#to see him playing a role other than isak

[rainbowdolphinrealm]

Last But Not Least Part 3

Again, thanks for all the likes on Part 2! I think this part was better than the previous 2. I tried to take my time more and I hope that has turned out for the better. Feel free to leave comments, I love feedback! Unless folks specifically request to see Lucien and Elain's trip to the Day Court/their first mating, this will be the final installment of this little ficlet. Next on my docket takes place in this same head cannon but will have more Feyre, Rhys, Nesta, and Cassian in it (as well as Elain and Lucien). Let me know what you all want to read and I'll try to accomodate.

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Lucien had arrived in the Autum Court with plenty of time to support Eris and Gerod’s armies as they assaulted the Forest House from the north.  Finn and Isak were attacking from the south, from Spring’s border.  If there had been time to think and plan, Lucien would have gone to Summer and asked Tarquin for help penning Beron in on the west, but the Vanserra brothers were focused on vengeance and haste.

The Vanserra brothers.  Lucien realized while commanding a contingent of Eris’ forces that he didn’t fall into that category.  Not really.  He had every right to his anger and to fight along side his brothers.  His mother had been murdered, but they were his half-brothers.  She’d used some of her last minutes in this world to tell Lucien that he wasn’t one of Beron’s sons at all.  Lucien was the son of Helion Spell-Cleaver.

He’d gone through so many emotions that day.  There was concern when Elain nudged him, hope when she’d said she missed him, even more hope as they spent the day together, heartache at losing his mother, rage at Beron for murdering her, and shock at learning of his true parentage.  He’d been a courtier long enough, though, to think through the implications of that information.  He had to be careful what role he played in Beron’s demise.  It could never be construed as an act of the Day Court, and if Lucien was truly Helion’s son then . . . . So Lucien had given Eris and Gerod the satisfaction of the combined killing blow.

Thankfully the power of the High Lord transferred to Eris immediately.  Lucien was still surprised that he was grateful for that outcome.  They’d made their peace, though, once Eris explained his role in Lucien’s escape to Spring.  Then when Eris had realized Azriel was his mate, Lucien had been the first brother he told.  Ever since then, they’d been on reasonably good terms.  Heck, Eris was one of the ones who kept telling Lucien not to give up hope with Elain.  So to say that Lucien was fully supportive of Eris as the High Lord or Autumn was an understatement.

Gerod was too.  Beron’s third son had always supported Eris.  Finn and Isak on the other hand were wildcards.  Finn had always hoped for the power to transfer to him and Isak was a spineless lackey of Finn.  Lucien was wary of how they would react when the dust settled. At the end of that first day, though, everyone seemed to accept that Eris was the new High Lord.  Swearing fealty would be the next order of business and Lucien knew he needed to get away before things got that far.  So he found himself knocking on his brother’s suite of rooms, his palms sweaty.

Azriel opened the door.  “Lucien.” he said simply.

Lucien nodded to him.  “Azriel.  I know there’s been a lot today, but is he available?  Just for a few minutes?”

Azriel looked back over his shoulder and then nodded, standing to the side so Lucien could enter.  Eris’ suite of rooms were so quintessential Autumn Court.  The colors were orange, deep red, and deep gold on dark woods.  There was dark green accenting things here and there, like you would see it in a forest during the height of autumn.  Lucien wondered if Azriel would get any voice in the decor now that Beron and his predjudice was out of the picture.

“Thank you,” Eris said as he strode in from the bedchamber, his tunic untucked and open at the top.  “I know you were in shock when I left Night.”

“She was my mother too,” Lucien said a little more harshly than he intended.

Eris nodded slowly.  “But I think she’d told you . . . something . . .”

Lucien’s brows narrowed.  “You know what she told me?”

“I think I do,” he admitted and looked to Azriel.  “I think it’s why you let Gerod and I have the killing blow?”

“How do you know?” Lucien asked, not sure how to feel that Eris and Azriel apparently knew something he only learned that afternoon.

Eris gave him a sympathetic smile.  “You forget, little brother, that I’ve been around much longer than you.  And as much as you look like Mother, you lack the features of my sire.”

Lucien’s mouth opened and closed in surprise.  “Does everyone know?”

“I doubt it,” Azriel put in.  “I’ve known for awhile.  Feyre and Rhys highly suspect, but that’s all that I know of.”  If Azriel said that was the extent of the people who knew, it probably was.  It was Azriel’s job to know things and know who else knew them.

Lucien sighed and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “I don’t even know what to feel about this,” he confessed, surprising himself.

“You could feel relief,” Eris suggested.  “You don’t have to live with the knowledge that your father murdered your mother.”  That last bit sounded pained and bitter.

Azriel joined his mate and took Eris’ hand in his. Mates.

Elain.  Lucien’s mate.  He suddenly remembered her last words to him and the way she’d held him in the minutes after his mother’s death.  “Elain . . .” he said softly.

“Is worried about you,” Azriel said confidently.

“But just this morning we were barely getting to know each other,” Lucien argued.

Azriel nodded.  “But in my experience, Elain is a caretaker.  I think she saw you in need and everything finally clicked into place for her.”

Eris smiled at Lucien.  “You’re welcome to stay, of course, but I wouldn’t be offended if you wanted to get back to her.”

Lucien’s mind was racing.  There was just so much to process!  But he couldn’t deny that he was craving the closeness of his mate.  He looked Eris in the eyes and nodded.  “I will speak with Helion as soon as I can.  I’ll make sure Day supports you if Finn and Isak get any rebellious ideas.”

“Thanks, Lucien,” Eris replied sincerely.  “Hopefully they have senses of self-preservation and will know when they’re beat.”

Lucien nodded his agreement at that sentiment.  “Any message for Rhys?” he asked Azriel.

Azriel shook his head.  “I’ll report in mentally before the night is through.”

“Alright.  Then I’m heading back to Night.  She did say to come home to her,” and he allowed himself a hopeful grin.

“Then don’t keep the lady waiting!” Eris agreed with a broad smile of his own.

Lucien nodded and headed for the suite doors.  As he made his way out of the Forest House, he found himself breaking into an excited jog.  He wanted to get back to the Night Court as fast as he could winnow, but he had to get clear of the main grounds.  As soon as he felt he was passed Eris’ wards, he winnowed to the front of the River House.

