietly.

He’s about to say I know, but bites on his tongue before those words escape from his mouth. No, he doesn’t. He does not know much really. He leaves on the first light and comes home late, and Arya stays, day and night, hissing in pain every time she nurses and lulling crying Jory in her arms for hours, over and over again. The girl who wanted adventure and thrill, stuck in one place like a caged bird.

Staring into Arya’s weary, gleam-less gray eyes, Gendry really, truly hates himself for the first time in his life.

He does not know how to make it better. So, instead, he does the only thing that comes into his mind; he kisses her forehead and tells her that she can go to sleep and he will watch Jory. This night and all the other nights. And he will learn all the songs under the sun, if that’s what their baby wants. Behold, Gendry The Fool.

This earns him a smile. Small and barely-there.. but it’s a beginning.

*

In the morning light, she is a statue carved out of marble.

Sitting on the threshold, barefoot and with her hair loose, she looks so fragile. Bird-boned. If she was a metal, she would require goldsmith’s nimble fingers to form, not brute strength of a blacksmith.

And yet, she hears his footsteps, she turns around to look at him and moves a little to the left to make place for him. And, when he sits down, she rests her head on his shoulder as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do and he wraps his arm around her-

And yet, despite all, they just fit. They work.  

She places his hand on her swollen belly so he could feel their babe kicking underneath his fingers, oh gods, he never wants to move from this threshold ever again. He tries to imagine sitting here with another woman, sharing his life with another woman and it just leaves a foul taste in his mouth.

He is hers. Simple as that.

*

Duncan is so small in Gendry’s hands, barely bigger than a loaf of bread and looking so delicate. Born a moon too early, he came out of Arya’s womb pale and unmoving and Gendry has never been more afraid in his life than in those few seconds stretched into infinity, looking into Arya’s wide wild eyes and waiting for their second son to take his first breath and start to cry. He’s fine now, maybe still a bit too light, but that’s okay – Gendry can keep him safe and warm in his arms as long as it takes for his to gain strength on his own, as long as he needs it. Even if it’s forever. It doesn’t matter.

Jory is so curious about his baby brother that it’s almost comical. He peaks at Duncan napping on Arya’s breast and then gently, very gently, pats his chubby cheek.

‘’Soft.’’ – he grins up at Arya and she laughs.

‘’Yeah, babies are like that. All soft and nice. Do you want to give him a kiss?’’

Jory seems to be thinking about it for a while, a tiny wrinkle appearing between his brows from concentration. It smoothes down when he leans to press a peck on Duncan’s dark head.

‘’Love him.’’ – he babbles with a toothy smile and Gendry can swear that there actual tears in Arya’s eyes, no matter that she would deny it.

*

‘’Wish I could give ‘em a name.’’ – he says quietly, watching as older boys snore in unison, both of them holding each of Ollie’s tiny fists.

Arya reaches out above their sleeping children and puts her little hand on his cheek. Her eyes are shining in the darkness like twin stars and yes, indeed, Gendry wishes for a name other than Waters more than he has ever wished for anything, but that’s not the only thing he desires. He wishes for a featherbed for Arya; for her to be less tired; for her hands to remain soft. He can’t give her comfort the same way he can’t offer any of the three sons he has with a noble-born woman anything more than a hut on the hill, a few goats and a small workshop in the Maidenpool.

‘’They have a father who loves them, a father who they can be proud of. That’s more important than any name could ever be.’’

Gendry thinks it’s very lady-like of her to say so. But, after all, she gave up her name for him, so maybe he could trust her on this matter.

*

Sometimes he dreams of Arya in Winterfell; Arya all highborn in Northern furs, a silver crown on her dark hair and cheeks painted pink from frost. He dreams of wolves surrounding her, howling for her in the woods, bowing their heads for her when she passes through the pack of them as if she was their queen.

Wolf dreams, she tells him shortly one time when he wakes up in the morning to find her sitting in the bed still deep asleep and biting on her lip hard enough that it bleeds, her hands all scratched by her own nails. He doesn’t ask for more explanation. It’s scary enough, to think what she might have become, how high she might have risen had she not she chosen him.

