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outofangband · 1 year

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Common Symbols and Motifs in Heraldry, clothing and art part 2/?

Part one: Elves of Aman World Building Masterlist

I’m going to do the Sindar on this post though I might do the Falathrim separately and the Nandor and Avari on the later ones then go to humans! So I might increase the number of these more.

I will also probably add to this list just as I have the other one

Sindar of Doriath

Nightingales Generally ascribed meanings: the Queen Melian, song, love and devotion, bonding, joy

Bracken fern and fiddleheads fern Generally ascribed meanings: geometry and order

Beech Leaves: Generally ascribed meanings: Abundance, generosity, resourcefulness

Holly leaves Generally Ascribed Meanings: honor, defense, resilience

Oak leaves Generally ascribed meanings: Friendship, loyalty

Niphradel and snowdrops Generally ascribed meanings: purity, youth, innocence, cycles

Elanor Generally ascribed meanings: light, growth, curiosity

Bluebells Generally ascribed meanings: spring, fleet footedness

Elm leaves Generally ascribed meanings: the king, service, steadfastness

Sindar of Mithrim

Nettles, stem, leaves and flowers Generally ascribed meanings: nettles are used in the northern Sindar culture in a variety of ways including fiber for fabric, eating, and medicinal teas. Their appearing in heraldry, art and symbolism is usually believed to mean resilience, the change of winters to spring, and the earths resources

Clouds Generally ascribed meanings: the heavens, tranquility

Outline of mountains Generally ascribed meanings: history, family, honesty

Wolf's Bane Generally ascribed meanings: Lore, knowledge

Blue bellflower: Generally ascribed meanings: color, joy, exploration

Trout Generally ascribed meanings: home, water

Lake birds (herons, swans) Generally ascribed meanings: grace, flight, legacy

Lake birds (ducks, loons, teals) Generally ascribed meanings: cycles of life and predation, respect for land

Fir tree Generally ascribed meanings: shadow and light, truth

Sunflowers Generally ascribed meanings: joy, sun, day

Sindar of Nevrast (non Falathrim) Aquatic birds one (ducks/shelducks/grebe/teals/eider/sea ducks) Generally Ascribed meanings: stability, peace, family

Aquatic birds two (cranes/egrets/herons) Generally ascribed meanings: grace, skill, aptitude, seeking

Aquatic birds three (loons, crakes, rails, etc) Generally ascribed meanings: song, mystery, change

Ripples on a lake Generally ascribed meanings: the world, the ages, time

The clifflines of Nevrast: Generally ascribed meanings: strength, wisdom

Marsh grasses: Generally ascribed meanings: roots, abundance

Sea Lavender Generally ascribed meanings: the lands and sea, gentleness

Sunflower or daisy

Generally ascribed meanings: resilience, loyalty

General among the Sindar of Beleriand:

hummingbirds generally ascribed meanings: pollination, flora and fauna, wonder

butterflies and dragonflies generally ascribed meanings: change and transformation, fragility and beauty

willow trees generally ascribed meanings: peace, connection to Ulmo, mystery, prophecy

Obviously this isn't a complete list as many, many species of flora and fauna have their own meanings! Please feel free to ask about any or ask any world building questions! I hope this is ok!

#the silmarillion #musing and meta #dorith #nevrast #mithrim #sindar #beleriand

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electronicdelusionstarlight · 2 years

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To this day I am still amazed by how much important lore did the TES card game have.

Like...

Great War Lore, the state of the Imperial city and imperial army during it, the fact Boethia was backing the Thalmor, Lord Narafiin committing genocide in the Imperial city before they can stop him etc.

Dark Brotherhood Lore, why did the brotherhood fall? Why doesn't Astrid trust the tenets and the listener? Why does she recruit so many people to the "family"? What happened to the Bravil and Wayrest sanctuaries?

Clockwork City Lore, what happened to clockwork city, Sotha Sil was apparently working on a Replica of the Heart did you know that? We have an entire scene about Almalexia murdering him where we can see her mask breaking and her despair seep in as his old friend simply let's her kill him without a word, begging him to say ANYTHING to her. Shat happened to Alfie Fir, one of Dyvathy's clones, last survivor of her family? What about the ring of Hircine, why was it cursed when Sinding got it?

Sheogorath Lore. Did you fucking know the CARD GAME has the explanation for why Sheogorath turns into the Cheese for Everyone Guy from his previous characterization as a manipulator and a sadist maliciously fucking with people from Daggerfall? It has further Jyggalag Lore? It has an entire plotline about the Imperial Legion committing war crimes in the High Rock Reach against Reachfolk Refugees from Skyrim AND against a Mara congratulation to further Imperial control on the region? All happening between Daggerfall and Morrowind given how Vivec is still alive?

Like, it's incredible how of all things the fucking card game ended up getting a this really important lore and in the end the only people who still remember it are probably me and 4 other people tops.

#elder scrolls #tes legends #elder scrolls lore #tes lore #the elder scrolls

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horizon-verizon · 1 year

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'And call me cold, but no, I don’t care that Aemond lost an eye and I don’t care about Alicent being upset either. Aemond brought that on himself because he got cocky after claiming Vhaegar and then kept escalating the fight to the point where he was going to kill Jace, which caused Luke to slash his eye in defense.'

WOW anon you are not just cold but also heartless I guess, congratulations. You mean A CHILD deserved to be maimed FOR LIFE for an insult that he probably doesn't even understand in fool meaning yet because he 'got cocky'? That's absolutely crazy. You say he was influenced by Alicent, so you are also victim blaming him because he had no one but his mother? He was euphoric and cocky after finally getting a dragon but why are ignoring the context? He was feeling not worthy and lonely because all other children had dragons and shared interests, they laughed at him. Aemond who didn't plan to kill anyone even at the age of 17 tried to kill Jace at 10? Make it make sense. He lowered the knife many times. Don't you think that Jace actually could kill him when he was swinging a knife at him? Why did he have a knife at all? They were hitting Aemond 3 to 1 and he picked a stone for self defense. In the end everything that happened was the result of their parents' actions but blaming the kids is crazy.

I believe that I am both the train track and destination for this message to another anon HERE. Since this anon didn’t bother to just reblog my post to talk to the other anon, or condense this to a comment in the same post.

You: “You say he was influenced by Alicent, so you are also victim blaming him because he had no one but his mother? He was euphoric and cocky after finally getting a dragon but why are ignoring the context? He was feeling not worthy and lonely because all other children had dragons and shared interests, they laughed at him.”

First, Aemond doesn’t have just his mother. He has the Hightowers, he would have had his uncle if the writers stayed with the canon lore, and he has his grandfather for political support. If he has little emotional support, that’s because Alicent forgot to pay attention to her kids’ emotional needs apart from the usurp-Rhaenyra mission, which places heavier emphasis on a twisted sense of duty to family over love of family.

You wanna blame someone for Aemond’s loneliness? Blame it on Alicent, Otto, Viserys and the HotD writers/showrunners themselves for “just getting to the good stuff”, as Condal said to justify the jump cuts.

Second, Aemond and all of his own brothers -- in the book -- had a rivalry themselves with the V boys. And Aegon definitely wasn’t against his own brother, like in the show:

The enmity between Queen Alicent and Princess Rhaenyra was passed on to their sons, and the queen’s three boys, the Princes Aegon, Aemond, and Daeron, grew to be bitter rivals of their Velaryon nephews, resentful of them for having stolen what they regarded as their birthright: the Iron Throne itself. Though all six boys attended the same feasts, balls, and revels, and sometimes trained together in the yard under the same master-a-arms and studied under the same maesters, this enforced closeness only served to feed their mutual mislike, rather than binding them together as brothers.

(Fire and Blood; “A Question of Succession”)

This implies that the green boys would have hated the V boys so much that there was and would be open antagonism. Not necessarily ultra physically violent encounters (frequent outright fights), but physical altercation is not the only or more important type of altercation. You yourself might try to bring up how the show’s V boys bully Aemond -- this is itself not physical bullying or violence, but it is emotional bullying. Which I am sure you’d agree is not less than physical bullying....hopefully

In Fire and Blood, Aemond is described as “fierce” since childhood/baby childhood (perhaps 6-8):

Two years later, she produced a daughter for the king, Helaena; in 110 AC, she bore him a second son, Aemond, who was said to be half the size of his elder brother, but twice as fierce.

AND

Prince Aemond, despite the loss of his eye, had become a proficient and dangerous swordsman under the tutelage of Ser Criston Cole, but remained a wild and willful child, hot-tempered and unforgiving.

(Fire and Blood; “A Question of Succession”)

The word “remained” lets me know that Aemond was “willful”, “hot-tempered” and “fierce” from young childhood. And the reason why I am accepting of this characterization is because:

the court would have all seen it, how he acted and held himself –> and there is no evidential contradiction

his mother would have definitely instilled his entitlement and hatred for Rhaenyra/hers sons at an early age

his rivalry with his nephews would have been palpable

and other events that I won’t spoil for you -- unless you read the book?