He was about to knock on the front door, hoping someone would be up, when Feyre spoke into his mind.  C’mon in, Lucien. Elain’s reading in the sitting room.  Waiting up for you. Lucien opened the door quietly, not sure if Nyx would be easily awakened by his entry, and hurried to the sitting room doors.

They opened before his hand could touch the latch.  Elain was standing before him a little breathless, eyes wide and expectant.  “You’re alright,” she breathed in relief.

Lucien nodded.  “Perfectly fine,” he assured her.  “You . . .”

“Came to my senses,” she finished with a slight blush to her cheeks.  “I don’t know why it took me so long to see you, to really see you, but I did today.”  She closed the distance between them and reached up to put her arms around his neck.

Lucien put his arms around her waist, relishing in the feel of her body close to his.  He realized where they were and looked to the sofa where his mother had told him about her and Helion, where she’d taken her final breaths.  It looked like nothing was amiss.

“Rhys is going to deliver her to the Autumn Court in the morning,” Elain explained, reading into his questioning expression.  “You can go with him of course.”

Lucien nodded first and then shook his head.  “I need to go somewhere else first,” he said and paused, unsure how to explain.

“Can you pause for food and sleep?” she asked, worry etching her face.  She lifted her hand to his face and gently cupped the side, completely unphased by his metal eye.

“Yes,” he agreed.  “I wasn’t really hungry at the Forest House, but maybe I should eat something.”

Elain smiled and let her hand fall, taking him by the hand.  She led him to the kitchen and sat him down at the table.  Neither of the wraiths were in sight, it was just the two of them.  She pulled a roasting pan from the oven and set it on the stove top.  

“Elain . . .” he said, starting to understand why she’d brought him there.

“I have it on good authority that you like a well roasted chicken,” she replied with a smile over her shoulder.

He blinked in surprise, unsure of whether he should stop her or not.  “I do,” he agreed.  “But . . .”

“I’ve never tried to make the carmelized brussel sprouts before,” she continued.  “So maybe don’t try those first.” She continued to fix a plate for him.  She brought it over, and he saw a juicy chicken breast, purple carrots, carmelized brussel sprouts, and a dinner roll on the plate.  “I accept the bond,” and she placed it before him along with utensils and a napkin.

“Elain . . .” Lucien was speechless.  He hadn’t been expecting this.  He’d dreamt of this moment for years now, but he’d almost given up hope that it would ever happen.  He certainly didn’t expect it to occur when he’d woken up that morning.  Of course a lot of things had happened he hadn’t expected when he’d woken up that morning.

Slowly, almost like he was actually in a dream, he picked up the knife and fork and attempted to cut into the chicken.  It fell apart easily and he brought a fokful to his mouth.  Without taking his eyes from Elain’s, he took the bite, savored the perfectly seasoned meat, and swallowed.

Elain was beaming.  “Is it good?” she asked hopefully.

He smiled back at her, surprised that she didn’t know.  “It’s perfect,” he promised.  “Get yourself a plate too.”

“Is that allowed?” she asked, clearly still uncertain about the rules of the occasion.

Lucien chuckled.  “Yes,” he assured her.  “And I will enjoy it all the more if you join me.”

She nodded and went to the cooler.  “First, a little wine,” she said.  “Rhys said this is a good vintage.  I’m sorry to say that I’m not an expert on such things, even in the human world.”  She produced two glasses and poured them each a portion of white wine that Lucien immediately knew was one of the better bottles from Rhys’ personal collection.  He’d thank him for the generosity later.

“When we throw parties, I’ll take care of wine selection,” he assured her.  “Several centuries as a courier had better make me good for something.”

Elain laughed lightly as she served herself a plate of roasted chicken and vegetables as well. 

She sat down and Lucien raised his glass.  Elain raised hers as well.

“To our future,” he said.  “Because I am going to finish every last bite.”

Elain blushed a little but clinked her glass with his and they both sipped at the excellent wine.

As they ate, Lucien gave her a high-level account of the assault on the Forest House.  She’d seen battle before, but she wasn’t a warrior like Nesta or Feyre. She wouldn’t have appreciated all the details.  And that was perfectly fine with him.  He hoped he’d be able to protect her so she’d never be exposed to that sort of ugliness ever again.

As promised, Lucien finished every ounce of food she’d served him.  When he was finished, he reached over and took her hand.  He brought it to his lips and kissed the back of it gently.  “Thank you, Elain.  I will spend the rest of my existence working to make you happy.”

“I will do the same,” she promised a little breathily.  Then she bit her lip, gazing down at the table.  “What happens now?”

Lucien released her hand to gently guide her chin back up.  “Whatever you want,” he said gently, looking in her eyes.  “We can say goodnight here if that makes you more comfortable.”

Her eyes were glistening.  “I’m . . . Lucien, I . . .” she kept trying to speak and stopped herself in frustration.  “Maybe you should tell me what to do?”

“Never,” Lucien said with a shake of his head.  “I don’t get the impression that you have all that much experience in the physical aspects of love and courtship.”

Elain bit her lip and shook her head.  “But I know I should . . .”

But Lucien cut her off.  “There’s no should about these things, Elain,” he promised.  “We’ll take things slow, physically, and I’m certainly not going to push you into anything tonight.”

Elain looked relieved.  “I do love you, Lucien,” she insisted.

“I’m confident of that,” he replied with a loving smile.  “So our forays into physical affection will be meaningful and extra special, but we don’t need to rush.”  He couldn’t help giving her a roguish grin.  “Because we’re mates, and I think that once we start, it may be very difficult to stop.”

“Oh,” she replied and blushed crimson.  She stood quickly and cleared the table, taking the plates to the sink.  “Ceridwen and Nuala said to leave the dishes.  That they’d take care of them.”

Lucien got to his feet and went to the sink, sidling up behind her.  He leaned down, placed a gentle kiss right by her ear, and felt her shiver.  He could feel it was a happy shiver, though, and he smiled.  “I have one other thing I need to tell you,” he said, gently turning her to face him.

“What’s that?” she asked, letting him wrap his arms around her waist.

“I’m not a son of the Autumn Court like I thought,” he said.

She looked at him in confusion.

“My mother, before . . . before . . .” he couldn’t say it.  It was too fresh.

Elain nodded her understanding.

“She told me that I am Helion’s son,” he explained.  “I belong to the Day Court.”

Elain was surprised.  “That’s where you need to go.  To the Day Court?”

Lucien nodded.  “Helion doesn’t know.  About my mother’s passing, about me, about any of it.  I need to speak with him.  Will you come with me tomorrow?”

