#re nova

[brightsstar]

Sleepy Clips bois

I wanted to attempt some kind of cuddle pile of sorts-

Dusk is kinda like a weighted blanket for Eclipse. Helps him not get nightmares. Nova just likes to be close.

[sunshine-zenith]

Baby’s first dance

[abirddogmoment]

gorls

[whimsicalcotton]

spousal dispute.jpg

[serial-serializednovelreader]

Nova’s Notes - DD - May 15 + 16

That’s right! Another combo post again, definitely because I planned it that way and not because I got busy hehe.

“Once more have I seen the Count go out in his lizard fashion.”

An iconic line, perhaps the best way to start a journal entry ever. The reason we have a Lizard Fashion Day in the first place. Thank you for that, Jonathan. I also appreciate how he tracks his movements down to the measurements. This man is on a mission to make sure he sees what the Count is doing when he can and I love it. It also tells me he’s probably been doing a stakeout to see when Dracula is leaving in order to do his next step…

More castle exploring! That’s right, locked doors will not stop our good friend from checking it out anyway. It’s interesting to note that the locks he finds are “comparatively new” to the hall he originally entered through. Which means that either a) Jonathan is not the first prisoner of this castle (likely) or b) Dracula was very prepared for his visit specifically. While we already kind of knew these scenarios were coming, it adds another layer of messed up to me.

Finally, Jonathan is able to find an unlocked door that seems locked at first because it’s resting on the door and the hinges are a bit broken. Why isn’t it locked? We don’t know, but I’d like to think it’s because Dracula is so self-assured Jonathan won’t try very hard to open this door by the time he gets to it. He wants to break Jonathan’s spirit and in his mind, it’s working splendidly, lizard fashion and all.

Here’s his logic:

Why would he need to lock this door when it feels as good as locked? Jonathan probably won’t have the strength to open it by the time he gets to it and he’ll give up if he tries.

This also plays into the fact that Dracula has been a vampire for a long time…he’s forgotten what it feels like to be human and have regular strength. Who knows if he even remembers how much strength it takes for a human to open a door, or how heavy a door has to be to determine whether it’s locked or not. We know he heavily underestimates Jonathan’s determination and strength, simply because he is a human and those are weak and powerless compared to him (in his mind). I also have another theory but I’ll wait until a bit further in to write it.

It does take Jonathan a good amount of effort to open that door but he does it!! Good for him (well…not really but…). He then takes the time to describe the landscape, so you know he’s in a good mood.

“This was evidently the portion of the castle occupied by the ladies in bygone days the for the furniture had more air of comfort than any I had seen.”

I’m not sure if he means comfort in the way of being used or in the feeling, but I’m going to go with the feelings route, so I can say JONATHAN MY BELOVED!!!! He finds comfort in being around women’s furniture? Why is that? Many reasons probably but my guess? MINA 👏 “THE QUEEN” 👏 MURRAY 👏

He may not say it this time…but I just know….this man is going to kill me with his adorable ways. He does go on to say the room still has lonely vibes and makes him nervous (it is nighttime, after all), but it’s better than a room with Dracula.

Then, Jonathan gets in his ✨imagination era✨ picturing a blushing lady writing while he also writes in his journal. True parallels, since we all know you’re writing to Mina, hehe.

“It is nineteenth century up-to-date with a vengeance. And yet, unless my senses deceive me, the old centuries had, and have, powers of their own which mere "modernity" cannot kill.”

Another hard line from Harker here. If I’m not mistaken (though I likely am), he’s talking about his diary being in shorthand, and how modern that is compared to the blushing beauty of old. If we go further, perhaps he’s also speaking to his meticulous notes of “all that has happened” on his business trip, vs. the lady that probably wrote very broadly in her letters of love. It speaks to a faster-paced environment Jonathan finds himself in as a solicitor. While shorthand has always been around in some form (yes, I researched this to make a point, hopefully it’s accurate), shorthand towards his time was rapidly becoming the norm in order to capture speeches and increase efficiency; it was a social movement in its own right. So being “nineteenth-century with a vengeance” may sound cool, but I think he’s criticizing how this has turned writing from an art form into something more commercial. While he and Mina have bonded extensively over shorthand and it may very well save his life if he can use it as code…perhaps he longs to be able to write poetry or just be able to slow down and enjoy writing again. This is further proven when he ends it with remarking that ancient practices cannot be killed by the modern. This might be him reassuring himself that there will always be long-form writing (like I’m doing right now :D). Or, if we take it darker, perhaps he’s worrying about his ability to survive with his modern practices against the Count’s ancient “hunter” instincts. Or, perhaps, I’m wrong about all of this and just yapping, it’s unclear!

