can you elaborate on your tag meta on the socioeconomic indicators in the john backstory chapters in nona? and do you think john and G had a similar background having grown up together?

So John is a stingy ass motherfucker when it comes to definitive information, and he doesn't talk about his family or his childhood much, but what little he says when he does gives me the impression he grew up fairly poor. Probably in a community where being poor was normal.

The way John talks about his nana, it's clear he loved her in the way a child loves an adult they feel secure with. He spent a lot of time at her house as a kid, enough that playing there is one of his core memories. She may have even been his primary caretaker starting from the age of seven, because he sure never mentions having any other family. So it stands out to me that all he had to play with at her house was a box of his mother's old hand-me-downs. And while he knows it wasn't much, there's no resentment in his recollection. He didn't feel neglected.

John didn't expect to have toys of his own when he was a kid. What that says to me, as a kid who grew up on second-hand and hand-me-downs, is his family didn't buy much of anything new. It being so normal to him is also why I think he grew up in a poorer neighbourhood. Hand-me-downs are only embarrassing if you're the only one who has them.

Then there's how Nana died. Pneumonia, when John was still a teenager. Not a lot of rich people out there who die of lung infections before their grandchildren are grown.

And yeah, I do think G— had a similar background! He and John grew up on the same street, and he was (also?) raised by his grandparents. John's totally joking when he says spotting G— for mince pies when they were kids meant that of course G— would let him cut off his arm, but it's the kind of joke with subtext. Like sharing food was a big deal when they were kids. Reminds me of our Gideon being forever fond of Camilla for sharing her leftovers, and the intense barter between the children of New Rho over the lunch fruits. The childhood food insecurity of it all.

Thanks for sharing your typing of Meryl Streep’s character in ‘Out of Africa’ ! I kept reading for so long that she was a Sp 4w3 from a few Enneagram writers (mostly people whose books came out in the late 80’s/early 90’s) and after finally watching it recently could not wrap my head around how they came to that conclusion. But 1w2 makes soooo much more sense for her.

She is a hard character to type. By the midway point, I was still stumped so I internet searched her to see what other people thought and yes, found the sp4 information about her, but... I could not see it. At all. I think they’re basing it on the stereotypical “old” interpretation of an sp4 as reckless, because there’s nothing else about 4 that fits her in a core sense. She is not Madam Bovary, who is so miserable and unhappy in her arranged marriage that she fills her home with lavish furnishings that she cannot afford. (Madam Bovary is my go-to sp4!) She is dutiful, hard-working, and surprisingly unemotional even though it’s a forbidden romance story -- the only time she gets emotional is when she forbids her lover to take another woman alone with him on a safari, and even then it’s an express drawing of boundaries rather than the push-pull reactivity of a 4.

My initial impression was either a 2 or a 1, and I did not make up my mind until after the movie had ended and I was staring at a blank Word document, forced to figure out her personality. I thought about her sense of obligation and duty, how angry she was much of the time, and how she reacted instantly without any internal pondering and asserted herself boldly on many occasions -- she is clearly a gut type, too bold to be a 9, too dutiful to be an 8, so a 1. It fits. That also helped me nail down her MBTI type, because I had an awful lot of info for Si and Fi and very little Ne, and couldn’t figure out why she’s typed NF everywhere since she’s one of the more sensible heroines I’ve ever seen. Her mind naturally goes to what is rational and ‘expected’ and contains permanence (marriage, family, children) despite her boldness and at times, recklessness (even then, she becomes aware of herself being in danger almost immediately).

On a different note, the lion she faced down was supposed to be chained so it could come nowhere near her (or she thought it was going to be) but the director left it unchained, which means the fear on Meryl’s face is real. :P Jerk.

9, 22, 28, 29, 62 :)

Hello there <3 nara happened to ask number nine already but… here’s the rest Xd Thanks for stopping by! Sorry for the tardiness; tumblr was tumblr and I didn’t see the asks until today -rolls eyes intensifies-

Role model

I’m going to sound incredibly boring, but I don’t have a role model. Or at least I don’t actively consider anyone my role model. There are things I like about random people around me: such is a good moral backbone for example and when I was a kid I remember reflecting on those very same things that I liked on the characters of the books I read but I haven’t never felt something like: ah, I truly relate to this person a role-model type of way ^^’’

Five songs to describe you

Oof, ok, I see you went for the: you gonna think for this route. That’s why I like you :P Let’s see.. five songs. This is gonna make an interesting turn y’all

Dark Carnivale by Frenchie and the punk for the aesthetic that calls me best and what I tried to put into words whenever I wrote -be that cissamione, swan queen, own personal work…. Etc- I like the air of decadence around magic that comes with gothic tropes. Which is *a* thing that makes me look THAT kind of tumblr niche so prevalent to find back in the early stages of this blue hellsite lol. But I don’t take myself that seriously, so my own preference for the aesthetic steams from there on

Bad habits by Dresden Dolls for my depression past self. The way the music is majorly sharp sounds, the voice reaching and almost being out of breath. It’s not something that is *me* but we are our past in tiny minute ways so Xd Yeah, let’s put it there.

