#also can I just say I'm very pleased with how I drew those crows

[tracle0]

TIME TO TALK ABOUT SUS

This time, by ‘sus’ I mean Glalis. I’ve done posts like this twice before, one about the masks in Glalis and the other one about the radio station in Sonder which you can check out if you want. 

'Hey Trade what even is Glalis it sounds like a made-up word’ well you’re correct, it is. But aren’t most town names made-up words? 

Glalis is an underground town, situated under Sonder. Sonder looks like this: 

And Glalis is underneath that, up until the bit labelled ‘farming area’. It’s bigger than Sonder, obviously, and a hell of a lot darker. Because... underground. 

‘Oh hey that’s neat and all but uh why are they underground if there’s a liveable island right there’ this goes into history buckle up kiddos. 

Glalis was founded in the 13th century. Know what else was happening in the 13th century? There was some climate change, some soil exhaustion, minor things. More importantly, the Bubonic Plague was destroying Europe. This includes England, where Sonder is set. 

Some people - the founders of Glalis - did not like having this disease, so (after checking they were all clean and good and not going to infect the others) they up and left their town, trying to find another new clean place to live. 

Fun little fact - people in those days used to believe that diseases were carried via bad smells, hence in the nursery rhyme ‘ring a ring a roses’ there’s ‘a pocket full of posies’. Glalis founders were no different and were looking out for strong but sweet smells to overpower the stench of disease. 

O hey this cavern down here has a bunch of glowing blue mushrooms that - woah, they smell really really sweet heck man let’s just set up camp down here. 

So they did. And that’s how the grand little underground town of Glalis was born. 

These glowing blue mushrooms are deadly - their spores, if you breathe them in, grow in your throat and suffocate you. But the spores are too heavy to be efficiently airborne, so you literally have to stand next to them and breathe heavily to be infected. They’re harmless as long as you’re wise about them. So they still grow there to this day, carefully sanctioned off and controlled. 

Until I decide on an actual entrance, please assume this image from Undertale is the entrance to Glalis because art is dead and I’m not original sometimes.

‘They’ve only been underground since the 1300s? But you said that they have white hair, evolution doesn’t happen that quickly’ oh hey cool you read my comic sans powerpoint that’s very cool of you. You’re correct in all aspects of that: if they progressed through time like all of us, I don’t know how quickly they’d get white hair. 

Good news for me, Glalis (and by default, Sonder) does not follow linear time. The way I described it is that they’re stuck in a bubble, which bounces through time (and space, but only in the UK, primarily England. It did show up once in Ireland, actually, but let’s just assume England). One day it could touch down in the 1400′s, the next in 2200. As long as there’s land to... land on, it could appear anywhere. And no, the land does not need to encompass where Sonder/Glalis would fit. It could appear on the little patch of grass outside your house. Space is weird.

As a result of the time issue, Glalis citizens could have been underground for thousands of lifetimes already, so I’d say the white hair has reason to be there and it’s not just me making up reasons for my antagonist to have white hair because I couldn’t decide on a hair colour. 

‘Alright, whatever you weeb. You said Glalis was founded in the 1300′s - what about Sonder?’ wow, you’re really asking good questions today, reader, thank you, you make my job easier. 

Sonder came later, in the late 1800s - the era of the Industrial Revolution and stuff. These kids were escaping the horrific working conditions (a bunch of those damn proletariate) and happened to stumble upon Sonder. They went ‘ehhh alright’ and set up shop. 

Obviously, outside time means nothing to Sonder, so maybe they’ve been there for thousands of years - but they arrived after Glalis citizens had started to commonly have white hair. 

It still took about six (nonlinear) months for Glalis and Sonder to first have contact, which was instigated while a party of Sonder people was setting up a farming location and a party of Glalis people were going above ground to harvest some of their crops. It was a big !!!!! fest, but eventually, the two towns sat down and talked through things. 

One major thing they decided on quite early on was the splitting of food. Sonder would grow crops above ground because they enjoyed it and weren’t scared of the germs of the open air and also they had sunshine which is kinda needed for crop growth, and Glalis would rear animals (adding the animals that Sonder bought with them), as there’s a lot more room underground for the animals, and although they like it, animals don’t need sunlight to survive. They would share the food between the two populations, as organised by Sonder. So if one town underperformed in terms of producing food, they’d still get the same amount as the other town, and both would go sort of hungry for a year but wouldn’t starve. 

