#you may notice that silver snow is not there. this is because i am a little bitch and cant bring myself to not side with edelgard

[crows-of-buckets]

Anyways I think all my playthroughs this time are gonna be on normal bc I wanna unlock all unit supports but NEXT time baby we are so doing a cf maddening no recruit run I'm gonna make me hate this game so hard

Fire emblem three houses gets me mentally pacing around because I love it so MUCH and I miss it and it's my favorite thing ever and NO I don't want to open the game right now <- guy who is grinding supports on normal mode

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Just One Reason: A Walk in the Park

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

Character: Lloyd Hansen

masterlist - to be added

Summary: A chance encounter at the sandwich shop doesn’t end how you expect.

As usual, I would appreciate any and all feedback. I’m happy to once more go on this adventure with all of you! Thank you in advance for your comments and for reblogging ❤️

You push through the door of the lobby and hold it open for the elder woman hunched over her walker. You patiently let her through but she doesn’t even acknowledge your deed. It’s too bad that most times you help people, you don’t even seem to notice. That’s fine. You’d feel worse to see her struggle. 

She heads for the outer door but before you can rush over to get that too, someone else does. You blanch as you recognise the man with the bristly mustache. It’s Lloyd. You haven’t seen or heard from him in the week since the sandwich shop encounter. You just assumed it was another random crossing of wires. 

The woman mutters as she passes through the door and his cheek twitches as he waits until he’s through to let go. He shakes his head and turns to you, “there ya are. Didn’t know your unit so kinda just been hanging around.” 

You blink, “you’ve been waiting on me?” 

“That lady was a grouch, huh? Not even a thanks. Telling ya, tootsie roll, you’re too sweet,��� he says. That pet name is cute but a bit much. 

“Um, yeah, but she’s probably in a lot of pain. Maybe one day I’ll be in the same way and someone will hold the door for me,” you shrug. “But uh, why exactly are you waiting in my lobby?” 

“Friends stop by to say hello, don’t they?” He grins.  

“Sure, but uh...” 

“You said we’re friends so... did I misread this? Were you just being nice? The way you do, huh? Because lying isn’t very nice, tootsie.” 

You shake your head, “no, I just... I don’t know. I’m surprised. That’s all.” 

“Good surprise?” He lifts a brow. 

“Yeah, of course,” you squeak. 

“Mm, and where are you off too, besides helping little old ladies?” He challenges. 

“Just going for a walk. I like to walk through Garnet.” 

“Garnet? You mean the sh—the path down there?” He points to the wall and you nod. 

“They have pretty flowers.” 

“It’s... almost winter,” he sniffs. 

“Yeah, I know. I like it though. There’s still ducks around.” 

He nods, his eyes narrowed discerningly, “you always see the silver linings, don’t ya?” 

“I try,” you shrug. 

“Well, can I crash your walk? Could stand to stretch my legs.” 

You nod and hum, “that’s fine.” 

“Just fine?” 

“Lloyd,” you give him a look, “you’re more than welcome to walk with me.” 

You tuck your earbud case away. The left one is broken anyhow. He pulls the door open again and waves you out. 

He follows and catches up to you on the sidewalk. You walk down the pavement and breathe in the brisk air. You fix your beanie over your ears and slip your hands up your sleeves as you cross your arms. 

“Damn cold, isn’t it?” He puffs a cloud of steam into the air. 

“I can’t wait for the snow,” you say.  

Your father always loved the wintertime. You would watch the flakes drift down and build a snowman, even a tiny one if there wasn’t very much, and you’d have hot chocolate on the porch in your mittens and pajamas. And Christmas... 

You push away that thought. 

“You’re quiet? You alright?” He nudges you with his elbow. You flinch. You forgot he was there for a second. 

“I’m wonderful. How are you? How’s your ear?” 

“My ear...” he echoes. “You remember?” 

“Did you get it looked at? Does it still hurt?” 

“Yeah, it’s alright. Still a bit fuzzy on that side,” he shrugs. “It’s whatever. I’m a big boy.” 

“Right, but did a doctor say so or--” 

“You worry about me that much, tootsie?” He scoffs. 

“It’s important. You never know, could be worse than you think. And if it’s nothing at all, at least you know,” you say. You don’t want to nag him, even if you should have nagged your dad. Maybe... 

“No, I didn’t. Really, it’s not the first time I got a good blast to the ear,” he says. 

“Right,” you accept as you turn through the gate to the park. The arch is missing letters but it’s still beautiful. 

He sighs again and rubs his hands together. “God, I hate the cold.” 

“You should get gloves,” you uncross your arms and reach into your pocket, “I don’t know, mine might be too small.” 

You offer him the woolly mittens. He clicks his tongue, “that’s cute, definitely too small.” He shoves his hands in his pockets and chatters. You look at his jacket. You try to see the inside above the collar. “What are you doing?” He glances at you from the corner of his eye. 

“Is that lined?” You ask. 

“What?” 

“Your coat. Is there a lining in it? It looks thin.” 

“I’m just fine, mom, thanks,” he snips sharply. 

“Gosh, sorry, I just... I could sew a lining into it. I replaced the inserts in my boots too. It’s not that hard.” 

He furrows his brow, “it’s whatever. I spend most of the winter south. Right by the equator where it’s nice and sunny.” 

“Ooo, that sounds cool,” you say. “By the ocean?” 

“Surrounded by it,” he says nonchalantly. 

“Wow. I’ve never seen the ocean.” 

“You haven’t... tootsie, what’re ya doin’ to me? You’re lying.” 

“Nope,” you shake your head. “I’m sure one day I will. Is it pretty?” 

He looks at you and his nostrils flare as he takes a deep breath, “yeah, it’s... beautiful,” he looks ahead thoughtfully. “Guess I should pay more attention, but yeah, real blue and big and sh—stuff.” 

You bounce on your feet and stop suddenly. You hit his arm and point, “don’t scare him.” 

He nearly trips as you gesture to the little chipmunk on the broken bench. You can’t help a squee as it skitters onto the seat and glances around nervously. You squeeze Lloyd’s sleeve without thinking. 

“He’s so c-y-ute!” You say, “isn’t he?” 

He doesn’t answer right away but you’re too enamoured with the tiny critter to care. 

“Yea, super cute,” he agrees at last. 

[starryevermore]

the house of snow (5) ✧ coriolanus snow

the house of snow ✧ a royal coryo au | pinterest board| ao3

pairing: king!coriolanus snow x fem!reader

series summary: the king of panem is in search of a bride. and, for reasons you can never understand, coriolanus snow has set his sights on you. it would never be a happy marriage, you’re sure of that. but none of that matters, because when snow decides he wants something, he will do everything in his power to ensure it is his. 

chapter summary: snow does not like the idea of others playing with his toy.

word count: 2,665

series warnings?: 18+ MINORS DNI, royal au, regency au, arranged marriage, rivals to lovers, obsessive!coryo, jealous!coryo, protective!coryo, eventual smut, eventual pregnancy, more tags to be added later

chapter warnings?: jealous!coryo, pet name (petal), not proofread

“How does it feel to be Mrs. Snow?” Clemensia Dovecote asked as one of the maids poured you a cup of tea. 

You watched the maid glance at you, curiosity evident in her eyes. Though you trusted your own lady’s maid with much of your thoughts and feelings you thought best to keep hidden from everyone else, you knew that maids in general liked to talk. Or, rather, people liked to talk. You had little doubt that your concerns in marrying Snow had spread throughout the working class. Had it been a mistake to even discuss your feelings, or lack thereof, for Snow with her? Perhaps. But you couldn’t keep silent about it. You had to talk to someone. 

“I am hardly Mrs. Snow yet. I am only engaged, Clemmie,” you said. 

Livia Cardew reached for your left hand. You allowed her to take it. She examined the ring Snow had placed on your finger with much scrutiny. It was a silver band with leaves snaking up to the center, where the silver was molded into rose petals. At the center of the flower sat a large, glittering diamond. Livia loved jewelry and all the finer things in life. She could appreciate a nice ring more than you could. “With a ring like that? The King is making a statement.”

“That I am his?” you clarified. It took everything in you to not roll your eyes. If Livia thought that you were not pleased with your engagement, it would spread through Panem faster than maids’ gossip. Who knew what Snow would do if that happened. Livia nodded. “I was already well aware of his interest, as was the rest of the ton.”

“Perhaps you should remind Lord Plinth of that, then?” Livia said. 

Your brows pinched together. Had she someone found out about how you once argued that you would rather marry Sejanus? Had word somehow spread? You knew Snow would say nary a word about it. At least, you would assume so from how he acted when you only mentioned Sejanus’s name. You tried to think back. Were there any maids or butlers around when you talked to Snow about this? When you talked to your parents? None came to mind, but the mark of a good servant is to not be noticed. (Or so your mother says.) It could be possible that you simply missed them?

You decided to feign ignorance. “Lord Plinth? What do you mean?”

Clemensia laughed. “We all saw how he looked at you while you danced at his mother’s ball! That man looked at you like you were made of diamonds.”

Livia crinkled her nose. “You may as well be, at least compared to him. I can still hardly believe the Former King Ravinstill ever granted that family a title. A dukedom at that! It just wasn’t right.”

You decided to ignore Livia’s ramblings. It was true that the Plinth family did not have the same sort of respect the rest of the ton, who had been born into their titles for generations and generations stretching all the way back to the formation of Panem. It was why your parents were so adamant that you not marry Sejanus. But he was a good, and kind, and gentle man.  “No, that cannot be. Lord Plinth is only a friend. He was the one who told me that…” You stumbled on the word. It felt foreign in your mouth. “…my fiancé was interested in courting me. Why would he do that if he would want to marry me himself?”

“Oh, you poor, naïve thing. It’s a wonder you even got this far in your courtship,” Livia teased. “He was hoping that you would swear off the King and marry him. An act of true love, or whatever the fairy tales say.”

Could that be true? Could that be why Snow was so irate at you speaking of Sejanus? But why would Sejanus ever reveal that to Snow? Snow was so possessive. He would hardly let such a slight go by unpunished. And, yet, Sejanus still lived and breathed. Maybe, then, Snow had deduced this all his own, just as Livia and Clemensia had done.

“Well, it hardly matters now. I am engaged now.”

“If the King is as smart as he was at the Academy, he would marry you soon. To dissuade Lord Plinth from arriving with any last minute confessions that might steal you away,” Livia mused. 

You looked out the window, where Coriolanus the Cat perched. In the distance, you could see the Royal Carriage being pulled down the road. It was nearly time for your daily luncheon with Snow. Though you would always dine at the palace, he insisted on picking you up from your home. To anyone who knew of the routine, it seemed like such a romantic ordeal. A man so desperate to spend time with his love that he would do the silliest things. To you, it was merely another way for him to attempt to control you. 

“That would hardly change anything,” you said. The carriage stopped outside of your home. The coachmen stepped down, then opened the door. Snow stepped out, his eyes immediately seeking yours as he looked up at the window. Despite the distance, you could see the smirk on his face. It made you feel ill. 

“Because you are in love?” Clemensia asked. 

You wondered if Snow could read lips from so far away as you repeated, “Because I am in love.”

Livia looked out the window as Snow walked up to your home. “Do you think he knows about Lord Plinth?”

You blinked. You were wondering the same yourself. However, you knew that this was a question you would probably never get answered. You hardly could even figure out how to talk to Livia and Clemensia about this. How could you ever bring it up to Snow, with his quick temper? “It has never come up.”

“And why would it? I’m sure they have much more…exciting conversations,” Clemensia said with a grin. 

Your heart thumped at the implication. Truthfully, you did not know what happened when a couple were married. Your mother only ever told you that, after the ceremony, the union ended in consummation and that that was where children came from. She always said she would tell you more when you were older, but that day had not yet come. “We…talk about our future together,” you said. 

Clemensia’s grin grew, but before she could tease you further on matters you didn’t have a full grasp on, Snow entered the room. “Good morning, Miss Cardew, Miss Dovecote. Good morning, petal,” he said with a charming smile. “What are we talking about today?”

You opened your mouth to answer, ready to say you were discussing your impending nuptials. You knew that would please him enough to put him in a good mood. But Livia beat you to it.

“Lord Plinth’s infatuation with your fiancé.”

Snow’s jaw ticked. For a moment, you wondered if his mask would fall. But he recovered quickly and said in a teasing voice, “Should I be worried?”

“No, they have deluded themselves into thinking he is interested,” you said, careful to not even refer to Sejanus by his last name. “I told them that it would not have mattered even if he was interested because—”

“Because she’s in love,” Clemensia interrupted, elongating the word “love,” making it sing-songy.

A more genuine smile settled on Snow’s face. His eyes flitted to you. “Is that so?”

But, for as much as you were attempting to placate him, you had to have your fun, too. So, you smiled, and said, “Oh? We were talking about you? My mistake, I thought we were talking about Coriolanus.” 

You picked the kitten from his perch on the windowsill, pressing kisses around his face. He purred, curling up in your arms. For a moment, you thought you saw Coriolanus the Cat look smugly at Snow. But, even if he hadn’t, the annoyed look on Snow’s face was joy enough. 

“She teases me too much with that cat—”

“—our son—”

“—our son,” Snow corrected. “I almost regret giving her the little thing.”

Clemensia laughed and nudged Livia. “They already argue like they’re married.”

“Well, as lovely as this was, we do have a luncheon to attend,” Snow said, holding his hand out for you to take. You moved to cradle Coriolanus the Cat in one arm and slipped your hand into Snow’s. He helped you to your feet, then flashed another smile at Livia and Clemensia. “And do let me know if you have anymore theories about Lord Plinth’s affections. I have to ensure I do not have any competition, don’t I?”

“Oh, stop being silly,” you protested as Livia and Clemensia nodded. 

At that, your mother, who sat quietly in the corner of the room with her sewing, rose from her seat and followed you and Snow out of the home. Since the engagement, she had hardly spoken a word when he was around. A part of you wondered if that was because she no longer felt the need to quiet you since Snow put a ring on your finger. Another part of you wondered if Snow had included her silence in the terms of the engagement. You would, after all, need a chaperone with you until you were actually married, but that did not mean that Snow would want to listen to her protest over every thing you did. 

When you reached the carriage outside, Snow helped you climb in. For a second, you wondered if he was going to ignore your mother. But then he held a hand out for her to take as she lifted herself inside, taking the seat across from you. She had learned after the first luncheon that the spot beside you was to always be occupied by Snow. 

Once Snow took his seat, the carriage began its trek to the palace. You tried to distract yourself, looking out the window and petting Coriolanus the Cat, who was curled up on your lap. But then Snow reached for your hand, which you allowed him to take. From the corner of your eye, you saw your mother wrinkle her nose. You weren’t sure it was inappropriate for him to hold your hand, but perhaps she knew so archaic social rule you were unaware of. Or perhaps she was regretting her scheming, you mused. 

“I do not want you to spend any more time with Sejanus,” Snow said. 

This got your attention. 

You turned to look at him, your brows pinched together. “Because of what was said this morning? Lord…he is a friend.”

“I believe Miss Cardew and Miss Dovecote were correct in their assessment. I do not wish for you to be around him.” At your frown, he added, “At least not until after the wedding. It will only be a month. Give me this.”

“I have given you so much already.”

Snow squeezed your hand, tight. You tried to pull away, but he refused to loosen his grip. He leaned in to you, his breath fanning over your face. You did not like how close he was to you. “I cannot tell if his intentions are pure. I do not wish for you to be harmed.”

“Sejanus would never,” left your lips before you could think of what you were saying.

Snow’s face turned red. “What did I tell you about—”

“He is a friend, Snow. He. Is. A. Friend. You cannot isolate me from my friends—”

“—not your friends. Only him.”

“—just because you have concocted this delusion he is trying to take me from you. Sejanus may act impulsively from time to time, yes. He may not always think matters through. But he is your friend, and he is mine. Do you understand? As far as he is concerned, we are in love. Even if he had been interested in courting me, he would not do anything to hurt either of us. He is not like you.”

“Not like…You are toeing the line, petal.”

“I am not going to stop talking to a friend, even if it is only until we are married, because you are insecure. Snow, have I given you any reason to think that I would not follow our agreement?”

“No.”

“Have I done anything, save for admitting that I once considered marrying Sejanus, that would indicate I have feelings for him?”

“You have not.”

“Then why are you acting like a petulant child whose favorite toy has been stolen away?”

You watched as Snow’s jaw clenched and unclenched. But before he could say any more, the carriage came to a halt and the door was opened. Your mother was helped out first, then you, and finally Snow. He said not a single word as the three of you were led into the palace toward the dining room. Not until you had passed Coriolanus the Cat off to the butler. 

“Join me in the library for a moment, petal,” he said. 

You caught your mother’s eye. Oh, how you wished for her to say something. But instead, she took her seat at the table and said not a word. Sucking in a breath, you nodded. Snow smiled and took your hand, placing it around his bicep. You had half a mind to dig your nails into his arm, hoping that it might hurt him. You were already walking on thin ice, and you could not imagine such an act would go over well with Snow. 

When you entered the library, Snow shut the large, oak doors behind you. Your blood ran cold. He had not done that the last time you visited the library. Had you crossed the line? Had you gone too far? You were not sure if Snow was a violent man. He had spent some months after leaving the Academy as a Peacekeeper. He was certainly capable of violence. But would he inflict it? On you? 

“Snow, I did not mean to—” you began to apologize, hoping that it might placate him. 