Elain smiled lovingly up at him, her arms snaking around his neck.  “Of course.”

“Thank you,” he said gratefully.  “I think I can face it all if you’re by my side.”

“I will always be by your side.  From here on out,” she promised.

Lucien took her by the hand and led her from the kitchen.  When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Lucien gently guided her onto the first step and let go of her hand.  “I’ll be back just after breakfast,” he assured her.

“You could come before breakfast,” Elain said urgently.  “Feyre and Rhys won’t mind.”

Lucien chuckled.  “Would you like me to have breakfast with you?”

Elain nodded, biting her lip and Lucien realized she was staring at his lips.  She might not be ready to consummate their mating that evening, but she was certainly thirsty for some physical affection.

Lucien nodded slowly.  “Then I’ll come by in time for breakfast.  Elain . .”

“Hmm. . .?”

“May I kiss you goodnight?” he asked.  He was pretty sure he knew the answer, but he wanted to make sure he didn’t misunderstand.

“Yes please,” she whispered.

Lucien gently took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and brought her closer to him.  Ever so gently, he placed his lips on hers, trying to memorize everything about this first kiss.  Her lips were softer than silk, supple and pliant, and although he wasn’t pushing it, she began to open them to him.  He gently opened them wider with his tongue and found hers.  She was a little timid and inexperienced, but as he coaxed her out, she gained a little confidence and returned his kiss in earnest.  He felt her hand on his arm, giving his bicep a little squeeze, and he slid his own hand around to brace the back of her head.  He could feel the mating bond driving him to get more from her so he pulled back gently.

“That was lovely!” she exclaimed quietly, as if she were surprised by it.

Lucien chuckled.  “I’m glad.”

Elain wrapped him in a tight hug quickly and then released him with a smile.  “Until tomorrow morning, then.”

“Until tomorrow morning,” he agreed with a nod.

She turned and headed up the winding staircase towards the River House’s residential wing.  He watched her go until she was out of sight before turning and heading for the front door. 

He had no idea how Helion was going to take the news that he was a father, albeit of a full-grown male.  He was fairly certain the news of his mother’s passing was going to be devastating for the Day Court’s High Lord, though.  Hopefully having Elain there would help.  She was such a ray of sunshine, Lucien almost hoped Helion would acknowledge him as a son so that Elain could spend more time in the Day Court.  It was almost like she was made for it.

[zalrb]

what are some well written gay ships?

Kevin and Chiron, Moonlight

Moonlight is such a beautiful movie that relies very little on dialogue and mostly on cinematic language and a lot of the development and emotion between these two characters are embodied by the actors rather than spoken but I mean, I always reference the script

Mickey and Ian, Shameless

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/188937903460/why-do-you-like-gallavich

Even and Isak, SKAM

It’s been a while since I’ve watched SKAM but I remember appreciating the balance between Even and Isak just being initially drawn to each other and the narrative of how they get closer to each other, what they do when they are together, the internal obstacles they faced and overcome.

Burt and Irving, Severance

I love Burt and Irving for so many reasons but one of them is the quick establishment of their relationship in like five scenes because every single thing they do is loaded and pointed and deliberate to create this very strong bond in a very short amount of time. So, when an anon was like: " Seriously though *Irving and Burt do anything* Me: 🥺" I was like yeah because literally anything and everything they do serves their love story:

LOL well it also helps that every single they do is loaded, like it’s actually really skilful build up in a very short period of time. Before we even meet Irving we know that no one in the office likes him and he’s excluded from the camaraderie of the office and that no one takes working at Lumon as seriously as he does

so that when he meets Burt — who right out the gate mentions how underappreciated he and his department is —

and genuinely compliments his handiwork, which Burt appreciates and then they bond over what the painting means to them,

everything that’s being said means something more even though it sounds mundane

and mentioning the tote bag becomes symbolic of their intimacy

and so every look, every movement, every word actually means a lot so you really are witnessing a love story unfolding in *Irving and Burt do anything*

Damon and Ricky, Pose (until they break up, which was just ... ANYWAY)

Kena and Ziki, Rafiki

Again, like Evak, there’s that initial draw to each other and then the movie is spent watching them spend time together and fall in love

and music and colouring plays a really big role in indicating where they are in their relationship. It’s a very cute movie.

Yuri and Viktor, Yuri on Ice

what’s really great about it is that the sensuality and the eroticism springs from the fact that this is a love story beyond platonic love, beyond romantic love, it’s just love? Like it’s actually pure, true love between two human beings who share a connection with each other and it isn’t innocent it’s just uncorrupted but also surprisingly seductive.

Lady Hideko and Sook-Hee, The Handmaiden

I remember a few critics said that the sex scenes were excessive and I didn’t really feel that way, I think the explicit eroticism made sense considering that for her entire life, Hideko had been used and abused by men to please them, she’d been described as soulless and cold and frigid and the sex scenes illustrated that that’s untrue and a form of liberation from the abuse she’d endured.

Connor and Oliver in HTGAWM is odd because I don't think they have the best writing. Like, narratively speaking, particularly in season one, I’m not really sure what they love so much about each other, I’m not really sure why Oliver’s apartment is where Connor goes when he’s having a panic attack after Sam’s murder but the actors did a very good job in portraying their relationship

and as the seasons went on, their writing got better.

Kima and Cheryl, The Wire

There wasn’t too much space or too much writing for Kima and Cheryl in The Wire but what little there was, I thought was good. Not that their relationship was perfect, in fact we see its implosion but it was well-crafted.

Jack and Ennis, Brokeback Mountain

Particularly if you look at just how faithful the movie is to the short story.

Raymond and Kevin, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Jeff and Mateo, Superstore (until they just decided to do away with them)

Merlin and Arthur. Yes. I’m putting them down.

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/660835290321125376/why-do-you-think-merlin-and-arthur-from-merlin-bbc

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/182433707595/when-did-you-think-arthur-and-merlin-fell-in-love

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/181019166225/ok-so

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/613952218265255936/what-do-you-think-arthur-loves-about-merlin-and

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/190837480910/i-know-we-as-the-audience-can-see-the-devotion-and

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/187905729775/do-you-ever-think-arthur-wonders-why-merlin-is-so

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/187588994620/what-do-you-think-about-the-scene-when-merlin

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/183314887725/what-do-you-think-of-5x03-of-merlin-5x03-the

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/182413718595/idontbelieveinheads-zalrb-this-has-got-to-be

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/180899462085/sorry-i-just-really-like-doing-breakdowns

https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/180850075080/next-to-the-fact-that-arthur-literally-saves

Honourable mentions: Jalec

No, they’re not romantically together and Jace is het. I don’t care. I maintain that that relationship was the only well-written, well-portrayed thing of that entire shitshow and their chemistry was painfully non-platonic. 

