#elder flower cordial
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Legends and myths about trees
Celtic beliefs in trees (25)
R for Ruis (Elder) - November 25th - December 21st
“Season of fog and darkness – The Celtic Tree Calendar (Ref), Thirteenth Month”
colour: black, dark green; Star: Venus; Gem: olivine; Gender: female; Element: water; Patron: Hel, Hera, Huldra(Red2), Valkyrie; Symbols: judgement + transformation, death + rebirth, fate + inevitable event
Elder trees can grow almost anywhere and are a visible reminder of the changing seasons. The young leaves herald the return of spring, the white, bubbly, sweet-smelling flowers usher in the start of summer, the ripe berries mark the end of summer, the leaves turn red and eventually fall off, and the cold winter brings a rush of illness and discomfort, the time when the medicinal properties of the elder tree come into their own.
The ancient Britons and other Celts used to boil the elder berries in wine to make a black dye for grey hair. It is still used in the Hebrides as a dye to dye sheep black. The bark also makes a black dye. When alum is added, the leaves produce a green dye, while the berries produce blue, purple and violet dyes.
Almost all parts of the plant have medicinal properties, but today it is mainly the fruit and flowers that are used, such as elderflower wine and cordials (Ref3) flavoured with elderflower flowers, as well as jam and wine made from elderflower berries. Because, elderberry root from North America is toxic and the leaves and bark of elderberry are very dangerous to use in lay therapy.
The Elder Mother (Ref4) was believed to reside within the Elder Tree. She was said to inflict vengeance magic on anyone who harmed the tree and punished anyone who used any part of the tree for selfish purposes.
Across northern Europe, Elderberry is associated with death, rebirth and witchcraft, and is the tree most often used to break evil curses. The ancient Celts believed that how people saw and remembered them for the way they lived in this world would determine their reputation after death in the underworld. That is why the most important thing for them was to die with pride and dignity, and to respect others after death.
On a dark winter's day, the Elder tree holds up a mirror to us that reflects our true selves. Can you die with dignity and without regrets, it asks.
木にまつわる伝説・神話
ケルト人の樹木の信仰 (25)
RはRuis (ﾆﾜﾄｺ) - 11月25日～12月21日
『霧と暗黒の季節 〜 ケルトの木の暦（参照）、13番目の月』
色: 黒、深緑; 星: 金星; 宝石: カンラン石(ｵﾘﾋﾞﾝ); 性: 女性; 要素; 水; 守護神: ヘル、ヘラ、ホルダ（参照2）、ヒルデ; シンボル: 審判＋変身、死＋再生、運命＋不可避なできごと
ニワトコの木はほとんどどこにでも生え、季節の移り変わりを目に見える形で知らせてくれる。若葉は春の訪れを告げ、白い泡のような甘い香りの花は夏の始まりを告げ、熟した実は夏の終わりを告げ、葉は赤く色づいてやがて落葉し、寒い冬とともに病気や不快感がどっと押し寄せると、いよいよニワトコの薬の成分が本領を発揮する季節になる。
古代ブリトン人はじめケルト人はニワトコの実をワインで煮出して白髪染めの黒い染料を作っていた。今でもへブリディーズ諸島で羊を黒く染める染料として使われている。樹皮もまた黒の染料となる。明礬を加えると、葉からは緑の染料が、実からは青、紫、スミレ色の染料ができる。
ニワトコは殆ど全ての部位に薬効を持っているが、今日では、ニワトコの花で香りづけをした、エルダーフラワーワインやコーディアル（参照3）、またニワトコの実のジャムやワインなど、主に果実と花がよく使われている。北米産のニワトコの根には毒性があったり、ニワトコの葉や樹皮は素人療法に用いるのはとても危険だからである。
「ニワトコの母（参照4）」はニワトコの木の中に住んでいると信じられていた。彼女は、この木を傷つけた者には必ず復讐の魔法を下すといわれ、この木のどんな部分であれ利己的な目的に使ったものには罰を与えた。
北ヨーロッパの全域でニワトコは、死、再生、魔術と関連づけられ、邪悪な呪いを解くのに最もよく用いられる木だ。古代ケルト人は、この世での生き方が人々にどう見られ、どう記憶されるかが、死後冥界に行ってからの自分の評価を左右するのだと考えていた。だからこそ彼らにとって最も重要なのは、誇り高く威厳をもって死ぬことであり、死んでからも人を尊重することだった。
冬の暗い日に、ニワトコは私たちに本当の自分の姿が映る鏡を突きつける。あなたは、威厳を持って悔いのない死を迎えることができるのか、と。
#trees#celtic tree calendar#ancient celts#tree myth#tree legend#folklore#elder#elder mother#elder flower cordial#winter#mythology#legend#nature#art
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Friday Food Review…Edible Flowers…Part 4...Elder Flowers, Basil Flowers and Pink Mempat Flowers...
Friday Food Review…Edible Flowers…Part 4…Elder Flowers, Basil Flowers and Pink Mempat Flowers…
Welcome to this week’s edition of edible flowers…I watch all…well most of the cooking programmes…I love Masterchef and Great British Menu and I am in awe of the beautiful presentation of the food if I can ever-present food that resembles those dishes just a little then I will be a happy bunny…Whatever the month there will be a plant or tree that flowers obviously not all edible or palatable but I…
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#Basil Flowers#edible flowers#Elder Flowers#Pink Mempat#Basil Flower Tea#blogging#Elderflower Cordial
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Hi! Congratulations on 500 followers!!!
I'd love to visit the cafe with Geppie and play with a white himalayan kitty. We would also like to order a glass of cider~
Thank you 💛
-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈ could you be any more dense?!
⊹ character(s) - gepard landau
⊹ word count - 1.1k
⊹ notes - gn!reader, hurt/comfort
⊹ katze's 500 follower writing cat-baret
THANK YOU!! AND ALSO TY FOR BEING THE VERY FIRST CAT CAFE REQUESTER ANON!!! <3 I hope you enjoy your "cat cafe date" with geppie!!!! (=^･ω･^=)
also sorry this got a LOT longer than I was expecting these are meant to be short but I doubt I'm gonna manage to keep them short LMAO
Gepard is a very courteous man.
Sweet, patient, and above all, cordial. Gentlemanly, if you will.
However, that can definitely get to be... too much.
Especially when you feel like you've been just about as upfront as you can...
Or perhaps not—but at the very least, you're obvious enough, even if unintentionally, but...
It starts to get ridiculous.
Gepard is close to you, but painfully dense.
He's started keeping you at arm's length, a polite distance to maintain between two friends.
Friends, and nothing more.
You can try all you want, but in the end, he continues to put up that front around you.
It starts to even get... uncomfortable.
Like he's intentionally beginning to step back from involving himself with you.
It wasn't always like this—before, he was as open and close with you as he could be.
Even his sisters didn't know some of the things he'd share with you.
However, now...
You went to see him after his shift?
Sorry, he was invited to a function with some other nobles. Can't disappoint his family, now, can he?
You were at his greenhouse helping take care of his flowers (and waiting for him in the process)?
He would try to tactfully avoid the space until he was sure you were gone.
And really?
It started to hurt.
"Gepard, you're being ridiculous."
"Hardly, Serval. If you thought about it from my perspective—"
"Geppie! Hey, Gepard!"
Your familiar voice rang in the Landau siblings' ears.
As much as Gepard wanted to whip his head around and rush over to you, ask about your day and see what you've been up to, he instead turned away.
He began to speed walk in the opposite direction, making a beeline for Serval's workshop.
And only his elder sister bore witness to the way your facial expression crumpled.
Serval tried her best to give you an apologetic glance, clasping her hands together as if to say, 'I'm going to figure this out for you!' before chasing after her brother.
"What was that?!"
"I already told you—"
"Gepard Landau."
The blonde stopped in his tracks, wincing at the use of his full name.
He turned to his sister's fiery expression, trying his best not to back down, but it was frightening—Serval could be scary when mad, and she was your friend, after all. There's no way she wouldn't be up in arms.
"I don't care about your crap excuses anymore! Y/N is clearly hurt by what you're doing, ditching them everywhere, avoiding them... They're going to be more hurt by this than any danger you could put them in! For Aeon's sake, it's not like they've ever followed you to the front lines!"
Gepard knew Serval was right. She usually was.
But if the Supreme Guardian could be lost to the Fragmentum... even if it was contained...
Gepard also knew his worries were groundless.
However, what he was most scared of was caring for you too much, only to have you taken away by an accident.
Or coming to find out that you felt the same way (truly, deep down, he already knew you did) only for something to make you dislike him.
Ironically, the thing he feared most was more likely to come to pass by his current actions.
Serval only sighed at her brother's conflicted face, rubbing her temple.
"Oh, my aching head... Just go to them, would you? Talk it out! I'm tired of seeing Y/N sad, and I'm tired of seeing you being a mope!"
"But I—"
"No buts!"
Before he could protest further, his sister had promptly shoved him right out of the front door of the workshop... directly in front of your waiting figure.
"A-Ah, Gepp- I mean, Gepard—" you stumbled over your words a bit, having expected the man before you to have hidden out in the workshop and for Serval to have greeted you instead. "Sorry, sorry, um, I'll get out of your way—"
"No, n-no, wait—" Gepard stammered himself, both of your cheeks slowly turning pink at the awkward contact. You glanced up at him at that, acknowledging the first words he'd really spoken to you in quite some time.
"Um..."
You both spoke at the same time, which only worsened your collective anxiety.
"Oh, you go first—"
"Ah, sorry, go ahead—"
You stopped at that, as did Gepard, and then, you slowly began to giggle. The blonde smiled fondly at that, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
"Really, I insist you go first."
"Okay..." You took a deep breath, fiddling your fingers as the mood soured somewhat again. "I was just... wondering if I did anything to upset you, or..."
"Never!" You jumped at the loud response, staring at the man as he cleared his throat, looking about ready to run for his life (and dignity). "You haven't, um, done anything of the sort."
"Right..." You stared a bit longer. "Then, why do you keep avoiding me? Do you just not want to be around me any more?"
"That's not it either! I just... um, listen, Y/N... to tell you the truth—"
"Good lord!"
Serval slammed the workshop door open, glaring at your duo with ferocity. It sent Gepard barreling into you, the blonde man catching you in his arms just in time to prevent your fall. You both stared up at the eldest Landau with wide eyes.
"He likes you, and you like him, so quit umming and ahhing outside of my workshop! Go on a date! I have a show tonight, so go!" The woman wasn't truly angry, but... she was definitely exasperated.
As she shut the door and stomped back inside, you could hear her muffled voice.
"So obvious! It's so embarrassing!"
Silence settled over the space, and then, you broke out into a slight giggle.
Gepard smiled soon after, chuckling a bit as the two of you began laughing more and more at his sister's loss of patience.
"S-She meant it?" you asked through tearful laughter, "Y-You actually..."