If you thought Snow had been too close to you before, it hardly compared to him grabbing you, one hand on your waist, the other on your face, his lips pressed against yours. You gasped, trying to pull away. This was not right. This was not…You were not even sure if married couples kissed this way. You had only ever seen chaste kisses, never something so…animalistic. You weren’t sure if Snow was kissing you more than he was trying to eat you alive. When his tongue darted out, swiping against your lips, you finally managed to push him away. 

“What the hell was that!?” you shouted. “You cannot just, just kiss someone! We are not married, Snow! You promised that you would not ruin me!”

“Did I? I only recall saying your reputation would never be harmed.” Snow reached for you again. You could not find it in you to push him away, not when he had such a crazed look in his eye. “And it will not be, I will promise you that. If I wish, however, to kiss my fiancée in private, I shall do so.”

“You only did this so I would feel guilty if I tried to leave you for Sejanus, which I have already told I would not do!”

“No,” Snow said. “I did this because you drive me mad.”

“Then lock yourself in an asylum. Do not kiss me.”

One of Snow’s hands left your waist. He reached up, caressing your face. When you did jerk away, he pinched your chin between his fingers. “You are to be my wife. You are to be the wife of a king. I shall treat you however I see fit. Do you understand?”

When you said nothing, he pinched harder. “Do you understand?”

“Only if you understand that I will hate you until the day I die.”

[blues824]

26 and 29 WITH LILIA PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF THE SEVEN I NEED HIM TO HOLD ME AND TELL ME EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY EVEN THOUGH THE CONTINOUS FLOW OF TIME IS SCARY AND NOTHING WILL EVER BE THE SAME AGAIN

(I am not okay. I am humbling requesting comfort fluff with peepaw. Please and thank you, your majesty.... All hail the fanfic writers during a monthly prompt 🫶🫰🙏🛐🙌🦐)

You requested: Cuddling next to the fire + Holiday blues

In Google Docs, I title the Holiday Blue fics “Holiday *Blues*”... because of my name lol.

Lilia Vanrouge

He could sense the burden that this season had on you. Why it was hard for you, he didn’t know. And he wasn’t going to pry into your personal matters because they were just that: personal. If you didn’t want to tell him yet, he wasn’t going to force you to.

However, that was not going to stop him from trying his best to make you feel better. He made sure to reach out in case you needed help with any history assignments, as that was his best subject. He would also help with other subjects, trying to lessen the load. However, you were starting to get annoyed.

You eventually blew up, yelling at him to leave you alone as you slammed the door to Ramshackle. Lilia decided it would be best if you had a few moments to yourself, and he told you to text him or call him when you were ready to speak with him. With that said, he went back to Diasomnia so that he wouldn’t be stuck in the snow.

It wasn’t too long later, maybe a couple of hours, where you texted him to come back over to Ramshackle. When he knocked on your door, you were in tears as you apologized for shouting at him, saying he didn’t deserve it. He never took offense to your harsh words, as there have been many times where the Prince, Silver, or Sebek have said much harsher things to him as they were growing up.

Anyway, you invited him inside, and he noticed that there was no fire, and you were probably freezing cold. Holding your hand in his, he confirmed his thoughts, and so he started building a fire in the fireplace. Luckily for the both of you, Grim had the makings of a pyromaniac with his fire magic, so all he needed was to place the logs in the fireplace.

Almost immediately the room started to get warmer. Lilia told you to sit down on the couch so that you may warm up, and he gathered all of the blankets around the dorm, the clean ones at least, and threw them all on you. Then, he joined you on the couch. This was a bit of a tactic he picked up when he raised the two boys (and often visited the third), especially when they were angry at him or themselves.

A moment of silence fell over you two, until you crawled over and laid your upper body on his lap. Tears were streaming down your face as you silently weeped, and he just held you, running his hands through your hair and whispering sweet nothings to you. You stayed like that until you drifted off and fell asleep.

[iydiamartinx]

FLAMES OF STARLIGHT

𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝘄𝗼 | 𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌

Pairing: Poly!Azriel x OC x Lucien

I'm still learning Tumblr and I just found out scheduled posts are a thing! I think I'll schedule the chapters for Monday, Wednesday and Friday until everything is caught up to my A03 account? Unless y'all prefer Friday, Saturday and Sunday?

Also I noticed someone blogging who knew me from Wattpad! Hi! I'm glad you found me again! For my readers who remember me from Wattpad, the reason I disappeared was because they removed my account. I lost most of my stories, so for any of you that were a fan of my other works, only this and Morning After Dark. But I am working on slowly rewriting some of my old works.

��❝ 𝘪 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘪 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴. 

𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺, 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘱𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦. ❞

— 𝐣𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐳

VAL STRODE DOWN the snow and dirt-trodden road with purpose. Despite her aching bones, she kept their pace to a brisk walk. Feyre easily kept in step beside her while Nesta and Elain trailed behind them, clicking their tongues in disgust as they sneered down at their now muddied shoes.

The silence that Val and Feyre walked in was comfortable compared to the complaining Nesta and Elain did behind them. The wolf's pelt was folded safely in the satchel Feyre carried. It was the only reason Nesta and Elain even bothered to tag along, hoping to persuade Feyre into giving them some money. They knew better than to ask Val. She wasn't one to indulge their needless urge for finery. But Feyre, as the youngest, was less steadfast than Val and, as such, sometimes felt the need to concede to their demands. 

Eventually, the grim stone houses of the village came into view. It was market day, and despite not even reaching the small town square yet, she could hear the voices of merchants, vendors, and shoppers. 

The scent of hot food invaded Val's nose, and she had to suppress her groan. Elain, however, had no qualms of letting out a hungered moan. Val's stomach clenched. She longed for a proper meal, but quickly she tamped down that desire. Desire could be a dangerous thing. 

Val turned around the corner only to suddenly halt. Nesta, from behind her, let out a slight noise as she placed a hand on Val's shoulder to steady herself from the sudden stop. Val paid her sister no mind, her eyes on the pale-robed young woman and the matching cluster behind her. 

"May the Immortal Light shine upon thee, sisters," She said. 

Both Elain and Nesta made a noise of displeasure, even Feyre shifted in discomfort, but Val remained silent. She didn't particularly care for the Children of the Blessed, but it didn't mean she liked them either. Their devotion to the fae unnerved her, and their persistence to convert was annoying, but otherwise, they were all harmless preachers. 

 "Have you a moment to spare so that you might hear the Word of the Blessed?" The young woman questioned. She held out her hands in welcome, the bracelet of silver bells on her wrist letting out a tinkling chime. 

"Not at the moment," Val replied neutrally. At the same moment, Nesta sneered with much more hostility, "No, we don't." 

Nesta nudged both Val and Elain to continue walking, and Feyre shifted to follow. 

The acolyte, however, stepped back into their path and a surge of annoyance went through Val at the woman's persistence. 

"It would take but a minute," She tried to persuade. 

"We really don't have the ti—" Val tried to say, but it was already too late. 

Nesta straightened up, glaring down at the acolyte. She cut Val off, "Go spew your fanatic nonsense to some ninny. You'll find no converts here," She snapped, making the woman shrink back. 

Yet, Nesta wasn't done as she pushed down the sleeve of her coat to reveal the iron bracelet she wore. The acolyte gasped in horror. 

Val glanced up to the dreary sky as if somehow she would find help among the grey clouds. All she wanted was a quick trip, in and out of the market, but it seemed even that was too much to ask for. 

"You see this?" Nesta hissed, taking a step forward, to which the woman matched by taking one back, "This is what you should be wearing. Not some silver bells to attract those faerie monsters."

"How dare you wear that vile affront to our immortal friends—" The acolyte started, but Nesta cut her off. 

"Go preach in another town," She spat. Val gently tugged Nesta slightly back, so she wasn't right in the poor woman's face.

"I suggest you find someone else because clearly, we are not interested," Val's tone was soft yet firm.

Just then, two women walked by, on the wealthier class by the looks of it, both shooting the group of acolytes a disgusted glance.

"Faerie-loving whore," One of them spat at the silent young woman.

The other, who looked even wealthier judging from the braided iron necklace she wore, curled her lip in disgust, "Don't you idiots understand what those monsters did to us for all those centuries? What they still do for sport when they can get away with it? You deserve the end you'll meet at faerie hands. Fools and whores, all of you." 

Val just sighed. Like her opinion about the children of the blessed, she remained indifferent about her thoughts of the Fae folk. She'd never met them, nor did she want to. However, if she did, she'd assume they were quite similar to humans. Some would be good, and some would be bad. After all, there had been some who had fought for the humans when the time came.

The young woman just took a breath, her face smoothening back out into a serene expression, "I lived in such ignorance, too, until I heard the Word of the Blessed. I grew up in a village so similar to this—so bleak and grim. But not one month ago, a friend of my cousin went to the border as our offering to Prythian—and she has not been sent back. Now she dwells in riches and comfort as a High Fae's bride, and so might you if you were to take a moment to—"

"She was likely eaten," Nesta, once again, cut off bluntly. 

Val found herself refraining from pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation—yet there was a small part of her that wanted to snort in amusement, but she buried that part of herself deep down. She just wanted to get the pelt to the marketplace and leave. 

Her sister added, "That's why she hasn't returned."

Val watched as the acolyte's face tightened. "Our benevolent masters would never harm us. Prythian is a land of peace and plenty. Should they bless you with their attention, you would be glad to live amongst them." 

Her eyes shifted around them to see that they were garnering a crowd. It seemed that she and Feyre had the same idea as Val looped her arm with Nesta's—ready to forcefully drag her off if needed—while Feyre stepped between them and the woman. 

"You're fighting an uphill battle," Feyre said. 

"A worthy cause." The girl beamed with conviction.

Val sighed, her words grim and tired as she replied, "No, it's not." With that, she gently tugged Nesta along, Feyre and Elain following with their own sighs of relief. 

Val could feel the acolytes' gaze burn into her back, but she refused to turn back. Nesta walked stiffly beside her, her arm still looped with Val's. Val gave Nesta's arm a subtle squeeze in comfort, and her twin glanced over at the gesture, but Val kept her eyes firmly ahead of her. Slowly Nesta relaxed, accepting her sister's comforting touch. 

Once at the square, Val removed her arm from Nesta's, and Feyre once again moved to Val's side. 

"We'll meet you here in an hour," Feyre said to the other two, and before they could say anything, she and Val slipped into the crowd. 

It took ten minutes for Val and Feyre to decide who they should approach. Their eyes scanned the different people that milled around until a large mountainous woman caught Val's eye. She sat on the ledge of the fountain, keeping to herself. It wasn't her size that attracted Val's attention but the numerous scars and weapons that littered her body. 

Feyre's eyes followed Val's gaze, and she slightly nodded in agreement. As the two of them approached, the woman's eyes narrowed slightly as she realized they were walking towards her wickedly sharp knife with appreciation before meeting the woman's dark eyes fearlessly. 

"I don't barter goods for my services," She said in a rough tone. A foreign accent coated her words, making her words sound even gruffer, "I only accept coin."

 "Then you'll be out of luck in this sort of place," Val responded cooly, her head tilting slightly as she continued her appraisal of the woman in front of her. 

The woman slightly straightened up, her eyes narrowing even further at Val. Like recognized like, and the mercenary had been around long enough to spot a predator, and despite Val's malnourished frame, the woman recognized Val for what she could be. "What is your business with me, girl?"

This time it was Feyre who spoke, "We have a wolf pelt, and a doe hide for sale. We thought you might be interested in purchasing them."

"You two steal them?"

"No." Feyre denied, her voice going hard at the question, "I hunted them myself. I swear it."

The mercenary's gaze shifted over to Feyre. "How." It wasn't a question but a demand. Val felt herself slightly bristle at the woman's tone, but she remained silent. 

Despite Feyre having just hunted, Val was itching for her own hunt. Unlike Feyre, who did it out of necessity, Val found it oddly calming. Val hated taking an innocent animal's life, and she found no joy in that part. What she liked was the freedom in the woods as she tracked her prey. Those few seconds of predatory focus as she drew her bow back, she loved it. It was freeing. 

It helped quiet the years of anger and pain that festered in her heart. The same anger she suppressed for the sake of her sisters because if she let it all go, she had no idea of the destruction she could cause.

Val continued her silence, letting Feyre tell the story of how she acquired the pelts. Val grew tense as she heard Feyre's suspicions of the wolf being a Fae, but she just clenched her jaw, making a note to talk to her sister about it later. 

The mercenary gestured towards the satchel, "Let me see," She ordered. Feyre pulled out the hides. "You weren't lying about the wolf's size," The mercenary murmured, running her hands over it as she studied it with a keen expert eye. "Doesn't seem like a faerie, though."

The mercenary looked back up, her eyes glancing between Feyre and Val, and for a brief second, they flicked to look at something over their shoulders before focusing back on Feyre. She named her price. 

Both Feyre and Val froze in shock. They hadn't expected that. The woman was overpaying by a lot. 

"Why?" Val questioned suspiciously. 

For a brief second, the mercenary's lips twitched at Val's brazenness before once again looking past them, "I'm assuming those two girls watching from across the square are your sisters," She said, "You all have that brassy hair—and that hungry look about you." 

Val knew she didn't share her sister's golden brown hair, but it didn't take a genius to see the resemblance she had with them.  

"We don't need your pity," Feyre glared. 

No, but we could use the money, Val thought, and the mercenary echoed her thoughts.

"No, but you need my money," She said, "and the other traders have been cheap all morning. Everyone's too distracted by those calf-eyed zealots bleating across the square." She jerked her chin towards the square, where the Children of the Blessed were still trying to recruit people to their cause in vain. This time the mercenary didn't bother hiding the small smile, "Up to you, girl."

Val was about to agree, but Feyre spoke first, "Why?" It wasn't laced with suspicion like when Val asked, just curiosity. 

She shrugged. "Someone once did the same for me and mine, at a time when we needed it most. Figure it's time to repay what's due."

Of course, Feyre, her darling sister who could be too kind and proud for her own good—despite what she might say—offered the mercenary some of their father's carvings in a way to make the payment fairer. 

However, the mercenary waved off the offer. "I travel light and have no need for them. These, however—" She patted the pelts in her hands, "—save me the trouble of killing them myself."

Val nodded, and Feyre copied her actions. The mercenary reached for the coin purse inside her heavy coat. Val didn't need to look inside to see that it was full of silver and even gold. 

It was a known fact that mercenaries were generally well-paid, and Val had thought about becoming one of them as the days grew harder on her family. It was better than some of the things she'd done to bring coin to the table, and she found the thought of becoming a mercenary frequented her brain more often as the years grew worse. 

The only thing that stopped her, however, was her sisters. She didn't think she could leave them for months at a time. The pain she'd find a way to push through, but the thought of leaving her sisters was a different kind of pain. Val needed them. They were all she had, and the thought of being alone...a hollow pit formed in her stomach, and she pushed the thought away before she could dwell on it. 

The mercenary handed Val the coins, who tucked them into her pocket. Val knew Elain and Nesta saw the transaction, but they wouldn't pester her as they would with Feyre, hence why she had taken the coins. 

"Thank you," Feyre said stiffly, while Val just nodded. 

The mercenary stroked the wolf pelt. "A word of advice, from one hunter to another."

Both Val and Feyre looked at her, raising an eyebrow. 

"Don't go far into the woods. I wouldn't even get close to where you were yesterday. A wolf this size would be the least of your problems. More and more, I've been hearing stories about those things slipping through the wall."

Feyre lightly shuddered, "Are they—are they going to attack?"

Plans were already forming in Val's mind if that were the case. She may not outright hate the fae, but she wasn't stupid. She knew the stories of the High Lords who had taken humans as slaves. Killed and tortured her kind as sport. It may have been centuries ago, but Val wouldn't risk the chance of that happening to her family if the fae ever decided to go back on the treaty.

The mercenary's face gave nothing away, "No one knows what the fae are planning. We don't know if the High Lords' leash on their beasts is slipping or if these are targeted attacks. I guarded for an old nobleman who claimed it had been getting worse these past fifty years. He got on a boat south two weeks ago and told me I should leave if I was smart. Before he sailed off, he admitted that he'd had word from one of his friends that in the dead of night, a pack of martax crossed the wall and tore half his village apart."

Fear filled Val, not for herself but for her sisters. Her instincts screamed at her to take them as far south as possible if that were the case. 

"Martax?" Feyre breathed, voice laced with the same fear rushing through Val's veins.

The mercenary's night-dark eyes flickered. "Body big as a bear's, head something like a lion's—and three rows of teeth sharper than a shark's. And mean—meaner than all three put together. They left the villagers in literal ribbons, the nobleman said." 

She continued, "So we don't know what all these attacks mean, other than more hires for me, and you keeping well away from the wall. Especially if the High Fae start turning up—or worse, one of the High Lords. They would make the martax seem like dogs."

Val's eyes drifted to the woman's scarred hands. "Have you ever faced another type of faerie?" She couldn't help but ask. 

Her eyes shuttered. "You don't want to know, girl—not unless you want to be hurling up your breakfast."

"Tell me," Val demanded, her voice hard. 

The woman studied Val for a second before pulling back the sleeve of her heavy jacket to reveal her tanned, muscled forearm marred with gruesome, twisted scars. Val swallowed harshly but felt no disgust. Scars told stories, the stories of survivors. Anyone who survived had scars. Even Val had scars. She believed they were something to be proud of, no matter how horrible the story that came with it was because, at the end of it, they could say they survived.