[tarjeismoeworknews]

This performance will leave you with a huge lump in your throat

Tarjei Sandvik Moe excels in the role of a young man who plans a school shooting in Lars Norén’s play “20 November".

5

THEATRE

“20 November" by Lars Norén Director: Ilene Sørbøe With: Tarjei Sandvik Moe Teaterkjeller’n, Centralteatret

Even if Oslo again has become a more open city and summer has made its full entry into the capital this weekend, there are places that the summer light will not reach. Like Teaterkjeller’n at Centralteatret, for example. In there it’s pitch black these days when Lars Norén's “20 November” finally gets to meet a small audience. And thanks to Norén's terrific text, Ilene Sørbø's steady direction, and last but certainly not least Tarjei Sandvik Moe's fabulous role interpretation, this darkness is one of the most unpleasant you can experience on a summer day in Oslo in 2021.

And I don’t know, maybe some performances benefit from being stored for a while - just like good wine. For “20 November” should have premiered in the spring of 2020, which by now is beginning to be quite a long time ago, but its effect on the audience has by no means faded over the past time.

“20 November” is a play written by Swedish Lars Norén, who died of covid-19 in January this year, and the German actress Anne Tismer, in the wake of a school massacre in Germany committed by 18-year-old Sebastian Bosse. The play premiered in 2007 and is thus fourteen years old. But the topic is unfortunately still very relevant. Bosse left behind diary notes and poems that have become part of the stage text, and this documentary material makes us get uncomfortably close to the young boy who wanted revenge on all his childhood bullies, all the materialistic, meaningless people around him, and the whole system that he experienced a great and ever-growing hatred for. In the play, we meet him an hour and ten minutes before he is to carry out the massacre against his former school.

But really: Tarjei Sandvik Moe must be one of our most talented young actors. Since he took Norway by storm in the role of Isak in the TV series Skam, he has shown his large register through other roles in TV, film and theater. The role of Sebastian is perhaps one of his best to date. For not only does he fill the cold young man with moments of recognizable warmth, but he also gives the character a body language that expresses a complex of emotions: there is a tense nervousness in him combined with a feeling of power, while we at the same time sense the sadness and powerlessness in his face even though his face is quite devoid of emotional expression. And then he laughs occasionally. At himself, at us in the audience, who he constantly talks to and about and who are part of the society he wants to affect, and at quite ordinary things that young people like to laugh at.

The laughter is both liberating and contagious, but it does not prevent me from sitting through the whole performance with a lump that alternates between being in my throat and in my stomach.

In Oscar Udbye's spartan scenography, Sebastian walks like on a small, black catwalk; he wants to be seen. And he wants to see. On two large screens, we twenty in the audience can see ourselves and the area we are sitting in, as on surveillance cameras. It is Sebastian who is watching us. This emphasizes the confrontational style of this play and makes us part of the system Sebastian hates.

But even though this is a strong and brutal performance that touches us who watches, I wonder a bit about the actual effect of the performance. For as Sebastian himself says; people are going to commit similar crimes after him as well. And considering that both the real and the fictional Sebastian basically said this 15 years ago or more, we know today that he is unfortunately right. Because even though Sebastian in the form of Sandvik Moe scares the shit out of us, and makes us realize that what bad energy we’ve sent out into the world may quickly come back to hit us, we know that people still find a strange pleasure in trolling both online and in real life, and that terrorist acts and massacres are planned and carried out. 

This has also been shown in connection with another Norén piece about breaks in society, where the result was different than what Noren had planned. I’m thinking of the play “7:3” from 1999, where two of the actors were inmates who committed serious crimes, even murders, during the leave they were given to make theater with Norén. Norén's idea had always been that the play should contribute to something good for the prisoners and lead them back into society in a positive way. But reality trumped the artist and the theater. So what about all the Sebastians out there - will “20 November” help us to see them before it's too late? I'm not sure, but if the answer is even close to a yes, Teaterkjeller’n should open its doors to as many people as possible as soon as possible. And then the audience will get a fantastic acting performance to boot.

Big thanks to @evakcardamom for givinig me a head up about this great review

[inmyarmswrappedin]

Im gonna pin a small part of skam's lost allure on Tarjei and the rest on NRK/remakes. For Tarjei's part, his character is credited for being a large part of the reason that skam found int'l success, but my dude wanted no parts of the fame/small celebrity that came with it. He stomped out that hype. As for NRK, in signing off on remakes that mostly cheapen the skam name, they fried the skam legacy. Disposable remakes that don't ever inspire/require a rewatch = the slow death of a fandom

Hi anon 🗿 I mean, I guess? This is such a weird ask. I don't doubt you feel this way, along with other people. I just don't think what appealed to you about Skam is what appealed to everyone.

First off, your ask appears to praise Tarjei for disappearing after Skam, but at the same time lowkey places responsibility upon him for Skam losing its ~allure. And tbh, the only thing that Tarjei has done differently is avoiding fan conventions. He has done many interviews, both print and video, and talked about Skam. He has gone to Pride events for Skam. He has participated in awareness campaigns for Skam (such as the pink elephant one). Hell, he made himself super available both during Skam and after, by participating in low budget stage plays like those of Antiteateret, which were very easy for moneyed stans to attend and then demand that he do stagedoor for. And if that weren't enough, his last year and a half of high school was turned into a meet and greet that he didn't sign up for. If he didn't attend fan cons so stans could get some residual evak dopamine hits, that doesn't mean he turned his back on his Skam fame and celebrity lmao. He seems very aware that he can afford to do whatever he wants because of Skam (not in terms of money because I’m pretty sure Skam didn’t pay that well, but in terms of industry cred and the roles offered to him).

Needless to say that, for me, fan conventions don't keep Skam's ~allure alive or are what appealed to me about Skam in the first place. Again, I don't doubt that people (many people even) are in it to continuously relive evak over and over, be it through Isak season remakes or through being in Henrik's vicinity at conventions or his mom's defunct restaurant.