Zure ezapinen itsasoan by Izaro. Both coming from a descriptor that is me being basque and how that is simply part of who I am but also as a way of describing how I view love. For me, for what I go and feel and for what I strive to give. I don’t know if there’s a proper translation in English for this one but if there is or even if it is not and you like female singers I really recommend her. The song fills me with the longing of being happy while being happy yourself, wanting and feeling safe. It’s something that has become more and more prominent as I’ve grown older: to be someone who creates safeness and who is capable of receiving such feeling without feeling worthless of it. So there you go :P

Follow the stars by Swingrowers. Both as a: I adore electroswing -yeah, yeah, trend is gone but I fell into it when it gained prominence and I’m here to stay :P- and also to that dreamy part of me, the one who still wants to have their heads a little bit in the clouds if only so I don’t turn into a boring adult -snorts-.

Abracadabra by Brown eyed girls. And here has also several angles. First one the classic and full of: I HEARD THIS TYPE OF MUSIC BECAUSE IT BECAME MAINSTREAM and you can actually realize that if you see that all groups of kpop, jpop and the like I like to listen to have been extinct for several years already lol. Second angle would be the aesthetic of BEG in general. Totally there for them, really. Which is something that as a tangent goes through the route of: describing one self I’d say. Finally, the third angle would be my gayness lmao. I really had a gay moment with abracadabra and I fully rec watching the vid for this one

Best way to bond with you

Alright, after the heavy stuff let’s go with… THIS

Best ways…? Uhm, don’t try to mirror me expecting me to be kinder to you. Which is something that has happened. I prefer one who is upfront, honest, respect others around you, treat them well. I’m going to have a problem with you if I sense or see that you are being a hypocrite or you are actively searching to harm others, be that by word or action. We can be different in what we like to have in our pizza but I will never get along with someone who treats or thinks that others are their inferiors. And I’ll act accordingly. Other than that… There’s no real mathematics about it. I like the quietness of the introverts, as I am one, rather than the explosive contrast of the extroverts so I will probably gravitate to people who prefer to talk to spend their nights drinking and partying but I also do have friends, and very good ones, that are totally opposite to me in that aspect. I would say that by being “good” -a good person- and approaching me you are already in a good place to bond with me XD Unlocking higher levels of sim-friendship (:P) it’s more related to once we start talking and we see how are we like, if we don’t make each other uncomfortable, if there’s chemistry there for that potential. Dunno ^^’’, is there supposed to be an answer here? I rant, as you know, I love ranting, And I know I’m filling the blank space here trying to reach a conclusion when I honestly think that my only thing is for the ones around me to be good people. The rest… time

Seven characters you relate to

Ooof Xd

Ok, I can do this one. Let’s see.

I relate to Regina, obviously, for the “mother’s and family members who weren’t exactly the best kind of role model on their lives” Look! A role model, I brought it back to the beginning! XD

I relate to Ai Haibara -from Conan or Cold case or whatever is called in America because, honestly, translation laws are one hell of a thing- because of the constant anxiety and feeling, at the time I was hooked to the series (so, pre-teen) as if I had some big words inside my head by adults didn’t seem t pay me any mind because of them.

I relate to Vin from Mistborne from the: sometimes not thinking enough or getting your feelings become too loud inside your head. I don’t go the aggressive route but I can get where that is rooted from a character perspective.

I relate to Katsa -graceling- and Bipa, from a book I don’t know if it was ever translated to English called “La emperatriz de los etereos” > The empress of the ethereal. Katsa from the perspective of someone that needed a long time to fully come across who they were and Bipa from the stubbornness and the intent for going anywhere in order to make others feel good. I spoke of romantic love back in the song related question but my intent of being a good friend obviously bleeds into friendship as well, not solely romance.

Elise, from Making a tinderbox -BOOK REC-, no further details are needed on this one :P

And finally… I relate to Beau, from CR. No further info needed 😉

Can we have more background on America's upbringing, his birth, etc?

ohoho anon hope you’re ready for a frickin rant cuz there’s sure is a lot to say! XD 

Without further ado, here’s a pic of the legit infant of the family with summaries of each era under the cut! If you seek more info/drama, pls send in additional asks or fic requests. 💛💛

American Revolution (age 0-5)

July 4th, 1776.

The 13 original colonies gathered in Philadelphia along with their delegates and signed their breakup letter to England. And on that fateful day, they accidentally created America, a representation of the Original 13′s Alliance/Union. 

Baby America played little to no role in the early stages of his life. After all, he was just a fragile newborn who didn’t know how to protect himself. So the Original 13 Colonies fought the American Revolution in his place, leading, spying, negotiating, while baby America fled from the ever approaching frontline with the rest of the Continental Congress. There’s limited to no emotional connection between the states and America during the war, as they’re all too busy not to get killed to sit down and bond.

After the revolution, the original 13, freed from their father nation, are left to govern themselves all while raising a child–a blank canvas of a country they can shape into whatever magnificent and enlightened paradise their mind could dream of. The only problem is, no one could agree on what ‘a great nation’ stood for in terms of specific policies.

The endless chaotic debates and disunity between his semi-autonomous states nearly tore America apart as the boy sat helplessly in growing despair without any power to do anything. Being the literal baby that he was, America’s fate rested entirely in the hands of those who were ‘older’ and ‘wiser.’ 