"Didn't have the brute force or size of a martax," The mercenary said, "but its bite was full of poison. Two months—that's how long I was down; four months until I had the strength to walk again." She then pulled up the leg of her trousers. Black spidery veins contrasted against the tanned skin. It was almost mesmerizingly horrific to see. "Healer said there was nothing to be done for it—that I'm lucky to be walking with the poison still in my legs. Maybe it'll kill me one day. Maybe it'll cripple me. But at least I'll go knowing I killed it first."

Feyre placed a hand on Val's shoulder, her face unnaturally pale, "Thanks for the warnings," She said tightly.

The mercenary's attention flicked to something behind them, and a faint smile of amusement curled at her lips. "Good luck."

A second later, a slender hand clamped onto Val's forearm, pulling her and Feyre away. Neither of them had to look to know it was Nesta, no villager would dare touch them, especially with Val around, and Elain was too gentle and timid to even approach them while they were with that mountain of a woman. 

"They're dangerous," Nesta hissed, her fingers dug into Val's arms as she continued to pull tug her and Feyre from the mercenary. "Don't go near them again."

"Let me go," Val quietly demanded, not appreciating being manhandled. In an instant, Nesta let go. Val's eyes narrowed as she studied her twin and Elain's pale face, "Is there something I should know?"

"They're brutes and will take any copper they can get, even if it's by force," Nesta said, trying to wave it off. 

Val glanced back at the mercenary studying her new pelts, "She robbed you?" Val questioned, her voice dangerously quiet. 

"Not her," Elain murmured. "Some other one who passed through. We had only a few coins, and he got mad, but—"

"Why didn't you report him—or tell us?" Feyre questioned. 

"What could you have done?" Nesta sneered. "Challenged him to a fight with your bow and arrows? And who in this sewer of a town would even care if we reported anything?"

"What about your Tomas Mandray?" Feyre challenged coolly. 

Nesta's eyes flashed, but a glance over Feyre's shoulder had her attitude taking a complete turn as her glare melted into a sickly sweet smile. "Your friend is waiting for you."

Val turned just in time to see Isaac tilting his head at Feyre. Val's jaw clenched. It wasn't that she didn't like Isaac, but Feyre deserved more than a quick rut in a barn. Feyre, out of all of them, deserved more and Val wished that one day her sister would experience love to its truest extent, but for now, if Isaac eased the loneliness Feyre felt, then Val wouldn't say a word. 

Sometimes, Val wished she could do the same thing. It wasn't that she had a shortage of admirers. She was quite aware of the beauty she and her sisters possessed, especially Elain—perhaps that was why Nesta was so protective over their younger sister. Yet, anytime the thought would come, the ring around her neck felt heavier and changed her mind. She wasn't ready. She didn't think she'd ever be ready. 

Nesta clicked her tongue, crossing her arms. "I do hope you two are taking precautions."

"It's a bit late to pretend to care," Feyre snapped back. 

Val placed a calming hand on Feyre's arm, drawing her youngest sister's attention towards her. "Go," Val said gently, nodding to where Isaac had disappeared. She couldn't help the slight, sly smirk that crawled onto her lips. She may not approve of the boy, but she remembered what it was like to be young. "Have some fun."

A slight blush dusted Feyre's cheeks, but the younger girl gave Val a grateful look before walking off. Val then turned towards her remaining sisters. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a twenty-mark copper. Ignoring Elain's sharp inhale, she handed it over. 

"I'll meet you guys back at home," Val said, and without waiting for a response, she walked away. 

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[xxmyhomexx]

HARRY POTTER: Draco and Harriet's Ball

I just got into reading Harry Potter after MANY years of curiosity, and for me, the books are better than the movies. In my head, I came up with the idea of a fem!Potter (Harriet) attending, but she'd go with Ron as a friend because of Hermione's attendance with Viktor. This is a long one!

At this Yule Ball, Ron and Harriet enter to the applause of people. They're both comfortable with each other, but Ron is still slightly jealous that Hermione is with Viktor. Harriet assures him that they'll still have a wonderful time, and he decides not to think much of it.

During the dance, Ron leads Harriet in the dance. They're both laughing and twirling as they follow the lead of dancing students around them, Hermione noticing them. At first she thinks something's going on, but when she notices Ron's laid back expression, it occurs to her that it is only friendship.

"May I have this dance, m'lady?" Ron holds out his hand for Harriet.

Giggling, Harriet bows. "Why yes sir, you may."

As they are about to waltz, Harriet is suddenly knocked away from Ron right into none other than Draco Malfoy. She yelps as he grabs her hand, firm but not tightening.

"Potter," he sneers. He looks down at her attire, and he's taken aback. Instead of her hair curling around her face, the ends are twisted and clipped back in silver barrettes, and she wears a gown white as snow with long, off the shoulder sleeves. Her neck is adorned with a silver chain, two white diamonds dangling from her ears. Her makeup is minimal, but even with her glasses on, her eyes are wide with liner and mascara.

"Malfoy."

"Hey," Ron interrupts them, glaring at Draco. "Let her go."

"Am I interrupting your date, Weasley?" Draco smirks. "Don't mind me, just making sure ol' Harriet here keeps her head in check for the upcoming games."

Ron growls as he balls his hands into fists. Draco smirks as he turns to Harriet.

"Well...mind if I cut in?"

"Why?" Ron interrupts. "Your here with Pansy. Run back to her."

However, they see her storming off the dance floor in a fury. Draco eyerolls.

"Now, Potter," he repeats. "Do you mind?"

"Are you sure?" Ron is concerned. Nodding, she gives him a reassuring smile as he steps back from the dance floor, allowing them room. Straightening herself, Harriet tries to focus on the applause from the faculty around them and the band playing music. She grunts as he tugs her against his chest.

"My, my," Draco's voice is soft as it is bitter. "I have to say, I'm impressed. I didn't know the famous Harriet Potter had the audacity to look...decent for the Yule Ball."

Harriet smirks back. "I could say the same thing about you, Draco."

She wasn't lying, he did clean up well. His white blazer was tucked into a buttoned black jacket, formal just as the rest of the students around them. He slid his hands around her waist, tightening his grip. Gasping, Harriet balanced her hands on his shoulders, swaying with him.

He spun her several times, looping her through each arm. The dancers around them noticed how graceful and fluent they were, gazing in awe and wonder.

"She dances beautifully," Viktor whispers to Hermione. "For rival houses...they're so graceful."

Even Harriet's friends are stunned into silence and amazement. She was not used to this, not one bit. Dancing with Ron was different: there was fun, cookiness and flattery. With Draco, it was all focus. He treated it like a game of Quidditch or class, no room for mistakes.

Harriet gasps as her back hits his chest. Through the music, she can hear the sound of her own heart beating, and the vibrations reverberating from Draco's lungs. She is rigid like stone.

"They're looking at us," Draco points out. He leans in with his lips close to her ear. "Probably surprised a Slytherin is dancing with a Gryffindor."

She grunts as he sways her side-to-side, interlacing his fingers in his. "Perhaps they are wondering..."

Suddenly, the world starts to collapse as he bends her backward. He clasps his hand tightly in hers, the other caressing her waist through the fabric of her dress. When he pulls her back up, their faces are inches apart.

"How a Muggle..." Draco tilts her chin to meet his gaze. "Is much as a nuisance as she is so beautiful."

In the midst of the dancing, nobody notices Draco lean in, pressing his lips against hers. Harriet blinks, her glasses fogging by the softness of his lips. However, just as it happens, it quickly ends when the music stops. Everyone claps around them and bows to their respective partners. Students start to surround Harriet and Draco.

"My my, Harriet. You were so beautiful, so beautiful!"

"Potter, you were amazing. Amazing!"

However, the crowd is suffocating in seconds and Harriet shoves everyone aside, fleeing the ballroom. She can't breathe, speak, or comprehend her surroundings. She just wants to leave, to get out of there.

"Harriet!" Ron and Hermione go after her. "Harriet, wait!"

But she doesn't. Instead she sprints through the castle, adrenaline running hot. She's so lost in it it only ceases when she trips over her dress straight into a room full of mirrors. Yelping, she lands face-first on the floor, groaning. This breaks her from her stupor.

Shaking, she sits on the floor for a moment. Her gown pools around her, hot tears pouring down her cheeks. She sniffles and stands, choking through more sobs as she walks towards the mirrors. Only her reflection keeps her company, safe in the vast hall no one will see her cry.

"You...BUMBLING SNAKE!" She shouts at her reflection. "WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!"

The room is silent as her anger dissipates into sadness. Turning around, she sinks to the floor, burying her head in her lap. "What do you want from me?"

"Good question, Potter."

She wasn't alone. Jumping to her feet, Harriet notices a shadow moving in the room. In the darkness, she thought it was a Dementor, but no, beneath the glimmering mask and black robes, it was a Death Eater. They glided across the floor in front of her, stopping a foot away. In the moonlight, Lucius Malfoy removed his mask, letting his long white hair cascade over his shoulders.

"Why, Harriet," his voice is melodic. "You look like winter's angel, my dear."

However, upon closed inspection, he noticed her face streaked with the tears she cried, letting her makeup stain her cheeks and her reddened eyes. Tsking, he pulled his wand from his cane and white light buzzed at the end. With a quick flick of his wrist, Harriet had no time to react as she was blinded by light.

"AAAGH!" She shrieked. What had he done to me, she thought in panic. Her glasses clinked to the ground, her hands covering her eyes. Had he burned her face? Did he curse her with a killing spell? She waited, trembling with fear. Nothing happened. Slowly, she removed her hands from her face and grabbed her glasses, rushing toward the mirror.

Lucius didn't hurt her at all...he fixed her makeup and hair the way it was before, as well as clearing the dirt that stained her dress. Unsettled, she turned around, startled to see he was now standing above her. He used the tip of his wand to tilt her chin upward, observing the work he'd just done.

"There we are. Good as new."

Gritting her teeth, Harriet growled and grabbed his wand, throwing it aside.

"Dear, dear, Potter," Lucius shook his head, commanding his wand back into his hand. "Don't test me."

"Why are you bothering me?" Harriet demanded. "Leave me alone!"

Her heels clicked against the stone floor as she shoved past him, intent on staying away from the entire Malfoy family all together. However, Lucius was one step further than her, appearing in front of her in a whisp of black smoke. Harriet slammed against his rock solid chest.

"Now, now," Lucius grew annoyed by her stubborness. "I'm not going to hurt you, but might want to adjust that attitude of yours if you want to make it back to the Yule Ball."

The hateful glare in Harriet's eyes disappeared. "You...you were watching me?"

"From the shadows, yes," Lucius tucked his wand back into his cane. "I must admit, you and my son danced so beautifully. I could see why everyone was so mesmerized."

"I never wanted to dance with Draco," Harriet denied ferverently. "He forced me to, away from my friend."

"The Weasley boy?" chuckled Lucius. "He danced as if he was born with no feet."

Harriet turned away and crossed her arms over her chest. She was seething underneath, but what alarmed her was Lucius's eyes on her at the dance. Alarm bells rung in her head. If he watched them dance, did that mean...he saw their kiss? If he did, then she was in IMMEDIATE danger.

"Look," She tried to keep her voice steady. "What you saw, it was never supposed to happen. I'd never..."

"Never what?" Lucius asked. Harriet could hear his thick boots and the tap of his cain on the stone floor. "Never wanted to dance with Draco? Are you afraid of him?"

"Of course not!" Harriet gritted her teeth. "The only thing he's good at is making everyone miserable in his life to fuel his own ego. Like father, like son!"

She'd only met Lucius a handful of times and he was far less appealing than his own son. While she could make it through an entire semester with Draco, she'd never stand a chance against his own father. That retort alone forced her around, and Lucius's angry eyes froze her to the core as she was forced back around to look at him.

"Don't test me, girl," he warned her. "You don't want to know what happens when someone insults my family."

"You let Draco insult mine," she snapped back. "So it's only fair I return the favor!"

"Harriet?!" a female voice called beyond the shadows. "Harriet!"

Freezing, Harriet looked over Lucius's shoulder and noticed Ron and Hermione coming into the room. Lucius heard the extra pairs of footsteps and hissed under his breath.

"To be continued, my dear." With those last words, he puffed away in a thick veil of black smoke, smoke that caused Harriet to cough madly. It felt like acid washing her lungs, forcing her to lean over. By the time the air cleared, Ron and Hermione came right upon her.

"Harriet!" Ron helped her up. "Are you all right?"

"My God," Hermione saw how much she trembled. "You're shaking. What happened?"

Harriet shook her head, hot tears burning in her eyes. "Can we-can we get out of here?"

By the time they exited the room, she started crying once again. Ron and Hermione knew better than to ask questions, instead walking beside her. Rounding the corner, they were now in the main halls when someone stopped them in their tracks.

"Have you enjoyed the dance, Potter?" Draco's brow quirked.

Something in those words triggered her rage. Breaking free from Hermione and Ron, she marched toward him and slapped him straight across the face. A deafening CRACK echoed through the hall, causing a few students walking out of the ballroom to stop and stare.

Stumbling, Draco touched the cheek Harriet just slapped. A visible red mark spread across the skin, stinging when he caressed it with his fingers. His eyes widened, silenced by the angry woman before him.

"Don't you dare talk to me, you piece of shit. You had no right, no right! That was...that was my first kiss, too!"

Trembling, she hurried back to her friends and threw her arms around Hermione's shoulders, sobbing. "Take me back to my room, please."

All three of them hurried down the hall, with Ron ushering Harriet in front of him so she wouldn't have to see Draco anymore. Hermione glared daggers as she turned back around, shaking her head as she followed behind.

Draco slumped against the wall, his hand still cupping his sore cheek. He may not have gotten along with Harriet in the beginning, but now a new thought crossed his mind.

I'VE WENT TOO FAR.

[bedofthistles]

The Little White Horse: A Complete Summary

So! I finally read TLWH, and man do I have thoughts and opinions! So many... so... many....

However, before I get into those opinions, I wanted to share my summary of TLWH, since I don't think a lot of people have read the book who enjoyed the movie.

Unfortunately, my thots and opinions are too wide and vast, resulting in what is more or less a 16 page dissertation, which may grow depending on if I think I covered all the topics I wanted to cover. So, to makes things a bit easier, I'm going to be splitting them up into more readable sections.

So, if you haven't read the book, if it's been a while since you've read the book, here is a summary of the novel.

Alright friends, the time has come. 

After undertaking the laborious task of consuming all Moonacre content possible (movie, minie-series and novel) I have come to some unfortunate conclusions. The book sucks. But before you go too far, especially the weird amount of you who like the book, I would like to preface that each person is allotted their opinions. I am not aiming to dis the book, it’s a classic, but it’s not perfect, no book or work of art is. No one should get so offended by another’s opinion to the point where it sparks a deep, roiling anger inside of them. 

(Rachel Zeglar may be wrong about the Snow White movie from the 1930s, but I took her side, everyone got real upset about a girl having opinions, not that’s her opinion and she’s allowed it.) 

I want to start out by saying there are some issues in regards to race, incest, pedophilia, grooming and sexism in the novel, if that surprises and shocks you, I’m sorry but its in there, and just because you didn’t notice it doesn’t erase the fact that it was there. I also don’t want this to be about me comparing the book to the movie, because one that would just be a rant, and as much as I love that, that wouldn’t be fair to either works, and honestly? Besides the names and setting, the book and movie could almost fully be divorced from one another. 

In case you don’t know the plot to the book, I will try to surmise it as best I can: 

Maria Merryweather is a recently orphaned girl, she leaves London with her governess (Miss Heliotrope) and her dog (Wiggins) arriving to live with her first cousin once removed, Sir Benjamin, lord over Moonacre Valley (and if you’re not up to snuff about what that means, he’s a landlord, more or less). While driving, Maria occupies herself by staring at her small feet, her one attribute and attractive characteristic. 

While en route, Maria sees the beautiful valley lit up like silver in the moonlight, and between the trees she spots a luminescent white horse. When she tries to tell her governess this, Ms. Heliotrope tells her to stop her overactive imagination, she has always had an overactive imagination, especially back in London, when she made up a playmate named Robin (yes, that one). 

When they arrive, they learn that no woman has stepped foot inside of the house in 20 years - yes, Sir Benjamin is proud of this - and, very importantly, there is no pink within the house. While there, Sir Benjamin is a very happy, polite gentleman, who calls Maria your highness, and refers to Moonacre Valley as her dominion. There are also this weird thing about Sun Merryweathers and Moon Merryweathers.

“The brave soul and the pure spirit shall with a merry and a loving heart inherit the kingdom together," quoted Sir Benjamin. “That's our family motto, my dear. It's been our motto since the days of the first Sir Wrolf. It refers, I think, to the two sorts of Merryweathers, the sun and the moon Merryweathers, who are always merry when they love each other. It is also, perhaps, a device for linking together those four qualities that go to make up perfection --courage, purity, love, and joy."

While giving her a tour of the manor, he shows her a well (this will be important later) and Maria thinks to herself if I were a medieval lady, this is where I would hide my jewels in time of war. 

Weird, but okay. 

The one place Maria is not shown, is the kitchen. 

They go to church, while the Parson is preaching, Maria brushes her skirt to smooth out some wrinkles, and there’s a noise that captures her attention for a bit. Then, once the service is over, everyone lines up and goes up to the Parson to get absolutely read to shreds. He literally tells them their sins of the week, and when it’s Maria’s turn, despite only being there for a day, she’s scolded for her vanity and curiosity. 

One of the things Sir Benjamin gets scolded for is allowing the (and I’m so sorry for this) “Black Men” to stop hunting in Merryweather park. And that’s kind of all they do, and from here on out I will be referring to them as the De Noirs because that is technically their name, but Elizabeth Goudge just keeps calling them “the Black Men”. 