Anyway, let’s move on to May 16th.

“God preserve my sanity, for to this I am reduced. Safety and the assurance of safety are things of the past. Whilst I live on here there is but one thing to hope for, that I may not go mad, if, indeed, I be not mad already. If I be sane, then surely it is maddening to think that of all the foul things that lurk in this hateful place the Count is the least dreadful to me; that to him alone I can look for safety, even though this be only whilst I can serve his purpose. Great God! merciful God! Let me be calm, for out of that way lies madness indeed.”

Sooooooo, our good friend Jonathan Harker is not doing too well. You know it’s bad when he cites Dracula as the “least dreadful person in the castle” when he was just describing the Count as a “creature” 4 days ago for his Lizard FashionTM. Plus, he’s referencing Hamlet again!!!

Jonathan decided to sleep in the Lady’s Room despite Dracula’s warning because he does not want to listen!!! Unfortunately I would do the exact same!!! Why are we like this, Jonathan???😭😭

“I determined not to return to-night to the gloom-haunted rooms, but to sleep here, where, of old, ladies had sat and sung and lived sweet lives whilst their gentle breasts were sad for their menfolk away in the midst of remorseless wars.”

More poetic writing!!! I love it and his critique of war. I why he touches on this here; perhaps he knew someone who went off to war and the repercussions for the family that he left behind? :(

So here’s where Dracula’s 3 Roommates show up (that’s how I’ll refer to them - not brides, BBC Dracula get out of here with that!!!!!). They’re the reason for my other door unlocked theory: perhaps Dracula keeps it that way to allow them some freedom (or, conversely, they figured out how to unlock it and he didn’t check closely enough).

What I noticed on this read was how neutral Jonathan is at first when describing them. It’s not until we get to their lips that we get a “voluptuous” mention (and not the last, either). Also, the lead one looks…familiar to him? I didn’t notice that before, but I saw a post about why (explained in the comments section - Stoker featured her in his prologue/first draft “Dracula’s Guest”. He may have been wanting to include her in this too and scrapped it.)

“There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing and at the same time some deadly fear. I felt in my heart a wicked, burning desire that they would kiss me with those red lips. It is not good to note this down, lest some day it should meet Mina's eyes and cause her pain; but it is the truth. They whispered together, and then they all three laughed—such a silvery, musical laugh, but as hard as though the sound never could have come through the softness of human lips. It was like the intolerable, tingling sweetness of water-glasses when played on by a cunning hand.”

So, I think we all know this part isn’t really Jonathan. I mean it is but…spoiler alert: vampires have hypnosis in this canon and they definitely seem to use it here. It doesn’t quite work though because he still follows it up with describing their laugh as “intolerable” and obviously, he’s still scared of them. I do think it’s interesting he writes this confession down, because he doesn’t really have to. Perhaps he thinks it’s important to whatever is going on around here (because I’m sure he knows he would never be tempted to kiss/be kissed by someone other than Mina if it wasn’t by some kind of power). But it’s also interesting that he doesn’t put it that way, either: he doesn’t blame the women for putting thoughts in his head, he describes it as his own thoughts/feelings.

Personally, I think it could be one of those “I think this could be one of those things I think is true but don’t have evidence for and don’t want to write it down until I have the facts” so, until he has the facts, it’s going to be written down as his thoughts. And if he did write it down as them “tempting him with their powers” that just wouldn’t be Jonathan’s character to write something like that. Perhaps in another story from another protagonist, but not this guy. But hey, that’s just me. It could also just be they’re very pretty (which I’m sure they are and Jonathan feels some attraction 🤷‍♀️. The main reason I blame hypnosis is the push and pull Jonathan has with his description of them.