The Era of Good Feelings (5-8)

With the end of the War of 1812, the divisive nation-building process finally came to a conclusion. 

America and its states entered a time of unity and single-party rule by the Democratic-Republicans. Europe was going up in flames with this dude called Napoleon, so all the foreign superpowers weren’t here to bully America either! 

This was the happy and peaceful section of America’s childhood. 

America lived with (and was raised by) Maryland and Virginia. As their endless bickering drew to a close, baby America finally began to gain love and attention from the rest of his states as well. They taught him about science, history, and enlightenment ideals. They ruffled his hair and filled his head with dreams, reassuring the boy that he’s destined for greatness; while others like Rhode Island took the time to warn the boy about the darker truth of the world and the curse of immortality. 

A lot of problems were swept under the rugs during the Era of Good Feelings, and America himself was still largely powerless compared to the states, but this era is where most emotional bonding happened between the states and America, and where the most fluffy one-shots starring baby America are set.

Civil War (8-12)

The Civil War is when America first learned how to put his foot down and assume his role as the states’ sovereign nation, their rightful leader, instead of a mere child they can push around.

The Civil War Era somewhat resembled the initial nation-building process in many ways. Screaming matches, divisive fights, devastating disasters spiraling out of control. Only this time, America said enough is enough, and he did what it took to make himself heard. He fought uncompromisingly to end slavery and bring the union back together, and to do so America didn’t hesitate to blatantly seize power from the remaining states and people in an almost Machiavellian fashion.

America experienced war for the first time here. Though he didn’t directly fight on the battlefield, the boy’s exposed to the grim toll that came with war and all the hard decisions to be made. America aged rapidly throughout the war and lost a lot of his naivety with each battle, growing into the mold of a cunning superpower by the hour. 

When the war ends, the soft and simple-minded baby America will be gone.

Gilded Age (13-16)

In a lot of ways, the states are Alfred’s moral compass. The more detached he is from his constituents, the more America becomes consumed by his own ambitions and desires.

The Gilded Age is a prime example of this.

Following the Civil War and Reconstruction, America had pretty much solidified his position as the head of his states. And since a majority of the states were still trying to deal with their own heartbreaks and aftermath of the Civil War, no one really kept track of this young nation.

And so, America began to explore and expand his power. Politically, geographically, and economically. He got more land, industries boomed, and waves of migrants entered the borders. America pillaged and annexed like an European Imperial superpower; he allowed monopolies and political machines to run rampant with corruption and exploitation of the working class in the name of laissez-faire; he became wealthy, influential and powerful at the expense of millions. 

This era most certainly lived up to its name. Gilded. Awful and twisted beneath a thin layer of shining golden paint of prosperity.

Progressive Era (14-16)

Like we said on previous posts, America had a dark history that cannot be excused, but he is still capable of changing for the better with the right guidance and discipline. In essence, this era took place after the states and his people alike finally began to slap some sense of reason and morality back into America’s skull. 

A lot of this time frame overlapped with the Gilded Age because change came very slowly. It’s not like this one sunny day America just woke up and declared hmmm I guess I’m not gonna be a bitch today. Nah, dude. It took a lot of time and effort to get America back on the right track. 

During the progressive era, America began to realize how objectively shitty his actions were and tried his best to amend it. He began to break down monopolies and give the working class more political power and bettered their working condition. America fought for women’s rights, preserve the environment, and speak out against imperialism with both passion and remorse.

This is also the time when America and his family finally began to reconcile after the Civil War, and the states gained enough influence in America’s life to keep him on the progressive track.

Roaring 20s & the Great Depression (17)

America got a brief taste of the global stage during WWI and wanted to remain on it through the League of Nations, but the states were like *GASP* NO CHILD U COME HOME RIGHT THIS INSTANT for fear of their baby straying too far from his family again.

So America returned to isolation at the war’s end. 

And it was pleasant, at first. A lot of problems were swept under the rugs, but America and the states enjoyed themselves and indulged in extravagant fashions, new cinematic entertainment, and lavish parties of the 1920s. The bonds between them all tightened, even as everything crashed and burnt to hell in the Great Depression.

But despite their deepened connections, the Great Depression was an incredibly harsh time for America and the states. It’s also when America first manifested his hero complex. The young nation saw his brothers and sisters suffer through poverty and horrid weather, and he wanted to be nothing less than a real-life Superman for his family. America wanted to bring optimism, joy, and laughter back to his family in this terribly grim time of depression and make all their problems disappear. America jokes and laugh loudly in attempts to lift the states’ spirits, even though he was struggling against a gritty reality of his own as well, all while assuming more and more power so he can try and lift them all out of this economic devastation. 

America’s efforts were heartwarming, but he had also unwittingly set the stage for history to repeat itself.

WWII (18)

The world’s descending into chaos again. America had spent months begging his states to let him enter the Second World War, and his elder siblings finally consented their nation’s declaration of war with the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

There’s no stopping their baby chick from traveling far far away from the nest now.