And yes, that is as bad as it sounds, but more on that later. 

Let’s just speed run some facts. 

Every morning, Maria wakes up to cookies, milk, a stroked fire, and an outfit placed out for her. Maria feels so loved by these small acts, and feels as if she loves whoever is putting out these clothes. 

“[Maria] had a queer feeling, as she fastened the coat of the habit and pinned the bunch of snowdrops to the front of it, that L.M. - whoever she was - put loving arms around her; almost as her mother might have done, had she not died.” 

When she is out in the forest with Periwinkle and Wrolf, she hears the shrill, shrieking rabbit, and goes to save it. As she does, she realizes that the De Noirs have come for the rabbit as well. She and Robin save the rabbit from the De Noirs and bring her to safety. Robin tells her it's actually a moonacre hare, and then upon her asking too many questions, leaves. 

“Maria choked down her curiosity, for Robin had always hated being asked questions, and if she asked too many would disappear, and she did not want him to disappear just yet.”

“There was no answer, and looking up she saw that Robin had disappeared, even though as far as she knew she had not asked a single question.” 

She knows this because she would dream about Robin in London, and when she asked him questions, he would just leave the dream. 

Maria learns about Sir Wrolf (who was arrogant, rude, and planned on marrying the Moon Princess to steal Black William’s land), the Moon Princess (who was just pale, and kind, I think?) with her dowry of pearls, and Monsieur Cocque De noir, otherwise known as Coeur De Noir because his heart was so black (it’s a common french last name, not to mention the black cock that rides on the current De Noir’s shoulder).

“[Sir Wrolf had] got Paradise Hill but there remained the pine woods behind his manor house, that run right down to the sea, to what is now called Merryweather Bay, which were the property of Sir William Cocq de Noir, called Black William because of the black cock that was his family crest, and because of his lashing dark eyes, black hair and beard and sallow French skin. And also because of his black heart. Coeur de Noir, men sometimes called him, instead of Cocq de Noir. For he was a bad man, was Black William, cruel to wild creatures, domineering with his servants, morose and ungenerous.”

Black William remarries, has a son, and that son becomes his heir. Because of this, Sir Wrolf can’t inherit the whole of the Valley through his wife, and gets super angry. Because of his rage, the De Noir’s think Sir Wrolf killed Black William, the Moon Princess ran away, and Black William’s son, who was believed to have died from sickness, returned twenty years later with his band of men who would become the wicked, evil, ‘Black Men’ who plague the valley. Sir Wrolf is described to have died heartbroken (good) and damned to ride around Paradise Hill in a sort of purgatory for his ill-deeds.

The Parson also tells Maria that every Moon Princess is destined to leave the Valley after fighting with her love. That it won’t be until the Moon Princess humbles herself and marries a poor man she will never be allowed to stay. 

“She always has gone away," said Old Parson. “Not necessarily from the valley, but from the manor. Yet the old folks in the village vow and declare that one day there will come a Moon Princess who will have the courage to deliver the valley from the wickedness of the Black Men. But like the princesses in all the nicest fairy tales she will have to humble her pride to love not a prince but a poor man, a shepherd or ploughman or some such country lad, and to effect the deliverance with his help, and that's a thing which no Moon Princess has yet done, so proud are they.”

At this point, Maria meets Loveday Minette, the lady who had been leaving her clothes, she is kind and beautiful, and cleans the Parson’s house. 

Then again, while out with her animals and Ms. Heliotrope, Maria goes to Paradise Hill, which is the monastery Sir Wrolf stole from the monks because he was covetous. While there she meets the shepherd and guess who it is? That’s right, Robin, no surprise there. While the two are there, the De Noirs attempt to steal the sheep. 

Robin, Maria, and the Ghost of Sir Wrolf -

“And then, through the noise of the thunder and the rain, she distinctly heard the hoofs of a galloping horse pounding upon the turf. As the horseman was behind her she could not herself see anything, but whoever he was the Black Men seemed to see him, for with faces blanched by terror they turned and fled.”

they manage to scare them off.

Maria and Robin have a fight, but they deal with it, because Maria knows if she doesn’t forgive him, she’ll have to leave the Valley. This will be handled in more depth later. Likewise, Loveday and Sir Benjamin had a fight twenty years ago, Loveday leaves the Valley, marries a lawyer, sires Robin, and then comes back after her husband dies. Because of their stubborness, neither would return to the other and apologize. More detail on this later. 

After dealing with the De Noirs, however. Maria decides that she must save the valley from their wickedness. 

She, Robin, and the Parson return Paradise Hill to god, Sir Benjamin no longer profits off the sheep, and that’s it. It was a really long boring chapter about all the children of Silverydew cleaning it up and decorating it again with the statue of their Lady. They sing, and I think Sir Wrolf’s soul is released from the hell that is Moonacre Valley. 

Once this is done, Maria and Robin sneak into the Castle in the pine woods, ask Mr. Cock to pretty please stop stealing and he says: not until you give me back the pearls, and also your ancestor murdered my ancestor. 

Robin and Maria are chased, they find the tree hollow, with evidence that someone once lived there including a knife with a carved cock as the handle-

“Once upon a time this cave had been lived in. A hollow place in the wall was blackened, as though a fire had been lit there, and standing on a flat rock beside it was an iron pot that must have been used to cook stew in. And lying on the rock beside the pot was a huntsman's knife in a metal sheath, and a tarnished silver mug. Maria and Robin picked them up and looked at them, holding them close to their eyes in the dim light, and lo and behold, the sheath that held the knife was beautifully made in the shape of a cock, and upon the silver mug also there was traced the outline of a cock."

They also run through the tunnels that go through Moonacre Valley until they reach Merryweather Bay, where Maria finds a boat that belonged to Sir William. 

For Maria, this is enough evidence that Black William left on his own accord, and the magical sea unicorns brought the boat back to Merryweather Bay as proof. 

Once they’re home safe, Marmaduke asks Maria for butter kept in the well, because it's cold in there, and while Maria is more or less rifling through the Merryweather fridge, she finds an old box that has the pearls in them. 

Maria decides that she doesn’t want to give the pearls to the De Noirs, because they are wicked, and will just give them to the moon instead. Then, through a gold medal mental gymnastic routine, decides that she will give them over. 

“And yet Maria did not want to give those pearls away. She loved them far too much. She did not want to give them even to the moon, and as for giving them to the Black Men--well--she just couldn't do it. And yet she had to do it. Monsieur Cocq de Noir had promised that they would stop being wicked if she could give him proof that Black William had not been murdered by Sir Wrolf, but had withdrawn to a hermit's life by his own choice, and if she would give him the pearls. “That first condition was already fulfilled, for when he was pursuing her and Robin he would have seen Black William's hermitage with his own eyes, and the pearls he would have too if she could bring herself to give them to him. And then he would not be wicked any more and complete happiness would come to the Moonacre Valley. Somehow Maria did not doubt that if she kept her part of the bargain Monsieur Cocq de Noir would keep his. The wickedest of men have good in them somewhere, and remembering the direct look in his eyes she felt quite sure that he was not a man who would break his word. Yet she felt she could not give him these pearls, that she had found herself and that seemed already a part of her. “And then it struck her suddenly that if she gave her pearls to Monsieur Cocq de Noir she would, in a way, be giving them to the moon. For the moon belongs to the night, and what was more like night than Monsieur Cocq de Noir and his black pine forest? And the first Moon Princess had come out of the night-dark pine wood, bringing the pearls with her. The pearls belonged far more to the Black Men than they did to the Merryweathers.”

However, when she goes to the Castle, Mr. Cock takes the pearls, but doesn’t believe her about the boat. Then she hits him with the old “magic unicorns brought him into shore”, and he doesn’t believe that, but Maria is able to convince him to come out with her to the forest where she is sure the Little White Horse will appear, despite being rather elusive this whole time. They go out together, they see not only the Little White Horse, but a whole tidal wave of Sea Unicorn, and he’s like oh! You were telling the truth. 

But! That’s not the end! 

Maria still has to get Loveday and Sir Benjamin back together, and that is a whole other thing that deserves its own post and I will go into full detail on later. As well as some issues that I have with Robin Minette. 

The story ends with Loveday and Benjamin getting married, Robin and Maria getting married A YEAR LATER, and going on to have ten kids. While the book does not tell us Robin’s age, we know Maria is thirteen, meaning she is at least fourteen when she gets married, and who knows when they start having kids. Again, I will talk about this more later. However, despite common belief, this getting married at 12-14 was not common.

The book ends, however, with one of the most lovely quotes. 

“For sometimes in her dreams at night she stood beneath the branches of a mysterious wood, and looked down a moonlit glade, her eyes straining after something that she could not see. And when she woke up there would be tears on her cheeks because her longing had been unsatisfied. “Yet she was not unhappy because of this dream. “She knew that one day, when she was a very old woman, she would dream this dream for the last time, and in this last dream of all she would see the little white horse and he would not go away from her. He would come towards her, and she would run towards him, and he would carry her upon his back away and away, she did not quite know where, but to a good place, a place where she wanted to be.” 

To keep things brief (too late) I will be making other posts to complete my analysis of book, movie, and small mentions of the miniseries. 

And if you were thinking about reading the book: don’t.

First | Next

[amaiguri]

Saegenfolk Reworks -- How I'm thinking about my pastel-goth Chinese-Viking fusion culture

Okay, so, as some of you may know, I am working on updating my Saegen culture to have more elements of my birth culture -- cuz, I legit don't know enough about it so this is a great way to learn and then like... mind-palace it into my worldbuilding (yes, I just verbed "mind-palace"). And guess what? I just finished my first sketches of a rework of the whole culture!!! <3 <3 <3 I'm REALLY pleased, it's really reasonating with me now in a way Saegen culture NEVER was <3

So, let's go over what some of the different stuff is -- Top to bottom, left to right... And I AM open to feedback and thoughts and, in fact, I encourage it <3 I consent to advice!

First thing to notice is the Saegen now have a color scheme that isn't jewel-toned red and gold… because the SVANHIK people are red and gold. I experimented with Green and Teal for the Northern lights -- but Green felt really weird. It made them too elfy. And Teal is already Telethens' color. Nouveau Thuille is purple/navy blue/black… So instead of making the red more jewel-toned, I took it towards Cyberpunk Neon/Barbie pink. Why? This is Asarlai's color in their culture now. Asarlai is the father of humanity and god of magic (up North) So wearing pink is super fatherly, magical, and clever. We still have black because black plants just work good in these near-underground settings -- absorbing waaay more light. So now the Saegen aesthetic is now like… pastel-goth Chinese-Vikings.

Next, we have the FASHION! The fashion is very very specifically stolen from the silhouette of Hanfu, just with more fur and different materials. I imagine it being Rumateur wool, but also leather and dyed animal skins and maybe bamboo silks and so forth. We still have elaborate braids and wavy hair, but in my mind, their eyes are all like the Sakha people or something. They still use their hands to paint their faces -- typically for sunscreening/snow-glare/sea-glare reduction reasons as well as receiving Asarlai's blessing. And while Thuilleans prefer silver metals, they prefer gold. This is just a contrast thing.

Next next: Houses! They mostly build out of these silvery bamboo stalks that grow under the Upper Continent. I really like these tent-like silhouettes to their houses -- with littler tents stacked atop each other. They also have igloo-like, bulb-shaped homes for temp shelters! Their ships are like dragons with their wings and blade-armored fronts (mostly for ice, but also fighting). And some even ride small whale-landsharks with sealskin saddles ❤️

Weapons and tools wise: They're really well known for their Ysse lanterns (I mean, EVERYONE IS but for different reasons). Theirs are all a really pretty pink -- the "purest form of Ysse light" (Not really.) -- and have the teardrop bulb shape. But they look like these warm, nutrient restoring fungi that naturally grow (or probably a god put them there) in Saegenheim. They also have guns (which have magic bulbs that, when struck, blast out fire. So really, they're flamethrowers but I don't like the way that sounds lol). They also use these Tang-dynasty-inspired swords and poleaxes pretty commonly.

Animal and creature wise: Their rumateurs are much bigger and bulkier -- more cattle-like thanks to the flatter plains around Saegenheim -- than the more lithe, leapy rumateurs of the Nouveau Thuillean valley. They also keep artic bunnies (even though the're considered mild pests in Nouveau Thuille) as easy food and sometimes even hunt seals. However, they have to be super careful not to murder their selkie brethren -- it is generally wiser not-to hunt seals because they might be a selkie -- and instead just ask seals for their molted skins (which they molt in one, thick slough once a year) or milk to make cheese or kumis. Not-shown: They also heavily rely on Butterflies of the Heart for Honey, Wax, and Mead --because despite their name, they're actually bees.

Above the Saegenheim cave are these enclosed plains of black bamboo forests. A currently unnamed but critically important fungus grows in tandem with the bamboo and is part of the bamboo's natural life cycle. I'm not entirely sure, but maybe something like the bamboo grows up and starts putting out leaves to photosynthesize, to pump back into the ground. The fungus feeds on the bamboo but then helps it spread further and also, gives the bamboo nutrients back in the winter. And eventually, the fungus eats the dead stalks WHILE fixing the soil for the new growth?

Regardless, the Saegen people eat this fungus as one of their staple foods.

They also eat a ground-fungus that the rumateurs and bunnies eat up here that grows small and under the frost but VERY PERSISTENTLY, much to everyone's surprise (it's the 5" one). It also works with the bamboo and tree fungus to make this really weirdly balanced flow of nutrients in and out of the soil with the seasons.

The ground fungus is usually dried, ground up, and then used for soups or baked goods (like flat breads or meat loafs.) Meanwhile, the tree fungus is usually eaten without grining but still boiled/fried/baked OR dried and ground up and brewed to make coffee. ((This is where the Northerners get their coffee -- the coffee is a lie, they are perpetually drinking an American Civil War Confederate coffee substitute XDDDDD But at least their coffee usually has good protein, micronutrients, and caffeine-like substances, unlike real Civil War coffee substitute LOL))

So Saegenheim is now in the Womb of the World, (the environment sketch) taller and this tree-like fungus grows that is also edible and can act as a meat-substitute nutrient-wise BUT it grows much slower, so it is carefully monitored by the Sages so they don't fuck it up.

Speaking of the Womb of the World -- this warm, damp refuge in the otherwise hostile, VERY NORTHERN part of the tundra is a cave warmed by the specific way the permanent Ysse Springs interact with the stones here -- warming the cave to very liveable temperatures year round. The Sages of Saegenheim have built their home here to honor the Gods who brought forth all of humanity. However, most Saegenfolk do not live here year round -- they are semi-nomadic, in that they go to the same few places and settle for the season. Different royal families will lead their people to different places, but those who can afford it will return to winter in the safe, reliable Saegenheim to catch up on news and celebrate Godsweek. They hang new pink lanterns in the streets at the beginning of every new year.

And lastly, when they aren't in Saegenheim, the Saegenfolk are often sailing. And this means they are hunting whale-landsharks, sea serpents, shrimp, and artic carp (articarp, if you will XD).

Now this closeness of location and similarity of lifestyle and respect of the Sages and Gods may lead you to believe that the Saegens are cooperative, extended-family-oriented folks.

No.

Due to the harshness of the environment, a great deal of emphasis is placed on survivability and military. And when everyone is seeking to be better, then you cannot rest for even a moment or you will fall behind. If you are not young enough to be trying to get stronger/cleverer/better/more useful, then you better be teaching others to get there or you're useless. And useless things are to be cast off…

Every family has its own sort of military hazing rituals that involve ridiculously long, cruel, and unnecessary training hours. Admittedly, it's a well-rounded education but there are all these weirdly specific judgements about you, depending on what kind of instruments, weapons, poetry, and cooking recipes you know. And even though your extended family will provide you food and teach you and find your more private tutors as you grow up… you will be constantly compared to your cousins. If you are worse than even one, you are pressed like you are worthless. If you are better than all your cousins and siblings by 200%… why is it not 250%? 300%? You cannot ever be Enough in Saegen culture.

Unless you're a Sage. Sages are judged by entirely different standard. But the number of people who try to become Sages and fail is also… quite large.

Anyway, this might've been poorly organized AND I'm still thinking about all this so if you have thoughts or feedback, let me know ❤️

[shiningdesignersreflections]

Chapter 3: Tempting Golden Key

Narrated by the Night Witch.

Narrator: The castle is only so miserable because my fiancé fails to take proper care of it. See, it looks like a giant spider nest.

Narrator: Following the paper servant through the countless spiderwebs in our way, we arrive at a hall that looks anything but presentable.

Narrator: Every corner of this place stinks of death... yet all these years of living here have robbed these beings of their ability to even notice that.

Narrator: The vines of the roses are the only things around with the freshness of life. Dying the air crimson red with their scent, the vines on the broken windows and eroded floors seem like sweet kisses left by Death.

Narrator: Looking as pale as ever, my fiancé is waiting for me in the moonlight right behind all the spiderwebs.

Narrator: Ignorant as they are, the townspeople always have good things to say about that impeccable face of his... that piece of fake skin he's been wearing for years is now ghostly blue in the moonlight.

Narrator: I can hear his blood-thirst screaming through that lanky, dry body of his.

Narrator: The man is leaning against a hickory taboret with rotting specks, the rusty tray on it brimming with shades so dark that not even moonlight can hope to pass through.

Narrator: He picks out a bunch of golden keys from the tray.

Baron: Here you are, my beautiful, pure Celina.

Narrator: With his eyes, the man licks Celina from head to toe, evoking to mind flies going berserk licking a jar of honey.