"Yeah," the man stammered a bit, his own chuckles subsiding as he tried to contain his embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry, Y/N. I just didn't know... if you felt the same, or if... I don't know, I was being stupid—"
You gave him a small smile, reaching down to clutch his hand tightly in your own.
"Yeah, you were. Next time, just talk to me."
"...Gladly."
"Now, about that date... Your treat?"
"I suppose that's only fair, considering how rude I was to you..."
"That's right! And I'll never let you live it down!"
#katze's cat cafe#katze's cat baret#katze's 500 follower special#gepard x reader#gepard landau x reader#gepard#gepard landau#hsr x reader#honkai x reader#hsr#honkai#honkai star rail x reader#honkai star rail
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Can i have prompt #6 with Benedict Bridgerton?
A/N - I do like this request! Thanks for requesting this, my friend!
Funny Thing
Summary - Beneditc's childhood crush comes back, and Eloise calls him out because of it
Warnings - Just some fluff
“Benedict, we need to discuss this nonsense,”
“It’s not nonsense, sister, I wish not to discuss it any further,”
“Truth be told, your own scowl and bitter energy must be addressed before our guests are to arrive,”
That made Benedict look up from his sketch pad, seeing his younger sister with her book in hand waltz over to plop down on the chair next to his own in their sitting room. He saw the smirk she was giving him, to which he snapped his sketchbook shut and stuck the pencil in the back of his ear as Eloise spoke up again with the smirk even heard in her voice.
“Tell me, dear brother, when was the last time we spoke to the Hamptons?” She asked Benedict, who was thinking to himself for a long moment. It has been some time since the Hampton family has had relations with the Bridgerton, given the fact that they had to move away with their father’s new business opportunities that were on the other side of the country. In fact, the Bridgertons and the Hamptons grew up as neighbors, their parents were cordial with one another, and the children played together. The Hamptons had 4 children, 2 boys and 2 girls. You, being the youngest girl and the third eldest, was close in age with Benedict and was more of a tomboy and willing to get dirty compared to your elder sister. Nonetheless, your childhood as neighbors and childhood friends was amazing and filled with laughter.
Benedict, like the rest of his siblings, felt his heartbreak when you and your family had to move away. He was almost a teenager at the time, already developing feelings for you around the same time your father shared the news with his own father about his new job. He thought of you as someone filled with adventure, not wishing to be the dainty flower that your mother wanted you to be, and you were never afraid to speak your mind. Holding back was never your nature, and Benedict found that enduring and perhaps attractive.
But as time went on, he found other girls and young women to fan the flame that was deep inside of him. But one afternoon, reading the paper in the social section merely because he was bored and looking at future galleries and upcoming events, he recognized a name.
Your family name. You all were coming back to your old stomping grounds for a few balls.
“Back when we were teens,” He replied, Eloise grinning as Benedtic shrugged, “You were far too young remember them,”
“Oh, I remember them far too well, especially the certain young daughter who made you trip over your own feet and fall face first in the mud,” Eloise reminded him, Benedict instantly throwing the pillow that his elbow was perched out in her direction. Thankfully, she ducked it just in time as she laughed, Benedict huffed and shot up from the couch, moving over to place his sketchbook on the mantel as Eloise spoke again.
“Benedict, we all knew you liked her,” She explained as Benedict scoffed.
“I never liked her in such a manner, merely as a friend,” He reasoned, though his sister was not buying it for one moment.
“Denial is not an attractive trait, Benedict. I should now, being the reader and all,” She advised him as he looked over his shoulder and glared at her, “Come now, I’ve heard she has taken to the arts and is quite good at identifying an original masterpiece and a fake. Being in a male-dominated field, I must say that is quite amazing and an eminence feet to conquer at one’s age.”
“I don’t wish to discuss it anymore,” Benedict said in a scoff, though Eloise eyed him in suspicion.
“Sounds like someone is still horning some pent-up feelings—“
“I do not want to see their face, hear their voice or their name for that matter. Stop talking about them,” Benedict said in a warning tone, but there was no real heat in it. He was defensive of course, merely because he had no clue as to how he was going to act in front of his old childhood friend and old crush. He merely never had someone as close to his heart as you, no one who seemed to know Benedict deeply and with affection. Other women tried to come close, and although the pleasure was amazing at the time, he still never felt that kind of affection when he did with you.
“Denial is a funny thing, brother. But it won’t last forever,” Eloise advised him calmly. Benedict could hear the sincerity in his sister’s tone, knowing that Eloise would never steer him wrong since she admired him as her older brother. As much as a pain that she was, Eloise still had pearls of wisdom that she would bring to her family in times of need. Maybe she sensed that he was using denial to hide the fact that he was nervous about seeing you, and she saw right through it.
Bless her.
“Ah, there you two are!” Benedict and Eloise looked over to see their mother and Matriarch, Violet Bridgerton, waltz into the room with two people behind her. Benedict knew it was the Hamptons, both himself and Eloise stood tall in greeting as your mother and father smiled at the two siblings, “I must have missed the pair of you. Our guests have arrived,”
Both Benedict and Eloise walked over to bow and shake hands with your parents, who smiled widely in greeting.
“I hope your travels were in your favor, Sir Hampton,” Benedict said to your father.
“Quite pleasant, actually. My wife and I are glad to be back at our stomping grounds,” your father replied, then looking over his shoulder, “You remember my daughter?”
Benedict looked, and his breath was instantly lost.
You were walking down the hallway in a mint green dress and curls in an elegant bun. The highlights in your hair, the softness of your skin with a hint of blush on your cheeks, even the infamous smile that Benedict knew you’d had all your life was etched on your face. You were taller, the twinkle in your eye and your smile as you two locked gazes at one another. No longer was he thinking of the young girl with gangly elbows, the young girl who could outrun him tenfold in a foot race.
He saw you as an ethereal being with the same smile that shined like the stars.
“I do,” Benedict replied in a breath as you approached him, bowing slightly as him as he did the same. When you two locked eyes again, it felt as if you two were young again. But it was different, the smile on Benedict’s face was infectious as he found his voice once more, “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Lady Hampton,”
“The same to you, Mr. Bridgerton,” You replied, Benedict, feeling his heart flutter from hearing your voice.
Eloise merely grinned, hiding her giggling behind her book.
The End.
January Prompt Session
#benedict bridgerton#benedict bridgerton x reader#benedict bridgerton fanfiction#fanfiction#writing#benedict bridgerton angst#benedict bridgeton x female reader#bridgerton#bridgerton fanfiction
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My final Love Like the Galaxy reaccs!!! the tl;dr: I loved it and it's the sort of show that probably demands to be seen twice because TWISTS and HINDSIGHT so IDK, one day maybe! Anyway it's either on Viki or on YouTube for anyone who wants to see what happens when Jane Austen comedy of manners meets The Count of Monte Cristo, but, like, in Ancient China, featuring an epic romance between a naive sledgehammer engineer girl and the terrifying murder general who cannot help looking utterly besotted with her every time she drifts past: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZZZLpfFwcBprNI6msl3NWt3pdX6F-eGs
And now: for the reaccs for episodes 43-56, including the famous Murder Party (TM), check under the cut!!!
If Yang Yang ends up with Smug Scholar instead of her sweet little marquis I WILL throw things (thankfully, the sweet little marquis is getting actual screentime with her)
oh I LOVE this: the Empress apologises to Consort Yue for stealing her husband, and Consort Yue points out that if it's anyone's fault it's the Emperor's, and why should the Empress apologise? it's the little things, you know?!
I love that in amongst all this scowly strategising and betrayal and people's families in mortal danger…there's a whole running joke about whether the armour Niao Niao made her beloved makes him look more like a chicken or a mandarin duck
cdramas asking the real questions
wow they really kept like 90% of the action budget for this episode and money well spent say I
once again murder general is rushing off to save our girl, only this time he guesses precisely where she is and what she's doing, and knows she's probably doing a great job of it :')
GASP we are suspicious of Elder Brother Snacks now???
I've got a bad feeling about him and the crown princess turning out to be bad eggs - almost as though we're building up to a BIG BETRAYAL between our babies
Wan QiQi swaggering into prison in a wedding dress is the energy I aspire to
Hmm… Lou Ben feels very very foreshadowy of an obsessive man making a self destructive choice to grab what he wants no matter how it hurts the woman he loves
All the foreshadowing is REALLY mounting up now - Snacks still caring about NN but not wanting to see her after what she's done, NN observing of another couple that they were birds on the same tree but flew apart when trouble came
Anyway we are all headed for a heck of a third act breakup aren't we
is zisheng,,, allergic to almonds
what an absolutely bonkers twist
poor little Wang Ling! how terrible does her family have to be that she is trying to save her murderous traitor of an elderly husband, just because he treated her better than anyone else in her life?
"he even had a flower garden planted in my courtyard to please me, although he has life-threatening asthma! which means that he can't visit me very often! he's the best husband, Niao Niao!" okay Mrs Charlotte Collins
"Cheng Shaoshang, it seems you really don't know anything about Ling Zisheng" OOOOOOHH
Smug Scholar: a voice of reason. a stickler by the rules. an indefatigable drama queen who is quite ready to beg murder general to go right ahead, be his guest, do crime, because then Smug might get to marry Niao Niao instead
torture is always wrong, revenge kids! that said, it's very funny that murder general has been busy with hot iron and boiling oil all night and found out nothing, while NN has put herself fully abreast of the situation armed with nothing more than…a conversation with a female acquaintance
"wait - all that stuff you did in my name was ALSO in pursuit of your revenge plot? who are you really?" this show keeps serving the best stuff
matching bite marks on the arm is a way cooler idea than matching tattoos tbh
why are you not telling her, zisheng, she already knows!!!
she's sworn up and down (with bitten arms!) that she won't mind, it's keeping this from her that she can't forgive, get a clue!!!!!
ooooo - we have been cordially invited to a MURDER PARTY love the gearchange from Jane Austen Romcom to Jacobean Revenge Tragedy
OK LET'S GO, WHERE'S THAT MURDER PARTY I WAS PROMISED
Glad that we were given this scene of Marquis Chengyang being delusional and Chunyu being Justly Terrified that the young man obsessed with revenge has finally agreed to come to his father's birthday party, it doesn't quite explain how nobody realises this is Very Bad News but at least lampshades it
Since filial piety is the norm in this society, I guess it's hard for the elders to realise just how at risk they are from someone unfilial!
