#its an evocative idea what can i say!!
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some wirt warmups lmao look at him go
#art#bumbleboyart#artists on tumblr#wirt#otgw#over the garden wall#beatrice otgw#idk wirt as the beast etc etc#its an evocative idea what can i say!!#ratatouille#lmao#i want to try drawing him more doll/figurine like#but alas#that requires skill
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i have had like 10 friends rec worm to me but nobody’s given me a good like, gist of its vibe and what its abt because ‘its best blind’, could u please give a like brief summary and vibe check of it 😭 it’s so long i dont wanna try and invest that much time without knowing much abt it
so, worm is a 1.7 million word long webserial written in 2010. 1.7 million words seems like a lot, but it was also written over a relatively short period of time, which means the writing style is very easy to parse--the ideas aren't without complexity, but the language itself isn't intimidatingly dense. you can get through it at a very decent pace. i agree with your friends that there are vast portions of worm that hit best when you're unspoiled, but the thing is that worm is long enough that giving you the basic plot pitch is in no way spoilers for any of the things that i wouldn't want to see spoiled for someone. i'm actually kind of baffled they're not telling you Any Thing, because it is in my estimation one of the best books i've ever read, but it also Needs a briefing before you get into it for like five different reasons. which i will now provide. i swear to god this is brief by my standards it's just that i am very thorough
worm is a story about superheroes and supervillains, set in a world where superpowers are traumagenic--rather than appearing randomly or innately, some people gain powers after a traumatizing event happens to them. the protagonist is taylor hebert, a 15yo girl who has the power to control insects and desperately wants to be a superhero. and then accidentally finds herself scouted by a team of teenage villains instead. who's to say how she's going to react to all that!
one of the most compelling things about worm is that the superpowers in it serve as visceral, hyper-literal metaphors for the trauma and traumatized coping mechanisms of the characters with those powers. each power is incredibly specific and thematically relevant to the person who has it, and it's incredibly interesting and evocative. it feels so natural and well-done that it comes off like how superpowers are just meant to be written.
the fact that superpowers stem from trauma also means that worm is fundamentally a narrative about trauma. specifically, about traumatized teenagers and the relationships they form as they cling together while struggling through growing up traumatized & mutually coping with an increasingly intriguing, intense, and far-reaching escalating plot. worm's depictions of trauma + mental illness--including unpalatable trauma responses, including traumatized characters who are allowed to be complicated and nuanced and messy while still receiving narrative respect--are deeply real-feeling and impactful, and they're placed in the context of a well-spun + engaging story.
i really do have to stress how excellent the character writing is. worm is fully deserving of being as long as it is. over the course of 1.7 million words of character development, the average reader's reaction to the main characters goes from "sorta interesting" to "okay, i want to see where this goes" to "augh...really likable" to "i am now on hands and knees crying and these characters are going to stick around in my brain forever." wildbow has incredible talent for efficiently conveying complicated, real-feeling, and viscerally evocative characterization. many of the interlude chapters (chapters written from the perspective of different characters other than taylor) are so interesting, fleshed-out, and emotionally affecting that they make you wish you could read an entire novel about just the side character being featured. with that level of characterization for just the side cast, it's not surprising that taylor (& co) are genuinely just downright iconic. and i do not say that lightly--taylor is truly one of the best-written protagonists i've seen in anything. ever.
the other main pitch-point for worm is that it's a fascinating deconstruction/reconstruction/examination of the conceits of the superhero genre. it answers the question of--what would the world have to be like, for people with superpowers to act the way they do in classic cape media? and it does this well enough that it's interesting even if you have only a passing familiarity with cape media. i am not a big superhero media fan, but worm addresses virtually every aspect of cape media that was under the sun around 2010 in a way that's so interesting i still find it incredibly engaging. the approach it takes makes the narrative very accessible even to people who aren't usually cape media fans.
and speaking of the narrative: the end of the story is coherent and satisfying and deeply thematically resonant*. the way worm follows through on all of its main mysteries & plot threads is excellent. you don't have to worry about getting thru 1.7 million words and being dissatisfied by the author shitting the bed at the end, or anything like that. he does an amazing job of weaving together plot events in a way that makes each successive one feel rationally, thematically, and emotionally connected to what came before. there's really only one part where i feel the story stumbles a bit, but i think it was the best option he had for the narrative, and it's by no means a dealbreaker. it's in fact really impressive how cohesive and satisfying worm is for such a long webserial released over such a brief period of time.
*this is subjective ive seen some people who didnt love it but ive never seen anyone who downright Hated it who didnt also demonstrate egregious misunderstanding of literally everything worm is about. so thats a good sign
as for the downsides of worm/things that might put you off:
there is a very long list of trigger warnings for it. if you have any trigger warnings you want you should ask your friends to let you know about the relevant parts, because the fact that it's About Trauma (& about typical cape media circumstances presented very seriously) means that traumatic and violent things & their realistic aftermath are constantly happening and/or being discussed. i would not classify worm as needlessly dark or spiteful to the audience by any means, but it is intense and covers a lot of heavy topics. i do assume if your friends are all recommending it to you, they think none of the material would be too much for you, though!
worm was written in 2010 by a white cishet guy from canada. it's typical levels of 2010-era bigoted, it has a deeply lesbophobic stereotype character, it has some atrociously racist stereotype characters, the author really hates addicts, It's Got Blind Spots. i think worm is generally fully worth reading despite these, but very fair warning that it can get bad. i think what exacerbates this is that worm is generally extremely nuanced & sympathetic regarding ideas such as "crime is a result of systematic circumstance vs people just being inherently evil" and "mentally ill people who are traumatized in unpalatable ways are still deserving of fundamental respect as human beings" and so on and so forth, so it's extra noticeable and insufferable when you get to a topic the author has unexamined biases on and all that nuance drops out. the worst part is that a lot of this is most concentrated in the early arcs, so you have to get through them without being super attached to any of the characters yet. it is worth it though.
worm like. Does have a central straight relationship in it. and it's a very well written straight relationship for the most part and i like it quite a lot. but worm also passes the bechdel test with such flying colors that it enters 'unintentionally homoerotic' territory. which means a lot of people were shipping the main character ms taylor hebert with her female friends while the story was being released. which caused the author to get so mad he 1. posted a word of god to a forum loudly insisting that all of the girls are straight and 2. inserted a few deeply awkward and obvious and out of character scenes where he finds an excuse for the girls to more or less turn to the camera and go "i'm not gay, btw. this is platonic." This is fucking insufferable, and will piss you off immensely, but then you will get to any of the number of deeply emotionally affecting scenes between them, and at that point you will be too busy sniffling piteously and perhaps crytyping an analysis post on tumblr to be mad about all that other shit. also they're only a couple tiny portions out of an entire overall fantastic novel
overall: if those points don't sound like dealbreakers (i hope they aren't they're really massively outstripped by the amount of devastatingly good moments in worm, worm still has a thriving fandom over a decade later for a reason), you should absolutely give it a shot and see what you think. my final note is that you have to read up until the end of arc 8 to really see where what makes worm Worm kicks in, so aim for at least there to see how you feel about it if you're just thinking about dipping your toes in vs fully committing. i hope that was helpful and not too long :)
oh and don't go in the comments section on wordpress if you don't want spoilers. or anywhere else in the fandom at all. you will be spoiled. quite possibly for things you could not even have imagined were topics to be spoiled on.
#ask#wormblr#parahumans#ill tag it to save it so i can reference later. and maybe other people will find it helpful
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Hiii can I just say I’m OBSESSED with ISY,D!! Amazing work truly the best ❤️
I saw asks are open so I thought I’d slip in a little prompt 👀
Astarion and Tav have a bit of a spat at camp. Tav is trying to convince Astarion that ascending would make him just as bad as Cazador, but Astarion craves the power and the freedom. Tav, upset and frustrated, ends up leaving for a walk through the late night streets of the gate to clear their head. One of the vampire spawn out looking for their next prey find Tav, recognizing them immediately as Astarion’s love (and one true weakness) and kidnaps them to bring to Cazador. Cazador, being the sick fuck he is, locks Tav away and sends a note to Astarion that he finds the next morning, saying that he had Tav and that if Astarion wants them back he has to surrender to Cazador and go through with the ceremony. Astarion loses his mind and races to the castle with the gang in tow, praying that Tav is unharmed. Will he be there just in time to save Tav? Or will he be too late, will Cazador have already turned them by the time he gets there?
Sorry for the paragraph but this has been in my mind for DAYS and I would cry if you could make this story come to fruition ❤️
-🌸
Hello 🌸anon!! Thank you so much for liking the series, I'm glad that it's something that you enjoy reading! Also, I've decided to include @simp-4-astarion's request as they were rather similar in nature!! Thank you so much for liking my work :,DDD
In addition!! Just a heads up for people who'd like to request or send an idea in, I don't just write for Astarion! Feel free to include your favorite romanceable pcs (and non romanceable npcs lol) into the mix!!
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That night at camp had been fraught with tension, like a fraying rope ready to snap. The campfire crackled, the tongues of the flame dancing and flickering about, mirroring the storm within the heated pair.
Your voice, something that he's come to find solace in as of late, quivered with frustration unlike any he's heard directed at him before as you tried to reason with him.
"I don't relish it. but my," He pauses, wondering what he should call them. "--Siblings lured thousands of people to their death over the years. I doubt Baldur's Gate would miss any of them." He seems rather taken with the idea, and you worry about what this could mean for him.
"But we don't even know if it's possible, Astarion. You're hypothesizing that you become the Vampire Ascended at the expense of eradicating the other spawn." Whether or not they had done things as horrendous as your,-- gods you don't even know what you are,-- as the ex-magistrate, they did not deserve to be subjected to such a ritual.
He paces around you, ascertaining your reactions, and making quick work to think about how he could convince you
"And so what? I've obviously thought about it. If I completed the ritual, this evocation, I'd have insurmountable power. And--" He nears himself to you, practically whispering the following words into the skin of you neck. As if anything he said would etch its way into your skin and carve you anew.
"I could walk in the sun without fear of becoming a mindflayer. Don't you want that for me, darling? For us?" The question instills an indescribable fear in you. Not the same fear that's been riddling you as you wonder if you'd perish in one of your many battles, but the fear you'd witness when you lost something dear to you.
It's as if he's giving you an out.
Agree with him, and you seal his fate as the Vampire Ascendant with a sure place at his side.
Or disagree, allowing all those spawn the same chance he had been given all those tendays ago, and snuff out whatever growing relationship you had between you.
He senses your uncertainty. And he feels lost. He figured that you would be so sure to keep him at your side. Doing anything it takes to make sure it stays that way, but now you're getting cold feet with his blatant proposal of companionship because of what?
These monsters he's hunted with?
These damned spawn that represent everything you've seeked to correct about the world?
"Astarion, please, give them a chance. They were just like you once, give them that much."
At any other time, he would've admired your efforts to help them. But in this moment, he thinks you a fool who could never truly understand what it means to be a slave and to want for power.
"You did not know them. And you do not know me as well as you may think, my dear, if you think they deserve a chance more than I do."
He doesn't know why it all happened the way it did. The way that his thoughts came tumbling out of his mouth and only allowing the worst of things to escape him.
All he knows was that it had surely hurt you and that he doesn't think he's ever seen your retreating form look as small as it did as you walked towards somewhere in the city.
And that he wished he had remembered where they were. So near to where his consanguines and he used to hunt.
So when he and the others are greeted with a letter smelling of undeath, telling them that they had their precious leader imprisoned in Cazadaor's manor, he knows not to tell them about the little argument you two had.
Knows not to tell them anything to dampen their mood as they search for you.
Knows not to tell them that the likelihood he kept you alive was slim to none, now that he has Astarion's attention.
Once they had been alerted of your whereabouts, a clear ploy to lure him back to his master, there would be no use for you anymore. They don't know Cazador like he did, and he was sure that by the time they reached their destination, you would be no more.
Stil, he's willing to take any chance he can get to get you back. No use in proclaiming you dead if he hasn't seen you, and he'd be damned if he let Cazador take any more from him.
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#astarion x reader#astarion ancunin#bg3 x reader#astarion x you#astarion ancunin x reader#astarion x mc#astarion x tav#astarion ancunin x tav#baldur's gate 3 x reader
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Ooh, The Last Sequoia you're working on is really evocative for me. Part of my work two summers ago was helping with fuels reduction in a seqouia grove. 5 years after a hot fire killed more than half that grove. And months after the grove 10 miles away was saved from a big fire due to fuels reduction efforts the year before. I'm applying for a Masters program where I might be working on forest fire ecology... This is just to say that your painting isn't even done and it's making me Feel Things.
Thank you! I was thinking about this particular poem when I was working on it, it's stuck with me for years.
They will soon be down
To one, but he still will be
For a little while still will be stopping
The flakes in the air with a look,
Surrounding himself with the silence
Of whitening snarls. Let him eat
The last red meal of the condemned
To extinction, tearing the guts
From an elk. Yet that is not enough
For me. I would have him eat
The heart, and from it, have an idea
Stream into his gnarling head
That he no longer has a thing
To lose, and so can walk
Out into the open, in the full
Pale of the sub-Arctic sun
Where a single spruce tree is dying
Higher and higher. Let him climb it
With all his meanness and strength.
Lord, we have come to the end
Of this kind of vision of heaven,
As the sky breaks open
Its fans around him and shimmers
And into its northern gates he rises
Snarling complete in the joy of a weasel
With an elk’s horned heart in his stomach
Looking straight into the eternal
Blue, where he hauls his kind. I would have it all
My way: at the top of that tree I place
The New World’s last eagle
Hunched in mangy feathers giving
Up on the theory of flight.
Dear God of the wildness of poetry, let them mate
To the death in the rotten branches,
Let the tree sway and burst into flame
And mingle them, crackling with feathers,
In crownfire. Let something come
Of it something gigantic legendary
Rise beyond reason over hills
Of ice screaming that it cannot die,
That it has come back, this time
On wings, and will spare no earthly thing:
That it will hover, made purely of northern
Lights, at dusk and fall
On men building roads: will perch
On the moose’s horn like a falcon
Riding into battle into holy war against
Screaming railroad crews: will pull
Whole traplines like fibres from the snow
In the long-jawed night of fur trappers.
But, small, filthy, unwinged,
You will soon be crouching
Alone, with maybe some dim racial notion
Of being the last, but none of how much
Your unnoticed going will mean:
How much the timid poem needs
The mindless explosion of your rage,
The glutton’s internal fire the elk’s
Heart in the belly, sprouting wings,
The pact of the “blind swallowing
Thing,” with himself, to eat
The world, and not to be driven off it
Until it is gone, even if it takes
Forever. I take you as you are
And make of you what I will,
Skunk-bear, carcajou, bloodthirsty
Non-survivor.
Lord, let me die but not die
Out.
James Dickey, “For the Last Wolverine” from The Whole Motion: Collected Poems 1945-1992.
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Listening to Ep 8, I cannot help but extrapolate on the repeated references to both hunger and loneliness and make inferences as to what it might mean about the nature of whatever Entity is enacting its will upon this Brutalist Liminal space and Mr. Stevens during his tenure working within said.
Thoughts:
1. Human beings share meals & eat together as a communal activity, and have done so throughout history. The connection between physical hunger and social isolation is not a reach.
2. Mr. Stevens is a middle-aged divorcee, and thus likely a prime target for the Forsaken. Liminal spaces and the “repetitive geometric shapes” mentioned in his discussion of Brutalism are immediately evocative of the Spiral. But as the Fears have been altered by their journey across Universes, we can surmise that whatever Entity suffers from this “architectural hunger” Stevens is sensing, it is not as simple as a place that blurs the line between those two fears.
3. Mr. Stevens’ successive discussions of the “overdevelopment of UK road infrastructure” and the permeation of trash deposited throughout Forton strongly evokes the memory of Extinction statements from TMA.
3. Oh. Those are the lights of cars going by, hanging still over the asphalt. But the cars are nowhere to be seen. Fucking haunting imagery.
4. Did you say “pork?” Did you mean “long pig?” Am I sensing traces of a new incarnation of Viscera? (Am I still very much trapped in the TMA universe mindset? It appears so.)
5. A mere “impression of speech,” as Andrea Nunis heard in MAG 48: Lost in the Crowd? When I visualize the figures in the restaurant, why do I see AI images of people?
6. “You Are Here,” the avatars say. Shall we call this entity the Presence, or the Absence?