*

Beric arrives one evening, seated on a fine black mare that makes boys gasp in awe and nervously elbow each other until Jory asks very politely – let it never be said that Gendry raises his son as wildlings, thank you very much – if they can maybe, just maybe, feed her an apple. As horse happily munches, absolutely not paying any attention to three little creatures combing her tail and patting her sides, Arya hoists baby Ben on her hip and talks with Beric outside as Gendry goes to fetch cheese and milk.

On his way back, he stops on the threshold and grins involuntarily. Gods, his wife is just so fucking pretty, more beautiful with every passing year. No one would call her a dirty boyish urchin now, with her long dark locks cascading down her back and a blush on her sweet face. She sways delicately, side-to-side, as the child in her arms dozes off, his head resting on her shoulder.

Gendry very briefly wonders if he could possibly persuade her to have yet another babe. A daughter this time, a little Arya, gifted with her mother’s effortless grace and devious gleam in grey eyes. From their sons, Ollie is the only one brown-headed and also the only one alike to Arya in any physical regard; Jory and Duncan are both copies of him, taller than they should be at their age and growing out of every pair of shoes more rapidly than Gendry can supply them.

‘’Your brother would take you. All of you.’’

Beric’s voice is like a cold shower, briefly, just before it turns into a cold fury brewing in Gendry’s gut.

‘’Why would I ever take my sons to Winterfell?’’

‘’They could have a future there.’’

Gendry doesn’t mean to eavesdrop. If Lord Beric  All-Mighty Dondarrion wants to say that he cannot damn support for his own family, he can fucken say it to his face. But he remains inside the house, hidden in shadows and frozen in place. Listening.

Arya laughs, both softly and bitterly somehow.

‘’What kind of future? Bein’ treated as bastards, even though they’re not? Bein’ treated as baseborn and worse for that, even tho they don’t deserve it? ‘’

‘’Your brother has no heirs, he could use three healthy, strong boys. Do you want your ancestral seat in the hands of some other house? For Starks to die out?’’

Gendry’s fist clench. That’s a low blow and Beric bloody knows it, probably that’s why he does not look Arya in the eyes.

He never let it go. He rode with smallfolk, wined and dined and shat with them, but he never forgave himself for letting highborn girl under his care to be defiled by a bastard blacksmith, knight or not.

Nearly killed me when I refused to ride North with them, sulked through the wedding and acted all high and honorable, and now he tries to take a wife from her husband and children from their father.

‘’Rickon married Shireen Baratheon; if Bran will die childless, Rick’s second son will hold Winterfell. If not, Sansa’s child will. Heard she has a boy now.’’

‘’It’s your sons’ right.’’ Beric’s voice turns sharp. ‘’Hope you know what you’re depriving them of.’’

There is silence ringing in Gendry’s ears for a moment. He inhales, deeply, and is just about to move, to bash Lightning Lord’s skull in, when-

‘’Oh, I know full well.”

Ours is the fury. For the first time, he thinks Arya would make a fine Lady Baratheon; there is so much anger radiating from her that he half-expects for the sky to part and send down thunderbolts.

‘’I deprive them of ever watching their father killed in a godsdamned game of thrones. No one will chop Gendry’s head off for a secret. No one will betray me and slit my throat. ‘’ she states, her voice unwavering. - ‘’If I die on them, it will be in childbirth. If Gendry does, it will be from the plague. These are honest deaths, the ones that don’t scar. Don’t teach me how to love my own children, Beric, or how to take care of them. I gave them the freedom to be who they want to be. And if I will ever bear a daughter, she will be freer than I ever was.’’

Guilt, heavy like a stone, punches him in the gut.

All those years and I’m still underestimating you, love.

Beric gifts them their fine black mare when he leaves the next morning, against their protests. Gendry wants to sell her – it’s suspicious for people like them to have a horse like that – but boys plead and plead for hours and Arya glances at the mare fondly, and Gendry is reminded how she used to ride faster than wind, hair unbound and no saddle needed. Freedom incarnate.

His wife calls the horse Wintersong.

Alysanne is born nine moons later.

*

Against his stupid, silent wishes, their children grow up quicker than a blink. He longs for bare feet and joyous shrieks, for mud fights and hurts that could be healed by kisses. What he gets now is to see them all go their own way and seven hells, it hurts so much.