My point here is that Aemond, as the menace that he is, would AND should have been the real aggressor and fiercer bully against the V boys in HotD, because he has the classist, blood-purist mindset that he is better than them while also envying them for taking his mal-given “birthright”. The way the show writes him is intended to dilute his rancor and disgust towards these kids so he seems not as reprehensible...when most of his life he has been. And it's important to note that, because it gives us the understanding of where Aemond stood in the blacks v greens rivalry, how Alicent & Otto constructed their own later nightmare when he killed Luke, etc. It assigns undoubted accountability.

Which means that he would not have been as bullied, victimized, or antagonized as he was in the show, since the V boys would have been growing up in a court that found them abhorrent or distasteful for being suspected bastards. which, by the way, is defined by the Faith as being: “born from lust, lies, and weakness, and as such, they are said to be wanton and treacherous by nature.” Blood purity. The V boys would rather try their best to not antagonize or argue with the green boys.], most likely at their mother’s behest. And Aemond, Aegon, “even” Daeron would have all made their sneers, jokes, innuendos, the errant shoulder- push. Think how Hogwarts Slytherin and Gryf. students would behave when there’s a teacher present times 10.

And this is all (except the 2nd quote) with him being dragon-less and before Vhagar. Like I said, Aemond is supported well and his birth is never in question. Plus, Targaryens have a long history of claiming dragons in their preteens, teens, and even adulthood. Cradle bonding is overrated. It rather shows the court/Alicent’s misogyny and unfounded prejudice against bastards, which GRRM is always writing to be a negative mindset to have (ahem, Dany, Cersei Rhaegar, Robert I Baratheon, Jon Snow).

Aemond, even dragonless, is fine and would have been fine. He’s pressed because his grandfather/mother wants him to be useful against Rhaenyra for the sake of Aegon’s rule. That’s all.

So why does the show change this and make Aemond look more of a victim if they read of his wrongs in Fire and Blood, if they actually paid attention to the book’s language and thought about its layers of context?

You: “Aemond who didn't plan to kill anyone even at the age of 17 tried to kill Jace at 10? Make it make sense. He lowered the knife many times. Don't you think that Jace actually could kill him when he was swinging a knife at him? Why did he have a knife at all? They were hitting Aemond 3 to 1 and he picked a stone for self defense.”

Since you should now know the show is trash for me, I do not put stock into how Aemond picked up the rock and all that apart from proving to people who say that he put it down that he actually picked it up again and THAT'S when he got slashed. Especially since he was always meant to be an asshole, from childhood to his death.

And again, he’s 12-13, not 17. Go back and do some calculations.

About the knife, I already address it in the post I already linked in one of these sentences I wrote:

Meanwhile…how the hell did any of these kids get up from bed and get down there in the first place? Aemond claiming Vhagar is never addressed. How Baela and Rhaena thought there was a random person taking Vhagar and went down with the Velayron boys for security and protection, thus the knife’s presence.

Plus, medieval boys are trained to fight since young. You don’t think that they’d be very willing to use said knife when they hear someone calling them “bastards” and fighting them?

And, I will repeat, when their cousins are asking them to come with them down to confront the Vhagar “thief” (no I do not think Vhagar was stolen, I think that his act to claim her was under devious means and was unethical--link is to a post I reblogged from theblackqveen).

Look, I don’t think that the other anon (or I) is saying that children in general deserved to be tortured or should be immediately physically punished for a wrong.

We are saying “fuck around, find out”, that if you do a wrong act--or any act--there will be consequences or there's likely to be a retaliation. That there was the case of a justified retaliation. That kids are not exempted from this one thing, since they are living, thinking, and acting beings even if they are learning morality. Yes, they are learning, which means they come up to moments where their actions are punished or have consequences.

You live, you act, and there are consequences.

Young Aemond of episodes 6 & 7 (really Aemond everywhere all at once) displays enough self-awareness of his actions and has a cunning that has him protect Alicent in the moment of Viserys questioning him. He would have been 12-13 years old (not 17) at this moment of the show, whereas he was 10ish in the book, so Show!Ameond has even less an excuse than his canon character comparatively.

He may have been a child, but he’s a child with a deep sense of his own inherent superiority that is featured in homophobes, racists, classists, and sexists -- he’s a menace.

Otto and Alicent’s fault? Yes. Does he grow into an adult capable of distinguishing right from wrong? Yes, yet he continues into this into his adulthood (Lucerys’ death). People get abused their entire lives or receive terrible injuries, yet some do not fall into abusive patterns themselves and we punish those who display such behaviors even with their history.

You’re another person who’d benefit from reading this article by Seth Abramson called “House of the Dragon Showrunner Ryan Condal Responds to Criticism of the Season 1 Finale”. Your choice.

#asoiaf asks to me #hotd writing #hotd fandom #hotd characterization #aemond's characterization #hotd comment #ryan condal #vhagar claim #hotd episode 7 #green stan nonsense #the targtowers #asoiaf #hotd

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wolfy1298 · 2 years

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diana lore??? :0

gonna be honest, I don't know a lot about her, so tbh you can just go off with history & "headcanons" (lil extra things about your oc! that're actually canon.)

but if you're looking for a specific question: How did she get to where she is today? What was the driver for the change that made her the bitter (angsty) draconic-looking person she is in the present?

I’m gonna answer the specific question because if I don’t, I WILL ramble and it WILL be a mess

Anyways back on topic:

The biggest reason why she became the angsty dragon person we all know and maybe love

Long story short: a lot of murder and a cursed paperweight

For the first few years of her life, Diana was raised by her “siblings”. They weren’t family by blood but the group raised as if she was their own (not bad for a bunch of teens and young adults who all need therapy and barely have their lives put together). And for a while, everything was going well. Then one of her brothers turned traitor.

When Diana was 6, her eldest sister landed her first big gig as a singer. To celebrate, the family planned a nice party on the night of her first performance. Things were going great and everyone was having a wonderful time until their brother, Kalos, walked in late. Earlier in the day, everyone noted that Kalos was angrier than normal. He would blow up at the slightest thing and got into a verbal argument with their other brother Kiri. He even boycotted the performance much to everyone’s disappointment. When he came back later that night calmer than before, they just assumed whatever was bothering him was dealt with. How wrong they were.

For reasons unknown, Kalos went on a rampage. His “siblings” -the very same people he came to know and love for years- murdered by his own hands. The only reason Diana came out alive was due to her big brothers and sisters. Those at the party put themselves in front of her to block the blows, and just Kalos was about to put an end to his baby sister, Kiri came home. While Kalos decided to skip the festivities, Kiri had to take up an extra shift at his job and would be coming home late that night. So when he walked through the door with his siblings dead on the floor and his brother about to kill his baby sister, all hell broke loose. The resulting fight was brutal beyond measure. Heavily injured, Kiri took Diana to the closest place for help which happened to be his place of work and Amore Bellridge’s summer estate. There he succumbed to his injuries, leaving Diana as the sole survivor. No living relatives, betrayed by her own brother, and forever scarred mentally and physically, Diana was placed in the care of Kiri’s employer, Alistair Balckthorne: head butler of the Bellridge family. For the next several years, Diana was raised along side Amore, acting as friend, sister, and bodyguard.

As for why Diana is becoming more and more draconic, that’s all due to a promise she made. Back when her siblings were alive, Kiri would read Diana stories about gods and monsters, heroes and dragons. One such story involved a certain magical item. Legend said that whoever finds this lost item would be granted a wish. This was one of Diana’s favorite stories and so the two of them made a promise: “When she was old enough, they would go on an adventure together and find this item.” At the time, Kiri made the promise with the intention of making Diana go to bed. He figured she’d forget when she grew older and if not, just take her traveling for a year and see what happens. But Diana did not forget. And after his death, she made it her personal mission to fulfill this last wish. At 18, Diana left her home at the Bellridge estate to travel the world in search of this item.

It took years of searching and hard work, but at last she found what she was looking for. Tucked away in a hidden city in the desert guarded by a tribe of Dragonborn, there laid a magic orb said to contain the powers of a dead and powerful god. Diana was not the first to find this city in and others before her have gotten past the army of guards, but no one has ever left the area alive. The poor thieves who reached the orb before her died an excruciating death mere moments after so much as touching the damn thing. But much to the surprise of the guards (and Diana), she did not fall over dead. Orb in hand, she fled from the scene, running as far as she could before exhaustion took a hold of her. The next morning, Diana woke up with her prize by her side and fresh new set of purple scales across her face. Over the next several years (and into the start of the campaign), more scales and a set of horns would grow from her body, slowly transforming her into something inhuman….

#oc #tries not to ramble #proceeds to ramble #hope this makes sense since I am not a writer

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thelunarsystemwrites · 10 months

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FacądeTale Chara! (+Lore)

Let me tell you a story.

Long ago, there was a human, a human who fell. Their name? Chara. Chara fell into the underground, unknowing of its magical property.

Asriel, Son of Torial and Asgore Dreemurr, was lurking the ruins, where he often went to get some peace. When he discovered the human.

And at the same time, a new addition had been added to the book, the book of Fables. A new story, one that hadn't been assigned in years occurred.