7. Cannibals. I knew it. Maybe we should refer to their governing Entity as Hunger.
8. Stevens’ remark about no one noticing his absence reminds me of Martin’s comments upon his return from his incarceration at the hands of Prentiss. He’s a lonely guy, lowercase l.
9. Is that. Is that jealousy I hear, Alice?
10. Is….. that…. OH MY GOD. oh my god.. OMFG IT IS GERRRYYYYYYY AND GERTRUDEEEEEEEEE WHAT THE FUCK
11. Gifted Kids’ Program??? I’m having flashbacks…
12. The painting has eyes in it, doesn’t it, Gerry? You’re going to spy on her, is that it?
13. Physics? My beloved? My chosen discipline? Celia, I think you’d be on the right track researching higher dimensions and other universes (both implied by String Theory, but very different ideas), but teleportation? In my mind, that concept is more closely tied to quantum entanglement and therefore Quantum Gravity as a candidate for the Unified Field Theory. Those are competing ideas, but I enjoy researching both, so I suppose in cannon there’s no harm to exploring all avenues…?
14. DID SHE SAY GEORGIE—
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Using Latin Chants To Summon Daemons: A Daemonolatry Info Post
This is something I've been wanting to make a post about for a while, but I completely forgot to write about it lol. It's been sitting in my drafts for forever now, thanks to my clusterfuck of an AuDHD brain. 🤪 I FINALLY got it finished though, so here it is!
Okay so I've been summoning daemons using Latin for quite a while now, and I thought I'd write about it because I figured other practitioners might like to try this out too!
Full post under the cut. ↓
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What's The Deal With Latin?
Daemons have long been stereotypically associated with the Latin language. But why is this? Well, I speculate that it's partially because of the fact that many historical books on demonology and witchcraft were written in Latin (e.g. grimoires such as the Ars Goetia and Liber Officiorum Spirituum).
However, the link between daemons and Latin goes back further than this. It's most likely and primarily due to the fact that the Roman Catholic Church retained Latin as its liturgical language. Many of their scripture and rites (including the ones regarding exorcisms of mainly "demonic spirits") remained written in Latin. And so, daemons starting being conflated with the Latin language as a whole.
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Why Summon Daemons In Latin?
Nowadays, Latin is a rather obsolete language and isn't largely spoken in most parts of the world anymore. As a result, some people may find that it adds an extra layer of mysticism between the practitioner and their magical workings. Given how ancient the language is (as well as its associations with daemons and The Devil in the modern day), this can give it more subconscious power when used in your craft.
I've personally found it helpful to evoke/invoke daemons in Latin, and I find that it helps me connect with them better.
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Why Not Just Use Enns?
Personally, I don't like to use the well-known enns to conjure daemons. From what I know, the demonic enns seem to originate from the works of S. Connolly, and I'm not a huge fan of her books in general... Personally I feel that a lot of the information in her books is poorly researched, and that the Dukante stuff and demonic enns are likely fabricated, and I find that she's just a highly problematic and culturally-appropriative person in general, which tends to show within her books (in my personal opinion; don't sue me ffs). So I try to stay away from her stuff, as I'm paranoid that it might potentially negatively effect my craft.
This is one of the reasons why I actually came up with Latin chants to conjure daemons in the first place; I like the idea of demonic enns, but I personally just don't want to associate with any of Connolly's stuff whatsoever. But that's just me though. If you like using the enns and it works for you, that's okay! It's just not personally my thing.
~
How To Summon Daemons Using Latin
I came up with a specific type of Latin chant that can be used to summon daemons; It's called a vocatum.
The word "vocatum" literally means "called", "invoked", or "having been summoned" in Latin. A vocatum can be iterated as a chant in order to invite or request the daemon's presence, as well as to help you get into a meditative state so you can communicate with the daemon better. You could also just say the vocatum once, if that personally suffices for you.
Here are some daemonic vocatums I have personally come up with and used in my own practice:
~ Simplified Vocatum ~
✧ Vocatum: "Ave [Daemon's Name], vos invoco/evoco."
✧ Translation: "Hail [Daemon's Name], I invoke/evoke you."
✰ Example: "Ave Satanas, vos invoco."
~ Complex Vocatum ~
✧ Vocatum: "Salve, [Daemon's Name]. Magnus [Rank], reverenter vos invoco/evoco."
✧ Translation: "Greetings, [Daemon's Name]. Great [Rank], I reverently invoke/evoke you."
✰ Example: "Salve, Glasya-Labolas. Magnus Comes, reverenter vos evoco."
🌟 Note: Use "invoco" for invocations and "evoco" for evocations.
Here is a short list of the Latin translations for the daemons' ranks (mostly from the Ars Goetia):
King/Queen - Rex/Regina
Duke/Duchess - Dux/Ducissa
Prince/Princess - Princeps/Principissa
Marquis/Marchioness - Marchio/Marchionissa
Earl/Count/Countess - Comes/Comitessa
President - Praeses
Knight/Sir/Dame - Miles/Dominus/Domina
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Difference Between Invoking And Evoking
Many people may consider evocation and invocation to be the same thing, but personally I differentiate the two. Here is my personal gnosis on the differences between them:
☆ Evocation is when you call upon a deity or spirit and ask them to preside during rituals or magical workings; You're basically asking them to come and hang out with you in your space.
☆ Invocation is more so a form of voluntary possession. You're inviting them into yourself, and they are (partially) merging their being with your own; They are manifesting within you, instead of manifesting alongside you.
If you're a beginner practitioner, I would personally hold off on invoking daemons before getting to know them better through evocation first; But that's just me. Some daemons' energies can be very intense and quite overwhelming, especially if you haven't met the daemon before.
E.g. Upon making first contact with Quing Paimon, I invoked them instead of evoking them, and their energies were quite heavy and overwhelming when they partially merged their soul with mine; I ended up feeling a little dizzy, became mentally exhausted rather quickly, and also got a mild headache (but maybe the headache was just from the incense I was burning LOL). I've had similar experiences with Count Glasya-Labolas too.
But once you get to know a daemon and adjust to their energies overtime, you should be fine. Please don't let my personal experiences discourage you from pursuing a relationship with the daemons you feel most drawn to!
Welp, that's pretty much all I had to write about regarding this topic. I hope you found this post helpful! And, as always... May you be blessed by whoever it is that you venerate, and I wish you all the best on your spiritual path. <3
~
~ Ave Satanas ~
+ . . . Divider Credit . . . +
#daemonolatry info posts#demonolatry#demonology#demons#demonblr#witchblr#paganblr#daemonolatry#daemonology#daemons#daemonic divine#demonic divine#paganism#pagan#demon vocatums#demon summoning
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The Secret Song of Florian and Jonquil Part 10: The Shrouded Lord and a Mermaid's UnKiss
December 24, 2023
Shrouded Lord_AI Generated Image by Nuevoimg_123rf
I ended last chapter with an excerpt from 1 Peter that referenced Christ as the Living Stone and proposed that George was using the legend of the Shrouded Lord in the book to mirror the biblical one. And as I discussed previously, the myth of the Shrouded Lord is in the story to inform upon Jon’s resurrection. So, with that said, let’s jump right back in to talk about Jon Snow, the Living Stone and the kiss of life coming his way.
JON, THE SHROUDED LORD AKA, THE LIVING STONE
The sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer. —Oliver Wendell Holmes
We first hear mention of the Shrouded Lord in A Dance with Dragon where after the urging of Illyrio, Tyrion boards the Shy Maid to travel to Volantis with Griff and Faegon. While travelling on the Rhoyne, Haldon and Duck regal Yollo (Tyrion) with dark tales of the legendary pirates in the area.
Haldon gave him a thin smile. "If we should encounter the Lady Korra on Hag's Teeth, you may soon be lacking other parts as well. Korra the Cruel, they call her. Her ship is crewed by beautiful young maids who geld every male they capture."
This time Duck laughed, and Haldon said, "What a droll little fellow you are, Yollo. They say that the Shrouded Lord will grant a boon to any man who can make him laugh. Perhaps His Grey Grace will choose you to ornament his stony court."
Duck glanced at his companion uneasily. "It's not good to jape of that one, not when we're so near the Rhoyne. He hears."
"Wisdom from a duck," said Haldon. "I beg your pardon, Yollo. You need not look so pale, I was only playing with you. The Prince of Sorrows does not bestow his grey kiss lightly."
His grey kiss. The thought made his flesh crawl. Death had lost its terror for Tyrion Lannister, but greyscale was another matter. The Shrouded Lord is just a legend, he told himself, no more real than the ghost of Lann the Clever that some claim haunts Casterly Rock. Even so, he held his tongue.
— A Dance with Dragons - Tyrion III
Four important things are revealed to us with the first mention of this mysterious figure. First, we find out that The Shrouded Lord is a Stone Man who lives in the Sorrows. Stone men are of course those in the last stages of greyscale who live in area of the Rhoyne where a thousand years previously, Garin is said to have called down the curse on the dragon lords of old.
Secondly, Tyrion associates him with Lann the Clever, the ancient ancestor of the Lannisters from the Age of Heroes who was said to have winkle Casterly Rock from the Casterlys with only his wits. Martin is usually implying something when he mentions these ancient figures in the text, and I have a couple of ideas why he had Tyrion think of Lann at this moment. One, I will write an essay on at another time, but the second reason is because I think his plan was to have Tyrion meet The Shrouded Lord, and it would have been Gerion, his missing uncle who disappeared when he went looking for the lost Lannister Valyrian sword, Brightroar.
George did write a chapter where Tyrion met The Shrouded Lord but decided not to include it in the books. Here is what he said about the discarded chapter.
“It’s a swell, spook, evocative chapter, but you won’t read it in Dance. It took me down a road I decided I did not want to travel, so I went back and ripped it out. So, unless I change my mind again, it’s going the way of the draft of Lord of the Rings where Tolkien has Frodo, Sam Merry and Pippin reach the Prancing Pony and meet a weatherbeaten old hobbit ranger named “Trotter.”
—George R R Martin
The popular fandom reason for the deletion of the chapter is that there was too much magic in the scene. I think that this is a good take and quite possibly part of the reason for the deletion. George’s writing is centered on the character and the magic is secondary. There will be a big input of magic in the story, but that will be towards the end, and so the chapter with The Shrouded Lord might have been a bit too early.
All of this makes sense but only up to a point because there have been heavily magical scenes in the story already such as the birthing of Dany’s dragons, and her visit to the HOTU. Also, in ADWD, George gave us three magical scenes…Varamyr's attempt to body jump Thistle; Arya’s introduction to the magical faces of the Faceless Men; and Bran’s first visit inside the weirwood net.
That’s a lot of magical scenes in one book and so maybe George thought that Tyrion’s encounter with The Shrouded Lord was one too many. I tend to think that the true reason the chapter was pulled is because George felt it revealed too much about Jon’s resurrection, and he wasn’t ready to show his hand yet. There is also the fact that if Tyrion did meet The Shrouded Lord, Martin would have had to give him greyscale. This is something he may have been planning to do but decided against and chose to give it to Jon Con instead.
The third interesting thing we find out is that The Shrouded Lord will grant a boon to all who will make him laugh. This is important symbolism as it has to do with why there are as many fools appearing throughout the books as they are whor*s. I’m not going to go into the explanation about fools here as this chapter is already extremely long. However, I will again direct you to Crowfood’s Daughter excellent video essay on the subject.
Finally, we find out that the mysterious figure of the Sorrows is known by three names. In addition to The Shrouded Lord, he is also called His Grey Grace and The Prince of Sorrows. It just so happens that I can show you how all these names apply to Jon. His Grey Grace is obvious as he quite likely will be considered a king…at least for a while. I’ve also showed you last chapter why Jon's symbolic color is grey; and if he does get greyscale like I’ve proposed, part of him will have the grey scaly stone like scars of the disease.
So, what about the other two names. Well let’s start first with The Shrouded Lord.
Generally, when I see a representation of The Shrouded Lord in a video or featured in an essay, it’s of the standard fantasy image of a man in shadow wearing a grey cowl like those worn by monks…similar to the one I used for the header image of this essay. But here’s the thing. Yes, a cowl can be loosely considered a shroud but it would be at the bottom of the list of synonyms.
A shroud is more properly defined as, “a length of cloth or enveloping garment in which a dead person is wrapped for burial.” And the most famous one in all history is the Shroud of Turin, purportedly, the burial cloth of Jesus that is said to have his face imprinted or ingrained in it.
Shroud of Turin, Public Domain
Understanding this meaning of shroud as a burial cloth, one can immediately see that the Shrouded Lord is quite possibly dead. Of course, as there is no cure for greyscale once it has reached the point that you are considered a stone man, it may just be symbolism. Also, as he is given the title Lord, one can also extrapolated and say that he is considered the ruler of the dead…a kind of Hades like figure. Or maybe even, regarding the story…a Night’s King like personage.
As he’s using the word shroud, that’s so closely identified with Jesus, one can also assume that George might want the reader to associate this mysterious figure from the Sorrows with his own created Christ like figure…one Jon Snow.
You’re probably saying, interesting analogy, but it doesn’t mean that The Shrouded Lord is meant to tell us about Jon’s resurrection or even has anything to do with him. And to that I say, it gets better. I missed it the first time I read the book but when I re-read A Dance with Dragons several years ago, something hit me when I reached the chapters where The Shrouded Lord is mentioned. In making the association with the Shroud of Turin, my mind immediately wondered whether George was symbolically associating The Shrouded Lord with Christ.
Having already recognized that he had set Jon up as the Christ like figure in the books who would be resurrected, I then considered the strong possibility that he was trying to tell us something about Jon’s resurrection, but I wasn’t immediately sure what the connection could be. The fact that the Shrouded Lord was a stone man and thus had greyscale; and Shireen who for some inexplicable reason, Martin also gave greyscale and then place at the Wall where she was in contact with Jon, told me that I was on to something, but again, what did it mean? And then the memories of my years of Sunday school and sitting in too many Episcopalian church services to remember kicked in and I knew the answer. I remembered.
Christ, the Living Stone!
Jesus was prophesized to be the Living Stone. Here we get the first reference in Isaiah 28:16
16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;
the one who relies on it
will never be stricken with panic.
And then again in the Psalms 118:22.
The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
23 the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.
And here in 1 Peter, we get the full prophecy.
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”
8 and,
“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
—1 Peter 2:4-10 NIV
This is the answer to the question that many in the fandom have pondered. Why did George make greyscale a part of the story? A plague is understandable. After all, his story takes place in a Middle Ages type setting when plagues were prevalent, but why one that turned its victims into living stones.
Now we know! Jesus was the Living Stone who died and was resurrected to save man. In ASOIAF, Jon is the Christ like figure who will die and be resurrected to be the savior of man. And thus, he needed to have living stone symbolism. He needed to be a living Stone and thus, George needed a way to turn him into a stone man.
In the bible, Jesus as the Living Stone is symbolic, but George made it literal for his story. This is why he invented greyscale; gave it to Shireen; and placed her at the Wall.
We now see how two of the three monikers assigned to the mysterious figure known as The Shrouded Lord can be directly connected to Jon Snow, our in-world risen Christ. He is His Grey Grace, and he is The Shrouded Lord. What about the third…the Prince of Sorrows? As George is also using it as a sobriquet for his in-world figure, it must also be connected to Jesus. Let’s look again at the Book of Isaiah for the answer.
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
—Isaiah 53:2-6 KJV
This passage reminds me a bit of the tale Old Nan told Bran about the Night's King and how all records of him were destroyed and his very name forbidden; and later how Ygritte told Jon that Snow was an evil name. I would say the two are related.
Isaiah saying that Christ was not comely in our eyes also reminds me of Sansa saying that Florian was homely. The bible verse also shows us that Christ was known as a man of sorrows. Not quite the same wording as Prince of Sorrows, but then again, Jesus is also called Prince several times in other books of the bible, and Jon is quite possibly a prince in the books.
13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.
14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.
—ACTS 3 13-15
_____
5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.
—REVELATIONS 1:5
And of course, he is known as the Prince of Peace. Now that we see how the three monikers connect to both Jesus and Jon, what about Jon’s resurrection? Might the myth of The Shrouded Lord give us some idea about his resurrection? Yes. Yes, it does, because there just so happens to be a resurrection portion of the myth that symbolically plays out with Tyrion, Sansa’s motley attire husband.
