#she is a hot deviless

[the-masterless-press]

so what do we think about virginia?

[gant-eyed-warden]

The Rite of the Lily

After the conclusion of the Railroad, Warden ended up taking Mr Transport to the Baroness at the Evenlode for a long list of reasons. Mr Pages had given them a single useful piece of advice, which was to remember that safety is not the same thing as happiness. So knowing the Masters are a hot mess, and knowing the High Wilderness is a pretty cruel place, Warden went with the Baroness, who at least seemed to want to make it happy and not just useful.

I thought for a long time on her parting line after you hand it over, in particular the reference to the Rite of the Lily. It's been an oblique reference in a few places I know but its actual function or purpose was a bit elided, at least until now.

Spoilers for City in Silver and Mr Transport.

The Baroness and the child exchange a glimmer of recognition when they finally see each other. "After Mr Spices and I parted ways, I did not expect to see this day." She takes the infant into her arms. Being free of it is a reminder of how shockingly heavy it was. "I assure you that this is for the best. The circumstances of the Masters are not ideal for the raising of a child. And familial affection is difficult, for their kind." Clinging to her shoulder, the infant burps – and a tiny fig wasp flies its way out of its mouth. Mr Transport seems unconcerned. It looks back at you with practised indifference. "There's no joy in remaining as you are. I trust that you understand this, by now. Perhaps one day you, too, will take up the lily." And with a smile, she retreats into the Magistracy – for a rite that you are not permitted to see.

In the Tracklayers' City we get a lot more information, not just about the Rite of the Lily but about the Baroness herself. We learn she has undergone the Rite of the Lily many, many times, in very exacting and expensive ways.

When you indicate that you are acquainted with the Solicitor-Baroness, she pulls a slim volume from the many that line her shelves. The pages are thin enough to see through, layered with infernal diagrams. "A record of her progress," says the Martagon Deviless. "We note what she changes in each Rite, the sigils required in each." The bottom page is complicated, contradictory, displaying many weaknesses. The next layer repeats only some of the sigils beneath, and the layer after that fewer still. For many consecutive lives, the subject's character is simplified into one that can properly serve its client. "The cost in candles was phenomenal," remarks the Martagon Deviless. "The Lilymire was less productive then; she was claiming almost the whole of its harvest, but none in Hell wished to refuse her, because of our agreement with the Creditor." Only a few layers ago, it seemed as though the Solicitor-Baroness had reached equilibrium; the changes from one sheet to the next were trivial indeed. But then, something almost wholly different was introduced. "A new spice in her character," says the Martagon Deviless slyly, and snaps the volume closed. "Now go," she says, tilting her head at you birdlike. "I've told you more than you deserve."

In Pilgrim's Citadel the devils bring a wax effigy of Furnace into town. Though the tracklayers by and large find this gross, the devils invite the tracklayers to write on the wax what of Furnace they would see kept, and what they would see left behind.

They do.

A tomb colonist – and at this distance you cannot be absolutely sure who it is – comes to consider the wax effigy, which is sculpted to include both the faces and the helmet of Furnace. Then it takes a metal pen and heats the nib in a candle flame, and writes deeply, scoring the candle with anger. Share the weight. Share the weight. Share the weight. You greedy fool.

Verity has a little to say about it. Mainly that this is yet another form of rebellion, this time rebellion of the soul.

"It offends the stars," she says. "It invites other creatures to cross the borders set by their own nature, and to share the dignities of Hell, if they have the skill. And it usually perturbs a soul in an interesting direction." Verity tells you then a story of Saint Trezigor, who was not always as he appeared in his late days. But he had a message for Hell, and rather than leave it silent, he transformed himself in order to become its messenger. His followers suffered the consequences, perhaps, but all transformations have a price.

(I should really play her ES.)

It is a very esoteric branch of the Red Science indeed that dares to treat the subject of souls. You work through proofs: proofs by contradiction, proofs imagining an infinity of souls and the smaller but still infinite set of souls altered by the Rite of the Lily. When you come to yourself, your cheek smudged with violant ink, you have arrived at an abstract of what draws devils to humans, and why both are necessary, and why the Great Chain is something more like a chain mail, link on link in all directions. No one will ever publish it. But perhaps that was not the point.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, having your soul winnowed into a different shape hurts.

The Rite does not require poisons. It is enough to inscribe the wax with a metal nib. Even the application of ink will do. But your method is more comprehensive, and more precisely targeted: ridding the Furnace-city of some residual flaws and vulnerabilities that arise from having been human. Old appetites, old scars, will be sloughed away or chemically burned out. When you leave the hall, you shut your ears to the hoarse screams. That too is a portion of the rite.

All transformations have a price.

The last dimension of the Rite of the Lily we see for now is with the Dying Tracklayer.

His disease is fatal, but the Martagon Deviless has let him hope that his death will not be wasted. There is a woman he wants to marry, but her faith is not his. She will not marry out of her religion; he cannot bring himself to convert. And so he hopes to use the Rite of the Lily, and return different from the Boatman. After he has died, he hopes he will be able to become one of her people.

