#the brown dots are birds btw | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

aha-my-villainous-thoughts · 2 years

Text

Zero fucks given at this stage - just full Edwina Grande babygirl brain rot. Inspired by this post, which went in a different direction (and I may still revisit the original prompt) but once I started thinking about the Ariana huge hoody and thigh high heels combo... I had to see it through. It's what he deserves.

He's too goddamn cute for his own damn good. You know this boy has his entire Ari playlist on his Spotify wrapped, and no I will not be taking questions.

(Btw if anyone wants to buy me those boots from the bottom right, I will exchange smut and oversaturated colours.)

(very long) ID under the cut

(ID: a digital painted set of drawings of Taika Waititi as Modern AU Edward Teach dressed in several variations of an oversized hoody as a dress and thigh high boots against a blue background, in reference to Ariana Grande's fashion trend of wearing the same. The 1st image is bearded Ed with a high ponytail and hair jewellery, looking towards the viewer with a grumpy, tired expression. He has smudged dark makeup under his eyes and red glitter and facial piercings. He is wearing an oversized black hoody with a red heart and three dots under it on the right side, painted in magenta with glitter detail. He is wearing thigh high glitter stiletto boots with his knee brace over the left leg. In his left hand he is holding his hoody up over his left leg to reveal the tattooed traditional style portrait of Stede as a merman. On his right thigh he has a garter tattoo of several stars linked with dashed lines. In his right hand he is holding a red dog leash trailing to the floor. Above his head is written 'Choose your next move wisely, dog.' and under this is a bracket reading 'hungover at the dog park', implying the smudged make up is from the night before and the pissed off expression is aimed at said unseen dog.

The 2nd image is bearded Ed walking with his eyes downcast and smiling with pink cheeks, holding Stede's hand and holding a pink takeaway coffee cup down by his left leg with '4 Babe xxx' written on the side. He has long loose wavy salt and pepper hair. Only Stede's arm is visible, leading Ed forward. Ed is wearing a royal purple hoody which covers him to his thighs, a brown beanie over loose long hair with 'BB' on the front, and thigh high brown timberland style stiletto platform heels. The heels have crisscrossed lacing up the front with yellow laces. Ed has painted turquoise nails, a turquoise spiked choker, gold facial piercings and is wearing gold rings. There is a yellow aura around Ed's head. Next to Stede's arm is the word 'Bae' with several pink hearts, and above Ed's head are several more hearts. Beside his pink coffee cup is written 'pure sugar syrup' with an arrow, implying the coffee is more sugar than coffee. There is a small amount of thigh visible between the hoody and the boots, showing the same tattoos of the traditional merman Stede and star constellation garter.

The 3rd image is bearded Ed from the waist up, again with a high ponytail and long smooth hair, gold facial piercing jewellery and bright pink cheeks. He is looking to the right side out of frame and has bright excited eyes, and several lovehearts floating around his head, accompanied with a pink glow. He is holding up a red lollipop in his left hand and has his tongue stuck out licking it. He is wearing a magenta oversized hoody, the sleeve of which is pulled down over his left hand holding the lollipop. The hoody is patterned with green and gold leaves, purple birds and yellow flowers to resemble the red break up robe from the show Our Flag Means Death. Ed has gold body glitter in his hair, on his face and on his hoody. Above him is a white thought bubble cloud with a drawing of Stede's head surrounded by more pink lovehearts, implying Ed is daydreaming about Stede. In the bubble, Stede has gold coiffed hair, pink smiling cheeks and a small smirk, and is wearing a shirt collar with a pink bowtie and brown tortoiseshell reading glasses. Around Stede's head are several captions with arrows pointing to Stede, the first reading 'Sexy!', then below it 'Sweet!' and lastly 'Stupid!', all implied to be things Ed is thinking about Stede. Underneath the 3rd drawing is a caption reading 'fully dickmatised!!!' with several underlines and more hearts and explanation points, and an arrow pointing at the swooning Ed.

The 4th image is of bearded Ed standing facing the left of the frame but looking back over his right side. He has a long grey high ponytail with wavy hair and two tendrils by his face. He has a neutral expression with tinged pink cheeks and gold facial piercings, and has his left arm raised to rub at his neck in a awkward gesture. In his right hand he is holding a smartphone with a magenta and black cover, and has turquoise nails. He is wearing a peach pink oversized hoody which comes to his upper thigh, and has the slogan 'sad bitch' on the front in a spraypainted font, one side is turquoise and has a gradient across to black. On the right arm there are four spraypainted teardrops in black with turquoise. The peach colour is a reference to the Spirit Independence suit Taika Waititi wore. He is wearing thigh high black leather goth boots with a chunky platform heel and black lacing up the front of each boot, as well as five leather straps circling the leg on each boot with gold buckles and metal elements. Between the boots and the hoody, his upper thighs are visible and show the same star constellation and traditional merman Stede tattoos. There is a soft golden glow behind his head. Above his head is written 'You'll believe Atua is a woman' and a pink loveheart, which references Ariana Grande's song God is a Woman and a Māori word for gods which is used in the modern practice to include the Christian God. Below his left arm is written the caption 'babe, did you call the Uber?', implying Ed is talking to Stede out of frame. Under this caption is a small gap and then 'nah?' as if asking for confirmation, and then in the very bottom right corner is written 'bruh.' communicating Ed's disappointment at the lack of Uber.

End of ID.)

316 notes · View notes

akatsukirites · 4 months

Text

Third entry for @sweetspicybingo - Family Dinner. FIRST BINGO (we're going for a blackout BTW)

Narutoverse | KisaKonan | T | ~900 words | CW: Suffocation, Implied Cannibalism

The road to Kumo is narrow, just large enough for a horse-cart to pass through. It winds through sharp cliffs; dotted with a guard station every five klicks. Even if intruders were to take the mountain pass, they must navigate a maze of sharp rocks, avoid shinobi birds and exploding tags, and counteract genjutsu traps. Inexperienced nin would certainly die before they ever saw Kumo's blue tower. This is the knowledge that's allowed to leak into other shinobi villages. What they won't tell is how unguarded their northern flank is. True, the mountains are still formidable, and approaching from the sea is near impossible due to the limestone cliffs, but Akatsuki is no ordinary group.

Konan and Kisame circle the mountains. For miles, all they encounter is barren wilderness. Konan splits her body into three paper clones, spreading out ahead of them to determine the best way forward. She uses the sun to mark West. With a modicum of luck, they crest a ridgeline just as the sun passes the horizon and find themselves overlooking the Kumo. Both of them pause to take in the sight: blue-glass buildings wrapped around tall, thin peaks; buildings set into the sides of the mountain range; a smattering of small buildings on ground-level. Long shadows obscure the village, further camouflaging it into the terrain; except for the main tower at the highest summit. It's this place that Kisame turns his attention towards. He braces his back heel, flexed for a full sprint.

"Wait." Konan says softly, under her veiled sugegasa. "Let's try the residential area first. We'll draw less attention."

They weave through neighborhood streets, looking for a man with sandy hair and a forgettable face– and a new, freshly polished hitai-ate. The village would've replaced his other one– emblem scratched through with a jagged line. Kisame spots him first. He isn't personally acquainted with the target, but he remembers the photo from the briefing well enough. Konan confirms, just as he's sitting down to dinner with what looks like his family. A kunoichi with long, dark brown hair; two children barely chuunin age. She imagines his home is warm; dinner table set with bowls of rice and pickles, plates full of meat; their children laughing and the traitor smiling when he asks them about their day at academy. Konan cannot help but feel a heart wrenching envy as she looks on from the darkness, concealing her presence. A scene she's never had. A scene she fights for Ame to have. It's not fair that the Five Nations get to have this and her country gets ripped apart. This man was supposed to be working towards a life where all shinobi villages could have this; not just his. What a selfish piece of shit.

"What do you want to do, Konan-san?" Kisame asks this time, before rushing in to slaughter the whole family. Konan's face is hidden by the veil, so he cannot see the angry look of betrayal in her eyes.

She orders them to wait. They ascend a nearby tree with plenty of cover and a direct line-of-sight to their target. Patience is a virtue, it's said. The tenshi of Amegakure is merciful, it's said.

Konan tips her head to look at Kisame through his veil. "Do you have family, Hoshigaki-san?"

She asks plainly.