Sleeping Beauty.

But, perhaps they weren't the best pair. As Asriel, was assigned the dark fairy from birth. Meaning that once they turned sixteen, rather Asriel meant to or not, he would curse Chara, sending them into a hundred year sleep.

But, that was far into the future, yes? So, welcoming the human with open arms, they became part of the Dreemurr family.

Chara was mischievous, and Asriel was bashful. But they quickly declared themselves as siblings, even if they knew what one day would come.

What they failed to account for, is that the rules apply differently to humans, than monsters.

One day, they had snuck off, going to pick the golden flowers at the beginning of the ruins. They played to make a pie fir their father, and needed buttercups for it.

As they plucked the flowers, Asriel had found a special looking one. It was blue! And, blue means friendship. He had picked it, turning to Chara, he had offered them the flower.

Chara called him a sap, but accepted the gift. Pricking their finger on a hidden thorn. Their vision went blurry, and an overwhelming amount of exhaustion had cursed their body.

And then, they fell, and fell asleep.

Asriel picked them up, trying to pick them up. He cried out for his parents, begging for their help. Hoping it would travel via echos to the ruin home.

Eventually, his parents came. Seeping him weeping over an unconscious Chara. His mother took the child in her arms. As Asriel tried to follow, Asgore stopped him.

Asgore's rage had blinded him, he summoned his weapon subconsciously, raising a hand to his son, not realizing how he had done.

They had lost two children that night. He had lost his wife. And the underground lost hope. As Asgore made two decisions.

One, this would never get out to the public.

And two, Fables and Villains would never be allowed to freely co-exist again. Few places in the underground permitted both to exist.

A child lost in eternal slumber.

Another dusted onto the wilted golden flowers, as they changed to blue. Once friendship, and now sorrow.

(One: That's a nightgown, not a dress. XC. And two, they came out more feminine thanexpected, my apologies!)

#FacądeTale #fanart #fanfic #undertale au #undertale #undertale alternate timeline #alternate universe

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amaryllis-sagitta · 3 days

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[Old reposts] Succession of the Evanuris and symbolic eras in the elvhen history

Looking up the Evanuris mythos, I was wondering about family relationships between the Evanuris assumed in the Dalish lore. I don’t find it very likely that these were actual blood bonds. I would blame this on the origin myth tropes, where the first inhabitants of the world tend to be depicted through blood relations.

But what if this order of kinship depicts some actual relationship between the Evanuris? I will test the following assumption: the Evanuris assumed power in “generations” of succession, each of them adding to the elvhen society or changing it, in parallel to the Dalish myths and given divine attributes of the Evanuris.

Succession of the Dalish Creators goes as follows:

1st gen: Elgar’nan and Mythal,

2nd gen: Dirthamen and Falon’Din, the former couple’s “first children”,

3rd gen: Andruil and Sylaise as sisters, either daughters of EG&M, or daughters of the Earth itself; June either as their brother, or as Sylaise’s husband,

4th gen: Ghilan’nain, ascended by Andruil’s favour,

Fen’Harel: known as “kin to the Creators”, but placed outside their line of succession. A suggested direct relationship between Fen’Harel and Mythal would likely place him in the 3rd gen of the Evanuris, as a wayward “son” of Mythal’s legacy, but definitely not a “first child”.

I believe we can find traces of the main course of elvhen history through the Creators’ respective domains - due to the Evanuris converting themselves into an origin myth, and ascribing their names to the earliest eras of the society’s development.

Elgar’nan was told to be the first among the gods, born from the Sun and Earth themselves. He is best known for having defeated the Sun when it got envious of all the creatures of the Earth.

Elgar'nan had defeated his father, the sun, and all was covered in darkness. Pleased with himself, Elgar'nan sought to console his mother, the earth, by replacing all that the sun had destroyed. But the earth knew that without the sun, nothing could grow. She whispered to Elgar'nan this truth, and pleaded with him to release his father, but Elgar'nan’s pride was great, and his vengeance was terrible, and he refused. (Codex: Mythal; The Great Protector)

Mythal allegedly “walked out of the sea of the earth’s tears” and convinced Elgar’nan to negotiate with the Sun.

Humbled, Elgar'nan went to the place where the sun was buried and spoke to him. Elgar'nan said he would release the sun if the sun promised to be gentle and to return to the earth each night. The sun, feeling remorse at what he had done, agreed.

Tinfoil guess: in the age named after Elgar’nan and Mythal, the world became inhabitable. This is reflected by their success in mitigating Sun’s anger, establishing a day and night cycle, and bringing the creatures of the Earth back. Only the Canticle of Threnodies from the Chant of Light goes further back in cosmology than this, suggesting that spirits of the Fade appeared before the material world, and before the creatures of will/ soul.

Furthermore, Trespasser DLC suggests that Elgar’nan and Mythal had something to do with an onslaught on the Titans and dwarves:

War? I don’t remember any legends about our people fighting the dwarves. Though I remember my Keeper telling a story about how the dwarves fear the sun because of Elgar'nan’s fire. A metaphor for the elves of Arlathan driving the dwarves underground? The Qunari like metaphors. I should share that. (Codex: Torn Notebook in the Deep Roads, Section 2, Trespasser DLC)

Hail Mythal, adjudicator and savior! She has struck down the pillars of the earth and rendered their demesne unto the People! Praise her name forever! (Codex: Veilfire Runes in the Deep Roads, Trespasser DLC).

The official reckoning of Thedas dates the first contact between the elves and the dwarves around -4601 Ancient, which is also 3000 years after the founding of Arlathan. Let’s leave it for a while.

Falon’Din is told to be the first one who freely crossed what Dalish myths interpreted as the Veil. But the situation is more complex. A tale of a wounded animal suggests that Falon’Din’s journey is relevant to boundaries of life, but not necessarily the temporal boundaries. As we know, the Elvhen were effectively immortal:

"Play with us,” said Dirthamen. “Alas,” spoke the deer, “I cannot. I am old, and although I wish to go to my rest, my legs can no longer carry me.” Taking pity on the deer, Falon'Din gathered her up into his arms and carried her to her rest beyond the Veil. Dirthamen tried to follow them, but the shifting grey paths beyond the Veil would not let him. (Codex: Dirthamen: The Keeper of Secrets)

What Falon’Din really did was release the deer from the body:

When Dirthamen found Falon'Din, he found also the deer, who once again was light on her feet, for her spirit was released from her weakened body.

Tinfoil guess: in the era of Falon’Din and Dirthamen, the People established a way to enter and leave (semi-?) material bodies at will. Dirthamen, in turn, “gave each creature a secret”.

Now, things will get philosophical. Falon’Din and Dirthamen are viewed as complementary yet inseparable. This reflects a basic dualistic view on the mind and body. My speculation is that whereas Falon’Din taught how to use the body - the vessel, the part of the self exposed to the environment, Dirthamen watched over secrets of the inner world. (It is a complex topic to what extent this internal world, within the metaphysical framework of Thedas, is built of spirit, soul, a mix of both, what spirit and soul mean in the first place - I had Plans™ in this regard but covering it will require a lot of effort.) The most important take-out from this is that Falon’Din and Dirthamen represent the discovery of incarnation. Indirectly, this hypothesis speaks in favour of metaphysical succession between primal spirits and the elvhen. Extensive exploration within the frames of physical experience began.

Returning to the timeline of Thedas: could it be that destruction of the titans was a step to prepare Thedas for a mass incarnation? Could it be that, for about 3000 years, Arlathan only existed in the Fade, as the Eternal City/ Golden City without a material aspect, with spirits occasionally peeking in but otherwise having no interest in the physical world? That’s high tinfoil right here and I can’t handle it for the moment.

Moving on to Andruil. She is known as The Huntress, and the patron of the best known elven moral code.

In the era of Andruil, the People are described akin to a prehistoric society of gatherers.

When the People were young, we wandered the forests without purpose. We drank from streams and ate the berries and nuts that we could find. We did not hunt, for we had no bows. We wore nothing, for we had no knowledge of spinning or needlecraft. We shivered in the cold nights, and went hungry though the winters, when all the world was covered in ice and snow. Then Sylaise the Hearthkeeper came, and gave us fire and taught us how to feed it with wood. June taught us to fashion bows and arrows and knives, so that we could hunt. We learned to cook the flesh of the creatures we hunted over Sylaise’s fire, and we learned to clothe ourselves in their furs and skins. And the People were no longer cold and hungry. (Codex: June: God of the Craft)

In the age of Sylaise and June, the People became skilled hunters.

That Andruil, June and Sylaise are put together nonetheless, might suggest that “physical” elvhen developed technology quite rapidly:

It is Sylaise who gave us fire and taught us how to use it. It is Sylaise who showed us how to heal with herbs and with magic, and how to ease the passage of infants into this world. And again, it is Sylaise who showed us how to spin the fibers of plants into thread and rope. (Codex: Sylaise: The Hearthkeeper)

Finally, Ghilan’nain, whose domain after ascension becomes navigation, finding one’s way on the journey - both physically, while traveling in aravels, and morally, as a tribute to Andruil’s moral code. In the age of Ghilan’nain, the People could have been improving their means of transportation and expanding across Thedas. Also, could her gift in creating monsters be an allusion to cattle farming, and a hint at the transition into the Thedosian equivalent of the Neolithic revolution?