Baron: I believe you will enjoy trying out your dresses in the bedroom on the southern end of the castle. It belonged to the previous master of the castle.

Narrator: Slowly walking up to me, the gangly man bends down to peck me on the back of my hand as he places the keys in my palm.

Narrator: I like the bedroom, of course... if it hasn't changed at all, that is.

Narrator: The room might still have the cradle that Mother used to sleep in, along with the jet-black velvet mattress that brings to mind the night sky.

Narrator: Facing the cradle is a silver mirror with a surface as translucent as a lake. In the room, Grandmother would always wear her hunting suit and put in her boots silver daggers coated with the juice of Mondblume.

Narrator: Before she left, she never forgot to kiss her daughter. It was a blessing ritual, an amulet.

Narrator: The keys clank against one another to the baron's exaggerated movement, shedding golden dust that becomes one with the dust on the floor.

Narrator: The rust that comes with these golden trinkets leaves smear marks on his otherwise snow-white sleeves, as if leaving a bloodstain.

Narrator: He, however, takes heed of none of it... while the ridiculous sight pulls me back to reality.

Narrator: As soon as he notices where I am looking, he looks at me with a calculated smile on his ghostly blue face.

Baron: Don't worry, dear. Every single key here will be yours when we're married. With the exception of that room at the end of the hallway, every room in this castle will be yours.

Narrator: I turn my gaze to where he refers... on the white wall at the end of the empty hallway, there is nothing except for the specks of tree shadows painted by the disquieting moonlight.

Narrator: They bring to mind a formidable monster waiting for its prey.

Narrator: Should it be taken as a subtle encouragement? Or should it be construed as a threat?

Narrator: Whatever it may be, his little warning isn't going to work the way he thought it would.

Narrator: Because the girl standing before him isn't some weak, innocent, and pure pushover of a bride... but a devil briefly resting under the skin of a girl.

Narrator: The companions of this unfathomable comedy are just as malicious.

Narrator: With my eyes, I quickly skim over his nose and throat... the delicate yet fragile features of his face remind me of the head of a deer cut off by a hunter to decorate a living room.

Narrator: The spiders in the corner are spitting out webs, unable to contain a second longer their desire to entrap their prey.

Narrator: Just how much blood will it take to quench my bloodthirsty fiancé?

Narrator: I muster a most gentle, sympathizing smile.

Night Witch: Of course, my love.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

[cyber-neptune]

Megasound family AU writing because I haven’t posted of drew stuff about them in way too long so have this-

Snow day

Nieke had seen vehicons bringing a lot of things from earth back on the ship. It was mostly dirt pieces and leaf stuck to them. She was used to seeing more greenery stuck to them or even on the ground.

Which is why it confused her to see a vehicon crouch next to her with a small white sphere in hand. She tilted her head to the side.

“A gift.” He said while signing with his empty hand.

She smiled and took the orb in her hands. The vehicon chuckled as her face changed to a surprised expression at how cold it was.

“It’s a snowball, or well, snow. It’s an earth thing.”

Her optics widen as she turned it around, a perfect cold sphere. Never in her life had she held something like that, it truly captivated her in a way.

“Sneow?” Nieke said as she looked at the vehicon. He chuckled. “It’s S-n-o-w” he spelled the word all the while making sure to spell each letter while showing it in sign language. The snowball was gently placed on the ground and the youngling copied the trooper. “Snow!” She said pridefully.

He ended up sitting near Nieke and began explaining and talking about winter and what humans did during this period. She listened, mesmerized by what was outside the ship.

Story time was cut short as both heard the familiar steps of their leader (and parent). The vehicon stood up, already ready to salute his leader while Nieke ran up to her carrier.

“Mama! Mama!” She grabbed into his leg, forcing him to stop and look at her. A large clawed hand came resting on her head, patting it as a chuckle escaped the silver tyrant’s lips.

“What’s gotten you so excited dear?”. At her carrier’s question, Nieke’s excitedly showed off the snowball. Megatron’s eyes left his daughter as they rested on Steve. “Did you give her this?”

He had to reset his vocalizer before speaking. “Y-yes sir. Since your daughter isn’t allowed to go outside I th-” He stuttered.

“I wanna play in the Snow!” Nieke interrupted. Her small hands holding onto Megatron’s finger. “Please mama.” She pleaded.

He sighed. “You know I can’t and won’t let you go alone, it’s dangerous out there.” The warlord had crouched down to be eye level with his child.

“If I may propose my liege, m-maybe you could go with her?” Steve asked, shivering as Megatron’s eyes lock onto him, finally noticing his presence.

Nieke squealed in excitement, jumping while holding holding her carrier’s hand. “Can you mommy? Please please please?!”

As much as Megatron wished to stay inside, he couldn’t say no to his daughter. He sighed and ended up agreeing.

The glow of the groundbrige faded away, leaving the five cybertronian in a snowy forest. Icicles reflect sunlight on the snow, giving it an ethereal look.

Nieke was about to go run off exploring when her carrier’s caught her and wrapped something around her neck. “Your sire insisted on you wearing that.”

She pouted before starting to rub towards a large mount of snow. Before going to run after her, Megatron to the vehicons. “Make sure to stay near and warn me if any Autobots dare to show up.”

“Mama look how tall I am!” “That snow mount is even bigger than the last one!” Megatron chuckled at his daughter, she’d been running up and down large piles of snow, seemingly never getting bored.

‘How she had this much energy was a mystery to him.’

“I wanna go on this one.” Snapping back from his thoughts, the warlord looked at where she was pointing.

It was a hill, which would have been fine on its own if it didn’t lead down to a large number of trees. He could already imagine how bad this could go.

“Isn’t it a bit too high darling?” He tried to catch up with Nieke who seemed determined to climb on it. “We could go back home or find a hill that isn’t as tall?”

“Nuh-uh!” She responded. Megatron was tempted to argue with his creation but remembered that it would go on for too long than it needed. ‘She just had to be as stubborn as him.’

As they made it to the top, Nieke squealed and jumped around happily, feeling tall and powerful like her carrier. To Megatron’s horror, he noticed a large layer of ice on certain sides.

Nieke did too. “Can we slide down?” She asked while grabbing onto his hand.

‘She should be safe with him, right?’

He’d been half right.

Nieke was safe and sound but he wasn’t.

As the line of trees got closer, Megatron decided to transform around Nieke and ended up slamming his back into a couple of trees and branches.

Nieke’s excitement had turn into panic as she saw the dents on her carrier. Silver arms scooped her up before she started crying. “How about we do something less dangerous next?”

Their outing ended after a couple of snowmen and a snow “fortress” were made. Nieke had began complaining of feeling cold and getting tired of removing the fog on her visor.

Megatron walked back onto the Nemesis with a sleeping youngling, two snow covered vehicons and his back killing him. Along with a couple of twigs and pine cones.

He sent the vehicons to go warm up and return to their daily duties while he made his way to the living quarters he shared with Soundwave and their daughter.

The door slide open and Megatron gave Nieke to Soundwave. “Put her in bed in need to take a shower before I tear off my back.” The silent mech only nodded in response.

“You missed a spot.” Megatron growled, his face burries in a pillow. Slime fingers pulled out a twig from in between some plating. He hissed in pain.

Nieke was currently asleep in her room and the moment Megatron had stepped out of the washracks he asked (begged) Soundwave to do something about the pain. This led to his partner to massage him.

“Can’t you just crack my back back into place?”. He asked. Soundwave’ hands were still on him. “Are you certain?” A vocoded voice responded.

Megatron sighed and turned to face Soundwave. “Crack my back like a damn glowstick before I tear off my spine!” The navy mech sighed before applying pressure to his lord’s back and earning a high pitched noise.

[waitingforwinterwinds]

A Clash of Kings - 68 JON VIII (pages 850-861)

After giving it a good effort to escape pursuit, Jon and Qhorin find them selves surrounded, and under Qhorin's orders, Jon changes teams.

-

When night fell, the Halfhand had told Ebben to take the squire's garron as well as his own, and ride east for Mormont with all haste, back the way they had come. The rest of them would draw off the pursuit. "Send Jon," Ebben had urged. "He can ride as fast as me." "Jon has a different part to play." "He's half a boy still." "No," said Qhorin, "he's a man of the Night's Watch."

sorry, hang on... was Qhorin planning for Jon to go 'under cover' the whole time? Like that wasn't just a last minute plan after they'd been captured, he was actively planning for it as soon as they started their retreat, or since he let Ygritte go?

"Is your sword sharp, Jon Snow?" asked Qhorin Halfhalnd across the flickering fire. "My sword is Valyrian steel. The old Bear gave it to me."

Valyrian steel = 🥛

"We may escape the, yet," the ranger said. "Or not." ... "If we are taken, you must yield." "Yield?" He blinked in disbelief. The wildlings did not make captives of the men they called the crows. They killed them, except for... "They only spare oathbreakers. Those who join them, like Mance Rayder." "And you." "No." He shook his head. "Never. I won't." "You will. I command it of you."

Yeah, Qhorin has definitely had this Plan B brewing for a while now. I would love to be in his head right now, just to know, is it because he thinks this is Jon's best/only chance at survival, or because he wants a spy on the inside because this whole thing is so much bigger than the normal crow vs wildling stuff?

Also: kinda mean to give him this order right after having Jon recite his oath with him.

... darn it Qhorin, you're hitting right in the sweet spot of the vibes, I can't tell if it's one or the other re:motivation. Like, Qhorin could even be giving Jon this 'mission' just so Jon will agree to the effort to save his life. Cause, like, at the same time, I get that Qhorin has been keeping Jon for this as they fled, but it's equal amounts, "Jon's the only one that could get undercover/pull of the faux defection" and "Jon's the only one Qhorin can save."

Beyond, the walls pinched in sharply, and the stream led them to the foot of a tall twisting waterfall. The air was full of mist, like the breath of some vast cold beast. The tumbling waters shone silver in the moonlight. Jon looked about int dismay. There is no way out. He and Qhorin might be able to climb the cliffs, but not with the horses. he did not think they would last long on foot. "Quickly now," the Halfhand commanded. The big man on the small horse rode over the ice-slick stones, right into the curtain of water, and vanished. When he did not reappear, Jon put his heels into his horse and went after. His garron did his best to shy away. the falling water slapped at them with frozen fists, and the shock of the cold seemed to stop Jon's breath. Then he was through; drenched and shivering but through.

WATERFALL CAVE!!!!!!

Ahem, I'm fine. It is a Rule: if there is a waterfall in your narrative, there must be a cave behind it. I do not make the rules, but that ^ is one of my favourites.

... OMG this freaking bird! quick, someone, make a pun about twitter and followers, I'm sure this eagle has one in it somewhere.

On either wing, archers notched shafts to the strings of small wood-and-horn bows, but did not loose.

I notice he didn't say they drew either. Nice.

It will remain, to my dying day, a pet peeve when archers in movies draw and hold the full draw for several minutes at a time. Look, I'll let Elves get away with it, because mystical BS reasons, but humans? No, gtfo, you're breaking my suspension of disbelief. What am I upset about? I think I've mentioned before, even Olympic level archers can't hold a full draw on a bow for very long, I've seen one person claim they can hold a full draw for a minute or two, and on a composite bow with the pulley system holding the draw weight, yeah, maybe? But a non-composite bow? Bullshit you can go longer than 20 seconds if you aren't fully trained for it. And they are never composite bows in the movies (Except Hawkeye in the Avengers, i think?) it's always long and/or recurve! Also yes, draw weight can and will affect how long you can hold the full draw, but again: long and/or recurve bows, typically things that are supposed to be in the war bow range which have some of the heaviest draws! for several minutes a scene! If the prop bows didn't have the draw weight of a licorice strap, the extras would be so screwed.

Ahem, sorry, I think I'm done being oddly passionate about things now... yep, I'm good, let's move on.

Oh! Oh! It's happening!

Oh my gosh, Jon just suppressing his feels and doing his best. His acting right now... You're doing great sweetie. Qhorin's doing a damn good job of selling this too, he is not making it easy.

The ranger was leaning away, and for an instant it seemed that Jon's slash had not touched him. Then a string of red tears appeared across the big man's throat, bright as a ruby necklace, and the blood gushed out of him, and Qhorin Halfhand fell. (...) The light was already fading from Qhorin's eyes. "... sharp," he said, lifting his maimed fingers. Then his hand fell, and he was gone. He knew, he thought numbly. He knew what they would ask of me.

Yeah, and that's why he asked twice if the sword was sharp. A moment of silence for Qhorin Halfhand, he was a pretty alright fella.

...

Ruby = 🥛 I'm adding it because the word keeps popping up this book. (now watch it not show up again for the next few.)

I do not care for this Rattleshirt fella. He's kinda whiny, very quick to disavow Jon and Jon's win... or try to steal the credit.

[nowis-scales]

FE Liveblog Updates

Hey hey! It’s been a little while since I last did any live blogging — and maybe you care, maybe you don’t — but as I have… a lot of potential live-blogging to do, I wanted to give some updates, notices, and minor thoughts. So if you’ve been following along with any of them, here’s where you’ll get your info. Yay!

‣ Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia:

Hmmm… what is there to say about this one? I need to continue it, first of all. It should hopefully be picking up sooner rather than later, finishing off Act 2 in Celica’s path, and then presumably switching back to Alm. I don’t have too much to worry about here, just making sure that I’m getting a healthy dose of support conversations! If I don’t by the end, I may just play again and see what else I can gather. Otherwise… I’m considering a more stack-em-up style to my posting like the other playthroughs, just so it’s less of a spammy feeling. If you have any opinions, please do let me know!

‣ Fire Emblem Engage:

Yep yep, I’ve already got a liveblog of this one set up! As I write this post, I have just beaten Chapter 3, so you will soon be able to find the liveblog under #koto plays engage , and avoid spoilers with #Fire Emblem Engage Spoilers. I’m very excited to share my thoughts so far, so it should be super fun to share! I don’t know when exactly I’ll get that set up, but probably towards the tail end of the next liveblog I’ll be talking about…

‣ Fire Emblem Three Houses: Crimson Flower: I think, with my desire to introduce an Engage liveblog, continue the Echoes one, and someday continue this one… I might get back to this one sooner than I anticipated? I’m still somewhat iffy on this one, just because… well, in the event that you’re new here, let’s just say that CF as a route is just very much not for me. That’s not to say that I look down on or would chide anyone who enjoys it — my rule is, forever and always, as long as you’re kind I don’t mind — but it’s just not the most positive playthrough. So while I’m leaning more towards yes to going back to it, I want to make sure that it’ll be an okay experience for everyone involved.

The good news is, I have newly set up some measures to keep all of the critical stuff contained where you want it. Firstly, I have a new tag I’ll be using to tag posts with the super critical stuff (#Fódlan Fault Finding) and of course I still have the tag meant for criticism in relation to EdeIgard’s character writing in the route (#Shut up about Del). I also have a series of emblems I’m going to be using, to mark each section of the post based on how critical it is. So for example, if you only want to read the positive stuff, you’ll look for a flower with both black and white on each petal, like this: ❃ There’s about four total, ranging from positive, neutral, joking criticism, and hard criticism. That way, you can pick what you like, and go from there!

Otherwise, I think I have about 12 posts already (some of them are leftovers I missed before I stopped before) built in a Google Doc just so I had time to organize my thoughts and review them for sharpness. I’m considering posting them twice a week just to get things moving along so I don’t have a gazillion playthroughs ongoing, but let me know if you have any good ideas! I could even intersperse the posts with live blogs of the other games just to keep things cheery, if that’s preferable.

‣ Fire Emblem Three Houses: Azure Moon & Silver Snow:

These ones, I am… stumped on. I’d like to chronicle them as well, I find live-blogging a super fun endeavour (even if I realize the live-blogs mostly entertain me instead of all of you), but again that’s something to run at the same time as all the other liveblogs. I could wait until Echoes concludes, I could just pick Azure Moon up once CF concludes, or I could intersperse playthroughs with CF and AM to balance out negativity like I just mentioned. It’s hard to know exactly what to do, and even in posting AM, I’m wondering if I should just post SS at the same time… I think probably not, as that would get really confusing, but it’s also the nature of just not having so many on the go. So… yeah, I dunno! Just like for the others, thoughts are welcome.

As you can see, at the moment, it’s all just a matter of figuring out where to put what!

[sashaisnotokay]

Here we go, a little soft romantic drabble about Watari’s past inspired by snowstorm behind my window. Forgive me if it’s too sweet. We have enough sourness in our everyday lives, I believe.

❄️

Quillsh Wammy, an unmarried British young man from a respected family, was attending a Swan lake ballet in Saint-Petersburg theatre.

Being raised in a very traditional, wealthy and well-known (in certain circles) family was not only giving great opportunities, but also responsibilities. Firm, kind and calm, (but very passionate when it’s about science) Quillsh was dealing great with his family’s expectations. Except in one area. Marriage.

Young handsome man, known for his sharp mind and kind heart, didn’t experience the lack of female attention. In fact, he liked many women... but never had a wish to marry any of them.

Still, the pressure from the family has continued. He was introduced to a famous Russian ballerina - Anna. She was graceful, beautiful and smart. After a dinner together, Anna (being very interested in him, although, trying her best not to show it) invited him to her performance. He gladly accepted an invitation.

And here he was, in snowy Saint-Petersburg, with weirdly mixed feeling of being out of place and... anticipation.

First part was over, and Quillsh has quit the cold hall only to find a theatre cafe being full of people. His throat has started to hurt, so he had to drink something hot.