I LOVE that Chunyu (sp? the stepmother) gets a whole speech to point out the hypocrisy of HER continually bearing the blame of "climbing into the master's bed" after so many ppl in the show have ridiculed her for it as though it wasn't a decision made by the marquis
oooooooooooohhh this is amazing: Yang Yang is disturbed that NN's farewell before the wedding sounds like she doesn't ever intend to return home. and from NN's response, she KNOWS murder general is about to do something crazy and is fully prepared to suffer the consequences alongside him
it's…really amazing that during the stretch of the cdrama when the male lead traditionally starts Machinating and Scheming and lying to the female lead about it, THIS show keeps the heroine's agency intact, she sees right through his lies, she is still front and centre. Chef's kiss.
she knows where it's happening; she knowns when it's happening; she's sending someone for news. she's amazing and so are these writers.
meanwhile: murder general refusing to enlighten the marquis as to his true identity is Irene of Athens-level pettiness and I love it
the way this show keeps this whole episode focused on the story's main character even though she has little to do with -
oh wait never mind she has decided to involve herself anyway!!! now we get the entire Cheng family charging into battle? with NN at their head on a black horse? EPIC?????
well THAT was the best of Jacobean revenge tragedy
shocked to discover that Zisheng has Always Known who was really behind the fall of the lone city - he's just been quietly, methodically working through the destruction of all the perpetrators, COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO style
I love a protagonist who holds cards so close to his chest that not even the audience knows what's going on
more than that, it really adds nuance to the show's themes about revenge. Sometimes the system is broken, & even in a good system people will sometimes get away with murder. What to do then?
I can't support the vindictiveness of the leads (& I'm not sure I'm meant to) but as revenge plots go, I like the weightiness of the themes - how to fight for yourself in a world where laws and manners tell you you shouldn't? - better than Dumas' more superficial take.
where did these two henchmen come from, because they are NOT being paid enough to be part of this absolute disaster
also WHEE Niao Niao gets to swoop in and save HIM for once! Well done our girl!
oh what an idiot. what an absolute peanut.
I was pulling for you, murder general, but I'm not sure how you'll manage to come back from doing the One Thing (abandoning her) she asked you not to do
she's still calling him by his false name T_T
something something she only ever knew him by his false name and identity not his true one
moment of silence, please, I'm experiencing an emotion
well, duh - of COURSE Third Prince is here to collect NN to go help him plead for murder general, who has obviously been quietly helping him all along. even better: we don't know if NN is just figuring this out now or has known it for months but she understands it perfectly, just like we do, the moment she sees Third Prince's face
!!! murder general has been deceiving everyone in so many other ways too???????
it's not just that he knew all along who was responsible for the lone city's fall and has just been working silently to gather evidence on them: he ALSO has been playing four dimensional speed chess with palace politics, supporting a totally different faction to the one he was supposed to be aligned with?
IT WAS HIM IN THE PAGODA ALL ALONG????
I just love the sort of character who plays certain things SO close to the chest while also being utterly open and vulnerable about certain other things. like, as long as we trust their judgement for hiding the certain things and know it's not for purposes of control. and while NN does interpret his secretiveness as control, due to her upbringing, it's also easy in hindsight to see things from zisheng's POV: he is playing not one but several high stakes political games, treading a tightrope between the prince he is supposed to be supporting versus the prince who would clearly be a better choice, and now suddenly thrown into the middle of all this is a naive and well-meaning sledgehammer fiancee who is an absolute force of nature but who is not yet quite insightful enough to see and understand where the deep waters run; she's simply driven by personal loyalty to protect her empress' son. and she keeps forcing choices on him: protect her, or serve the Third Prince? and he makes tremendous sacrifices, as with the Tiger Tally, to save both of them. so is he going to take the risk and tell her and trust in her, or is he going to keep her in the dark just about this, until the game is over (it's so close to being over) and he can be as candid about these things as he can be about everything else?
but at the same time, he was so frustrated with her for not being candid with him, for not telling him when the mean girls tried to KILL her, for lying to him about choosing to help the crown prince - he should have known better than to reproach her about this when he was doing exactly the same things to her all along.
I love that the show just doesn't support him in this. for two people who both say they want to work as a team, these two both spend an awful lot of time keeping things from each other. and it's only after going away and thinking about it that I start to see his side of the story at all, because she is so totally front-and-centred in the way the story is told.
oh wow - now she gets a whole speech and thesis statement about how just because she's a woman she shouldn't be shut out of her husband's confidence, and ends: "Ling Buyi is my most beloved person in the world. But I am still me."
I love this show so much
It's really wild that murder general, who everyone knows went on a murderous rampage to kill the entire Ling clan, goes from being condemned to death to the apple of the emperor's eye based on his surname changing
no doubt it's historically accurate and murder uncle, at least, deserved it - but for me it's just another sign of how irretrievably this system is broken, that bloodline so clearly outweighs right and wrong.
I'll be chewing over the question of whether this last-minute aversion of filial impiety ("it's ok! he was doing it to avenge his REAL father!") undermines NN's previous point about the right to filial reverence depends on a parent's conduct, or whether it's an author's saving throw to secure a HEA
"but I can never forgive him for abandoning me - he even swore it was for my sake" aha! How To Critique The Break Her Heart To Save Her Trope (Without Actually Using The Trope??????) this show didn't HAVE to hunt down and kill every bad Asian drama romance trope like this but is that stopping it? no
Empress telling NN that whatever decision she makes, she will support her in - hits like a punch because the only person who's told her this till now is murder general. On the other hand it is comforting, and underlines the themes of NN being a whole person without him, bc she still has love and support!
as an aside, I also like how the show has handled NN's terrible parents. by the end of the show, she's fought for, and won, their respect and support, & has come to understand the pressures they are under. but she will never love them the way she loves the Empress, bc they haven't earned that love. I feel this consolidates the filial piety critique.
we finally get to hear murder general's side of the story - and it's fascinating to hear him say that he failed. he did everything to bring ling yi to justice - and couldn't. the murder party was his failure.
I'm finding the murder party less problematic at this point than the Censorate beating
whoah, the empress is sailing in to admit that she spoiled her children until they were useless, so she's not upset about the crown prince being demoted? seems a rather unfortunate theme if children are only ever bad because of bad parenting
NN still taking absolutely no prisoners in the romance, though: "oh, I understand you perfectly. the problem is that you never understood ME" that's quite a burn
The Empress is now requesting to be deposed, and it's a complicated scene - is she blaming herself, or voicing regrets? I think she's regretting not fighting for herself: as she points out, her accepting a menage a trois has not spoiled Consort Yue's life so much as it has spoiled her own chance at love.
while the show has sometimes been finger-wagging, it's saved here bc she also blames the Emperor for going along with the flow, too, and tamely accepting a three-way marriage.
meanwhile at home, everyone's like "Niao Niao is so mature now!" and I'm sitting here like NO SHE'S NOT, SHE'S HAD ALL THE HAPPINESS CRUSHED OUT OF HER and…….along comes Not-Quite-So-Bad-Mum to say that precise thing, and confess to having been wrong all along???? This show just keeps hitting.
Love that NN's 3rd brother is completely on her side at this moment. he understands the assignment ("break up with murder general and send him away with a flea in his ear") and executes it with prejudice.
oh…mum has repented too late. I'm not sorry for her, but I AM sorry for the way NN chooses to spend the next forever - when there were so many things she wanted to see and do!
and now: five years' worth of mutual pining in excruciatingly aesthetic slomo, thank you
meanwhile everyone in the Cheng family is getting married? Yang Yang is getting married? Mum's warrior maid is getting married? Good for you warrior maid!
Smug Scholar, otoh, has remained UNmarried for our girl, and I actually love the choice he's presenting her - NN doesn't much care who she marries if it's a business arrangement; she just won't marry the man she loves knowing he was willing to lie to her and abandon her
is it really weird that I suddenly want to write the story about the coldly pragmatic fake marriage of convenience between NN and Smug Scholar
!!!! she IS going to get engaged to him??? murder general is going to come back from five years of picturesquely scruffy suffering to find her engaged to Smug Scholar??!?!?!!!??!
oh this will be GOOD
"thanks, but I can ride without stirrups these days" I love that this show is allowing the heroine to establish a life of her own apart from the hero - they have to be complete on their own before they can be good for each other.
and now: a break from reality for an absolutely bonkers carriage chase, which, because this is a cdrama, comes complete with one of the parties trying to extort a proposal of marriage from the person chasing them
I swear this is the third time this exact same cliff has cropped up in this show, one would think that people would know better than to gallop madly down the DEAD END CLIFF ROAD
Empress pays her last respects to the emperor: "I know that if it wasn't for Emperor Li's tyranny you would have asked nothing more than to live a simple life" LIESSSS this man requires a constant stream of drama to live, how would he have survived as a gentleman farmer?
"if you are truly filial, don't exchange your life for mine. Live well." while this show has come down in the end in favour of filial piety, I think that for the most part it keeps filial piety where it belongs: subordinate to ethics - and that's something I can get behind.
With NN decided that murder general is not the man for her and murder general determined to accept her decision, I really don't see how this will get believably sorted out in the next…3 eps. Bc she's absolutely right, he had his chance and he blew it. That said, I was really worried the show would blame her for being unreasonable, but only the recent antagonist has done that
even NN's mother is now telling him: we don't need you to perform guilt for us, we also had our chance with NN and blew it, now we can only defer to her conscience AND YOU SHOULD TOO
so, I guess we're headed for an "undeserved grace" ending, and I hope they make it a convincing one and not cheap, bc it's too late to show him doing any work to prove his repentance.
oh I love this scene: she tells him she forgives him but cannot trust him, and he without defending himself, vows to live well and take care of himself (because quietly protecting the people she cares about is the one last thing he can do for her)
and he won't ever tell her that he's been doing this because he knows it would only make her despise him more!!!
time for the bad family to apologise, the grandmother in particular for trying to control her children, and Niao Niao to decide no longer to carry resentment, but to dwell on the people who love her instead
I love that the themes have largely to do with resisting control, even when it's from family members, and fighting for yourself. Even more, I love that the highest expression of this theme comes in the trust there's supposed to be between husband and wife. Sometimes, lack of communication IS an attempt at control - although on thinking it over I'm not sure it always has been that on murder general's side. but if there's one thing the past five years must have taught him, it's that he's going to have to be be particularly open with this particular woman, because her family HAS tried so hard to be controlling in the past, and she can't take even the appearance of it from him.
somehow, yet another of NN's old enemies has an overly complicated plan to kill her sigh
loving how murder general jumps into this trap and promptly becomes useless and it's time for the lil henchmen to save the day
stop shouting his name and figure out how to open the trapdoors Niao Niao, smoke inhalation is no joke
murder general looks amazing for someone who was just blown up
TEARFUL RECONCILIATION SCENE
ahaha Snacks has fallen in love with his wife, we love to see it
Smug Scholar, meanwhile (exact words): are you all done flaunting your love?
EXPLODING PICKLES
flailing I love it NN is deploying her secret weapon….the family Cheng
"you can't be in two places at once, General!"
maybe not, but wifey and he can
"i'd like to see who interferes with my best granddaughter's marriage!"