It’s weird in as much as this progression suggests that the elvhen were on a very mundane path of technological advancement and expansion. That something pulled them to stay in the world and organize themselves into a society there, instead of making the Fade their hub and their point of return.

At any rate, I hope this makes any sense as a hint at a shift between some sort of Fade-based existence, mass incarnation and a clumsy transitional period when the elvhen were getting used to physical reality, towards an advanced, mostly mundane society that had to compete with other entities of the earth.

#old side blog reposts #from cheapertevinterglam #dragon age meta #dragon age lore #dragon age tinfoil #ancient elvhenan #ancient elvhen #the evanuris #arlathan #by magister asinius vivellius

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colefir · 9 months

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Hi, I’m Leonard/Cole!!!!

-Zabajaba critter

-realmsie

-enjoyer of mid media

-chronically online luddite

-wish I was in the woods

-@cephalospiral for art

#tags i use:#my photos #album of the day #reblog stuff #realms of cascadia #fir family lore

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spotlightstudios · 11 months

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Jotting some idea for Pierce Rothshire in this post here because I got a ✨️lore update✨️from my DM.

-> Pierce's Main Motivation: Prove the spirits wrong. He *can* survive. He *can* get the girl. He *can* do what they couldn't. He *isn't* the ideal hero yet, but he *can* be. Seriously, "I Can Do It" is his mantra.

->He was born into a family of Spies, Shapeshifters who'd been in the business for countless generations, moved from another planet to this one. However, he didn't really know that. He got lost on the streets one day as a toddler and an elderly Human took him in, convinced he was a human as well.

->His family never really took the time to look for him, honestly. He'd had like, 4 siblings, and he'd been the metaphorical runt of the litter. And the lady, upon realizing he was a Shapeshifter, just started protecting him more.

->In the long and short, he's a self-taught shifter, but in his Ma's line of work he was able to interact with a lot of different travelers, and would practice in the safety of their quaint home.

->Pierce's Ma was a College of Spirits Bard, an Ex-adventurer who now worked to tell the stories of those passed on, and help grieving folks communicate with their loved ones who'd passed on, or remind them of their glories or tender memories.

->He met the Noble this way. She'd recently lost her grandfather, and wanted to listen to tales of his heroics from the local Spirit-Woman.

->Note: The "Noble-Girl" was from a family previously of the council, and was pre-destined to marry into an upcoming council-family to regain that status for her family.

->Pierce remembers their meeting very well, because he'd been sat off to the side of the room, listening into the stories, and couldn't help but speak up, praising her grandfather. She'd looked at him, and said "There's something behind your eyes that reminds me of him." Which had startled him a bit. The noble-girl returned multiple times, but eventually admitted to him that she just could never feel despair with his wonder-struck expression just in her view.

->She asked him to accompany her to the river, then the shop, then the city for an outing. He'd followed her like a lovesick puppy-dog, and she adored it.

->Eventually he began to sneak onto her family land, disguised as one employee or another, the Noble-girl bringing him clothes and disguises. They'd spend all sorts of time together, growing closer and closer. This persisted fir nearly 4 years.

->Pierce's Ma was alright with Pierce doing anything. She was always his biggest supporter, teaching him her magic, how to speak with the spirits and a few adventuring skills like swordsmanship and musical prowess. The only thing she forbade him from doing was getting revealed as a shapeshifter to anyone beyond herself and the noble-girl.

->So, when Pierce learns of the betrothal between his noble-girl and some other young man from another family, he recieves conflicting arguments. The Noble-girl wants to run away with him. His Ma supports whatever he does, but reminds him not to be revealed. And the Spirits that recently clung to him via his magic? They say he's a fool and should return to his simple life.

->He opts for his own plan. Kill the suitor, take his place. Only, he doesn't expect for the families to be prepared for his attack. He attempts to corner this young man, but his attack is in vain, leading to him disguising as a servant he often acted as on the property and narrowly escaping.

->His noble-girl begs him to escape while he still can. She'll find a way out, but they think he's a spy, and they'll kill him on sight. He vows he'll be back for her, and in classic fashion, rushes back to his home.

->The unfortunate thing for him, was that every identity he'd used thus-far weren't well-backed. When the servant wasn't present for headcount after the attack, it became a manhunt for the shifter who'd infiltrated the houses. The spy.

->His Ma knew a day like this would come. She'd been preparing him another identity, sending letters to colleagues and old friends, institutions, anyone she knew.

->Telling of her beloved students. A gaggle of them she was instructing in the arts. A tiefling, a dwarf, a human, a kenku, and the most darling little eladrin she'd ever seen. All but the human had moved out, but sent letters of their daring adventures. (She was very clever, and kept up this ruse for Pierce's sake.)

->So she sent him on his way with a location in mind, and he's been spending the last few months slowly working his way there. Every new town, perfecting one persona at a time. He just arrived to town a week before the party meets up (or whatever shenanigans ensue).

->Disguises:

(Most of these species are ones known to Pierce, both through his spirit-communication, as well as frequent visitors to his hometown. It was a hub for incoming and outgoing space transport. A lot of these personalities are influenced by the spirits who guide him as well. They humor him, helping him get into character.)

(All of these identities have enough forged documents and connections to guilds/groups that any one of them wouldn't be immediately suspicious regarding being a real person.)

->Tavhorn Rothshire:

-Eladrin, Aged 207 Years. Usually she appears in the colors of the season that most match her environment, but a blazing green and flowing summer appearance isn't uncommon in her freetime. She's softspoken, and the tales she tells are those of lost love and heartache, nature answering those calls in turn, for better or worse. Her features are delicate, her gaze is usually downturned. Her eyes and hair remain a vibrant yellow, changing only in hue as she shifts seasonal appearance. You only hear it once you get her talking, but she had a deep-seated resentment towards the Dragon-Marked for stripping her people from power in the past. (Favorite Instrument: Panflute)

->Emmek Rothshire:

-Dwarf, Orphaned Son of a local blacksmith, aged 271 years, Ma Rothshire took him in as an apprentice not long after he returned to town, his mining business having fallen under. He decided to take up her trade, very loosely, so he could bring the fire back to the eyes of his comrades. He tells tales of the strongest warriors, standing sturdy in the face of insurmountable tasks. He's popular in taverns and in the mines themselves. His skin is tanned, almost a bronze, with a clay-red beard and head of hair. If he's ever not wearing overalls and a pair of goggles, then something's amiss. He's a fairly stubborn and hearty man, who would give anything for his men, and even more for their livelihood. (Favorite Instrument: Drums)

->Pierce Rothshire:

-Human, aged 17, orphan boy. Since he was young, Pierce has wanted to be a story-teller just like his Ma. She raised him since he was a young boy, and he'd just been figuring out his magic. Pierce is currently on the run, after the authorities suspected his involvement with an attack on one of the council members. He's a stout young man, caramel skin with fuzzy black hair he often keeps pulled back. His most striking characteristics are his green eyes and his adventurous personality. He's been missing. (Favorite Instrument: ???)

->Klik Rothshire:

-Kenku, aged 14, the youngest of her students, but the first to run off. Klik is a young kenku, entirely unremarkable from her brethren, all aside from the scar across her beak. She was raised by Ma, much like Pierce, but ran away when Pierce was only 10. Currently, she works in thieves guilds and Intel rings. Being able to recite stories is a bit difficult for her, curse and everything, so she is well-known for her craft of shadow-puppertry. She can play out a daring battle for an audience given she has a flat surface and a bright light. The stories usually consist of mysteries, tales of intrigue and excitement in which the villain, honestly, often gets away with his sneaky plot. (Favorite Instrument: Lyre)

->Glory Rothshire:

-Teifling, aged 26 years. Glory is a man who seeks to be in the spotlight. Despite not having a home, he found one with Ma Rothshire when he was young. He was raised while Ma Rothshire took in Emmek and Tavhorn, watching what wonders they worked for the world, and listening to all sorts of stories. Upon learning to control his own magic, Glory left town and started up his own traveling show, a one-man parade. Whether it was jeers or cheers he recieved, he didn't care much at all. The attention, that was what he craved. He's a greedy man, lusting and lounging, moving from town to town without warning or purpose. His skin is a dusty red, hair a smooth black. Horns curve around his head and grow back towards the corners of his yellow eyes. His tail? Well, it was cut off in an accident before he met Ma, but he tells the story differently. He, unlike his siblings, adorns himself in false jewelry and riches, never going without. His stories? They're the ones where the hero gets what he wants. The princess, the prince, the castle and the moat, anything they desired. Of course, though, they all end in tragedy. His audience never hears that far along. (Favorite Instrument: Viol)

->Currently, he's disguised as Glory, seeing as the others he can't maintain for very long w/o constant spirit-guidance. Glory is the one who will be introduced to the party and will join the party.

#light's spot #oc #wip #Pierce Rothshire #gods this changeling is wild #this campaign is gonna be interesting...

