#worldbuilding weddings

[redd956]

thoughts about worldbuilding wedding ceremonies/traditions?

:0! Why of course!

Worldbuilding Wedding Ceremonies

When I think about worldbuilding weddings in fantasy settings, I actually look for inspiration in IRL ceremonies from around the world. Things like engagements, weddings, and even divorces are strong moments of culture. They shine through a lot of gender-based ideology, religious beliefs, traditions, and family matters. So where to start...

Length of Ceremony

As a young adult it is my task to attempt to avoid weddings in the name of length of the ceremony. In the United States someone might consider a several hour long wedding as long, but what about a wedding ceremony that lasts many days or several weeks, maybe different rituals on different days

One could even argue that the common wedding in the United States does last several days due to the bachelor and bachelorette party.

Some things to think about

amount of days/time the wedding takes place

the time of day it's usually started/ended

how long it takes participants to convene to the ceremony

Depending on the length of the ceremony we also have to take into account things like food, the bride/grooms first night, the venue, etc.

how expensively is the venue decorated?

does everyone cook and bring food? or are caterers hired?

Is there any form of dance to pastime

Are recreational drugs or drink provided?

Garments

Around the world garments and/or accessories play a major role in marriage, divorce, death, and romance. Engagements already focus on a shiny ring.

In many cultures there is a focus on one gender's (usually women's) attire. Think about the beautiful wedding gown seen in many Western weddings. There's many cultures that also do specialized attire for both men and women (like India). In some ceremonies, like Russian Orthodox, the bride and groom are crowned before their vows and kiss.

We can make the attire special in more ways then just appearance/one day wearing

Some ideas here

Attire being passed down tailored to married participants generationally

Expensive, or magically enchanted materials being used

Being given magical artifacts such as necklaces, rings, or earrings with properties of protection, family abilities, or just luck.

Differing clothing for gender of the married participants versus the same clothing

Usage of sacred materials

Color symbolism (many wedding attires around the world are different colors based on the color symbolism of the culture)

It's also important to think about how garments can change based on species, gender, ethnic background, preference, and even sometimes age.

Here are some wedding attire small few examples from different places

India

Tibetan

Ghana

Traditions: The Married

Throughout history there have been many traditions for the married (most of which are frowned upon for very good reasons nowadays and include sexuality/child bearing or money).

Many are traditions or activities done during the marriage ceremony, many the following weeks to months afterwards (such as the honey moon). Most traditions centering the married are focused on the stronger blossoming relationship (portrayed) between the couple.

However even in modern times the traditions of the married are changing as queer relationships, and more diverse religious gatherings are becoming more and more common.

Some things to take into account

Are the feelings of all newly weds taken into account?

What kind of traditions are dying? What ones are continuing?

How do these things differ among income classes?

Are gifts exchanged? Any particular special speeches?

Any lewd activities?

Is marriage sealed with a kiss or another action?

Traditions: The Family

Marriage is often also celebrated as the combining of two families. Depending on how family oriented the culture is, the brides/grooms may not be the full center of attention on their special night.

Perhaps the parents receive gifts. Maybe only one of the married family are expected to appear. Do the married participants even meet each other before marriage?

Some things to think about

How important are the married participants' parents to the ceremony?

Is there gift giving? Dowries? Arranged Marriages?

Are participants forced to make any promises aside from marriage?

Do parents bring things for one another?

Traditions: The Guests

Next comes the guests. The very first thing to decide about guests when it comes to marriage ceremonies is who is allowed to invite them and how many commonly show up.

Guests can be expected to do a plethora of traditions, ranging from party-like participation to assisting the married participants. In many wedding ceremonies guests are broken into hierarchies/roles, such as the maid of honor, bridesmaids, best man, etc.

Religion & Other

However one of the second greatest influences aside from the married participants is of course religion in culture. Think about all the religious inspired or just straight up localized traditions appear in average American wedding.

Some things to think about

Are any sacred creatures, symbols, people, or accessories included in the ceremony?

How does the married participants' religion affect the ceremony?

Does sexuality or other queer features (polygamy, open relationships, etc.) play a major role?

Give me the tonal atmosphere of the culture in marriage. Does a warrior culture gift expensive weapons to the newly married? Does a militaristic people play an anthem in the name of the married veterans? Does a druidic culture always seal the married kiss under an ancient tree?

[bumblingbabooshka]