Kisame blinks back at her, offended that she would ask such a personal question. 'Don't get friendly.' What is family? The Hoshigaki line? There are few of them, scattered in Kiri, bound to different masters. Each struggling to prove themselves worthy enough to escape from their caste. Each just as violent as him. Each just as desperate as him for recognition and respect and dignity. Each just as foolish.

"Not anymore." All Hoshigaki are born in cursed waters. "Do you know how sharks are born?"

Of course, she doesn't. Konan knows nothing of the sea except in fairy tales. He tells her that a number of eggs hatch in the mothers' womb, but only one pup emerges.

"Why is that?" She asks.

"The first one to hatch eats all the other eggs or else they'll starve."

"The mother doesn't provide?"

"The womb is the only time sharks live with the mother. Once the pup born, they're left on their own."

Orphaned. Just like us. Except perhaps worse.

"Is your mother alive?"

"Who knows?"

His mother is the sword. His father was Kiri. And oh how he hungered.

"You don't want to find her?"

"No." He answers. "Is that strange?"

Konan bites back a 'Yes.' and instead looks at him with a hardened resolve.

"If my parents were alive I would stop at nothing to find them."

Kisame's first-line coping mechanism, a malicious grin, spread across his face. "You must be human then, Konan-san." Unlike myself.

Apologetic words catch in Konan's throat. But before she can begin to say anything, the target leaves the dinner table. She watches the family begin their bedtime routine, studying them with envy. Is this how families behave? It must be. (Later, she will force this on Nagato and Pein and not know why it feels wrong, even when they do exactly as she asks.) Konan waits until everyone is tucked into bed and asleep.

The traitor-Akatsuki is not surprised when Konan appears at his bedside. He opens his eyes and sees the Angel of Amegakure come to whisk him to death. She looks down in half-disgust, and holds her hand up, sheets of paper peeling off. Kisame has already drugged the woman next to him to prevent her from intervening. Then he holds the target down while Konan's paper wraps around his face, suffocating him. Kisame neutralizes his thrashing by absorbing his chakra to the point of death. There is a choking sound, followed by saliva soaking through the paper.

Then, stillness.

5 notes · View notes

claybrownie7566 · 3 years

Text

I know I just posted about my Linked Universe AU but I have so many ideas for the Zelda's (and Legend's) wing designs ahhhhh

Btw these are fantasy wings, I am aware these colors don't particularly exist (I know my animals give me a break) but I will maybe think of specific bird wings for each of them but for now-

Sun- Ivory, with rich blue on the edges and tips of the wings (all their wings have one color on the inside then an accent around the bottom edge leaking into the tip of each wing aswell. I'm just gonna call that accent the edge)

Dot- Shimmering honey brown, with a rose gold edge

Lullaby- Silver-grey, with a scarlet edge

Dusk- Black as night, but in certain light they shimmer blueish green like a raven

Tetra- soft grey with a light blue edge

Artemis- Also silver, with a black (like Dusk's) edge

Fable- Crimson with a bronze edge

Legend- Muted pink, with a dark brown edge

Aurora- Soft brown with a green edge (she sort of looks like a fairy with hers she is so cute)

Hyrule's other Zelda I forgot the name of- Darker brown, with a grey edge

Flora- rich brown, with a champion blue edge (her edges have the most color)

#linked universe au #Zelda wings (and Legend)

29 notes · View notes

playthelaughtrack · 3 years

Note

Oh god the Lola Bunny boob thing reminds me of the Birds Of Prey thing with Harley Quinn. In Suicide Squad she was sexualized and treated as an object by the Joker. And in BOP she was an independent bisexual who looked way happier and was better off with Poison Ivy who actually loved her. And brown men were triggered because she didn’t have bigger boobs and wasn’t stripping. As a bi this makes me mad

HOOO BOOY I HAVE SOME OPINIONS SO BUCKLE UP KIDS

(they're not controversial or anything lmao but I feel as it's an important point of view most ppl don't talk about, or at least I, myself, don't hear very often)

Ok, here's what I think about the 'male gaze' in media, including a few examples such as Harley Quinn, Lola Bunny, Enid, and Jessica Rabbit.

I love both versions of Space Jam Lola. Original Space Jam Lola was pretty, entertaining, and is personally my favorite of Space Jam Lola's voices. Even still, she had problems in her characterization.

To properly explain, let's start off with what we know about her: She's gorgeous, she's good at basketball, and she doesn't like to be talked down to (being called 'Doll', in a similar fashion Dot Warner doesn't like to be called 'Dottie). But... What else? She isn't given much screen time. Even during the part where they actually play the game, a part in which she should thrive, she isn't shown much. For all we know, that first scene could've just been Bugs being bad at basketball, going easy on her. This isn't the case, but you could make that claimed based on how little time she got to show how good she is. She's here to serve as a romantic love interest for Bugs, and turn his whole 'schtick' on its head. Usually, he's the one who's clever and cunning, staying calm and rarely loosing his cool. With Lola, she takes that role from him, resulting in their dynamic, which would've been really fun to see play out more. Many guys (and gals) had crushes on her as kids, mainly for her body and charisma.

Now, let's talk about Space Jam: A New Legacy's Lola.

(Slight spoilers for the movie btw!)

Her characterization is much more fleshed out than before. She has goals and motives. Immediately, we know she's strong, faithful, and doesn't give up. All this time the toons were stuck in the Serververse, she had been training to earn a spot under freakin' Wonder Woman. She is shown to be brave, determined, and be athletically inclined. But you also may notice, she has a smaller chest. Many people had a problem with this. Passing around a picture of her updated character design (along with 'art from the movie', which turned out to be fan art), people got upset. A lot of people also agreed, saying "We don't need sexy characters is children's media!" I personally believe original Lola was written under what we call 'the male gaze', while Lola was written in an updated manner, to give younger girls a role model to look up to. We also have to remember that both Lola's are products of their time.

Enid is a conventionally attractive character she had a thin waist, large hips and thighs, and big boobs. BUT there isn't any indication for children that she is to be considered "pretty".

Conveniently speaking, Enid is very pretty (and so is her girlfriend). She's shown in the show to wear more revealing clothes (crop tops, short shorts, etc), but isn't given any time indicators to tell the kiddos, "Hey, this is the sexy one." You see, in classic cartoons, the 'hot' characters have certain musical elements added to their scenes to set their appeal. Kids don't know what is considered to be 'attractive', so the show sets it up for them. She's just a cool, strong, female role model.

What about characters like Hello Nurse or Jessica Rabbit?

Hello Nurse is usually used in the show for the 'Hellooooo Nurse!' joke, but was also set up in season 4 to be very intelligent. Still, she never usually gets speaking parts, so while she is a gorgeous person who just so happens to be smart. Though not a fantastic female role model, I still love her nonetheless. (And, I don't think she was really meant to be a role model anyway.)

And Jessica! She was smart, witty, gorgeous, a talented singer, and a faithful wife.

My point is, we can have sexy female role model characters as well. While I wished Lola could've still had her old personality, the new one was good too! People shouldn't have gotten mad with her redesign, but I also think they shouldn't have gotten rid of her 'attractiveness' and that comedy element she had with Bugs altogether. The same thing goes in reverse -- not all cartoons have to have a 'smart and hot' character.

#sorry if im rambling haha #dolls acme brand writing desk #talkin to lovelies in the ask box

17 notes · View notes

fandomqueen44 · 3 years

Text

Descriptions of Illusia characters for art reasons

Probably never gonna give good descriptions in fanfic, so for all your artistic needs, here's the descriptions of characters!

......

Dallas

Human in looks, with large brown wings that look like a mix between an Eagle, Barn Owl, and Hawk. About a 10ft wingspan and his wings reach about the heels of his feet (like barely not touching the ground)

Pale skin with freckles dotted throughout but not heavily.

Wide almond eyes that are blue with a darker blue around the pupil.

Messy brown hair like what he had in the movie, but is much taller on top.

About 6'3

Wears no shirt yet has a pair of pants he wears that are made from brown leather and have a fur wrap around his waist. He has A flower on a vine wrapped around his left bicep. On his other arm he has a vine that moved around to various lengths. Wears a choker with a light blue gem in the center. Wears a flower crown.

Has pointed ears

Has deer like antlers ontop his head, but they look like that of a young buck who's growing them in still.

Very defined cheek bones

Tim Shephard

Human

Messy dirty blonde hair and brown eyes

No freckles but some scars (mainly on his torso where he was stabbed in war)

About 6'1

Usually wears a light gray tunic with dark jacket, dark pants, and brown boots.