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lavandermin · 3 years

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when it storms (2) | kazuha

pairing | kazuha/reader

word count | 2.2k

genre | light angst, soft, implied nsfw

warnings | alcohol, spoilers for kazuha’s background, inazuma lore mentioned, not explicit smut, just a little spicy because I love him

[previous]

Tranquil waters were fortunate enough to be plenty. With the moon glowing high in the sky, the sea, too, had turned in for sleep. Everything is a deep blue all around you, a delicate moment of solitude on deck. The Alcor had been anchored for the night, the waves a gentle lullaby for its inhabitants.

After an evening of drinking and a hearty meal, all sailors have turned in for the night to their quarters. Only you were left out of place and to your own devices, sharing your quiet doubts with the stars.

“I was wondering where you would be, if not asleep. Still, somehow I had a feeling I’d find you here of all places.”

From the lightness of his footsteps to the gentle tone you grew to know, you didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

“Kazuha… I hope I didn’t worry you. I just couldn’t seem to fall asleep,” you quietly confess. A distant smile remains on your lips despite your predicament and your gaze returns to the dark sea.

“Your sorrows are drifting back home with the sea’s breeze. Are you regretting leaving?” Kazuha asks as he sits next to you on the deck.

The moon stares back at you as you wonder, and with a loud sigh you let yourself fall back against the deck.

“I don't,” you start, eyes searching the stars above you as if they would whisper a more eloquent answer to you. “I’ve come to terms with the fact that Inazuma, with the way things are now, will never be home to me. It’s all I knew but… Yeah… Yeah, you know why.”

Memories of alcohol high on your cheeks as you pour your heart out to him flash briefly in his mind. Family torn apart, losing your mother, repossession of what your family owned, and starting from ground zero… it was an outpouring of cries for the unjust, the sound of heartbreak that you hadn’t had time to properly process. The way you sobbed quietly into your hands, entire form trembling—it was an emotional moment of vulnerability burned into his memory.

Embarrassment was still high in your spirits as you averted your gaze to the rippling reflection of the moon over gentle waves. There was still a lot on your mind, but that night he could tell a small burden was lifted from your shoulders when you poured your heart out to him.

Maybe that’s what you both needed—someone who would listen.

There’s a moment of silence between you both, only the sea speaking in gentle whispers.

“You’re planning something,” you quietly mumble with a lighthearted frown.

Kazuha’s chuckle is light—melodic with amusement at just how quickly you managed to pick up on things.

“Unpredictable, as is nature,” he jokes, standing up and offering you his outstretched hand. “I had planned to take up camp under the stars on the beach. Care to join?”

There isn’t the slightest bit of hesitation in your movement, and you easily agree. The stars above you both twinkle in anticipation of your encampment under the dark sky.

“If you don’t mind my company.”

“I wouldn’t be complete without you,” he replies easily.

The words cause a stutter in your heart, a flutter in your chest. And for a second, you doubt your sharp sense of hearing wondering if you heard his words incorrectly. You don’t get a chance to ask further when you turn to see him disappear below deck.

After tip-toeing past sailors fast asleep and gathering the few items you need from your quarters, you meet up on shore. Kazuha catches you easily as you hop off the ship, your smile bright as your heart leaps at this small freedom he’s offered you.

Within the hour you’re both comfortably lying beneath the stars. The crackle of the bonfire nearby is comforting, the warmth just enough to keep the cold of the seaside at bay. There’s a vivid scent that sticks to you both, the thick smell of smoke from the wood that keeps the fire aflame. It goes ignored as you both happily chat under twinkling stars.

“What do you think?” you ask at the end of a long ramble, eyes shining as you poke at the firewood with a long branch. “And the harbor isn’t too far from here from the maps Beidou has shown me.”

Kazuha hums, idly tracing his thumb over the roughness of a shell’s surface. “The City of Commerce, huh… We can go tomorrow.”

“That soon?” you squeaked, eyes wide.

He shrugs with a carefree smile. “A wanderer may go anywhere that nature takes up root. Beidou wouldn’t mind if we headed out for a bit. We’re going to be docked here for quite some time, after all.”

It instantly lifts your spirits, and you smile gratefully.

“Liyue Harbor… Come to think of it, Yoimiya has a friend there she’s told me about.” Your voice trails off, mind worriedly slipping back into our cloud of doubt. “I wonder if she’s alright. I…”

Your hand halts in its movements, the cracks in the wood of the branch glowing red from the lick of flames you’ve touched. Suddenly you feel a heaviness in your chest, mind flashing with all the possibilities of what end could befall your dear friend if she was reprimanded for her pyro vision. You’ve witnessed what it’s done to people, how it’s left them an empty shell of their former self. Ambitions erased, mind scattered and left in fragments.

Your lip quivers, and the glistening ashes of bright red that dance up into the night from the crackling logs fill you with nostalgic longing. It brings memories of the beautiful fireworks that adorned the quiet skies of Inazuma.

“I hope she’s alright,” you quietly add.

And with a shake of your head, you shove those feelings into the tiny bottle of pent up emotion you refuse to open. It doesn’t go unnoticed by Kazuha. These feelings are expected—you had a lot that you left behind when you both escaped months ago.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Kazuha asks softly. His tone is patient, and you know he won’t pry you if you don’t feel like opening that can of worms.

“I…” The words are there, stuck in your throat by emotions that well up and refuse to be let out. “I’d like that but… I don’t know where to start. Thinking about Inazuma makes my head feel fuzzy.”

“That’s perfectly alright.”

You let out a frustrated sigh. It’s cute, Kazuha thinks as he watches you pout at yourself.

“Don’t take it the wrong way. I’m not avoiding it. I just—don’t know where to start.”

Kazuha hums, and reaches behind him to rustle through a bag he brought from the ship. The sake flask he presents makes you laugh in disbelief. His grin does nothing to hide the proud, sly glint in his eyes.

“Don’t worry, it’s from my own personal cabinet,” he reassures as he pours you a drink.

“I know what you’re trying to do,” you chuckle, and humbly accept the drink. “Thank you.”

“Not just you. I also haven’t found it in me to speak of my friend from home,” Kazuha admits. He downs his drink in one go, swirling the remnants of the liquid in the small cup as it burns his throat lightly. “But laying one’s heart out takes immense courage. It’s a vulnerability not many wish for others to see—I admire you for that.”

A soft pink dusts your cheeks at the sincerity of his praise. It mixes well with the rising heat on your face from the alcohol that swirls in your system.

You laugh in disbelief, but believe wholeheartedly in his perspective. “You think me crying was something brave?”

He nods, pouring himself another drink from the sake flask. “Undeniably so. The thought of being emotionally vulnerable, of sharing my pain with someone—it’s one fear that's hard for me to shake off. But you inspire me to do so, because I trust you with my life.”

His words bring a warm grin to your face, and for a moment you don’t bother to distinguish whether the sudden burst of warmth was from the alcohol or the feelings in your chest.

“And I trust you with mine,” you reassure with a sip of your drink.

‘Liquid Courage’ they called it. And as the night progressed, you both poured out your hearts in an unexpected way. He told you of his dear friend and their untimely demise at the hands of the Raiden Shogun. It made your heart sink, yet he remained composed as he retold the events.

Your worries were a softer blow, focusing more on the dearest friends and family you missed. Laying out your feelings with the tingles of alcohol loosening your tongue was freeing.

“But… You’re with me, so I’m never so lonely. I think since that day we met in the rain, you’ve become my reason to keep going.” Gods, you sounded so cheesy but the words wouldn’t stop running out of your mouth. Your cheeks were intense with warmth you hoped could pass off as effects from the sake.

When you peer at him through your lashes to see his reaction, there’s a content smile on his lips. Admiration, adoration, and something else—they were written clearly in his eyes that glittered like crimson gemstones with reflections of the bonfire’s flames.

It’s a little hazy in your memory who exactly confessed first. All you knew was that with the way he looked at you—the way he softly pressed his lips to yours as he closed the distance between you—the next second you were hurriedly both scrambling to scope out the abandoned cottage behind you.

The stars would wait for you both to return. For now, the alcohol in your systems had you both a little too honest with each other.

With a quick look around, the little hut was confirmed to be abandoned and mostly empty save for some old furniture.

Kazuha wasted no time in pulling you against him as soon as the coast was clear, both your breaths filling the room with quiet pants. Though his kisses were insistent and quick-paced, his hold was gentle as his thumb rubbed soothing circles where they gripped your hips. His tongue was hot against yours and left a thin string of saliva connecting you both when he pulled away briefly. With both hands fervently roaming each other’s bodies, your top was partway unbuttoned and practically off your shoulders. The smooth expanse of your exposed shoulders was his to claim.

At your dazed whimper, Kazuha was at your neck with a hot trail of nips and kisses. “Do you need me to stop?” he asked against the skin of your shoulder.

You shook your head in a frenzy, legs desperately trying to rub together despite his knee keeping them apart.

“Gods, no—“ you moaned softly, body trembling against his touch. “Pl–Please don’t stop.”