Thinking about marriage/women's rights on Vulcan Some may think that T'Pring not being allowed to divorce Spock was because he was going through the pon farr but if she were allowed to divorce him at all she probably would have done that a long time ago, confirmed by T'Pol when she's speaking with Koss, who isn't suffering from the pon farr. She says that he can choose another mate (without invoking a fight it seems: note the difference between a 'mate' and a 'challenger') and after he makes it clear that nothing she says will change his mind about marrying her, she finally threatens to declare a kal-if-fee. It's clear that Vulcan women cannot divorce/refuse to marry a man they've been betrothed to under any circumstances if A) He himself doesn't consent to ending their marriage or B) She doesn't have someone else waiting in the wings to be given to in his stead. Though, if the challenger she selects fails to win the fight, she'll have to marry her betrothed anyway unless (again) he decides he doesn't want her after the challenge. That seems like an incredibly unfair system, heavily biased towards men. SNW is an alternate universe in many obvious respects but most egregiously in that T'Pring has a lot of non-canonical agency over her relationship with Spock. It's interesting to me that Vulcan society has women in many positions of power and treats women as equal to men from what I've seen despite these laws. We don't really see Vulcans exhibiting a misogynistic attitude towards women in general but in TOS (perhaps because of its general writing style but it's still interesting to note) both Sarek and Spock take on patriarchal attitudes specifically regarding wives. Amanda says that 'of course' Sarek commands her because "he is a Vulcan and I am his wife." It's worthwhile in my eyes to note that she specifies 'wife' instead of attributing this attitude to women as a whole. Again, with TOS' writing style it wouldn't be out of place for her to say "he is a man and I am a woman." Spock, while in a pon farr induced irritation, states that it's "undignified for a woman to play servant to a man that isn't hers" - again implying that there's something specific about being a Wife in Vulcan society which is different from being a woman in general and demands subservience to a husband. This could perhaps stem from the extreme sense of ownership that Vulcan law has permitted men to have over women. A woman legally cannot point blank refuse marriage. There is no option which guarantees she won't have to marry her betrothed other than death. When T'Pau speaks of T'Pring she refers to her as being 'property' and Stonn, before being interrupted, states he's made 'the ancient claim' - we don't know what this is because he gets cut off but it's obvious they're both using the language of Vulcan law. Men are permitted true freedom to choose. If a woman wants to choose someone else to be with there is no option available to her other than the kal-if-fee which might result in the death of the one she wants to be with. And, if her lover fails, her husband can still just decide he wants to marry her and she'll be forced to. T'Pring gives two scenarios: One where Spock 'frees' her and one where he doesn't - it's still ultimately his decision which is clear when he ends the conversation with "Stonn, she is yours." This again isn't just because of the pon farr as T'Pol also goes through this. Koss can choose another mate and when the option is talked about there's no implication that this would result in any sort of fight (both by the casualness of its mention and by the fact that there's no formal word for it unlike the kal-if-fee.) Also, the fact that Koss does eventually grant T'Pol a divorce and it's all fine means that T'Pol isn't lawfully required to have another man waiting if her HUSBAND doesn't want her. It's ONLY required if SHE doesn't want her husband. Tradition must take precedence over individual desire UNLESS!!! You're a man. Then it's fine. Like, your parents might not be happy but legally you're golden.

[joonebugg]

JOONEBUGG!!!!!!!!! DROP ANOTHER OC X CANON WITH HORROR SANS!!!!!!! AND MY LIFE........ IS YOURS...........

YES SIR SOAKED-GHOST SIR!

Drew them getting married like you said that one time

(He/him on Rowan please ^_^)

Tags and credits under the cut!

Horror belongs to - sour apple studios

Rowan belongs to - me

@toffeebrew @lovelessbachelor @bluepr1ntyy @vanglaggle @mafuyumagnet @oliveatesoap @loserfurry

[wisteria-lodge]

What do you think a wizarding wedding would look like, and what do you think Lucius' and Narcissa's specifically looked like?

The book does show us Fleur and Bill's wedding, but that was a wartime shotgun-ish wedding in the peripherals of the story's focus. I'm also not ever sure how much of the details there are things joanne really thought about and decided to include in her representation of a Magical wedding, and how much of it are just modern social customs she might have considered the forever universal default and put in the book.

Narcissa and Lucius also seem to be the rare fictional couple who'd actually enjoy all the pedantry and tradition and specificities in a wedding to me. Seeing as you're writing a fic with them in it, I thought you'd probably already thought about this aspect of worldbuilding/character writing, so I hope you don't mind me asking abt it. Thanks and have a great day!!

Okay, I love this ask, and I'm going to lay it all out, but first I want to lay out my Reasoning.

Here are my rules, when it comes to expanding on/filling in the Harry Potter world building:

ONE: If we’re dealing with any sort of political or social structure, my reference is England, year 1700. 

This does make sense with the backstory we get: the Wizarding World split away from the Muggle world in the late 1600s, wizards live a really long time, and wizards also didn’t need an industrial revolution (because magic filled the place of tech) so they wouldn’t have gotten any of the social changes that happened because of the industrial revolution. 

Also, this particular time period generally fits with what we see on the page. Education, politics, the police force, mental health care - it all seems to work in a very 1700s way. We don’t have any electricity, there’s no industrialization. (Like, Umbridge’s pamphlets are made by hand. I mean obviously they’re made by magic, but an individual’s magic, they’re not assembled in a magical factory.) So when Draco brings up a “museum”...  it makes sense to me that he’s not not thinking of a modern museum with a ticketing department running off grants and public funding, full of typed-out little plaques written by scientists and historians, telling you the provenance of whatever you’re looking at. If we went to a museum in Wizarding World, I would expect the type of museum you saw in 1700: a cabinet of curiosities assembled by one single wealthy collector, arranged in some eccentric way, handwritten labels or no labels at all, very probably in a wing of a private house. That feels correct and in-universe to me. So… whenever someone asks me something like ‘how do taxes work in the Harry Potter universe,’ I take 1700 England as a starting place, and go from there. 