The legend of The Shrouded Lord first appears in A Dance with Dragon, the same book where Jon is killed. We first read about Garin and the curse he called down on the dragon lords of old and how the ruins of Chroyane turned into the Sorrows in TWOIAF, which was published two years after ADWD.
Lomas Longstrider wrote of the drowned ruins of Chroyane, its foul fogs and waters, and the fact that wayward travelers infected with greyscale now haunt the ruins—a hazard for those who travel the river beneath the broken span of the Bridge of Dream.
However, that was not the first time the name Garin appeared in the text. It first appeared in A Feast for Crows and is the name of one of Arianne’s childhood friends who participated in her attempt to crown Myrcella queen. After their plot is rooted out by Doran, Garin is initially sent to Ghaston Grey.
During her next bath, she spoke of her imprisoned friends, especially Garin. "He's the one I fear for most," she confided to the serving girl. "The orphans are free spirits, they live to wander. Garin needs sunshine and fresh air. If they lock him away in some dank stone cell, how will he survive? He will not last a year at Ghaston Grey."
—A Feast for Crows, Princess in the Tower
According to Arianne, “Ghaston Grey was a crumbling old castle perched on a rock in the Sea of Dorne, a drear and dreadful prison where the vilest of criminals were sent to rot and die.” Sea of Dorne is filled with so much symbolic implications with the potential use of two homonyms on George’s part, Sea of Dawn or even See of Dawn, but that’s a discussion for another day. The name is also likely another homage on George’s part to his favorite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, as Gaston, Belle’s proverbial suitor falls to his death in the sea below during his fight with the Beast.
Ghaston Grey does sounds like the perfect symbolic prison to send a prisoner named after the ancient Rhoynar prince who called down the greyscale plague upon the dragon lords. Garin is an Orphan of the Greenblood, the descendants of Nymeria and the Rhoynar who decided to remain on the rivers and not settle on Dornish land. And so, it makes symbolic sense that he was imprisoned in the “sea.” I mentioned Garin because originally, A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons was one gigantic book before it was split into two by the publisher. And so, events in the two books are basically taking place around the same time. This shows that when George introduced the myth of The Shrouded Lord in the book where Jon dies, he was already thinking of Garin and the Rhoynar.
My regular readers probably think it’s boring the number of times I repeat in my essays that George is always consistent in his use of symbolism. I repeat it often because with the depth of symbolism built into the story, it’s amazing that he never drops the ball. And because I felt strongly that Florian and Jonquil were the ancient Night’s King and Corpse Queen, and Jon and Sansa their modern-day counterpart, when I figured how The Shrouded Lord connected to Jon and his resurrection, I was stumped by Florian’s motley armor.
I knew it had to be important because when the Tyrion drowning scene played out in the Sorrows, where he played the role of the Jon/Shrouded Lord character, he was wearing motley clothing. But I was stumped at what Motley might have to do with the Shrouded Lord and stone. That is, until I recently watched one of Crowfood’s Daughter ironborn videos and discovered that she had figured out the answer. Motley represented stone.
You can watch the video, Bless Him with Stone here, but what Amanda figured out is how motley is connected to stone. Motley as we are shown in the text is how the costumes of fools are described, and by connecting this to the real-world Harlequin fool from medieval history, Amanda hit on something interesting.
She discovered that there is a real-world disease called, Harlequin Ichthyosis, that’s very like greyscale. Also called fish scale disease, it got its name from the Greek word, ichthys, which translate as fish.
Harlequin Ichthyosis
With this discovery and the connection to motley and fools in mind, Amanda soon discovered in the text that George compares the scars from Shireen’s greyscale to Patchface’s motley costume.
Grand Maester Pycelle gaped at him, aghast. "Surely you do not mean to suggest that Lady Selyse would bring a fool into her bed?"
"You'd have to be a fool to want to bed Selyse Florent," said Littlefinger. "Doubtless Patchface reminded her of Stannis. And the best lies contain within them nuggets of truth, enough to give a listener pause. As it happens, this fool is utterly devoted to the girl and follows her everywhere. They even look somewhat alike. Shireen has a mottled, half-frozen face as well."
Pycelle was lost. "But that is from the greyscale that near killed her as a babe, poor thing."
— A Clash of Kings - Tyrion III
Mottle as Amanda’s research also showed is from the 17th century and is a back formation of motley. From there, it was then easy for her to make the connection to Florian the Fool.
This morning the puppeteers were doing the tale of Florian and Jonquil. The fat Dornishwoman was working Florian in his armor made of motley, while the tall girl held Jonquil's strings. "You are no knight," she was saying as the puppet's mouth moved up and down. "I know you. You are Florian the Fool."
"I am, my lady," the other puppet answered, kneeling. "As great a fool as ever lived, and as great a knight as well."
—The Hedge Knight
___
"You hope to buy your way back into her favor by presenting her with me. An ill-considered scheme, I'd say. One might even say an act of drunken desperation. Perhaps if I were Jaime … but Jaime killed her father, I only killed my own. You think Daenerys will execute me and pardon you, but the reverse is just as likely. Maybe you should hop up on that pig, Ser Jorah. Put on a suit of iron motley, like Florian the—"
—A Dance with Dragons, Tyrion IX
If George wants us to consider greyscale and motley in the same terms, then does that mean that Sansa’s favorite knight did not wear a motley suit of armor, but rather had greyscale. As soon as I got to this point in Amanda’s video, I knew that I had my answer about how stone connected to Florian, because it had to be if Jon, the modern-day Florian was The Shrouded Lord of the story. Eureka!
One thing I discovered in my research, which Amanda didn’t mention and so I’m not sure if she is aware is that there is a condition very similar to Ichthyosis called Livedo reticularis but more commonly known as mottled skin. It’s not as deadly or life threatening as Ichthyosis, but it does look somewhat similar.
Mottled Skin
Mottled skin causes a bluish-red, lace-like patter under the skin. Also known as Livedo reticularis, this condition happens when deoxygenated blood pools beneath the skin’s surface. This condition has many causes, including cold exposure and chronic medical conditions.
—Cleveland Clinic
You can see from the picture below how similar it is to Ichthyosis. You know who else I wondered about when I read this description for mottled skin, Cold Hands. I wonder what his face and the rest of his skin looks like under his hood and cloak. But that’s a theory for another day.
One other thing Amanda’s video showed is that when you pull up mermaids on the wiki, you get a “see also” reference to Ichthyosis. It is called the fish scale disease and so that makes sense, but consistent symbolism people. Symbolism.
A MERMAID'S UNKISS
Now that we’ve discussed The Shrouded Lord, and how his myth is in the story to tell us about Jon’s resurrection as the symbolic risen Christ, let’s finally get to that resurrection and how Sansa will be smacked dab in the middle of it, something I’ve proposed for years.
Melisandre is what I like to call a shiny apple. George’s way of hiding the truth in plain sight. Because Thoros, another Red Priest brought Beric back, the fandom assumes Mel will do the same for Jon…especially as they went that route in the show.
Don’t get me wrong, she’s at the Wall because she has a role to play but it won’t consciously or unconsciously be about bringing Jon back. Although when it happens, other characters will think it was her, and she’ll likely take the credit, but it won’t be her. Mel is at the Wall to burn Shireen which will in some magical way, result in Jon getting greyscale.
I have a broad idea of how it will play out, which I will get into at the end. Mel won’t bring Jon back because what the tale of The Shrouded Lord tells us is that the return of the fiery dragon lord will be a cold one.
I have been saying for years that Jon and Sansa are the modern Florian and Jonquil and that George is telling their story through their interactions with other characters who act as stand-ins for each. In the case of Jon, Ygritte, the lover of songs, and Val, the non-maiden who Jon rejects when she looks like an icy, white hair ice queen, but thinks is loveliest thing he’s seen in a long while when she comes out of the trees of the haunted forest with her hair looking like dark honey and Ghost at her side.
As I pointed out in The Evolution of Val an essay I wrote several years ago, dark honey is dark brown in color with red highlights. A color very similar to the chestnut Sansa has been dying her hair as she hides out in the Vale. But she’s running out of dye and her red hair is symbolically beginning to peek out.
In Sansa’s arc, the role of Jon is being played by the Sandor Cleghane, the Hound. This is the angry Jon that will return with his wolf Ghost now literally a part of him. Jon will be savage like the Hound. This is why Sandor is given the Hound moniker. It’s to suggest a wolf hound…aka Jon.
Sandor’s burnt face also is there to foreshadow Jon’s face being burnt and likely where the greyscale will enter his dead body as I speculated above. This will likely happen in his funeral pyre. In Deep Geek has a great video about something like this happening. You can watch it here. Jon’s face being burnt at some point was also foreshadowed during his first meeting with Ygritte in the chapter that mirrors Sansa and Sandor on top of the Red Keep during the fiery battle of the Blackwater.
It all seemed to happen in a heartbeat. Afterward Jon could admire the courage of the wildling who reached first for his horn instead of his blade. He got it to his lips, but before he could sound it Stonesnake knocked the horn aside with a swipe of his shortsword. Jon's man leapt to his feet, thrusting at his face with a burning brand. He could feel the heat of the flames as he flinched back. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the sleeper stirring, and knew he must finish his man quick. When the brand swung again, he bulled into it, swinging the bastard sword with both hands.
—A Clash of Kings, Jon VI
Sansa calmed the Hounds spirit when she sang him The Mother’s Hymn. And just as she tempered the Hound, she will do the same for beastly Jon, like Belle did to the Beast in George’s favorite fairy tale.
In, Do Direwolves dream of the Weirwood Net, I discussed and showed the textural evidence that suggests the bond mates of House Stark can access the weirwood net. This is important because I believe that when Jon called out to Ghost upon his death, their spirits merged, and Ghost took them into the weirwoods, and it is here that he will encounter Sansa and she will give him the kiss of life. There is a magical component that of course has yet to be revealed by the author, but textural clues suggests that this is what will happen. So, let’s now discussed those clues.
Sansa, like many other characters is an unreliable narrator. One of the biggest pieces of evidence to support this is the infamous UnKiss, as the fandom calls the kiss, she remembers sharing with the Hound.
Alla had a lovely voice, and when coaxed would play the woodharp and sing songs of chivalry and lost loves. Megga couldn't sing, but she was mad to be kissed. She and Alla played a kissing game sometimes, she confessed, but it wasn't the same as kissing a man, much less a king. Sansa wondered what Megga would think about kissing the Hound, as she had. He'd come to her the night of the battle stinking of wine and blood. He kissed me and threatened to kill me, and made me sing him a song.
—A Storm of Swords, Sansa II
The kiss Sansa remembers, never happened. We the reader watch the scene play out on the page and we know there was no kiss between her and the Hound. She thinks of the kiss that never happened for a second time later in the book when having a conversation with Myranda.
She thought of Tyrion, and of the Hound and how he'd kissed her, and gave a nod. "That must have been dreadful, my lady. Him dying. There, I mean, whilst . . . whilst he was . . ."
— A Feast for Crows - Alayne II
Why is Sansa remembering a kiss that never happened? A fan asked GRRM via email back in 2002, and this was his response.
“Well, not every inconsistency is a mistake, actually. Some are quite intentional. File this one under “unreliable narrator” and feel free to ponder its meaning.”
—So Spake Martin
Some in the fandom has taken Sansa’s memory of the kiss that never happened as Sansa having romantic feelings for the Hound. However, I don't think that's it. Yes, Martin, has admitted that he has played with this aspect, but I feel confident it’s not because he intended any romance between the two.
Why do I say that Martin is not going to write Sansa having romantic feelings for the Hound? Because one of the core themes of the story is the evil practice of marrying girls before they are even of age to men old enough to be their fathers and often their grandfathers. Sandor Cleghane is old enough to be Sansa’s father being just a few years younger than Ned. Plus, Sandor assaulted and terrorized Sansa. George is not going to turn around now at the end of the story and create a romance between a child and a grown man who terrorized her.
Also, and this is important, we are shown on the page and told in the text that Sansa prefers boys her age. There is Joffrey before he showed himself to be a monster; Loras, the fake Rhaegar stand-in; and Waymar Royce, the Jon stand-in. And if that is not sufficient evidence, Sansa in her own words tells us that she prefers men close to her age.
"I suppose," Sansa said doubtfully. Beric Dondarrion was handsome enough, but he was awfully old, almost twenty-two; the Knight of Flowers would have been much better. Of course, Jeyne had been in love with Lord Beric ever since she had first glimpsed him in the lists. Sansa thought she was being silly; Jeyne was only a steward's daughter, after all, and no matter how much she mooned after him, Lord Beric would never look at someone so far beneath him, even if she hadn't been half his age.
—A Game of Thrones, Sansa III
Jeyne has a crush on Beric, who is almost 22. Sansa who is 12 at the time, the same age she is when the UnKiss with the Hound supposedly took place, thinks Beric is too old, and that Loras, the Knight of Flowers who is 16 and just 4 years older than her would be much better. At the start of the story, Sandor Cleghane is 28. Why would Sansa have romantic feelings for him when she thought that Beric who is 6 years younger than the Hound was too old. Makes no sense. George is showing us that Sansa’s interest lies in boys her age.
However, GRRM has admitted that he’s been playing with the idea of something romantic between Sansa and Sandor, and so one must ask why? I think the answer is because Sandor is a stand-in for Jon, and what Sansa is remembering is not a kiss between her and Sandor but rather one between her and Jon.
In the chapter 8, I discussed why mermaids and dragonflies are symbolic sea dragons and how George has positioned Sansa as representing both. I also covered why Nagga, the sea dragon the Grey King slew was his mermaid wife and how that meant that Elenei, the mermaid wife of Durran Godsgrief should also be considered a sea dragon. However in the Durran/Elenei legend, the mermaid wife likely save her mate from drowning by giving him the kiss of life.
Then I discussed why sea dragons and mermaids represent the missing female greenseers of the story and why Nissa Nissa/Corpse Queen/Grey King’s mermaid wife was the first sea dragon and the first greenseer who was female. All of this led me to revisiting the textural clues that point to Sansa being the mermaid/sea dragon of the story and the missing female greenseer.
Legends say that mermaids or sirens as they are sometimes called often lure sailors to their death via drowning.
"A touch of fear will not be out of place, Alayne. You've seen a fearful thing. Nestor will be moved." Petyr studied her eyes, as if seeing them for the first time. "You have your mother's eyes. Honest eyes, and innocent. Blue as a sunlit sea. When you are a little older, many a man will drown in those eyes."
Sansa did not know what to say to that.
—A Feast for Crows, Sansa I
However, sometimes they will be a savior as in the case of the Little Mermaid, and Elenei saving Durran.
And now let’s look at what Sansa being a greenseer and the UnKiss might have to do with the resurrection of Jon Snow, the Shrouded Lord of Living Stone.
“We are made of blood and bone, in the image of the Father and the Mother,” said Septa Lemore. “Make no vainglorious boasts, I beg you. Pride is a grievous sin. The stone men were proud as well, and the Shrouded Lord was proudest of them all.”
The heat from the glowing coals brought a flush to Tyrion’s face. “Is there a Shrouded Lord? Or is he just some tale?”
“The Shrouded Lord has ruled these mists since Garin’s day,” said Yandry. “Some say that he himself is Garin, risen from his watery grave.”
“The dead do not rise,” insisted Haldon Halfmaester, “and no man lives a thousand years. Yes, there is a Shrouded Lord. There have been a score of them. When one dies another takes his place. This one is a corsair from the Basilisk Islands who believed the Rhoyne would offer richer pickings than the Summer Sea.”
“Aye, I’ve heard that too,” said Duck, “but there’s another tale I like better. The one that says he’s not like t’other stone men, that he started as a statue till a grey woman came out of the fog and kissed him with lips as cold as ice.”
A Dance with Dragons, Tyrion V
In one of the myths told to Tyrion about The Shrouded Lord, he is said to have started as a stone statue until a cold kiss from a grey woman awakened or one might say, resurrected him. And as I’ve shown, the legend of the Shrouded Lord in only in the story to tell us about Jon’s resurrection. Thus, Jon’s resurrection should also involve a cold kiss from a woman in grey.
As we see from Melisandre’s vision, there is a mysterious girl in grey destined to connect with Jon. Sansa is this girl in grey. George has also inexplicably written a mysterious kiss into Sansa’s arc that supposedly never took place. I proposed that this kiss, or UnKiss as the fandom likes to call it is the one that will be tied to Jon’s resurrection, and it takes place in the weirwood net where Sansa will temper the savaged Jon and like Elenei did with Durran, save him from drowning in the green sea.