As for the disposable remakes. First off, it's clear NRK did its best to protect the brand as much as it could. It required a number of things from the remake teams, such as compulsory research among local (to the remake country) teens. It's also pretty obvious (to me anyway) that one of the seasons had to be about a LGBTI main, another about a girl of color, and another touch on sexual assault. I'm pretty sure they'd have sold the show to many more countries if said countries could pass on one or more of these mains. There were reports that many more countries than ended up signing were interested in Skam. And tbh, if NRK didn't give two fucks about the Skam name like you suggest, if they were only in it for the money, then what stopped them from allowing every version to do an Even season, a lesbian Vilde season, a white gay Mahdi/Penetrator Chris/Jonas/background actor season, etc? I'm not going to say NRK hasn't signed off on some dodgy original season concepts, but lol idk about blaming NRK for the remake teams being incompetent.

As for rewatchability... eh. That's such a subjective aspect. For instance, Robbe's season is so boring and just badly made as far as I'm concerned, but some people think it's even better than Isak's season and certainly contains more shower scenes. People still rewatch Cris' season a ton, and I assume same goes for Lucas L's. @liburnapworld posted screenshots showing clips from Nora G's season reaching 10+ MILLION views. And I have personally rewatched Matteo's season more times than I care to mention. I would even rewatch what was out even while the season was still dropping. I also find that Skam Austin s2 is very rewatchable because you can see how the team was developing the side characters' future storylines in ways that most remake characters were probably not allowed to be developed. (Because the Austin contract had different clauses, like for instance Jo would've been allowed to have a season, and probably Kelsey as well.) Again, I don't doubt that many evak stans watched the s3 remakes (and only the s3 remakes, not the s1 and s2 remakes) once to relive the evak dopamine hit, but otherwise found them to be cheap and disposable. It just feels like that's not taking into account the people who showed up for Cris, Joana, Matteo, David, Lola, Shay, Jo, Fatou, Nora M, Nora G, Kieu My or Ava, and liked Eva, Noora, Isak and Sana well enough, or even A LOT, until these remake characters showed up.

[sotorubio]

I'm really confused cus ppl are attacking tiff for taking control of her life, saying she doesn't need to be rescued. I thought that's a good thing? But people are saying it's fake feminism because she was so mean to lola before. But isn't that the whole point of skam? People have this "shame" in their life that they grow from? Like how everyone wanted lola to be forgiven for stuff she did to other people in s6, (eliott, lucas, daphne, etc ,) because she had her own struggles but had grown /was growing from it? But with tiff we're not supposed to support her? It's hilarious how people have decided there's a right and a wrong way to react to clips and it you don't fit the "right" reaction box then you're some kind of heathen 😔

well if we're talking real life ofc something like that is a good thing, finding ur strength after going through trauma is always good n a common "feminist" trope is that a girl recognizes that she needs no man or whatever. i haven't been that active on here recently so i haven't seen the reactions to it but this season has not been a feminist one in the least no matter how many catchphrases they throw in there

above all this season is abt a cis, white, straight and rich girl so. failed step one. ppl need to understand that if feminism isn't intersectional it's worthless n this doesn't just mean they should've picked someone else for the role (which they should've, but there's more to it) u can't make a feminist season abt a white girl if ur gonna villanize all ur woc especially the black women. u can't make a feminist season abt a cishet, rich girl if ur gonna make the bisexual poor girl ignore the fact that this is the person who played w her trauma just a year before. u can't make a feminist season abt a rich girl if the previous season she was overworking her privilege to show how classist she was (which the fans love to forget bc they don't see poor ppl as oppressed lol) and again u can't make a feminist season abt a white girl if all her Cool Feminist Moments only happen when she's talking to a black man such as her snarky "that wasn't an invitation" when aurélien tried to kiss her or her physically attacking him bc he? cares abt their daughter? being consider a Powerful Mom Thing

if all this didn't exist sure it would be considered feminist for her to not need saving, but when we put it in the context of literally everything else we can see that this is yet another poor attempt at taking a cliché feminist phrase that u could see written by a male avengers movie director for woke points. ppl need to understand that tiff has huge amounts of privilege over both aurélien (being white) n max (being cis) so her being a woman doesn't even automatically place her social status "beneath" these men. even just outside of fandom shit ppl should understand that supporting certain women will inherently be anti feminist, just bc ur cheering on a woman doesn't make u feminist.

then second abt the shame thing & lola. the "shame" in all skam seasons has always been smth "innate" due to the lack of a better world. smth that the society shames u for. the isak seasons r abt being gay bc society makes ppl ashamed of gayness, but u don't think being gay is a "shame" do u? neither is being a muslim, but the sana seasons r abt that bc again the "shame" is smth society perpetuates. the fact that tiff was "mean to lola" (she was a classist, she told her to kill herself, she made her trauma n mental illness into her own little joke) is not her "shame" bc that was her choice....that's smth she chose to do she isn't misunderstood or oppressed bc she hates poor ppl lmao. if they made made a season abt the nico character would u say his shame is sexual harassment? i doubt it. bc that's not smth he's involuntarily shamed for that's an action he chose to take.

also tiff n lola's "forgiveness" or lack thereof isn't comparable. first of all i'm not sure why u mentioned lucas? she never rly did anything to him but he on the other hand has a shitload to apologize for to her. abt eliott & daphné i also don't quite understand bc as for daphné they had a mutually toxic sibling dynamic, both failing at communication n treating each other badly but like.. even in that situation daphné was literally stalking her sister so again not sure what blame lola has on her here. n for eliott i also don't get what she should've apologized for like if u mean the club clips then u r in the wrong place bc lola didn't even do anything bad other than be rude which every other character is also guilty of smfjlskd

like see the difference? tiff & lola's conflict wasn't mutual, tiff chose to harass n stalk her based on nothing at all, she was only able to do that bc of the privilege n power she (a white cishet rich girl) has over lola (a bisexual mentally ill poor girl). i don't see how those two r in any way comparable.

so i guess that's my explanation for it. as for ur last point i do agree i don't know why it's anyone else's problem how others react to clips but even then i do think we need to understand that skam remakes take pride in their "diversity" n "representation" so sometimes certain reactions actually r objectively wrong. like saying "i liked this clip" or "i didn't like this clip" is all cool n no one should get hate for that but if ppl watch a clip where certain stereotypes r used unironically n their decision is to actually enforce the harmful message n not waste any of their three braincells for critical thinking bc It'S jUsT FiCtiOn then u r not immune to me thinking ur a brainless idiot