*smash cut to the emperor having a hissyfit because he can't interfere with the marriage *
it's over? pokes couch cushions for spare episodes
OK I LOVED that murder general's grand gesture in the final ep comes in the form of a dilemma. should he go rescue his beloved as everyone is telling him - or should he stay on task, submit to everyone's ridicule for not protecting his woman, and risk her thinking he's abandoned her again?
his answer shows that at last, he has come to truly understand her (five years after she told him he'd never understood her). it's not physical abandonment she truly fears. what she fears is not being trusted & allowed to act as his equal. So he leaves her to protect Guo village while he stays on HIS task. His grand gesture, after so many rescues, is not to rescue her at all.
SCREAMING at that moment when Third Prince is like, seriously, mate, you'd better not abandon her! she needs help!!! go on I'll be fine!! and Zisheng VISIBLY WAVERS and then pulls himself together and shouts GUO VILLAGE HAS NIAO NIAO! GUO VILLAGE WILL BE FINE!!!
since the root of the contention between them was always him not treating her as an equal, this is probably the best proof of change we could get in the screentime. and the show is very insistent to tell us that if NN bends to take him back, it's because it's what SHE wants, not bc she can't survive without him.
the show does give her that moment of fright during the explosion to rush her past her abandonment issues, but since the real issue was always about control, I can make my peace with it. Similarly, she taught him a 5-year lesson about not consulting her. He knows - & her family makes it explicit - that he can never pull something like this again.
final overall thoughts: I have rarely seen such a well done romance in Asian drama, especially cdrama. The show was long & got repetitive, especially in the 2nd half, even though it had some of my favourite stretches as NN starts fighting for respect & equality within her marriage.
The themes about family, state, and fighting for oneself got fingerwaggy at a lot of points, many side characters were brutally humiliated and many of the numerous female characters became nonsensically villainous just to give NN antagonists. So, I would say the show is quite flawed.
that said, what this show does well, it does SO WELL. I was absolutely invested in this romance to an extent that is very rare for me. I was delighted by the way the show critiques asian romance tropes, there's a wonderful Dumas-level revenge plot, the fight scenes while rare are terrific, the show remains laser focused on its female protagonist all the way to the end, and if you are not delighted by the utterly besotted looks murder general serves up five times per episode, I don't know what to do with you.
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Daydrinking to Drown Out the Pain
Read on ao3!
Special thank you to @elder-flower for beta-ing <3
The lad in the loud Hawaiian shirt tapped his chin thoughtfully while looking at the drinks menu behind the bar. Then his big blue gaze switched so that it was directed at Geralt, who took that as his cue to ask, “What can I get you?” like any good bartender would.
Despite all the time he’d spent pondering the menu, the boy did not order. Instead he let out a long sigh. “My ex got engaged today,” he said. “To my other ex. Give me something that’ll fuck me up.”
Geralt did a double take. The customer didn’t even look old enough to be drinking, much less to have more than one ex who he’d been broken up with long enough that they’d moved on so thoroughly.
“High school sweethearts?” he asked doubtfully, his hands automatically pulling a glass from behind the counter.
The man chuckled. “Oh no, university actually. Here, let me help you out.” He presented his ID with a flourish under Geralt’s raised eyebrows. “I know,” his tone was self-deprecating, “babyface.”
“Hm.” Geralt looked the ID over. It certainly seemed legit, facing horizontally and everything. Apparently the man’s name was Julian and he was twenty-three. He handed the ID back to its owner and very carefully did not react when their fingers brushed. “How's a Long Island iced tea?”
Normally Geralt wouldn’t give two shits past getting a customer their drink but well, Julian was dressed nicely enough that he would probably give a healthy tip to a listening ear. He reeked of that very special “willing to toss money at whatever makes me feel better” air. And it was late afternoon, before the evening rush so it’s not like he had much else to do. At least that’s what Geralt told himself, when he sidled down the bar to give the man his drink and then stayed. He had no idea how to start the conversation but luckily Julian needed no prodding.
“It’s just like, I don’t even care that much!” he burst out, before taking a dejected sip of his drink.
“But you’re drinking about it,” Geralt pointed out. Shit, maybe that wasn’t sympathetic enough.
Luckily Julian didn’t seem to mind his bluntness. He gave a bitter smile. “Yes well, it makes for a compelling narrative, don’t you think?” He took another long sip, the drink already half gone. “It’s not about the people- I mean, it’s a little about the people. Valdo and Virginia are both awful and they deserve each other. I hope they’ll be absolutely miserable together.”
Geralt wasn’t quite sure what to respond. He settled on, “Sounds like you need to stop getting involved with people whose names start with V.”
Julian gave a surprised laugh like he’d actually found that funny. “I do, don’t I? Anyways yeah, it’s not like I’m jealous or hung up on either of them, it’s just- just-”
“They have someone and you don’t?” Geralt guessed.
“Yes!” Julian exclaimed. Angry sip. “I cannot fucking believe two such miserable bats have gone and decided to get hitched when neither of them could bear to commit to me after a year long relationship each. I mean I dodged a bullet there obviously. Me, married at twenty three? What a laugh. But still, they’re together and they had the gall to invite me to their engagement party and I’m here . . .”
“Drinking alone in a bar,” Geralt finished.
“Precisely.” Julian drained the rest of his drink. “I’m sorry, you must think me quite pathetic. I swear I usually drink with friends, it's just that they’re all at an engagement party this evening.”
Geralt frowned. “Doesn’t seem like they’re very good friends.”
Julian gave a choked laugh. “Oh no it’s me, I’m the problem. I act absolutely cordial with Valdo and Virginia so no one suspects a thing. Didn’t want to wreck the group. They’re not bad people, just very bad partners, you know? My friends wouldn’t let me daydrink alone if they knew, but I took the coward's way out, claimed I had prior plans.”
Geralt knew a thing or two about fudging the truth to get out of unwanted interactions. He’d done it countless times to get out of Yen’s fancy dinner parties.
“You still deserve support,” Geralt said, as gently as he could.
“Of course I do!” Julian exclaimed. “And luckily I have you- oh shit I’m so sorry I’ve been prattling on and on and I haven’t even asked your name, so rude of me, sorry-”
“Geralt,” Geralt interrupted. “My name’s Geralt.”
“Yes good, Geralt, the world's kindest hottest bartender.” Julian swayed on the barstool. “Oh bollocks, I drank that rather quickly didn’t I? I’m afraid it’s all hitting at once.”
Geralt grunted, hoping his blush wasn’t too noticeable as he poured Julian a glass of ice water. “Here, should help.”
Endearingly, Julian pressed the cool mason jar to his forehead before taking a drink. “Geralt,” he said thoughtfully, tracing his fingers through the condensation along the sides of the glass, “doesn’t start with a V.”
Geralt wished he knew how to respond. Instead he found himself considering Julian’s flushed cheeks and slightly glazed eyes. It was a pretty face really, with some stubble would probably even be considered handsome. Pretty-handsome people with bright eyes were just Geralt’s type, godsdamnit.
“Say,” a sly smile quirked Julian’s lips, “You wouldn’t happen to be single and into men, would you?”
Well that was much more forward than Geralt was used to. His lips parted. Nothing came out. He tried again. “Um. I.”
Julian groaned before Geralt could actually say anything of substance. “Gods! I am so sorry that was insanely inappropriate, please forget I said anything. I swear I don’t usually harass people in their workplaces. Or at all!”
“It’s fine,” Geralt finally managed. “I. Hm. My brothers will be here to take over my shift in an hour. You can stay here, sober up ‘til I’m finished. Can’t take you home if you’re intoxicated. If you’re still interested by then,” he added. “Or if you just wanted to talk more, we can . . . talk.”
The way Julian was beaming at him made Geralt want to hide, but also stare until his eyes dried out. “Only if you’re sure.”
Geralt shrugged. “Would’ve told you to fuck off if I wanted to.”
Julian’s smile grew wider. “Of that I have no doubt! Anyways, let me close out my tab. Water only while I wait! I can still sit up here and complain to you in between customers though, right? Because darling I have so much to say.”
Julian did in fact tip very well, but even if he hadn’t Geralt would have been utterly content to listen to him prattle on about idiots getting married young these days and why did people even still do marriage? Honestly no one had the right to sound so good while endlessly complaining.
By the time Eskel and Lambert came in for the always busy evening shift, Geralt was entirely familiar with the cadence of Julian’s voice. It wasn’t grating like most over-talkative people, in fact it was rather soothing. As he approached Julian around the other side of the bar, finally ready to leave, it was gratifying to see him slide off his barstool with an eager smile. Geralt found himself quite looking forward to hearing what kinds of things Julian had to say to him once they were alone.
#the witcher#twn#witcher fanfiction#geralt x jaskier#geralt of rivia#geraskier#geraskier fic#Jaskier
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nature is so wonderful and generous and amazing. i have neglected my garden this year due to the horrors etc. and yet:
the strawberry patch is overflowing with delicious berries despite being covered in weeds
jerusalem artichokes sprouted from leftovers in the patch from last year will soon grow above my head
apples. so many apples coming along
cherries dropping from the tree faster than i can eat them
elder growing from nothing to the size of a small shed, providing flowers for cordial and soon elderberries too
always some kind of flower or bush blooming somewhere (i am VIBRATING for the lavenders they are NEARLY there and the bees love them)
we'll have lots of plums soon too despite those trees being ancient
even the plants considered weeds are beautiful like?? and/or you can eat them!!
moss
mother nature i love you and all you do for us <3
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The Viscount Who Loved Me {Six}
TVWLM Masterlist
An A Court of Thorns and Roses fanfiction, inspired by the first 2 seasons of Bridgerton.
Written alongside @snelbz
Ships: Nesta x Cassian x Elain (I said what I said) Feyre x Rhysand Elain x Azriel x Gwyn
Summary:
As the season begins, a new Diamond is named. She catches the eye of a prince whose feelings remain unrequited. However, the man who catches the eye of the Diamond remains off the market, refusing to get married as a jab to his late father. Meanwhile, the Diamond of the Season’s sisters have found themselves in a bit of a quandary. The elder is pushing the younger to get married to help her move on from the horrid disaster that happened last season, but in the process, the elder catches the eye of the younger’s match, even though she is considered to be an old maid and far past her time to be wed at the age of six and twenty. As they say, all is fair in love and war.
A/N: Let us know what you think!
Tag list is at the end. If you’d like to be added, please comment below or submit an ask. :)
My lovely readers,
I love a Saturday promenade, don't you? It is simply quite lovely to see the people of the Ton out and about, engaging in conversation without the stress and expectations of a ball.
Everyone seems a bit more relaxed as they walk by the Sidra. A little too relaxed, even. It is the perfect place to dwell in a healthy dose of scandal. You may not be within the confines of a ballroom, but do keep your wits about you.
If not, I'll see it.