As we’re dealing with the weirwoods where time is circular, the kiss may have already happened, or Sansa could be seeing a future event. Nonetheless, the fact that she has memory of it is another clue that she is a greenseer. However, because she’s traumatized and the kiss is between her and her “brother” whose face is likely burnt, making him look more like the Hound, she has confused his identity in her mind.
I said above that George loves religious myths, but do you want to know what else he loves…fairy tales. And there are abundant references to such tales throughout the text.
Many essays have been written by others in the fandom about this topic, but the two I want to talk about here are Beauty and the Beast, and The Little Mermaid because those two are heavily prevalent in Sansa’s arc and in the resurrection of The Shrouded Lord…especially the mermaid linkage.
The original Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen’s is very different from the Disney version so beloved by children, and George has merged the two in his version of the story. In Andersen’s version, mermaids live for hundreds of years and if the Little Mermaid (in the story, she is not given a name) is able to gain the love of the human prince, she will be fated to live out her days as a human. She will have a shorter life span but will gain a human soul. In ASOIAF, George gives us this tale of the fair Elenei.
The songs said that Storm's End had been raised in ancient days by Durran, the first Storm King, who had won the love of the fair Elenei, daughter of the sea god and the goddess of the wind. On the night of their wedding, Elenei had yielded her maidenhood to a mortal's love and thus doomed herself to a mortal's death, and her grieving parents had unleashed their wrath and sent the winds and waters to batter down Durran's hold. His friends and brothers and wedding guests were crushed beneath collapsing walls or blown out to sea, but Elenei sheltered Durran within her arms so he took no harm, and when the dawn came at last he declared war upon the gods and vowed to rebuild.
—A Clash of Kings, Catelyn III
By the way, as I discussed in my Of Sansa Stark and Alayne Stone series, Elenei is a variant of Alayne, the name Sansa is hiding out under in the Vale as the daughter of the Merlin(g) King.
In both Andersen’s and George’s version of the tale, the mermaid saves the man from drowning. The mermaid also saves a man from drowning in the Disney version, but there is also the added detail of a kiss. While the sea witch, named Ursula in the Disney version mandates that the little mermaid must gain the prince’s love in the Andersen tale, the cartoon changes it to a kiss.
Martin has woven a life-giving kiss into his story as well with the tale of Elenei, the ironborn’s kiss of life, and even that of the R’hllorist cult with Thoros life giving the kiss to Beric and him in turn passing it on to Cat. And as we see, George has also woven it into the legend of The Shrouded Lord.
“Aye, I’ve heard that too,” said Duck, “but there’s another tale I like better. The one that says he’s not like t’other stone men, that he started as a statue till a grey woman came out of the fog and kissed him with lips as cold as ice.”
Unsurprisingly, a stone statue is also a key element in both the Andersen original, and the Disney version of The Little Mermaid. In the original, the little mermaid finds the statue before she rescues the prince from drowning. It’s her first experience with anything from the human world and so, the statue becomes a prize possession. When she later rescues the prince, she realizes that he looks just like her statue, and this is part of what precipitates her falling for him.
On the other hand, in the Disney version, she finds the statue after she rescues the prince and it becomes a sign for her that she should follow him to the human world and this precipitates her visit to Ursula the sea witch.
We see that George has heavily built the tale of the Little Mermaid into his sea dragon and Shrouded Lord myths. So, what does all of this have to do with Jon’s resurrection, Sansa, and The Shrouded Lord?
Funnily enough, the very next Tyrion chapter after we first hear about The Shrouded Lord, the Shy Maid finally makes it to the Sorrows and is attacked by the Stone Men, leading to the near-death drowning experience of Sansa’s motley dressed husband and the answer to the question is provided. Let’s look at this chapter.
Chroyane_by Philip Straub_The World of Ice and Fire
“The Shy Maid moved through the fog like a blind man groping his way down an unfamiliar hall.
Septa Lemore was praying. The mists muffled the sound of her voice, making it seem small and hushed. Griff paced the deck, mail clinking softly beneath his wolfskin cloak.”
—A Dance with Dragon, Tyrion V
Make note that Griff (Jon Connington) is wearing a wolfskin cloak, marking him as a symbolic wolf in the scene. This next excerpt is pretty long, but it is needed so that one can see all the symbolism and order of events playing out.
“Just saying a thing does not make it true. Who better to raise Prince Rhaegar’s infant son than Prince Rhaegar’s dear friend Jon Connington, once Lord of Griffin’s Roost and Hand of the King?”
“Be quiet.” Griff’s voice was uneasy.
On the larboard side of the boat, a huge stone hand was visible just below the water. Two fingers broke the surface. How many of those are there? Tyrion wondered. A trickle of moisture ran down his spine and made him shudder. The Sorrows drifted by them. Peering through the mists, he glimpsed a broken spire, a headless hero, an ancient tree torn from the ground and upended, its huge roots twisting through the roof and windows of a broken dome. Why does all of this seem so familiar?”
“Straight on, a tilted stairway of pale marble rose up out of the dark water in a graceful spiral, ending abruptly ten feet above their heads. No, thought Tyrion, that is not possible.
“Ahead.” Lemore’s voice was shivery. “A light.”
All of them looked. All of them saw it.
“Kingfisher,” said Griff. “Her, or some other like her.” But he drew his sword again.
No one said a word. The Shy Maid moved with the current. Her sail had not been raised since she first entered the Sorrows. She had no way to move but with the river. Duck stood squinting, clutching his pole with both hands. After a time even Yandry stopped pushing. Every eye was on the distant light. As they grew closer, it turned into two lights. Then three.
“The Bridge of Dream,” said Tyrion.
“Inconceivable,” said Haldon Halfmaester. “We’ve left the bridge behind. Rivers only run one way.”
“Mother Rhoyne runs how she will,” murmured Yandry.
“Seven save us,” said Lemore.
Up ahead, the stone men on the span began to wail. A few were pointing down at them. “Haldon, get the prince below,” commanded Griff.”
The large stone hand is like the symbolic hand of God hearing Tyrion’s words and passing judgment because just as they pass it, things get a bit crazy as some type of magic kicks in. Rivers only run one way except for in ASOIAF. Even their dialogue as they pass the bridge again is the same, but with differences.
The leap had shattered one of his legs, and a jagged piece of pale bone jutted out through the rotted cloth of his breeches and the grey meat beneath. The broken bone was speckled with brown blood, but still he lurched forward, reaching for Young Griff. His hand was grey and stiff, but blood oozed between his knuckles as he tried to close his fingers to grasp. The boy stood staring, as still as if he too were made of stone. His hand was on his sword hilt, but he seemed to have forgotten why.
Tyrion kicked the lad’s leg out from under him and leapt over him when he fell, thrusting his torch into the stone man’s face to send him stumbling backwards on his shattered leg, flailing at the flames with stiff grey hands.
—A Dance with Dragons, Tyrion V
Tyrion knocked Young Griff down to protect him, but the stone man gets away and goes for the boy again.
“Stand aside!” someone shouted, far away, and another voice said, “The prince! Protect the boy!” The stone man staggered forward, his hands outstretched and grasping.
Tyrion drove a shoulder into him.
It felt like slamming into a castle wall, but this castle stood upon a shattered leg. The stone man went over backwards, grabbing hold of Tyrion as he fell. They hit the river with a towering splash, and Mother Rhoyne swallowed up the two of them.
As he’s dragged to the bottom of the river by the stone man, Tyrion thinks, “there are worse ways to die than drowning.” And then we get this ending passage.
I’ll haunt the Seven Kingdoms, he thought, sinking deeper. They would not love me living, so let them dread me dead.
When he opened his mouth to curse them all, black water filled his lungs, and the dark closed in around him.
Tyrion, Sansa's motley wearing husband almost drowns in the green sea, and as it happens, he thinks of haunting the Seven Kingdoms as a dead man. I wonder what or better yet, who that might be foreshadowing?
When next we see Tyrion, he’s waking up and remembers dreaming of getting a grey kiss from the Shrouded Lord.
“He dreamt of his lord father and the Shrouded Lord. He dreamt that they were one and the same, and when his father wrapped stone arms around him and bent to give him his grey kiss, he woke with his mouth dry and rusty with the taste of blood and his heart hammering in his chest.
“Our dead dwarf has returned to us,” Haldon said.
“Tyrion shook his head to clear away the webs of dream. The Sorrows. I was lost in the Sorrows. “I am not dead.”
—A Dance with Dragons, Tyrion VI
He then comments on his surroundings and we get this passage.
He was on the Shy Maid, Tyrion saw, under a scratchy blanket that smelled of vinegar. The Sorrows are behind us. It was just a dream I dreamed as I was drowning. “Why do I stink of vinegar?”
Why does he smell of vinegar? This bit is extremely important, and I will tell you why shortly. It’s George and his bloody consistent symbolism and another clue that he’s playing with the idea of Jon as Christ, the Living Stone.
Tyrion discovers that he was pulled from the river by Jon Con, and Septa Lemore then saved him. It was likely her kiss of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation that he mixed up with one from the Shrouded Lord in his dream.
“Lemore has been washing you with it. Some say it helps prevent the greyscale. I am inclined to doubt that, but there was no harm in trying. It was Lemore who forced the water from your lungs after Griff had pulled you up. You were as cold as ice, and your lips were blue. Yandry said we ought to throw you back, but the lad forbade it.”
—A Dance with Dragon, Tyrion VI
As Crowfood’s Daughter stated in her video, Septa Lemore is a bit of an exhibitionist who likes to bathe naked in the river in sight of all…kind of like a mermaid; and Jonquil and her sisters when Florian viewed them in the Maiden Pool. Tyrion enjoyed watching Septa Lemore a few times. Thus, she is the symbolic mermaid stand-in for Sansa who gives Tyrion, the stand-in for the Shrouded Lord/Jon the icy kiss to bring him back to life. The fact that Tyrion is Sansa’s husband just completes the symbolism.
Tyrion and Griff are both stand-ins for Jon in the Sorrows scene. We've talked about Tyrion, but let's also look at what happens to Jon Con after he goes into the sorrows to rescue the little Lannister?
The symbolic wolf in the scene who just happens to have the same name as Jon Snow, is the one to get greyscale, the disease which turns one into a stone man.
If my theory that The Shrouded Lord’s purpose in the story is to tell us about Jon’s resurrection, then Jon Con is not just a symbolic wolf in the scene, but also a symbolic dragon. He was also closest to Jon's father Rhaegar as Tyrion mentions. So, it makes perfect sense that he’s the one to get greyscale in the waters where Garin called down a curse on the dragon lords of old.
As we are talking about Garin’s curse, Tyrion’s fall into the Sorrows may have proven that he’s not a Targaryen, because if he was, I think that he would have gotten greyscale. There is something magical about the Sorrows. The stone men ignored the Shy Maid as it travel through the Sorrows, and the pole boat had almost made it out the foggy landscape when Tyrion started talking about knowing that Young Griff was Rhaegar’s son, and the next thing you know, boat seem to be back where it started and they were again passing The Bridge of Dreams and this time, they were attacked by the stone men.
This plays into my theory that the story is about circular time and events are repeating but with differences…almost like different timelines. However, what I want to point out here is that on their second trip through the Sorrows when the stone men attacked, if you read the passage, they went right for Young Griff. It’s almost as if something heard Tyrion’s story and realized that there was someone with dragon blood on the boat.
So, about that vinegar. After all the evidence that shows how the description of the Shrouded Lord echoes that of the risen Christ, would you still be surprised if I tell you that vinegar also plays a part in Christ’s crucifixion?
In each of the 4 Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, it is stated that the soldiers at the crucifixion offered Jesus sour wine when he said he was thirsty. Sour wine is vinegar. In fact, in one of the gospels, it is said that Jesus is given sour wine to drink while the others refer to it as vinegar because that is basically what sour wine is…vinegar.
they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink. —Matthew 27:34 KJV
36 “And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.”
37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. —Mark 15:36-37 KJV
36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”— Luke 23:36
28 Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. — John 19:28
Sour wine was the only type of wine that soldiers would have had available to them. For this reason, some biblical scholars have argued that as it was the only thing they had to give, it was meant as a succor and not an insult. Others have argued the opposite. The reference to vinegar is not only in the 4 gospels. It is also referenced in Psalms 69.
The Psalms are part of the Old Testament and were written by King David. However, modern biblical scholars have argued that there were other writers of these group of songs. Psalms 69 is a lament, and as it is part of the Old Testament while the Gospels and the life of Christ are distilled in the New Testament, it is also seen as a prophecy of the suffering of Christ, and this is why it is associated with his crucifixion. In the Episcopalian Church, it is recited during Good Friday services, the day of Christ’s crucifixion.
It is too long for me to include, but I do want to post a few lines. You can read the full Psalms here.
1 Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.
2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
14 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.
21 They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
As you can see, in the Psalm that is believed to prophesize the coming of Jesus to save us from our sins, water is used to foreshadow drowning. Although in the Psalms, the drowning is more spiritual in nature. On the other hand, in George’s tale, water is used to symbolize drowning in the green sea/weirwood net, which is what will be happening to Jon as his spirit resides in Ghost and he’s taken into the weirwood net.
It's Sansa, whose symbolic color like Jon, is grey because she is a daughter of House Stark; and thus, is wearing that color in Melisandre’s vision; and who happens to have red Night’s Queen hair, who will save Jon from drowning.
In part 3 of this series, I discussed the textural evidence that suggests the corpse queen was a redhead. However, a non-textural but still important clue to back up this idea is that in western art, mermaids are traditionally featured as redheads. There is no reference to hair color in the Andersen tale, but Disney’s famous Ariel is a redhead.
A Mermaid by John William Waterhouse
Let’s now recap the Tyrion chapters set in and around the Sorrows that occur in ADWD, the book where Jon Snow is killed and his spirit merges with his wolf and goes into the weirwood net as foreshadowed in the Varamyr prologue. We get several chapters that both foreshadows Jon’s resurrection and that he will get greyscale that turns one into a stone like figure.
First, we get the story of the leader of the stone men, The Shrouded Lord that echoes that of the real world risen Christ who was called the Living Stone. Jon Snow is symbolically set up as the Christ like figure in ASOIAF.
There is also Jon Con, who just happens to have the same name as Jon Snow; and who just happens to be wearing a wolfskin cloak before he goes into the Sorrows; being the one to get greyscale…a disease that turns one into a stone man.
And we have Sansa, who George has strongly set up as a symbolic mermaid/sea dragon and who I argue is the missing female greenseer in the story associated with a mysterious kiss that has already happened; or possibly is still to occur. A kiss that she remembers happening with the Hound, but all evidence points to there not being anything of a romantic nature between them. There is also the fact that Sandor’s story mirrors Jon and he’s set up as the Jon stand-in in Sansa’s arc.
We have the tale of the Shrouded Lord starting out as a stone statue and being given life by the kiss from a grey woman who had lips as cold as ice. This woman’s cold lips and her grey color can’t help but make one think of the corpse/night’s queen. And further to the grey woman who kisses the Shrouded Lord, in the same book, we hear of Melisandre’s vision of a mysterious girl wearing Stark colors and coming to Jon at the Wall.
There is also all the mermaid symbolism in the text of them rescuing a drowning male, and how this symbolically plays out with Septa Lemore saving Tyrion in the scene where he acts as the stand-in for the Shrouded Lord. A scene that also echoes that of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection with the use of vinegar.
I could go into detail of how Sansa’s interaction with Dontos, the stand-in for Florian in her arc also symbolically mirrors that of a mermaid saving a man from drowning, but this chapter is already overlong. As a result, I will again suggest that you watch Crowfood’s Daughter video, The Grey King’s Mermaid Wife for more details.
Now that I’ve discussed all the clues that suggest Sansa will have a role to play in Jon’s resurrection as well as why the Shrouded Lord is a stand-in for Jon, you might wonder how I think his return will play out.
Well, I think that Melisandre will have a role to play in the events, but she won’t be fully responsible for his return. With her, it will be more of an accident. I think that the kiss between Sansa and Jon will take place out of time in the weirwood net, and it will in some way, magically push Jon back into his body, but he will bring some of Ghost’s savage nature with him.