Looks kind of like he does in the movie tbh

Strong man

Curly

Long brown hair he keeps tied back (his hair is also curly)

Brown eyes

5'10

Tan skin since he gets a lot of sun

Not as muscled as Tim but still pretty muscled.

Nice jawline

Pretty big eyes for a human.

Wears a red shirt sleeves shirt and dark pants with tall black boots.

Marcia

Smol 4'9

Really pointed ears (like....an elf but even more dramatic and pointy, baby yoda ish)

Solid black eyes that take up a lot of her face.

Little nose

Plump lips

Her skin is pale but like with a tinge of green

Wears I giant yellow flower as a dress

Black hair that has never been brushed ever.

Has a tattoo sleeve of a vine climbing up her arm with flowers on it. No color, just black ink

Cherry

Basically her movie appearance but as a deer centaur

White-tail deer specifically

About 6'0 with the deer body

No shirt but uses hair to cover her breasts

Wears a jade necklace

Has a bracelet made from the same thing as Dally's choker.

Usually has a bag on her side to carry rocks

Two-bit

Mostly human but with some....differnces

Has dragon like eyes even as a human.

Has scales on the really thin parts of his skin (i.e around his eye, elbow, knee, anywhere skin is naturally very thin)

Brown hair he swoops back with his hand and leaves it.

About 6'4

Long nails

His teeth are sharp like a dragons at all times, just smaller

Wears a white shirt, long black petti coat, black pants, black boots.

Large red wings (8 foot wingspan)

Large red tail (doesn't quite touch the ground)

When he's a dragon, he's about 40 feet long and 10 tall.

Solid red dragon

Has scars from many fights

Bob (Robert)

Light purple skin (lavender)

Curly red Linguini style hair.

Glowing orange eyes

About 6'0

Not very muscled, pretty lanky tbh

Soft features (pretty feminine for a guy)

Paints his nails black

Little fangs

Wears a black silk shirt with puffy sleeves, right black pants and black boots. Everything except his sleeves are skin tight.

Randy

Much darker purple skin (like almost black)

Glowing yellow eyes

Slightly bigger fangs than Bob

Silver hair he keeps in a mullet

Silk gold shirt, black pants, black boots. Not as soon tight as Bob's but still tight.

About 6'0

Darry

Tall man (about 6'6)

Dark brown hair

Gray eyes

Nice tan

Chiseled everything

Pointed ears

Elves are stupid pretty tbh

Wears seafoam tunic and white pants that hug that sweet ass, brown boots. Brown vest.

Sodapop

Very pretty like all elves

Wavy strawberry blonde hair styled very fancy

Pointed chin and features, but in a good way

Green eyes

Pale skin

Usually has his nails painted a bright color

Purple tunic with tight sleeves, black pants, black boots.

Lots of jewelry

Has a pet bird named Freddie that likes to sit on his head (a yellow parakeet specifically)

Honestly just a gay disney prince

About 5'11

Ponyboy

A nice mix between Darry and Soda in terms of face.

Brown hair he just kind of....leaves alone? Honestly looks like it's always windblown

Seafoam green eyes

Nice tan but not too tan

5'8

Built but not as much as Darry

Wears a black tunic and white pants with black boots.

Always has a book on him

Johnny

Little man (5'0)

Very pretty butterfly like wings yet they look like stained glass.

One wing has a crack in it which is why he can't fly

Nice coffee colors skin (like a nice medium brew)

Purple eyes

Likes to wear bright things.

So like pink shirt, white pants, brown boots, but honestly of it's bright he'll be wearing it

Curly dark brown hair that's curly and all over the place.

Has a wand with a star on the end like those toy wands

Has a belt with little pouches

Steve

Fish man

Just look up a picture of a zora from Twilight princess tbh

Only instead of a tail on his head he has curly auburn hair

Green scaley skin

Has fins n the side of his face and hills on his ribes

Has fins on the back of his calves

Webbed hands and feet

Smug man

About 6'0

Always has a spear on his back

Btw if you have any characters you wanna know about, just ask.

#the outsiders #illusia!verse #dallas winston #ponyboy curtis #darry curtis #sodapop curtis #Two-bit Mattews #Steve Randall #Johnmy Cade #Marcia #Cherry

17 notes · View notes

agentrouka-blog · 4 years

Text

Sweet Lady - a Sansa key phrase

The wonderful @esther-dot was so kind as to introduce me to the precious resource that is asearchoficeandfire.com and I have been down a rabbit hole ever since. Or more so than usual. (As far as quarantine with toddlers and work, both, allow me, anyway.) It's marvelous for letting you do unfocused word combinations, which really does wonders for finding text parallels and such. But that is a post for another day.

It did inspire me to search all my book files for an exact phrase, though. "Sweet Lady". It doesn't count all the other instances for sweet, lady, my sweet, sweet queen, sweet XYZ, sweetling or what have you. We already know that "sweet" can be a code for falseness. So I didn't want to confuse the issue. Only the exact phrase. "Sweet Lady". It's enlightening.

There are 23 instances in all 5 books, the TWOW sample chapters and all the other searchable publications. They appear as follows:

Sansa: 9 (3 x Joffrey, 1 x Ser Loras, 4 x Dontos ("Florian"), 1 x Marillion)

Catelyn: 5 times (3 x Varys, 2 x Petyr Baelish)

Jonquil: 1 (Florian the Fool, "The Hedge Knight")

Lysa: 2 (1 x Morton Waynwood, 1 x Marillion)

Shae: 2 (1 x Varys, 1 x Symon Silver Tongue, ironic)

A mare: 1 (Jon, soothing a mare, about to betray the Watch)

Daenerys: 1 (Hizdahr, her "loyal" husband)

Asha: 1 (Quarl the maid, murky lover)

Lady Taena Merryweather: 1 (sneaked in, traitorous lover to Cersei - Everything there a big spotlight for Political!Jon and such, btw.)

To make it short, the phrase is a direct reference to Sansa. 9 direct references, 10 if you account for the fact that Sansa = Jonquil. (22 Jonquil mentions in all searchable publications, only 5 are not in Sansa's chapters: Jaime referencing the song or the puppetry in The Hedge Knight. Sansa is Jonquil. Case closed.) The rest of the usage concerns foils, mirrors or other characters deeply connected to her. It's a spotlight for Sansa.

In most instances, it is a marker for erroneous or "false" knights (Dontos, Florian, Loras, Waynwood), or "false" Ladies (Shae,Taena Merryweather, Alayne), immoral singers (Symon, Marillion), rape (Marillion), Rescue (Sansa/Alayne and Tanselle), political scheming (Cat, Varys, Littlefinger, Lady Merryweather and Cersei) and betrayal (ALL of them, save the true Florian and Jonquil). Also, curiously, the injury of hands. (Symon, Marillion, Catelyn, Jon, Tanselle the Jonquil puppeteer).

So now that we do know that when the phrase shows up, it's a marker for Sansa and that what surrounds it concerns Sansa, let's look at when it's used to see if we recognize anything or if it reminds us of anything. (This is where the rabbit hole comes in because there's a jumping off point for more references in almost every example.

First Mention: Sansa I, AGOT

“Leave her alone,” Joffrey said. He stood over her, beautiful in blue wool and black leather, his golden curls shining in the sun like a crown. He gave her his hand, drew her to her feet. “What is it, sweet lady? Why are you afraid? No one will hurt you. Put away your swords, all of you. The wolf is her little pet (!), that’s all.” He looked at Sandor Clegane. “And you, dog, away with you, you’re scaring my betrothed.”

The Hound, ever faithful, bowed and slid away quietly through the press. Sansa struggled to steady herself. She felt like such a fool. She was a Stark of Winterfell, a noble lady, and someday she would be a queen. “It was not him, my sweet prince,” she tried to explain. “It was the other one.”

The two stranger knights exchanged a look. “Payne?” chuckled the young man in the green armor. The older man in white spoke to Sansa gently. “Ofttimes Ser Ilyn frightens me as well, sweet lady. He has a fearsome aspect.”

Payne, the mute. Who else is mute? Ghost. A fearsome wolf pet. Where have we heard the word "pet" before… Oh, Right. ASOS.

“The good woman at the brazier,” Mance Rayder went on, “is Dalla.” The pregnant woman smiled shyly. “Treat her like you would any queen, she is carrying my child.” He turned to the last two. “This beauty is her sister Val. Young Jarl beside her is her latest pet.”