He turned away from the loud crowd, took his coat and got out on the street.

Snowflakes were falling from the sky silently and lightly. There was no wind. Car horns and usual city sounds seemed to be muted. Quillsh stopped for a moment and looked up. This moment felt like magic, and later in life he will return to this moment in his memory. He will think, that maybe this really was some kind of magic, because only moments later he will find something he was never actually seeking, but was always unconsciously wishing for.

There was a little cafe across the street.

Quillsh has made a decision immediately and ran across the street, careful not to slip. When he opened the door, a wave of warm deliciously smelling air reached him. It was quiet, with only few people in the cafe. Quillsh has come to the counter. A young woman put away her book and turned to him.

“Hello, how can I help you?”

Calm voice. Shoulder length light brown hair. Soft facial features. Ordinary looking person. But still, she looked... different. What was so unusual about her? Quillsh couldn’t define.

“One cup of tea, please” said he in Russian, pulling out his wallet, “with milk. That’s it”.

The woman gave Quillsh a fast curious glance.

“May I ask, are you from England?”

“Yes” Quillsh answered quite surprised, “I am from Southampton”.

The woman noticed Quillsh’s surprised look and smiled.

“People don’t add milk to tea here. But another way I never would’ve guessed - your Russian is perfect”.

“Thank you. But I think I do look like a foreigner, considering how unprepared I am for Russian winter”, Quillsh looked down on his boots now wet from melted snow.

“Oh, that’s not surprising”, the woman replied, “You were attending the theatre, didn’t you? No one wears warm clothes to the theatre”. She returned him a change, “Please, take a sit, I will bring you your tea”.

Quillsh choose a little table for two near the window and sat down. Light snowflakes were still flying over the city so beautifully and peacefully, but his attention was captured by the woman at the counter, who was now making his tea. Precise movements, careful not to spill a drop. Brown eyes looking peaceful and curious. Soft voice saying goodbye to leaving customers. Pale hands with elegant silver watch, bringing him his cup of tea.

“Here you are” she said, putting a cup of tea on his table.

“Thank you” Quillsh replied.

It was so simple, but there was no much else needed. The tea was warming up his throat and reducing the pain. Quillsh looked at his watch. He had 5 more minutes. He had to go. His planned date with Anna started to lose its meaning, but as a responsible man, he had to be there - he promised. But Quillsh knew he will return. There was something in that woman, that he has never seen in another women before... He didn’t know what this was, but felt committed to find out.

He stood up, ready to go.

She looked at him.

“May I know your name?” asked Quillsh.

“Vera” she replied.

“Thank you. Goodbye”.

“Goodbye”.

And he was gone.

Later, when Quillsh Wammy remembered his first encounter with his dear wife, he finally was able to give that special feeling a name. That feeling made letting go of a chance to marry a famous ballerina so easy, and helped Quillsh to understand he made a right choice when his family turned their backs to him after marrying “a lower-class woman”. The feeling that made him to return to the little cafe the very next day.

He felt she was his home.

[mindmeltonabunaosblog]

Alchemy of Souls Part 2: Theories and Analysis (Ep. 0)

Welcome back fellow readers!

A little housekeeping! For those who are lucky enough to make it in here, I just want to remind you that you will not be allowed to share any of my theories and/or ideas with ANYONE!!! This includes friends, family members, friends of friends, etc. If I find my stuff is leaked onto any social media platform, I will kick out those responsible without any further notice. If people continue to leak and share my stuff, I will shut this blog down permanently. I am sick and tired of others stealing my ideas/theories and then portraying them as their own.

Now with that out of the way, let’s put our thinking caps on! There’s a lot to discuss and analyze! 

Disclaimer: My theories for Part 2 may be highly erroneous given that I am basically working with nothing. I expect they will be more accurate once the first episode of Part 2 airs! Additionally, I am still sticking to my original theory that Naksu’s Soul=Jin Bu Yeon’s soul and Mu Deok’s Soul=Cho Yeong’s soul! If you are new to this blog, please be sure to read my other posts since I tend to build off of them.

A Rose By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet: Hanja Meanings

Before we take a deeper dive into other stuff, I want to take a closer look at some of the hanja meanings of each characters' name. Why? Because it’s fun and it could reveal some relevant pieces of information! Additionally, I would like to thank my Korean friend who assisted me with all these hanja meanings!

It should be noted that the Hong Sisters did not officially provide the hanja for the characters’ names. I am well aware there was an article floating around which said someone from AOS said "Uk means light and Yeong means shadow". However, I did not find that article to be very reliable. It is like an article saying so and so said this. Unless this directly came from the Hong Sisters, I would be highly skeptical and conduct my own outside research to verify what the article said.

Now, what I believed the Hong Sisters did was incorporate several hanja meanings to formulate a common theme for each of the characters' names. I would also like to add that "Yeong" does not only mean "shadow". The hanja character specifically mentioned in the article also meant "light".

I have listed most of the hanja meanings for each of the characters below. I did not include hanja meanings for some minor characters just because I am too lazy to write more! Anyways, If you are curious and want to look up those characters' hanja meanings, I would strongly suggest using Naver's Hanja Dictionary!

Jin Family

Seol Ran (설란)

Seol (설): Name of sacrifice, kill, die, snow, bond, happy, white, and noble

Ran (란): Red cinnabar, red, vermillion, sincere, creator of chaos, orchid, bright, beautiful, pretty, shine, south, overflowing, waves, streaming water, bird, egg, and bell

Seol Ran: Snow Orchid, blue dragon, blue agave, blue orchid, and a sincere person who sacrificed themselves

Additional Notes: In Chinese Alchemy, red cinnabar was a highly prized ingredient believed to be one of the keys to immortality. Chinese alchemist would also heat red cinnabar to form liquid quicksilver otherwise known as mercury! It’s interesting that cinnabar changes color when heated. It is almost like the sun (red) and moon (blue/silver)!

Ho Kyung (호경)

Ho (호): Great, beautiful, love, pain, bitter, suffering, shouts loudly, tiger, brave, fierce, noble person, lake, protects, reaps, bird

Kyung (경): Ruler, star, seventh heaven, sun light/shadow, capital city, respectful, light, change

Ho Kyung: A great leader who is both beautiful and fierce, tiger mom, a person who has both experience great pain and happiness,   and, a noble person who is a greater leader

Bu Yeon (부연)

Bu (부):  A blessing to come back or return, float (in water), ruler, beautiful, carry many burden on one’s shoulders, rely on, to return again, auspicious, daughter in law, wife, wealthy, to be hidden or concealed, prophecies, charm, cherished, helpful, protector, damaged/rotting, advances quickly, master/teacher, to unfold/spread out, evidence, testimony, and sulfur tree cracked like a turtle's shell, to pay back, and to be punished

Yeon (연): Bright, sun, new year, connection , relationship, invisible line that connects people, fate, elegant, lucky, smoke/fog/soot, skillful, continuous feeling of longing for and loving someone, bird, beautiful, gentle, falling rain, rain spirit, follows the water, lotus flower, rice flower (rice), to burn, and dark blue metal (lead)

Bu Yeon: The whole story, a blessing fated to return or comeback, one who had to carry many burdens on one's shoulders, and beautiful lotus flower

Additional Notes: The name "Yeon" is a generational name. If you do not know what generational names are, please Google it!

Cho Yeon (초연)

Cho (초): The beginning, root/source, one who beckons or calls on spirits, acidic/sour, to bind, to entangle, to resemble, harsh, and candle

Yeon (연): Bright, sun, new year, connection , relationship, invisible line that connects people, fate, elegant, lucky, smoke/fog/soot, skillful, continuous feeling of longing for and loving someone, bird, beautiful, gentle, falling rain, rain spirit, follows the water, lotus flower, to burn, anddark blue metal (lead)

Cho Yeon: The appearance of not having relationship with others, a bright candle, one who participates in ancestral rites, and one who is both sour and sweet

Seo Family

Gyeong (경)

Gyeong (경): Star, past, gratitude, seventh, sun/shadow, ruler, good luck/auspicious, blessing/curse, fixes, respectful, Seoul, land border, to fight, to wait for awhile, capital city, light, to rule, startle, a surprise, the end, writing, noble, to plow/to farm, to make others obey (haha the character depicts a person hitting another person with a wooden spoon...wooden cane...same thing), smart with words, and to make a mirror (to set an example)

Yul (율)

Yul (율): Chestnut tree, tremble/fear, to lead, to follow, light, smart, scholarly, man of principle, melody/tune, cold, fortress, Jin (small castle), lightning, to shine/bright, a bird, flower clouds/auspicious clouds, charming, a rainbow, and a big wind

Additional Notes: The tree Yul and Naksu was sitting on was a chestnut tree. It should be noted that the name Yul means Jin. This could be a potential hint that Yul will eventually marry into the Jin family.

Il (일)

Il (일): One/first, sun, overflowing water, to run away, neglectful, to unify, and friendly

Additional Notes: It seems like General Il is a very strict man. Despite his other positive qualities, his flaw is that he can be cowardly and neglectful.

Ha Sun (하선)

Ha (하): False, fake, liar, summer, to shine, sunset, vilify, river, defective, flawed

Sun (선): Nice/good, kind, sister in law, hwan (to return), to cover up, envious

Ha Sun: A woman who shines brightly, a two faced woman, a person who is heavily flawed and envious of others

Additional Notes: I have noticed that anytime anyone has the hwan hanja they tend to be soul shifters. The hwan hanja was also present in the name "Yeong".

Yoon Oh (윤오)

Yoon (윤): Soft, docile, debate, moral, unorthodox king's seat, excessive, govern, director, heir, successor, to shine, pleasant, to lead, and handsome

Oh (오): Evil, bad, dirty, mean, black crow, five, daytime, to become enlighten, arrogant, sad, likes to enjoy life, and joker

Yoon Oh: A successor who will become enlighten, a person who is pleasant yet arrogant, black sheep of the family, and a person who does not take life seriously

Additional Notes: Yoon Oh has many conflicting meanings. It makes me think although he may seem like an evil person, he is a good person deep down.

Park Family

Jin (진)

Jin (진): Name of a star, truthful, rare treasure, cautious, to complete, one who pushes forward, thunderous, and war

Additional Notes: It is funny that Park Jin's name is "Jin" because it is also the surname of the family of which his nephew is trying to marry.

Dang Gu (당구)

Dang (당): Sweet/sugary, party, balanced, confident, loving, dignified, government office, loud, gathers people together, foolish, and honest

Gu (구): Expensive taste, long time, to become entangled, talker, puppy, to take charge of, genuine, and investigative,

Dang Gu: One who is the life of the party, a person who is sweet, genuine, loyal as a puppy, and a person who will work in a position of power

Jang Family

Uk (욱)

Uk (욱): Morning sun, sun, light, arrogant, brave, to shine brightly, regret, to suffer, warm, cherry blossom tree, to be sad, and hard worker

The Royals

Won/CP (원)

Won (원): Chief, king, nice, source/beginning, hopeful, ambitious, distant, resentful, petty, hateful, and helpful

Heo Family

Yeom (염)

Yeom (염): Hot tempered, innocent, acupuncture, cute, honest, salty, dislike, and light

Yun Ok (윤옥)

Yun (윤): Truthful, beautiful, moral, and extra/excessive

Ok (옥): King, leader, son of heaven, jade, shelter, to shine, and bright spirit, treasure, and beautiful virtue

Yun Ok: One who will shine beautifully and beautiful wife of a king or leader

Cho Family

Yeong (영)

Yeong (영): Sunlight/shadow, new year, flower, spirit, hwan (to come back)

Others

Naksu (낙수)

Nak (낙): Road, passage, journey, music, song/tune, musical instrument, falling rock, to fall, and connected/entangled

Su (수): Water, great, to lead, to follow, heir, fate, water overflowing, long life, tree, and method

Naksu: Falling water, Zelkova tree, word to describe the story behind something, and ears of grain falling in a field after harvesting, one who follows a road, entangled fate, and one who follows the music

Mu Deok (무덕)

Mu (무): Nothing, no, not, raised by an older woman, lakeside, perish, fog, dark, change, exchange, defame, and shaman

Deok (덕): virtue, blessing, and good deed

Mu Deok: No virtue, no blessing, and a person who was raised by an older woman on the lakeside

Master Lee Cheol (이철)

Cheol (철): Bright, wise, Iron, black iron, smart, wise, firm, unchanging, strong, knowledgeable, to reap, wise man, and sage,

Light and Shadow Theme

It has been hilarious to watch numerous simple-minded people particularly on Twitter say Part 2 is all about Jang Uk and Cho Yeong because the hanja meanings for their names is “light” and “shadow” respectively. As you can see above, the hanja character used in that article does not only mean “shadow” for Cho Yeong. I think the title, “Light and Shadow” can be applied more broadly to all the characters and is not exclusive to just Jang Uk and Cho Yeong. 

Anyways, what does light and shadow mean exactly? What does it represent? Light can symbolize truth, the sun, happiness, goodness, clarity, life, and peace. In contrast, dark can symbolize hidden truths, the moon, sadness, evil, confusion, death, anger, and chaos. You get my drift. Within each of us, we all have a light and dark side. We are a combination of yin and yang. In Part 1, we saw Jang Uk’s light side and in Part 2, we will see his dark side. Same goes for Yul except in reverse. In Part 1, we saw Seo Yul’s dark side which was cold, distant, and constrained. In Part 2, we get to see his light side which is warm, friendly, and relaxed.

Now let’s talk about the dark and light side of our favorite person….Naksu. Her dark and light side is a bit complicated largely due to the fact she does not know who she really is. And if you have been following me for a while, you all know who I think Naksu really is…Jin Bu Yeon. Most will say that Naksu’s dark side is her assassin side, but I think her dark side is also Jin Bu Yeon, her shadow self. The side which has been kept hidden and buried deep in her sub conscious for so long and is waiting to come out! And soon in Part 2, it will finally be free! I am sorry, but HONG SISTERS DID YOU REALLY HAVE TO DRAG OUT IT FOR ALL 20 EPISODES?! I said it once, I will say it again, Naksu needs a psychologist! Naksu was experiencing an identity crisis on epic portions while suffering from multiple personality disorder which may have resulted from childhood trauma/amnesia! Some other random thoughts.....Jin Bu Yeon is a moon child and the moon itself has a light and dark side....it is not completely dark!

Anyways, I just want you all to realize is that each and every one of the characters, they are all undergoing both physical and mental transformations! In Part 2, they will be exploring the other side of themselves! 

Jang Uk

Moving on to the man of the hour, Jang Uk. I want to first begin this section by saying I am honestly kind of done with his story. For the entirety of Part 1, I felt like too much focus was placed on his character and not enough attention was given to Naksu’s story and her own journey of self-discovery. It felt super unbalanced. The Hong Sisters only had one great mystery (identity of Jin Bu Yeon) up their sleeve and they purposely chose to drag it out in a variety of ways. For example, they made certain characters dumb (i.e Naksu, Mama Jin, Seo Yul) or placed too much focus on a single character (i.e Jang Uk).

In Part 1, the spotlight was heavily placed on Jang Uk which led to other characters' stories being pushed into the shadows. From what I have seen so far of Part 2, it would seem that Jang Uk is more or less the same childish, selfish, arrogant, impulsive, and irresponsible person as he was in Part 1. The only difference this time is that he has the Ice Stone within him. Throughout Part 1, he begged for his powers back without thinking it would come with many responsibilities. Maybe now he can understand things from Seo Yul's point of view which is that it is not always easy to do what you want when you have many responsibilities placed upon you. Sometimes you have to learn to sacrifice things for the greater good.

I hope he will learn to grow up and not be so selfish. Maybe he will realize that his actions can and do impact those surrounding him like Kim Do Joon and Seo Yul. He is no longer a child and needs to think of others before thinking about of himself and his grief. I mean look at Kim Do Joon, she is choosing to remain a single maid at the Jang household instead of marrying Park Jin because she is worried about Jang Uk.

Instead of going around hunting every soul shifter there is, maybe he should learn to calm down and be more calculated in order to find a way to get rid of the source aka Jin Mu. Maybe he should listen to that song from "Frozen".... "Let It Go". He is becoming as Master Lee had said, "greedy and obsessive". He has let his own grief and desire for vengeance blind him from seeing things clearly. The world is depending on him and he needs to use his powers for the betterment of humanity as a whole instead of wallowing in his grief. He needs to step up!

Moving forward, I hope Part 2 does not remain the Jang Uk show and that other characters' stories will also be shown. Finally, before any of you say I am an anti Lee Jae Wook fan, I am not. You can like an actor, but not particularly like the character they play.

Seven Stars (Chilseong)

Going back to Ep 15, we saw Master Lee saying how the light of the King Star and the energy of the surrounding seven stars would not shine yet and it got me thinking.... who do these seven stars represent? In Greek mythologies, it is believed that after a person dies, their soul travels to the heavens and become stars. Given this, maybe the seven stars were innocent souls who had died or fallen because of the Ice Stone. My top guesses are: King Seong, Jang Gang, Jin Bu Yeon, Cho Chung, Cho Yeong, Daddy Jin, and Jang Uk. Some might ask why Jang Uk is included in this list? Because he had to die in order for his soul to be transformed into a more powerful one. Ultimately, all of these deaths gave rise for the 8th star (King Star) to finally shine.

In Korean myths, there is also a famous tale of how the seven stars came to be! Without getting into too much detail, I will just say it is a myth about seven sons who heroically saved their mother by bringing her back to life with a resurrection flower (haha resurrection flower…get it?). For their heroic act, the heavens rewarded the seven sons by turning them into stars which later became known as the "Big Dipper".