On the Melisandre angle, I think that she will burn Jon. She keeps asking R’hllor to show her Stannis but all she sees is Snow. She’s seeing Jon both literally and symbolically. Her vision includes a lot of snow which has begun to fall, but as we know, and saw in the TV show, ashes can also look like snow, and that’s what Mels is seeing around Jon.
Stannis tells Justin Massey that rumor may reach them that he is dead. Will that be true or not is not the subject for now, but I think that it’s possible that Melisandre may entertain this idea when she continues to be unable to see him in the fire, and even with his death, she continues to see Jon Snow in the flames.
Maybe this will lead her to recognizes that snow can sometimes look like ashes and then she comes to the realization that she should burn Jon. The Nights Watch and Wildings who will join to dispatch those who kill Jon would want to burn his body in either case to prevent it turning into a wight.
And this is where the prophecy of waking dragons from stones will come in. As far as Melisandre is concern, that hasn’t yet happened, and so in her quest to help the missing Stannis, she may see the burning of Jon as the way to make it so. She asks for Azor Ahai, but the flames keep showing her Jon Snow. Yes, Jon is dead, but maybe she thinks the R’hllor is telling her that the burning of his body will still lead to Azor Ahai, who she believes is Stannis.
Also, while she doesn’t know about Jon’s connection to Rhaegar and that he also has Targaryen blood, the Starks come from a long line of ancient kings and his brother was recently crowned king. Thus, to her, Jon also has king’s blood. But she needs two kings to wake the dragon, and that’s where Shireen comes in.
Shireen is not a king, but she is Stannis heir and has king’s blood. And so, Melisandre has her two kings to wake a dragon. Jon Snow and Shireen. It won’t be very difficult for Mels to convince Selyse to burn her daughter to the cause…especially if it will help Stannis. The queen is a devout fanatic. Does Melisandre think she will be waking a real dragon from stone? Possibly, but who knows. The point is that she’s doing it because she thinks it will help Stannis.
The interesting thing is that the Wildings and the remaining Nights Watch brothers won’t do anything to stop it. The Wildings will be the ones primarily in charge, and as we see from Val, they already think that Shireen should not be alive because of her greyscale. So, they won’t stop Melisandre from burning her.
Where will all of this take place? Radio Westeros has a great theory that Jon’s pyre will be in the weirwood grove of nine where he and Sam said their vows. It’s a great theory and makes a lot of sense, and so, I wouldn’t rule it out. However, I also wouldn’t rule out Jon’s pyre being at the Nightfort.
As I’ve said throughout this series, Jon and Sansa will be this timeline’s version of the Night’s King and corpse queen. As these two ancient figures are so associated with the Nightfort, it seems like Jon’s resurrection should take place there, but I don’t know what reason Melisandre would have to take the body there to burn…unless Castle Black is destroyed.
Shireen and Jon will burn in the same pyre or ones next to each other and while Jon’s body will be frozen initially, the heat will melt it and open the wounds given to him by his murder. And the greyscale ashes from Shireen will enter the wounds, giving him greyscale just as he’s being pushed back into his body and awakens. And, we have the dragon waking from stone.
While the details maybe different, I think that the ideas behind what some will call a hairbrained theory is sound when you consider that Jon must get greyscale if he is to become the Shrouded Lord and personify the Living Stone that was Jesus. The wine at the Wall is even called sour and so I would not be surprised to see that playing a part in his resurrection as well.
The other boys gathered round the eight who had been named, laughing and cursing and offering congratulations. Halder smacked Toad on the butt with the flat of his sword and shouted, "Toad, of the Night's Watch!" Yelling that a black brother needed a horse, Pyp leapt onto Grenn's shoulders, and they tumbled to the ground, rolling and punching and hooting. Dareon dashed inside the armory and returned with a skin of sour red. As they passed the wine from hand to hand, grinning like fools, Jon noticed Samwell Tarly standing by himself beneath a bare dead tree in the corner of the yard. Jon offered him the skin. "A swallow of wine?"
Sam shook his head. "No thank you, Jon."
—A Game of Thrones, Jon V
Note how Sam who is no longer at the wall and wasn’t there for the mutiny and so won’t be there for Jon’s resurrection is written as separate from Jon and the other boys in the scene. Martin and his consistency.
So to recap, in the same book that Jon Snow, the Christ like figure of the story is murdered, and path to resurrection foreshadowed in the Varamyr prologue, George also gives us the myth of The Shrouded Lord, a stone statues that is brought to life by the cold kiss of a grey woman... a legend which mirrors the resurrection of real world Jesus.
George also places Shireen, the child who carries the greyscale disease that causes men to turn to stone at the Wall next to dragon blooded Jon. ln in the same book, Melisandre also get's a vision of a mysterious girl in grey traveling through the snow to Jon...a girl that strong clues suggests is Sansa. All of these elements that mirror the Shrouded Lord legend coalescing around Jon Snow. Happenstance? I say no.
As we wind things down, let’s revisit the question of why George wrote greyscale into his story? Well, as I’ve just shown, he did it so that Jon, the Jesus like figure in the story can mirror the real world risen Christ as the Living Stone. However, on a deeper philosophical level, I think that he wrote greyscale into his tale to show that organize religion…especially one with a deify figure at the head can be a plague upon the people.
George questions things…especially dogma, knowing that there are often no answers to the universal questions we all ask. While he may no longer believes the religious teachings he was taught in his youth, they have had a major influence on him and his writings. He loves the lore of the Christian faith and various world religions, and that’s why his stories are filled with so much mythology.
Nonetheless, he also recognizes that much evil has been done in the name of religion since the first such organization showed its face upon the world thousands of years ago. It doesn’t matter what the religion has been. Evil has been done in its name. This is because organize religion otherizes people. It creates an us versus them dichotomy. And if you are not part of the us, then you must be “other,” with all that it implies.
You don’t belong. Your beliefs are wrong. You’re a sinner…etc. This theme about the evilness at the heart of organize religion and the deification of individuals is at the core of ASOIAF. I think it’s what D&D attempted to capture in their ham-fisted way on the show with Dany. Worshiping glorified God-like figures is never a good thing.
However, as I’ve stated, there is a dichotomy to the idea because to be human is to be part of a group…to be part of a community where we recognize each other’s wants and need; where we protect and provide for each other. But to paraphrase Hamlet, here’s the rub, because being part of a group always without fail leads to some form of organize religion. And so, what do you do!
Well, we’ve come to the end of this chapter, and we’re getting closer to the end of the series…probably only another couple of chapters. Next time, we are going to go to some dark places as I show you why what happened to Sansa on the show is not out of the realms of possibility in the books. Not with Ramsay of course; and it may not be physical in nature, but more mental…like what Varamyr attempted with Thistle. However, I do think that dark days are ahead for Sansa before she sees the dawn. I can’t tell you when the next chapter will be here because I must psych myself up to go to that dark place and write it. I also have a lot upcoming in the New Year, and so it might not be for several months, but it will be come.
So what does everyone think of the theory that Jon is the Shrouded; Sansa the girl in grey; and the Unkiss tied to Jon's resurrectin.
All comments welcome. Until next time.
ETA on 12/26 to fix a few typos and grammatical errors and also to add the two recap paragraphs.
#sansa stark#jon snow#asoiaf#jon x sansa#house stark#asoiaf meta#my meta#sansa stark meta#florian and jonquil#jon snow meta#the shrouded lord#the girl in grey#girl in grey#jon the living stone
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Fanfic Writer Questions
Tagged by @plisuu and @rosella-writes - and tagging the whole rest of the DA FanFic server crew:
@warpedlegacy @rakshadow @effelants @bluewren @breninarthur @ar-lath-ma-cully @ir0n-angel @inquisimer @crackinglamb @theluckywizard @nirikeehan @oxygenforthewicked @exalted-dawn-drabbles @melisusthewee @blarrghe @agentkatie @delicatefade @leggywillow @about2dance
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
49
2. What's your total AO3 word count?
1,645,298
3. What fandoms do you write for?
Maximum Ride, Pokemon, Spirited Away, Zelda, Pathfinder CRPGs, Elden Ring, Dishonored, and of course, Dragon Age
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
Dead Pasts and Dread Futures (Dragon Age)
Hero of the Wild (Legend of Zelda: BOTW)
When the Wind Whispers (Legend of Zelda: BOTW)
The Brave Guide (Dragon Age)
Light in the Dark (LOZ)
5. Do you respond to comments?
Yes! I try to. I fall behind very frequently but I always try to say thank you. So many people tell me why these stories touch them, and to share that with me, is such a gift that deserves acknowledgement.
6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
Probably 'The Hope of Fen'Harel' (on AO3) or the scene where Solas finds out that young Ixchel is dead (here on tumblr).
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
the road seems too wild for mixing it with blues (Dragon Age) - literally it is a Solavellan happiest of happy endings. There are brown butter donuts.
8. Do you get hate on fics?
Yes. Not infrequently.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
Sometimes! I do try to write titillating smut but if it's in my longfics, it's got to be for character reasons and serve the plot. But I have more than one smut oneshot that's just there to get people hot lol.
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
No.
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
I have had ideas copied wholecloth.
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
Not that I know of, but you are free to do so as long as you tag me and properly credit via the "inspired by" on AO3
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
Yes! ALL of my Maximum Ride fics were co-written. Literally sending passages back and forth over *yahoo instant messenger.* It was an absolute fucking joy. Those fics are gone now though lol.
14. What's your all time favorite ship?
Prooooooobablyyyyyyy Haku/Chihiro. I will read absolute drivel if it's got them in it.
15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
I WILL ABSOLUTELY FINISH MY BOTW FICS I AM WORKING ON THEM OKAY?!
The one i don't think i will ever do is my young!Ixchel fic. It's too fucking sad. But it lives in my head and calls to me.
16. What are your writing strengths?
Dreamy prose, evocative horror, and really motivated plots.
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
I'm verbose, I have a hard time connecting scenes / passing time without it feeling like it's dragging.
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?
So, for fantasy languages that you have to conlang -- I think you should just write it in English. Especially if you're not making up YOUR OWN conlang and instead relying on the work of a notorious jackass. I have taken to "[[brackets and italics]]" to indicate when dialogue is happening in Elvhen.
In real life languages, such as Spanish, the current movement in ownvoices communities is to include the dialogue in its original tongue, with no italics. Readers are smart. They can look it up. And they need to get used to languages other than their own without it seeming other, alien, or magical. In my original novels, where Spanish is often used, I stick with this rule.
19. First fandom you wrote for?
Maximum Ride or Spirited Away.
20. Favorite fic you've written?
it ends or it doesn't (Dragon Age), my Felassan-as-Benoit-Blanc arlathvhen murder mystery!
blank form below:
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
2. What's your total AO3 word count?
3. What fandoms do you write for?
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
5. Do you respond to comments?
6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
8. Do you get hate on fics?
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
14. What's your all time favorite ship?
15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
16. What are your writing strengths?
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?
19. First fandom you wrote for?
20. Favorite fic you've written?
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Wilds of Eldraine Is More Arthurian Than Throne of Eldraine Was
Wizards of the Coast personnel, most prominently Mark Rosewater, have been transparent that Eldraine began its creative life as an Arthurian/Camelot inspired plane. Which it still is, but it was originally just that. However, they'd run some polls, and general public's recognition of things from Arthurian legend was limited in scope compared to the actual breadth of source material. So, to avoid a second Kamigawa, they supplemented it with the "fairy tale plane" premise, which has also been on the short list for years but didn't have enough thematic legs to stand on its own. They would play off each other: fairy tales needed a kingdom of humans, and Camelot legends needed a magical element outside the kingdom.
It was a pretty great idea. Then, the set came out, and the "Arthurian half" of it was received much more mildly than the fairy tale half. So, in Wilds of Eldraine, the fairy tale half is given much, much more prominence. This is obvious in every aspect of the set, from key art to draft archetypes, to the absence of Knight typal.
So this post's title probably seems like a weird sentiment to have. But I feel like Throne's Arthurian side feel flat because it was barely there to begin with.
Here, walk with me through a creative exercise. Suppose you have been tasked with making a setting inspired by Arthurian legend, the way Theros is inspired by Greek myth. You do not yet know that you will be given a fairy tale parachute later on. What's step one?
You probably said "make an analogue of King Arthur and/or Camelot". Because that's the right answer. And that is, indeed what they did.
Sort of.
Eldraine's Camelot is Ardenvale, and its high king is the Good King Algenus Kenrith. He underwent many trials to claim his crown, and all of the realm looks to him for leadership.
King Kenrith's card is not in booster pack, and his entire role in the story is that he is kidnapped and turned into an ungulate.
That's a pretty odd way to handle the King Arthur of your King Arthur setting, in the set that's introducing the setting. But okay.
You have your Arthur expy, and you have his kingdom. What is Step 2 in making a resonant facsimile of the Matter of Britain?
If you said "make four more Camelots"... Well, I'd say that's an odd pull. Given that there was only one Camelot in the source material. However, I did say that in this scenario you were designing for a Magic set, and if a plane doesn't have five or ten of its main gimmick, Richard Garfield will just die on the spot.
This is how we get the five courts. There is Ardenvale, yes, but that's just the white guys. Each court is a different take on the virtues of knighthood and chivalry. Ardenvale values honor and loyalty, Vantress values wisdom and knowledge, Locthwain values determination and persistence, Embereth values bravery and valor, and Garenbrig values strength and fortitude. Thus, the Knight, which is traditionally very white and sometimes black, can be in any color it wants this set and still make sense.
And that was very cool of them, honestly! However, it doesn't get us any closer to the setting feeling Arthurian. Setting aside that you're making a Magic set, ask: once you have King Arthur himself and Camelot, what do you need next to truly be Arthurian-evocative?
There's a pretty good chance that you said either Merlin or Excalibur. And Eldraine does indeed have those! Sort of.
This is Gadwick the Wizened and Embercleave. The former is from Vantress, and the latter associated with Embereth.
I have just told you all the lore about Gadwick and Embercleave.
They are both part of cycles of cards. Gadwick is the only card in his cycle that has anything to do with King Arthur conceptually, and in-universe he does nothing significant and is unrelated to Kenrith or Ardenvale, so it's really only process of elimination and word of God that places him as this setting's Merlin. Embercleave is part of a cycle of artifacts meant to represent different artifacts from Arthurian legend. Except the blue one, which is another fairy tale thing, and the green one, which is... Stonehenge, for some reason.
In fact, Embercleave almost did not exist. It was originally the Irencrag, this world's Sword in the Stone-- or rather, Stone with the Sword. (Note: Excalibur isn't even the sword in the stone, Excalibur was from the lady of the lady, the stone sword is different, look it up) Knights of Embereth, as a rite of passage, stick their weapon into the rocky edifice, and if they can pull it back out again, they are worthy of knighthood. And that's a very fun, cute way to take a recognizable motif of the source material and expand it into a whole cultural thing, genuinely.
But you're telling me early drafts of your Story of King Arthur Plane didn't have an Excalibur? Like, I'm glad that you caught it before you went to print, but where are your priorities where that almost happened? And it's not like Arthurian myth has some kind of dearth of legendary relics! Rhongomyniad, Failnaught, Carnwennan, the Ring of Dispel, the Green Sash, Prydwen. There, I just made another five color cycle with one to spare, and I wasn't even trying!
But fine, it's fine. You have your King Arthur, your Merlin, and your Excalibur, and even your Holy Grail, even though not a one has anything to do with the other and only one of them will do anything of significance within the story. You also almost had a Morgan le Fay analogue in the form of Sheoldred the Whispering Witch, but you cut her later in design because you wanted Eldraine to be a breather period after WotS and not another immediate ramp-up (good call, btw, but her replacement, Oko, is very much not a Morgan).
Is there... anything else? Something... synonymous with King Arthur, present in virtually every pop culture depiction of the man in some fashion? Something that a layman might naturally finish the sentence "King Arthur and his..." if prompted?
That's right, his Round Table!
King Arthur's iconic Round Table, which he famously sat at all by himself. His Round Table which was definitely intrinsically magical and NOT, by any means, a symbol of a regent placing himself on equal footing with those who swore allegiance to him.
In case my sarcasm is not portraying my frustration adequately: there are no Knights of the Round Table in this set. There plenty of knights, sure. A glut of them. And, as seen above, there is something of a Round Table that some of them are associated with. But there is not elite fellowship of legendary knights with the King counted among their distinguished and exclusive ranks.