Yours Truly,
The Suriel
<.>
As the door of the expansive Archeron manor swung open, Cassian wasn’t surprised that their father was known as the Prince of Merchants. The home was so massive that he was sure that if the stoic doorman hadn’t been leading him to the sitting room, he was certain he would have gotten lost down one of the many hallways and stairwells he passed.
As they paused before a set of double doors, Cassian looked down at the bouquet in his hands. Crocuses and peonies and lilies and lilacs and violets. He wasn’t able to tell which flowers were which, but he’d asked the florist for the most beautiful flowers in bloom and he felt that the man had fulfilled his request.
The doorman stepped into the room, announcing, “Miss Elain, you have a visitor.”
He took that as his queue to enter and stepped around the balding man.
“Lord Nazari,” Elain said, smiling brightly, setting the stitching aside she’d been working on and standing to greet him.
He returned her smile, extending the flowers towards her. “For you. Not nearly as lovely as you, but nothing is comparable to your beauty.”
Elain blushed, but the legs of a chair scraped across the floor and he looked over to find Nesta standing. There was a book lying open, face down on the table in front of her, next to a cup of tea.
“Lord Nazari,” Nesta said, voice cold, even as she greeted him.
“Cassian, please,” he said, looking from Nesta to Elain. “Lord Cassian, anyway, if you must. I’ve never been too fond of using my surname.”
“Lord Cassian,” Elain said, smile softening as she took the flowers from his outstretched hand. “These are lovely, my lord. Thank you.”
She handed them to a maid to put in water.
“You are welcome,” he said, then turned to Nesta. “Miss Archeron, lovely to see you as always.”
Nesta didn’t return the compliment. “Shall we be going?”
“Of course,” Cassian replied, cordially. “Whenever Miss Elain is ready.”
“Will Feyre be joining us?” Elain asked, looking at Nesta.
Nesta’s lips formed a thin line. “Yes, she says she’ll be waiting for us in the foyer. She was painting and had to clean up.”
“She paints? And you garden,” Cassian said, nodding toward Elain. “What is it that you do, Miss Archeron?”
“Nesta is an avid reader,” Elain said, cutting Nesta’s snide remark off. “It often leaves her antisocial, but she seems to enjoy it.”
“Nothing wrong with losing yourself in a good book,” Cassian said, nodding to the one she’d left on the table. “Just as long as you remember how to find the way back to yourself when it’s done.”
He offered his arm to Elain and she led him back to the foyer, where Feyre waited for them. Nesta blinked after them, not sure what she’d been expecting to have to say about her reading, but certainly not…that.
As if he saw through her, saw the reason she loved to read so much. To escape the life she was shackled to. Swiping her gloves off the table, she hurried after them, hearing voices from the foyer. Not just Feyre, Cassian and Elain, but a fourth voice. Another male voice.
As she reached the top of the stairs, she found her sisters and Cassian engaged with conversation with Prince Tamlin. She bowed when she reached the bottom of the stairs. “Your Highness, we weren’t expecting you.”
He nodded his greeting to Nesta, but addressed Feyre as he said, “I was on my way for a walk by the Sidra and thought to invite Miss Feyre. It was a happy coincidence that you all are leaving for your own promenade. I was hoping to join you.”
Feyre smiled, but it was Cassian who answered, “Please, Your Highness, it would be a delight.”
Prince Tamlin nodded his thanks and then they were off.
They hopped into their carriages and rode the short distance from the manor to the Sidra. Once they were out, Cassian had Elain’s slim arm looped through his, yet again. Feyre and the prince walked ahead of them, while Nesta made herself comfortable in the back.
Cassian could feel her eyes on him, staring, speculating.
“Lovely weather,” Elain said. “I’ve always admired the Sidra, how the sunshine makes it sparkle.”
“The only thing lovelier is when it’s the starlight reflecting on the water,” Cassian agreed. “Don't you agree, Miss Archeron?”
There was a pause before Nesta’s begrudged, “Yes, my lord.”
“You can see the starlight beautifully at my country home,” Cassian said, smiling down at Elain. “Perhaps you and your sisters will join me there soon?”
“Truly, my lord?” Elain asked, excitement creeping into her tone. “I would like that very much.”
“Then it’s settled, we shall plan a trip at once,” he said, guiding her along the Sidra, smiling and nodding at those he passed. “I am growing fond of you, Miss Elain. I do hope the feeling is mutual.”
“Yes, my lord,” Elain said, brushing a gloved hand along the arm that held hers. “Wouldn’t that be lovely, Nesta? A weekend at his home in the country?”
“That sounds lovely,” Nesta replied, mustering a smile for her sister as she turned around to look at her. “We would love to visit.” The second Elain had turned back around, the second she was smiling up at Cassian once again, Nesta’s bland smile vanished.
She was quiet as she watched and listened to her sisters, but listened closer to the prince and baron. Cassian hadn’t hesitated to take Elain’s arm, which Elain had freely given. Feyre, however, had her hands clasped in front of her. Prince Tamlin either didn’t have the balls to take her arm on her own or Feyre had rejected him, politely, if the smile still on his face was any indication. Nesta’s money was on the latter.
“Ah, Vanserra!” Tamlin called out, waving at a red haired man, just up ahead. He turned towards their group and raised a hand in greeting.
Feyre had to stop the gasp that fought to break free from her lips.
The brutal scar was jagged across his face, reaching from his jaw to his hairline, right over his eye. And one his eyes…
It was solid gold.
But the smile on the face of the man that approached them was not one of pain, humiliation or disgrace. No, he was well aware of the mark maring his tan, handsome face. But he acted as if it did not exist.
“Your Highness,” the man said, bowing as he approached. As he straightened, the prince gripped his arm and pulled him into a friendly embrace.
“It’s good to see you, my friend,” Tamlin said, smiling brightly. He gestured to the man. “This is Lord Lucien Vanserra. He’s a son of Autumn, but has been residing at my palace in Spring with me for the off season. Let me introduce you to my companions.”
One by one, he named them, getting every title and familial reference right. He clearly saved his most important introduction for last.
“And this,” he said, resting his hand on the small of her back, “is Feyre Archeron.”
Lord Lucien Vanserra bowed, his smile bright and genuine. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” When he came back up, he smiled at Elain. “All of you. A lovely day for a promenade, is it not?“
“Quite,” Tamlin agreed. “Care to join us?”
“I’d love to, but I’m here with my mother,” Lucien said, voice gentle.
The light in Tamlin’s eyes dimmed a little as he nodded. “Very well. Will you at least be in town for the remainder of the season?”
“I will,” the auburn-haired gentleman smiled. “I plan to attend the next ball, in fact.”
“Good,” Tamlin beamed, smiling at Feyre and the others. “He’s one of the most graceful dancers I’ve seen.”
“Perhaps we can meet on the dance floor, then,” Feyre said, politely, and Lucien bowed once more.
“It would be an honor, Miss Feyre,” he said, and smiled at Tamlin. “I must bid you good day. Enjoy.”
They said their farewells, and it was Elain who said, “He seems like a lovely gentleman, Your Highness.”
“Indeed,” Tamlin replied, looking over his shoulder at Elain. “His mother has just gotten over a terrible illness. It’s nice to see her out and about.”
Elain’s hand was placed gently over her heart in solidarity, and Nesta couldn’t believe how much she could feel for utter strangers.
Tamlin tried to take Feyre’s arm, yet again.
This time, she let him.
<.>
Rhysand walked with Azriel along the Sidra, and although it was a beautiful day, he had been complaining for a good ten minutes.
“Just go see her,” Azriel said, at last, exasperated. “The sooner you meet with the queen, the sooner she will leave you be.”
“But she’ll want to ask about my considerations for a wife,” Rhysand muttered. “It’s pointless. Besides, she always gets too handsy. Makes my skin crawl.”
Amarantha’s throne was hers by marriage, no matter the fact that her husband was often not present in the palace. And he surely didn’t attend social events. She was far younger than him, had bore him a few heirs and was now free to enjoy herself in whatever ways she wished.
And her eye had been on Rhysand since he stepped into his family’s title.
“Secretly, I think she’s glad you haven’t married yet,” Azriel said, squinting as he gazed out over the Sidra. “As soon as you take a wife, she can no longer get away with those lingering touches.”
Rhysand snorted. “Maybe I should take a wife then, if it’ll get her off my scent.”
It was said in jest, but Azriel hedged. “You really don’t plan to ever marry?”
“I don’t.” His tone was firm, and Azriel knew better than to push him. He knew why.
But he still did it anyway.
“What if you one day find someone who—”
“I won’t,” he replied, voice clipped. “What is it that every pretty girl of the ton yearns for, aside from a husband and money?”
Azriel was quiet as he thought about it. “A family.”
“Exactly,” Rhys said, not looking at his friend as they continued walking. “There will be no children. There will be no family. So there will be no wife.“
Azriel didn’t say anything for a moment. Their steps were quiet, one after the other.
“Rhys-.”
“Can we not talk about it?” Rhysand asked, nudging Azriel in the arm. “It’s a beautiful day, full of-.”
His words dropped off as he looked across the clearing ahead and saw Feyre on the arm of Prince Tamlin. He was laughing, but she was staring at the path ahead, eyes blank.
“You alright?”
Rhysand blinked, looking sideways at Azriel. “Hmm?”
“You’re staring, my lord, and that is impolite,” Azriel crooned.
Rhysand chuckled, crossing his arms as they continued on their walk. “I’m not staring. I would never.”
When he got the nerve to glance back at them again, he found that Feyre Archeron apparently had no qualms with staring.
She was looking right at him.
As soon as their eyes connected, she looked away, turning back to Tamlin, walking beside her. She laughed at something he’d said and placed her free hand on his arm. Rhysand’s focused narrowed in on that hand.
Azriel cleared his throat. “Once again, you’re staring, and I think they may notice this time, seeing as we’re approaching them.”
Rhysand threw his brother a look that promised trouble, but he sighed as they met Tamlin and Feyre on the walkway. A polite smile in place, he bowed to both the prince and the lady. “Your Highness, Miss Feyre.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Azriel do the same. “Lovely day for a walk, isn’t it?”
“Quite,” Tamlin replied. His own smile was tighter than Rhysand’s. “It’s a shame you had to leave Spring so abruptly, your Grace. You did not even inform us you were leaving.”
A tight smile from Rhysand. “My apologies. I had an emergency that I needed to tend to.”
The smile no longer reached his eyes. “Of course. I hope whatever came up in Adriata was easily handled.”
For a moment, the two gentlemen stared at one another in a tense silence. It was Feyre who broke it. “I hear Adriata is lovely, my lord. I’ve never gone.”
Rhysand’s charm returned as his eyes met Feyre’s. “Oh, it is, Miss Feyre. You’ll have to find yourself there one day. Perhaps your husband can take you.”
Feyre’s eyes narrowed but it was so slight that he was certain he was the only one who noticed. “Perhaps he will, whoever my husband will be.”