Right before the dreaded/anticipated kiss, here comes Dracula!!!!!! And he has some things to say:

“‘How dare you touch him, any of you? How dare you cast eyes on him when I had forbidden it? Back, I tell you all! This man belongs to me! Beware how you meddle with him, or you'll have to deal with me.’”

I am once again bringing this meme back because it gets me EVERY TIME. I know I should talk about the possessiveness of Dracula or how he must have already talked to them previously if he forbade them from even CASTING EYES ON HIM, but I’ll be real every time I see this monologue I just see this meme except it’s just “haha Jonathan you are — BELONGS TO ME.” If that doesn’t indicate broken humor, I’m not sure what does.

Let’s talk about the description of how Dracula looks in this moment though.

“…the blue eyes transformed with fury, the white teeth champing with rage, and the fair cheeks blazing red with passion. But the Count! Never did I imagine such wrath and fury, even to the demons of the pit. His eyes were positively blazing. The red light in them was lurid, as if the flames of hell-fire blazed behind them. His face was deathly pale, and the lines of it were hard like drawn wires; the thick eyebrows that met over the nose now seemed like a heaving bar of white-hot metal.”

Looks like those “hunter instincts” are kicking in nicely! I wonder why he’s so protective all of a sudden? Especially after telling Jonathan a few short days ago that he would basically be on his own if he disobeyed him. I saw a post the other day talking about how when Mina was compiling everything together, there are entries she could have chosen to exclude from Jonathan’s account due to either repetition or something too traumatic to include.

What could’ve happened in those three days to make Dracula do a 180? Well, we do know they talk every single night, so what could’ve said in that gap between May 12th and May 15th?

My theories are: a) Jonathan didn’t write it down, b) Mina excluded it for a reason, c) it wasn’t one thing, it was a buildup of many interactions over the course of their time together, which lends itself to d) Dracula was straight up lying when he said he’d leave Jonathan to die if he disobeyed him.

I personally think it was c/d because it makes the most sense, but if it was a or b, it’s just interesting to wonder what was said in that time span. Did he make Dracula laugh with a witty comment? Or say something that reminded him of someone else before the Count turned into a vampire? We do know that Jonathan genuinely enjoys spending time with Dracula, so the rapport must be there. And yes, I am probably am reading waaaaaay too much into it, but it is food for thought.

“‘You yourself never loved; you never love!’ On this the other women joined, and such a mirthless, hard, soulless laughter rang through the room that it almost made me faint to hear; it seemed like the pleasure of fiends. Then the Count turned, after looking at my face attentively, and said in a soft whisper:—

‘Yes, I too can love; you yourselves can tell it from the past. Is it not so?’”

Love, you say? From this vampire? Well, that’s interesting! I do believe Dracula is being sincere when he says this, but the issue is that you don’t want to be the object of Dracula’s love. It’s not like Jon or Mina’s love; it’s possessive, cruel, and demanding. You don’t keep the ones you love a prisoner, and the Count has obviously done that on multiple occasions since he told the women to “tell it from the past”. I feel sad for Dracula because it seems to me like he genuinely finds Jon interesting and wants to keep him around; unfortunately, he expresses this love by trapping him and his other love interests like Pokémon. Perhaps I would feel more sympathetic if he didn’t promise to feed Jon to the girls once he’s done with him!!!!

That’s when Jon realizes there’s a sack with something inside of it that sounds like a child…that Dracula gives to the women…ugh. This is enough to put Jon to fainting.

When he wakes up, Jon is without his clothing, but his diary is still intact.

That is horrifying to me. Why did Dracula need to undress him? I understand it’s to give the illusion that he went to bed, but still. It’s no wonder that Jonathan starts the first paragraph in a wave of panic, even though it’s to display more fear of the women wanting to suck his blood than the Count. I also find it fascinating again how he guesses that the women want to suck his blood when they never made mention of it, perhaps because the lead woman’s breath smelled like blood or because she kept her teeth on his neck? Either way, even in a “dream state” his observation skills are top tier.

