#and given how she's treated other character's curly hair? she does not have a reputation to fall back on here

[bookwyrminspiration]

"Amy was Sophie's opposite in every way, from her curly brown hair and green eyes to her lower than average grades and incredible popularity." (Book 1)

"Amy's hair was longer and straighter, with a few layers framing her face. And her skin had picked up a whole bunch of freckles. Somehow the combination made her look so much older than Sophie wanted her to be and much too young for what they were there for, all at the same time" (Book 8)

so having curls is childish and something you can grow out as you mature the way she's writing it. shannon genuinely cannot let a single curly haired character exist in peace can she

[hufflly-puffs]

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Chapter 11: The Sorting Hat’s New Song

“Harry did not want to tell the others that he and Luna were having the same hallucination, if that was what it was, so he said nothing more about the horses as he sat down inside the carriage and slammed the door behind him. Nevertheless, he could not help watching the silhouettes of the horses moving beyond the window.” – Really though how likely is it two people would have the same kind of hallucination? After all those years in the Wizarding World Harry still hasn’t learned there is always a logical explanation to everything. If anything he should have told Hermione about it, who would have read about Thestrals (and maybe they are even mentioned in “Hogwarts: A History”), and would have told Harry what they are. But Harry being Harry rather keeps this to himself, and thinks it is just another weird thing that happens to him.

‘I’ll be quite glad if he has,’ said Luna, ‘he isn’t a very good teacher, is he?’ ‘Yes, he is!’ said Harry, Ron and Ginny angrily. Harry glared at Hermione. She cleared her throat and quickly said, ‘Erm … yes … he’s very good.’” – I mean Luna is not wrong, because they are probably people more qualified than Hagrid for the job. And Hermione, with all her love for Hagrid, knows that as well. And Harry to some degree as well, but he is loyal to a fault.

“She looked, Harry thought, like somebody’s maiden aunt: squat, with short, curly, mouse-brown hair in which she had placed a horrible pink Alice band that matched the fluffy pink cardigan she wore over her robes.” – First of all how do you wear a cardigan over your robes? Second, Umbridge is described as someone who dresses overly feminine, even more like a young girl than an adult woman, and Harry describes her voice as girlish as well. This follows a theme where unsympathetic characters are described as vain and dressed in an overly feminine way: Lockhart, Rita Skeeter, and now Umbridge. Compared to positive female characters like McGonagall, Hermione, Ginny or Tonks, who either don’t particular care about their appearances or appear very tom-boyish. And Harry himself is annoyed by girls who cry, or want to talk about their feelings, or – God forbid – giggle. And Ginny in contrast is described as tough, as fierce, someone who doesn’t cry or openly show her feelings. And I am very conflicted about this, because for one it describes the whole crying and talking about your feeling thing as something typical feminine. But also as something negative. Harry constantly keeps things to himself, he doesn’t talk about his problems until someone forces him to, he doesn’t want to appear weak or that people worry about him. And he appreciates if others act like this as well. And it is not very healthy.

“Said Slytherin, ‘We’ll teach just those Whose ancestry is purest.’ Said Ravenclaw, ‘We’ll teach those whose Intelligence is surest.’ Said Gryffindor, ‘We’ll teach all those With brave deeds to their name,’ Said Hufflepuff, ‘I’ll teach the lot, And treat them just the same.’ “ – Look, there is a reason why I think Hufflepuff is the best House, and it is not just because it is my house. It is based on what the Sorting Hat says here. Which is that all the founders only accepted students with certain qualities, all of them except Hufflepuff, who said she would teach everyone and treat everyone the same. Which, you know, is how it should be. Everyone should have the same right for education. And Hufflepuff’s poor reputation is based on the thinking that it is the house where everyone is sorted who is not good enough for the other house, whose ancestry is not right, who is not smart or brave enough. But Hufflepuff believed that you don’t have to special, you don’t have to be extraordinary in order to belong to Hogwarts. And despite Hufflepuff welcoming everyone, not everyone has what it takes to be a Hufflepuff. I believe the defining quality of a Hufflepuff is their kindness, and in a very competitive environment this quality is often overlooked and considered as a weakness.