He laughs breathily against your skin and places a tender kiss against the pulse of your neck. There’s a moment of confusion that scrunches your brows as you feel his hands fix your shirt and pull away.

He places a kiss on your forehead with an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I don’t mean to leave you like this. The winds have changed. Someone’s approaching.”

Your eyes widen slightly at this, your blood running cold despite the embarrassment high on your cheeks. “An… intruder?” you whisper worriedly.

“Nothing of the sort. The winds they carry are from onboard the Alcor.” He stands up straight, fixing his attire before checking back up on you. “It’s Sea Drake.”

“Why is he here?” you whisper harshly.

Kazuha can’t help but feel amused by your disappointment, your small hands still clinging onto his sleeve.

“I’ll check the situation. Stay here if you’d like,” he offers. His bandaged thumb gently runs over the skin just above your exposed collarbone, and with a satisfied smile he doesn’t try to hide he adds, “Apologies, I seemed to have left some marks.”

“Apologies, my ass,” you huff, red dusting your cheeks.

With a deceivingly innocent smile, he places one more quick peck on your temple. “Punish me later for it if you’d like.”

Oh? This was a side of him that was new to you.

The suggestion has you raising your eyebrows, a mischievous glint in your eyes. There’s a distant call from outside as Sea Drake searches for your whereabouts. It gives a moment's chance for you to pull Kazuha back by his sleeve, the alcohol slowly leaving your system still giving a last burst of sultry courage.

“You’re asking for a fight against raging tides. Is this what you meant by showing your more vulnerable side?” you hum low by his ear.

The tickle of your breath near his ear sends a shiver down his spine, and it takes his all to keep composed.

“The only way to know the severity of a storm is to walk into it’s rage. Why don’t we find out?” Kazuha challenges.

“Only if you come back soon.”

That chance was all he needed.

#kazuha/reader #kazuha x reader #kazuha #genshin fanfic #kaedehara kazuha #genshin #angst #soft #mii writes #drabble collection: coffee break for two #fic: when it storms #genshin impact

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emj-tolj · 3 years

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An Adventure Hunter's Dreamscape

(Excuse my broken English. It is not my mother tongue. I hope despite that you can read this well.)

This place I want to be; this place that my heart aches and yearns for: A township not too big, not too small, somewhere that embraces all 4 seasons equally.

With Springtime farms and meadows, where streams trickle and fields are topped with small lavender flower visited by flittering butterflies. Cows and goats sing their songs as I walk down spring time paths. Village homes surrounded with flowers galore. Gardens giving birth to blooms and new born animals making appearances from the ends of woodlands. In the woodlands mosses start their migration of woods and rocks, new birds sing and baby rabbits and deer dart about unthreatened. New shops open up in the villages, making exploring wandering streets all the more fun and adventurous.

With Summertime beaches with azure clean waves and sun bleached beaches, where dolphins sing and dance and majestic ships cross the waves escorting adventures to find lost treasures. Forests hued in emerald, rivers and lakes spraying cold waters to restore summer exhaustion. Summer bird songs echoing over the trees while bands of amber sunlight streak across the forest air. Picnics on green hills and valleys. Street and plazas hum with the sound of marketeers. Where there are oceans of sunflower fields. Nights are filled with endless parties and fun for all.

With Autumn for when the world goes from Greens to Golds. Golden fields of wheat lowered to reveal a harvest of bounty. Village bakery smells fill the streets along with a distinct earthen smell. Garlands and wreaths of cones decorate every window and door with autumn hues. Where gourds with faces watch you closely as you go. People huddling together under warmer cloaks. Harvests festivals abound. Crows caw the season's songs and shops all smell sweet with various warm drinks and confectionaries. Hearths of all sizes glow and crackle to keep the autumn chill off.

With Wintertime when the earth is covered in is white blanket. People huddle even closer now in sheepskin and furs. Candles and lights of many colors attempt to illuminate the world. Fireplaces and hearts glow bright. Streets and homes are festive in foods and decorations. Where people gather close and feast of warm drinks of teas and brews and bellies are filled with soups and stews. Forests now are a dark and rather barren and still. Colored only by daylight sun and cardinals, yet despite it all they are still a welcome walk. And above it all a glorious mountain covered in white and dotted with fir green forests. A monument of earthly and divine legends and lore. the treasures we collected over he years becomes gifts for family and friends. Even total strangers.

If nothing else, a place where people are friendly, caring, helpful, joyful in life. A world where smiles abound and laughter and shared knowledge fill the are. Where one can swim in and ocean of human kindness. A place no one goes without. A place where Forests, Fields , Beaches, Gorges, Rivers, Gardens and Valleys abound and last forever, unhampered by fences and borderlines. A place ride ride, walk and travel endlessly.

Gods help me, its a place I think of and dream about every seconds of the day. I have drempt and envisioned it so much I can pick out the smallest details. I can point out every flower, every cloud, every raindrop off a roof. Every leaf, nail and paving stone. Its a world I want to build and make so real. So much, so badly it hurts inside.

Please gods, help me. Help me make its real. If not for me, then for others. Or, if nothing else, then take me to this place.

#aesthetics #aesthetic #adventure aesthetic #adventure hunter #adventure #adventurecore #forest aestheitic #forest #forest aesthetic #ranger #nomadcore #rangercore #wandercore #vagabondcore #cottagecore #farms #seasons #dreams #wishes

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hajimariwaquartet · 3 years

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Not necessarily a request but!! I'd LOVE to hear your theories on the new pv if you'd share! I have so many thoughts abt the character design cohojcojf

I HAVE SO MUCH THOUGHTS ON THE PV THAT MY TWEETS SHOT UP TO 27K HELP uhhh this is gonna turn out pretty long because i have so many thoughts

(spoilers for act 9, 10. 11 up ahead, along with copious amounts of angst)

FIRS, I LOVE THE CINEMATIC PARALLEL WITH THE FLOWER AND ASTEROIDS i thoght the pollen was a rather strange thing to be emphasize on banri and sakuya's posters but then i saw the pv and *&^@(^(!^$*($ THAT'S SO PRETTY

what if this bubble reflects reni's old dream of putting on a god-like performance? considering how bubbles pop after a certain amount of time and how it reflects the person before it pops, the fall and eventual pop of the bubble is a symbolism of reni's dream being "more real"? considering how yukio won't act ever again, the bubble popping means that reni is awoken from his dream (since he's the only one of the first gen who had the bubble, and how the first gen has the theme of "nothing lasts forever," unlike the newborn gen's "nothing lasts forever, but...")

HARUGUMI. OH MY GOD. THE CINEMATIC TRANSITION JUST MADE ME CRY!!!!!!!!!!! okay so they're pretty bright, right? then they have the vignette/filter before they zoom out, onto the screen of azuma's robot friend. they could've just made it zoom out, but no, THEY HAD TO PUT THE FILTER THERE. it could mean that the a-12 death theory is real and that the arc planet agents (hisoka and azuma) managed to document a-12 before they died.

(a-12 death theory is pretty popular on twt, since the synopsis of the plays from the countdowns imply that a-12 is just a rock now)

ITARUUUUUUUUUUUUUU%(^%*^(*%!^(*%^(!*%^(!% other than the fact that we have the zoom in on him and he's like the leader of the a-12 dwellers in the harugumi pic above... he's also holding the glass flower. we all know how a3 loves paralleling the plays with the event/main story, so i think itaru will have a pretty major part in act 12 (my irl also theorized that itaru will start the family etude for sakuya this time) some tweets to better visualize how impactful itaru being the glue in act 12: this is the thread that talked about itaru as glue, and another one

WHAT IF THIS IS ONE OF THE CGS... ONE OOMF ALSO TALKED ABOUT HOW HE'S POSSIBLY PRESENTING A MONOLGUE IN THIS, WITH THE REST OF MANKAI RIGHT BEHIND HIM... kinda like banri's portrait in act 11 :')

ALSO CAN I PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TALK ABOUT THE "TADAIMA" AND THE LYRICS TOO??????? a lot of jp artists i follow theorize that sakuya will go on a journey in act 12 (metaphorical or literal idk), but he'll still go home to his mankai family. also, the short version of the last planet song (and the long one too) has "tabibito" (traveler), and considering how the title of the plays are "home" and "origin"... it could be saku (the play character) going on a journey to find his origin, but he'll go home to anims once he finds the truth. to add to this, the harugumi part with the old leaders (where itaru sings last), he says "we'll wait for you" or smthn around those lines T-T

as for act 12... this is my theory. so, amadate sr. is very sus and he seems to have a grudge against hakkaku for not writing a script for his troupe. what if he sends out an offer for sakuya to join hyakka before he destroys mankai with more rumours (because he probably spread the rumours around banri in act 11). i don't know how they'll insert saku(ya)'s past since it's getting referenced a lot, BUT I JUST FEEL LIKE THEY'LL INSERT IT SOMEHOW (i crave sakuya lore and development). however, i think harugumi wouldn't try to influence his decision of joining hyakka (bc they're not aware of amadate sr.'s actual intent, but maybe aoshi and kabuto will), but they'll instead remind him that he'll always have a place to go home to (reference to: episode 23 of act 1 - a place that can't be taken away).