“You like to travel, Miss Feyre?” Prince Tamlin asked.
“Doesn’t everyone?” Feyre asked, smiling up at him. “My father is so busy traveling for work that we have not had many opportunities to travel for leisure. I would like to one day see the world.”
“The world should see you, Miss Feyre, for you are too lovely to keep hidden in a corner of the world,” Rhysand said, eyes flicking to Tamlin again, whose smile had faltered, his eyes growing hard.
It wasn’t that Rhysand hated Tamlin. He hadn’t known him well, although their paths had crossed on multiple occasions and they had spent many events falling into tense conversation throughout their lives.
Rhysand just didn’t care for the man. At all.
And it seemed the feeling was mutual.
“Your Highness, Your Grace.” A voice distracted them, drawing their eyes to the newcomers. Ianthe Hamadi and her mother approached, a lace parasol perched on her shoulder. Feyre had never understood the practicality of the worthless things when they were made correctly, much less when the fabric did nothing to shield the carrier from the sun.
Ianthe’s golden hair was loose, curling down her back, the headband she wore every day keeping it out of her face. The decorative stones atop it glittered, the largest, blue stone in the center seemed to glow in the sunlight. She was a few years younger than Nesta, though she’d only had her first season the year before. Her mama was the one who had spoken and was the one to continue. “Such a pleasure to see you both. You were both so busy the other night that I didn’t have a chance to approach you.” Tamlin, not aware of the reputation of the two women, smiled at them politely, as any courtier would do.
Rhysand, on the other hand, did.
“Your Highness, may I introduce my daughter, Miss Ianthe Hamadi?”
Ianthe’s teal eyes sparkled as she bowed her head and curtsied low. As she stood, she extended her gloved hand to him.
Tamlin dropped Feyre’s arm and took her hand. Rhysand looked at Feyre, at the slightly raised eyebrow, the only reaction she’d show to her afternoon being interrupted.
After allowing Tamlin to kiss the back of her hand, beaming, she turned to Rhysand. Her mama went on, “And Your Grace, you remember Ianthe?”
That hand was still extended out and Rhysand’s eyes flicked to it. He didn’t move, his own hands still deep within his pockets. “Nice to see you.”
Ianthe slowly lowered her hand, the matching eyes of her and her mama narrowing at the rejection. The air became tense and Azriel, catching the eye of Helion, took that at his cue to quietly make his exit, leaving Rhysand with Feyre, Tamlin, Ianthe, and Lady Hamadi.
Tamlin, ever the courtier, fell into conversation with Ianthe and her mother, leaving Feyre to stare out over the Sidra, fanning herself with the fan in her hands.
“Are you warm?”
Her eyes snapped to Rhysand. “What?”
His eyes left her face, only for a split second before returning. “Your chest… it’s flushed.”
Glancing down, Feyre saw that her chest was indeed tinged with red. Her cheeks and ears were sure to match now, though not from the heat. She wasn’t used to showing so much of her bosom, and cleared her throat, increasing the speed of her fanning. “The sun is rather hot today.”
Rhysand’s cheeks were showing the signs of the heat, thanks to his every day all black attire, but his eyes were…impossibly darker. “Should we find you some shade then, Miss Feyre?”
That look in his eye sent chills down Feyre’s spine. “I assure you, my lord, that I’m perfectly fine where I am.”
Rhysand’s eyes flickered to Tamlin so quickly that Feyre hardly tracked it. “Are you certain?”
Tamlin was laughing at something that Ianthe had said when Feyre replied, “I’m not sure what you’re implying, my lord.”
“You know very well what I’m implying, Feyre darling.”
“Don’t call me that.” The words came out as a whisper but she had hoped they would come out more forcefully than they did.
Rhysand’s grin widened. “I do not wish to offend, Miss Feyre. I only enjoy the way that it sounds.”
It wasn’t only what he said but the tone he had said it in that had Feyre at a loss for words.
She glanced over at Tamlin, to see what he thought of the Viscount’s tone, but he didn’t seem to notice as he looked off at something Lady Hamadi was pointing at across the river, engrossed in their conversation. When she looked back to Rhysand, he had stepped closer. Her breath caught as he leaned in and whispered into her ear, “Where’s your sister, Miss Feye? On a promenade with the Prince without a chaperone? Whatever would The Suriel say?”
Feyre stepped back, snapping her fan closed. She scoffed, “We are surrounded by half of the ton. I do believe if something untoward was taking place, your Grace, then—”
“Rhysand.”
She blinked, not expecting the interruption. “Excuse me, your Grace?”
“My name is Rhysand,” he said, gazing down at her and she thought she very well might combust under the heat of that gaze. “Though I was bestowed a fancy title, it is not all that I am. So please, no more of the bullshit titles. Call me Rhys.”
She hadn’t realized they were so close together until she found herself having to tilt her chin up to look into his eyes. Those exquisite eyes that glimmered like the night sky.
Swallowing, she said, “Your language is horribly filthy, Rhys.”
Rhysand’s lips parted in a sly smile and her eyes tracked the motion as he wet them. Slowly, his eyes dragged to the side, but Feyre kept hers on his face. She took in the strong lines of his jaw, his sculpted cheekbones, and lips that looked softer than they had any right to—
“If you’ll excuse me, Miss Feyre, your Highness, it seems my companion is ready to move on,” Rhysand said, drawing Tamlin’s attention back from Ianthe and her mama. All at once, Tamlin — and Feyre, for that matter — realized how far Feyre had moved from him. He stepped away from Ianthe, closer to Feyre, but she felt none of the heat that she had with Rhysand.
With deliberate slowness, Rhys took Feyre’s hand in his and pressed his lips to the back in a soft kiss. They may have lingered longer than necessary. “Until next time, Feyre Darling.”
At that, Rhysand was walking towards where Azriel waited, a small package tucked under his arm. Fresh charcoal, no doubt.
“Ready?” He asked, clapping a hand on Azriel’s shoulder. “I think a drink is in order.”
Azriel was opening his mouth to reply but before he could get out a word, Rhysand was dragging him away.
He looked back once before they were out of sight only to see Feyre, her arm in Tamlin’s, watching him go.
<.>
“What is this stuff?” Azriel asked, feeling like his words took twice as long to get out of his mouth.
Rhysand chuckled, sipping from his tea.
His special tea, that is.
“Got it in Adriata,” Rhysand replied, simply, his body a little more used to it than Azriel’s. “A beautiful city full of beautiful things.”
“Beautifully immoral things,” Azriel said, but laughter bubbled out of him.
“I’m in love!” Both of their heads whipped around to see Cassian bursting into the room, his hair that was once tied back now a crazed mess. “Elain Archeron shall be my wife. She’s coming to my country home next weekend, which means that you two fools will be joining us, as well, of course.”
Rhysand’s brows shot up and Cassian slumped down in the chair across from Azriel, making a cup of tea for himself. “A weekend with the Archeron sisters? Sounds lovely.”
Azriel was staring blankly at Cassian to the point that Cassian had to ask, “Too much tea?”
“Hmm? No,” Azriel said, words fumbling. The words kept repeating through his mind. My wife. “I just…Elain, Archerons, weekend, yes. Yeah. Sounds lovely.”
“Good,” Cassian said, manners long forgotten as he propped his feet up on the chair beside him, opposite of Rhysand. “What’s that?”
Azriel’s eyes trailed to the envelope sealed beside his tea cup. “Oh, it’s…nothing.”
“It’s his letter from the Academy. He’s too nervous to open it,” Rhysand explained, raising his glass. “Hence the tea.”
Cassian took a healthy drink from his cup before filling it back to the top and setting it next to him. He held out a hand to Azriel. “Give it here.”
Azriel crossed his arms over his chest. “No.”
Laughter bubbled from Rhysand’s lips, having drunk almost twice the tea Azriel had. “You look like a petulant child.”
“It’s my letter,” he said, looking between the two, “and I’ll open it when I’m good and ready.” He nodded his head once to punctuate his sentence.
Rhys just tilted his head to the side and looked at Cassian. Cassian, still gloriously stretched out between the chairs, smirked and raised an eyebrow. Rhysand nodded.
Far quicker than he should have been, Cassian was outbid his chair and snatched the letter up.
“Cass, don’t you dare,” Azriel warned, standing and advancing on him.
“I just want to know,” he replied, popping the wax seal signifying the letter had come from the Velaris Academy of Art. “I promise, I won’t tell you what it says.”
Azriel hesitated. “What- why?”
“Now you want to know what it says?” Rhysand asked, standing between the two of them, hands raised as if one would attack the other.
“I, well…” Azriel shook his head. “Yes! No. I don’t know.”
Cassian laughed, pulling out the letter and tossing the envelope aside, letting it fall to the rug. He unfolded it and began to read, his brows furrowing, lips pursed.
Azriel felt like he was going to puke. “What? Why do you look like that? Why are you reading it like that?”
“Hmm.” Cassian began pacing as he read, and with each theatrical step, he made another sound of interest.
“Just tell me what the bloody thing says!” Azriel yelled, throwing his hands in the air.
Cassian stopped and slowly turned to face Azriel. He folded up the letter and set it gingerly on the table beside him.
Rhysand’s head swiveled between Azriel’s bewildered expression and Cassian’s grim stare.
“Well,” Cassian began, shaking his head as he crossed his broad arms. “Sorry, brother.”
Azriel stopped breathing. His body went slack as Rhysand’s arms fell to his sides. “I didn’t get in.”
“Oh, no,” Cassian said, sighing as his head fell back. “I was talking to Rhys. Sorry, because we’re going to be seeing a lot less of you. A shame for us, truly.”
Azriel blinked, and Rhysand was laughing, once again. “Wait, so I did get accepted? They’re letting me in?”
“You’re enrolled in the summer lessons,” Cassian said, flopping back into his chair and drinking more of his tea. “So it seems that after we return from the country, Rhys will have no choice but to spend time with me and the eligible young ladies of the ton, as you’ll be otherwise engaged with your studies. Maybe he’ll find a wife after all.”
Cuffing Cassian on the back of his head as he returned to his own chair, Rhysand said, “Highly unlikely, but you can futilely keep trying, my friend.” He sat and turned to Azriel, who had picked up the letter and was reading it silently to himself. Once Azriel looked up at him, eyes wide and mouth open, Rhysand said, “Congratulations, Az.”
He averted his eyes and swallowed, clearly trying to hold back whatever emotion this had stirred in him. “Thank you. This is…” His words trailed off and he cleared his throat as he found his own chair again. “Speaking of finding a wife, Rhys, you seemed to be having quite an intimate conversation with Feyre Archeron today.”
Cassian nearly sprayed the drink of tea he’d been taking out of his mouth. “Scandal?” He asked, putting a dramatic hand to his chest.