“And now the Sorting Hat is here And you all know the score: I sort you into houses Because that is what I’m for, But this year I’ll go further, Listen closely to my song: Though condemned I am to split you Still I worry that it’s wrong, Though I must fulfil my duty And must quarter every year Still I wonder whether Sorting May not bring the end I fear.” – I think nobody has thought as much about the sorting system as the Sorting Hat, because that is after all its purpose, and he does nothing else all year than to rhyme a new song. But even the Hat admits that the sorting system might be wrong, that it doesn’t do good to divide people into houses and to let them compete against each other. And that instead of being united it would only strengthen prejudices. And people like Voldemort will always use the already existing hate among people for their own goals.

“For our Hogwarts is in danger From external, deadly foes And we must unite inside her” – Also Hogwarts presents as female.

“‘And it wants all the houses to be friends?’ said Harry, looking over at the Slytherin table, where Draco Malfoy was holding court. ‘Fat chance.’” – I know Draco is a dick and all, but imagine the Potter books if at some point Harry had reached out to the Slytherins? It is implied that Harry changed his view on Slytherin (and the sorting system as well) to some degree as an adult, in the way that he reassures his son that being sorted into Slytherin is not a bad thing. But I would have loved to see more of Slytherin in the books, in the form of allies, not as the outsider house, which is something a lot of fan fictions explore.

Umbridge constantly treats all students at Hogwarts like they are little children, who should not have a mind of their own, but are expected to follow the rules given by adults. Despite the fact that some of the students are already of age, therefore legally adults, and even those like Harry are no longer children. Of course you are not an adult once you reach a certain age; it is a process that takes some time. But most of the students are in this process. They are in the middle of becoming their own person, of taking responsibility over their lives and choices. And yet Umbridge belittles them and never treats them with the respect they deserve.

“The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the wizarding community must be passed down the generations lest we lose them for ever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching.” – The way Umbridge talks already shows her anti-Muggle attitude between the lines, something we will see in full bloom in book 7. She sees wizardkind as something special, as something superior, and that the knowledge of it should only be passed down to those worthy of it. She never directly says so in book 5, but it is already clear that she would consider Muggleborn wizard and witches as not worthy, and that she has a great dislike to everyone she considers not human. Umbridge is not a Death Eater, but she agrees with Voldemort’s philosophy. She is not a monster in the way Voldemort is, she even appears at first like a joke, a caricature. But that is why she is so dangerous, and that makes her such a good villain.

“‘I’ll tell you what it means,’ said Hermione ominously. ‘It means the Ministry’s interfering at Hogwarts.’” – Thanks for Hermione and her expert reading skills. And obviously Hermione often functions as exposition character, explaining Harry (and therefore the reader) how to read a certain scene. And there is a small degree how much exposition you should use as an author. If you explain everything you underestimate the intelligence of your audience. In this case however it makes sense. Harry says Umbridge’s speech sounded like a lot of waffle to him (we don’t even hear the whole speech because his mind drifts away). If it sounds like waffle to Harry it will sound like this to a lot of the (teenage) audience as well. But it is important to know for Harry (and therefore the reader) what Umbridge’s arrival really means. And this why Hermione needs to explain the situation for us.

“He knew that Seamus’s mother was a witch and could not understand, therefore, why she should have come over so Dursleyish.” – Durseyish is an official word now, I guess.

In the whole encounter with Seamus Harry acts like a dick. Seamus asks what actually happened the night Cedric died, because he is of course curious and doesn’t know whom to believe: the Daily Prophet and his mother or Dumbledore and Harry. I don’t think he is to be blamed to be confused about that. But Harry, instead of trying to explain, attacks Seamus’s mother. Obviously Harry doesn’t want to talk about that night, but people need answers. He expects everyone to simply trust Dumbledore and himself, when all the evidence they have is their word.

“‘My parents are Muggles, mate,’ said Dean, shrugging. ‘They don’t know nothing about no deaths at Hogwarts, because I’m not stupid enough to tell them.’” – Dean’s parents probably also don’t know that in his second year a giant snake tried to kill all Muggleborn students or that the year later a mass murderer had entered their school. And Dean’s decision not to tell his parents about all the dangers of the Wizarding World make me wonder if Hermione did the same thing and kept her mouth shut, fearing they would no longer allow her to return to Hogwarts if they knew half the stuff her daughter was involved in.