The set Throne of Eldraine have five legendary knights at uncommon, plus a sixth if you count the commander precon. None of them have any lore or characterization beyond "hey remember how we said knights of this color are like? this is one of them".
Lancelot, the peerless master of weapons whose base desires doomed the court to infighting. Bedivere, the king's first knight of unfailing loyalty and single arm. Kay, the king's stepbrother turned protector, know for his mix of fire magic and swordplay. Gawain the gentleman, whose arrogance is tempered into humility. Mordred, the child of the king and his worst enemy, traitor to the crown. Tristan of the tragic romance. Galahad, Agravain, Percival.
Not a single one of them has an intentional parallel in Throne. All real estate for legendary knight characters in what is, ostensibly, The Legendary Knight Setting, is dedicated to going "knights are in all five colors in this setting isn't that neat".
And one might think "oh, they were just worried that the average consumer isn't going to have the knowledge of the specific of King Arthur's court". And ordinarily might be inclined to agree with you, but: they printed Questing Beast.
Yes, everybody's favorite 4/4 for four with three keywords and more further upsides than most would care to count. The questing beast is an actual thing from Arthurian lore, and like a surprising number of other mythical creatures, it probably originated from someone poorly describing a giraffe. Still, it's extremely obscure. I count myself the biggest authority in Arthurian stuff in most of my friend circles, and I'd never heard of this thing until its card was spoiled.
So this thing that almost nobody had ever heard of, it gets to be in the set, legendary, at mythic, and strong enough to warp standard, PLUS explicit lore importance. But making room for a single Knight of the Round Table? In the Camelot setting? Couldn't be done.
I'm not asserting this is actually true, but looking at the set, I can't help but feel that whoever pitched "let's do an Arthurian world after War of the Spark" knew nothing about King Arthur stuff besides what cartoons and movies made casual reference to. Like, really. Assume that you aren't allowed to say "there's a king" or "there are knights", because those are both things true of very many planes, and tell me, how would explain what makes Eldraine "Arthurian"?
Oathsword Knight is a Monty Python reference, is that anything?
So, yeah. The set comes out, and according to market research, the Arthurian side of the plane "tested poorly", which is to say, most players didn't realize it was there, which is to say, they realized it wasn't. So, in response to this-- I mean, by sheer coincidence, the Phyrexians destroyed all five courts in the invasion. References to them still exist, but Eldraine is focusing much more on the fairy-tale side of things this time, hence the name Wilds of Eldraine. There's knights, but no knight typal. Humans, but no adamant.
And then something funny happened.
I won't go into every last detail of Wilds of Eldraine's story, but: Will and Rowan are in disagreement of how The Realm should be salvaged. Rowan, frustrated with ideas like "social reform" and "negotiation", wants to do so with her magical prowess, and is willing to swear fealty to her evil witch aunt to make it happen. Will, meanwhile, is more level-headed, and wants to untie the realm by simply being a good leader and trusting the people to believe in him. And at first, they don't. But Syr Imodane, knight turned raider turned knight again, sees his earnestness and decides to place her loyalty in Will, and others follow after her.
One day I was thinking about Imodane, who features prominently in the story, and I had a small realization. The prosthetic arm, the mixture of fire magic and melee combat, being first to join. She's sort of like Bedivere and Kay rolled into one character. Except, you know, meaner, and a woman of color.
Then, like a flash, it clicked for me.
Algenus was never the Arthur. He was the Uther, THAT'S why he barely did anything. Will Kenrith is the King Arthur, the boy who became king because somebody had to. Eriette is the Morgan. And Rowan, her pawn and Will's flesh and blood, is the Mordred.
And just like that, they've done it. They have captured, not just the surface-level aesthetics of the Matter of Britain, which are by themselves nothing extraordinary, but the SPIRIT of it.
Many people thought getting rid of the courts would dilute the setting's Arthurian theme to nonexistence, but honestly? The courts never had anything to do with the Arthurian theme, not really. Apparently, they were just getting in the way.
Ultimately, making a setting "Arthurian" is a foolhardy task, because the setting of King Arthur himself isn't interesting, and it's not what makes the tale of Camelot interesting. But making STORY "Arthurian", making its cast and their relationships and their arcs and their virtues line up with what the tale of Camelot explores? That's something. Strange that it took making a limited archetype about evil candy to accomplish this, but we got there.
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2022 Ladrien Fic Rec List
It's the end of the year which means it's finally time for the ML Big Bang's yearly fic rec lists! We're really excited to bring you our contributors' favourite fics started this year to supply you with plenty of reading material while you're waiting for the Big Bang fics' publication in January.
you're such a dream to me by @bocadelicate
1,076 words, Teen, 1/1 chapter
there was something so comforting about cuddling with his lady.
even though she didn’t know he was her partner, and even if he couldn’t know who she was behind the mask. he was still ever so in love with her, and he wouldn’t change a single thing about it.
"It's simply soft, short and sweet Ladrien fluff."
o, trespass sweetly urged by @apopcornkernel
820 words, Teen, 1/1 chapter
“We can’t,” Ladybug breathed against his mouth, so close Adrien could count her eyelashes. “Your father—”
“Isn’t here,” Adrien said, fierce and flushed.
Ladybug swallowed, and as she did, her lips grazed his. He couldn’t help the shudder that ran through him.
Ladybug is the vigilante protector of the people. Adrien is the crown prince of the kingdom. They should not be doing this.
"It's a Ladrien knight/prince AU. Need I say more.
(I will say more though. It has lovely prose, a fabulous setup, and so much potential plot-wise.)"
for all the moon’s beauty (you are far more radiant) by @theladyfae
751 words, General, 1/1 chapter
Oh, the picture they must make: an outlaw, holding onto the hand of a prince, directing him on how to love her.
"this fic takes place in the famed Ladrien knight/prince AU. it depicts a single, simple night of Adrien and Ladybug, with stunning writing and word use where you can feel their yearning oozing off the screen <3"
"Fae's writing is so poetic and beautiful and the entire thing is just so evocative and fitting of Ladrien as a ship."
say something by @coffeebanana
17,963 words, Teen, 4/12 chapters
Whenever Adrien imagined sharing a hotel room with Ladybug...it wasn't like this. It was supposed to be on a desert island somewhere, they were supposed to be happy, and he always figured he'd actually know Ladybug's real name by then.
Instead, Adrien's injured and Ladybug's insistent on hiding him away from Hawk Moth. Plus, as if finding out he's been fighting his father for years isn't enough, Adrien's pretty sure Ladybug's been acting differently since she found out who he is. What he is.
And Ladybug...has no idea what to say to make things better.
"THIS FIC. It has sentiadrien, which is something sorta controversial in the fandom. However the way it's handled in this is great, the writing is awesome, and every chapter packs this emotional punch that leaves me wanting more. It's also very *realistic*. Adrien and Ladybugs feelings are complicated and messy, and this fic doesn't glide over that- it *embraces* it. Above all, they really care for each other, and this fic allows that aspect of their relationsip to shine."
Probably Not The Best Idea by @coffeebanana
17,827 words, Teen, 5/22 chapters
When Adrien first offered Ladybug his spare room, it was mostly joke. Not once in a million years did he think she'd actually take him up on the offer. After all, he's the only one who's hopelessly in love. Right?
For her part, Ladybug never meant to make a habit out of visiting Adrien. But now that she has, well...spending time with him feels safe. It feels right. So why not give this roommates thing a try? Surely it'll be nice, not having to hide her hero identity in her own home for once, even if she has to hide her civilian identity instead.
All in all, it might not be the best idea they've ever had, but...can it really be the worst? And if they happen to get a little more than they bargained for in the process? That's just part of the fun.
"personally i love ladrien, and i love domesticity, so when i saw that this fic was a thing i absolutely had to read it. its only a couple chapters in at the moment but their dynamic is written so well and the fic balances humour and fluff really well <3"
Selfish Love by @ck2k18
1,508 words, Teen, 1/1 chapter
Jumping from a nearby bush, the animal changed from lizard to jaguar in midair. She whirled to face it, sword in her hand, but not fast enough. Then she was on the ground, someone else's weight on her as she rolled out of the creature's path.
The culprit hovered over her, blonde hair shining in the moonlight. His shirt was torn from the beast's claws, and he panted heavily. He’d flung himself into danger for her.
And it looked like he’d do it again.
“Adrien, NO!”
...
Or: Adrien keeps sacrificing himself for his guard, and she's a little tired of reminding him that it's not his job.
"LADRIEN FIGHTING OVER LADYBUG SACRIFICING HERSELF FOR ADRIEN'S SAFETY. + KNIGHT/PRINCE AU. YOU AGREE."
reinvent love by @peachcitt
36,865 words, General, 30/30 chapters
“And what could a pretty sort of girl like you want with me?” she asks, the corners of her mouth quirking up into a smile.
“I wanted to become your right hand man,” Adrien says. “Girl,” he corrects, hurriedly. “Right hand girl. I want to be your right hand… girl.”
“Cute,” she says to Adrien as she swings gracefully onto the saddle.
“Is that a yes?”
or
a prince cross-dressing to protect his identity and a famous lady-knight attempting to save the world. for ladrien june 2022
"Fantasy AU! Marinette is a magic knight! Adrien is a runaway prince! ....and is currently known as "Adrienne," self-proclaimed right-hand-girl of the mysterious knight. Has very good parallels to canon, but in a fantasy/medieval setting. And lots of delicious crushes and awkward moments."
Under Oath by @eoscenes
81,446 words, Teen, 30/? chapters
In the aftermath of Hawk Moth's defeat, Ladybug finds her heart torn between her schoolgirl crush and her superhero partner ― who returns, after an unexplained hiatus, more irresistible than ever.
⋆☆⋆
Gabriel Agreste is unmasked, and Paris rises up in the aftermath.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng must weather Paris' anxious protesters, ravenous reporters, a scattered team of judiciary investigators, and her conflicting feelings for two different boys. In the eye of this storm is the elusive Adrien Agreste, the primary witness in his own father's trial, who might just hold the secret to finding the Peacock Miraculous.
(If only she wasn't in love with him.)
Meanwhile, locked away in Le Grand Paris hotel, Adrien grapples with his responsibilities to a city that can't decide if it hates or loves him. Keeping his daytime persona and Chat Noir separate entities becomes even harder when Ladybug, whom he has finally decided to get over, starts visiting him at night, determined to figure his secrets out.
(If only he wasn't in love with her.)
When an unknown figure returns with the Peacock Miraculous, Ladybug and Chat Noir will have to save their city once more — or lose each other trying.
"An amazing all-sides-of-the-Lovesquare fic (emphasis on Ladrien and Ladynoir), following the defeat of Hawkmoth, dealing with the ramifications of secretly being a superhero who brought down a villain that is also your father; the press, the legal system, and a big team of superheroes trying to solve the rest of the mystery. Plays with both realism and superhero fantasy expertly, gives everyone powerups, and has amazing use of emotion and character relationships. CW for alcohol use. One of my favorite ongoing fics."
#miraculous#miraculous ladybug#ladrien#love square#marinette dupain cheng#adrien agreste#ladybug#ml fic recs#fic recs#ml big bang 2022#ml big bang
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fakemon concepts
so, you’re still thinking about making one of those pokemon creatures: the question is, what kind of pokemon creature do you want to make?
how to concept
before we get to actually designing the pokemon, you’ll first want to come up with a strong concept. this is what your pokemon is actually about, its core conceit, what makes it special! a strong concept will guide your design and tell you exactly what your pokemon should look like, in terms of physical characteristics, pose, and personality.
disclaimer: pokemon concepts have evolved over the generations, which is really only to be expected from an almost 30-year-old franchise. pokemon concepts will continue to evolve over time. I’m not going to be the judge to say “this looks like a pokemon” or not, mostly because they release new and surprising pokemon every year and I always find myself liking them anyway. these are just a few frameworks that will hopefully help you navigate fakemon design.
anyway.
the fundamentals
pokemon concepts are often made up of multiple parts: where the skill lies is in pairing parts that go well with each other. for example, bulbasaur is a bulb-frog that evolves into a flower-dinosaur. confusing? yes, when I put it like that. but what makes it work is the narrative that ties the pokemon together (a rafflesia growing and bursting into bloom). so,
pick a base concept. easy tier would be an animal, plant, or object (1), but feel free to go further! many of the more anthromorphic pokemon are based around ideas or professions rather than a specific animal. think of snorlax (hungry sleepy animal, not actually a bear) or kirlia (a ballet dancer). pick a base that’s evocative and flexible. the base should be something that would be familiar to a child, if not in specifics then at least in general. (2)
find a secondary concept. the secondary concept does not need to relate to your base concept, but it should have synergy with it, IE they should resonate with each other and make it easier, rather than harder, to understand your pokemon on first glance.
marry these concepts together using a narrative and personality. your pokemon should tell its own mini-story. how does it function in the wild? how does it behave in relation to humans? what are its likes and dislikes? at this point, you may start filling out the laundry list of pokemon traits (post upcoming), like their typing, evolution stage, pokedex entries, stats, and so on. (3)
does this pokemon go with other pokemon? if so, you might need to think about those pokemon too! like real life critters, they can have a variety of relationships, be it mutualistic or antagonistic or anything along those lines. if this pokemon evolves, think about how its core idea evolves through the different stages (as opposed to just getting bigger and more complexly designed). you can go through this process for those guys too!
happy with your fakemon concept? good! now is time to refine your concept further. here is a DIAGRAM I have made for your reference.
pokemon graph 01
you’re probably looking at this like. what the hell does THAT mean??? but you also probably get it from looking at it. all pokemon fall on this diagram somewhere. you should try to stay within the pale red diamond, otherwise known as “the pokemon zone”. here are why I labelled the axes as such:
a zoo animal is a pokemon that’s too familiar for anyone’s liking. it does not necessarily need to be an animal, that’s just the name I’m using for it. this often happens if you lean too hard on your base concept and make your pokemon wayyy too specific. like if you made a mantis shrimp but it’s just a mantis shrimp. yes, it’s very cool, because mantis shrimp are fundamentally cool, but at the end of the day, it’s still basically just a mantis shrimp with no other significant traits. again, “zoo animal” can also apply to more humanlike concepts - this happens when you make a pokemon’s assigned characteristics too clear in its design. remember: timburr has a vest and carries a steel bar, but it does NOT wear a hat and its vest is not high-vis. try simplifying and abstracting if this is you.
a furby is a pokemon that is unearthly to the point of unfamiliarity. I mean, yes, strictly speaking all pokemon are unearthly, but this is a pokemon that’s so unfamiliar it’s hard to parse on first glance what’s going on with it. often this has to do with missing the mark on pokemon design conventions, but the existing pokemon I’d place close to this are actually ultra beasts, which are like this by design. they do this by doing things like having uncomfortably and satirically humanoid silhouettes, missing faces and facial expressions, being full abominations and so on. there are some really interesting things you can do in this space, but you want to still make sure this pokemon is interesting and likeable to a child.
a digimon is, well, a digimon. there are plenty of theses on why digimon are different from pokemon, but personally the main difference is in the scale of design: digimon tend to be much more anthropomorphic and also much more complicated, with the addition of armour and clothing. when a pokemon (such as lucario or gardevoir) is anthro, they aren’t straightforwardly so - they mess with the proportions, they disrupt the silhouette. they also don't straightforwardly add clothes; usually the clothes are baked into the pokemon's fur or skin to give an impression (such as with gumshoos). people fall into the digimon trap when they overcomplicate their design by adding too many elements into it.
a neopet is also, well. a neopet. unlike digimon, neopets tend to be undercomplicated and oversimplified. instead of having the secondary concept, they tend to have a single concept with a personality tacked onto it. not all cute pokemon are neopets, and not all neopets are cute pokemon. for example, eevee looks like it could be a neopet, but is specifically designed to be no particular animal, as well as having a unique concept behind its evolution and relation to other pokemon. if you’ve got a neopet-looking pokemon, try to make its concept more complex (although not necessarily more convoluted).
you might have noticed that I’ve mentioned that certain existing pokemon lean one way or another, but are still considered pokemon. this is because pokemon changes all the time and is constantly pushing the definition of what it means to be a pokemon. as I said, making fakemon is meant to be fun! do whatever! but pokemon official is able to do this because they are aware of pokemon design conventions to begin with. that’s why ultra beasts are Labelled As Ultra Beasts, it’s because they don’t fit the design conventions. keep this in mind when conceptualising your pokemon!
appeal to children
think your fakemon sounds like a fakemon? cool. now you want to make sure your fakemon hits the right tone, and for that, it must be parseable to a child.
like, a kid should be able to listen to your concept and be like oh that makes sense and not get lost along the way. this is because despite the ageing fanbase, one of the cornerstones of pokemon remains being accessible to new and young players, rather than just old veterans. if it’s too complex, streamline your ideas! if it’s too simple, buff up the narrative! every pokemon should, theoretically, be able to become some child’s best friend and companion.
if you’re struggling to figure out how to do this, one thing I’ve found very helpful is actually relying on the frameworks pokemon already gives us in game. that is, your pokemon’s condition!
in-game, pokemon are used in contests, and their condition is part of their judging. for fakemon, this means you can use these stats to guide the appeal of your pokemon:
tough
cool
beauty
cute
smart
or any combination of these! most pokemon (I find) tend to lean on 2 of these characteristics. a pokemon can be large and brutish, but it must be scary in a cool way. in an exciting way! in a “wow that’s so sick I wish I had one of those” kind of way. note also that conditions tend to lend themselves to certain kinds of moves, builds, and stats, but if you’ve been following along with a fakemon in mind that should probably make sense to you anyway.
now that you’ve thoroughly refined your pokemon concept, it’s time to put your pokemon in context.
cultural concepts (and appropriation)
okay, listen. if you are making a fakemon, there’s a good chance you’re thinking of making a fakemon region, or pokedex. like the pokemon company, you’re probably considering basing it on a real-world geographic area and culture. and that’s not bad! but you need to be careful!