[filmmakerdreamst]

‘Boy Meets World’ Re-watch (as an Adult)

‘Girl Meets World’ doesn’t count as a sequel. Not because of the writing/tonal choices but because in the original show - despite continuity issues - the characters felt like real people e.g. the way they spoke/acted/dressed was the way people behaved in the 90s where as in the spin off, they were Disney characters e.g. hyper versions of themselves especially Cory and Eric. And the transition between both shows didn’t come naturally. It’s not an objectivity badly written show but it was pretty much a re-do of the old show with the same storylines/tropes without continuing the story. (I say the same thing about ‘The Incredibles’. vs ‘Incredibles 2’.) Also there were too many cooks in the kitchen pushing one way or another. You could see Micheal Jacobs style, all the aspects were there, but he was also creating a ‘DISNEY’ show at the same time. I don’t know about you but the one message I took from the original show was ‘finding out that life cannot be packenged into a lovely little present ’ which kind of contradicts everything that the new show is. If anything GMW is an AU universe (and it really felt like that, rewatching it right after BMW e.g. it felt flipped) almost like Disney’s version of ‘what happened next?’ The primal difference between both shows is BMW is portraying what is real and GMW is based on what is real.

Going off my point, I will however be always thankful that it exists because I probably wouldn’t of found out about ‘Boy Meets World’ otherwise. Although saying that, I never thought that the original show needed a continuation of any kind (a lot of things make sense about the spin off if you acknowledge that Disney requested it - I think it would of been much better off on its original platform) ‘Boy Meets World’ was very much a product of its time i.e. when tv shows were still relevetivley new and had no rules - like there is stuff in there that not even adult shows today have. Plus there was something about it that felt very personal (such as the characters and setting) as if the creator based it on his own childhood growing up and I think that was part of its charm and why it had such a big effect on pop culture - I’m not so sure you can repeat that.

BMW is big on meta I’ll tell you that. I love how it’s so aware of itself. The amount of depth that it has never ceases to amaze me. It’s whole universe is so dense and huge. Every quote/storyline is so unique it sticks in your brain forever. (I swear the humour got more and more deranged every season). The show was also incredibly queer and progressive.  It didn’t give a crap about sexuality. Much more than I remember. Proof to never use ‘but it was made in the 90s’ excuse.        

I loved how the show kept reinventing itself every season as Cory grew up so you really felt you were growing up with him and all the characters. The Character Development on this show was so natural/authentic. Every single character got a chance to shine. No one changed their look in one episode and no one had an intervention every time someone had an identity crisis (GMW) My favourite development was Shawn Hunter. He went from a cool kid to a ladies man to a poetic soul. It was so satisfying to watch.

I realised that Cory Matthews is actually my favourite character (before it was Eric or Shawn) I already have a special soft spot for ‘annoying’ characters because they tend to be the most memorable/real. For example, Karma Ashcroft from ‘Faking it’ was my babe while everyone was hating on her. I really related to his anxiety/self hatred about being average and I loved that he constantly made mistakes. It was very refreshing. He’s also incredibly queer-coded. I found that alot of his mannerisms make sense if you see him with extreme compulsory heterosexuality (because identity’s such as bisexual or gay couldn’t exist normally in the 90s) There are moments in the show where he literally mimics his best friend’s behaviour around girls e.g. when the class pretty much gets brainwashed by the sex ed video in ‘Boy Meets Girl’ Shawn gets asked out by a girl, making Cory jealous - which pushes him to ask out Topanga.

It’s funny how a few years of life experience can change perspectives completely because when I was sixteen (aka the same age as Cory and Topanga) watching BMW for the first time, I was mad at Amy for ‘not understanding that they were in love’ (in ‘A Walk to Pittsburg’) but now that I’m older I’m actually agreeing with her. Yeah, what do they know about love? Because all season long they were acting quite superficially.

Cory and Topanga became somewhat of a toxic couple in seasons 5 -7. Reminded me of my parents relationship because my mum gave up her chosen university to be closer to my dad and they aren’t together any more. Topanga’s love for Cory was very conditional and Cory cheated on her multiple times/openly begged for sex  (Again like my parents) And you should never be in a relationship with someone who makes you say “You make me think not so very much of myself” There are arguably much more signs of emotional abuse than love in their relationship especially from Topanga’s side. Plus their story was altered so many times to give it more basis (they retconned Shawn and Cory’s friendship to do this) I could write an essay on how Kevin and Winnie’s love story on ‘The Wonder Years’ is much more believable because it actually addresses how toxic it was and they grow apart in the end. If GMW was a realistic continuation, they would be divorced with a little girl - leave them in the 90s where they belong.

Alan and Amy were couple goals! Cory and Topanga wish that they could have what they have. Literally the definition of ‘a healthy relationship on tv that keeps thriving and over coming obstacles without big drama’. Best TV parents ever.

I loved the Matthews family; how they all had individual arcs and developments of their own. One of my favourite arcs was in season 5, when Eric and Cory were both jealous of what they ‘didn’t have’ with their dad, so Alan made an effort to give them both that they needed. Honestly, I had never seen so much healthy communication on TV before. Alan is the best father around. His whole personal arc of giving up managing a supermarket because he wasn’t passsionate about it anymore and buying a mountain store was so inspired. I found it funny that the family had more of a relationship with Shawn than Topanga.

Shawn Hunter never caught a break. It got a bit tiring. He was never allowed to be happy for five minutes. Every time he laughed or smiled, 5 years were added onto my lifespan. Why didn’t Johnathan Turner adopt him? I loved their dynamic. Why did he let him go back to his abusive father who just dumped him anyway?

Jack and Shawn’s complicated dynamic was possibly the most unique/interesting arc of the entire show and no one talks about it. I don’t care what y’all say - despite them being very different, Jack was the only one who fully took care of Shawn without second thoughts (Turner and the Matthews family had doubts)

I liked Shawn and Angela. I thought they were much better suited than Cory and Topanga. I honestly wouldn’t of minded if they ended up together even though I always had a feeling they wouldn’t. (Like I’m glad she went with her dad in the end) And considering how important they were as a interracial couple in the 90s, GMW handled that very poorly.