Other myths connected to the seven stars include the Chinese folk tale, "The Cowherd and The Weaver Girl". It is a story about the heavenly King’s daughter, Jingnyeo, who was a talented weaver and a man named Gyeonu who was a herder. Jingnyeo and Gyeonu were madly love and the King eventually allowed them to get married. Soon after their wedding, both Jingynyeo and Gyeonu began to ignore their responsibilities. The King became furious about this and decided to separate them. Sadden for the young couple, the birds decided to build a bridge which would allow the couple to see each other once a year. Something worth noting is how similar the names of Jingnyeo and Gyeonu are to Jin Seol Ran and Seo Gyeong. Also, the notion of bridge connecting lovers to one another was also present in AOS (i.e Jang Uk/Naksu and Seo Yul/Naksu).

The Fake Burning of Jang Uk’s Body

The Hong Sisters are masters of deception. They like to trick viewers into thinking one thing by manipulating what one sees or does not see. Remember, your eyes can deceive you when it comes to stuff in AOS! So let’s talk about Jang Uk’s funeral and what was so odd about it!

We had a total of four body burnings in AOS (GYJ body, Master Lee, Master Kang, and Jang Uk). What is interesting about these burnings is the time of day (day vs night) and whether or not these bodies were placed into coffins. Both the GYJ body and Master Lee's burnings were conducted during broad day light and their bodies were not placed into coffins. In contrast, both Master Kang and Jang Uk's burnings were done during the nighttime and their bodies were placed into coffins. So what does it tell you? It could tell you that the truth about Master Kang and Jang Uk is being concealed.

With Jang Uk, the truth which was concealed is that his body was never burned. The purpose to his body burning scene is that it placed the idea in many viewers' mind the notion that bodies could be brought back from ashes. Tricky tricky Hong Sisters! This is similar to how they showed the initial switch between Jang Gang and King and then showed the switch between Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong which led to many viewers thinking the switch between those girls was the initial switch. Point being, the damage has already been done, many viewers have already gotten into their heads that the switch between Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong was the initial switch and that bodies can be brought back from ashes.

What actually healed Jang Uk's stab wound was Jin Bu Yeon jumping into Lake G (noticed how the fire turned blue like ice once Jin Bu Yeon jumped into the lake?) and the Ice Stone which was within him. It almost seems like Jin Bu Yeon's death had activated the Ice Stone within Jang Uk!

Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong

Ok now onto the switch which is literally the bane of my existence! I will say this once more, Mu Deok/Cho Yeong is not an important character in the whole grand scheme of things. If anything, Mu Deok/Cho Yeong is a plot device used to confused viewers from uncovering the real truth which is that Naksu is Jin Bu Yeon. Viewers became so distracted by all the recent posters and teasers that they completely forgot the Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong mystery still remains unsolved. Additionally, it was never revealed why exactly Naksu experienced all these dizzy spells at Jinyowon. To add more confusion, the Hong Sisters decided to bring back the GYJ body. Side note, I truly feel sorry for those who did not solve the mystery of which alternative identity (Naksu and Mu Deok) had belonged to which real identity (Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong). These people are about to get really confused in Part 2. For those whom I managed to convince that Naksu is Jin Bu Yeon, you won't have as hard of a time! All you have to do now is track which body contains the soul of Jin Bu Yeon!

Whose Soul is In the GYJ Body?

Given the nature of this show, one of the first questions one should always ask is whose soul is in a certain body. We have two choices in this case: Jin Bu Yeon or Cho Yeong. I have debated this for a while now and arrived to the conclusion that it is Cho Yeong’s soul that is contained in the GYJ body. However, I could be completely wrong and this is the Jin Bu Yeon soul in the GYJ body. If that is the case, I would be totally fine with that!

I think this is Cho Yeong's soul in the GYJ body because we had already seen the Jin Bu Yeon soul in the GYJ body in Ep1 of Part 1. Therefore, it would seem repetitive for the Hong Sisters to do this again. However, they could very well do this again! The Hong Sisters could do a single twist (Jin Bu Yeon is Naksu and she currently is in the GYJ body) or they could do a double twist (Jin Bu Yeon is Naksu and the soul in the GYJ body is not Jin Bu Yeon). Seeing as how the Hong Sisters have dragged the Jin Bu Yeon/Cho Yeong mystery out for so long, I am thinking they are going for the double twist!

Another reason for why I think it is the Cho Yeong soul in the GYJ body is the behavior of TvN. They have been pretty suspicious. For example, they placed a female’s silhouette on the character diagram without a name. Why did they not simply place GYJ's face on it and simply say "Naksu". Furthermore, they could say something like Naksu's soul returned to her OG body, but she has lost her memories. In this sense, they could maintain the Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong mystery. They could even have played up the mystery of how the GYJ body came back. However, since TvN did not choose to do any of these things, this furthers my suspicions this is just the Cho Yeong soul in the GYJ body.

Adding to all of this, the AOS cast did not appear on Amazing Saturday to promote their show nor hold a press conference like they did previously for Part 1. Something just smells really fishy and I am not talking about Master Lee’s fishes either!

When you think about it, both JSM and GYJ have now played Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong. It’s fun right? Anyways, what this all means is that I think JSM will be reprising her role as Jin Bu Yeon while GYJ will be playing Cho Yeong (as in plain old Cho Yeong…not a member of the Jin, Seo, or Choi  family or a water dragon…I can’t I really can’t with some of this other ridiculous theories). Some may ask if JSM is indeed the FL, why did she not appear in any of the posters or teasers? Simply put, it would be a major spoiler if she had appeared in them!

Jin Bu Yeon

Now, let's talk about the character who is basically the whole story which is Jin Bu Yeon! She is basically like a cat with nine lives or four lives! It must be exhausting for her to have died a total of four times now. I would definitely not want her fate that is for damn sure lol! Dying once seems bad enough, but four times? That just seems so excessive! I hope for her sake this will be the last time she has to come back to life!

The Disappearance

What still remains a great mystery is just who exactly had shifted Jin Bu Yeon’s and Cho Yeong’s soul when they were kids. At first, I thought it could have been Shaman Choi and Jin Mu, but I am starting to suspect it was Master Lee all along. In one of the last episodes, the camera panned out to the lakeside as if there was someone watching the whole boat incident happen. This made me think of Master Lee because he is known to have a hobby of fishing things out of the water!

So what could be Master Lee’s motivation for shifting the souls of the two girls? Well, it could have been he wanted to make Jin Bu Yeon stronger. If you could not already tell, Master Lee is quite an extreme person! Remember what does not kill you, will make you stronger. And before any of you say Master Lee would not do that. He would. That man basically chemically castrated himself just to obtain more power. Let’s also remind ourselves that he did not prevent Jang Uk from getting stabbed. Rather he just went fishing or whatever and allowed Jang Uk to get stabbed just so Jang Uk could come back stronger. THAT MAN IS EXTREME OK? Master Lee is the type of person who would not give you a warning before pushed you off the cliff, he would just straight up do it. Another possibility is that the person who switched the girls back then was Jin Bu Yeon herself! Who knows really though!

Memories

In my previous posts, I had mentioned how I thought it was Jin Mu who brainwashed Jin Bu Yeon into believing that she was Cho Yeong. However, after watching Ep 19 (Shaman Choi and Jin Mu conversation), I was left to wonder if Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong had transferred their memories through some sort a psychic tunnel which was formed as a result of their initial switch. The other possibility is that Shaman Choi changed Jin Bu Yeon's memories to reflect Cho Yeong's memories. There are still many unknowns! However, I do believe that whoever had performed the initial switch between the two girls were also responsible for the change in their memories.

The Cure for Jin Bu Yeon’s Petrification

At the end of EP 20, we saw Jin Bu Yeon become petrified. After which, she jumped into Lake G and was then rescued by mages from Jinyowon. We do not know what happened to her after that. From the teasers, it seems there is a petrified woman currently residing in Jinyowon. For now, I am assuming this is Jin Bu Yeon and she was able to be cured of her petrification. However, the method utilized to cure her of her petrification remains a mystery!

When it comes to curing Jin Bu Yeon of her petrification, there could be three possible ways with the first being herself. I had said previously that the key to Jin Bu Yeon regaining her Ice Stone powers is all in her head. Meaning, she needs to remember who she was before which is Jin Bu Yeon…the Ice Stone. She may have regain both her memories and powers by staying at Jinyowon for a long time or she could have regain her memories after she lost consciousness in Lake G. In turn, this would cure her of her petrification. The second way could be whatever method Master Heo Yeom used on Master Kang. However, I do not think Mama Jin would have reached out to Master Heo Yeom given that she probably would not want anyone to know she fished Jin Bu Yeon out of the lake in the first place. The third method could be to extract the Ice Stone from Jang Uk. However, we do not know if Mama Jin is even aware the Ice Stone is in Jang Uk, but we can play devil's advocate for a hot minute! If Mama Jin does know he had the Ice Stone within him, I feel like she would have tried to get it from him. However, since she has not as far as I can tell, I am thinking she was successful in finding and reviving Jin Bu Yeon. 

Cho Yeong 

I will admit I was shocked to see Go Yoon Jung appearing in the preview at the end of Ep.20! After the initial shock, I kept asking myself just how exactly did that body come back from a pile of ashes? Nothing in this show had indicated that such a thing could even be possible. Bringing back souls from the dead was possible, but bodies? No, it wasn’t possible at least in the context of what had been shown. I racked my brain trying to think of a variety of ways it could be possible while connecting them to the themes of alchemy and souls. After countless hours of researching and thinking, I could only come up with three possible ways: 1) Mama Jin created a homunculus 2) Mama Jin used some sort of blood magic 3) Mama Jin used a soul bracelet.

Creation of a Body? Homunculus? Blood Magic?

So, what exactly is a homunculus? In lamest terms, a homunculus is an artificially created human. I just like to call them "petri dish humans" or "test tube babies". Alchemists back in the day believed they could create these “tiny humans” by mixing a bunch of ingredients (blood, bones, sperm, herbs, a form of energy like electricity, philosopher stone/Ice Stone, ashes) into whatever container (beaker, cauldron, animal, etc).

An example of a homunculus from pop culture is Voldemort’s body in Harry Potter. The ingredients used in this case was bone of one’s father, flesh of servant, and blood of enemy. These ingredients were subsequently combined and mixed in a cauldron! Side note, special credit is goes to Yu from Twitter who mentioned this Harry Potter reference to me!

Collectively, maybe what Mama Jin did was that she found some of Cho Chung’s (or Cho Yeong) bones or ashes and blood from the arrow Park Jin shot in Ep. 1 and mixed them in a bath tub or whatever. Following this, the concoction needed a source of energy which could be obtain from creation of a lightning storm, Mama Jin pouring her energy into it, or extraction of Ice Stone energy from the relics. The other theory I have is that she used some sort of blood magic or sorcery on the blood that was on contained on Park Jin’s arrow which shot the GYJ body in Ep 1. That’s all I got for how to create a body. Sorry!

The Bracelet

So now let’s talk about this mysterious bracelet! If I had to choose between these theories and the ones I had just mentioned (homunculus and blood magic/sorcery), I would probably choose these just because they seem more aligned with the theme of souls. Anyways here are some of the theories I have for what the bracelet is: 

Jin relic which reflects the form of the soul which was contained in it (Yu from Twitter also told me how this theory of mine reminded her of the Dreamstone from Wonder Woman 1984)

Duracell battery pack which keeps the wearer alive

Resurrection Stone from Harry Potter

Of these three, I feel like #1 is the most likely explanation of what the bracelet is, but it could very well be the other two! Essentially, what the "glamour bracelet" or "soul bracelet" could do is that it brings back the desired soul and then project its appearance outwardly. The body underneath could be some random dead person or it could also be the petrified JSM body. I am leaning more towards it being the former just because if this was the petrified JSM body then Seo Yul would have his energy sucked out of him when he touched it. Overall, I think the bracelet contains the Cho Yeong's soul. Although I cannot say with certainty that it does not contain Jin Bu Yeon's soul!

Why Is Cho Yeong Being Kept In the Prison At Jinyowon?

One theory I have as to why Cho Yeong is being kept as a prisoner in Jinyowon is because Mama Jin does not want Cho Yeong to escape and reveal that she had used sorcery to bring Cho Yeong back (in order to figure out which soul was her daughter's). Mama Jin could have killed Cho Yeong and discarded her remains, but maybe Jin Cho Yeon had talked her out of it. It also could be that since Mama Jin got Jin Bu Yeon back, she decided to spare Cho Yeong’s life.

Additionally, I think by the time we see Cho Yeong in the prison, Mama Jin has have already found Jin Bu Yeon. Why? Because if there was any potential that the soul in the GYJ body was Jin Bu Yeon, she would have provided better accommodations. Also, Cho Yeong does not appear to be wearing the famous Jin winged eyeliner. I feel like I am having deja vu. First it was Soi who impersonated Jin Bu Yeon and now it is Cho Yeong...maybe third time is the charm! Side note, in the recent bts vid by Jin Mu, GYJ appears to be wearing the exact dress Soi wore in Ep 17 during the assembly...could this be the Hong Sister's way of hinting to viewers this is yet again another Jin Bu Yeon imposter?

Other questions I have is how Cho Yeong is freely roaming around without anyone saying anything? I mean a lot of people did attend the GYJ body burning and therefore would have recognized the face and associated it with Naksu the assassin. Did Mama Jin use Jin Cho Yeon to pull some strings with Park Dang Gu? Who knows!

Jang Uk vs Seo Yul…Who Will Find Jin Bu Yeon’s Soul First?

Between Jang Uk and Seo Yul, I wonder who will be the first to discover Jin Bu Yeon's soul? The thing about Cho Yeong and Jin Bu Yeon is that both share a few similarities which might make it difficult to differentiate between the two souls. However, these two do also have notable differences. I have listed below several similarities and differences between the two girls that might be helpful for Part 2!

Similarities 

1. Dads died because of Jin Mu 2. Abandoned at an early age 3. Familiar with Jang household (Jin Bu Yeon while working in the 4. Jang house and Cho Yeong while visiting the Jang house with her dad) 5. Recognizes the name "Mu Deok" 6. Has amnesia (Jin Bu Yeon has childhood amnesia while Cho Yeong has complete amnesia)

Differences

Jin Bu Yeon 1. Born to a divine mage family 2. Loved birds 3. Could climb trees 4. Could see energy and things most could not 5. Able to control relics 6. Kind, but had her limits 7. Spent childhood living in Danhyanggok 8. Knows how to play the bird whistle  9. Gets disoriented when coming into contact with stuff from Jinyowon  10. Able to open the doors of Jinyowon  11. Able to cast spells 12. Did not see her constellation plate  13. Does know the name Naksu 14. Has blue eyes 15. Associated with Jin purple, colors of late summer (mint green and salmon pink), and moon/night sky (purple, blue, etc)

Cho Yeong

1. Born to a normal mage family 2. Foolishly kind  3. May or may not have powers (I know in one of the eps they said she could see water, but this might have been a result of being switched with the ice stone at a young age) 4. Knew what Jin Mu looked like 5. Spent childhood in Sari Village 6. Spent some time in Danhyanggot and therefore may know some parts of Danhyanggot 7. Saw her constellation plate as a child 8. Does not know the name Naksu 9. Does not have blue eyes 10. Associated with red and shades of red (i.e pink)

What I think will happen is that Jang Uk will think Cho Yeong is the Mu Deok he once knew. He will call her “Mu Deok” and she will probably say that name sounds familiar because she did go by as “Mu Deok” when she lived in Sari. There are some things though that could give away that she is not Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon such as if Jang Uk takes her to Sari and it triggers some memories. Recall that Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon never lived in Sari. Other things that could give her away is if Jang Uk calls her “Naksu”. If Cho Yeong says she does not recognize that name, it would indicate to Jang Uk that she is not the soul he fell in love with in Part 1. Additionally, I do not know if Cho Yeong ever traveled outside of that cabin in Danhyanggok so she might not recognize the tall tree when Jang Uk takes her there.

Some might ask if Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon got her memories back, why did she not approach Jang Uk and talked to him? Maybe Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon felt really guilty for what she did to him and therefore could not find the courage to face him.

I do not think Jang Uk is meant to find Jin Bu Yeon. There has been some signs which indicated since the very beginning. For example, Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon never told Jang Uk about all the strange things she experienced while at Jinyowon. Furthermore, Master Know It All Lee did told Jang Uk to go to Sari to find out more information about "Mu Deok" for a reason. I believe the reason for this will come into play in Part 2 when Jang Uk helps Cho Yeong to discover who she really is. Maybe Jang Uk and Cho Yeong were destined to be with each other from the start, but some things got in the way. During the bachelor party, recall that Jang Uk did say he liked Mu Deok while Seo Yul said he liked Naksu. And well, Jang Uk will get Mu Deok aka Cho Yeong. Be careful what you wish for!

I think it will be Seo Yul who discovers Jin Bu Yeon's soul first. Remember, he did say he liked the girl from Danhyaggok before she became known as "Naksu". The soul there was Jin Bu Yeon. Although Seo Yul did not know much about her at the time, he at least knew of her fondness for birds. It is this piece of information that might be central to helping Seo Yul to recognize that the soul in the GYJ body is not the same soul he had once loved. Naksu's fondness of birds is also a habit which has remained with her consistently despite everything else. It is also a habit that connects her to her true identity (Jin Bu Yeon). Another thing which can be proven to be useful in finding Jin Bu Yeon is the Jin bloodworm currently residing in Seo Yul's heart (how symbolic). Who knows, maybe the Jin bloodworm will lead him to Jinyowon and allow him to open the doors of Jinyowon to finally find the real Jin Bu Yeon.