Shaking his head, Rhys pointed at Azriel. “You’re a busybody.” Leaning back in his chair, he sighed and crossed an ankle over his knee. Looking out the nearby window, he said, “It was not an intimate conversation, I was ensuring she wasn’t overheating in the sun. Prince Tamlin certainly wasn’t going to notice how flushed she was.”
When he looked up at his brothers, they both had looks on their faces that told him they knew he was full of shit.
“We’re not talking about me, we’re talking about Az,” Rhysand said, refilling his cup. “Congratulating Az, actually. This is a huge accomplishment.”
“But Feyre-.”
“Miss Feyre and the Prince are bound to marry and I won’t hear any more on the matter,” Rhysand said, and his tone had the smile fading from Azriel’s mouth. When he looked to Cassian, he was watching Azriel intently, waiting for a reaction.
Azriel slowly set down his cup before sitting back in his chair. “You don’t get to be a prick to us. You can push away the ladies of the ton, but you won’t do the same to us.”
The room was silent, the only sound the clattering of Rhysand’s cup as he gently placed it back on the saucer. Unnervingly gentle.
“This is not some sudden news that I’ve suddenly sprang on you two.” His words were calm, like the sea at night before a storm. “You’ve known for years of my plans. Any delusions you’ve held onto regarding any other course of action is on yourselves.”
The two glanced at each other and then back to their brother. It was Cassian who said, “Rhys—”
“This is not up for debate!” His voice echoed through the study, the shake and rattle of his cup and saucer as he set them on the table by his chair. He stood, looking between them both, Azriel first and then Cassian. “Just because you’ve found a purpose in life and you’ve finally decided to become an honest man does not mean I’m required to do the same.”
Cassian and Azriel watched, waited, their own temperatures rising.
Azriel stood and took a step toward Rhysand. “Your father-”
“My father will not be spoken of in this house,” Rhysand spat. “And you both will do well to remember that.”
Cassian said his name, but Rhysand was walking out of the room. When Cassian said his name again, Rhysand left and slammed the door shut behind him.
For a moment, the room was completely silent. They had pushed him too far, not that it was the first time nor the last. Rhysand was a good man but he was temperamental, especially when it came to his future, or lack thereof.
Slowly and calmly, Azriel sat back down, filled his cup of tea, and opened his letter to read it once more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
@mariamuses @photofeesh @the-regal-warrior @gracie-rosee @irisofink @strawberries-and-reveries @zeppelin-and-unicorns @live-the-fangirl-life @cassianscool @clacings @argentumstella @cuppamelia @chillspritecranberry @emilyrose111294 @awesomelena555 @gengen64 @dontbenddontbreak @blueunoias @liliput2203 @sleeping-and-books @kindofawalkingpoem @thebitchydonutcollector @shedoessoshedoes @cretaceous-therapod @emily-gsh @annie-laur @impossiblehistoryofquotes @midnightrose-reader @beanl1 @shniya-hiiragi @towhateverend87 @deezrmuhsheeple @pintas3107 @sarcasm-is-the-best-insult @santkazoya @lady-winter-sunrise @themoonthestarsthesuriel @story-scribbler @swankii-art-teacher @lordof-bloodshed @sv0430 @dreammoutlouddd @katlady13 @lokisllama @mrspettyferr @missannieshay @live-the-fangirl-life @headinclouds48 @secretlycressdarnel @awesomethreedragons @lokisllama @littlehoneyybee @vicioux @cest-la-vieve
#acotar#acomaf#acowar#acosf#acofas#period au#bridgerton au#nessian#feysand#elriel#elucien#sjm#fanfic#fanfiction
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Food Diary: Week Six
A cheeseburger wrap (ft. Laughing Cow, chopped spring onion & spinach, fried onion, and Carolina Reaper Extra Hot Sauce), Sinfadil, elder-flower cordial, pork chow mien, salt & pepper chicken, two episodes of Bly Manor (OooooooOo), sleep,
Pork chow mien, won ton soup, Doctor Who (Spyfall), Doctor Who (Planet Of The Spiders), Doctor Who (Robot) sleep.
A cheeseburger wrap (ft. cheesy garlic mashed potato, ground black pepper, chopped spring onions & spinach, melted plastic cheese, and Caroline Reaper Extra Hot Sauce), two episodes of Bly Manor (in many ways the actual finale, followed by a sort of Gothic french fancy), peas (with butter & pepper), another cheeseburger wrap (ft. cheesy garlic mashed potato, peas [with butter & pepper], ground black pepper, melted plastic cheese, and Carolina Reaper Extra Hot Sauce), Doctor Who (Robot), Doctor Who (Genesis Of The Daleks), sleep.
Summer Camp Island (nonsense with Yetis, unicorn training, and a total callout of Dyspraxic/ADHD disorganization), a deepfried chicken strip wrap (ft. cheesy garlic mashed potato, chopped spring onions & spinach, salt, ground black pepper, and flatgrilled jalapeno cheese bites), a jumbo battered sausage & curry sauce, some chips, a glass of white wine, several spicy tortilla chips, several slices of white chocolate & raspberry blondie, a can of fruity cider, several Sour Cream & Sweet Chili Kettle Chips, The Great Gatsby (honestly a great adaptation of a terrible story? I might be being overly harsh but I just really dislike all the characters as people, which seldom endears me to a narrative), a cheesy garlic mashed potato wrap (ft. Laughing Cow cheese spread, chopped spring onions & spinach, bacon, ground black pepper, melted plastic cheese, and deepfried chicken strips), sleep.
Medium fries, a McDonalds quarter-pounder with cheese, another a cheesy garlic mashed potato wrap (ft. Laughing Cow cheese spread, chopped spring onions & spinach, bacon, ground black pepper, melted plastic cheese, and deepfried chicken strips), a spare chicken curry, toast (ft. butter), episodes 4-6 of The Nevers (a little over familiar at second rewatch in almost as many weeks but still engaging), sleep.
A handful of of small chocolate coated spiced biscuit things, Dutch pea & ham soup (ft. other veg), buttered toast, a short Youtube video on the historical accuracy of costumes in The Nevers, several episodes of PBS Eons (dinosaurs and sea creatures and mammals and all sorts), two slices of cold pizza (ft. ham and no pineapple), two glasses of J20 Spritz and (red), the final episode of American Crime Story (an intense, character focused finale structured around the interplay between scenes more than big setpiece moments), a battered fish wrap (ft. Laughing Cow, ground black pepper, and salsa), an episode of Brand New Cherry Flavour (ft. basements, betrayals, mystery orifices, hookups with movie stars, a zombie, a tarantula, offscreen ants, and a large dog), sleep.
Several loose ends of bread (toasted with butter & Marmite), some of the Big Finish Eight Doctor audio adventure Zagreus (The doctor is lapsing in and out of being possessed by the eponymous embodiment of AntiTime, who has taken his name from ‘a time lord nursery rhyme’, which leads to a lot of scenes of McGann acting off himself. Charlie is being taken through something something projections based on memories something something, with an avatar of the TARDIS impersonating the Brigadier for... reasons. There are moments of charm but the attempts at surrealism are rather laboured and the whole thing has a four hour runtime, which seems gratuitous by any standard), Doctor Who (Genesis Of The Daleks), two deepfried chicken strip wraps (ft. Laughing Cow, ground black pepper, cheesy garlic mashed potato, bacon, chopped spring onion & spinach, and plastic cheese), Doctor Who (Terror Of The Zygons), peas (ft. butter, salt, and pepper), sleep.
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Legends and myths about trees
Elderflower cordial
Elder (Sambucus nigra, Ref) is one of the most familiar trees and few plants have featured more in folklore and traditional medicine in Europe.
Both the flowers and the berries of elder have a long tradition of culinary use, primarily for cordial and wine. But elderflowers are most valued for the refreshing, summery cordial.
Ederflower cordial is relatively easy to make at home, so here is a simple recipe.
How to make elderflower cordial:
[Ingredients: 1 litre (2 pints) elderflowers, Lemon zest, Granulated sugar, Water, Lemons]
Method
Gather enough elderflower sprays to fill a 1 litre (2 pint) measure when lightly packed.
Shake the flowers to make sure there are no insects hiding inside, but don’t wash them as this can spoil the flavour.
Remove as much of the inflorescence stalk as you can – up to where the main stem meets the smaller stems attached to the flowers.
Cover the elderflowers with water. Add lemon zest (as little or as much as you like). Simmer for 30 minutes. Top up the pan if necessary, to keep the liquid covering the flowers.
Strain the flower-infused liquid through muslin or tea towel, gently squeezing it to extract all the juice. Measure the amount of juice.
Add 350g (12 oz) granulated sugar, and the juice of half a lemon, to each 500ml (1 pint) of liquid. Heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer and skim off any scum. Let the cordial cool.
Pour the liquid through a funnel into clean, sterilised bottles, up to about 1cm below the top. Seal the bottles with swing-top lids, sterilised screw-tops or corks.
Once bottled, the cordial will keep for several weeks in the fridge.
Serve with sparkling water (or still water) for a refreshing drink or add to sparkling wine or champagne for a delicious cocktail.
木にまつわる伝説・神話
エルダーフラワーコーディアル
エルダー (ｾｲﾖｳﾆﾜﾄｺ、参照) は、最も身近な樹木のひとつであり、ヨーロッパの民間伝承や伝統医療でこれほど取り上げられてきた植物は他にない。
エルダー(ｾｲﾖｳﾆﾜﾄｺ) の花も実も、主にコーディアルやワインなど、料理用として長い伝統があるが、エルダーフラワー (ｾｲﾖｳﾆﾄｺの花) は、爽やかで夏らしいコーディアルとして最も重宝されている。
エルダーフラワーコーディアルは、家庭でも比較的簡単に作ることができるので、簡単なレシピをご紹介します。
エルダーフラワー・コーディアルの作り方
[材料: エルダーフラワー、 レモンの皮、グラニュー糖、水、レモン]
1L (2pint) のメジャーが軽く埋まるくらいのエルダーフラワーの花を集める。
花を振って中に虫が隠れていないことを確認するが、風味が損なわれるので洗わないこと。
花序の茎をできるだけ取り除き、主茎と花についている小さな茎の境目まで取り除く。
エルダーフラワーを水で���う。お好みでレモンの皮を加える。30分間煮る。必要に応じて鍋に水を足し、液体が花を覆い続けるようにする。
モスリンかティータオルで濾し、果汁がなくなるまで軽く絞る。果汁の量を量る。
500ml (1pint)の液にグラニュー糖350gとレモン汁半分を加える。軽く加熱して砂糖を溶かす。軽く沸騰させ、アクを取り除く。コーディアルを冷ます。
煮沸消毒した清潔な瓶に、上端から1cmの高さまで液を注ぐ。煮沸消毒したスウィングトップ式の瓶の蓋、スクリュートップ、またはコルクで瓶を密封する。
瓶詰めしたコーディアルは冷蔵庫で数週間保存できる。
炭酸水 (またはミネラルウォーター)で割ると爽やかな飲み物に、スパークリングワインやシャンパンで割ると美味しいカクテルになる。カルピスのように水またはアルコール飲料で薄めて飲む。
#trees#tree legend#tree myth#folklore#elder#elderflower cordial#summer#summery cordial#elderflower cordial recipe#nature#art#herbs
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Please, meet The Lost Girl.