#a3!#a3! act! addict! actors!#act 12 theories #act 12 #feb answers #OH MY GOOOOOOOD ACT 12 IS ABSOLUTELY GONNA DESTROY ME I KNOW IT

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themousefromfantasyland · 3 years

Text

The Creatures of Yuletide: The Jultomten

“Midwinter’s nightly frost is hard —

Brightly the stars are beaming;

Fast asleep is the lonely yard,

All, at midnight, are dreaming.

Clear is the moon, and the snow-drifts shine,

Glistening white, on fir and pine,

Covers on rooflets making.

None but the Tomte is waking.”

“Tomten”, Viktor Rydberg

We all know Christmas is a magical time. I’m not joking, Christmas is literally a time of magic. Because of the pagan Winter Solstice celebrations that Christians absorbed into their holiday, the holiday season is a time when multiple creatures, sprites and monsters can roam through the Earth into our homes. Some are peaceful, some are terrifying. Santa is the most popular and modern of these, having roots in the Yule Father himself, Odin. In my last post I talked about the Yule Goat and his connections to the older pagan traditions. Today, I will talk about some holiday sprites that used to travel with him during Christmas time, but later came to replace him almost entirely as a gift-giver in Scandinavian tradition. I’m talking about the Tomte and the Tomtar.

Quick note, these sprites have many names depending on the country, so for convenience sake, I will use the Swedish name and call them Tomte, singular, and Tomtar, plural.

The Tomtar are dwarf-like beings from Scandinavian lore. They are often described as little old men, three feet high, with a long white beard, wearing grey, brown or navy clothes with traditional boots and sporting a bright red cap on their heads.

The name Tomte derives from Swedish word “tomt,” or plot of land, and it means “homestead man”. This reflects their original role as household spirits, similar to the Roman Penates or Di Penates, household deities invoked most often in domestic rituals. The Tomtar were believed to be ancestral spirits of the first farmer to have worked on that plot of land. They were mischievous spirits, responsible for the protection and welfare of a farmstead. They acted more at night, where they were out of sight.

They protected and guarded the house, the properties of the house, the children and the farm animals, especially the much-valued horses. They would work hard to protect the farm, expecting only two things in return, respect, and a bowl of Christmas Porridge with a generous dollop of butter. They often slept under the floorboards during spring and summer and started waking up around the winter solstice. The Julgröt or Christmas porridge was an offer of trust and respect to the Tomte of the household, with butter being a luxury, consumed only on special occasions. It was their payment for the hard work.

As expected from any imp-like creature from European folklore, they can be quite dangerous if their demands are not met. A story tells of a servant girl, that jokingly, hid the butter at the bottom of the bowl. He didn’t kill the girl if this is what you’re thinking, but after not finding the butter, he became so enraged that he slaughtered their best cow. After learning his mistake, he stole a neighbor’s cow to give to the family, as an astonishment for his mistake. I very curious how this played out in the next day 😅

The Tomte is a mischievous spirit, and easily irritated. If you managed on offended him in any way, he could play all kinds of pranks such as binding all cows’ tails together, turning objects upside down or breaking things. Maids or farm workers swearing, dirty outhouses and stables, or not treating creatures well are all things that would incur his disapproval.

Having a Tomte in your farm was a good sign. Clean and orderly homes or farms were an indication that a Tomte spirit resided there. This was, until the Christians arrived and denounced them as demons and false gods. In a 14th century decree by Saint Birgitta of Vadstena warned against “tompta gudhi” or “Tomte gods”. All their worst characteristics were amplified, and instead of pleasing the Tomte, it became your duty as a Christian to lure these evil spirits out. If you were a farmer that was doing far better than the others, your competitors could accuse you of a having a Tomte on your farm, doing "ungodly" work and stealing from the neighbors. This could lead to accusations of witchcraft during the Inquisitions.

The once friendly dwarf-like sprites became evil heathen spirits. In "Tomten", a poem by swedish novelist Viktor Rydberg, describes well all the solitariness that these creatures must felt during these times. In the poem, a Tomte is alone and awake on Christmas night.

This poem along with illustrations from Jenny Nyström saved the public image from the Tomtar. What really captured the imagination were the accompanying illustrations. Nyström’s illustrations offered a new kind of Tomte, a mix between Tomte, Santa Claus and the Yule Goat, who traditionally delivered presents to children in Swedish folklore.

This resulted in a shift in Tomte’s persona. Influenced by the emerging Father Christmas and Santa Claus, a new gift-giver Tomte was born, the Jultomten in Sweden and Julenisse in Norway, who would visit children accompanied by the classic Yule Goat. Later he would steal the goat’s job as a Christmas gift-giver.

Jenny Nyström became one of Sweden’s most productive painters, producing hundreds of illustrations for Christmas cards and magazines. She was able to combine Swedish folklore with uplifting images that appealed to people of all ages. Her Jultomten had a family and nissar, helpers.

Thanks to commercialism, the Jultomten became more and more like the American Santa Claus over the years, as the Jultomten became a single jolly old men in a red suit delivering gifts to children. However, differences still exist between these two figures.

When children write to Father Christmas in Sweden they write to Tomte, not Santa.

The Jultomte lives in a forest nearby.

He doesn't come down the chimney at night, but through the front door, delivering the presents directly to the children, just like the Yule Goat did;

Before he hands over presents he asks, Finns det några snälla barn här? (Are there any good children here?),

He is not overweight;

If he rides a sleigh drawn by reindeer, instead of just walking around with his sack, his reindeers don't fly;

In Sweden, Denmark and Norway some still put out a bowl of porridge for him on Christmas Eve.

The use of the word Tomte in Swedish is now somewhat ambiguous. Often when one speaks of Jultomten (definite article) or Tomten (definite article) one is referring to the more modern version, while if one speaks of Tomtar (plural) or Tomtarna (plural, definite article) one could also likely be referring to the traditional domestic spirits.

In Christmas cards and decorations you still can found the little men from Jenny Nyström's illustrations.

#The Creatures of Yuletide #christmas #holiday season #tomten #tomte #jultomte #scandinavian folklore #swedish folklore #nisse #Scandinavia #Jultomten

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theburntleaf · 3 years

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Balsam Fir // Abies Balsamea

Economically and ecologically important, Balsam Fir is a keystone species of the eastern North American boreal zone. -Vermont Center for Ecostudies

Family: Pinaceae (pine)

Abies from the Latin “rising one” and Balsamea producing a fragrant gum or resin [1]

“Fir” comes from a proto-Germanic word referring to fir or pine trees [x]

Other common names include: eastern fir, Canadian balsam, and blister fir. [2]

Description:

“A steeple-shaped evergreen tree with [flat] needles 3/8” - 1 1/2” long and whitened beneath...cones are 1” - 3” long, upright and fleshy, purplish to green [when fresh]. Bark rather smooth with resin blisters. Height 40’-60’; diameter 1’-2’” - Eastern Trees, Peterson Field Guides, George A. Petrides and Jane Wehr

Distinguishing features that I personally use to identify Balsam Fir is its pointy pyramid shape, flat needles that don’t roll between fingers, and the resin blisters that cover the bark.

Habitat:

The soils on which balsam fir grows range from silt loams developed from lake deposits to stony loams derived from glacial till. Fir will grow, but comparatively slowly, on gravelly sands and in peat bogs. It grows on soils of pH ranging from 4.0 to 6.0. It is generally found in areas with a cold moist climate and with 30 inches or more of annual precipitation [3]

Balsam fir is widely distributed in northeastern North America. It occurs from Newfoundland west across northern Quebec, northern Ontario, central Manitoba, and Saskatchewan to northwestern Alberta... southeast to northern Minnesota and Wisconsin, and east to New England... scattered populations occur in southern Minnesota, southern Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and northern Virginia. [2]

The only native Fir to the Northern Piedmont and a major component of the landscape both as a key to the Spruce-Fir-Northern Hardwood Forest formations and as major commercial crop in local agriculture (for christmas trees). It’s cone shape helps shed heavy snow load “like Vermont’s steep-pitched roofs” and it’s heavy resin content in its needles prevents cell walls from freezing. [4]

Ecosystem:

Balsam fir is a major food of moose during winter... Spruce and ruffed grouse feed on balsam fir needles, tips, and buds... Red squirrels feed on balsam fir male flower buds. Stands attacked by the spruce budworm attract numerous insect-eating birds, especially warblers and woodpeckers... Balsam fir provides important winter cover for white-tailed deer and moose. During summer, deer, bear, and moose often rest under the shade of balsam fir trees. Young balsam firs provide cover for small mammals and birds. Martens, hares, songbirds, and even deer hide from predators in balsam fir thickets. Grouse and songbirds seek shelter during winter within the evergreen foliage. In Maine, fishers often nest in witches brooms in balsam fir trees [2]

Balsam fir is a mostly early and mid successional, but is late successional or climax species in the mountains. Balsam fir seedlings are shade tolerant and can establish underneath a canopy of hard wood and other conifers and they can grow to be 200 years old [maximum]. Locally they form communities with Red Spruce and are accompanied by other trees in the Northern Hardwood Forest. Common understory plants include bunch berry and mayflower and balsams are often hosts to many lichens. [4]

Harvesting:

Resin, needles, and wood are collected from Balsam Fir

Oleo-resin is harvested (using a tool called a picoué) by cutting into blisters best in Jul-Aug [5] but I also like to do this in the winter and early spring when there is not much else to forage for. Dryer resin drips, found on the outter bark or cones, are best collected when temps are well below freezing and even then handled with care (very sticky). [a good video]

A coniferous forest on a warm summer day smells intensely evergreen, a signal essential oils production is high and would make for a good time to harvest needles as well. I have also heard it is good to harvest evergreen needles in early spring when photosynthesis starts back up and sap is flowing. But they also can be harvested in winter time for a late season tea (though perhaps not as potent)

Wood is usually harvested when trees are dormant.