“I am no man’s pet,” said Jarl, dark and fierce.

“And Val’s no man,” white-bearded Tormund snorted. “You ought to have noticed that by now, lad.”

Aaaand...

Jarl was with the Magnar; Mance had given them the joint command. Styr was none too pleased by that, Jon had noted early on. Mance Rayder had called the dark youth a “pet” of Val, who was sister to Dalla, his own queen, which made Jarl a sort of good brother once removed to the King-beyond-the-Wall.

And isn't that some precious phrasing. A "good brother" once, removed.

Contrast Dany, ADWD:

“What, o’ the queen’s little pets?” Brown Ben’s eyes crinkled in amusement. The grizzled captain of the Second Sons was a creature of the free companies, a mongrel with the blood of a dozen different peoples flowing through his veins, but he had always been fond of the dragons, and them of him.

“Pets?” screeched Reznak. “Monsters, rather. Monsters that feed on children. We cannot —”

“Silence,” said Daenerys. “We will not speak of that.”

So the Sweet Lady will have a pet wolf, literally and figuratively. *wink*

But on to other "Sweet Lady" instances. Two involving Catelyn:

AGOT, Catelyn:

“How could you know all that?”

“The whisperings of little birds,” Varys said, smiling. “I know things, sweet lady. That is the nature of my service.” He shrugged. “You do have the dagger with you, yes?”

Catelyn pulled it out from beneath her cloak and threw it down on the table in front of him. “Here. Perhaps your little birds will whisper the name of the man it belongs to.”

AGOT, Eddard:

Littlefinger smiled. “Leave Lord Varys to me, sweet lady. If you will permit me a small obscenity—and where better for it than here—I hold the man’s balls in the palm of my hand.” He cupped his fingers, smiling. “Or would, if he were a man, or had any balls. You see, if the pie is opened, the birds begin to sing, and Varys would not like that. Were I you, I would worry more about the Lannisters and less about the eunuch.”

We know who the Little Bird is (Sansa), so here we know our Sweet Lady will spill important Secrets to the vast dismay of some people.

Now for some sweetness in AGOT. Jon's foils Loras and Joffrey lay it on thick:

To the other maidens he had given white roses, but the one he plucked for her was red. “Sweet lady,” he said, “no victory is half so beautiful as you.” Sansa took the flower timidly, struck dumb by his gallantry. His hair was a mass of lazy brown curls, his eyes like liquid gold. She inhaled the sweet fragrance of the rose and sat clutching it long after Ser Loras had ridden off.

Awww. So sweet, so fake.

Instead Joffrey smiled and kissed her hand, handsome and gallant as any prince in the songs, and said, “Ser Loras has a keen eye for beauty, sweet lady.”

Actually, we know Jon IS a visual creature. (Natural landscapes, handsome Kingslayers, Radiant Sisters, lovely Val, etc etc etc.) But we digress.

The mare whickered softly as Jon Snow tightened the cinch. “Easy, sweet lady,” he said in a soft voice, quieting her with a touch. Wind whispered through the stable, a cold dead breath on his face, but Jon paid it no mind. He strapped his roll to the saddle, his scarred fingers stiff and clumsy. “Ghost,” he called softly, “to me.” And the wolf was there, eyes like embers.

Jon is probably the only one outside of Florian the actual puppet fool to use the phrase honestly. Jon of the fool references is Florian to Sansa's Jonquil. Brienne is the True Knight she prays for, the Galladon, but Jon is the Florian, the fool knight. Also, "The wolf was there." Jon and Ghost will be a calming, gentle, protective presence in Sansa's life. Also "mare" is an occasional marker for Sansa.

Now for something else:

ACOK, Tyrion:

Varys glanced at Shae. “My lord, must we trouble your sweet lady’s sleep with such grim and bloody talk?”

“A lady might be afraid,” said Shae, “but I’m not.”

(ASOS, Tyrion:)

“You shall rise again, I am sure. A man like you. My sweet lady Shae tells me you are newly wed. Would that you had sent for me earlier. I should have been honored to sing at your feast.”

“The last thing my wife needs is more songs,” said Tyrion. “As for Shae, we both know she is no lady, and I would thank you never to speak her name aloud.”

Which all seems to lead to:

(AFFC, Alayne)

Up here where the slope was steepest, the steps wound back and forth rather than plunging straight down. Sansa Stark went up the mountain, but Alayne Stone is coming down. It was a strange thought. Coming up, Mya had warned her to keep her eyes on the path ahead, she remembered. “Look up, not down,” she said … but that was not possible on the descent. I could close my eyes. The mule knows the way, he has no need of me. But that seemed more something Sansa would have done, that frightened girl. Alayne was an older woman, and bastard brave.

and...

“Unhand me. You forget yourself.”

“Mercy. I have been singing love songs for hours. My blood is stirred. And yours, I know … there’s no wench half so lusty as one bastard born. Are you wet for me?”

“I’m a maiden,” she protested.

“Truly? Oh, Alayne, Alayne, my fair maid, give me the gift of your innocence. You will thank the gods you did. I’ll have you singing louder than the Lady Lysa.”

Sansa jerked away from him, frightened. “If you don’t leave me, my au—my father will hang you. Lord Petyr.”

“Littlefinger?” He chuckled. “Lady Lysa loves me well, and I am Lord Robert’s favorite. If your father offends me, I will destroy him with a verse.” He put a hand on her breast, and squeezed. “Let’s get you out of these wet clothes. You wouldn’t want them ripped, I know. Come, sweet lady, heed your heart—”

Sansa heard the soft sound of steel on leather. “Singer,” a rough voice said, “best go, if you want to sing again.” The light was dim, but she saw a faint glimmer of a blade.

The singer saw it too. “Find your own wench—” The knife flashed, and he cried out. “You cut me!”

“I’ll do worse, if you don’t go.” And quick as that, Marillion was gone.

There's a lot in this. There is yet another averted rape attempt, complete with rescue by a knight. (Lothor Brune.) Then, we have the implication that Sansa's virtue will be compromised ("Truly?" - Potentially by something horrible like on the show. The TWOW "Mercy" sample chapter is one big red flag.) and then we have the foreshadowing of Sansa losing her "innocence" by becoming a bad singer, a liar like Lysa, as we know she will when she lies about her death, or by "singing" loudly of secrets. Songs have the power to preserve and destroy, we learn, and Sansa will have to learn to weild that power benevolently. The fact that she is saved here, tells us that she will be "saved" from moral failure, as well.

Randomly, Marillion's Trial in AFFC:

“If I had eyes I should weep.” The singer’s voice, so strong and sure by night, was cracked and whispery now. “I loved her so, I could not bear to see her in another’s arms, to know she shared his bed. I meant no harm to my sweet lady, I swear it. I barred the door so no one could disturb us whilst I declared my passion, but Lady Lysa was so cold … when she told that she was carrying Lord Petyr’s child, a … a madness seized me …”

It may mean something, or it may not. But Sansa has a lot of bastard foreshadowing. Other characters have "madness" foreshadowing. And a history of miscarriages.

For something darker:

ADWD, The Wayward Bride (Asha)

A shy smile, strong arms, clever fingers, and two sure swords. What more could any woman want? She would have married Qarl, and gladly, but she was Lord Balon’s daughter and he was common-born, the grandson of a thrall. Too lowborn for me to wed, but not too low for me to suck his cock. Drunk, smiling, she crawled beneath the furs and took him in her mouth. Qarl stirred in his sleep, and after a moment he began to stiffen. By the time she had him hard again, he was awake and she was wet. Asha draped the furs across her bare shoulders and mounted him, drawing him so deep inside her that she could not tell who had the cock and who the cunt. This time the two of them reached their peak together.

“My sweet lady,” he murmured after, in a voice still thick with sleep. “My sweet queen.”

No, Asha thought, I am no queen, nor shall I ever be. “Go back to sleep.” She kissed his cheek, padded across Galbart Glover’s bedchamber, and threw the shutters open. The moon was almost full, the night so clear that she could see the mountains, their peaks crowned with snow. Cold and bleak and inhospitable, but beautiful in the moonlight.

Their summits glimmered pale and jagged as a row of sharpened teeth. The foothills and the smaller peaks were lost in shadow.