I’m not saying that you should only write or make art about cultures that you personally are familiar with, but please for the love of god do not make racist fakemon. I have seen enough racist fakemon for a lifetime. think about the appropriateness of the story you’re telling. are you the right person to tell this story? is this story yours to tell?
as a creator it is your responsibility to research thoroughly any other culture you seek to represent, especially their mythology. this includes being sensitive to their perspective on said culture, which may have religious or otherwise implications that you aren’t aware of. I am once again asking you to be, at the bare minimum, respectful. (4)
if you’re working on a culture that isn’t yours, look into getting a sensitivity reader! I assure you that this is not as scary as it sounds, and could be as simple as asking a friend from that culture to look over your work and point out any blind spots. (if you don’t have any friends from that culture, this should doubly make you question why you’re making fakemon about it, of all things.) please also thank your friend for their time - sensitivity reading is also a job that people get paid for, if you’d like to hire someone instead.
anyway, key points:
if you’re representing a culture or background that isn’t yours, do your research
part of that research may involve speaking to people from that culture or background to actually make the pokemon work
this is not a bad thing and will in fact help you make better pokemon
ultimately the goal of any culturally inspired pokemon should be to celebrate that culture! not to perpetuate racist stereotypes lol
conclusion
a lot of people think that pokemon is often X + Y = Z. they’re not wrong, but it’s actually more like A + B + C + D + E = Z, where A to E aren’t just different things, they’re different categories of things. A might be your base concept. B might be the weird riff you’re putting on it. C might be a personality trait. D is the narrative role of the pokemon. and E is probably the completely broken unique move or ability you’ve concocted for your pokemon that would make it horrible to play against competitively.
make your pokemon rigourously! make them robust! make them fun! and ultimately, please make them a child’s best friend, to go on their pokemon journey with.
footnotes:
(1) I guess a sort of riff on animal, vegetable, mineral, except that pokemon objectmons go far beyond minerals. grass types aren’t all strictly plants, and vegetables do encompass mushrooms though.
(2) a child might not be familiar with the specific parasite that orbeetle is based on, but they do know ladybugs and they do know UFOs. and they’d be like, wow, so cool!
(3) please know that even though I’ve labelled these steps 1-4, you don’t have to actually do them in order. you could start with a typing you want to fill or a narrative in mind, then come up with a pokemon to fill the gaps. start with a design and then make up a personality for it! I’m not the boss of you.
(4) I’m not going to pretend pokemon doesn’t have its own history of cultural appropriation and racism (cc xatu, jynx, etc.). but that doesn’t mean you have to do it.
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Homebrew Class design For Dummies: Part 1: The Foundation
Hey you~! Have you ever wanted to make a homebrew class for Dungeons and Dragons fifth-edition? Perhaps you wanted to recreate a character from a book or movie you like that can't be represented by a full/multiclass, maybe you want to recreate a class from older editions? Or maybe you just have a really strong concept in mind but struggle to put words to document, well have you come to the right place. This blog is meant to serve as a guide for those wishing to make their own class, starting from a simple concept to a finalized product.
This first part of the series will go over the conception of a homebrew class, talking about the concept, role and other relating topics. Over the course of this series you'll also see the live development of a homebrew class "The Avatar" inspired by Hercules and Maui, the avatars are warriors that wield the powers of god, empowered by the legends that surround them.
When making a homebrew class, the first thing you should have in mind is a concept. Maybe you want to play a certain fantast archetype you want to play that isn't possible with existing content, maybe you have a mechanic in mind that wouldn't fit as a subclass feature, or you want to expand on more forgotten aspects of D&D like tattoo magic. Whatever your starting point may be, make sure to jot down other themes and ideas you want to present. Given the themes of the avatar I can already jot down some ideas
Martial Class
Customizable blessings from their legends
Likely charisma focused
Buffs via dealing damage
I will preface that, when making the concept for your class, keep these things in mind.
1 Can you make the same type of character with existing options (Not including reflavoring/reskinning) admittedly the avatar class concept could leans into themes touched-on divine soul and oath of glory, however I feel that the herculean archetype is flexible enough to warrant its own class.
Is my concept flexible enough to make subclasses? For instance, say you want to make a caster that steals its opponents powers, cool...But what do you do for subclasses? In this case the avatars sub classes-their divine exemplar can come from which god empowers them, one subclass for example could be the exemplar of light, the exemplar of war, exemplar of death, etc.
Okay so, got all of that concept stuff down? Good, now is time to get some gameplay details down, nothing concrete just yet, but rather basic ideas of how and where your class is fighting. Now would be the time to bust out a writing program, such as google docs, notes, or anything alike.
Class Role
Your classes role is what they do in combat, do they want to deal damage? Heal? Defend? While this might simplify each type of role I listed some examples bellow:
Brawler: Brawlers want to get up close and personal, dealing high single target damage. Most martial classes fall under this archetype, along with Hexblade Warlocks or College of Swords Bards.
Blaster: Blasters are similar to brawers in that they focus on dealing damage, unlike brawlers they focus their efforts to large groups-rather than a singular target, examples include Evocation Wizard and Light domain Cleric.
Buffers: Buffers focus on provided positive effects to enhance their teams performance, such as better dice rolls or increased damage.. Buffers include most Bards, Clerics and Druids.
Controller: Controllers focus on impeding their enemies, limiting their options or event preventing them from acting at all. Controllers include Druids, Monks (Via stunning strike) and Undead Warlocks.
Debuffer: Similar to controllers, the debuffer focuses on weakening their opponents, making them less effective.. Debuffers include College of Eloquence Bards and Divination Wizards.
Healer: Healers do exactly what their name implies, keeping their party at well healed and removing negative effects. Healers include Life domain Clerics, Celestial Warlocks and Way of Mercy Monks.
Skirmisher: Skirmishers focus on darting in and out of the frontlines, remaning mobile all the way: Skirmisher include Rogues, Monks and any character with the Mobile feat.
Tank: Tanks focus on drawing enemy fire away from their allies and towards themselves. Tanks include Armorer (Guardian) Artificers, Barbarian and Oath of Redemption Paladins.
Keep in mind that some classes can fill multiple of these rolls through subclasses, feats, etc. Cleric immediately comes to mind thanks to their varied spell list and all of the divine domains present to them. For our avatar class I think a mix of striker and buffer could be interesting, where your goal is to deal damage, but also help your allies deal more damage and stay in battle.
Area
Also referred to as a characters "zone" a characters preferred area is where they'll be hanging out in combat, this information is usually indicated by things such as hit die, proficiency, etc. The obvious example is barbarian, who with their d12 hit die and martial weapon proficiency are designed to be up in the thick of things, meanwhile a wizard with their measly d6 hit die and no armor proficiency are best set for the backline, sure there may be ways to alter your zone, but having a concrete "My character is best at this area" can help defining their role in combat.
For the avatar, I will settle on it having a d10 hit die, both cause I imagine a demigod archetype would be rather tanky, but also since I imagine the class largely staying in front lines of combat, with them potentially being able to do range combat similarly to a fighter.
Out of Combat Role
While D&D combat is fun (depending on who you ask) it is equally as important your class to think about your classes role out of combat, will they attempt to persuade the king to aid the party? Will they be lurking in the shadows, setting a deadly ambush? A classes out of combat roll is supported by particular ability scores, proficiency and even class abilities. Going back to barbarian, due to their strength focus and proficiency in athletics are going to be the teams brawn, rogues thanks to expertise and natural affinity for thieves tools are likely to scout out ahead, disarming traps. To give some more concrete examples of roles, the list includes:
Brawn: Brawns use their strength to break doors, push away obstacles and grapple. They use strength and prefer athletics, acrobatics and sometimes intimidation.
Brain: Brains are the thinking men, they use their mind to solve problems and decipher mysteries. Brains use intelligence and wisdom, preferring arcana, investigation, history, nature and religion.
Face: Probably the most infamous DnD archetype, the face uses honeyed words to help their team. Faces use charisma and wisdom and prefer deception, persuasion, performance, intimidation and insight.
Heart: The heart is like the party glue, their job is to keep everyone healed up and ready for the day ahead. Hearts prefer wisdom and charisma, preferring animal handing and medicine.
Scout: Scouts gather information and disarmed traps, laying the path for their team to follow and take advantage on. Scouts use dexterity and either wisdom or intelligence, preferring stealth, sleight of hand, investigation, perception and nature.
Keep in mind that a class can have multiple of these rolls present at once, just cause you're a paladin doesn't mean you always have to do the convincing. In our case the avatar will serve primarily as a brawn and face, it feels like a natural given the concept.
Summary
To summarize all of the points made within this write-up. When you start designing a homebrew class you should:
Start with a strong concept.
Jot down your initial ideas.
Think about your classes role in and out of combat, as well as their area of play.
Get to work.
Final Note
Before closing out this first part, I want to go over some terminology you might hear floating around that I want to clarify before moving on as they'll be referenced going foward.
A martial class refers to a class that doesn't have spellcasting as a core feature, while D&D's official martials are mostly nonmagical-warrior types. A martial class can still be magical in nature, so go nuts with it! They're really fun to make.
Full casters are classes that focus on casing spells (duh) full casters possess a certain number of spell slots to cast increasingly powerful spells. Warlock is the one outlier since they work on their own system (Being pact magic)
Half-Casters are a mix between the two, while they can only cast up to 5th-level spells, they make up for it with martial ability built into their base kit (fighting styles and extra attack) they're great fun I'll tell ya!
I'll also recommend two resources for class design, the first is Indestructoboys homebrew design masterclass series, where I get many of my concepts from, alongside the guide to balancing classes on the Unearthed Arcana subreddit, which provides a good framework for future entries into this. Otherwise if you've made it this far, thank you for reading, and I wish you good luck in your homebrew creation. Tune in next week where we begin to put mechanics to document, but until then, see you around.
D&D Homebrew Class Design Masterclass | Before 1st-Level
Guide to Balancing Classes
#dnd homebrew#dnd5e#5e homebrew#dnd#homebrew 5e#5e#dnd 5e homebrew#dungeons and dragons#dungeons and dragons homebrew#homebrew#homebrew class#writers on tumblr#advice
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'Megaverse Monday - Week Three
if your fic is on this list and you don’t want it to be, please let us know and we will remove it immediately, no questions asked. we have contacted most of the authors on this list, but sometimes people fall through the gaps - just pop us a message🤍
have a pairing you want us to do next? please read the faqs and then head to the inbox.
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did you know that this fandom has one of the highest percentages of a/b/o content? join us as we celebrate the fandom’s incredible omegaverse works every ’megaverse monday. 🤍
Alex/George
nsfw: Strange River by @love-leah | E | 2.8k
George and Alex are two alpha friends who share a flat. George sees Alex naked one day, and becomes consumed by want. The longing in this fic is palpable. George's sensory experience of Alex, especially that of his scent, is described so evocatively and clearly you feel like you could almost be in the room, drowning in the sweet buttery smell George is smelling. And when George needs him most, Alex is there, treating him with love and care.
The first thing Alex does, after George tries and he thinks succeeds in locking up his muscles enough to hide a helpless, humiliating little rut orgasm against his sheets, is make George eat a roll of soft, sweet bread spread with butter.
"Why do you have so much oil everywhere?" he asks after that, untangling George's quilt from around one of his calves, one hand deft and warm where it's cupped around George's knee, holding him still.
George doesn't answer. What's he going to say, I wanted to feel like an omega ? He can't focus anyway, because then Alex is undressing, George's eyes catching on the scar, the dark, sparse hair on Alex's chest, the plane of his stomach.
Charles/Max
nsfw: closest i get by @nyoomfruits | E | 4.8k
Charles smells Max in pre-rut without scent blockers for the first time at a party and immediately knows he wants to have sex with him. And of course there are absolutely no feelings involved from either side. A/B/O is all about the scents and this fic has a way of describing scents that almost makes you smell them yourself, beautiful descriptions that truly paint a picture. I loved Charles as the omega being very forward and suggesting that they spend Max rut together while Max is the voice of reason trying to argue that its a bad idea, but not wanting to explain why. The sexual tension and desperation is through the roof but these boys have absolutely no feelings for each other - right? Highly recommend going straight on to the sequel (heart held close) after finishing this!
'“Charles, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Max says, and he’s frowning now, even though his nose twitches again.
And it’s that little gesture, that small hint that Max might be into this too, that has Charles push. “You don’t have to like, protect my innocence or whatever. I’ve spent ruts with Alphas before, I know the deal.” For some reason, Max’s eye twitches. “It doesn’t have to be a big deal or anything, right? It can be just about the sex, nothing else.” He steps forward, into Max’s space. Reaches out a hand, lets it run over Max’s cheek, leans a little closer. “Just sex,” he whispers, in the ever diminishing space between them as Max leans into his touch.
“Fuck,” Max whispers, screwing his eyes shut, breathing deeply through his mouth. “I shouldn’t, I really shouldn’t-“'
#driver:alex#driver:george#driver:max#driver:charles#pairing:alex/george#pairing:charles/max#'megaverse monday
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Toh Spoilers
I literally have no idea what to say about Thanks to Them, so here are some of my random thoughts, in no particular order:
-I suspected that Philip and Caleb were orphans, judging by the lack of adults in Philip's early memories, but I had assumed that they were at least carted off to some relative or another. It seems that Caleb was the one who took care of Philip from an early age.
-I also suspected that Luz's dad--whose name was Manny--died of an illness, but I love the way that they plainly laid it out in both Camila's dream and Luz's video diary.
-Camila being a closet sci-fi nerd is absolutely perfect and I hope she gets to embrace it in the future. Also she and Manny went to cons and cosplayed together which is unbelievably cute.
-"I'd like to study wild magic and learn how to carve palismen." Okay okay okay okay listen. Please let Hunter be Dell's apprentice when all this is over PLEASE. The boy needs a nice, gentle grandpa in his life. Bonus, he can also help reforest the palistrom trees that Belos destroyed.
-Expanding on my last point, it would be so heartbreaking and sweet if Dell was the one to help Hunter through the grief of losing his palisman. What can I say, I have a normal amount of attachment to this old man.
-Evelyn is honestly the best name they could have given Wittewife, and the fact that it can be shortened to "Eve" is just *chef's kiss* poetic. Biblical, evocative of original sin, which lines up with the story that she "dazzled" or tempted him with magic and visions of another world, and at the center of this temptation is Flapjack, who I assume she carved for him. So good.
-"Evie" is also a very cute nickname for her, just saying.
-Theory that Camila also has ADHD that she's had to learn to mask because of how she was bullied in school.
-I think that Luz's palisman will be a snake. There's tons of snake imagery throughout the episode, plus there's emphasis on a snake shedding its skin, symbolic of death or rebirth. Change. It's so fitting for Luz. Also, as I recall, there was a theory floating around months ago stating that even the show's logo teases this, with the "L" in Owl forming an upside down staff and the "S" is House as a stylized snake.