During the war, America found close friends/mentors in foreign nations like Britain and France for the first time during the war, and Canada became nothing less than a brother to him. He fought alongside the allies as a soldier and pulled his economy back into tip-top shape back home. The problem arise when America began to drift further and further away from his states as the war stretched on. The global theatres occupied America’s attention, and the bloody horrors of modern warfare turned him cold. 

America will emerge from the war as a victorious superpower, gaining leadership over not only his states but half of the globe as well. Some states will speak up in alarm as America continued to silence dissenters and crank out propaganda even as the war drew to a close, trying to reconnect with their nation. Unfortunately, America failed to listen as his eyes turned toward a former comrade dressed in red.  

Cold War (19)

There are a lot of similarities to speak of between the Gilded Age and the Cold War Era. However, one significant difference is that America’s motivation is no longer purely out of selfish ambitions, but also extreme paranoia. 

America had tried hard to hide it, but the rise of the USSR made him feel threatened beyond control. The power and wealth he has now were something America had fought vigorously to obtain, and the love & support of his family and friends are what kept America sane through the centuries. The young nation was dreadfully terrified by the mere concept of losing his status as a political and economic superpower or for his states/allies betraying him for the Soviet Union.

It was this irrational but overwhelming fear that blinded America and drove him into acting like an intensely insecure control freak, lending out financial support to Western Europe and installing many domestic welfare programs so no one will feel the need to seek out to Communism. But in the same time, he did not hesitate to resort to coercion should anyone show any signs of dissent. 

It took the states a lot of time and efforts to get this nation blinded by paranoia to come back to his senses, but they were still able to to it. After all, America wasn’t evil. He’s sinful, blinded, insecure, and at his worst, selfish and power-hungry. But in America’s core, he’s still that idealistic young man who loves and respects each and every one of his constituents with all his heart.

America isn’t evil, but he does need guidance and restraints from others to prevent his own ambitions, paranoia, and power from corrupting him. America needs those he loves so deeply to speak out in protest when he’s in the wrong, and he needs several helping hands to keep him on the progressive track. Luckily, that’s exactly what his states are here for!

D&D  Worldbuilding: Ambiguity

When telling your D&D campaign's story and describing it's setting, it's important to remember that being vague or ambiguous can not only be okay, but important to creating an evocative world.

How to Use Ambiguity

Legends and Myths. Your setting has a history, and being ambiguous about the details can help hint at it without exposing it discreetly. When you are ambiguous, a statement can have two or more different interpretations. When you use this with a legend or myth, it creates something of a mystery for players. Did the event actually take place or is it a fable? Is there something else behind the story? What other stories are there? It makes the world seem bigger and more full despite being objectively LESS full by you giving the players less information. The players fill in the blanks mentally and you have less work to do to make the world seem fantastic.

Furthermore, you can use your ambiguity to allow... not a loophole, per se, but a bit of flexibility to your world. If you aren't sure what to do with the legend or what it means, you can present it to the players and let them draw their own conclusions. Then later, the players' suspicions can either be confirmed or turned on their head, depending on what you need for the story.

Dramatic Encounters. Ambiguity creates tension. Think about the Dark Lord trope in fantasy stories. How much do you know about this Big Bad? It's often very little. You learn about them through the ripples of their influence or about ancient evil events that took place or cursed rings they've created. You don't have all the relevant information. You might not know their powers, their plans, or even their identity, but it looms like a shadow over the protagonists' shoulders.

You can utilize this ambiguity to create drama for future encounters as long as you place the seeds early. Also take care not to explicitly define an encounter by a specific creature that can be looked up in the Monster Manual. If you tell the PCs the big-bad is a Balor named Gelvanox that leads an army of fiends, the players know "okay, we need to be like level 16 and need to avoid fire magic, got it." If, instead, you tell the players the villain is named Gelvanox and commands an army called the Red Legion that has already destroyed the kingdom of the elves, players pause. They don't have any mechanical info anymore. They don't know the species of the villain, they don't know what forces they command, but it was apparently enough to wipe out a kingdom. They still have names to attribute to the enemy (red legion, gelvanox) so they can begin to gather information. Until they discover the nature of the villain, there is tension.

Create Landmarks. Use ambiguity to establish footholds in the setting. Normally, landmarks are things people can use to find their bearings in an environment. Here, they do the same. An ambiguous piece of information about the setting helps players find their place in the world. Players don't have to ever visit a location or ever meet a person in your setting to learn about it. They can learn about the influence that person or place has on the setting from afar. Once the PCs have some ambiguous information, they can decide what it means in their own story. There is a dwarven kingdom to the southeast that trades ores with this city, therefore this city lacks in ore and any dwarves here may have come from there. The world now seems bigger, more connected, and we can draw implications from the information. That dwarven kingdom becomes a mental landmark for the players to reference and help situate themselves.

How Not to Use It

Ambiguity without Context. Without enough information, players don't know how an ambiguous statement about the setting affects them or affects the story. Without context, players can't draw any conclusions about the setting and no tension is created. Players have to know certain facts to make ambiguity work:

How it affects the players: is it a threat to them? is it something they want or need?

How it affects the world: what implications does this information have on the setting? How does learning this information help the players?

How it affects the story: How does this information further the overarching plot? Does it alter or increase the tension, stakes, or agency for the players?