TWO: If we’re dealing with aesthetic details or inventions, I draw from England 1700 - 1880

There isn’t much that’s Victorian in the world building… but there’s plenty in the set dressing. We see lots of 1800s fashion: women wearing hats with birds and flowers on them, men wearing bowler hats and top hats. There are 1800s hedge mazes, most of the holiday decorations are from the late 1800s, we’ve got radios and trains… and I’m completely fine with all that. It seems to me that if you’re a wizard walking through the Muggle world, it’s a lot easier to see someone wearing a cool hat, and say ‘I would like a hat like that’  - versus walking around and picking up the concept of, idk unions. So cameras are okay: they’re 1800s. Note that Rita Skeeter’s photographer Bozo has a magical version of a 1850s camera

while Muggle born Colin Creevey has… a modded 1930s camera? To communicate that he’s got a foot in both worlds. 

My point is, if you saw someone riding a bicycle in Harry Potter, you would assume they brought it in from the Muggle world. Bicycles showed up in England in the 1880s, so that’s slightly too late. It’s important to the feel of the world to keep up a good chunk of separation between the aesthetics of the Wizarding World, and the aesthetics of the muggle world.

THREE: Gender politics/gendered customs basically don’t exist

This is one of the things that makes Harry Potter a J. K. Rowling fantasy world. Obviously, JKR the person has a lot to unpack about gender politics, and there are all kinds of Doylist differences between the way male and female characters are treated in the Harry Potter books. But in universe, there is no Watsonian benefit to being a guy or being a girl in any particular situation. We get gendered bathrooms (although the prefects’ bathroom and the locker rooms seem co-ed), gendered fashions, gendered dorms… and that’s basically it.  

Of course there are some very old and baked in gendered things I doubt JKR even thought about… a woman taking her husband’s last name for instance. (Honestly - I would have loved a posh doubled-barreled name for Draco. Draco Malfoy-Black sounds quite sharp and public schooly.) There’s a thing where Dumbledore mentions that the Blacks prefer it when a guy inherits… but in the same breath, he’s completely convinced Bellatrix is about to inherit, so clearly that isn’t that important.

The only other example I can think of is the way we’re told the unicorns prefer the female students. But, the boys in Professor Grubbly-Plank’s class unanimously think this is bullshit, and I would argue that the framing of the book supports this read. We haven’t seen magic work like this before, so did Professor G-P get it wrong? And/or just doesn’t want to deal with the boys? Presumably this is why we are happy Hagrid is coming back

FOUR: There is basically no organized religion/spirituality in the Wizarding World. 

The narrative does a lot of work to not tell us who the random officiant at Dumbledore's funeral and Bill and Fleur‘s wedding is. Who is he? Who does he represent? How do you find him? How does he have authority to do this? Not important, doesn’t matter, keep moving along. We are definitely in a world where there is a holiday named Christmas… but it’s like the women taking their husband's name thing, that seems too baked into JKR’s worldview to question. But there is no mention of any religious dimension, it’s just presents and feasts and balls. 

If I’m writing something that’s interested in what these guys consider to be the sacred underpinnings of their world (like something focusing on a wedding, for instance…) then I think I would end up expanding on important magical rituals. I’m thinking Fidelius, Unbreakable Vow, sacrificial magic. Not for nothing, but considering how much importance the moment where Severus and Narcissa make an Unbreakable Vow is given by both the narrative and the characters… it feels more like a wedding than the wedding does, and I’m not even a Severus/Narcissa shipper. 

*

So when it comes to weddings… I’ve honestly found it uniquely difficult to research the history there, because a lot of people are very motivated to suggest that every wedding tradition has some deep, meaningful ancient origin - or that it was just kind of always that way. Take the concept of a “best man” and the term “best man" for instance. That starts showing up in the 1780s (so it’s a social custom that doesn’t make my 1700 deadline.) Harry is of course filtering everything through his POV, but if I were writing a wedding thing, I’d want to say that Sirius is filling a different position. Like “godfather” seems a very legally important role in the wizarding society, so lean into that.  Maybe the “best man” equivalent at a wizard wedding is the person who you’ve picked to get custody of your kids if you die. 

We also see things like white wedding dresses and matching bridesmaid dresses being treated as an absolute given at Fleur’s wedding, when both of those things pretty much only exist because Queen Victoria did them in 1840. One interesting thing is that JKR doesn’t seem to do an exchange of rings, and she’s changed up that moment to make it more reminiscent of (I think) a handfasting ceremony? Which is fine, I can work with that. (Also rings are just treated very negatively across the board in the Harry Potter books. No idea why.)

But, in-universe, the Bill/Fleur wedding is really hard to use as a model for what a typical pureblood Wizarding wedding looks like. For all the reasons Anon mentions: It’s war time, it was put together very quickly, Harry is not paying the most attention, we don’t get to see the whole thing. I would also add in the fact that the Weasleys are political radicals, and at that point especially would be very politically motivated to have a wedding that looks more Muggle. 

Okay.  If I were writing a pureblood wedding… like Lucius and Narcissa’s wedding… what would I do.

First, I don’t think I want a typical wedding from the year 1700. I want 1700 does renaissance/medieval. (Kind of Sir Walter Scott.) I like this because it brings in/explains the Merlin thing - the purebloods all use ‘Merlin’ as an oath, so I guess Merlin (and Arthur, and that kind of romanticized middle ages) is important to them culturally. Also, medieval influences are going to make your wedding feel impressive and established… which is exactly what the Malfoys are after. Make sure everyone knows what an old family they are. All these pureblood families have crests, so put them everywhere, front and center. The decorations should be banners and flags with the crests of everyone attending, no florals.