‘Wow you put a lot of thought into that Trade - why?’ 

Sonder is a big meanie sometimes. 

Also, fun fact, Sonder was a perfectly normal start-up town until Glalis made contact with them. They infected Sonder with the Weird, and Sonder did not know how to react so had to learn from Glalis. 

Glalis was very kind and taught them how to survive the Weird, but they also threw in a few pranks. Rain is illegal in Sonder because Glalis said it was dangerous. It’s not dangerous, but Glalis isn’t going to tell them that anytime soon because it’s hilarious. 

‘Well that’s interesting and all - crows? You mentioned crows? I like crows’ I also like crows they are very cool and also very smart. 

Glalis, coming along in the 1300s as an escape from the Bubonic plague, is a town full of superstition. I’m sure one image you all know from the Bubonic plague era is that of the plague doctor: 

What a cool mask. Well! Glalis saw that and went ‘huh that kinda looks like...’

‘Well, we better be nice to them and they’ll protect us from this terrifying plague.’ 

So they did. And crows, being the smart little nuggets they are, recognised that people in this area, and eventually, people with white hair, feed us, so we like them. 

They’re semi-tame to citizens of Glalis at this point. If you’re in Sonder and you hear a crow, there’s probably an underground visitor nearby. Even in more recent years when Glalis has been struggling with food, they still bring a little bit out for the crows each time. 

So yeah - the crows like Glalis people. Or people who feed them. Or both. 

(awh look he’s smiling for once what a happy kid)

‘That’s pretty neat man. You mentioned masks underground - how did they come to be a thing?’ I have two answers for you, but we’ll go for the one that’s relevant to the story. 

Masks are cool. Next question. 

‘Trade you have to answer it you can’t just put stuff in your book for no reason’ I can and I will so don’t try me. 

‘Alright, fine, whatever. You also mentioned ice skating?’ I vaguely mentioned ice skating in this post yes you are right. Ice skating is quite a big thing underground. 

As seen in the map that yes, was painted, and no, I’m not the best painter but it was fun, there’s a big ol’ lake underground. It’s shaped like a whale and that is deliberate. Does it have meaning? No. I just like whales. 

Anyway, underground = cold place. Cold place = water freezes. Water freezing = ice lake. The lake freezing is a hugely anticipated and celebrated event for Glalis, and midwinter is a time of great joy. Meanwhile, Sonder celebrates midsummer as an indication of the harvest about to start.  

As a result of the freezing lake being so crucial to the culture, most people are good at travelling on ice, because, in winter, it’s a lot quicker to travel across the water than going around it. I would say that soldiers even train on ice because if you can win a fight on the ice you’re a lot more likely to win when not on the ice.

It’s never a big deal though dw dw dw it never comes into play within the book, not even once. Nuh-uh. 

‘Okay so Glalis was cut off in the 1300s roughly - I’ve seen pictures of Andy with a gun and also red hoodie? What’s up with that, that’s too modern and also your book is set in England how did he get a gun’ are you referring to this picture 

Yes? Yes. Cool. 

So yes, Glalis/Sonder jump through time. As a result, people from all different time periods have stumbled onto Sonder. Not many, but a few. Mostly they’re deposited back into their own time when they leave. Sometimes they’re not. 

When they do stumble into Sonder, all dangerous items they have are taken away. Mobile phones are included in this list, due to the fact they literally explode when in Sonder. These items are often stored underground because, once again, more room. 

Sonder and Glalis also rarely visit each other. So although Sonder goes ‘hey don’t touch this stuff okay’ and Glalis goes ‘alright’ they still do it and they know they won’t get caught out. So Andy gets a snazzy hoodie. No, that’s not me reaching for an answer because I gave him clothes before I gave him a home, shut up.

Also in regards to the gun - they were banned in 1997, after the 1996 Dunblane school massacre. There’s every chance that the towns popped down before that point and someone wandered in who happened to have a gun. Heck, farmers are still allowed guns in England, the just have to be careful. Maybe it was a more recent find. 

‘Wow you’ve really put a fair bit of thought into this, you nerd. Can we get one for idk Sonder itself?’ no, the summary for Sonder you get is the actual book. Sam - our narrator, the cool kid feeding the crow in one of the above pictures - spends a lot of time in Sonder and not enough time in Glalis. She records everything she finds out. You can find out with her.