“‘My gran says that’s rubbish,’ piped up Neville. ‘She says it’s the Daily Prophet that’s going downhill, not Dumbledore. She’s cancelled our subscription. We believe Harry,’ said Neville simply. He climbed into bed and pulled the covers up to his chin, looking owlishly over them at Seamus. ‘My gran’s always said You-Know-Who would come back one day. She says if Dumbledore says he’s back, he’s back.’” – It is never stated if Mrs Longbottom was a member of the Order, but she sure had been involved enough in the anti-Voldemort-movement to know to trust Dumbledore and to know that Voldemort would return one day. Considering how much she lost during the first war, it would have been hard to bear to know that there would be a second war one day, and that might explain why she always was so strict to Neville, in order to prepare him for what would come one day.

[no-confidence-to-write]

Killing Me Softly Ch 2: What Have I Done to Deserve This

Harald Finehair/ Original Female Character, Ivar the Boneless/ Original Female Character

Words: 2,644 

Trigger Warning for mentions of rape

Previous Chapter: Someone Must Get Hurt and It Won’t be Me

Archive of Our Own: 15stepping 

Aethelswith

The heavy wooden doors opened, showing the defilement of the holy church. Dried blood spatter showered the stone floor while the glass windows were in shards. These heathens were like a swarm of locusts that destroyed everything in their path.

The two men loudly entered the room, showing off Aethelswith like some pretty trinket.

“Look what we found wandering the halls” the brunette announced joyfully to the room like it was of a joke. “A little princess!”

Soon all eyes were her, with a mixture of stares ranging from mild curiosity to hatred, to lust, and even boredom.  Notably, the brunette grip tightened around her arm, as he was afraid of her running away from him into another's arms. Growing rather annoyed by his touch, she turned to the man holding her,  

“You may release me now, you’ve fulfilled the deal” she replied coldly to the brunette, tearing her arm from his grip. “ I can walk the rest of the way without your assistance.”

Giving him a last cold stare with icy courtesy showing him the hatred of him and his kind in her voice

“Enjoy the earings,” she said smiling enjoying the rather dumbstruck look on his face.

Ignoring the stares and crude words of the heathens, she made long strides towards the Sons of Ragnar. Only three of the five were longing about at the altar. “With any luck the other two are dead,” she thought to herself.

A giant of a man with a long blonde ponytail was noticeably older than the other two. With little doubt in her mind, she thought it was Ragnar’s eldest son Bjorn Ironside. Next to him, was a brunette man with long hair that openly showed sympathy for her situation. Finally, sitting on the altar table with his legs bound was Ivar.

Only giving a glimpse towards Ivar, she could see that he had drastically changed. It was not his looks, even though his hair had changed, but rather his countenance. He seemed darker, filled with wrath, and crueler giving no sympathy towards her situation. Now that he held the power instead of her family, why would she expect anything but cruelty from him? She thought to herself, “What did you ever see in him? He’s a Liar, a heathen. It was never going to work out. He was supposed to fall in love with you, not the other way around. Then again, it’s not like you truly trusted him anyway.”

“Princess Aethelswith, it’s been a while hasn’t it?” He purred cruelly, most likely enjoying seeing her come so low.  He was beautiful in catastrophic kind of way.  Like an inferno of flame, burning everything in his path and filling the world with a destroying light.  

“I have come to speak to the leader of your army. If it is not you, then I have nothing to say to you,” she responded coolly.  Some of the other men snickered in the background but with a swift look from Ivar, it became deathly quiet.

“That would be me, Princess. I am Bjorn Rangarson.” he paused taking a look over to the men that had presented her. “Did they harm you?” he asked with some concern in his voice.

“No, they actually showed a surprising amount of restraint” She replied

“Then, why are you here if you were not forcibly taken from your hiding place?” Bjorn questioned as if he didn’t believe she would willingly face them.

“ I have come to give myself over as a hostage to the leaders of your army in the hopes of stopping the carnage here.”

She knelt before him in a sign of submission, of acceptance in her situation though it dealt a blow to her pride. It was best to make them think that she was a scared, weak Christian trying to save herself from torture, rape, and death.

In one swift movement, she tore off the white veil covering her hair. A golden circlet was woven through her thick, curly brown locks that reached to mid back. Unweaving the golden trinket she offered it to him in a sign of peace. Through the men seemed dumbstruck by the act. Her hair had never been seen by male other than her family and those of the court. The church always said a woman's hair was a great temptation to men. Perhaps, she thought to herself, it would tempt these men as well.