Chemical constituents:

Vitamin C, beta-pinene, delta-3-carene, alpha-pinene, bornyl acetate, α-terpineol, piperitone, and thymol are found in the needles [x], a similar profile is derived from the resinous bark but also includes limonene, beta-phellandrene, camphene [X], and cis-abienol is a major component of its aromatic resin [5].

Actions:

The Penobscot applied resin as an analgesic antiseptic for burns, sores, bruises, and wounds. Iroquois used leaf tea for colds, coughs, and asthma. The Chippewa inhed fumes from resin on hot coals to treat headache. [5]

(balsam fir) Kokokha8wk: A tea made from the leaves is used for coughs, colds and fevers. The tea can also be used as a scalp wash for dandruff. The leaves are harvested in the spring and dried. The resin is an antiseptic and healing agent and is used for frostbite. - From Ethno-Botany of the Abenaki and other Northeast Tribes Compiled by Brian Chenevert

Antiseptic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, laxative, expectorant, vulnerary

Affinity for the respiratory system, skin, immune system

Energetics:

The presence of delta-3-carene is a good indicator that balsam is drying. Balsam is also stimulating, it helps activate and get things moving.

Safety/Cautions

Generally safe, no found contraindications, resin may cause skin irritation [5] heavy resin content may put stress on kidneys [x], pregnant and nursing mothers should avoid or consult a physician. As always medicinal information is for educational purposes, consult a doctor or clinical herbalist before using plants for treatment of illness.

History:

Because it is only native to North America, Balsam Fir has a well established history with the indigenous peoples some of which is noted above.

Locally I’m interested to learn more about how Balsam Fir has shaped the Northeast Kindom. It is logged for pulp wood and light construction, but more so commercially farmed for Christmas trees so it has a role to play in the local economy and agriculture and I’m sure it played a big role in the reforestation of Vermont after the 1800s.

A historic fun fact that also might come in handy (for doing natural crafts) is the resin was used as a transparent cement and to fix samples and slides for the microscope.

Note on the Early History of Canada Balsam by Professor Flückiger

Maine Balsam Fir: A Tree of Many Uses, by David Fuller

The Evergreen Economy: NH & VT Christmas Wonderland by Amy Ash Nixon

Aromatic Use:

Thoreau wrote that the young shoots of the balsam fir, Abies balsamea, when picked and kept in a pocket for a few days emit the fragrance of strawberries “only it is somewhat more aromatic and spicy” [1]

Abies balsamea (L.) Mill. (Pinaceae). balsam fir. Unspecified parts of this species were burned as incense in Iceland (Bjornnson 1475). In parts of North America, Native Americans threw the needles on hot coals in their sweat baths and inhaled the fumes to relieve coughs and colds (Krochmal and Krochmal 1973). The gum from the tree was used in churches in Paris as frankincense (Lescar- bot 1609). From The Uses and Abuses of Plant Derived Smoke by Kayri Havens, Lara Jefferson, and Marcello Pennacchio

Paine’s products in Maine has been making balsam incense since 1931 and is featured in this article The Best Incense Sticks Are From an 85-Year-Old Company in Maine. Balsam fir pillows are also a common staple in country stores here in Northern New England, and is most popular in the area for trees, wreaths, and kissing balls to bring coniferous aromas inside during the holidays.

Recipes:

Fir needle makes a great tea. Combined with dried orange peel, cinnamon, cardamom, star anise, ginger, and peppercorns for a spiced chai. Using folk methods of preparation: the needle and resin can be made into an oxymel or infused in honey, tinctured, or infused into oil for salves and soap. Definitely for incense and aromatic applications, most recently it was included in an incense dedicated to winter’s longest night and I am working on an all fir formula. I also make balsam sachets for clothing drawers and under pillows. It can be used in culinary endeavours, I have a good recipe for balsam fir and cranberry cookies. It can be used as a substitute for (white) pine which is often found in recipes as it is more wide spread.

Virtues:

Fir whose twigs and needles are burned as a protection from lightning during storms. The fresh branches are of especial merit as switches for scouring the ghost-ridden, or beating the evil out of a haunted place. Its resin... serves as a peerless fume for the removal of intruding ghosts... Abies balsamea,... is an Evergreen of northern latitudes, long valued for its fragrant contribution to the magical fume. Its principal magical virtues are purification, healing, and resonating the Genii of the Forest, though its more specialised formulae may render fumes which give rise to trance states... In the Work of the Hedge, the Fir stands as a charm against nightmares and nocturnal intrusion by hanging fresh branches hung over the bed. Similarly, a branch hung over the barn door keeps noxious spirits from stealing grain. -from Viridarium Umbris by Daniel Schulke

[most of this is also reiterated in Myths and Legends of Flowers, Trees, and Plants by Charles M Skinner]

One of the things that bothers me with the entry above is the lack of context, (where who why etc), which is an often occurrence with gathering such info. I’m assuming its use as a preventive against nightmares and thieving spirits is an act of sympathetic magic, (I’m also assuming some of this lore is specifically about Abies Alba balsam fir’s European counterpart. but as for balsamea...) as the resin bisters on its bark act as a trap against predators or perhaps it is a lure, dooming noxious spirits to count its many little leaves. Im unsure of the history or lore of its use to protect agaisnt lightning storms but in my personal practice evergreens are used to help bring rain [x]. It’s use in healing and purification is a little more obvious.

Personally I find balsam most pertinent in working with the genii loci. Balsam fir just embodies so much of the local landscape it’s hard not to encounter. There are the hedge keeping balsams the grow bushy and protect the forest boundary and there are balsams of the inner woods that grow tall resinous trunks. The perfume of its resin is favored by local land spirits. I find it specially tied to the varying hare. Balsam has a wonderful seasonal duality of being a beacon of life and warmth during winter, but one who harbors a cool relief to summer heat. But it is during winter that Fir receives the most adoration.

Botanical astrology is a subject I am still relatively new to (but very intrigued by) so my understanding of this might evolve. Agrippa gives rulership of pine trees to Saturn, and balsam fir (in the same family) has some saturnine traits as tree that grows in harsh conditions, a gymnosperm the oldest kind of seed producing plants, evergreen in immortality. In Culpepper’s Complete Herbal, he gives Fir trees to Jupiter, though is referring to a different species but with similar qualities. Looking to its medicinal application I can see how it may balance a phlemegtic temperament. More specifically when looking to clear the lungs I might consider Gemini, when concocting unguents for the skin: Capricorn, and Pisces when looking to stimulate the immune system. As an incense I am personally drawn to work with balsam in Lunar formulas especially when focusing on local materials. It is not a cooling sedating plant in action, but as an aromatic it I find it to be more aligned with the Moon. According to Agrippa “leaves of all vegetables” are appropriate in Lunar suffumigations, perhaps balsam needle would fall into that category. But I am more interested in its resin. Hiding behind round swolllen blisters, the oleoresin is very “watery” and is clear (to yellow tinged), even the slightly hardened resin is whiteish and moon like. Of the local (mostly conifer) resins it is the most true to the cool camphoraceous conifer scent that evokes the Moon, even when burned. These formulas often seek to enhance the trance iducing qualities of the burning resin and are to accompany dreaming, divination or to welcome Lunar influences. The Moon often rises over a particulary favored patch of balsam which was another draw and personal connection. I’m also interested to experiment and see if the Moon (phase or sign) has any effect on resin production for harvesting.

References:

*sorry for using both direct sources and footnotes*

"Gardener's Latin: A Lexicon", Barbara Damrosch.

Uchytil, Ronald J. 1991. Abies balsamea. In: Fire Effects Information System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service

Plant Fact Sheet: Balsam Fir, USDA NRCS

Wetland, Woodland, Wildland: A guide to the natural communities of Vermont, Elizabeth H. Thompson and Eric R. Sorensen

Peterson felid guide to medicinal herbs and plants of Eastern North Armerica, Steven Foster and James A. Duke

*as always with these monographs, this post is not static and is subject to change and updates as more information is discovered, learned, and processed. For educational purposes only and not for medicinal adivse*

#monograph #materia aromatica #balsam fir #long post #probably will be edited #I’m sure I messed something up somewhere in here haha

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