Fun fact: I only like crows as much as I do because of this book

Tag last: (holy heck I have one of these now that’s exciting) @joyful-soul-collector

[ocw-archive]

Women's Owen; UK Glamour (2003)

Most actors want to get all serious and talk about work. But not sexy Owen Wilson, who can't stay off the subject of women. Which is fine by Chrissy Iley It seemed to happen very quickly that suddenly there were these two Wilson brothers gracing our screens like Hollywood royalty. Luke Wilson had the famous girlfriends - Drew and Gwyneth. Owen Wilson had the unruly blond hair, crooked nose and animal attraction, only enhanced by his Oscar nomination for co-writing The Royal Tenenbaums with his writing partner Wes Anderson. He's swiftly alternated cult and cool with other Anderson writing collaborations such as Rushmore, and movie cameos with his friend Ben Stiller in Meet the Parents and supermodel farce Zoolander.

Off screen, he has a reputation as a party boy. He always has a different woman in tow. She's usually gorgeous and she's usually not on his arm for long. His last known girlfriend was Sheryl Crow three years ago. This bad-boy reputation was only enhanced by the selfish, vain character Roy O'Bannon he played in Shanghai Noon in 2000, whose foolish comedy charm was a foil to karate-capering Jackie Chan. Now Owen's brought him out again for the sequel Shanghai Knights, where he and Jackie go to London to prevent a conspiracy to overthrow the Royal Family, all a little too effortlessly. So is there anything of the ludicrous Roy O'Bannon in Owen? "Oh yeah, probably. I have a better disposition, but I have my days. Maybe I'm more like Roy than I care to admit," he says, sounding pleased with himself. "I play him as a person who's guilty of the seven deadly sins to the extreme - that makes him funny. I suffer from all those sins. Especially in jealousy, and self-absorption - is that a sin?"

The movie is set in Jack the Ripper Britain and it's merciless in its ribbing of the English - bad weather, bad teeth...you get the idea. It does, of course, have a plot...but it's also a great vehicle for Owen to look rakish, make terrible anti-Brit jokes and behave badly and get away with it; another sin driving his character is insatiable lust and womanizing. Does Owen identify with that?

"I don't think I'm obsessive, but yeah. You can get into a pattern where you're always chasing women. I haven't had a girlfriend in a couple of years and I've been traveling around a lot, sot he thing to do is go out and meet women. But I don't think I've reached a critical point yet." Would he like a proper girlfriend? "Yeah...Well, probably. But I haven't been ready for a relationship. And it's hard to meet the right one," he says and I'm not sure if he's being facetious or not, but I laugh out loud anyway. He breaks into one of those full-on Texan smiles and I notice he has luscious full lips. "I mean, there are so many, right?" Is it because he doesn't want to meet the right girl? He just wants to meet lots of wrong ones? "Yeah," he smirks. "I have been lucky. We filmed this movie in Prague; there are a lot of attractive women there. There are a lot of attractive women all over the worked if you really think bout it," he says, staring into middle distance, with his eyes dink of fixed in wonder.

Rumor has it he's been dating Gina Gershon (of Showgirls, Bound, and Face Off fame), but he denies it. "Yeah, she's nice. I like her. But we're not dating. She's a friend."

He's just spent a few days in London, hanging out in restaurants and presenting a Brit Award with Jackie Chan. So what does he think of British women? "Well, just walking around I see lots of pretty girls in London, but hey!" he says in a sudden panic. "This is not for the lads. I'm going to sound kind of boorish. Can I talk about my mother to try and win over your reading public?"

So he tells me how much he loves his mother, acclaimed photographer, Laura Wilson. His fathers, Robert, is in advertising. Owen's always had a rebellious streak. He was expelled from school for cheating in a geometry exam. "I went to a strict, all-boys school and I was a very bad student. I stole the teacher's answer book and it worked for a while...until I got caught." And after he was expelled?

"I was sent to military school in New Mexico and that wasn't easy," he says, and I can imagine that the shy and sensitive Owen probably got buried somewhere there and that's what contributed to the little-boy-lost look that comes out occasionally now. But, he doesn't want me to have the impression he was a very bad bad-boy. "Just mischievous. It's not like I was hot-wiring cars...But what boy isn't mischievous?" he asks, conjuring a twinkling eye. He's 34, but seems much younger. His next movie  is called The Big Bounce, and is produce by Elizabeth Hurley's roguish ex, Steve Bing. I tell him that Bing is thought of as a cad and a bounder over here,, but also that a friend of mine was with him once in Vegas and he was giving everyone in his party $2,000 to play blackjack. Owen's personal view of Bing is a good one. "He was sure generous with me-and he's smart. He's one of those people who could be off-the-charts smart. he doesn't seem to sleep and has a lot of energy. Remarkable."