“The Sundrop isn't the Flower, anymore. -- it’s Rapunzel."
Per the earlier recipe on the Sundrop Punch I really did want to develop a thematic drink for Raps, you know, something a little more delicate. When I want to start somewhere, I go to the old reliable formula: The Last Word. From the equal-parts formula of Gin, Green Chartreuse, Maraschino*, and lime we learn a lot about flavor balancing. While equal parts riffs don’t have to stick to the base-herbal/botanical-modifier-acid, its where the most famous come from.
26.13% ABV | Yield: ~4.75 fl oz after shaking | Last Word, Equal Parts, Modern Twist, Themed Cocktail
In a shaker with one large cube and either two smaller or one large cube cracked, add
1oz or 30ml Aquavit
1oz or 30ml Becherovka or Jaegermeister
1oz or 30ml Saint Germain Elderflower Liqueur
1oz or 30ml lemon juice
Give it a nice, firm hard shake so that the large cube aerates the juice and liqueurs while the smaller pieces of ice can provide chilling and dilution. I would say between 8-12 seconds, OR, when you feel the shaker cool significantly to the touch. Strain into preferred glass [this is a Libbey Irish Coffee glass] with a tightly closed gate or even double strain with a fine mesh strainer, and garnish with either a long, thin lemon twist, or a lightly candied lemon peel.
When I made the Oleosaccrum used in the punch, I afterward I put the peels in a low oven to sort of quasi-candy them as a garnish. Well, this particular piece twisted PERFECTLY to garnish the Princess’s drink. Having had much of their oils and water content pulled out and emulsified with the sugar via capillary action and osmosis, the leftover peels are often relatively workable; one could try to shape several so the residual sugar lets them stick when dehydrated and create a flower-like shape as an alternate garnish!
Specifically, I wanted to try the Aquavit as base, much for its restorative symbology, plus I like the caraway, it plays nice with our herbal liqueur: hailing from Karlsbad, Czech Republic, for 200+ years, Becherovka is a iconic example of the frequently overlooked category of bitters and herbal liqueurs that aren’t red Italian or amaro. Jaegermeister has some similarities especially with their woodsy cinnamon base notes and is easier to find in stores. For our modifying liqueur, I had to nod to the Sundrop with Saint Germain, a cordial or liqueur of the elder tree’s blossoms, which at the very least, eldertrees grow all over Europe.
If you’re enjoying these please let me know! I hope to develop one for Eugene, and potentially a couple different drinks for Varian and Cass, Also, i think Max and Pascal deserve a cocktail too. As a treat. Some may be nonalcoholic, but Ill always use the ABV calculator if there’s alcohol, because readers deserve to make informed choices.
*Most cherry liqueurs are made with the Morello or other distinctly sour cherry varieties, often homemade macerations, maraschino uses the marasca, which is related to the morello, but distinct and the production of maraschino liqueur results in a different flavor profile, level of sweetness, clarity, and level of nutty/woodsy flavors. Cherry Heering, produced in Holland for 200 years, is the most famous of a thicker, fruiter and more viscious variety[and is what old tiki recipes call “cherry brandy”] but homemade sour cherry cordial are found throughout Europe. Maraschino, Heering, and Kirschwasser, a clear German cherry brandy, are not substitutes for each other. This may come up in a future drink.
#rapunzel#tangled the series#the last word#cocktail riff#aquavit#becherovka#st germain#themed cocktail#tts#tangled#alcohol#tangled cocktails#last word#equal parts
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You Can Relate!
These will be short stories that took place throughout my life. I promise you; You Can Relate! Some are funny, some sad, some are everyday life events that I like to put a spin on. In the end I believe that most people just want to be heard.
"They're Just Like That"
How many times have we heard someone describe another person with the phrase, “They’re just like that”? I have heard that multiple times throughout my life. It’s like a blanket excuse for someone’s behavior. Are we supposed to have a knee jerk reaction of automatic forgiveness of that behavior? I think we are either raised to think that, or maybe it’s just hardwired in our brains. I do know that once the offender is aware that they have that blanket excuse over them, they tend to continue with the behavior! I have been married for over 15 years to a wonderful man, but, when it comes to his mother and me, oh boy! I cannot tell you how many times I have heard, “She’s just like that”. My husband has said it, his adult daughters have said it, his brother has said it. They are all brainwashed to believe that her rotten behaviors are dismissible. Are they? I was raised to respect my elders, but I was also raised to stand up for myself and not let others walk all over me. Well, those ‘rules’ become a tricky balance, don’t they? I am to respect my mother in-law (elder), but I should also not allow her to walk all over me. While attempting that balance, I realize I may need help. So, I turned to my husband. HELP! Your mother seems to think it’s ok to be passive aggressive towards me, and frankly I find her offensive! EXAMPLE 1: “Lisa, I had bought a shirt for you, but now, looking at you, I realize the shirt is entirely too small” EXAMPLE 2: “It seems my boys are attracted to rather large women” There are many more like that. Now, my husband has been present for most of her sideways comments to me, and when he wasn’t there, I let him know what she said. His response... “She’s just like that”. Why is it acceptable for her to treat me with such disrespect? Why is it acceptable for my husband to not defend me? I never asked him to scream and yell at her, but I think it’s reasonable to ask that he tell his mother that those comments are not okay, and she needs to stop. Since nothing has been done or said, and probably never will (my own passive aggressive comment), I am conditioned to accept that “She is just like that”. I choose to give my energy to myself and to my marriage. She is but a small bleep in our lives and just like a cancer that can destroy your body, so can a person that refuses to just be nice! So, I remove myself from her whenever I can. Some may say the mother in-law won. I say, maybe she did, but I am healthier just keeping my distance from her. I am still cordial to her, send her flowers for Mother's Day, and will answer her rare text. But overall, I just keep away.
#mother in law#rude mother inlaw#they're just like that#passive aggressive#sideways comments#forgiveness#rude behavior#marriage
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As I'm writing this, I'm enjoying a nice cold glass of elderflower cordial my stepmom made, complete with some ice cubes to keep it extra cool. This morning was quite dreary; rain pelting down from dark, grey clouds, and the wind guiding the water toward the window, letting it pelt loudly as I tried to go about my morning... With the wind, however, the heavy clouds were slowly carried away, bringing back the sun I hadn't seen for a few days. So, to celebrate the arrival of the sun, I mixed myself a glass of cordial.
I've written about things relating to food and nature before, but not about it directly. Today I will do just that.
The food we eat is always the most important to think about, I believe. We let this being, once living, into our bodies, and through a long digestive process, some of it becomes part of us. The vitamins, minerals, proteins, and even the moisture, become absorbed into our bodies. Sometimes it pains me to see every plant as a peer, and every animal as a friend, but we all have to eat. So I thank the vegetables, fruit, and meat on my plate, and I quietly mourn the lives taken to keep me healthy and well-fed.
I've considered turning to vegetarianism (I don't actually eat that much meat anyway), but instead of feeling bad for the animal lives lost, I thank them. I say a silent prayer, hoping the animal can feel my appreciation, and I enjoy every bite of my meal, as to not waste a single piece. If I could, I would eat only fruit, nuts, and seeds; things that don't hurt the source when taken away. I am simply human, though, and a diet of only these things would require me to take outrageous amounts of supplements instead, so I keep eating a healthy diet even when it hurts my heart.
To make a elderflower cordial, you simply pluck the flowers off a European elder tree, mix sugar and water in a large pot, heat and mix until a syrup forms, and then add the elderflowers (and some citrus for added flavor and preservation!) and let infuse overnight. Once you've strained the flowers out, you've got a nice concentrated cordial, ready to be bottled.
The resulting drink is fragrant and delicious, but I often feel bad for the poor elder tree, whose barely bloomed flowers are harvested so early in their life just to make a sweet summer beverage. You see, the ideal time to harvest the flowers is right after they've just started to bloom, and it makes you wonder if they ever got to fulfill their purpose in the first place, before being taken away?
Well, morning the lives of simple flowers is probably a bit silly. Next year, summer will come once more, and the elder tree in our garden will once again bloom.
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What if I try living closer to nature? Taking walks in the woods, making preserves, picking fruits? What if I adopted a chicken? Or try growing vegetables?
I want to live in the woods; kindly farm the land. Live close to my parents and sister, be visited often by my closest friends.
I want to sit in my little house, after a day of picking elder flowers and making cordial, of collecting eggs and fruit. I want to write as the sun sets, bathed in orange light.
I want my dog to be curled at my feet, a cat on the arm of my sofa. I want my life to be simple - no smartphone, just a flip phone, maybe an audio player. A computer that I use to respond to emails once a week and write up my stories. A small tv that I play video games on to relax when night has crept up to my windows.
And if I must do more for money let it be gentle. Let it be to proof other’s writings, to edit works borne of love, not in pursuit of capital or custom.
I want to live slowly, kindly. I want to feel grounded. I want to be content.
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English name: American Elder
Latin botanical name: Sambucus canadenisis
Family: Adoxaceae
Native: North America
Ecology:
Canadensis is native to the mid-South East of North America. It prefers warm wet climates but can tolerate dryer soil. It thrives in the wet climate of the Northern Rivers of New South Wales, found growing wild near urban areas. So far, I have not found information supporting a classification as an invasive species in Australia, other than being monitored due to its ability to reproduce quickly from root suckers and fruit seeds spread by birds. American Elder is closely related to the European Black Elder (Sambucus negris), which is native to temperate Europe, Asia and North Africa.
Food and Medicine:
All parts of Canadensis including the fruit are toxic in large doses, however, like with all Sambucus fruit the poisonous alkaloid is neutralised once cooked. Given how closely related it is to Sambucus negris, both plants are generally used in the same ways. In the Australian Spring 2019 I foraged with friends the flower heads and fruit from plants growing wild in bushland around Mullumbimby, to make syrup from the flower nectar to experiment with fermented soda, beer and vinegar.
The European variety (Holunder) has much more nectar and flavour, the flowers are used to make an aromatic syrup for cordial and fruit is used to make a traditional soup served cold or hot, or medicinal syrup commonly made at the end of summer when the fruit ripens. In Germany I harvested Holunder flowers and berries from Berlin’s vacant spaces and parks throughout the spring and summer of 2018 for an ethnobotany project on food–plant–people relationships.
Not much information is available about traditional use for canadensis by First Nations North Americans, but I did read online The Iroquois people processed the inner bark for pain relief and toothache.
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