#wildkitte

[rexsokaficquotes]

Rex closes his eyes, as if in agony – and maybe he is, maybe his injuries are still like a rolling tide of pain. Echo knows how that feels.

“I tried to tell her… to cut our Bond.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Echo replies. “She never would. You wouldn’t either.”

“I don’t know how,” Rex argues.

“Could you have left her in danger? Don’t tell me you wouldn’t have rushed there just like she did if it was her in your place, and there was any hope of rescuing her.”

Rex purses his lips and stares him down, sullen.

Echo wins this round.

— WildKitte, from aim for the flagstones

[wildkitte]

Aeneas and Creusa

As much as there is discourse on Aeneas’ part in Creusa’s disappearance, it is made clear that Creusa was indeed important to Aeneas (this is what I will personally fight Perkell on, even when I find her other opinions on the topic to be fascinating). Not only is there the mad dash to the burning city (“I’m determined to incur every risk again, and retrace all Troy and once more expose my life to danger”) and the admittance of this being “the cruellest sight” in all of the destruction of the city (her absence), but also some little details like word choices and intertextual references. So let’s talk about my favourite Aeneid couple for a moment.

(Here I use Austin’s commentary as my main source.)

I spoke a little of Aeneas and Creusa’s parallels to Orpheus and Eurydice in my first post – Creusa’s name being ‘Eurydica’ in some versions is the most obvious clue, but Creusa’s loss mirrors the way Orpheus loses Eurydice. The commentary of today’s email had a good interpretation of this parallel: they’re a bit of a reverse Orpheus and Eurydice, Aeneas loses Creusa because he doesn’t look back. But a direct parallel can also be drawn – technically Aeneas does not lose Creusa until he looks behind. There are also textual references to Vergil’s Georgics, like how Orpheus and Creusa both call their spouses “dulcis coniunx” (Aen. 2.777 and Georg. 4.465), and like i.e., Austin’s commentary points out, this is certainly no accident.

I also find the repetition (of Creusa’s name and the iterumque iterumque vocavi I mentioned in the last post) in the passage where Aeneas searches for her interesting. This reminds me of the last passage of Orpheus and Eurydice part in Georgics: Eurydicen toto referebant flumine ripae (‘Eurydice’ echoed the banks all along the river; 4.527), the theme of calling out for the lost wife’s name, all in vain. I don’t really have too much to say about this parallel in particular more than this (I haven’t perused Georgics closely enough to dare a further interpretation/comparison, but if someone else has please let me know your thoughts). Truly this interpretation of them, as repeating the tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice, makes these two all the more dear to me.

But let’s talk about those vocabulary choices now!

Every once in a while, Vergil does this interesting register change from the language of the epic to Roman comedy. This happens a couple times in scenes featuring Creusa. In 2.739, erravitne via seu lassa resedit (did she stray from the path or sit down in exhaustion), Austin directs the focus to lassus, tired. Outside of comedy, it is rarer than fessus (though it has been used by other authors like Horace, Ennius, Lucretius, Cato and Catullus). Another example of uses of Roman comedy’s vocabulary is in Creusa’s line to Aeneas in 2.786: aut Grais servitum matribus ibo (nor will I end up as the slave of Greek matrons). Here Vergil uses a supine, servitum, that is more common in colloquial and early Latin, being especially common with Plautus. Austin’s interpretation is that this register switch, from epic Latin to a more colloquial level, makes Aeneas and Creusa seem more relatable to the audience. The conversation, with its grounded vocabulary, communicates to the Latin-speaking audience a sense of familiarity: this couple is just like us, and they talk like married couples do. The casual language communicates affection.

Creusa’s speech is overall really sweet, with her calls of “sweet husband” and trying to console him in his immense grief and finally the request to protect the love for their child. My favourite line here is lacrimas dilectae pelle Creusae (banish your tears for your beloved Creusa; Verg. Aen. 2.784) and Austin has something to say about the adjective dilectus. This is also a bit of a rare word in the Aeneid, it appears three* times in total: Sychaeus is dilectus (1.344) as he is loved by Dido, and Atys is called dilectus (5.468) in relation to Iulus (poeroque puer dilectus Iulo, boyish love of the boy Iulus…whatever that means in this context), and of course here in Creusa’s speech. Dilectus is used to emphasize an especially warm and deep relationship between the characters.