Shawn and Cory should of ended up together. And before you come at me with ‘it’s important to have m/m friendships without toxic masculinity’ (which is an important arguement to have) - yeah no shit there’s an entire Industry based around that/pitting women against each other. While it is important to have those friendships between men that are close and even intimate (take Chandler and Joey, Schmidt and Nick, Isak and Jonas and Jake and Charles for example) there was also another layer to their relationship which the narrative played off sometimes as them “going out” or “in love”.  I actually recently found out that a writer - who came into the show in season 3 - confirmed that she wrote gay undertones into their relationship on purpose ‘In my opinion as a writer, they thought they were “straight”, they both didn’t realise or understand their feelings for eachother’ but couldn’t deliever because the producers wanted to keep the show “kid friendly”. Kind of like Xena and Gabby. I know people prefer Jack & Eric (I love them as well) but everything got ruined for me as soon as they introduced the ‘love triangle’ and I always tend to prefer emotional tension over sexual. They were just so unconditional with each other/ their friendship was so good and healthy and now I’m so bitter that it never happened.

I never understood why Shawn and Cory had to stop being best friends after he got married. He’s not Topanga’s property. I always hated how Topanga tried to interrupt/interfere with their dynamic — although now I realise it was because the two of them purposely left her out. Looking back at it, If it really was just a intimate friendship then why would she get so easily jealous if she didn’t sense there was something else deeper going on? You should never marry someone who puts you second.

I didn’t like Topanga when she was with Cory (or vice versa) Especially after they got married. She was a great character on her own. Feminist before her time. Hermione Granger before her time. I always felt she deserved a lot better than him in a way e.g. if someone I considered a friend speard a rumour around high school that we slept together - I would never speak to that person again. SHE SHOULD OF GONE TO YALE GOD DAMN IT. And as someone pointed out the other day, if the roles were reversed some of the stuff she does or says to Cory would be considered domestic violence. ‘She’s always blaming Cory on shit that isn't even his fault or makes him feel bad or shuts down his emotions and turns it around so he's comforting her instead.’ There was even a moment in GMW (not that I consider that show a continuation) where she locks him out the house for a few days after he insulted her chicken, and his son Auggie had to bring him spaghetti. If Cory was a woman, that would not be played off as a joke - that would be considered abuse. They were however a better couple in GMW ironically.

Angela Moore is now one of my favourite characters on BMW. She was beautiful. Her friendship with Rachel (and Topanga) was the best. And I frickin’ loved her and Cory’s friendship development - when they could of easily not played into that. I hate that she got villiaized in GMW.

My favourite seasons are 4, 5 & 1. My least favourites are 3 & 2 & 7. And even then the show was still pretty darn good.

The back and fourth clash between Turner and Mr Feeny in season 2 was very entertaining.

Mr Feeny and Eric are my favourite relationship on ‘Boy Meets World’. I love how Eric was the only person that Feeny directly told that he loved him. Also, why didn’t Eric become the new Mr Feeny? He showed more traits of becoming a teacher in the show than Cory did.

Eric and Tommy was probably the most heartbreaking plot line in season 6. (That season was an emotional train wreck) I cried for a fourth time. The world doesn’t deserve him.

I loved the development of Shawn and Topanga’s friendship. Even though there was a silent competition over Cory, they eventually became good friends. I found out that the song ‘She will be loved’ was inspired by them which is awesome but it’s also proof that people ship for less if it’s an m/f dynamic - just sayin’. I however see a more convincing potiental romance with the two of them than Cory and Topanga sometimes.

On Cory and Topanga again - they weren’t a bad couple overall. I liked them in s1 - 3. They had some great moments. But upon my rewatch (getting out of that 90s idealised headspace) I found them to be too similar at times - chafing as another person put it - to the point where they cancel each other out. A lot of people pointed out that Riley and Maya paralleled them and I was thinking “That’s not nesserily a good thing.”

‘Dream. Try. Do good.’ is on my mantelpiece.

[auroraayyye]

SKAM: An analysis

Part 3

Tonight i’m analysing one of my personal favourites, a beauty among the remakes. It is none other than...

SKAM Italia (The one that rose from the dead)

Likes:

This is probably the most basic thing but italian is such a beautiful language. Sometimes i forget to put on subtitles to understand what they’re actually saying.

I like Eva’s red hair

All the curly curlssss

Norwegian and Italian culture is very different. So it was fun to see which major changes had to be made to make the series Italian in a cultural way.

I personally find Martino’s season to be one of the most interesting interpretations of the «Isak-season».

Many international viewers did react to the lack of parents in the original series. Which is true! In Norway youth tend to become independent from an early age and often move away from their parents as early as 15. That doesn’t mean that parents are not a part of their life at all, but ofcourse less than if the youth was living at home. Therefore it was very nice to see how SKAM Italia changed that and the role especially Martinos mother played in his season, which was not as physically present in the original.

I also liked that they switched out the bus with a radio station! This is not something that’s regular in my country, so it added this foreign, interesting background that mixed up the story slightly.

I think this remake is very beautiful. The cinematogrophy really gives me an «italian vibe» and a certain beauty to scenes i haven’t necessarily paid as much attention to in other versions.

The boys in this remake are supreme. They’re all really funny and supportive, and they’re probably one of my favourite remakes of the boys.

I think Eva og Martino’s friendship is very well displayed in this one, including the drama from Eva’s season. I really think putting those seasons right after eachother, not with a season between, really helped that storyline. I think Eva, Isak, Noora, Sana, is a much more natural progression that the original one.

The struggle of homophobia and discrimination based on that was a much clearer and concrete topic in this version. Which Martino also speaks about in the «speach» at the end of his season.

I like the Filippo/Elia thing that the fandom really pushed on with. It was fun and sweet. Generally a very nice fandom.

The scenes with the boys at the cabin in season 2. They’re all great, honestly the best part of the season.

Based on the subtitles i could find many of the dialogues are very good and actually discuss the topic. Some remakes are guilty of just never talking about the shit that happens, but Italia isn’t one of them!

First off I am not Italian myself, but through my experiences and research about Italian culture I think i can say that some of the topics from the series are definitely even more taboo than they were in Norway. I appreciate that courage to make a series about topics such as homosexuality and Islam, in a culture where it isn’t as easy as in my own. I hope that doesn’t sound arrogant and that you understand what I mean. OG SKAM was a brave show, although in a very liberal country.

Dislikes:

The inavailability. Some versions have geoblock and some don’t. I respect both solutions. But when TIMvision was asking people to pay for that content alone, it got a bit frustrating. The SKAM concept has a very large international audience, and to shut not only them but also the national ones out was a bad move. I understand that the budget was low but I still don’t think that was the way to go. One did not «stumble upon» SKAM Italia, you searched for it, badly.