-I think Huntlow is really cute and they're good for each other, but I lowkey hope they don't explicitly become a thing before the end of the series. They deserve to be slow burn friends to lovers outside of all this strife. They deserve to just be normal teenagers together.
That's all I've got for now! I need to get back into writing raeda fics to cope lol.
#the owl house#toh spoilers#toh theories#luz noceda#camila noceda#caleb wittebane#philip wittebane#evelyn clawthorne#manny noceda#dell clawthorne#toh flapjack
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2, 4, 8, and 16 for the most recent ask game :)
2. What draws you to your Gods? What do you like about them? (from here)
I couldn't answer this coherently if I tried. The only thing I can say is that HaShem was always there; it has always been there, and it will always be there.
4. How do you picture the universe? What is your idea of its cosmology?
Theistically speaking, I consider myself an [Ignostic] [Pantheist]. So I fully believe in the Big Bang and other scientific theories of the Universe's creation whole-heartedly. But I also believe that HaShem and the Universe are functionally the same and cannot actually be separated from one another on any kind of coherent or meaningful level- just as HaShem itself cannot truly ever be defined or understood by Humanity on any coherent or meaningful level (though that doesn't stop us from trying, which I believe is part of the point of religion).
I feel like this naturally segways into the idea that HaShem and Science (or, alternatively, Science and Magic) aren't separate entities that are in conflict with one another- but are instead one and the same. Or, rather, are two sides of the exact same coin in much the same way that "Healing / Killing" must be for me as a trained Herbalist ... One cannot exist without the other because they are two sides of the same process; to understand one is, ultimately, to understand the other (and vice versa).
@luminousfire summed it up, in a way, incredibly well when they wrote here: "I think I’m gonna learn about science as an almost devotional act to God. Knowing about the minutiae of creation will only bring me closer to God. Denying the wonder of the world would only alienate me". And Maureen Gilmer, too, when she wrote "Lord […] do not allow fear to close my mind to the discoveries which, in their own time, may benefit [Humankind … For] Rejecting knowledge is rejecting your creations, and this inevitably leads to suffering. Remind me to think over Scientific Discoveries and never [to] simply discount them due to my own ignorance. Amen" in her book 'God in the Garden: Discovering the Spiritual Riches of Gardening - A week by Week Journey Through the Christian Year'.
8. What are some of your stronger UPG’s?
Genesis 2-3 (the story of Adam and Chava's creation, their installment in, and then their subsequent exile from, Gan Eden) is a story about the purest form of love- and no one can change my mind about it; I could literally go on full out rants about Genesis 2-3 and how people have incredibly, obscenely shitty takes about Adam and Chava, and I'm so very tired of them (and have, actually).
16. How do you communicate with your deities the best?
Controversial take, but I don't. There's prayer, of course- and it's very much an integral cornerstone of my practice. And there's Invocation and Evocation (which also has its place in certain rituals at times) ... But ultimately I don't believe in 2-Way Deital or Spirit communication in the same way that Tumblr (or Social Media in general) frequently promotes the common ideology of.
#genderfluidgothwitch#Answered Asks#2023 Asks#2023#Polytheist Ask Game#Ask Games#A Direct Look At My Practice#Witchy Asks#Witchcraft Asks#I Have Very Strong Feelings About The Genesis Story And Chava's Creation And I'm Not Sorry For It#HaShem / Divine Androgyne / Divine Hermaphrodite
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Road Trippin’
Summary: you take a road trip along the west coast with your boyfriend.
Pairing: Frankie Morales x French fem!Reader.
Can be read as a stand-alone. This said, I respect you all far too much to try and make you believe this isn’t my two PTMY filthy puppies. Let’s say, for the sake of suspense, that it might be them OR it might be an AU in which they get a happy ending…
ETA (July 22nd 2023): Now that PTMY is complete, I can finally move that baby up to a brand new Drabbles section of its masterlist, because it's always been Frankie & Gabrielle, Gabrielle & Frankie 🧡
Rating: Explicit 🔞 Fluff and filth with a dash of angst because hey, it’s me 😏
Word count: 2.4k
A/N: @wildemaven here it is! Again, thank you so much for sharing your incredible talent with us, for this wonderful idea, and for showing me a different way 🧡 I sincerely hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
As in 99% of what I write, the story is titled after a song, another source of inspiration for me, here RHCP’s Road Trippin’.
Warning: contains some very self-indulging reference to a certain line of dialogue from TF…
Drabble: Road Trippin’
“Frankie, it’s beautiful,” you breathe out, your words immediately engulfed by the deafening noise of the waves crashing on the rocks below.
He nudges your shoulder, letting you know he heard you, and you chase the heat of his body, leaning against his arm and resting your head against the firm slope of his shoulder. The soft, cottony fabric of his hoodie caresses your cheek when you brush against it. You look up at him and it’s another vision that has your breath hitching in your chest. Locks of luscious brown curls perk out from under the hood of his sweater, swept soft and tempting by the ocean breeze over the landscape of his sharp profile .
Your heart leaps out of your rib cage and you quickly return your gaze to the tumult of the ocean. You don’t think you can withstand so much beauty.
“The weather could be better,” he says about the thin drizzle that surrounds you like misty drapes, but you shake your head no.
The subtle pink and blue pastels of his sweater stand out under the overcast sky, the pearl gray clouds highlighting the colours of the nature that surrounds you. Shadows play across the surface of the ocean, deepening its many shades of green, the soft slopes of the mountains evocative of the curves of a sleeping figure draped in emerald velvet.
“Oh no, this is perfect. Everything is perfect,” you murmur, breathing in his scent, woody and musky, with a faint, clean note of your laundry detergent. He smells like home.
Frankie smiles at the clouds, and his swelling heart feels cramped in his chest. He doesn’t think he can withstand so much happiness.
The large, white wagon you’re traveling with is parked behind you, where you screamed at Frankie to stop just before driving over Bixby Bridge. You got so caught up in the scenery you forgot your camera on the passenger seat.
You had always wanted to see Big Sur, and the trip had moved up to the top of your bucket list since you’d come to America. You had told him about this life-long dream of yours in passing, but of course, he had remembered.
And the idea had slowly taken root in his mind as you kept asking him for tales of his childhood and the place where he grew up.
One evening back in January, he had come home from work to find you sitting in the dimly lit kitchen, fiddling with a bottle of British lager, weary and defeated by a particularly rough day of icy cold weather and dealing with unpleasant customers.
The tired but sincere smile you had greeted him with had swept away the last of his doubts, and he had presented you with a half formed plan: flying to San Diego, and road tripping up north along the coast to Monterey. Perhaps even to Yosemite, if you’d like to.
You' ha'd risen up from your chair and jumped up and down excitedly like a kid who’s been told they’re going to Disneyland, and his face brightened up with a dimpled smile, which prompted you to sit on his lap, wrapping yourself around his body and pecking his pretty face with so many kisses he couldn’t open his eyes, his broad shoulders shaking with a breathy chuckle.
You’d agreed to travel in April, to avoid the crushing heat of Southern California, and the two of you had started drawing lists of everything you wanted to see.
Later that night, as you lied in bed naked, tucked in against his warm body with your legs intertwined, you’d ask him, encouraged by the friendly obscurity.
“Will it be ok, for you, Frankie? Going back there?”
He’d kissed the crown of your head, breathing in your scent briefly, before offering a reassuring answer. When in truth, he had no idea how he would feel about it. He hadn't set foot in San Diego, or even California for that matter, since he’d moved to Brooklyn with his sister after their mother’s passing, some twenty-three years ago.
And in the end, it had been just fine. Better, actually, than anything he could have hoped it to be. Seeing you walking these distantly familiar streets, the same ones he had spent hours exploring on his bike as a wandering child, had rewritten the narrative of this past life. Just like you’d done with his time in the army, just like you’d done with his scars, the tangible ones, and the ones only you and him could see.
You wanted a real adventure, you’d said, as real as they come in movies and postcards, camp out in the wild, sleep under the tent, snap a million pictures with your dented Rolleiflex, forget about the GPS and use a roadmap instead, because you were pretty good with these, you’d said. And sure enough, you were. He had had some reservations about the camping part, given how long you spent under the shower every morning, but you’d surprised him with your ability to clean up and get ready in under five minutes in gas station bathrooms.
And with his skills for organisation, a happy occupational hazard of sorts, the road trip was going as smoothly as possible.
Your enthusiasm and candid wonderment were like a drug to him, there was nothing you’d wish he could deny you.
When you’d ask to make a detour to visit Hearst’s castle, he’d immediately agreed. The excitement lit up your eyes as you buoyantly told him of the many tales you’d read about the place. Hearst himself, Marion Davies, Louise Brooks, Buster Keaton, Greta Garbo, Dolores Del Rio, the feud with Orson Welles about Citizen Kane, down to The White Stripes’ Union Forever.
You’d smile at him apologetically for being the most annoying Wikipedia page, but he’d cupped your sweet mug in his large hands and nuzzled your nose, telling you this was the best trip he’d ever been on, after the one you’d taken the previous year in Paris.
“I missed the ocean so much,” you sigh, wrapping both arms around his.
“We don’t live far, we definitely could go more often.”
“Could we fly to Coney Island?” you ask excitedly, tilting your head up.
His laughter rumbles over the waves as he answers, “Right! I can land the chopper on top of the Wonder Wheel, how’s that?”
You push him gently, with a quiet giggle. You know he’s joking but you’re pretty sure he’d try to do it if you kept pressing…
“Did you go often, back when you lived in Paris?” he asks after a pause.
“Any chance I would get. I usually went to Normandie to see the cliffs, by the Channel. It’s my favourite place, it’s really gorgeous. I could spend hours looking at the tide, just get lost in the waves, it’s just so soothing, watching something that existed long before you and that will remain long after you’re gone. Like I could get in the water and drift away, and everything would be fine. But it’s nothing like here. Here is much more… I don’t know, gentle?”
The way you express yourself in sensations triggers something warm within him. He untangles his arm from yours and positions you in front of him, encircling your waist and leaning down to whisper in your ear, “Tomorrow we’ll have a swim, if the weather’s better.”
His warm breath fans the soft hair on your nape and heat flares up in your lower belly. You don’t doubt for a second that this was precisely his intention.
“Did you swim very often, when you lived here?” you ask, and he can hear the arousal in your wavering voice.
“Yea, all the time. I’d ride my bike to the beach and swim for hours. Like you said, the water makes everything better. I would get a thrill swimming as far as I could, until I was exhausted, until I wasn’t sure if I could make it back. But everything would be fine.”
You shiver between his arms at the shared experience and he tightens his hold around you. The two of you get lost in each other’s silence, in the foreign memory of forgotten loneliness.
“That explains the shoulders,” you finally say.
“What’s with the shoulders?” he asks, and his husky tone confirms the mood has shifted.
“You know what’s with the shoulders, Morales. But I’ll show you tonight, anyway.”
—
The night air is cool outside the tent, but inside it’s humid and hot. The blanket scrapes your knees where they rub on it in your swaying movement on top of him, as you try to work in his length, your splayed fingers digging into the plane of his solid chest just like you like it, but it’s useless, Frankie’s restless underneath you, roaming his hands all over your body, cupping your breasts and kneading them greedily, then down to the swell of your ass where he grabs a handful of your flesh and uses it to press you further down on him, but you’re slippery with sweat and he grunts in frustration until you tell him, winded by exertion, “What do you want, baby?”
“Fuck,” he groans, tilting his head back onto the bunched up duvet, and oh god, his neck, his gorgeous neck, the view sends a new wave of slick rushing down your walls, “I’m sorry, baby.”
“It’s fine,” you say, “just take what you need, Frankie baby.”
He sits up and flips you on your back before you can even finish your sentence, and the air is punched out of your lungs when you hit the floor with a muffled thud.
Oh it is fine, you think, as you downright salivate at the sight of his sweaty chest, his golden skin gleaming in the yellow hue from the camping lamp, his dampened locks glued to his forehead and curling around his ears.
He takes hold of your ankles and places them on his shoulders, and you brace yourself on the blanket, knowing what’s to come. Frankie kisses your calf and as he lines himself up, you see how his eyes have gone completely dark, his pupils blown wide with lust and need.
He drives into you suddenly, to the hilt, and you clench your eyes and trash your head back with a hissed “shit”, but he grinds further in, swirling his hips against your ass, rearranging you for him, and for a brief second you recoil, you don’t think you can make it.
He leans down over you, pushing your knees into your chest, folding you in half. Your frowned brow halts his grinding, but the thought remains, he can’t shake it off. He wants to anchor you to his body, fuck his love into you, care for you and pleasure you in all the ways he knows how until you never feel the need to drift away ever again.
Comprehension strikes you when you open your eyes and look at his face. “I’m here, Frankie, I’m here with you, not going anywhere, baby,” you coo, running your thumb over the crease between his brow.
Frankie lets out a deep breath, lets his shoulders sag, softly kisses your palm, and pulls almost all the way out.
It’s passed. The storm has abated.
He leans back a bit, and you can breathe again, and when he resumes his moving, he rocks into you slowly, with shallow thrusts, giving you time to adjust.
You moan with the effort, you don’t think he’s ever been this thick or this hard, and when he places his hands on your forearms for leverage, you grip his back, using the hold to try and control his pacing.
“Alright baby, alright baby, come on now, you know you can take it.”
“It’s a lot, Frankie,” you whine.
“Yea? You’ve taken worse than that,” he smiles cockily and you answer with a soundless laugh because, yes, indeed, he’s made you take far worse than that.
He links your forearms over your belly, holding them with one hand, and brings his other one to your lips, prompting them to open. You take in his fingers, suck on them sloppily, with hunger, and he chuckles.
“That’s it, good girl. Look at you, so fucking filthy, of course you can take it.”
He starts rubbing fast circles on your clit and drives into you a little faster, a little harder.
“This okay, baby?” His voice is hoarse with restraint and you feel the tension shifting in your core as a new rush of slick pools down your folds.
“Tell me how it feels, baby, lemme hear your pretty voice.”
“It feels good, Frankie, fuck I- I’m so full, you feel good, you feel so good,” your voice is waning as your climax draws nearer, your belly pulled taut under your crossed wrists.
He’s pounding into you now, hard and fast and deep, his fingers a steady pressure across your bundle of nerves, and you watch as beads of sweat roll down his neck onto his chest, and you warn him, “Oh god I’m coming, Frankie, I’m coming.”
“I can feel it, baby, I can feel it.”
He presses down on your legs, his hips starting to stutter, but he keeps talking, talks you through it, and you let his voice swipe you and pull you under, let it take you over the edge as pleasure washes over you in violent waves.
The flutter of your cunt tips him over and he comes with a loud curse, and when you feel his body slump over yours, you shift under his weight and he pulls out all of a sudden.
Gently, he takes your limp legs off his shoulders, kisses your scraped knees better, and lowers them on the blanket. When you lift your head to look at him, he is kneeled between your spread thighs, watching his spend leaking out of your swollen folds, heaving, a tired smile curling his plush lips.
Your eyes meet, and he tells you, “Don’t worry, I’m gonna fuck it back in.”
—
Tomorrow you will go swimming together in the ocean. He will gaze in amazement and reverence at your smiling eyes, mirroring the sea and the sky that saw him grow up. He will kiss the burn from the sun off your shoulders and you will lick the salt from the water off his neck. You will sit close to him in the white wagon, tracing the route on the map with your finger, to the north, to the east, to the west, or the south, it doesn’t really matter, because anywhere on earth, with him, will always be the best trip ever.
****
Bonus: some pictures Reader captured along the trip 🧡
Taglist (thank you 🧡): @elegantduckturtle @mashomasho @lola766 @flowersandpotplantsandsunshine @nicolethered @littleone65 @bands-tv-movies-is-me @the-rambling-nerd @saintbedelia @pedrostories @trickstersp8 @all-the-way-down-here @deadmantis @hbc8 @princessdjarin @harriedandharassed @girlofchaos @gracie7209 @mrsparknuts
#frankie morales x ofc#frankie morales x reader#frankie morales x you#frankie morales x fem!reader#frankie morales / you#frankie morales / fem!reader#frankie morales / reader#frankie morales / ofc#the pilot™️#triple frontier#triple frontier fic#wildmaven prompts week 2#wildmaven prompts
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