One could, and will, make the observation that in Aeneas’ telling, Creusa calls herself dilecta, that she is the one who calls Aeneas dulcis coniunx – but here I think it is useful to remember that Aeneas is also the one narrating this. He may be putting words in his wife’s mouth, but he is the one choosing to speak of their marriage in these terms. Her loss is devastating (I bring up vidi crudelius again) and Aeneas never utters her name again in the rest of the epic (though Andromache mentions her, and Ascanius namedrops her in Book IX). I think that Creusa’s loss haunts the relationships he has with women in the future – he can never give himself or his love fully, as it was lost like a light breeze, a winged dream.

(Btw, Sarah Ruden translates ‘lacrimas dilectae pelle Creusae’ as ‘so weep no longer, though you love me’. Devastating. Sobbing inconsolably. Never the same again.)

Tomorrow, I’ll talk about divine Creusa and also why you should be a little unwell about her too.

*later edit: i actually made a mistake here, it does appear more than three times - perhaps i was thinking of those three times as an epithet for a person

[chiptrillino]

(id: illustration of iroh form avatar the last airbender, bathing in a pond. he is sitting between lilly pads leafs in his left hand he is holding a steaming red teacup. he is smiling at the viewer. end id)

i needed like... an iroh chilling in a pond... you know to lift my spirits? oh well.... a freind @wildkitte said: Mmmm iroh flavoured tea [sips] and i love her so much for that! don't drink the tea!

artworks blog: @chiptrillino-art

[priintaniere]

make a poll with five of your all time favorite characters

(tagged by @taxkha, okay this is really fun xD)

(i drew them because i wanted to hehe, you do NOT have to draw your fav at all! (they're all redraws of official illustrations))

make a poll with five of your all time favorite characters then tag five people to do the same.

tagging: @miyakuli, @tragicomic-a, @wildkitte, @heleizition, @muozu

[thebusylilbee]

Get to Know Me (Tag Game)

Rules: answer + tag ~9 (or some) people you want to get to know better and/or catch up with

Tagged by @motsimages thank youu

Favorite color ? These days it's the shade of blue/green called "vert d'eau"

Last song ? Goca dünya by Altun gün

Currently reading ? Academic writings for my thesis 🤢🤮

Currently watching ? I am literally in the cinema waiting for The count of monte cristo (2024) to start

Currently craving ? Uh some peace of mind 😭

Coffee or tea ? Both

A hobby you would like to try ? I'd love to take up woodworking or ceramics making. Just creating small bedside tables or chairs or flower vases or something of that kind.

An AU you’re working on/thought of ? I always think about an alternative universe where I'm paid better and can afford a home yeah :/

Tagging @petrichorandarson @chamsou-sabah @galpalkirk @eyeldritch @wildkitte @triggermangravy @swaggypsyduck @suzetonic @mayfriend

[wewindondowntheroad]

daisuga nsfw smut fic recs below

My own subjective favorite Daisuga smut list for hotness and quality and kinky things that I find tasty:

Included are (mostly) self contained, not necessarily pwp but sometimes... all smut-forward stories, if you will. Amount of plot contained may vary. (Excluded from this list are works where smut is not the main focus, also I haven't read all dsg smut in existence so please be kind) (also, that being said, if you've got recs of your own please send them my way)

Note: some of these are locked to archive users only and i would definitely recommend getting an ao3 account in this age of AI scraping bullshit.

I've divided them up into some categories but you'll see there are some places where they overlap.

ALSO!! and I can't stress this enough!!!: please mind the tags, you are responsible for your own experience out here in the wild these are all M, E & Not Rated fics

general

Cuffed by NinjaSpaz Soft but not Fragile by unscheduledmakeouts stay the night by schiggy Ravenous and Revved by UhohShouto Operation Spice by karasunovolleygays search my thoughts by sweggscelent Melt in Your Mouth by jellyfish_kuchen Press of a Button by BumbleBeeBri Accounts of Lasciviousness by Opplet (2 stand alone chapters)

dom/sub dynamics

Behave. by ChaoticFriendly Weather the Storm by HamletsProzac Coffee Date by socksaregoodshit (bottom daichi) Clean Your Mess by yezh you weren't meant to see that (of course there's joy in the mundane) by gaygoyle (bottom daichi) “If he is clever and good” by GreenyLove Workout by orphan_account Just a Little More by dionyjinsus

multichap

Vice by ChaoticFriendly To Ashes by gingahtigah Bound Desires by bealovelylady (bottom daichi) little punches by bishounen_curious (bottom daichi) Taberu Rayu by suspiciousflashlight (very mild but oh so funny)

consensual non-consent

catch me, never let me go by gingahtigah (omegaverse) run little rabbit by Sai (vampire fic)

in a skirt

Team Spirit by schiggy (bottom daichi) Pleats and Pleasure by hisboywriter

soft:

High for this by WildKitte All Your Ways by Namistrella Sunrise and Silk by UhohShouto (bottom daichi) Beautiful by sinkat_arts (bottom daichi) sweet summer rain by WildKitte

omegaverse:

At Your Service by BumbleBeeBri

[boneshifter]

got tagged by @talvenhenki !! ty!! 🐻💚✨

shuffle your on repeat playlist and post first ten songs:

1 shit talk (sufjan stevens)

2 sleep walking orchestra (bump of chicken) <- dunmeshi op!

