#The Wayfarer

[flickering-nightfall]

[nessatwene-art]

Prayer

[bugsmoverocks]

since the wayfarer has a pointy hat you KNOW it makes her hair stick up every time she takes it off like wirt from otgw

[rewcana]

everyday i think about how i wish the dent bots from the wayfarer's series were real

[fairy-and-alex]

Based on that one "I depend on you" image!

also a bit of a style practice.

[khiita]

artfight revenge for @ice-knife !! featuring their wayfarer kole and @idrellegames' aeran !! 🥰

[sadmushroomgoblin]

Corbin watches the steam rise from his mug against the backdrop of the Fishbowl. Stars outside, plants and the mess of the Wayfarer inside. He’s only just back aboard, once again a GC citizen. It’s new and yet achingly familiar. He technically had been welcome in the Fishbowl before but he’d never felt drawn to it, if he’s being honest, he hadn’t felt like he belonged.

Now… he doesn’t want to be alone in his lab.

Kizzy is gleefully showing Rosemary something on her scrib that he’s sure he doesn’t want to know about. Before he’d have complained about how loud Kizzy is being, now there’s something oddly charming about how she sprawls across the sofa (and Rosemary) and laughs loudly. He’s pretty sure he will never want that kind of friendship with this crew but they are his family. He’s learnt that now. Rosemary catches his eye and she gives him a small nod. He gives one back. She’d made sure his lab had all the right equipment and his room was comfortable for his return but when he’d thanked her, she’d simply shrugged as if it was no big deal and welcomed him home.

He almost laughs as Sissix enters the room and places a hand on his shoulder in greeting. A year ago it would have been like a star imploding but she’d saved his life. Stars, she’d saved his life again and again and he’d learnt. He was a scientist, he knew how to iterate and adapt and he’d managed to pull his head out of his ass and find common ground with Sissix. They still weren’t close friends, but they were family. He had a feather in his room now. About six months into her sponsorship of him, one of her hatch-parents had died and he’d booked the first shuttle to Hashkath and packed her bags for her. He may have been an asshole but he wasn’t cruel. She had given him family when she could have let him die. He wasn’t going to let that kindness keep her from her family when she needed them and they needed her. They’d talked a lot after that, something about it had broken the remaining ice between them and they’d come to a better understanding.

He sips at his tea and watches the stars go by, the chatter as background noise. It’s a welcome relief to hear familiar, happy voices after that brief captivity. He shivers and pulls the blue blanket up around his shoulders. Sometimes he is sure that cold had settled permanently into his bones. His thoughts are interrupted by Dr. Chef’s loud laugh from the kitchen. He was teaching Jenks and Ashby how to cook some Grum specialty noone could pronounce. Jenks didn’t smile a lot now but Corbin caught the quiet sound of his laugh too. Jenks is healing. They all are, slowly but surely.

“May we- I join you?” a low voice from behind him pulls his attention.

Ohan. Corbin almost doesn’t recognise him. He looks healthy, bright eyes and full fur. Corbin swallows. He’s still not sure how Ohan feels about him after what he did, but this is a good sign. Corbin nods and Ohan settles in a puddle of limbs into the couch beside him. They don’t touch but it’s clear Ohan derives comfort from Corbin’s presence. That is still a strange concept. Corbin offers Ohan a spare blanket and the Sianat tilts his head for a moment before nodding. Awkwardly, Corbin drapes the blanket around Ohan’s shoulders and Ohan purs in clear comfort. They don’t say anything to each other as they sit there and that’s okay. They’re not looking for conversation, simply the reassurance that they are not alone. Noone has to be alone here. Not even him.

——————————

For the amazing @dragons-in-spaceee who requested something comforting!!! Hope you enjoyed

[vanila-art]

i’m actually super proud of this piece! i think i’ve reached a point with my art where i’ve genuinely started to love what i can make and it’s really nice

[namedafterflowerstournament]

Botanic Tournament : Aromatic Herbs and Spices Bracket !

Round 3 Part 2 Poll 2

[nomattertheoceans]

Becky Chambers's writing will never not be incredible.

[shouts-into-the-void]

Me, waiting for my next Audible credit so I can get A Closed and Common Orbit:

[flickering-nightfall]

I can't boop people back under this name because it's a sideblog, so I will boop you all via image instead

[nessatwene-art]

It's been almost 2 years since I made the Intro to the Wayfarer comic so I thought it's about time to share it. Hoping to continue it at some point.