I do also wonder why Dracula was originally going to “awaken him to get some work done” and then just…didn’t? Maybe he thought it would be better to just pretend the whole thing was a nightmare for Jonathan. If I was him, I probably would’ve woken him from the couch after he fainted and pretended it was a dream, but hey, that’s my gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss idea of the day and Dracula can’t have it!!!

Overall, this is probably the most telling entry we’ve gotten about Dracula so far. We know that he does indeed “love” (though it’s not a kind or gentle love), those he loves are kept prisoner even once he’s “done” with them (since he says tell it from the past — not the present and the women obviously seemed bitter about his fixation on Jonathan), and while he said he wouldn’t save Jon in a pinch, he did. We’ve seen his first display of fury and how dangerous he can actually be with his supernatural powers and what that can do to the people around him. While no one was injured — yet — it could’ve gone south had the lead woman been human. Even though he probably knew Jonathan was awake for some of this, he still chose to take him back to bed and keep him under the illusion of having slept there peacefully — though some of that was likely for safety reasons. For Jonathan, this was a horribly (and hypnotically horny) traumatic experience for him that makes him realize Dracula is not the only scary thing in this castle.

I also do wish we had gotten more with Dracula’s three roommates because they deserve it!!! They actually seem chill when they’re not trying to — ya know, suck Jon’s blood and all. I also wish we had gotten names!!!! Names would be nice, Stoker.

[fy-girls-generation]

namooactors_ad

[mossyfig]

Twilight Nova, Spirit of the Moon (click for better quality)

[soshihd]

1440 x 1799

[catdadeddie]

it's a restless "i wanna scroll on tumblr but no one is online" time

[nova-streya]

Actually quite proud of this one! Experimented with the way I use colors to shade and I think he turned out great.

[brightsstar]

Felt like making little icons. They're for something i'm trying to work on.

Everyone in this order: Eclipse, Nova (recovered), Dusk, Starstrike, Sun, Sunny, Moon, MD! Moon, Lunar

The Blood twins have their own too, but they won't fit here cuz only 10 images allowed from mobile tumblr -.-

The ruffles on Lunar actually come from my old Lunar design. He has them, he just doesn't really wear them.

[reborrowing]

I have a cat named Nova, does that one fit?

that’s a cute cat name! and actually might fit really well w the vague space theme I have going with Phoebe? definitely considering it, thank you! 😸

[xievoswf]

Minimalist nova fashion for plague star❤️

(re-upload since I noticed it was super low res for some reason 💀)

[magicalgirlsirin]

secondary rider is a psyop by toei to make everyone Argue Online

[serial-serializednovelreader]

Nova’s Notes - DD - May 24

It’s officially Suitor Squad time!!!!!!!!!! Truly a beloved letter from our dear Lucy.

So we now know our girl has a September birthday and that she’s currently 19! I’m not a Zodiac girlie, but I’d love to see the discourse on whether she fits the type of a Virgo or Libra more (I have my guess, but I won’t say).

“Here am I, who shall be twenty in September, and yet I never had a proposal till to-day, not a real proposal, and to-day I have had three. Just fancy! THREE proposals in one day! Isn't it awful! I feel sorry, really and truly sorry, for two of the poor fellows. Oh, Mina, I am so happy that I don't know what to do with myself.”

I love the way she writes in this letter, because it feels like the way she probably talks — very enthusiastic and just saying the first thing that comes to mind. Not in a bad way, just impulsive! Also, notice how she says “not a real proposal” — I wonder what that means. The fanfic potential is endless…

I love the modernity coming through with the “THREE proposals in one day!” and then saying she feels awful for two of the men (already implying she accepted one suit), as well as saying in the next sentence saying how perfectly happy she is. How very Lucy of her!!!! /pos

“But, for goodness' sake, don't tell any of the girls, or they would be getting all sorts of extravagant ideas and imagining themselves injured and slighted if in their very first day at home they did not get six at least. Some girls are so vain! You and I, Mina dear, who are engaged and are going to settle down soon soberly into old married women, can despise vanity. Well, I must tell you about the three, but you must keep it a secret, dear, from every one, except, of course, Jonathan. You will tell him, because I would, if I were in your place, certainly tell Arthur.”