3 jackson cage (bruce springsteen)

4 because the night (bruce springsteen)

5 meet me in the woods (lord huron) <- my dale cooper song :)

6 salisbury (uriah heep)

7 desire (yello)

8 i bet on losing dogs (mitski) <- one of my nishiki songs...

9 the cruel angel's thesis (yoko takahashi)

10 harvest of sorrow (blind guardian)

characteristically both my anime music and old man music is in there...no major surprises

tagging.. idk who listens to music. @werecreatures @partapotso @peikko-lapsi @wildkitte @sleepgrifter @crossedeyes @ilackallhonour @dragon-teapot @amused-shiba no pressure! 😌🫶

[hqkurokenzine]

Preview Time! 🐾

Find a little sneak peek into "Trust Fall" by @wildkitte!

Find them on Twitter!

Preorders for the anthology are open now! 🔗: http://hqkurokenzine.bigcartel.com

[maple-moose-muffin]

Ten Songs Tag Game

Rules: Put your music on shuffle and list the first 10 songs that play.

Tagged by: @nonamemanga (I didn't see this until today aldkjfa sorry) Pulling from my Sylvain playlist because I'm incapable of shutting up about him. (And my only other comprehensive list is workout, or Kaeya, which has some controversial takes)

DONTTRUSTME by 3OH!3 We all know why this is here

Autoclave by The Mountain Goats Every other song in this list is The Mountain Goats tbh

Undisclosed Desires by Muse A low-key Sylvix entry, but also just Sylvain -> anyone he's serious about

Achilles Come Down by Gang of Youths Is it a Sylvain list without self-destruction?

Hello My Old Heart by The Oh Hellos For those vulnerable self-reflection moments

One-Eighty By Summer by Taking Back Sunday 'She says live up to your first impression / well my best side was your worst invention'

Up the Wolves by The Mountain Goats Okay this is actually my Blue Lions song. I just so clearly see the animatic in my head, everyone coming together after the time-skip and going to Garreg Mach. 'Our mother has been absent / ever since we founded Rome / but there's gonna be a party when the wolf comes home.' Byleth is the mother wolf.

I Am Fred Astaire by Taking Back Sunday The other half of this list is TBS. I just harvested my 2010's emo and punk playlists lmao

Dance Music by The Mountain Goats Upbeat music, tragic lyrics, fun even when it hurts

BITE by Troye Sivan Ending with something a little vulnerable and vaguely threatening/self-deprecating

And of course here's the Sylvain playlist in question, which I will never stop pushing at people because playlists are one of my hyperfixations apparently:

I haven't done tag games in forever so uhhhhh

Tagging: @redxcranberry @kayisdreaming @wildkitte @jeritzaspizzas @sylvainshake @thecaryatid @aqualunaris @neyasochi @cavalierious-whim and you, dear reader (if you wanna)

[puuvillaa]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thank you for tagging me @squintclover! This was fun

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

193

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

1,530,489

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently hp and occasionally haikyuu

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Neither Hide Nor Hair (wolfstar, 28.1k, E, unregistered werewolf Remus unwittingly sleeps with Auror Sirius)

Smells Like a Promise (iwaoi, 4.1k, E, omegaverse, secret omega Iwaizumi)

Possessive (iwaoi, 1.9k, E, omegaverse, o!iwa and a!oikawa, I don’t remember what happens in this one)

Facing the Truth (iwaoi, 1.7k, E, omegaverse, Oikawa didn’t know Iwaizumi is an omega for some reason)

On the Run/True Freedom (vikyuu, 84.8k, E, omegaverse, omega Viktor on the run is kidnapped by alpha Yuuri's staff)

I find it extremely funny that only one of these isn't omegaverse

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I've always liked that little interaction that I can have with people. Sometimes I'm slow, though, because I only answer comments on the computer, and I need to have enough social energy to do it.