[bugsmoverocks]

also here's some more random little details about my wayfarer and witch below the cut because I need to get them written down somewhere and out of my brain so I thought I might as well share..!! Though warning for brief mentions of death for some of them

-I headcanon both of them as aroace, same as I do with Kiwi and Miriam

-They knew each other for around a year

-the wayfarer’s qin is named Buttercup, with the nickname of Butterscotch. Both are used interchangeably because the wayfarer couldn't decide which one she liked most (this is because I also couldn't decide pfft)

-the witch can play the flute, but she secretly much prefers dancing to music than making music

-The wayfarer, although very friendly and kind at heart as making people happy is her top priority in life, is actually quite reclusive and insecure, though she tries not to show that side of her too much. She spent the majority of her life around people who were always annoyed by her formerly loud and outgoing personality, and her singing. This caused her to one day decide to leave Xiatian, and move to a very small village that would later come to be Lumber Town.

-though instead of becoming bitter, the wayfarer decided to also start traveling the world, spreading happiness to others. Being the beacon of kindness she never had. Still, being treated as a constant bother to others all her life had its consequences. She represses her true self often, out of worry that she will once again be seen as "too loud" or "too much", and she only sings when she's alone. That is, until the witch shows up. She becomes the first person in years to have heard the wayfarer’s singing, and the first person ever to actually enjoy her songs

-the witch never had a good support system in her life either. Her parents were awful people, so she would constantly sneak away from home whenever she had the chance to as a child. She kept fleeing farther and farther away each time as she got older, until she eventually stumbled upon a forest in Rulle, the same forest she would one day meet the wayfarer in. It became a sort of refuge for her, even after she got old enough to leave her parent's home permanently and cut all contact with them.

-the two became close pretty quickly because of this, and it didn't take long until they both started breaking down each other's walls that they had been bulding up around themselves all their lives. Because in the end they were both two very very lonely, old women who dearly needed a friend, and they were the perfect fit for each other.

-I kind of want to leave what I think happens to the witch after the wayfarer’s passing vague, but i will say that she does take Buttercup with her when she gets exiled from Rulle. The people of Rulle were initially going to take her away, but the witch wasn't going to let that happen. She had made a promise to the wayfarer to take care of her when she's gone, after all

-on the topic of Butterscotch, since qin in wandersong seem to be very intelligent creatures, I imagine that she was able to tell that something was wrong with the wayfarer shortly before she even started falling ill. This meant the wayfarer knew something was up, so her illness didn't end up being a complete surprise, but neither her or the witch expected it would get as bad as it did.

-aaaand last but not least, I will never reveal the wayfarer or the witch's eyes, or any sort of real names for them

[noahsbookhoard]

📚October 2024 Book Review📚

October has been productive for reading but absolutely not for Reviews so as new year approaches like a derailed train I am trying to cram the last months of review! Expect three post like this back to back, sorry.

Le Crime d'Halloween (Hallowe'en Party) by Agatha Christie

A good mystery but I admit I read it jusr after seeing the newest adaptation and I did not feel the vibes the film had which were just perfect for Halloween. That one's on me.

La vie meilleure by Étienne Kern

Absolutely delightful writing and I am not saying this because the author is one of my old french teacher and I have great memories of his classes, no no sir, nothing but impartiality here. This is part biography of Emile Coue (the inventor of the famous "everyday in every way I am getting better and better" mentality) and part journey of discovery for the author.

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare

Great comedy, loved it. I watch the 1970 tv adaptation alongside so some bits are missing but I had a good laugh. Act 2 scene 5 still makes me smile just thinking about it.

Assassin's Apprentice (Realm of the Elderlings #01) by Robin Hobb

I was intimidated by this series because of it being a 16 books monster but I really enjoyed this first one so I will definitely read it further. I love my fantasy a little on the political side and that's right what this book offers me. I see why the rote fandom on tumblr has a thing for the Fool and I am with you in this.

Hotel Magnifique by Emily J Taylor

I was really intrigued by the premise, I though the hotel magic travel thingy would have a bigger role to play but the hotel itself being a magic entity is more than compensation enough. Loved the magic system, loved the plot, the romance was neither a bonus nor a malus. A really good YA fantasy novel.

Les Dragons by Jérôme Colin

This one definitely falls into the Dead Dove Do Not Eat category: The main character has to spend time in an institute for teenagers where he meets other youth like him, children who are angry at everything and everybody, who can't fit anywhere and many who turns it upon themselves. It is short but really really hard to read.

Rule of Two (Darth Bane trilogy #02) by Drew Karpyshyn

Book 2 of the Darth Bane series and I love that it ties up really well with book 1 and anchors it in the universe. Zhanna turns out to be an interesting character but by the nature of Bane's Rule of Two you already knows she is going to fail her goal (in this book at least) which kinda defeats the tension that was so high in book 1 (not saying more I'm already halfway through a spoiler). I look forward to book 3 tho.