At first glance this could be sweet-ish, but the surrounding imagery is kind of sinister and I get reminded of two other things:

Lysa describing her rape of Petyr (Sansa, ASOS):

...and Petyr tried to kiss your mother, only she pushed him away. She laughed at him. He looked so wounded I thought my heart would burst, and afterward he drank until he passed out at the table. (…) That was the night I stole up to his bed to give him comfort. I bled, but it was the sweetest hurt. He told me he loved me then, but he called me Cat, just before he fell back to sleep. Even so, I stayed with him until the sky began to lighten.

And Cersei's wedding night with Robert, (Eddard, AGOT)

Her eyes burned, green fire in the dusk, like the lioness that was her sigil. “The night of our wedding feast, the first time we shared a bed, he called me by your sister’s name. He was on top of me, in me, stinking of wine, and he whispered Lyanna.”

We already had a moment of deeply screwed up consent for Jon during his first time with Ygritte. Suddenly, the scene when Dany asks Jon if he's drunk on the show in 8x04 after the victory feast and then pushes him for sex seems even more sinister. Lysa's rape of Petyr ended in pregnancy. I hope I am wrong about this!

Lastly, this is from The Hedge Knight. "Florian and Jonquil" are being destroyed, i.e. Sansa's very favorite song is getting viciously attacked, her romantic dreams put to the torch. If my horrible suspicion is true, Sansa will live some aspect of her Ramsey storyline, if not with Ramsey, then with someone else. This following Scene festuring Duncan the fake knight and Tanselle, the tall girl playing Jonquil's puppet, however, is very reminiscent of Jon's final encounter with Ramsey. No?

The puppeteer's stall had been knocked on its side. The fat Dornishwoman was on the ground weeping.

One man-at-arms was dangling the puppets of Florian and Jonquil from his hands as another set them afire with a torch. Three more men were opening chests, spilling more puppets on the ground and stamping on them. The dragon puppet was scattered all about them, a broken wing here, its head there, its tail in three pieces. And in the midst of it all stood Prince Aerion, resplendent in a red velvet doublet with long dagged sleeves, twisting Tanselle's arm in both hands. She was on her knees, pleading with him. Aerion ignored her. He forced open her hand and seized one of her fingers. Dunk stood there stupidly, not quite believing what he saw. Then he heard a crack, and Tanselle screamed.

One of Aerion's men tried to grab him, and went flying. Three long strides, then Dunk grabbed the prince's shoulder and wrenched him around hard. His sword and dagger were forgotten, along with everything the old man had ever taught him. His fist knocked Aerion off his feet, and the toe of his boot slammed into the prince's belly. When Aerion went for his knife, Dunk stepped on his wrist and then kicked him again, right in the mouth. He might have kicked him to death right then and there, but the princeling's men swarmed over him.

So the wolf pet/lover will curbstomp her attacker in some way shape or form.

Damn. To cheer us, let's look at some Dontos/Florian from ACOK, Sansa:

“I will,” she said. “Tell me who sent you.”

“No one, sweet lady. I swear it on my honor as a knight.”

“A knight?” Joffrey had decreed that he was to be a knight no longer, only a fool, lower even than Moon Boy. “I prayed to the gods for a knight to come save me,” she said. “I prayed and prayed. Why would they send me a drunken old fool?”

“I deserve that, though . . . I know it’s queer, but . . . all those years I was a knight, I was truly a fool, and now that I am a fool I think . . . I think I may find it in me to be a knight again, sweet lady. And all because of you . . . your grace, your courage. You saved me, not only from Joffrey, but from myself.” His voice dropped. “The singers say there was another fool once who was the greatest knight of all . . .”

“Florian,” Sansa whispered. A shiver went through her.

“Sweet lady, I would be your Florian,” Dontos said humbly, falling to his knees before her.

Slowly, Sansa lowered the knife. Her head seemed terribly light, as if she were floating. This is madness, to trust myself to this drunkard, but if I turn away will the chance ever come again? “How . . . how would you do it? Get me away?”

Ser Dontos raised his face to her. “Taking you from the castle, that will be the hardest. Once you’re out, there are ships that would take you home. I’d need to find the coin and make the arrangements, that’s all.”

“Could we go now?” she asked, hardly daring to hope.

“This very night? No, my lady, I fear not. First I must find a sure way to get you from the castle when the hour is ripe. It will not be easy, nor quick. They watch me as well.” He licked his lips nervously. “Will you put away your blade?”

Sansa slipped the knife beneath her cloak. “Rise, ser.”

“Thank you, sweet lady.” Ser Dontos lurched clumsily to his feet, and brushed earth and leaves from his knees. “Your lord father was as true a man as the realm has ever known, but I stood by and let them slay him. I said nothing, did nothing . . . and yet, when Joffrey would have slain me, you spoke up. Lady, I have never been a hero, no Ryam Redwyne or Barristan the Bold. I’ve won no tourneys, no renown in war . . . but I was a knight once, and you have helped me remember what that meant. My life is a poor thing, but it is yours.” Ser Dontos placed a hand on the gnarled bole of the heart tree. He was shaking, she saw. “I vow, with your father’s gods as witness, that I shall send you home.”

He swore. A solemn oath, before the gods. “Then . . . I will put myself in your hands, ser. But how will I know, when it is time to go? Will you send me another note?”

Ser Dontos glanced about anxiously. “The risk is too great. You must come here, to the godswood. As often as you can. This is the safest place. The only safe place. Nowhere else. Not in your chambers nor mine nor on the steps nor in the yard, even if it seems we are alone. The stones have ears in the Red Keep, and only here may we talk freely.”

“Only here,” Sansa said. “I’ll remember.”

“And if I should seem cruel or mocking or indifferent when men are watching, forgive me, child. I have a role to play, and you must do the same. One misstep and our heads will adorn the walls as did your father’s.”

She nodded. “I understand.”

“You will need to be brave and strong . . . and patient, patient above all.”

“I will be,” she promised, “but . . . please . . . make it as soon as you can. I’m afraid . . .”

“So am I,” Ser Dontos said, smiling wanly. “And now you must go, before you are missed.”

“You will not come with me?”

“Better if we are never seen together.”

Nodding, Sansa took a step . . . then spun back, nervous, and softly laid a kiss on his cheek, her eyes closed. “My Florian,” she whispered. “The gods heard my prayer.”

And just to add some sweet speculation…

Jon, ASOS:

If I could show her Winterfell … give her a flower from the glass gardens, feast her in the Great Hall, and show her the stone kings on their thrones. We could bathe in the hot pools, and love beneath the heart tree while the old gods watched over us.

I'm such a hopeful fool for these two.

#Jonsa #asoiaf #asoiaf speculation #jon snow #sansa stark

28 notes · View notes

fvaleraye · 4 years

Text

WyldWood

ayyyyyyyyy, would you look at that, another chapter. heck yeah

i was in the mood to write smth for Velda, so i thought this might be a good chance to give y’all a little bit of world background at the same time. Velda’s been to some neat places, y’all this takes place before Unexpected Reunions btw, just in case that’s not obvious-

i hope y’all enjoy reading ‘^^

The Great Forest was a deep, winding, intimidating expanse of trees. It was so expansive that efforts to make roads to every village in and past the edges of it were still ongoing. It was filled with more foliage than you could imagine, as well as monsters, bandits, and a myriad of other dissidents, looking to escape the ever expanding clutches of civilization and law, or simply trying to live as far from man as they could. There are some things, however, that man avoids in these woods. In the deepest parts of the woods, the center of that immense expanse of forest, is a place unlike any other. A place where the great Council dare not tread, where magic has soaked into the boughs of the greatest trees, and magic seeps into the earth through the roots, and, in time, returns to the roots. A place not meant for little fleshlings. Only for the branch and the root.

The WyldWood.

Few dared to tread in the WyldWood, so few that there were no roads leading to it, in fact all roads gave it a unreasonably wide berth. But it lied there, in the center of the forest. Through the dense and ever-shaded forest was a place that could only be described as... magical. The bark and the leaves of the trees, the grass, even the sky and the clouds, it was all so much brighter, more vibrant, almost as if they were a painting you could walk right into. Wisps of magic trailed through the air, like embers from a fire, handily demonstrating the sheer amount of magic contained in this place. Vines both great and small, thorned and smooth, grew everywhere, at times covering the ground below them entirely, making travel through it a bit troublesome. What could make a home in such a place, you may ask? Well, it wasn't the animals, it wasn't the elves, it wasn't fairies either, it certainly wasn't humans. No. The only things here were the trees, the plants. The WyldBorn.