When he's finished promoting Shanghai Knights, Owen will be getting ready to film Starsky and Hutch with Ben Stiller. Though he stated off part-acting, part-writing, the one fuelling the other, recently the acting seems to have taken over. As well as his smaller films he's also starred in big budget fare such as I Spy with Eddie Murphy and Behind Enemy Lines with Gene Hackman. Is he too busy having fun to write? "It's more fun acting, but it's probably more rewarding to write. But it's harder. Or it is for me. I haven't had too many of those 'it just wrote itself' experiences. You always hear people say that." Every time I try to talk about his work, he usually manages to bring the subject back to women. "You know, I'd really like a girl from Ireland," he admits. "That's where my ancestors are from. They seem to have a good sense of humor. I think whatever girl ends up with me is going to need that. In the past, I've been much better as a friend than a boyfriend,, but you know, hope springs eternal," he says with his blue eyes looking sincerely at me over his curiously crushed nose. For second, he's serious. Then he just breaks into giggles and slouches further back into the sofa.

[kyoujurous-eyebrows]

Erm, is requests open? If not, please ignore this, I'm so sorry. But if it's open, may I please request Kyojuro saving his fem (and future!s/o ;3) tsuguko from a demon? Like, he loves her deeply but hasn't confessed. Please fLUFF but I don't mind if you add a pinch of angsty...just please don't kill Kyojuro, I don't think my already unstable mental health can take it— I'm sorry if I'm asking for much, you can ignore this if you want 😅😁😁

CHEESUS ON A STICK I’M FINALLY DOING REQUESTS

I apologise to everyone for taking forever, I have had a bad streak of busy weeks and zero motivation for whatever reason.

Sorry it took so long to respond! I hope you enjoy this and it’s not too far off of your request :)

They Can’t Hurt You Anymore

Rengoku Kyoujurou x Fem!Tsuguko!Reader

Fluff(?)

Words: 1.5k

The day started out like any other one for you. Wake up at the crack of dawn, go for a jog to warm up your muscles and return by early morning to start your training. You had been fortunate enough to become the tsuguko of the Flame Pillar Rengoku Kyoujurou, and it was everything you could have asked for and more. He was passionate, can be very loud, and worked you to the bone, but all of it was under the pretence of making you stronger.

“(Y/N)-san! Are you feeling alright? You seem to be spacing out a little!” Rengoku called to you, snapping you out of your reminiscent thoughts. You smiled at your teacher and shook your head.

“Feeling just fine! I let my mind wander for a second. What were we working on?” He gives you his signature smile and dives back into explaining the motions of the current technique you were focusing on. You were not a Flame Breath user but taking those techniques and mixing them with your own breath style has shown an increase in power and performance on your end.

Rengoku finished re-explaining, watched you perform for a bit and then called for a lunch break. You grabbed your two wrapped lunches and gave one of them to Rengoku. It had become a routine of sorts for you to make lunch for him as he often skipped out in the beginning saying he “didn’t have enough time to make one in the mornings, and he wasn’t going to bother his younger brother when he could be focusing on his own things.” You offered to bring him a lunch after he tried some of yours one day and shouted “Tasty!” so loud that Uzui shouted at you both from the other side of the compound.

The sight of your crow hovering above prompted you to reach out an arm for it to land on. “Mission received! Head to the village due south of here! Demon activity has heightened recently!” You gave a nod to your crow and they took flight again.

“Sorry to cut training short today. It’s nearby so I’ll hopefully be back just after supper!” You waived to Rengoku as you retreated into the main hall to change into your slayer garb in your room. Once ready, you set out at a quick place, hoping to keep your word of when you’ll be back.

Rengoku watched as you disappeared around the corner with a fond smile on his face. He had found you training on your own about two years ago and was quite impressed with your skills. After witnessing a battle you had with a tricky demon, he offered to make you his tsuguko, wishing to see how you would grow as you became stronger. He was quick to realise that your two breath styles worked well when combined together and was very pleased to see you grow stronger every day. He also quickly realised how beautiful and strong you were, how your smile would send butterflies to his stomach, and how just seeing you everyday brightened up his moods. He had fallen for his little tsuguko quite hard.