False Tension. Ambiguity is defined by on bit of information having multiple plausible implications or truths. If players can't draw conclusions from your ambiguous hints, then they are just vague or nonsense. Hiding something just for the sake of hiding it doesn't help the story if the players can't draw anything from it. Even if you are hiding a big revelation for your mystery story, you can't just not tell the players anything about the revelation until the very end! Players won't know what they are looking for or what they are trying to figure out. If you are ambiguous, the players will have multiple leads to follow, but only one is correct. Then you can add a twist after they follow said lead if you must have something to raise the stakes.

In my online D&D campaign, I have a vague and mysterious cult that I wanted to be pulling strings beneath the surface. The only problem is that if the cult is too good at their job the players won't even be aware of their influence. I had to come up with something ambiguous to plant. So the players were sent by the city to investigate cult activity. There were no real leads in their swamp temple, but on their way back to the city they found a body. The body was wearing cult robes but wore signs of being from the city they were sent from and signs they died from stabbing before they donned the robe. This was VERY ambiguous. Is the cult being framed by the city, or are the cultists themselves from the city? It's vague enough to know there's shady shit going down. Now the players just discovered a cultist in the city beneath a brothel filled with succubi, apparently their summoner, so the tension has paid off and the stakes are higher; they have indeed infiltrated the city.

So use ambiguity to help define your setting, set up drama, and make your world seem more epic than you have time or energy for, just be sure the players get enough information and can draw meaningful conclusions from what you've given them.

Say Joanna lives and Tywin dies instead, how does that change things? Would Joanna as regent for the twins go with the double betrothal? Would the twins grow up healthy and happy? Tyrion? Elia?

Note that all of our knowledge about the double betrothal comes from Oberyn who certainly was not privy to whatever correspondence actually happened between Joanna and the Princess of Dorne. The Princess told Oberyn some parts and he filled in the blanks of the story with his observations and deductions, making him not the most accurate source of info. Here’s what Oberyn said about the double betrothal:

“Such a clever dwarf. Elia and I were older, to be sure. Your brother and sister could not have been more than eight or nine. Still, a difference of five or six years is little enough. And there was an empty cabin on our ship, a very nice cabin, such as might be kept for a person of high birth. As if it were intended that we take someone back to Sunspear. A young page, perhaps. Or a companion for Elia. Your lady mother meant to betroth Jaime to my sister, or Cersei to me. Perhaps both.”

Perhaps both. The wording makes it clear that this part is Oberyn’s conclusion and not something his mother explicitly told him. The fact that he was speaking of Joanna’s intentions is an enough tell of how accurate this information is, because Oberyn is not an authority on Joanna Lannister, neither was he privy to what she might or might not wanted.

Personally, I think Oberyn is wrong and that a double betrothal was never in the works. The idea of a double betrothal makes absolutely no sense from a dynastic standpoint, and I refuse to believe that the Joanna simply did not care about dynastic advantages. The political atmosphere of Westeros had been turbulent for years at the time and we’ve seen how the reign of Aegon V and the War of the Ninepenny Kings heavily influenced the political landscape and bred awareness of the power the lords of the realm have and how it could be consolidated into a power bloc against the crown. Joanna was not a political novice; she spent some years at court as lady-in-waiting to then-Princess, later Queen Rhaella and was the trusted confidante of the Hand of the King. She was well aware of the shifting landscape and conscious of the need for alliances, especially as Tywin’s relationship with Aerys was becoming increasingly frazzled. Joanna also lived through the misrule of Lord Tytos and knew how attentive Tywin was to asserting and consolidating the power of House Lannister. In that context, it’s hard to see Joanna planning for a double betrothal to the Martell siblings considering it unnecessarily wastes the potential of a marriage alliance with another powerful family. Besides, Joanna knew Tywin and so she certainly knew how difficult it would be to convince him of one betrothal to the Martells considering Dorne’s significant economic and military disadvantage compared to other more politically powerful families. To think she thought that she could convince him of two does not ring true to me at all. No, I sincerely doubt that a double betrothal was ever in the works, regardless of what Oberyn might think.

But that raises the question of which betrothal Joanna had in mind, which is relevant to the answer of your question. While the order in which Oberyn told Tyrion the betrothals were proposed in OTL (Cersei\Oberyn then Elia\Jaime) could indicate her preference, we simply have no way of knowing if this was the actual order the Princess proposed them in. Indeed Oberyns flipped the order around over the course of the conversation with Tyrion as seen in the above quote. It could be argued that that was the correct order of the suggested betrothals because the rejection of Elia as a bride for Jaime came with the “insult” of offering Tyrion instead, which certainly would make the Princess of Dorne far less prone to suggest another match to the man who just insulted her, whereas the refusal of Oberyn as a husband to Cersei did not come with an insult, despite how brusque Tywin was. But even if that was the correct order, was that the Princess’ own initiative? Or did she and Joanna previously agree on Cersei\Oberyn as the preferable or the more-likely-for-Joanna-to-convince-Tywin-of option? We just don’t know. We have no idea what the extent of Joanna’s involvement in how things played out was or even if she and the Princess agreed on a match rather it being a general idea of betrothing a Lannister to a Martell. Whatever theory anyone has is only conjecture based on minimal information but I fell down the rabbit hole thinking about this so why not make you suffer through it? Under a cut because no one has ever accused me of being brief.