The WyldBorn were a strange race of living plants, bark and vine given Sparks. Such a thing was unheard of, but here it was. There was no other place on Magna Terra where plant life could gain a Spark. The WyldWood was just that special. The WyldBorn could be an... obtuse race to interact with. Their ways were strange. Their speech was strange. Their mannerisms were difficult to understand for anyone but themselves. And they found "Fleshlings", as they called the other races, to be just as obtuse. Sentience among the WyldBorn varied, from little Wyldling drones that existed only to do simple tasks, to the "nobility", for lack of a better term, among them that possessed some sort of higher consciousness. At the very center of the WyldWood was the great, immortal progenitor of the race as a whole. The Great RootMother. The center of the great Wyld consciousness, shaper of the WyldWood, and the origin and greatest user of Wyld Magic. The great being was the oldest living thing on the entirety of Magna Terra, or, at least, the oldest living thing that has been confirmed to actually exist. Many sought her out for her knowledge, knowledge of the world, of Wyld Magic, or simply to see if she truly did exist. While the RootMother did not know all, she did still know many things. More than any other living being. Many considered the RootMother to be a sort of nature goddess, though the Holy Church was quick to dismiss any of that sort of implication. It was a trek, but few people made the trip and came out saying that it wasn't worth it. They knew what they were getting into.

The one person making the journey right now, though, only really had an idea of what she was getting herself into.

Velda had been walking through the woods for days now, with nothing but a little bag of rations, a bedroll, her old bow and arrows, and the dirty brown clothes on her back. She had seen the Silver City magi and historians, but nobody knew anything about what she wanted to know. It was disheartening. But a few people did point her in the direction of the RootMother, and said that if anyone on this earth knew the answers she sought, it would be her. Thankfully the WyldWood wasn't too hard to find, nearly every map you could find had a big "DON'T GO HERE" area in the middle of the Great Forest. She had never met a WyldBorn. She wondered what they were like. Were they really all plants...? It was pretty exciting. Of course, the slog through the woods to get there wasn't. It was miserable. The bedroll was better than sleeping on the dirt, but her back still really didn't appreciate it. She couldn't wait until she could go home and sleep in a real bed. With a mattress. And pillows. And Blankets. But, she couldn't leave, not yet, not until she had found the RootMother and spoke to her. Gods, please let her be real, I don't want to have walked all this way for literally nothing... Eventually, as she walked, miserable, but still keeping a steady pace, the dirt and faded grass gave way to much more luscious greenery. Seemed like she was going the right way.

As she kept her pace, she started to feel an... odd feeling in her chest. A. Lightness. Like she was floating. A moment later, she started to see little wisps of magic trailing around lazily. There were a few, but as she kept going there were many. Yeah, she was definitely in the right place. She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the weird floaty feeling she was getting. It was probably from the sheer saturation of magic in the area. As she continued for a few minutes longer, the ground started to rumble, and she froze. She looked around. But there was nothing. Nothing except the vines, and the trees. After a moment, some of those vines started to move.

The tangled mess of vines and roots in front of her started to snake and coil, tangling and untangling, shifting and contorting, until its form resembled something like a hulking beast. Vines coalesced at its "shoulders", and a wooden face-like mask formed at its face, eyeholes glowing as brightly as the runes on its body. The two shared a long, silent stare.

"... uh.... u-uh... h... hiiii...?" The girl greeted, hesitantly, trying to surpress her panic. "I.... u-uh... I-I'm looking f-for th-the... the RootMother...?"

The WyldGiant just stared, as unmoving as the trees surrounding them. Then, after a few moments, it looked up at the sky thoughtfully, as if it had just processed her words. "... Rrrrroooooooot.... Mmmmmoooootheerrrrrrrrr......." It parroted, its voice deep, rumbling like an earthquake. It looked back down at Velda, and slowly brought its creaking extremities around her, picking her up gently, like one would a baby bird. She tried her best to not move to much, though she was ready to have a panic attack. It set her ever-so-gently onto its shoulder, giving her a long glance. Then, it looked to the ground for a moment, unmoving. after a minute or so, it looked up again, and started to trod through the forest. The girl just anxiously held on for dear life.

The walk was slow, or, at least, it felt like it. It was a big creature that was carrying her around. It was trying its best not to throw her off, but it was still rocking quite a bit as it moved. The two moved in relative silence, though it couldn't really be considered silence, what with how much noise the giant was making as it moved along. Eventually, she decided to speak up. "... s-so... i-if I may ask..." She started, quietly, fidgeting as she spoke. "... wh-where are g-going...?"

The answer didn't come immediately, the WyldGiant seemed to need a few moments in advance before it did anything, but an answer did indeed come eventually. "... to.... Rooot... Mmmmoootherrr..." It replied, its own voice shaking its entire being.

"... y-you're just... gonna t-take me there? N-no questions asked??"

"... Mmmmotherrrrr... lllliiiikes... visiiitoorrrrrs..."

"... o-okay..."

The trip took a while, the sun had started to set by the time the giant stopped. The sprites of magic were that much brighter in the evening dusk, and the runes dotting the landscape were that much more obvious. It laid down low to the ground, and let its passenger off. It gave a long, thoughtful gaze forward, prompting her to look in the same direction. She could see an absolutely enormous tree. She was guessing that was the RootMother. Then, the giant turned around, and slowly plodded back off into the forest.

"... th-thank you." She called over her shoulder, meekly. There wasn't answer, but it did hear her. It just continued to walk off. Velda started what seemed to be the last leg of her trip.

It was much easier, thankfully. There weren't nearly as many vines, the ground was fairly even, if a bit bumpy in places. She decided to take the time to actually consider what she was going to say to the RootMother. How does one speak to a plant being older than your entire family line? Should she talk normally, or should she try to be respectful? Does she talk quietly or a loudly? Does she even need to talk at all?? What if the RootMother can hear her thoughts??? Oh gods how would she even be able to handle that-

Calm down. I’m overthinking again... ... but how can I not overthink when I’m about to meet a giant tree god???

It wasn't long before she was at the foot of the great tree. She was able to get a good look at it now. Bark and boughs twisted gracefully, fluidly, into one surprisingly cohesive form. Runes were etched all along the surface. The tree was shaped vaguely like a woman, though it was still clearly a tree. One could make a lovely, graceful form, though, in place of arms, there were branches holding up the lush, vibrant, enormous greenery that was her leaves, her Spark shining brightly within her chest. A face-like mask, very similar to the WyldGiants, slowly came down from the treetop, the near deafening creaking echoing throughout the entire forest as the enormous entity bent down to get a good look at her guest. She bared no expression, but the visitor could feel a sort of motherly gentleness on her blank features. The silence between the two was awkwardly long. At least, it was for Velda.

"... h... h-hello." She said, figuring that a simple hello would probably be a good start. "Are... are y-you the... th-the R-RootMother...?"

"Yes." She replied, her voice soft, echoing gently off the forest around them. The answer came much quicker than the other was expecting, to be quite honest.

"O-oh, g-good, good..." Her voice trailed off as she fidgeted. How does one speak to a millennia-old forest god? Was there any sort of etiquette? She had no clue. This wasn't exactly an every-day thing.

"Have you something to ask me, child...?" She asked, her tone coming off as a mother trying to gentle comfort her nervous child.

She continued to fidget, and let out a small nervous chuckle. "H-how'd you know...?"

"Most come to me with questions. Especially in these times. However, if you have come to ask me about the dragons, I cannot help you. They were before even my time, I’m afraid."

"O-oh! N-no! I-I'm not h-here to ask about d-dragons! I-I'm not much of a historian..."

"I see... then what, pray tell, are you here to ask then...?"

The girls eyes fell to the ground, her hands still wringing nervously. She considered how to put this question. It was one thing to ask a person, it was another thing entirely to ask a... tree god. After a moment, though, she did finally speak up. "... I... th... this might b-be a... weird question... but... do you kn-know... what I... am...?"

The RootMother took a long, hard look at her visitor. She tilted her head, and the other could feel her squinting, even if she couldn't really physically squint. "Hmmm... I am... unsure..." She answered, thoughtfully. Velda's arms fell to her sides as she gave a look of incredulous confusion.

"W-what do you mean you're "unsure"???" She said, her voice betraying her utter disbelief. "I-I thought y-you were supposed to know e-everything when it c-came to m-magic a-a-and sparks!"