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending

I don’t properly remember my fics other than the hp ones, so out of all my hp fics, the one with the saddest ending is probably Missing

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Once again, I'm only looking at my hp fics, and discovering that I don’t always tag the happy endings because there's no way I've written so few happy endings. I think I'm going to say Finding Home

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Very rarely. Which is a bit surprising considering some of the stuff I've written

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes. All kinds. I used to exclusively write smut

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

No. I just never really understood the appeal

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yes, one of my kinktober fics. They just changed the characters

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Once. I've also translated a few of my fics myself

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No. I'm not sure if I could

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Well, I guess the pairing I've liked for the longest time is bokukuro. Or iwaoi. But they don’t really feel like all-time favourites because I'm currently not as into haikyuu as I used to be

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I haven’t really given up hope on any of the wips I want to finish. I give up hope when I stop wanting to finish them. But I have a few wips that are over 2 years old at this point, and the likelihood of me continuing them is a bit low. There's one in which Remus rescues Sirius from beyond the veil, one with Healer Sirius, a texting fic, and one that I call "werewolf Remus" which tells you absolutely nothing about the fic

16. What are your writing strengths?

Emotions. Dialogue

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Descriptions 100%

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I'm not a big fan

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Teenaged Emel was writing hp fics with het pairings 20 years ago. The first fandom I actually posted fics for was Death Note

20. Favorite fic you've written?

It's currently The Werewolf Hunt

Tagging @plecotusauritus @wildkitte @theresthesnitch @impishtubist

[gilrael]

Haikyuu!! tag game!

I was tagged by @wildkitte

favorite character / karasuno - It depends on my mood, today it’s Kageyama

favorite character / seijoh - Hanamaki

favorite character / nekoma - Yaku

favorite character / fukurodani - Akaashi

favorite character / shiratorizawa - Ushijima

favorite character / inarizaki - Aran by far

favorite character / dateko - again, depends on my mood, usually Moniwa or Futakuchi lol

favorite coach - Ukai

favorite ship - No one is going to be surprised when I say EnnoTana, but UkaTake is a close second, and I am multishipper rarepair trash, so there are a lot of faves lol

favorite team - Karasuno

favorite scene - hngggggg if we go by anime only scenes it’s Ennoshita getting swapped in for Daichi, if we go by manga it has to be Hinata meeting Oikawa in Brazil

I’m tagging @ravenqueensspecialboi, @kenmagoesblep, @gengarscursedbody and anyone else who sees this and feels like doing it!

[rexsokaficquotes]

“It will be dangerous,” she says then, laying her hand atop Rex’s chest, her fingers caressing the fading paint of his cuirass. “I’ll do my best. You be careful too.” She meets his eyes, trepidation and worry a sharp spike in her chest.

Rex covers her hand with his, his eyes softening with affection so clear that she doesn’t even need to feel the echo of it through their Bond to sense it.

“I’ll come back to you.” He brings her hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles. “You do the same.”

— WildKitte, from may I look on you when my last hour comes

[wildkitte]

Divine Creusa

Time to put speculation hats on, everyone! This one’s a bit of a stretch maybe but stay with me on this. This one’s also a bit Servius-heavy, I’m afraid, so let’s treat this as a case study of what was the popular interpretation in the 4th/5th century AD, and not as an absolute truth. Even if I am correct.

Creusa’s final appearance to Aeneas as a ghost is an impressive and touching scene. It is, however, notable that Aeneas does not meet Creusa in the Underworld later, and I do not think (or at least I hope) that Vergil didn’t simply forget her. So why isn’t she in the Underworld, she is dead, isn’t she?

Is she?

Well, yes, she is most certainly dead. But reading Servius’ commentary piqued my interest with a couple comments he made about her final appearance and prophecy.

So, Creusa’s prophecy is arguably the final push for Aeneas to leave Troy behind and start his journey towards Italy. This promised fate cannot happen, if Aeneas does not leave Creusa behind (as she promises him a kingdom and a royal wife – and he can’t have that wife if he already has one (let’s return to this in tomorrow’s post)). Creusa makes this very easy for him by disappearing into thin air, and he is unable to embrace her (Servius kind of heckles Aeneas for this: MANUS EFFUGIT IMAGO quasi imago, quae non tenetur. naturale enim est, ut non possit teneri; it is like an image, that cannot be held. It is natural, that he can’t hold it. Idiot. Serv. Aen. 2.793).