Glancing to where you were sitting just moments ago, he noticed something. A small omamori amulet that you always carried on your person wherever you went. He asked about it once, and you said inside was a keepsake from your father who passed away due to a disease a few years prior. Grabbing it, he set out to follow you, knowing you would worry if you realised you didn’t have it on your person.

The village was not that far away, just like your crow had said. It was a small and quaint farming village that seemed to be suffering from a minor draught right now. The crops didn’t look very healthy and the soil was not a good colour. Whatever nutrients that used to be in it were now absent. Asking around you found that the village had been terrorised at night by some beast that would sweep through and kidnap a child or two every night. All the parents were worried sick, especially because even children that had not gone outside for a full 24 hours were disappearing.

The orange colours of the setting sun diminished as you went on full alert. You surmised the demon had some sort of spatial blood art or was just extremely quick and quiet for even kids indoors to go missing. You walked cautiously, listening for anything that sounded out of place. A few minutes passed until you heard an unnatural movement rustle some nearby leaves. Quickly you rushed in that direction, Nichirin blade drawn, hoping to spot the demon you were after. You happen upon not a demon, but a young boy no older than eight years crouching in a bush. He yelps at your sudden appearance and runs away.

“Wait! Come back it’s dangerous to be out here this late!” You chase after the boy following him through alley way after alley way until you cornered him. “Please stop running, it’s not safe out. I’m not going to hurt you, so let’s get you back home.” Suddenly the situation seemed suspicious to you. Why would a small child run so far away when frightened rather than returning home? You gulped and took half a step back, reaching instinctively for the omamori you always kept you on… except it wasn’t there.

Panic began to rise in the back of your throat as you watched the skin of this young boy melt away and transform into a grotesque looking demon. It licked its chops as it looked you up and down.

“A pretty young lady has come to serve herself to me tonight? Well, while I normally go after the young tykes, you definitely look good enough to eat. And a slayer to boot, He’ll be happy if I’m able to take you out!” The demon lunged at you as you took a defence stance, not willing to lose your life here.

By the time Rengoku reached the village, the sun had just barely set. His father had tried to pull another lecture on him as he was leaving after grabbing his sword, which only delayed him further. A sense of dread crawled across his skin as he quietly walked through the eerily empty streets. Hand on the hilt of his blade, he advanced further until he heard a shout of pain coming from somewhere behind him and to the right. He dashed in that direction at full speed, hoping he wasn’t too late to save the one being hurt.

Popping around a corner into a dingy alley way his eyes fall upon your slightly slumped figure. You were picking yourself up off the ground after having been smashed into the wall next to you. Rengoku’s blood boiled at the sight of the small stream of blood leaking down the side of your face, however he took a deep breath and drew his blade. Before the demon even had time to react, his head was sliced clean off. Rengoku faced away from you as he looked down at the decaying demon’s face with a look of disdain.

“(Y/N)! Are you alright? You seem to have hit your head so don’t move around too much!” He sheathed his blade and stepped carefully towards you as you took a few steps forward and stumbled into his arms. Your head was swimming and your vision was a little fuzzy at the edges.

“Rengoku-san…” You whispered quietly, the action causing a headache to arise.

“Don’t speak you might have a concussion. I’ll help you back to the Butterfly Estate and have Kocho-san look at you.” His voice was impossibly soft, a tone you had never heard from him before. Despite the pain, you looked up into his face, and you felt your heart skip a beat. His eyes swam with worry, a small frown in place of his usual smile and he looked about ready to cry.

“Don’t look so sad… I’ll be okay with a bit of rest…” You raised a hand up to rub across his cheek, and he grabbed it with the hand not supporting your weight.

“(Y/N), you don’t understand, I-” But he cut his confession off upon seeing you go unconscious. Placing your omamori back into one of your pockets, he took out some gauze and disinfectant he had on him whenever he went out. After quickly wrapping the wound on your head, he picked you up bridal style, as well as your sword, and hurried back to the Estate so that Shinobu could look at you; taking care not to jostle you too much.

There would be plenty of time for him to express his feelings for you after you were back in perfect shape. Until then, he would be by your side to make sure nothing bad could ever reach you. Actually, he thinks he’ll just continue to watch over you even after he confesses; whether you accept his feelings or not.