I also love the idea of fossilized fashions, old-fashioned clothes that don’t come out except during a very ceremonial, traditional occasion. (Think of the ways that veils used to be a pretty normal part of a lady's wardrobe, but now you only see them during weddings.) I’d have it so that during a wizard wedding… all the ladies bring out their long, draping, evil enchantress sleeves and the guys are supposed to wear half-capes and swords. It’s also a good excuse to bring out all the really old family jewelry, of which I am sure the Malfoys have buckets.

I also want this to be a very magical wedding. Like, there are parts of it you straight-up could not participate in as muggle, because I think (sadly) that would be the vibe during the timeline of the main books. Weddings are for showing off, and part of that would be showing off your magical prowess. I’m thinking - light the dance floor on fire before the first dance, and then the couple has to perform a Flame Freezing charm. This tradition started as a screw-you to the Muggles after the witch trials… but now everybody just kinda does it because it looks really cool when the newlyweds dance on a bed of flame. Oh, and we’re definitely doing medieval-style palm-touching dances. No waltzing for the first dance at a traditional Malfoy wedding.

And they’ll go all out for the wedding feast, which will be long. The 1700s and middle ages were both really into food that did stuff - food that transformed, or food that looked like other food, or food that had birds flying out of it. So  just lean into that times a million with magic.

I am also such a sucker for slightly sentient magical houses, and Harry Potter absolutely has some of that, with the way Hogwarts (the building) has various ways to fight back against enemies and infiltrators. So I think a Malfoy wedding would definitely be taking place at Malfoy Manor, and that the house itself would be a part of the proceedings in some way. Like it’s got to accept the new family member (we know, from little moments like Umbridge being barred from Dumbledore‘s office… that sometimes magical buildings just reject you.) Integrating a new person into the new space would be a multi-step process. Maybe there’s a ceremony where they present the new person with the family spell books, and another one where they present them with keys to various parts of the house, etc.

You could tie this in with the idea of a bedding ceremony (which also hits my medieval + 1700s markers.) Maybe the house changes in some way when the couple first sleeps together, like it redecorates with the belongings of the person moving in, or grows them a rose garden or observatory so they feel more at home. I bet it’s fun for the guests to stick around and watch this change happen. (A trope like this might be especially fun in an arranged marriage or marriage-law type story.)

I’m thinking this would also be a very long wedding, and the wedding party is probably staying at the house for a week or so beforehand. That’s part of the flex, the family’s ability to adequately pay host to so many people for such a long period of time. Like that’s what a house like Malfoy Manor is for, there’s a reason those places were functionally small hotels. If at the end my old-school pureblood wedding feels like a modern muggle wedding... I don’t think I’ve done my job. A Muggleborn who’s been invited ought to have culture shock.

And yes. It goes without saying that Lucius and Narcissa would have eaten up all this pomp and circumstance, with a spoon.

[blorbologist]

everyone: reeling over the lore about the gods, about Aeor, about the Calamity

me watching an aeormaton marry an elven woman: so wedding rings were a thing in the Age of Arcanum, because Loquatious mentions not having one when he and Laerryn get re-married right before dying, and apparently wedding rings with diamonds are also a thing 100 years later in a different flying city, and Vex explicitly has a wedding ring with a diamond used to revivify Lieve'tel, so there must be some ancestral root belief causing all these cultures to use wedding rings and for the practice to be maintained over such long periods of time -

[beta-adjacent]

Hot take: bond marks (as commonly seen in the literature) are a little bogus. What do you mean bonding should be exclusively for mates? Why can’t I bond with my best friends instead? Does it really need to be romantic? What do you mean it’s a permanent scar??

Granted, I do love all those tropes a lot; they hit a really deep soft spot for me. And lots of new work nowadays are redefining how bonding works! I guess I just wanna keep that conversation open

[illarian-rambling]

A short ramble about the two main Illari wedding cultures because I'll do anything but actually write :D

Ok so, when it comes to religion, the world of Illaros is pretty split between the Illarian half and the Mordunyan half. The Illarian church began with the humans of Janaz, but spread to encompass the elven nations of Skysheer and Nabafyr later on. The Dwarven Alliance, which was never conquered by humans, held onto its Mordun faith. Why does religion matter when it comes to weddings? Because any 'binding of family' (weddings, adoptions, even business ventures) are very important in the Illarian holy texts, so proper Illarian weddings are one of the few things that actually got really forced onto the Nabafyrians and Skysheerians by way of the Republic government (big player in banking and business of all kinds) not recognizing people as married if they hadn't done it the 'right way.' Family is also a huge component of dwarven culture in general, so you already know their religion is gonna standardize it. Anyways, that's how we got to two main wedding cultures, with two subcultures for the surviving Nabafyrian and Skysheerian traditions.

Your run-of-the-mill Illarian wedding with no elven influences is a surprisingly simple affair. There's no engagement, for one. Partners usually decide together that they want to get married and give their social circle a few months' notice for planning. Springing a sudden 'Will you marry me?' would be seen as a really strange move in Illarian culture. Blue is traditionally a Big Event color, so lots of brides wear blue dresses, but this isn't a requirement, and many opt for other hues. Really, the only thing that makes it an Illarian wedding is that it's performed by a priest of Samara, goddess of family and the cooking fire.