The main point that we need to examine before we come up with any theory is Joanna’s motivation to arrange the betrothal. Here’s what we know: a maid at Casterly Rock caught Jaime and Cersei experimenting sexually sometime before Tyrion’s birth and the Martells’ visit. She notified Joanna who took measures to separate the twins by changing the location of Jaime’s room and appointing a guard on Cersei’s, and threatened the twins that she’d tell Tywin if they repeat whatever they were doing. If Oberyn’s info is accurate, there was some form of correspondence between Joanna and the Princess of Dorne around that time in which they plotted to have one of the twins betrothed to one of the Martell siblings. Oberyn noted the presence of a nice cabin meant for someone of high birth prepared on their ship, meaning that the plan was for whichever Lannister was getting betrothed to a Martell to return with them to Sunspear to foster as part of the betrothal agreement, which falls in line with Joanna’s attempt to separate the twins and ensure they cease their sexual contact.

If we accept that the betrothal is linked to one of the twins being sent away, this could suggest that the twin in question was Cersei. Girls don’t get fostered in Westeros unless it is a part of a betrothal agreement or a hostage situation\attempt to settle bad blood between two families, as evidenced by the low number of fostered girls we hear about compared to the boys, and how pretty much all of them were either sent away as a part of a betrothal agreement, or as a hostage for their family’s good behavior, or a mix of the two. Comparatively, in the case of Jaime, there was simply no reason for Joanna to go to the trouble of arranging a betrothal so she could send him away. Fosterage is a common practice for boys and so Joanna did not need a betrothal as a pretext for sending Jaime to serve as a page in Dorne. In fact, if a betrothal to Elia was to happen, it’d be more common for Elia to foster at Casterly Rock instead of Jaime going to Dorne. Actually, a betrothal to Elia would make it extremely unlikely for Jaime to be fostered in Dorne since this runs the chance of him becoming too attached and sympathetic to his wife’s family and later lavishing offices and honors on them, something that neither Tywin nor Joanna would be willing to risk, especially in light of recent history. The ghost of Ellyn Reyne and how she “made it rain inside the Rock all year” by filling the Rock with her kin, and later used House Lannister’s gold to elevate her house, had not yet left the Rock, and it definitely had not left Tywin or Joanna.

A deeper examination of what Jaime being fostered in Dorne would mean further proves how improbable it is that it was him that Joanna planned to send away. First of all, it’s hard to think that Joanna was under any illusion that Tywin would agree to sending his heir, the future of his house and a main part of his vision for the legacy and future of House Lannister, to Dorne of all places. Second, Joanna was no novice when it came to politics, she knew the importance of political image and the possible consequences of it deteriorating as she lived through the dwindling of Lannister name and power under Lord Tytos. She definitely knew that a boy’s fosterage could influence his image in the eyes of his future vassals (hence Aegon V being considered “half a peasant” because he spent time with the smallfolk over the course of his squiring for Ser Duncan the Tall). Jaime being fostered in Dorne runsthe risk of him being dubbed too-Dornish by his future vassals, especially if he showed favor to House Martell or picked up the Dornish fighting style. And that’s without talking about how choosing House Martell of all the noble houses in the Westerlands and Westeros would raise more than a few eye brows considering the limited political advantages Dorne could offer, the difference in culture, and how deep the prejudice against Dorne runs.

And if Jaime could not be fostered in Dorne but the betrothal was for the purpose of sending one of the twins to foster there to ensure their separation and the end of their sexual experimentation, that means Cersei was the one meant for the betrothal.

But Cersei was meant for Rhaegar, as per Tywin. Joanna must have known that considering how close she and Tywin was, and she surely recognized that a Martell second son can not compare to the crown prince of the Seven Kingdoms. But maybe Joanna was not on board with Tywin’s plans for Cersei? Joanna suffered from public humiliation and repeated brazen sexual assault at Aerys’ hand, something that neither she nor Tywin could do anything about or had any way to stop except by avoiding being around Aerys completely. Indeed Joanna stayed the fuck away from the capital once she was dismissed from Queen Rhaella’s service because of Aerys’ sexual advances. Aerys had made his desire and obsession with Joanna quite clear, and it’s telling that the biggest rift between Tywin and Aerys was reported after Aerys resided in Casterly Rock for the better part of a year, in close proximity to Joanna. Since wedding Rhaegar puts Cersei, who inherited her mother’s beauty, in close proximity to that sexual predator, Joanna could very well have feared that Aerys would use her daughter as surrogate for her or that his obsession would transfer to Cersei, putting her in a horrifying and dangerous position. So perhaps she was not dead-set on Rhaegar as Cersei’s spouse as Tywin was and just wanted to keep her daughter away from Aerys.