Vergil makes it clear that Creusa has moved on to the Great Mother’s care and has not become the slave of Greek matrons. She appears to Aeneas as a “in a form greater than known” (nota maior imago) – this kind of depiction of a person appearing as “larger than life” is often reserved for immortals (notably Venus herself appears to Aeneas this way). While it was a delight to try and translate imago, simulacrum and umbra with the limited vocabulary that my native language has for these, Servius turns our attention to the word simulacrum:

With the word simulacrum [Vergil] expresses apotheosis, as simulacra is for gods, umbrae is for the Underworld. (Serv. Aen. 2.772)

INFELIX SIMULACRUM per simulacrum autem apotheosin ostendit, quia simulacra deorum sunt, umbrae inferorum.

Maior imago also gets an explanation:

MAIOR IMAGO quia umbra maior est corpore. et per hoc mortuam vult ostendere, aut ex homine deam factam.

Because a shadow is larger than the body [of a mortal]. And through this [Vergil] wants to show that Creusa is dead, or that she’s been made from human into a god.

Vergil explicitly wants to associate Creusa with the divine through the use of simulacra. In addition, maior imago suggests immortality – that’s why she’s not in the Underworld: she never made it there.

Creusa’s prophecy is also treated with the same gravity as other divine signs. Book III starts with the Trojan refugees embarking on their journey with auguries agimur divum (3.5), the auguries of gods, and here Servius explains:

AUGURIIS AGIMUR DIVUM. pro ostentis, id est ex flamma quae tempora Ascanii pasta est, cursu stellae, Creusae admonitione, quae dixit <II 781> et terram Hesperiam venies.

Vergil uses the word augurium instead of ostentum (portent): it is the flame, which sparked from Ascaniu’s head, the way of the star, and Creusa’s reminder “and you will go to the land of Hesperia”. (Serv. Aen. 3.5)

Aeneas sails on the sea per auspiciis maioribus, under higher auspices – Servius explains maioribus thusly:

MAIORIBUS caelestibus propter sideris cursum, cuius fuit explanatio per Creusam.

Maioribus means caelestibus, heavenly, meaning the way of the star, which gets its explanation from Creusa. (Serv. Aen. 3.374)

Creusa’s prophecy is the same as the signs from heaven, the star that showed the way out of burning Troy, the flame on Ascanius’ brow. Her prophecy is divine and absolute, and so, thereby, is Creusa. She has become the servant of the divine Great Mother and with that she has been raised to the ranks of immortals.

(Servius does also point out that Aeneas fails to listen to Creusa’s prophecy… she pretty clearly says that he’s supposed to go to Italy, but they go to Thrace instead. And then Crete. And then a bunch of other places. Aeneas is kind of a dummy sometimes and this WILL bite him in the ass later.)

(Also, I can’t find the post rn but hey the person who speculated that the Creusa in the final scene isn’t her at all but Venus instead? You might be onto something and you’re responsible for this chapter in my thesis so thank you)

I planned to post my final Creusa post today but it requires some reading before I start spouting my speculative bullshit – this was the part I had to leave out of my thesis (because boo philology (I’m kidding philology I love you))… BUT tomorrow, we talk about Creusa’s meaning and symbolism, and I get to peer review the fun tags you’ve left for me in the previous posts :3c

[thebusylilbee]

@wildkitte aiojzeiojiozerjiozertj l- look I know I'm like this !! I'm- I'm self aware okay !!! don't look at me !!

Y'all someone on twitter started a discourse on what if football stans spoke like kpop stans and all the responses have me crying

Link here to the original tweet since there are so many more: x

[tottwritesfanfic]

Dream A Little Dream - final chapter!

It’s daytime in the snow-filled streets, but that’s not really so surprising because Hajime hasn’t ever seen the dreamscape get dark. Time, apparently, doesn’t affect it in any way. There’s just the same old buildings, the same old haunts, all wrapped up in a blanket of white and presented for his nostalgia-laced amusement.

And with that, the softest IwaOi I've ever written is complete!

You can pick it up at Chapter Three here, or click here to read it from the beginning.

As I mention in my author's note, a huge thanks to @wildkitte for reading through, and helping me get past the writer's block which has kept me from finishing this for so long. I couldn't have done it without your help!

I hope everyone has had a peaceful and enjoyable festive season so far, and I wish you all well in the New Year. Happy Merry, everyone!

[guidingstarsfz]

🛡️ Contributor Spotlight! 🛡️

Meet Kitte, one of our Writers! She just wants to see her Lions happy!

Find her on social media as: 🐦 Twitter: wildkitte 📚 Ao3: wildkitte