The most important event of a human wedding is actually a cultural practice, not a religious one. When humans get married, they exchange gifts. This is a call-back to nobles exchanging dowries, but the custom ended up catching on with the common folk and turned into something more intimate. The humans of Illaros don't use rings to signify their love, but instead exchange gifts with their partner. A wedding gift is often the nicest thing a person will ever own. It's often completely customized - a painter might get a set of brushes made by a master craftsman, a lover of birds might get a set of runic binoculars, a farmer might get a steam-powered plow, a frequent traveler might get a pair of magically sealed boots, so on and so forth. These gifts are meant to be a purest expression of understanding and insight. It's not unheard of for someone to leave at the altar because of a bad wedding gift, or to spend a fortune trying to get the best one. Usually, a wedding gift is made well enough to last throughout a person's life.

The other thing is surnames. This one's pretty easy, though. Traditionally, the partner of lower station takes on the partner of higher station's name - 'marrying up' is the common term. In the modern era, though, this gets flexible.

Another minor tradition, smaller than the gift, is bride-talk. The first person at a wedding who offers the bride a drink is supposedly wanting advice for how to find a good match. Single cousins will sometimes compete for the chance, as it's also a good way to signal that you're 'on the market,' so to speak.

On the elven subset of Illarian wedding culture, there is no gift exchange, since that's not a religious tradition. Really, the only requirement for an Illarian wedding is the presence of a priest, so Nabafyrians and Skysheerians still tend to do things largely their own way.

Nabafyrians, of course, have to involve weapons. Usually, Nabafyrian families each have their own branch of martial art and an accompanying crest. When you marry into a family, you're allowed to learn their martial art. You may also engrave their crest onto your weapon. A smith is usually present at weddings to do this. It's up to the married couple to decide who is joining whose family, but they usually follow the human example and marry up.

Skysheerians are different in that marriage is solely a right of the nobility. Serfs can live together, share names, and have civil ceremonies, but they aren't 'married' in the eyes of the law. When nobles get married, it's far more of a business deal. Land and titles are exchanged, promises are made, and dowries are paid. Marriage for love isn't a thing, however, it's not frowned upon in the slightest to have consorts. You can go to a banquet with your husband, only to leave in a different man's carriage and no one will mind. You're binding your families, not your hearts, so who cares if you love someone else? Just so long as you're willing to legitimize any bastards, everyone's happy.

Now we get to the really different one: dwarven marriage. First off, just like how in our current irl society, alloromantic heterosexuality is seen as a 'default,' in dwarven society, that default is actually aromantic heterosexuality. Your first loyalty is expected to be to your clan. 'Falling in love' is seen as a deviant urge. With that out of the way, how does marriage work then?

A dwarven marriage, like a Skysheerian one, is a contract between two families, or clans, in this case. Except, for dwarves, a child is the express goal of marriage. Two clans will negotiate a match between two people who can have kids together. During the duration of the marriage, the father will join the mother's clan until any kid they have makes it to adulthood, after which he will leave to rejoin his original clan. The father's clan, in exchange for losing a member for eighteen years and not getting a kid out of it, will receive a massive sum of money called a hand-price. The hand-price is thought to be equivalent to the work that child will do for the mother's clan over their lifetime. So mom's clan gets a kid, dad's clan gets cash. Hand-prices generally sit at a set value, but sometimes, if someone assumes the kid isn't gonna contribute much, the mother's clan will ask for a partial refund. This is common fare for insults among dwarven children.

In places like Unity, where dwarven culture mixes with others, things are a little looser. Sometimes, a father will stay with his wife and child even after the child hits legal adulthood. Marriage not for the sake of reproduction is also increasingly common. In that case, a hand-price will be negotiated for the clan one partner is leaving, putting a monetary number on what they might contribute to the clan they're joining. Even in Unity, though, marriage always entails someone leaving their clan. Being married to someone in another clan while remaining in your own would be seen as a gross splitting of loyalties and might well end up with both partners being disowned.

Why do all of these cultures place such a strong emphasis on marriage being between two families, not two individuals? I'm not sure. Probably because they all exist together in an area of land roughly the size of Europe - there's gonna be some general vibe sharing.

Anyways this has been (looks directly into the camera) an Illarian ramble

[plaguethewaters]

"Hey mike, don't you think you're maybe a little too old for this?"

"nah, what makes you say so."

i have had this teen, emo michael_b design for basically forever, and it was honestly a crime i'd never drawn him properly - so here he is! miniserie of him growing with cbee, with the tubbo part coming. probablu tomorrow.

small little closeups!

[thessidy]

You don't get it, do you? You're flesh. It's a beautiful thing. You think you're like me, some incorporeal whisp who can only observe and ponder and occasionally haunt, occasionally make my voice heard. But you, you can still do so much more. I beg you, take advantage while you can: hug. Taste. Feel the warmth of your beloved, of the thawing sun, feel the cold when you reluctantly leave your blankets. You are not a mere observer; you can act and interact and make others react, you can do good or ill. What a privilege to be embodied!

[empiredesimparte]

PRESS ARTICLE - URGENT: New Chief of Staff and dissolution of the Legislative Body by His Majesty!

The Emperor's new private military staff, Admiral Florent Quincy, 55, was spotted at the Tuileries Palace. He advises His Majesty on French and international military affairs, even the most sensitive ones. Which makes him an important adviser for the country's future policy.