This is the most devilish application of Kataleptic Toxicology: testing another, and finding the reagents within. Doctrine is irrelevant. The Dying Tracklayer is not a student of creeds. He has no beliefs that forbid him from following another's faith. He considers his beloved's practice homely and kind. He longs to walk down into a valley of people celebrating, and to take his place among them, singing their blessings with them from memory. His beloved's family offers this with an open hand. Come and be one of us, they say without restraint. Yet the warnings of the Church wake him in the night: that if he strays he will be repudiated by a god who might not exist. And here it is, the equation that he has not understood. Which is more sacred, the welcome or the threat? So advised, he knows what to write on the wax brow of his effigy.

[brigdh]

Yuletide recs, for fandoms A-M! I have just barely gotten this in before author reveals, and clearly still have half the alphabet to get through. Ah, well. First off, my own gift!! Water Lens Benjamin January, gen, 2.4k, Teen. “The good widow couldn't dump you in the fast section of the river, apparently,” January said. “It had to be the mud.” “If she'd only panicked five minutes earlier,” Rose agreed with a sigh. “We were on the bridge then – although given the state of that particular river I wouldn't necessarily put money on it being that much cleaner.” All my all favorite story tropes are here: bathing together and playing with hair and the OT3 and Rose doing science and there’s even a mystery to solve in here too! It is wonderful and I love it and everyone should give the mystery author more kudos. And here are my other favorites: so come home 12 Dancing Princesses fairy tale, gen, 21.5k, G. A detective is called to a space station to solve the mystery of whether--and how--twelve astronauts are accessing the surface of a forbidden planet. A very well-written sci-fi murder mystery, with great worldbuilding and characters. Recruits American Gods, Mr Wednesday and Mad Sweeney, 4.2k, G. The Norse god of battle and a mad Irish king walk into a bar. This is not a joke, my son: except in a sense, it is. They are Old Gods, it’s the New World, and the game must be kept going. Really great backstory on the gods in WWI. The Locust And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side - James Tiptree Jr., 2.2k, Mature. Letter of Fr. Francisco Nadal to Fr. Bartolomeo Strozzi, 1588. The original short story is about the horrifying effects on humanity of alien sexuality; this fic translates it into Imperial Spain and makes the different cultural setting really work. Because everyone needs some terror on Christmas! And on the seventh... Aubrey-Maturin Series - Patrick O'Brian, Jack/Stephen, 11k, G. This decision might be considered the luckiest, as standing near Jack meant that Stephen was not alone in his fall overboard. Or it might be considered the unluckiest, as standing near Jack meant that Stephen was foremost in the splinters' path, when the ranging shot abruptly found its range. Desert island fic with H/C, angst, kissing in the ocean, and new species of birds. AKA, everything good in fic. And for that riches where is my deserving? Benjamin January mysteries, Ben/Rose/Hannibal, 1.8k, Teen. If Ben was honest with himself, he suspected that one day Hannibal might simply vanish from their lives. He desperately hoped that this was not the day. Delicious Hannibal whump plus the OT3! What more could anyone want out of the tiny fandom of my heart? Family Gathering Books of the Raksura, Moon-focused, 2.8k, G. After some of Jade and Moon's first clutch are confirmed to be Royal Aeriat, Pearl wants the fledgelings brought to her bower. Ember thinks Moon should be there too. Really adorable baby-fic, with some lovely Pearl characterization. Home Books of the Raksura, Consolation gen, 4.1k, G. It turned out that living like people instead of monsters required all sorts of skills and tools. Cleaning required soap, and some inkling of how to apply it. Consolation’s flight, having been raised by monsters, not people, had none of the requisite skills. This is the post-canon fic about how Consolation learns to be a person that was my greatest wish for Christmas, and it's everything I could have hoped for. Mordre, She Wroot Canterbury Tales, Wife of Bath-focused, 8k, G. At least one pilgrim will not make it to Canterbury. Yes, you ABSOLUTELY DO need the Wife of Bath solving murders in your life. Just trust me on this. Underworlds: The Life and Afterlife of Richard Upton Pickman Cthulhu mythos, gen, 3.7k, G. Explore the life, works and enduring influence of Richard Upton Pickman, a controversial artist of the early 20th century. This exhibition includes several paintings never before displayed in public, including all of Pickman's graphic, unsettling "horrors" currently remaining in North America. The Boston Globe called Underworlds "stomach-turning food for thought"— but decide for yourself! Young children may find Pickman's paintings frightening; parents are advised to consider carefully before allowing them to proceed. This program serves as a guide to the exhibit. Audio versions for your mobile phone are available at the Parrington museum website. Such a well-done pastiche of a museum guide to a series of horrifying paintings. What Is Begotten The Eagle of the Ninth, Marcus/Esca, 7.5k, Teen. Esca learns the Latin word by accident, from Stephanos