A lot to take in here! So, of course by the “girls”, she must mean their former classmates and friends they keep in contact with. I know it sounds kind of pick-me-girl-ish of Lucy, but we all know that one person who wants to one-up you, so I get the need for secrecy. Plus, Lucy’s reputation with her mom will be dampened by this and might be led to think she ENCOURAGED three men to propose to her all on the same day (oh, what’s that? Hollywood producers have been portraying her as doing just that for years? My case stands.). Of course, she understands the need for Mina to tell Jonathan about this — who she likely assumes is already home with Mina since it’s been more than a week since Mina’s last letter :’(((( — and then she drops who’s proposal she accepted — to no one’s surprise, it’s Arthur!

I don’t know why, but the first time I read this part of the story, I guess I just skimmed over that part? Because I genuinely didn’t think she mentioned Arthur until the last possible second.

But rereading it here, she writes as if she can’t contain herself, like yes she wants to tell Mina about the three proposals — because why wouldn’t you tell your bestie about the THREE PROPOSALS IN ONE DAY — but she can’t help and drop the fact that yes, she’s engaged to Arthur, and yes, she’s as excited as Mina to be “old married women” who “despise vanity”. At least, that’s what I’m picking up. I think it’s another one of those things where the Dracula Daily memes gave me a Mandela effect of Lucy talking endlessly about everyone except Arthur, which she kind of does, but she doesn’t neglect him entirely.

On to the first proposal!!

“I told you of him, Dr. John Seward, the lunatic-asylum man, with the strong jaw and the good forehead.”

This sentence lives rent-free in my head. I absolutely love it. “Yes Mina, dear, the lunatic-asylum man with the good facial features, I would’ve set you up with him if you weren’t engaged already!” Strong start to this rollercoaster.

Previously she had described him as “imperturbable”, but she seems to have heavily amended that statement. Here, she describes him as nothing but nervous, almost sitting on his hat and…playing with a knife?!?!?! Seward, that’s not…how you….ok….she said he was “playing with it in a way that nearly made [her] scream” and I don’t blame her one bit — I would too!

What’s interesting about John’s proposal is that he doesn’t mince words here. He simply tells her she makes him happy and is dear to him, so marry him maybe? It does lean to this side of guilt-trippy when he starts to tell her that if she doesn’t care for him, he’ll be unhappy, until she *actually starts crying* because that’s the kind of empathetic person Lucy is!!!

That’s when John’s caring side comes out. He immediately chastises himself and promises not to add to her troubles. I wonder if, perhaps, he asked a colleague for advice on proposals and they gave him some ill-informed idea on how to “lightly encourage” (read: guilt-trip) a woman into accepting your suit.

It could have very well been his own idea (those who have read Dracula Daily before will know Seward is not as naturally empathetic as, say, Lucy); the only reason I think this is because he’s also socially awkward (if fidgeting with a knife didn’t give it away) and I could very well see him going to a colleague asking for advice on how to ask for a lady’s hand in marriage from someone who’s done it before.

This is when I think if he has been taking advice from someone, he stops and starts speaking from the heart.

“Then he broke off and asked if I could love him in time; and when I shook my head his hands trembled, and then with some hesitation he asked me if I cared already for any one else. He put it very nicely, saying that he did not want to wring my confidence from me, but only to know, because if a woman's heart was free a man might have hope.”

Awwwwwww his hands trembled?? 🥺 I’m so sorry Seward…this genuinely hurts to read. Although, just because someone doesn’t have another person they’re interested in doesn’t mean they’ll automatically grow to like you back — “might” being the operative word here, I suppose.

What I do love here is how well he takes it once she informs him she does love someone else. He simply takes her hands, looks into her eyes and asks her to count him as one of her best friends. This is still sad for Lucy, however, because while he has done this, she still feels like she’s “lost” him in a way and he still walks away with a broken heart, causing her to cry all over again, and defer finishing the letter. :(

Again, it just shows what a kind person Lucy is that even while she feels happy, she still can feel so upset on behalf of another person. That’s one of the things I love the most about her!!!

On to the next proposal!