Admiral Florent Quincy met the Emperor for the first time at the Tuileries Palace in Paris. He was guided by Jean Schulmeister, Napoleon IV's former chief of staff.

Florent Quincy's arrival in the corridors of power is attracting attention for a number of reasons, not least because he is one of the Simpartist party's biggest contributors and has extensive military experience aboard the aircraft carrier Le Normandie.

A few days earlier, His Majesty the Emperor Napoléon V dissolved Parliament. This is a rare political act, which in the republican tradition is normally used to resolve serious crises and is often judged with suspicion. It is wise to assume that the Emperor wished to give his Prime Minister Charlemagne de Maupas new political room for manoeuvre by increasing the number of Imperial Party seats in Parliament.

State of the Legislative Body under the First Government of Charlemagne de Maupas (end of the reign of Napoléon IV)

The opposition party (Third Party) had 150 seats compared with 200 for the Emperor.

Before the dissolution, His Majesty had only a very small majority, which allowed the opposition parties to systematically block the measures desired by the government.

State of the Legislative Body under the Second Government of Charlemagne de Maupas (Napoléon V)

Dissolution was a risky but successful gamble for the Emperor, as His Majesty's party won 83 seats in the early elections. This majority will strengthen the powers of the second government of Charlemagne de Maupas and the Simpartist party for many years to come.

Dissolution is permitted under the French Constitution in the event of "extended powers given to the Emperor in times of crisis". These powers were conferred on the Emperor after the death of His Majesty, the late Emperor Napoléon IV, in a terrorist attack.

At the beginning of his reign, Emperor Napoléon V asked the French Parliament to grant him extensive powers. Some opponents of power deplored the end of democracy, and the dissolution of Parliament is proof of this today.

It is clear that through this very serious political gesture, His Majesty is showing all his power, since he enjoys great popularity, but also that he is placing all his trust in his Prime Minister, Charlemagne de Maupas.

⚜ Traduction française

ARTICLE - URGENT : Dissolution du Corps Législatif par Sa Majesté !

Au palais des Tuileries a été aperçu le nouvel état major des armées particulier de l'Empereur, l'amiral Florent Quincy, 55 ans. Ce dernier conseille Sa Majesté pour les affaires militaires françaises et internationales, même les plus délicates. Ce qui en fait un conseiller important pour la future politique du pays.

L'amiral Florent Quincy rencontre l'Empereur pour la première fois au palais des Tuileries à Paris. Il est guidé par l'ancien état-major de Napoléon IV, Jean Schulmeister.

L'arrivée de Florent Quincy aux loges du pouvoir attire l'attention pour de multiples raisons, principalement parce qu'il est l'un des plus grands collaborateurs du parti Simpartiste et a une grande expérience militaire à bord du porte-avions Le Normandie.

Quelques jours plus tôt, Sa Majesté l'Empereur Napoléon V a dissous le Parlement. C'est un acte politique rare, qui dans la tradition républicaine, est normalement utilisée pour résoudre des crises graves et qui est souvent jugée avec suspicion. Il est sage de penser que l'Empereur a souhaité donner à son Premier Ministre Charlemagne une nouvelle marge de manoeuvre politique en renforçant le nombre de sièges du Parti impérial au Parlement.

Etat du Corps Législatif sous le Premier Gouvernement de Charlemagne de Maupas

Avant la dissolution, Sa Majesté ne disposait que d'une très faible majorité qui permettait aux partis de l'opposition de bloquer systématiquement les mesures souhaitées par le gouvernement.

La dissolution était un pari risqué mais réussi pour l'Empereur, puisque le parti de Sa Majesté a gagné grâce aux élections anticipées 83 sièges. Cette majorité va permettre de renforcer les pouvoirs du second gouvernement de Charlemagne de Maupas et du parti Simpartiste pour de longues années.

L'Empereur Napoléon V au début de son règne demande au Parlement français de lui conférer les pouvoirs étendus.

La dissolution est permise par la Constitution française en cas de "pouvoirs élargis donnés à l'Empereur en temps de crise". Ces pouvoirs ont été conférés à l'Empereur après la mort de feu Sa Majesté, l'Empereur Napoléon IV dans un attentat. Il est évident qu'à travers ce geste politique d'une grande gravité, Sa Majesté montre toute sa puissance puisqu'il jouit d'une grande popularité, mais aussi qu'il place toute sa confiance en son Premier Ministre, Charlemagne de Maupas.

[sparks-chaotic-cove]

Hey there! so I'm trying to figure out how wedding veils work-

I know generally they're attached via a headband or a like- hairpin? like the stuff you stick into your hair

For my project I'm designing a few, because wedding attire is another example of stuff about the culture's deities that are ingrained into their daily lives (the wedding veil is aiming to resemble a bird's wings, a point towards Lineep, their god of life)

A few questions:

a) how long is a wedding veil, generally?

b) how different does it look while being worn over the face vs down the back?

c) how much does a wedding veil go around the body? just in the front, over the shoulders, etc?

[tlaquetzqui]

“I am designing a culture with an entirely made-up pantheon, and also language, but I literally can’t conceive of weddings working in any way except the way they work in the post-Victorian West.”

Many such fucking cases.

[bluegekk0]

Idk why but for some reason the words I associate with Grimm and fpk are partner, lover, or boyfriend. Not husband.