(Though this still raises the question: why the Martells? Yes, Joanna and the Princess of Dorne were friends, but Joanna must have known that she’d have an uphill battle with Tywin to convince him of either betrothal. Dorne is not the best political match there is, and there were plenty of available heirs to Great Houses who made a far greater prize than Oberyn. Perhaps the answer lies with Aerys? His relationship with Tywin was on the rocks by 273 and he had taken measures to undermine his Hand and curb his power. His madness and paranoia were also growing in tandem with Rhaella’s miscarriages and cradle deaths. Aerys had the power to refuse any match Joanna and Tywin made for their children, and perhaps Joanna was concerned that they’d invite his paranoia if they went to one of the more powerful houses? Or that he’d refuse to allow the match if he felt it offered his Hand additional power? House Martell is a prestigious Great House but they have limited military and economic power and so they would not tempt the king into opposing a match between them and the Lannister just for the sake of denying Tywin power. Maybe?)

Holy wall of circumstantial evidence, huh? I know, but we simply have very limited knowledge of Joanna (*shakes fist at GRRM*) and only bits and pieces about the betrothal attempt so I’m basically throwing darts in the dark here.

Anyways, it only took me nearly 2000 words to get here but… now to your question.

If we assume that Tywin died sometime before Tyrion’s birth and the Princess of Dorne’s arrival (erm, some freak accident while he was coming down from King’s Landing to the Rock?), I reckon Joanna would make a betrothal between Cersei and Oberyn, though perhaps after more time have passed after Tywin’s death, as she’d still want to get the twins away from one another since continually having a guard on Cersei’s room is not practical and would eventually raise questions. She would also want to keep Jaime close so he could know his land and people and so he could be present when court is held and train under his uncles. I don’t think there is much of a chance that Joanna would agree to a betrothal between Elia and Jaime, even if we strip the fosterage element and everything else away, because in the wake of Tyrion’s birth and Tywin’s death, Joanna would be overly conscious of her choice in bride for Jaime. We can safely assume that she would not want to risk Jaime’s chances of having plenty of healthy (and able-bodied) children to carry on the family name and secure the inheritance. Elia’s health and age would be seen as a detriment to that considering that the mother’s health affects her chances in carrying a healthy baby to term.

Now if Joanna betroths Cersei to Oberyn and sends her to Dorne as a companion to Elia, how does that affect Cersei? Jaime, Tyrion, the political plot? It’s difficult to say because there are too many shifting pieces, and endless possibilities. For example, how would Cersei fare in Dorne under the tutelage of the Princess of Dorne? She was only 6 or 7 when Tyrion was born and so it’s the Princess who would control her education and largely shape her personality. She would not suffer the emotional abuse and the constant dismissal due to her gender that she suffered at Tywin’s hand and so she’d be remarkably more well-adjusted. Of course it’s not all sunshine and rainbows because she might resent the Princess for taking her away from her home, and Oberyn for being the reason it happened. And what about Oberyn? He was a teenager at the time of the visit to the Rock so would he be content to wait for his child bride to grow up or would he seek other women in the meantime?

Now the good new is: no valonqar prophecy hanging over Cersei. She would not live with the expectation that Tyrion will kill her and so she wouldn’t make it her personal mission to destroy him. And then we’d be talking about a completely different Cersei and a completely different plot.

Those changes also probably butterflies away the Lannister incest and so Jaime does not join the Kingsguard. Does he get betrothed to Lysa? If Elia marries Rhaegar in this timeline, do the Lannisters still stay out of the Rebellion since they’d be stuck between the royalists and the rebels, or would they choose a side? Now if the Battle of the Trident happens in this timeline and the royalists are defeated, chances are King’s Landing goes kaboom.

And Tyrion. I doubt he’d have the childhood he deserves even with Joanna surviving, though he would not be as horrifically abused as he was under Tywin. But the extent of what Joanna would allow him or how exactly she’d treat him is unknown. As is how the incident of Tysha would get exactly handled by Lord Jaime. Tyrion wouldn’t go through the brutal experience of Tysha’s and his rape in this timeline but Joanna would definitely still want Tysha punished but in what way? And what would Jaime allow? We just don’t know.

Possible ripple effects also include Rhaegar’s marriage to Elia. One of the main reasons Aerys chose Elia for Rhaegar in OTL was to limit Rhaegar’s power by ensuring he did not gain the support of a militarily powerful family that could support him against Aerys. But if Elia has the Lord of the Westerlands for a goodbrother, that means that wedding her would give Rhaegar the support of both Dorne and Casterly Rock. Would Aerys’ paranoia and suspicion of the Lannister cool off by Tywin’s death so that he allows it? What would his relationship with Joanna be like anyway? Would he try to force her to return to court? Could he ever reach the point of putting Rhaella aside and making Joanna marry him? Would he use Jaime against her by “honoring” him with the position of royal page or cupbearer to hold him as a hostage against Joanna?