Benjen is the first one to go, stolen away at just nine by Lord fucking Dayne,  to squire for him and then to be knighted. And Gendry knows, somewhere in the more rational part of him, that this is a good thing, that Ben would be happy doing what he was so clearly made to do. Ned is an honorable man and he will take good care of the boy, and one day Ben will be a great knight. They would sing songs of him. Still, this knowledge does nothing to soothe his sorrows. Bloody Starfall is too far away to travel and, as he hugs Ben’s scrawny frame, the realization that it might be the last time he does that takes his breath away.

I will never see him practicing with wooden swords in the woods again. I won’t see as he grows up.

Is there ever a bitter moment for a father, he thinks, clutching Alysanne’s hand as she waves her brother goodbye.  – then when he gives his child away and they are not his anymore?

The first night after his son’s departure,  Arya weeps from dusk till dawn, clinging to him in desperation until exhaustion pulls her under.  Next morning she’s calm and collected again, moving on as if nothing happened, but this is the first time that Gendry looks at his wife and thinks she’s getting older.

Jory’s next; always the responsible one, he quietly and slowly explains to them one afternoon how he will finish his apprenticeship soon and would like to stay in Maidenpool and marry his carpentry master’s youngest daughter. Gendry knows the girl – pretty lass named Joy, fox-like and with hair kissed by the fire. He had no idea that Jory fancies her thou, although it is possible he might be the only one oblivious, as Arya doesn’t even try to look surprised.

(Stupid. – she tells him in the evening, shaking her head. – During the fair last year all he did was look at her, all moony, too afraid to ask her to dance. Didn’t you notice that?

Well. He didn’t.

Arya sighs heavily, resting her head on her hand and glancing at him from underneath her lashes.

Remind me why I married you?

He leans down, resting his forehead against hers. His hand sneaks underneath her skirts to rest on her bare tight and he watches as grin blooms on her face.

Don’t complain, m’lady.)

Duncan doesn’t ever really leave, which Gendry cherishes.  Even as a kid, Duncan loved coming over to forge the most, begged Gendry to teach him blacksmithing ever since he was maybe six. As a man grown, his second son is his mirror copy; his body made to hammer metal into obedience and temper it into strength. He’s good at that, very good in fact. Steel sang for Gendry for most of his life – and it sings for Duncan too, even more beautifully. Girls from the whole town come over to watch him work and even Gendry is not as blind as not to see that the boy enjoys their attention.

He would be lying if he said it does not worry him, the thoughts of his own father and bastards swimming in his head until one day Duncan sets the hammer down and turns to him, blushing like a maiden.

‘’Dad.’’

‘’Hmm?’’

‘’Well. There is this girl- we, I mean, she… you know…‘’

Ha. There is always a girl.

‘’Are you going to marry her?’’

Duncan’s ears turn red.

‘’Yes.’’

Gendry stays quiet for a moment, before deciding that it certain things just don’t matter as much as he used to think they do.

Slowly, he eases his scowl into a smile.

‘’Congratulations, then.’’

Olllie… Ollie is a burden too heavy to bear.

(Arya screamed for hours, howled like a wolf with the limp body of their son clutched to her chest. No words, just raw ache of a wounded animal, not letting anyone come near. Alys hid in the cupboard, curled in a little ball with her hands pressed to her ears and crying in terror until Jory carried her away, hushing Duncan and Ben out.

Spring fever has a smell, sweet and disgusting. It always comes too late, when there is nothing that can be done anymore, clinging to hair and skin for weeks. No one can wash it off. In a way, Arya was right – death from plague never really scars. The wound that it leaves simply doesn’t ever close.

Ollie was so small, gasping for breath. He still had all his milk teeth, he still loved for Gendry to toss him up in the air, he still would ask Arya to tell him stories every evening and kiss his forehead goodnight.

So small.)

Sometimes he wonders – if they lived in a castle, maybe a maester could heal him, maybe he still would be alive. He wonders if Arya wonders about it too, but decides to keep silent.

They don’t talk about Ollie, none of them.