I know you had the meme redraw of Grimm and FPK getting married with the officiant being Elderbug with the caption being "We have gay s3x" or something like that.

But anyway, are they legally married or did they just have a ceremony? How would it have gone? Would their wedding be based on weddings in Hallownest or something that Grimm saw in another kingdom?

I'm not sure how a legal marriage would work in Hallownest, especially since at this point it's just a bunch of independent settlements, as opposed to an united kingdom/country, but yes, they married each other shortly before they decided to try for a child, so about 2 years after they reunited.

Not much really changed for them when it comes to formality, mostly because I don't think that's really a thing in Hallownest, or at least in Dirtmouth (they don't even have a last name to share, among other things). I think they really just wanted to take that next step in their relationship, and "husbands" shows a much closer bond than "partners" or "lovers" (this one they never used, Grimm was especially against calling FPK his lover; it reminded him of his many casual experiences in the past, and he didn't want to ever paint FPK as just another lover of his).

As to what the wedding would look like... I think wedding traditions vary greatly between the different communities in Hallownest. Dirtmouth's traditions are nearly non existent since most of its population died or left Hallownest, and there are very few records on what a traditional wedding in that community looked like. The wedding between WL and FPK was completely different, soul and the Kingsoul fragments being a key part of it, and there was a huge event accompanying it, with many important guests from different kingdoms being present.

Despite his love for spectacles, Grimm wanted their wedding to be small in scale, more intimate, an idea FPK very much shared. One tradition I really like from Celtic rituals is handfasting, the act of tying the hands of the two partners with some kind of cloth or ribbon. So that would be a part of their wedding, the main element of the ceremony, very small in scale but one that carries much symbolism for them, signifying their eternal bond. I do love the idea of Grimm witnessing this tradition in another land and wanting to share it with FPK. The cloth used to tie their hands during the ceremony is basically their equivalent of wedding rings, and they keep it safely displayed in their house.

After the main ceremony, they would hold a small feast for the Dirtmouth community in the main Troupe building (by that point, the Troupe built more permanent homes and structures, as opposed to the tents they lived in prior). Or perhaps there is some kind of longhouse-esque building in the town where the residents gather for such events? I do quite like that idea, especially since my vision of the Hallownest region takes a lot of inspiration from Nordic/Germanic elements (playing Skyrim solidified that vision even further hahaha).

Of course, the actual feast would be significantly smaller in scale than the event held at WL and FPK's wedding, the Dirtmouth community was still very small at that point, so it was really just FPK, Grimm, their family and their friends, though they did also invite any newcomers - they value the community greatly, so they wanted their wedding to also bring the Dirtmouth folk together.

Then everything returned to normal, basically. Like I said, there were no formalities involved, they already lived together, and again, they had no last name to share. They did receive a letter from Lurien congratulating them on the marriage, with a small wedding present attached. I mentioned if before, but he's the only remaining Dreamer who is now the head of the City of Tears; he's on good terms with FPK and Grimm, the latter of whom he has a certain deal with, regarding Grimm's vampiric activities and the bandits plaguing the city. So he would eventually hear that the two got married, and would send them his best wishes.

And no, WL was not present at the wedding. FPK tries to stay on friendly terms with her but it's very clear that they're not close. She congratulated them but did not attend the ceremony herself, she was too occupied with her mansion court and its business, and besides, it would be incredibly awkward for everyone involved (and with FPK's history with her and their unhappy marriage, not to mention his fear of upsetting her that still resides in his mind years after they separated, chances are that her presence would ruin the special day for him). She was perfectly fine with it, though. By that point she had already moved on and had her own life, so she wasn't upset about the wedding or not attending it.

---

Side tangent, but I'm definitely steering FPK's dynamic with WL to be a bit more... distant, I suppose. Exploring what their marriage was like in the AU made me realize that them being close friends now wouldn't really make sense, if anything, it would be a bit unfair to FPK. That's not to say they dislike one another, far from it, but FPK definitely puts a lot more effort than he really needs to with maintaining the good terms. He'd be well within his right to just forget about her after how poorly she treated him while they were married, but I think him being slightly naive and too kind for his own good is a very interesting aspect of his personality. And while WL still has many regrets about her treatment of him, I think making their dynamic more distant would be better for both of them. No spiteful exes deal, no cliche hatred between WL and FPK's new partner, I think them keeping a distance is more reasonable and mature. So basically, instead of seeing them as friends, WL treats FPK and Grimm as special guests whenever they visit her mansion. Formal and a tad awkward, very fitting for her personality, but still showing good will on her side.

[morrigan-sims]

another late night / early morning wip pic under the cut

>:)

[cinderswife]

because i can't go five seconds without thinking about ouatis worldbuilding, here's rose and snow's immediate family! there is so much going on here. infodump under the cut as always <3

(full disclosure, snow and rose's childhood sucked. i watched Iron Claw, a biopic about the wrestling dynasty of the Von Erich family, when i was conceptualizing their dads and the shitty family dynamics from the film twisted with the development of snow and rose i'd already done to create a royally screwed up family. general white and rose red do Not come from a remotely well adjusted family are you kidding me. so. cw about that. darr and eret are doing fine though)

By all the rights of inheritance, Cole's empire should belong to the House of Grimm. After all, it was their family he married into 2,000 years ago. He took his pick of the Princes Grimm (twin crown princes who decided that whoever married for love first would get to be king of Zantine) and became king over the people. It must be understood though that the House of Grimm is descended from the other brother, the Duke of what was then the province of Delinore (long before it was a planet or a star system). Had His Majesty simply died when he was killed, all this could have been avoided. Alas, His Majesty's forays into the idea of immortality and collaboration with a certain vampire would lead to him becoming a star-faring conquering emperor.