I am however saddened to inform everyone that "flies through the void of space sans space suit and survives because of the Force" in episode VIII has a precursor so... is it valid no? Jurisprudence and all that? I hope not

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

I expected this one to be funny but it turned out to also be a really self indugent story of the kind we all need post covid (and that's exactly how the author wrote it). On top of that it manages to have natural nuclear reactor Kaiju from a parallel dimension that Actually Makes Sense. Go read it, you deserve a break.

The Outsider by Stephen King

I have really mixed feelings about this one. I loved the first part but was so frustrated with the way the first part ended it I was disappointed with the rest.

The story starts as an investigation with both sides fighting with contradicting evidences but I was invested! There was tension! I was cheering for Terry and his family against Ralph, the cop who arrested him. And then the scene at the courtroom happened and my hopes for the main character went down the drain.

It took me a very long time to warm up to Ralph as the NEW main character, especially because he was set up as the Cop With Good Intention and Bad Results in the first part of the novel. Like, you put this man against Jesus Christ if he was a little league baseball coach and expect us to empathise with him for the rest of the story?

If you can go past that it's a good thriller, plenty spooky and tension just like King likes it.

A Close and Common Orbit (Wayfarer #2) by Becky Chambers

I adored The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet and this second book hits just where book 1 did. Pepper is really touching and I hope we get to see her again in the rest of the series. But I especially enjoyed Sidra's journey to figuring herself and her friendship with Tak. I had to look up the species a little at the beginning because I was completely lost in who was what and from where.

Les Possibles by Virginie Grimaldi

A story about two sisters and their father who suffer from Alzheimer. And also their road trip on route 66 as a last family trip. Tender and sad and happy and a lot of things in one. Virginie Grimaldi just has the knack to write touching family that don't really work but work all the same. I really liked it.

Le dieu d'automne et d'hiver by Pauline Sidre

A tale about the weight of immortality and godhood and an investigation all in one! I really loved it, I had it on my shelf since spring bit I wanted to way for the right weather for it and September had been too mild but it was worth the wait! It has an unusual pantheon, strange worship and summoning rules and very compelling characters, especially Helkeziro, our grumpy and weary God of justice and vengeance who really could use a break but cannot seem to catch one. Tumblr would love him.

War and Peace by Leon Tolstoi

I have beaten the monster. It took me 6 months but I did it. Some aspects and plots are interesting (even if I lack thd cultural and historical context to really enjoy it) but the battle of Borodino was almost too much to handle.

If We Were Villains by M L Rio

Strong contender for my favorite book of the year, it pains me to give the W to booktok but here I am!

I loved I might have enjoyed it even more maybe if I had a better knowledge of Shakespeare that I do now, but that's only a motivation to catching up on the Bard and reread the book!

I don't know how to feel about the very very end tho. Either I love it because that's the teeniest amount of comfort on the fuckload of hurt (my balance of choice) or I hate it because come on, you chose tragedy so own up to it! Jury is still out.

Le Bastion des Larmes by Abdellah Taïa

I picked this one in my continued quest of microdosing on price winning novels: at the start of fall the Goncourt academy published its list of nominees so I went and picked whatever inspired me. La vie meilleure and this one were on it, as well as others I did not get to read before the end of 2024. This one also has the bonus of making me read an author who is neither French, British or American which is the bulk of what I read. The story itself is that of a man returning to his native town in Morocco after his mother died to sell the childhood hose and also come to terms with the death of his lover and the abuse he suffered as a gay child in his home town. Not an easy read but an important one.

What Feast at Night (Sworn Soldier #2) by T Kingfisher

I really loved book 1, What Moves at Night but I think I even prefer this one. Creepy in just the right way, Alex is still kan sassy self and Eugenia and Angus are adorable.

Kiss Kiss by Roal Dahl

I always loved his children book but his short stories are amazing. I particularly love his way of wrapping up the ending, how it stops just before disaster and right when you realise what said disaster is going to be.

Trois battements un silence by Anne Fakhouri

Kinda wierd but in a good way. It reminded my a little of October Daye series as it I also centered around fae and changeling in a modern setting but totally different treatment. Tw for child abuse.

Tous les silence ne font pas le même bruit by Baptiste Beaulieu

The memoir of a gay man, general practitioner and father of a little boy, narrating how he got there, what he had to live through. It's hard, it's full of fear and fighting spirit and hope and I recommend it to everybody. I wish I could make it read to my entire family.

Once and Future Witches by Alix E Harrow

A good and interesting novel but in my opinion, slightly too long for its story. I admire the writing and the characters but a work of fiction about sisters and witches doesn't have to deal with every single aspect of womanhood and feminism ever (especially if it means some of them are barely mentioned, as in "this character which you know since chapter 3 is trans btw now back to Avalon")

[gillsy]

The kids