Alys runs away two moons before her five and tenth name day, surprising no one. Gendry guesses he got his wish; she is her mother’s daughter, truly. He watches, sad and resigned, as his wife tries and fails to hide her quiet glee as she reads him the letter Alys left. He just hears some phrases, here and there: mummer’s troupe, tightrope, adventure, being an acrobat and a boy, there is always a fucking boy.

And just like that, there is two of them again.

*

When they were younger, they used to be more desperate for each other, more hungry. Gendry supposes it makes sense -  he was less sure of her then. Not in a way he doubted she loved him, he always knew she loved him, cared for him. It was more like he was living without ever exhaling, holding his breath and waiting until someone will take her away from him, because surely someone will?

Lady Arya, the Northern Princess on his lap, her eyes shut closed and mouth opened in pleasure, moaning his name and digging her nails in his shoulders.

It was just too good to be true.

He was so careful, not to get used to any of it. From his experience, Gods delight in taking things mortals take for granted. And his family already feels fragile enough; no matter how solid the walls are,  they built them on quicksand. Everything is perishable and he can never forget that. But the older he gets, more and more of this burning anxiety disappears from his bones, evaporating in the thin early-morning mist outside when he wakes up in her warm arms and she sleeps like breast milk and dreams.

He still memorizes as much as he can though. Just in case one day memories would be the only thing he has left.

The identical shade of blue of his sons’ eyes. Alys’ breathy laughter. And Arya, Arya, Arya.

Years made her sweeter, softer.  When they were freshly married, she used to order him around in bed, half-starved for his touch and half-ashamed for being so needy. They would go hard and fast, his fingers leaving bruises on her hips and her teeth leaving bite marks on his neck. He would be lying if he said he did not enjoy that, but now it’s even better. -now, when they make love, it’s slow and gentle, and everything they never thought they could be. She unravels underneath him, letting him pleasure her and worship her until she’s boneless and pliant, laughing breathlessly when his beard scratches her belly.  She used to be slim and skinny, his wolf maiden, taut like a bowstring about to break, with lean muscles dancing underneath her pale skin. Now, there are traces of their children all over her body. They are written in the silver threads in her hair and in a blue spider web of veins on her breasts and faint marks on her belly where it stretched to accommodate growing babies, each of them.

It makes him stupid every time, looking at all those. Stupid and drunk on a feeling he does not even know how to describe.

Time flies and he can never get enough of her, of how it feels to be buried in her, of her hair in between his fingers and her nose bumping his and the way she bites on her lips when she peaks. The taste of her, the sight of her, the sound of her – she drives him mad and he sometimes wonders if he was put on this Earth just for this one purpose, to love this woman until he dies.

Because Gendry loves his lady Arya, like a fool and with all of him. This one thing never changes, even when they grow older and softer and weaker, and their hearts beat slower than they used to. Even when she is no longer dark-haired and he is no longer strong like an ox.

He can no longer carry her through the door, but he can still hold her hand as they watch the sunrise together. And maybe she does not water dance anymore, but, when she brushes her lips against his knuckles, this wicked gleam still burns in her eyes.

He loves her. The best he can. And as it seems to be enough for her - well, he trusts her enough to find solace in that.

[ambersky-ocs]

Bored so. Random OC things cause I don't feel like actually writing

---

Taylor is amazing cuddler. Lots of practice from past partners and her younger siblings. Learns quickly what people like and will do it when cuddling, especially if they've had a bad day

Also she very strong and makes whoever she's cuddling feel protected.

A lot of Dali don't like being touched between their wings, but Dani adores it, practically melting as soon as someone touches him there

Jeremiah's used to not talking while working, and has to get used to Dani and Taylor asking him questions about what he's working on. But he does love them taking an interest, and can usually focus. If he can't he'll ask them to write their questions down and ask later

Taylor's best relationship advice is "just fucking talk to each other" and if you have a crush it's "tell them about it, if they reject you move on"

She often ignores that second piece of advice if it concerns friends already in relationships and it takes awhile for her to finally get over herself and bring it up

Taylor's family is really close, and a lot of people wonder how a house of five can get along really really well. Occasionally it bumps up to eight(eventually nine then eleven) people living in one of their houses at a time

Max made the necklace Taylor always wears, and also made a few jackets that Taylor will wear if she's going out to a bar or something. Taylor doesn't wear the jackets in Tongyi mostly because it's too warm for them, but she does show them off to her friends in Tongyi.