We. Just. Don’t. Know. Pick your favorite fic idea, I guess.

h e l l o

guys a soulmate au where you get any marks your soulmate gets on their skin that follows the plot of bmc but the squip erases your soulmate mark because your soulmate's writing contains some sort of energy to reform the squip into another body and the only way to deactivate the squip is to kiss your soulmate imagine 10 year old jeremy complaining to michael abt how his soulmate never tries to reach out to him, and whenever he tries to reveal any personal info, it gets blocked out imagine 10 year old michael being too scared to reply to the constant scribbles on his arm because he recognizes jeremy's handwriting and he doesn't want jeremy to recognize /his/ handwriting so he avoids replying imagine michael always wearing a sweater or a hoodie to cover up the little notes jeremy wrote so jeremy doesn't realize he's his soulmate imagine jeremy finally coming to the false conclusion that he doesn't have a soulmate and telling michael and michael just smiles and says "me too bro" and reveals a completely blank arm and is very relieved for once when jeremy leaves so he can wash off all of the concealer caked onto his arm to hide the familiar writing in it imagine jeremy pining after christine because she also has a blank arm and he excitedly tells michael he has a crush on her because jeremy wants his best friend's backup when it comes to romance and michael's gay pining heart is shattered into a million shards imagine michael trying to convince himself that the only reason jeremy's notes are on his arm is because they're both platonic soulmates but he /knows/ there's something more, it's too late now though imagine jeremy discussing getting the squip with michael and michael has this little nagging voice in the back of his mind that whispers "don't let him do it" but he nods and smiles along to jeremy's excited babbling about how he'll finally be popular and get closer to christine because that's what are friends for imagine when jeremy gets the squip and the squip warns him that he will have to block jeremy's soulmate and jeremy thinks he's got the best side of the deal because he apparently doesn't have a soulmate and then michael suddenly starts disappearing from his life imagine michael getting so mad that jeremy's ignoring him he writes little passive aggressive notes on his arm, not knowing that the squip is hiding the messages from jeremy imagine the angry mood michael's in slowly disappearing, leaving behind loneliness and sadness because /goddamnit/ he just wants his player 1 to at least /talk/ to him imagine jeremy finally seeing michael during the scene in Upgrade and his first thought is how /utterly wrecked/ michael looks and his conscience twinges a little but he ignores it imagine michael realizing jeremy has the squip and oh god it's terrifying to even consider the fact that his best friend, his player 1 can be swayed by a supercomputer that he willingly put into his brain. what's worse is that michael didn't stop him from doing it. five years of friendship down the drain because of michael's stupidity. imagine the squip shocking jeremy for the first time and the scars on jeremy's back also carry over to michael and when michael sees his own back, scarred by the electric shocks, he sobs, not because it's affecting him as well, but because now he knows jeremy is suffering and it pains him because he can't do anything about it imagine michael's eyes widening in mortification when he researches the squip and finds that the only way to get rid of it would be to kiss your soulmate and he has to distract himself from the sudden images of him kissing jeremy filling his mind imagine jeremy looking right at michael and calling him a loser at the halloween party, and michael's heart just feels like it got stomped on and thrown into the trash and he wonders if maybe he's a mistake, if jeremy is his soulmate but he's not jeremy's imagine michael burning mementos of their friendship because he's gotta snap all of the links between them two so jeremy can be happy as the popular kid without michael as a lingering reminder of the past, because jeremy needs to be happy and if this is what makes jeremy happy, he'll do it, because /goddamn/ is michael mell head over heels for jeremy heere and he'll rip his already shattered heart into a million pieces if it makes jeremy smile like he used to imagine jeremy suffering backstage because he's fighting against his squip and his hand shakily reaches out to dial michael's number because he needs his player two right now and just as a controlled shock jerks his hand away from the phone, michael comes bursting in imagine michael stammering and hesitant to tell jeremy what he needs to do to get rid of the squip because goddamn it's embarrassing but in the end he tells jeremy that he needs to kiss his soulmate to get rid of his squip and jeremy obliviously notes that he didn't have a soulmate in the first place, so how could he kiss someone who didn't exist imagine michael opening his mouth to reveal that he's jeremy's soulmate before being cut off by a squipped christine who tells jeremy he's her soulmate and holds out an hand covered with little scribbles in jeremy's handwriting that weren't there before imagine the remains of michael's heart sinking as christine says this, thinking over and over to himself "i knew it i knew it i knew it" until jeremy reaches for christine's hand and rubs off the words her squip made her forge on her arm before attacking michael with a kiss imagine michael freaking out and screaming when jeremy is screaming and sobbing in pain in his arms as the squip leaves his body and all michael can do is call 911 and hope they get there as fast as they can imagine jeremy waking up in the hospital, and seeing michael slumped on a chair beside his hospital bed, snoring quietly imagine jeremy glancing down at his arm to see michael's passive aggressive notes from when the squip was optic nerve blocking jeremy from seeing him and his eyes well up with tears as he realizes what an asshole he's been to his player 2 and through the blur of the tears he can see two small words that he recognizes vaguely as tagalog: "mahal kita" imagine michael waking up to jeremy crying, and his first instinct is to kiss the tears away but a snarky voice in the back of his mind reminds him that the last time he kissed jeremy, jeremy ended up in the hospital, so he settles for hugging jeremy until the sobs turn into small sniffles "michael?" "mhm?" "i'm sorry for being such a dick" " 's okay, dude" then rich ruins the moment by yelling "THUCK EACH OTHER'S FACES IN ANOTHER ROOM, PLEATHE", his lisp evident in every word and they break apart from the hug and laugh because this could be the beginning of something new and wonderful A/N: i posted this on amino as well if this seems familiar :oooo also lov Filipino Mikey please