of all people. Soul-mate. A soulmate AU with an absolutely lovely take on the canon. Of Devils and Other Fine Things Fallen London, The Wistful Deviless/Zee-Captain, 1.1k, G. Wooing a devil can only end in tears. Really fantastic interpretation of what a relationship with a devil really means. head above water Gattaca, Jerome-focused, 1.2k, G. “Do you know,” Jerome’s mother asks his coach, “how Jerome first started swimming? Did he ever tell you that story?” Absolutely wonderful backstory for Jerome. Suspect Gattaca, Anton Freeman-focused, 1.8k, G. Five things Anton thought upon seeing Vincent was a suspect for murder (and one thing he said). Lovely character study on a minor part of the movie, this feel so right. Attempt #534: The One With The Bees The Good Place, Chidi/Eleanor, 8k, Explicit. “Eleanor!” Chidi looks even more upset as he blurts out, “The universe doesn’t want us to have sex, okay?” Eleanor chokes. “I’m sorry, what?” In which Eleanor and Chidi repeatedly try – and fail – to have sex. Totally hilarious, and also hot. Care and Feeding of Your Janet The Good Place, Janet-focused, 1.2k, Teen. Please read this guide carefully before activating your Janet. So, so, so funny. Operation: Seduce Michael The Good Place, Michael/Everyone, 2.3k, Teen. If at first you don't succeed, send a different cockroach. Really hilarious fic about the plan to seduce Michael, with pitch-perfect character voices and humor just like the show's. so slip your hand inside of my glove The Handmaiden, Hideko/Sook-hee, 2.6k, Teen. Hideko lets Sook-hee teach her how to distinguish sapphire from spinel and obediently bites the gold Sook-hee brings back to her. Hideko and Sook-hee, after. A post-canon fic that is beautiful and just perfection. Who's Got Who The Hateful Eight, Chris Mannix/Marquis Warren, 6.7k, Explicit. Warren makes inventive use of Mannix's sheriff star. And, for that matter, inventive use of Mannix. He thinks that will be the end of it. You know, as much as love Hateful Eight, I never expected to begin shipping Mannix/Warren. What can I say but that this fandom has some damn good writers? And they know their porn; good lord this one is hot. As Ice in the Desert Historical RPF, Richard I "The Lionheart" of England/Saladin, 2.3k, Teen. Saladin visits Richard's sickbed with fruit, and a question in his eyes. Gorgeously written, really some of the most beautiful descriptions I've read in quite a while. Two people on the opposite sides of the Crusades in a moment of peace. all the nameless that keeps us rising despite IT, Stan/Richie/Beverly, 4k, Teen. When Stan went over to Richie’s house after dinner to tutor him for their math test tomorrow he thought he knew exactly what he was signing up for. Beautiful depiction of loss and love and a game of spin-the-bottle. Epilogue Jane Eyre, Jane-focused, 3.4k, Mature. Not everything, Jane learns early on, is real. Deeply creepy alternative interpretation of the canon. I love this possibility. How Else Would Sailing Ships Ever Have Navigated? Jeeves, Madeline Bassett/Honoria Glossop, 2.3k, G. “Do you think,” Madeline said to Honoria as the more impressive parts of nature gradually crept up upon them, “that all daffodils are the daughters of sunlight?” Absolutely adorable fic for some minor characters with a pitch-perfect tone for the canon. the worlds that spin beyond our atmosphere Jupiter Ascending, Jupiter/Caine, 7.8k, Teen. When Jupiter woke up, there was a small metal sphere on the pillow beside her. She blinked at it, because it certainly had not been there when she had gone to bed the night before. Then Aunt Nino began to stir and grumble as she too woke up and Jupiter snatched up the sphere, lobbing it hastily into her half-packed suitcase on her way to go and make the coffee. In which Jupiter is propositioned by a space travel agency (but fancier!) and introduces Caine to her family. Gorgeous worldbuilding and wonderful expansion of the canon. I love the descriptions of other planets in here. Damsel King Arthur (2017), Arthur/The Mage, 3k, Teen. In which there's a girl, a dragon, and a castle, and Arthur resolves not to let the truth get in the way of a good story. Totally hilarious and a great fit with the canon. Those parts, which maids keep unespy'd Kushiel's Legacy, Phedre/Joscelin, 1.9k, Explicit. There are few things Phedre has never done. There's one she's never done with Joscelin. Wonderful hot and sweet fic. Het anal, which is rare to see in fanfiction, but so very well-done here. Midwinter Queen The Lion in Winter, Henry/Eleanor, 1.6k, G. Christmas at Chinon, 1183. Conversation gambits keep the Christmas fires burning. Cynical and regretful and funny and heavy, this story does a better job of capturing the voice of the canon than almost any I've read. By Degrees Mansfield Park, Mary Crawford/Fanny Price, 16.6k, Mature. Her conscience had been disturbed, and she could no longer dislike Mary Crawford enough to be safe from her, if such a thing had ever been possible at all. Really excellent slow-burn for one of my favorite Austen ships, and the Fanny characterization is just ideal. Canada Gold Mean Girls, Regina George/Janis Ian, 3.9k, Teen. Regina joined the CIA to catch bad guys. Unfortunately, this time, that meant she had to work with Janis. Yeah, so it turns out that the thing that's been missing from my life is Mean Girls f/f rival spies future-fic. I am so, so glad that this story exists because it's amazing.