When it comes to Jang Uk and Jin Bu Yeon, I do not think this pairing would be good romantically. You have a King Star and an Ice Stone which are both powerful beings. If they got angry at each other, they could potentially destroy all of Daeho in their rage. It is like two nuclear bombs! Both Jang Uk and Jin Bu Yeon are very impulsive people so they need to be with calm people to balance them out. Plus, we have already seen how they were together. They both gave up on their responsibilities and did not have any further ambitions to grow as people. 

Seo Yul

When it comes to Seol Yul, there were so many weird things about him that I did not initially notice until I had my eureka moment in Ep 16. After this, I began to pay more attention to Seo Yul and rewatch his parts more closely. Anyways, let's talk about all the strange things about him and how it all relates to Jin Bu Yeon!

Clairvoyant

Is this man a seer? At the end of Ep 20 after Jin Bu Yeon became petrified, I was like OMG Seo Yul’s vision came true! In Ep 7, he saw Jin Bu Yeon with the side braids (a style she wore as a child) and in Ep 19….she fashioned her hair the exact same way as the mirror image (or future Jin Bu Yeon as I like to call it). I think Seo Yul sees is the future states of Jin Bu Yeon. I do not know how or why he is able to do so. It could be that this clairvoyant ability runs in the Seo family or it is a rare ability exclusive to Seo Yul. It also could be derived from some sort of magical connection that was formed between his ancestor (Seo Gyeong) and Jin Bu Yeon’s ancestor (Jin Seol Ran). Additionally, maybe this ability was awakened in him in order to prevent another great chaos. Who knows! I just found it very strange! From the teasers, it looks like Seo Yul has more visions so just pay close attention to what happens in them ! They might reveal Jin Bu Yeon's whereabouts!

White Symbolism

Upon further reexamination, I noticed also how most of the things which were given to Jin Bu Yeon was all white (i.e white flower, white umbrella, and white bird). The color white signifies rebirth, resurrection, innocence, and purity.

In specific, the flower meaning of the flower Seo Yul gave to Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon is gratitude, elegant, everlasting beauty, happy life, pure love, weddings, and divine goddess. The name of this particular flower is called, "Column Stock White Goddess Matthiola". I think the Hong Sister had been foreshadowing that Seo Yul and Jin Bu Yeon would end up together. The flower which was placed in her hair reminded me of a binyeo pin (for those not aware guys usually buy girls a binyeo pin to show their intention of marrying them). It is like the Hong Sisters did a "fresh" take on a binyeo pin. Recall that while at the market, Jang Uk did not buy Jin Bu Yeon the binyeo pin which could signify they would probably not be getting married. 

With the white bird is what connects Naksu to her true identity which is Jin Bu Yeon since it is known Jin women are associated with birds. It is also what connects Naksu to happy childhood memories in Danhyanggok. Side note... birds in literature are seen as messengers between the sky and land (water is also a bridge a between the sky and land)! The hanja meanings for "bird" include feather, the highest, Big Dipper, island, phoenix, prisoner of war, shamanistic, renewal, one of the castles, autumn, and to fall.

Something else worth noting is the white flower Jin Bu Yeon had carved at the servant competition. Though it is not connected to Seo Yul, it is still connected to the Jin family crest which is a flower!

The Bloodworm Antidote

Now onto the icky red wedding blood worm! I would like to give credit to my Korean friend for proposing this theory! During one of our many conversations, my friend reminded me that in AOS, the antidote to a poison can only come from the person in which it derived from. In this case, the bloodworm (poison) came from the Jin family. Therefore, the antidote is probably a Jin female aka Jin Bu Yeon. Maybe Jin Bu Yeon will remove the blood worm through sorcery aka Ice Stone power by placing her hand over his heart. If this occurs, it would parallel to the scene in Ep 8 where Seo Yul placed his hand near her heart to heal her injury. My friend also informed me that one of the hanja meaning for the show title is "blood marriage". When the Jin bloodworm was introduced into Seo Yul's system, it symbolized a blood marriage between Jin and Seo families.

Master Lee 

Ok we cannot talk about AOS and not talk about one of my most favorite characters....Master Know It All Lee...the man who talks in metaphors/riddles and has a chaste tea drinking problem! After I correctly predicted that Master Lee is a soul shifter, I am still patiently awaiting to see if he turns out to be Seo Gyeong! We still do not know the exact details of what exactly happened to Seo Gyeong after the Great Chaos. For all we know, he could have retreated into the mountains as Seo Gyeong and then came back down as "Master Lee".

I definitely feel like this will be revealed in Part 2 because they had introduced the Seo lanterns for another reason besides being used to determine if Queen Seo was alive or not. Every one of the great mage families in AOS has a dark secret. Maybe the Seo family’s great secret is that Seo Gyeong’s lantern is still lit which would indicate he is still very much alive. I believe this information would only be known to the leader of Seoho so I do not think Seo Yul or Queen Seo are aware of Seo Gyeong’s lantern. 

Additionally, it seems like Master Lee and Seo Yul do share some similar personality traits. For example, both are poor communicators when it comes to love and they like to give flowers to women they like. I swear to God if Master Lee starts walking in the wrong direction when he gets flustered, I know he is definitely Seo Gyeong! Remember that both Seo Yul and the Crown Prince (Seo Yul's cousin) do walk in the wrong direction when they are flustered so it seems this trait does run in the Seo family.

Upon rewatching AOS for the 100th time, I also noticed something else that was odd about Master Lee.....he built his house exactly where Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon’s old house was. Danhyanggok is a large place so Master Lee could have built his place somewhere else. By purposely choosing to build his house where Naksu's former home was, it tells me that Master Lee may have been keeping tabs on Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon for a long time now.

The other thing about Master Lee is that he is super manipulative. When he has a goal in mind, he will get people to doing whatever he wants without them ever knowing they were being manipulated by him in the first place. As to what his true end goal is? I do not really know. I can only speculate and say he wants to return things to their rightful place. Or it could be that he finally wants to retire or die. If he is indeed Seo Gyeong aka the King Star, his goal could be that he wanted to live long enough to train and pass down his wealth of knowledge the next King Star. What a sad and lonely life it must have been for Master Lee/Seo Gyeong! To deal with such a depressing fate, King Stars cope by drinking....Master Lee/Seo Gyeong with chaste tea and Jang Uk with alcohol. They should form a support group to deal with their drinking problem.

Endgames, Alliances, Marriage of Seasons

Throughout this series, there has been clashes between the great mage families as well as the great mage families and the royals. One way to prevent all these clashes is through marriage! Back in the day, it was common for families to marry their kids to other kids from great families in order to form alliances. In this way, people would not fight with one another because they would be related. For example, if Jin Cho Yeon and Park Dang Gu had gotten married, the Jin and Park family would’ve been related and not fight as much. Symbolically, their marriage would have been a marriage between the spring and summer season. 

Now the one person who has contributed the most to the current chaos is none other than Jin Bu Yeon. She is basically at the center of everything. Her disappearance caused a great deal of chaos, but her return will also bring great peace. As for her season, I think she is late summer which is a season that is the center of all the other seasons and is a transitional period. And let’s be real….Jin Bu Yeon has transitioned so many times now. Anyways, if we are going in order of the cycle of seasons then she would marry Autumn aka Seo Yul. In doing so, the Jin and Seo family will finally form an alliance which was meant to be since 200 years ago. In addition, in leaked Part 2 photos, Seo Yul was seen wearing purple robes which are colors associated with the Jin family. Furthermore, his purple robe was nearly identical to the robes worn by Daddy Jin Part 1. 

This finally leaves us with winter aka Jang Uk. So who would he marry? Initially, I thought he would marry Heo Yun Ok because this would form an alliance between Seo/Heo and Jang family, but given GYJ’s appearance, maybe Jang Uk will marry Cho Yeong. Such a marriage could symbolize the close friendship/relationship that their dads once had. In addition, maybe Jang Uk and Cho Yeong had met as kids since Cho Chung did often visit the Jang house with Cho Yeong. Who knows…maybe Cho Yeong was his first first love. Anyways, the other possibility is that Jang Uk will marry no one because it is as Master Lee says….the life of a King Star is a sad and lonely one.

Other Characters

Uncle Seo and Queen Seo

In Part 2, we will be introduced to Seo Yul’s cousin once removed (I am calling him Uncle Seo for simplicity sake). Some questions I have is what role does his character play in the current events of things? Just based on his hanja meaning, it feels like his character may seem like a villain at first, but he will eventually turn out to be a good guy. Maybe the purpose to his character is that he will take over Seoho Fortress which would allow Seo Yul to be free to marry Jin Bu Yeon. Recall that Seo Yul is currently the heir apparent to Seoho Fortress so he cannot marry a Jin since he also has to lead his own house. Other random thought............who are the Seo's fighting? Are they fighting amongst themselves or a new enemy?

In leaked pics of Part 2, Uncle Seo was seen with Queen Seo and Jin Mu. This rises the question of why he and Queen Seo are meeting Jin Mu? Are these two planning to join hands with Jin Mu to get something? I highly doubt Uncle Seo and Queen Seo are meeting with Jin Mu to ask if he can save Seo Yul from the bloodworm. Instead, I think they are meeting with Jin Mu for two different reasons. Maybe Uncle Seo wants Jin Mu’s help to take over Seoho Fortress while with Queen Seo she wants Jin Mu to switch her into more beautiful body. Additionally while we are on the subject of Queen Seo, what ever happened to Shaman Choi? I mean I did not think she would simply die with a flick of Park Jin’s wrist. Who knows…maybe it’ll be revealed what happen to Shaman Choi in Part 2. 

Jang Gang

Although Jang Gang is now a pile of ashes and gone with the wind, it was never revealed just what the hell he was doing for 20 years. I think this was purposely done because it was connected to the mystery of Jin Bu Yeon and Cho Yeong. Hopefully it will be revealed just what exactly Jang Gang had did for 20 years in Part 2.

Final Thoughts 

Whew, this post was not nearly as long as I had expected! There are some things I have left out just because I do not feel like writing anymore (this post was already 20 pages in Microsoft Word). I know I have forgotten to mention some other things, but if there is anything you want to ask which is not found within this posts or previous posts, please feel free to comment below or use the ask me anything button! I cannot wait for this season to begin and to see how many more mind games the Hong Sisters will play. Finally to be clear, based on what I have analyzed so far, I do believe JSM will return and it will completely surprise the majority of the fandom. If this does indeed turn out to be true, I will say this, do not let what you see with your eyes fool you! 

Update 12/9/22

Just some other random thoughts I have:

1) Jin Mu is the one who orchestrated the whole soul shifter being near Jinyowon incident. He probably wants to find out what Mama Jin has been guarding so he uses his bells to control one of his soul shifters. He knows Jang Uk will follow the soul shifter. Anyways what Jin Mu is basically doing is using Jang Uk to do his bidding without Jang Uk being aware of it.

2) Jin Mu will try to control who he thinks is Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon to kill Jang Uk again…however what he doesn’t know is that he ends up controlling Cho Yeong/MD instead of Naksu/Jin Bu Yeon. Remember that when Cho Yeong had returned to her body, she is considered a soul shifter.

[nickgerlich]

By The Numbers

The recent holiday season did not disappoint anyone selling online, because sales were up 3.5-percent over those of 2021, and accounted for 21.6-percent of total sales. Nearly $212 billion was exchanged for gifts, the kinds that we give to family and friends, as well as the ones we buy for ourselves.

You know. One for you, one for me. That’s how we do it.

But there is an asterisk looming large over these numbers, because they came at a time when inflation has been taking a bite out of our hind quarters, and retailers have had to rely on hefty markdowns to push inventory out the door or on to UPS trucks.



That’s a complicated way of saying it may be difficult to determine real gains, because inflation can account for any growth simply by definition, but then you have to subtract all those markdowns. Regardless, though, online retailers are calling it a tentative win. They’re just bracing for tough sledding in 2023.



For perspective, we must summon our memories from the COVID years (2020 and 2021) in which e-commerce had a Denali-esque spike. Customers, bored to tears and flush with cash from all those stimulus payments, did their civic duty and went shopping. And that meant we wound up buying everything we wanted or needed, as well as what we thought we might ever wish to buy.

The result is that most of us are out of the market for new things. Never mind all that inflation talk. We (and I am using the royal “we”) have pretty much everything, and our consumerist economy will have to wait until we wear holes through our shoes and pants, wear out our cameras, and otherwise consume all that we bought.

In case you did not notice, retailers have been intentionally letting their inventories grow thin. This is not so much supply chain issues as it is companies seeking to right-size inventory to be in better balance with the current reality. Say goodbye to stores bursting at the seams, at least for now.

And then there are the seriously troubled stores like Bed Bath & Beyond, known as the coupon king of retail. Ooo-wee. I went into the Amarillo store before Christmas, and although it was not one of the ones announced for closure, it looked like it was well on its way with all those empty shelves. They simply do not have the cash to buy more towels, blenders, and so forth to replace what was sold.



This may very well also be the new reality for other retailers, including the evergreens, those whom we would never expect to be in trouble. As I have long said, inventory is the bane of a retailer’s existence. You can’t make money without it, but with too much of it you can surely sink. Funding that inventory simply exacerbates the dilemma.

Discretionary purchases are now on hold. Heck, we try to kick the can down the road on the things that are needed. Have you seen the price of eggs lately? We’re struggling to put food on the table, much less more clothing in the closet. While gasoline has dipped considerably, a silver lining on the cloud of despair, it is not enough to cover increases elsewhere. After all, if you drive 1500 miles a month at 25mpg, the current national average dip of about $1 per gallon still only adds $60 to your wallet. The grocery can take that in a heartbeat.

As a Digital Marketing prof, this is all very noteworthy to me, because we really haven’t encountered the likes of the last three years ever in recent history. These are teachable moments indeed. But I know. The economy always prevails in the long-run. It’s just that we live in the short-run, and right now, the snow is getting pretty deep for everyone.



Happy sledding, y’all, and hang on for a tough ride just a little bit longer.

Dr “Add To Cart“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

[dr-carmillas-failed-clone]

“I won't be puppeteered”

Brutally awakened from my death Slumber i was, by force they brought me back, i screamed i think, seeing these peopel i almost remember, seeing bright lights and feeling cold Creeping in, cables sticking out of me like snakes, my neck bears a golden seal where my throat was cut, not a drop of blood to be seen-it was a spotless reanimation, but in my mind everything was covered in blood and dripping!

I'm not your little dress up dolly, not your propaganda Poster- you may think i am , you nay parade me around, but not for long. Woth every step i take, i plan my escape, with every smile i fake, i plan my revenge, i wont be puppetered For long!

They dressed me up in new clothes, i sit there, as stiff and unmoving as a porcelain doll, my skin as pale and cold as one, i watched them put a new dress on me, its blue-blue for innocence, but is it for me or for them? I look in the mirror and dont recognize whos looking back, my eyes are clear like blue glass marbles, they are without a soul! On my dress, theres a blue heart with silver chains over it- a morbid decor, i think, but a reflection of my insides. But a chained heart is still a heart, It just learnt to beat slower

I'm not your little dress up dolly, not your propaganda Poster- you may think i am , you nay parade me around, but not for long. With every step i take, i plan my escape, with every smile I fake, i plan my revenge, I wont be puppetered for long!

They tell me how to behave, pose me to show me off, it still feels like a bad dream, but i know i wont ever wake up! I walk With them, i dont feel warmth or Cold, just emptiness and as they parade me on the streets, ny Smile is frozen, i wave mechanically-The people clap and cheer and i am appalled-how can they cheer for sömething like this? With wires coming out of my shoulders to keep me at bay with electroshocks, ive learnt that-but they dont seem to notice, they just like seeing Their beloved princess again! Tears shimmer in my ears, tears that wont ever fall or be spilled-lest they break the illusion of wonder

I'm not your little dress up dolly, not your propaganda Poster- you may think i am , you may parade me around, but not for long. With every step I take, i plan my escape, with every smile I fake, i plan my revenge, i wont be puppetered for long! Nooo, not for long! Soon ill be free from your grasp, ill escape and flee this place! Ill be on my own, but free- and Ill never forget what you did to me, oh no-when the right day comes, ill have my revenge!

So, one night, my plan is set in motion-these fools should've guarded me better, because wires can be easily cut and ripped out, painkillers prevent me from screaming. I gather my few belongings, from hiding places i had even before the revolution, one of these tihngs is a silver dagger, i intend to use it-on The maid thats sleeping in the armchair, what a faulty guard! Her throat is cut easily and i make sure she looks at me so she knows it was me! A escape through the window is easier said then done, luckily its not deep and the snow is thick, so off i go! As i land, i get up, quickly and run, run into the catacombs-theyll never find me there!.

I'm not your little dress up dolly, not your propaganda Poster- you may think i am , you may parade me around, but not for long. Woth every step i take, i plan my escape, with every smile i fake, i plan my revenge, i wont be puppeteer fooor long!!

[Spoken: so thats how the escape was made-the doctors looked dumbfounded as they found a Empty room with a dead maid and blood splatters- and no sign of the princess. Emily laughed down below, knowing how to navigate her way through-her goal was a town-there, she'd need a new Look and new name, aswell as a job to earn money…..but for now, she enjoyed her freedom…]

AIGHT FELLAS, NEW SONG LEAKED!!