"I know much. Not all." She replied, her tone still as gentle and even as ever. "I am truly sorry. But your... spark, is not something I am knowledgeable in."

The girl just stood there for a while, in shock. She. She came all this way. All this way. Just to get an "I don't know". Gods. Fucking damnit. Slowly, she sat on the ground, head in her hands, and let out a long sigh. She wanted to cry.

"... I will say, however..." She added, her tone starting to sound even gentler than before. "I do feel a sort of... kindred spirit, in your spark."

"... kindred spirit...?" She parroted, raising her head slowly. "What's that s-supposed to mean...?"

"There is a... familiarity. I cannot place it. But it is there."

She considered the beings words for a moment. Hmm. She. Wasn't really sure what she meant by that. But it was the closest thing to an answer she's gotten in a long, long time. It was progress. "... wh-where do I even g-go from here..."

"If I may... have you considered seeing the elflings...? You seem to bare a sort of resemblance to their kin."

"... yeah I g-get that a l-lot..." She mumbled, letting out another sigh. "I-I haven't seen the elves. I f-figured I'd try after this, if you... didn't have answers..."

"I am truly sorry I could not give you the answers you sought, child. I can tell it troubles you so."

"... you have no idea..."

"I may not have the answers you desire, but, as I said, I do feel a sort of kinship with you... so, I shall grant you something. A gift."

"A... a g-gift?"

"Yes. Hand me your bow."

She tilted her head at the RootMother. She... wasn't sure where she was going with this, but okay. She stood up, slowly, and hesitantly took the bow from her back, nervously handing it out to her. A few wisps of magic started to circle around as vines took the bow from her hand, wrapping around the old cracked wood like a snake coiling around its prey. The little motes of magic continued to circle it, until they all disappeared in small flash. Then, the vines started to sink back into the ground, revealing the bow once more. It was different now. It seemed to be as good as new, and glowing blue runes now covered it in nearly its entirety. She hesitantly took the bow back, looking up at the others face.

"I dub thee, Moonsong. Your bow is now kissed by the purest of Wyld Magic."

"W-wyld Magic...?" She gripped the bow, testing its weight a bit, glancing at the other as she did. "... isn't that, like, the m-most random and chaotic magic ever...?"

"It is only as disordered and "random" as nature is." She replied, sagely. "Do not fret, it will not cause you harm. It will give each arrow you fire special properties, and, under the moonlight, you will not even need arrows at all, for the Wyld shall provide you with arrows of moonlight."

"... neat..." She whispered, putting the bow back over her shoulder.

She gave a little snicker at the girls phrase. "Yes. "Neat" indeed."

"... th-thank you, really. E-even if you c-couldn't tell me what I w-wanted to know, I... I-I think you helped me g-get a little c-closer."

"You're welcome, child. I'm sorry I could not help more... safe travels."

#Valerie Writes #Scintillam #Velda #i had fun with this one asdflkjn-#and i'm p happy with how it turned out...#just a chill little adventure #well. i mean #depends on ur definition of chill i guess aslkdfjn #i hope y'all enjoy readin' '^^#*softly* n' reblogs would be appreciated if u did-

9 notes · View notes

sparklyjojos · 5 years

Text

.---[Disco Wednesdayyy 20/?] In which the narration Does a Thing, we get a cosmology lecture, and the man with the raven tattoo takes the scene [tw: lots of children death and mentions of child abuse, miscarriage mention]---

Last time we finished the second book, so it’s time to head into the third and final one, containing the part called simply “The Ark”. The book starts with our narrator, Disco Wednesdayyy--

Oh, pardon. Our narrator isn’t the 30-something American detective Disco Wednesdayyy, who we’ve last seen beaten up in a hotel room.

Our narrator is Odoriba Mizutarou, a Japanese teenager who grew up in an orphanage in Troy, Michigan after having been abandoned at birth. Mizutarou lives surrounded by alternate versions of people like ‘Norma Brown’ or ‘Sharon Styron’, is a lovable space nerd, and one of the first things we see him do is to fervently discuss how alternate universes and time travel may work.

In other words, HOLY SHIT WE JUST WENT JORGE JOESTAR.

Mizutarou tells us how weird his name is, and that while ‘odoriba’ literally means ‘dancefloor’, the word can also be understood as ‘the landing in between flights of stairs’, which sounds like it’ll be important symbolism. [Btw, I instantly like him. He’s a nice boy.]

When we meet him, Mizutarou is sitting in a high school cafeteria conversing with Norma Brown, who’s badmouthing another girl, Dana Sutoraimuzu [Strimes? Streams? I’m not sure how to write this surname in proper English, google only gives me Disco-related results]. Dana has a nickname ‘Chanel Chanel’, and Norma doesn’t like that since Coco Chanel did some highly problematic shit, although she recognizes that it’s just a random nickname that doesn’t have anything to do with Dana’s personality. Our narrator for some damn reason gets the following train of thought: ‘Coco Chanel’ -> the COCOC sequence of letters in that name -> 九十九十九. This is instantly dropped and stays unexplained (...for now).

---

Anyway, Mizutarou and Norma discuss different concepts explaining the birth and death of the Universe, drawing a space / time graph for each.

1) the steady state model (the Universe has the same density no matter the time and location, no Big Bang or any universal ‘death’)

2) the expanding universe model (the Universe began with the Big Bang and expands progressively faster, the possible outcome of this being the Big Rip, in which all existing particles and even spacetime itself will eventually be torn apart by the expansion)

3) the cyclic universe theory (there are multiple consecutive universes, each of them expands for a while and then shrinks back down in what’s called a Big Crunch, and from the resulting singularity the next universe expands)

[On the graphs, y axis = the size of the universe, x axis = time]

Norma has a theory of her own, but first she talks about the method for finding the sum of an arithmetic progression, or how can you find the sum of a giant sequence of consecutive numbers. You can use the formula n(a1+an)/2; take how many numbers there are in a sequence, multiply it by the sum of the first and last number, then divide by two. Norma actually takes the time to write out the entire reasoning behind this formula down. [Thanks for awakening my high school math class memories, Maijo.]

She brings attention to the fixed sums here (1+100, 2+99, 3+98... all equal 101). This observation inspired her to notice that if you took one of the universe charts given above, the expanding universe one, and divided it in half by drawing a vertical line crossing the middle of the x axis (‘time’), the latter half could be rotated and superimposed onto the first one. The Big Bang and the Big Rip (those sharp inclines at the beginning and the end) will then end up on top of each other. Norma claims that this means the size of the universe is, in a weird way, always fixed. [I think she means that the area under the curve in the first half is equal to the area above the curve in the second half. y axis = size of the universe, x axis = time.]

Norma claims that in her model, it’s not the ‘volume of space’ that’s oscillating, but ‘time’. Time at first flows forward, but after a certain point (the dotted line on that last graph) it starts reversing its flow. Norma thinks this may mean that two universes exist in parallel to each other, one in which time flows forward towards the ‘folding point’, one in which it flows backwards toward the ‘folding point’. If, say, Norma is in the time-forward universe a year away from the ‘folding point’, she would be two years younger than a ‘Norma’ from time-reverse universe who’s also a year away from the ‘folding point’. After the year passed, Norma would cross the ‘folding point’ and start living in the time-reverse universe.

[Here’s another graph. y axis = size of the universe, x axis = time, the ends of the curve are labeled ‘beginning’, and where the time ‘ends’ there are the ‘endings’.]

But in the end, Norma still thinks there’s just a single universe reversing in time, which would make time travel easier, since instead of jumping the border between the universes you’d just have to get to the ‘folding point’.

After they part ways, Mizutarou thinks about Norma’s theory. Maybe there were twin universes, born at the same time. He draws another graph of what he thinks is more probable here:

[y axis = size of the universe, x axis = time, 活宇宙 = ‘active universe’, 休宇宙 = ‘resting universe’]

Twin universes A and B both undergo cyclical expansion and contraction. When one is expanding, the other is contracting, so the sum of their sizes stays the same. The expanding universe is ‘active’ (things happen in it I guess?), the contracting one is ‘inactive’ or ‘resting’.

---

Mizutarou returns from school to the orphanage, a round two-story building called the Pineapple Home, in which there lives almost 50 kids of ages 0-12. High-school age Mizutarou is the only outlier.