As the room silenced around her, she finally understood. It might have been her crowning beauty, besides her full lips and pale skin. Sure, she didn’t have beautiful blonde hair nor a tall forehead, but her grandfather said to use her beauty as a weapon. “Use your beauty as an advantage over the power of men. It is one of your most dangerous weapons. Coupled with your intelligence, I’m sure you can bend any man to your will,” her grandfather had said to her after her betrothal to Magnus ended and the men of the court started surrounding her like wolves circling a wounded doe.

She played the naive innocent, unaware of men’s attention, knowing that if she returned any of them they would expect more than just a friendly word. That’s why she thought the best place in this earthly world was Streoneshalh. She was free to be herself, and not have to worry about the attention of men. Well, that was until the Heathens came made it a living Hell.

Kneeling before Bjorn Ironside she began her speech hoping to appease him,

“I only ask for mercy. Mercy for myself and the women your men have taken as prisoners.  I know that this war is against my grandfather and that you will not stop until you get revenge for your father, but surely I will be of more use to you alive than dead.”

“ How so, if not to make an example of you to your family?” Ivar sneered gaining a dark look from his brothers. She fought the urge to look at him.  To show him the hatred that she now held for him in her heart. He promised that he would never hurt her or anyone she cared about.  “They were lies. Everything he’s ever said to you is a lie. For every bone he’s broken, he probably breaks a promise.”

“ I’m sure that ransom will make you all very wealthy.” she paused gauging their reactions showing only mild interest. She quickly thought of something that might whet their appetites more. She needed time to find a way to help the people they had taken.

“ If it is not wealth that you desire, surely with the fair treatment of myself and Princess Heluna, could gain you land. In addition to this, your men could gain wealth as well.  I will personally use my own funds to ransom the women they took. ”

This had garnered some interest from the men around her. She could see the gleam of curiosity from the Bjorn and his brothers.

“My grandfather is king of Wessex, Mercia, and East Anglia, it is well within his power to grant you that land. Was that not King Ragnar’s ambition, to have farming land here? As for Northumbria, it is in a weakened state from your overwhelming victory. Surely the barter of Princess Heluna, the youngest child of the Queen Ealhswith, will also grant you either land or wealth as long she is treated fairly and with the respect of a free woman of royalty.” She proposed waiting for their reply.

It was a strange kind of agony waiting for Bjorn’s reply. What was he thinking? Was he just as cruel as any other heathen? Was he calling her bluff” She wondered. She didn’t know much about him other than his prowess as a warrior and that he was only the half brother of Ivar, but he did not give off the vibe of cruelty.

“Whether or not land or wealth is given to us, we will make sure you and Princess Heluna are not harmed. Our vengeance is not with you or Princess Heluna. Should your father come to ransom you we will not stand in his way, but I have met him, he is not the type to avoid a fight.”  

He was right of course, her father had a temper, but it was never raised towards her. He would rather kill every heathen that he set eyes upon than negotiate a end to unnecessary bloodshed that the heathens would bring.  But she needed to seal the deal between them, hopefully, Bjorn kept his word better than his brother.

“Do you swear on your god Odin? I have been made promises before and have found that they are rarely kept if they are not sworn on by one’s beliefs. Even less so from people of opposing beliefs.” she ushered out not breaking eye contact with Bjorn. Before could utter any words the man that brought her to the sons of Ragnar stepped through the crowd.

“I’m afraid Bjorn you have no right to take the Princess since I found her first she is my prisoner” the brunette man from before strode forward advancing like a lion on the prowl. What could he possibly want from me? Please let in be the gold.” she thought to herself as she removed her body from the kneeling position. There was no way in God’s good earth that she would be seen submitting to some upstart heathen who thought he was bartering for a farm animal.

“Princess Aethelswith is a vital prisoner King Harald. That needs to be, in the meantime, unharmed and given your and your brother's reputation with Christians I can hardly expect you to restrain yourself” Ivar spoke with thinly veiled anger, that sounded to her more like a child not getting the toy he wanted.

“I meant no disrespect nor question of your or your brothers leadership, but if you take my prisoner then you will have to take of these men’s women, of course, I have no problem as long you treat each of allies the same as myself.”