Happy (belated) Quincey P. Morris Day!!!! Everyone get out your cowboy hats and get ready to lasso yourself into a world of fun with this cowboy. <3

Quick note: It looks like Arthur visited her and that’s what caused her to be able to finish her letter by lifting her spirits. So he must’ve visited her twice in one day, since she already knew about the proposal when she first started the letter? Ugh, love that for her!

“I know now what I would do if I were a man and wanted to make a girl love me. No, I don't, for there was Mr. Morris telling us his stories, and Arthur never told any, and yet—— My dear, I am somewhat previous.”

Hehehehe oh, Lucy!!! Even when talking about this dear cowboy and his stories you can’t help but bring up Arthur.

Quincey exaggerates/makes up his American slang just for her!!! That’s adorable.

“'Miss Lucy, I know I ain't good enough to regulate the fixin's of your little shoes, but I guess if you wait till you find a man that is you will go join them seven young women with the lamps when you quit. Won't you just hitch up alongside of me and let us go down the long road together, driving in double harness?'”

If I’m not proposed to in this goofy — yet sincere — way I 👏 don’t 👏 want 👏 it. But I do love that once he sees that Lucy doesn’t *seem* to understand this approach, he becomes more serious and earnestly asks for her hand with a series of beautiful words.

Of course, Quincey can perceive this isn’t going the way he would hope and asks if she is otherwise engaged of the heart to which — poor Lucy!!! — she cries once more.

“Why can't they let a girl marry three men, or as many as want her, and save all this trouble?”

And so the polycula is formed!!! Hehe, but to be fair, I do read this in the camp of Lucy being a chronic people-pleaser who wants to make everyone happy and hates refusing Seward and Quincey. As someone who is also a people-pleaser, I can relate — I too often have things I wish I could do to just “save me the trouble” of having difficult conversations with people. But also, polycula, I’m excited to see what all of the fanfics and fanart that y’all come up with this year lol!

“‘Yes, there is some one I love, though he has not told me yet that he even loves me.’”

“‘If that other fellow doesn't know his happiness, well, he'd better look for it soon, or he'll have to deal with me…’”

“‘Won't you give me one kiss? It'll be something to keep off the darkness now and then. You can, you know, if you like, for that other good fellow—he must be a good fellow, my dear, and a fine fellow, or you could not love him—hasn't spoken yet.'”

I love this so much. I love that Lucy feels comfortable enough to confide in Quincey that she’s worried about Arthur’s reciprocation of feelings and he reassures her that a) she will make Arthur’s happiness and if he doesn’t get that, Quincey will intervene (in more ways than one, I’ll wager ;)) and b) he’s not jealous of Arthur and thinks of him as a good man, why else would Lucy love him?

I honestly think him asking for a kiss — and Lucy giving him one — is adorable because it’s done in a way where it doesn’t feel forced or that Lucy is uncomfortable. I think of it as a kiss goodbye or a kiss of what could have been, or, as Quincey himself puts it, a kiss sealing their friendship! No matter what way you read it, it’s sweet and I love this moment.

“Oh, about number Three—I needn't tell you of number Three, need I? Besides, it was all so confused; it seemed only a moment from his coming into the room till both his arms were round me, and he was kissing me. I am very, very happy, and I don't know what I have done to deserve it.”

I know we all make memes about this passage — and for good reason, but the way I interpret her not wanting to talk about Arthur’s proposal is that it’s too intimate to her. Do you know those moments where something so wonderful has happened that you just want to keep it all to yourself? Even though you know you need to tell the loved ones in your life the good news and they’ll want to know everything? I know I do! I think this is part of what Lucy is feeling here, but she doesn’t want to tell Mina that per se; after all, she just wrote to her about longing to be back together and sharing their deepest secrets. So, I think she chooses to lightheartedly brush this moment off with a “oh yes and btw Arthur proposed, you don’t need the details, right? I don’t remember half of them myself!”

I think that’s why she makes so much of describing Quincey and John’s proposals — both to make up for her lack of detail when it comes to Arthur’s proposal, and, perhaps, to distract from it as well. That’s just my interpretation, though, I’d love to hear what you think!

[elinerlina]

Seohyun x res novae