A girl called Sharon Styron runs up to him and says that her cousin JJ has been kidnapped by Lord Whiplash [Maijo actually gives the English name as well, thanks dude], an evil guy who takes children to a dark place and beats them with a whip. Sharon claims that Lord Whiplash told her she’d be the next victim, and left a whip mark on her arm (she really has one). [Also, JJ is short for Joachim Joseph, we have an accidental JoJo here.]

Apparently Lord Whiplash told the kids some horrible things: that they’re somehow sinning by being weak, and that he’ll whip that sin out of them.

At first Mizutarou thinks it’s just Sharon making stuff up, but every other child is crying in distress. As it turns out two other kids went missing before JJ, and the orphanage staff wasn’t even interested. Not only that, it seems the entire staff went away somewhere and left all the kids alone, even the babies.

Mizutarou thinks that in that case, maybe the staff was always being abusive, and Lord Whiplash is a concept made up by the kids to help them deal with the neglect and abuse they received from the very people who should have protected them from harm.

Mizutarou gathers all the kids in the main room (there’s 45 of them all), and states that no matter what will happen, he WILL protect them. [I love Mizutarou, he cares so much]. Which is easier said than done: the phone doesn’t work, the kids are too young to send them to seek help, but he doesn’t want to leave them alone either...

...and then he realizes one of the kids is missing from the group, and at the same time, they hear screams, whipping sounds, and chilling male laughter from one of the rooms. Mizutarou runs in only to find the room empty, fresh blood staining the bedsheets. Whoever did this must have escaped through the window. Mizutarou runs outside to find him. Which is a mistake, because the door slams shut behind him. He desperately tries to break the windows or climb to the second floor, but nothing’s working. Lord Whiplash rampages inside the Pineapple Home, children are screaming, and Mizutaro discovers with dread that all the windows now have the following written on them with blood:

[弱悪強罰 = ‘weak’, ‘evil’, ‘strong’, ‘punish’]. Just like Lord Whiplash is yelling out in glee, weakness is evil, and the strong will punish it...

Mizutarou finally uses a car to ram through the door, which allows him to get inside. But the Pineapple Home looks clean and innocent like always. No sign of struggle, no children or Lord Whiplash around... at least until Mizutarou looks up at the round ceiling and sees the main room reflected in it upside down, but with a hellish twist: there’s blood and corpses of children everywhere. In the center of the mirrored room stands a half-naked, bespectacled man wielding a whip, a black bird-like birthmark or scar on his shoulder. The man is standing in the exact place where Mizutarou’s reflection should be.

Mizutarou realizes he has the exact same mark on his arm. Left over from when someone bit him--

The narrator remembers now: he’s Disco Wednesdayyy. [Here the narration swaps back from Mizutarou’s boku pronoun to Disco’s ore.] And the raven tattoo man is him.

(I know the real meaning of my name now, the narration makes one last quiet statement in Mizutarou’s voice. The name Mizutarou (水太郎) may symbolize ‘the water child’, a reference to the term mizuko (水子), ‘a stillborn or miscarried child’. A child who was never born. Someone who never existed...)

---

“I am you,” the Black Bird Man says looking down at Disco as Disco looks up at him. “Me and the Nail Peeler both, we are your emotions. That means I’m on your side. It’s only natural; your emotions can’t betray you. Tell me, why did you really become a detective?”

“To save children!”

“Did you? Or was it because you wanted to see children getting hurt?”

“That’s not true! I love children! I don’t want to hurt them!”

The Black Bird Man sends him a gentle smile. “That much is obvious. You really do love children and would put your own life on the line to protect them. But that's exactly where the hate comes from. Because of your love, you start to suffer. After all, you're always surrounded by just poor hurt little children. You may have started your work full of virtue and love, but didn't it all turn bitter? (...) You create this suffering. You understand well the desire to somehow punish the weakness of those children who died [who were ‘too weak’ to survive the abuse from their kidnappers and so it was too late when Disco found them]. I am that feeling.”

Disco now realizes that all the children from the Pineapple Home aside from Sharon and JJ shared their names with all the children he’d found dead in his career. In the Pineapple Home, ‘he’ killed them the second time. Does it mean he hates his job? That he hates children...? “I would never kill a child!” he defends himself.

“And that’s why it’s not you who kills them. It’s your emotions given my shape who do that.”

“I don’t have any emotions about wanting to kill children!”

"Am I not the proof that you do? In the end, you feel fed up with all the pitiful children that had horrible things happen to them. There's no way to eliminate their weakness, but you’d still like it to cease. It's natural. And so, here I am. Not necessarily because you have a bad heart; it's just a normal human feeling. Kindness and love have their limits, and going beyond that, they turn into irritation. (...) You've found over 40 dead children, and over 200 that endured horrible events. (...) You got betrayed so many times, survived so many last-minute twists, got involved in car chases and shootings, you struggled through so much -- and it's only because of how weak children are! Of course you know you can't do anything about their weakness, but it still makes you feel sick! All the children in the world still and still continue to get kidnapped, used by their parents and relatives, exploited, molested, murdered. Every time, you risk your life, you lose friends and let people you care about be killed. You know this is still going to continue. (...) ...but you love them. Just like you said, you really love children. That is clear. It's precisely this love that causes the feelings of hate to surface."

“...”

“You're still hoping that I'm just a delusion of some scared children closed together in a room, are you? But these kids here have already moved to the world of death. It's because of you. You created me, and used those children as victims for me. (...) You enjoyed the spectacle in plenty. Sitting in the guest seat, you raised your voice as if you really meant it, 'No, stop!'. (...) But this is the play you prepared. This is just but one scene acted out by me for your sake, pertaining exactly to your thoughts."

“...”

“I'm your emotions, and so I am your ally. (...) Emotions are a wonderful thing. I was born from stress to torment you, and you had me perform in such an extraordinary theater. ...I'm saying all this for your sake, you know? That suppressed stress of yours is what really hurts the children that are so dear to you."

“Kozue...”

“Her case especially is more than shocking to you. She turned your entire worldview on its head. Rather than the sense of tragedy that usually nestles inside you because of children dying, it was shock. You were plunged into chaos. Subconsciously, you created me to make Kozue feel that chaos too, to torment her.”

“...”

“I understand you don't want to accept that, but you’re a ruined man. (...) Even long before attaining the new worldview because of Kozue's case, you felt broken. You hated your job. That's why you never came back to America. You are already over. Through loving children, you started to hate them a little, eventually embraced this hate, and it's become quite terrible since then. You're already close to switching to the other side -- the one that abuses and kills children.”

“Don't say another word,” Disco speaks up. His body is trembling, but not with fear; a renewed will to fight is burning in him. “Your role came to an end.“

“Oh?”

“I really should thank you. It's fine now. It's fine for you to go away. ...when I look away now, you can disappear.“ A mirror reflects reality, but the things in the mirror aren’t real...

“You have to realize how horrible your situation is right now. No matter what, you can't follow from here in the same way you went about things before.”

“Well, then I’ll have to overcome you. Overcome my own consciousness.”

He looked away from what he now knew was his Feelings -- feelings of guilt. He transferred his own guilt into ‘Lord Whiplash’, and took a refuge in ‘Odoriba Mizutarou’. Then ‘Lord Whiplash’, or ‘the Black Bird Man’, helped him figure out his own feelings, served as his stepping stone.

If it wasn’t for Guilt cornering him, he’d still be running away, remaining in the comfortable fake world. Using his timespace-warping powers to run away was a mistake that his Guilt wouldn’t forgive. First the Nail Peeler followed him to the Pine House and scolded him for not caring about Kozue... then the Black Bird Man accused him of all those horrible things. Of course these accusations were overblown -- just like expected from Feelings of Guilt, they hyperbolized every little mistake -- but thanks to them he was able to contemplate his own identity. ...was what happened back there in the hotel room something his emotions made up, as well?

Alright, then. Let’s jump back into the fray. Somewhere, there must be the one who really attacked Kozue. Let’s go back to the real world and do what we can. The next clue was already given to him: the only people in the Pineapple Home whose names didn’t belong to dead children were Sharon and JJ Styron, so he’d have to investigate whatever events the real Styrons were involved with.

Everything has meaning, after all.

#sparkly reads disco #maijo and jdc stuff #long post #very long post #yep this book really is the midpoint btwn tsukumojuku and jorge joestar #I feel like I'll have to slow down a little on the recaps I may have burned out a little #which yeah it's been 1000 pages so

3 notes · View notes