Taking in the looks of the various men around she saw none of them wanted to part with the people and riches they perceived they had the right to own.  Would the sons of Ragnar give her over to some cocky king despite saying that no harm would come to her, that their vengeance was not towards her?  Rallying his fellow soldiers, this King Harald began

“Isn’t the victory of battle what we relish? Shouldn't we crush King Egbert's army on the field of battle with Odin beside in VIctory? ” this King Harald spoke launching their army into a frenzy, “They are but weak Christians! We are the masters here not them.”

His charisma infected the others. With the hall erupting in like calls to “kill the Christians”, “to fight with Odin”, and “revegne for Ragnar”. Bjorn looked at her with real pity in his eyes, and she knew what he going to do.  For a moment her masked fell, and the fear showed on her face and the sons of Ragnar saw it.

“She is yours King Harald”, Bjorn said getting up from his chair fully showing his massive height and intimidating figure, “but she is still an important hostage. The wealth would hardly be yours if she is damaged in any way”.

“Of course, I mean no harm towards her” King Harald spoke confidently, not intimidated by Bjorn close proximity towards him.  She quickly got in between the two men. “I can’t save myself, but I can try and save Heleuna,” she thought as she pressed her gold circlet to Bjorn.

“Please keep these trinket as a sign of good will between us. If that cannot happen please let it buy good treatment for Princess Heleuna. She knows little of your language or customs and is now in the hands of the men who blood eagled her father.” she said pleading with him, couldn’t her pretty face do some good for once?

“I will make sure she isn’t harmed. Sigurd’s not the type to hurt women” He reassured her gently pushes her towards new captor. Taking a deep breath, she calmed her nerves and put on her stony facade.

She really looked at her captor now. His eyes like a frozen arctic wasteland, his tattoos like venomous snakes Slithering across his face, black leather armor like charred bones woven together with the lives he had taken. “He must be some sort of demon just like the rest of them” she cursed her luck

That idiotic smug face looked at her with the satisfaction of getting his ‘prisoner’ back. If she was a different person, a warrior, she would have punched that idiotic smirk off his handsome face, but she learned long ago to repress her true emotions.

“Hey God, it's me, Aethelswith. Are angry with me? Have I done something to upset you? It this some sort of test?” her mind questioned angrily. Had God abandoned her and his people? What was his plan for her or had he decided to wipe his hand of his sinful people?  She needed to focus on anything that would subdue her anger and stop her from showing her fear of this new uncertainty as she took tiny steps towards him.

With Ivar, she knew somewhat with what she would be dealing with. He was an intelligent yet cocky individual with an eagerness to prove himself. This ‘King Harald” was a new player on the board. A wild card that she had not thought would enter the playing field.  Shouldn’t the Sons of Ragnar have more sway over their army? Or was the Great Heathen Army only simply connected by the memory of Rangar and the glory of fighting for vengeance?

She started winding her hair back together behind the veil to keep her from tearing off her nails or blindly punching the next person who touched her or said some comment.

“Why are you putting your hair away?” he said while trying to reach out to her hair.  He was too close. Bile threaten to come up from her throat, she knew what he really wanted to do to her and it didn’t involve her with the veil on.

“If you like it so much, I sure you can cut some off when you ransom me to my father,” she said back to him, fed up with faking that everything was fine. In the back of her mind, she knew it would be better to play nice and to get her captor on her side, but she had enough of it. How was this fair? How was this right? Was this part of God’s plan for her.

His arm shot out and gripped her wrist dragging her from the crowded church. Her heart sank, she wanted to run, go back and hide, find her father and he would tell her everything would be fine. It was going to happen, just like it happened to every other woman here. He wasn’t going to listen to sons of Ragnars and he wasn’t going to listen to her cries of mercy.

Taking a look back at the alter that once held the mysteries of faith, she stared at the youngest son of Rangar. His heartbreakingly beautiful eyes stared back at her not hiding his rage. Her blue eyes bore into his saying “this is all your fault. I should of let them kill you. The whole world would’ve been better off”.

Several of King Harald men joined the two of them as they left the church hall, leaving the dead bodies and the rejoicing Heathens behind. As her gaze return to large hand clamped to her wrist asking one final question “What Have I Done to Deserve This?”.