This is not a fact known any longer. To the people of the modern era, the House of Grimm is simply his favorite and always has been. The current Grand Duke of the star system duchy of Delinore and Head of the House of Grimm is his heir and that is the way it is and always will be.

John Grimm, the hereditary Grimm father through which Snow and Rose claim their birthright, had a short-lived reign. His own father had died in an unfortunate starship accident when he was young, so he was raised by not his mother, a perpetually stressed woman desperately trying to keep the duchy together, but his uncle, a former military man who was never as good as a soldier as he claimed to have been.

John wanted desperately to join the force but as the only child of his father and His Majesty's future heir, he was forced to train to become Grand Duke instead. This was not pleasing to him, so he made a habit of getting into trouble whenever he could.

As a teen, he took a fancy to a lovely young woman who would later grow into his husband, Eli. Eli was clever with his tongue and understood people in a way that John never quite wrapped his head around. Though he was descended from a far lesser noble house, John saw potential in him as a partner in crime. The two fell madly in love and were wed within months of meeting at the tender ages of 17 and 16.

That was the story spun about them anyways. In truth, it was a shotgun wedding and the two were married to ensure the scandal remained as minimal as possible. Snow and Rose were born several months later to baffled fanfare.

Now, it must be understood that twins have always been auspicious in the House of Grimm. Every generation with twin heirs would find a different way to select which would be the Duke. John elected the easy way: Rose, the older twin by a mere 20 minutes, would be Duchess and Snow, the younger twin, would fulfill his military dreams.

It became quite clear early on that the girls' dispositions were suited for the other's future. Rose was lively and athletic with a lot of fight in her and Snow was clever and calculating with the ability to say whatever she needed to get others to listen. However, John and to a lesser extent Eli were determined that things go exactly as planned.

The girls were raised like military sons, strict and harsh much like John had been. Even Eli, though not as outwardly brutal, was still strict in his teachings of politic and poise. Despite the harsh conditions (or indeed, because of them), the sisters grew close and protective of each other. Rose often bore the brunt of the punishments, stepping in for her sister whenever she could. In turn, Snow would tend to her sister after the fact. Both would run to Doctor Lorenzo whenever they could, more of a father to them than their own two.

When they were sixteen, Snow and Rose were to make their debut into high society before being sent off to their respective academies. As part of this, the day before they were to meet with King Cole himself. Snow's meeting went... fine, really, she just got some kinda weird advice and some really bad vibes off His Majesty. Rose on the other hand came out of that meeting and immediately signed away her birthright to her sister, swapped their papers, and stole away to the military academy. She never said what happened that night, only that Snow would be safer and better off as Grand Duchess.

John and Eli were very disappointed and upset, of course, but things worked out well in the end. Snow proved quickly that she was far better suited to politic than either of her fathers and by the time she was 24 even His Majesty insisted that she become Duchess. And Rose, well, her career in the military catapulted her into living legend status. No one has successfully conquered more planets in His Majesty's name than her (even if, when sufficiently drunk and alone, Rose professes a deep hatred of the king).

They currently live in their family manor on New Constantinople instead of Delinore as when Snow became Duchess she basically kicked them out (and honestly they wanted to go anyways).

As for Darr, well, Snow needed to continue on the family line. Though a romantic as a teen, as soon as she realized she was going to be Duchess she became exceptionally judicial about her suitors. She had ambition and she was not going to let a nagging partner get in the way of that.

Darr Amundsen (also known as Darla or Darrell depending on zer gender at the time) was the fourth child of a middling Marquess. All zer older siblings were deeply unambitious and did little to make the family proud and Darr, a very quiet individual with little skill in politic and a strong desire to get really invested in trains, was supposed to be the one to make it better. Out of desperation, ze decided to sign up for a matchmaking service to see if ze could marry into a greater family.

Well, there's no greater family than the House of Grimm and Snow was quite taken by Darr. Though they aren't properly in love, they make a fantastic team. Darr runs the household of the Eden Castle and raises their son while supporting Snow in her fight for peace and in turn Snow can do many great and wonderful things while wading through the controversy surrounding her ideals.

Unfortunately, Darr does not get on well with Rose. That's fine, Rose insists, really! It's not like she spends a lot of time at home

They currently have one son, Eret! He is three and looks an awful lot like his Aunty Rose. His favorite animals are penguins and snakes, he's obsessed with the ocean, and he's granted a lot of freedom that Snow never got. He's a little rascal and we love him for it <3

He does look up to Aunty Rose a bit too much for Darr and honestly even Snow's comfort. Snow fought hard for her belief in kindness and goodness and while she loves her sister dearly, the destruction Rose has caused is not something she can forgive so easily. Rose is doing her best to try and be a good role model for the kid but she is kind of a disaster when she's away from either the battlefield or cameras.

Ah well, she just learned to knit so the kid gets a lot of fun presents.

[imabiscuitinthousandworlds]

sometimes all it takes is One Silly Talk to suddenly have a solution for something you've actually accepted for the next few years