The first dog Dani ever meets is Lucky, Leona's 5-year-old St. Bernard. Dani fell in love with the dog very quickly and Lucky gets really really excited whenever he sees Dani visit, will run to the young royal no matter what, he cannot be stopped-

Jeremiah may or may not have changed the programming of a Tempest bot named Benny. Benny's original programming wanted it to protect Tempest officials. Jeremiah tweaked some stuff to make Benny go 'rogue', attack the officials, and instead protect innocent targets

No one in Tempest ever found out it was Jeremiah

Leona originally kidnapped Keegan Francis so Marie could take out her anger on the bastard for the shit he put Marie through, but Marie instead asked Taylor if she could contact Vic and offer Keegan as a thank you for treating Taylor well.

Let's just say Vic agreed and Keegan was never seen again.

Dani and Jeremiah wonder how the hell Taylor managed to survive dating a cannibal, but agree it does have benefits. They also wonder how the fuck an entire forest cursed cannibals to be stuck in it but that gets answered later on. Ish.

Vic takes one look at Dani and Jeremiah before fixing Taylor with a "really? You're dating guys like this?" look. Cause to Vic the dudes look relatively normal and that's kinda the opposite of Taylor's type but then he learns about Angel and how they each have a piece of her soul and also that Jeremiah used to work at Tempest and that Dani is apparently not technically a human and Vic has an "ah" moment and understands completely

Evanna and any other rulers are all very confused as to how she has lived to be in her 50s.

Also when Evanna was pretty young and soon after she had been crowned queen she discovered her council members had a rather... Dirty way of going about things, using assassins to murder any opposing rulers in Sadia for the war behind Evanna's back. Evanna may or may not have convinced a group of dragons to kill them. No one really asks why she doesn't have a council anymore, no one really questions where the original council went either.

Briar, Erin, and Kord are all part of the "I adore my wife and kids" crowd. Good families with strong bonds. Nothing really happens to them 😅

Azzy and Dolan co-parent Nezu for a while before Dolan realizes Nezu could probably be parented better by Azzy. Azzy and Erin also really wanted to have a kid but neither could get pregnant exactly, and adoption centers aren't really a thing in Tongyi. So! Nezu was adopted by Azzy and Erin!

Evanna teaches Queen Fera's son how to use his abilities(the kid's an illusionist like Evanna. Evanna uses this to her advantage to not get murdered instantly in Sadia and also ends the war)

Queen Fera literally has no idea how illusions worked and accepted Evanna's offer to teach the kid because she didn't want her son to grow up being unable to use or control his abilities

Also since illusionists were more rare to be born, it wasn't like Fera could just find a teacher

The Sydney's play DnD together for family game night and use exclusively sign language (Spanish sign language usually, American sign language if Kord, Chloe, and Neva join them)

Dani and Jeremiah start learning sign language a bit after hanging around the Sydney family

Ollie gets really excited when one day Dani greets her and sparks up a conversation in ASL and she catches Jeremiah practicing some signs when he takes breaks from working on things

The boys also really love Ollie and bring her a ton of little things they think she might like. Marie drew the line when Dani offered to get her a custom knife from one of the best blacksmiths in all of Fahndali (she said he could get one but wait until Ollie was sixteen at least to actually give it to her)

Jayden is incredibly fascinated by Dali born as illusionists

Max learns about some traditional patterns or fabrics used in Tongyi, as well as other kingdoms, and surprises Dani with a jumpsuit combining the Capital's traditional style with Tongyi's. Dani wears it to any and all formal events

Upon learning that Jeremiah helped create Jayden's prosthetic leg, Jayden goes to ask him a bunch of questions. He's momentarily disappointed when Jeremiah says he can't answer a lot of them, but gets excited when Jeremiah calls up an old friend who can and puts her on the phone with Jayden

Dani's afraid of the dark. Taylor and Jeremiah don't really know about this for awhile until they all start sharing a room and Dani asks to keep the lamps on. He claims he really doesn't want to explain why so the two don't push but they do hold him that bit tighter as they all drift to sleep