The cancellation and The Netflix take over. Don’t get me wrong, i LOVE netflix for taking on SKAM Italia (which was very much thanks to engaged fans!!!) and giving it it’s fourth and final season, and making sure that the important Sana season was made. But there was a big gap between the third and fourth, which for me harmed the continuity. Also season four didn’t follow the original SKAM posting pattern, just dropping the entire season at once. All of this i really think cost them a lot of viewers, as it became less exciting to follow.

I’m gonna admit right now I have not seen the last season. It was just recently uploaded to Italian Netflix and there are much fewer accounts that are posting it online. For me Martino’s season stands out as the golden star of the show. Eva’s season was okay, and I feel Elounora’s season (although the rainscene was beautiful) was very predictable and less exciting. Might be an unpopular opinion, but that’s what I think.

You know I love Italian, but compared to my own language, my oh my are your words and sentences long. They’ll be talking for ages, and the english subtitles will consist of five words. Sounds beautiful though, it’s not really a complaint.

Favourite characters:

Martino Rametta. If you read through all of this it probably doesn’t come as a shock. It’s a very well written character and Federico Cesari performed it beautifully. I think it really portrays the loneliness, anger and frustration within the Isak-character, at the same time as Martino made it his own. Because it also shows all the love and will within the Isak-character, which are two different emotional weights that can be hard to balance, so kudos to the writers and actor. Building the character so well made sure that the «Martinico»-storyline didn’t take over the entire season. Additionally i also enjoyed his relationship with his mother, the boys and Eva.

Giovanni Garau. If Gio isn’t one of your favourite characters, did you even watch the series? He’s such a nice and trustworthy guy, and such a good friend. The coming out scene is almost better than the original. Although I love the fact that Jonas simply does not give a single frick is great and also a bit funny, it was nice to see a reinvention of the scene. It still wasn’t a «big deal» but you can still see that it meant something, in a greater deal than other remakes. You can tell that Gio finally understands and that he’s also relieved that Martino told him. And you can also tell how much it meant to Martino. Idk man, i just think that scene is beautiful. Gio was a good friend before that, and follows that up after that scene as well. There’s a reason that multiple remakes’ tumblrtags have at some point contained posts like «Fly in Gio Garau».

Filippo Sava. Fun twist to make him Elounora’s brother! Defintely played an important part in multiple seasons. He was a great Eskil, and I like him for many of the same reasons that I liked the original character. He’s caring, serious and funny, with slightly better timing than the norwegian one. He’s more of a natural part of the gang, and I like him. And the last episode of Martino’s season when he sees Niccolò, and just gives this thumbs up and «not bad» face to Martino, priceless.

Okay so that’s it for SKAM Italia, hopefully I will get to watching the fourth season sometime soon. If I were to give this one an award I would say it is the most beautiful remake and I think it is slightly more poetic and artistic than the rest. Let me know if you agree or disagree! Which one should I do next?

[axiomsofice]

Group A:

 Owen Power, D, NCAA

This is likely the only pick that we’ll be able to predict with much conviction. It’s a package that is impossible to ignore, a huge frame, good passing skills, and already contributing at a high level. Seeing as the second-to-last defenceman to go 1st (Ekblad, get well) just started to transform into his best self, and with Dahlin posting uneven results early in his journey, there shouldn’t be an expectation for Power to make the jump to Buffalo next season. Especially given he’d be headed back to Michigan, a higher level than junior, this should be an ideal place for him to hone his craft for a year or two before the Sabre slide him into their top 4.

 Group B: 2nd to 10th

 Some consensus should be coming as we approach the draft, but in general it wouldn’t be surprising for these players to be selected anywhere in this range. Central accounting’s lists were quite surprising and I definitely take their opinions to heart, along with many other opinions as well. I’ve divided them by position.

 Defence:

 Brandt Clarke, D, Slovakia (via OHL)

Clarke went overseas to find playing time this season, playing pro in Slovakia. He’s got a lot of agility, or shiftiness, with and without the puck. He’s aggressive in pursuing offence with his passing and skating, and has the quality to make plays and even score goals when he jumps up into the play.

 Luke Hughes, D, USNDTP

The third instalment of the Hughes Brothers (Quinn and Jack), Luke is bigger than his brothers and amongst the youngest of the draft class. He has all the tools we’ve come to expect from the family interns of puck skills and skating prowess, although time will tell maybe not quite to the level of his brothers, but nonetheless standouts amongst this draft class. Given his age, and playing at a lower level than the rest of these top ranked defenders, the baseline of at least one more year before thinking about jumping to the NHL might be 2 for Hughes. With patience and development, Hughes could prove to have the most upside among blueliners in this class.

 Simon Edvinsson, D, SHL

Not quite as tall as Power, but Edvinsson a big person in his own right. He uses this size and his skating to be a really effective defender. His offensive game, especially his passing and decision making, or perhaps better framed as transitions, is still a bit raw. Surviving in the SHL at this age is definitely an accomplishment, and the hope is that next season he can make a bigger difference in that league. It seems all but guaranteed he’ll be able to contribute in the NHL at some point, the question is more about how much.

 CENTRE

 Matt Beniers, C, NCAA

Beniers is definitely the prospect I’ve seen the most of in the class, and especially early in the season I had almost cone to terms with ranking him number 1. Although it is significant to me that Central Scouting had him as their 6th NA skater. He’ll be described as a 2-way centre, maybe a 2nd line type of centre, and I wonder if it’s mostly due to a perceived lack of upside that others might have jumped past him. Regardless, he’s already succeeding in at Michigan and played a big role on the Gold Medal U20 US team. He supports his teammates all over the ice and is a great passing outlet from breakouts to zone entries. He does have some skill and is probably my favourite to go 2nd overall at this point (June).

 Mason McTavish, C, SUI (via OHL)

Another OHL top prospect who had to venture overseas for ice time, McTavish performed really well in a men’s pro league. Perhaps a bit more powerful in skating and style than Beniers, the situation with the OHL, a strong U18 performance, and a high season end Central Scouting Ranking (2nd NA), it’s likely McTavish will be considered a late riser, even though it’s not as if a strong development curve wasn’t expected. Especially as we get closer to the draft we should expects to see his name solidify itself in this 2-10 group, especially given his position.

 WINGS

 William Eklund, W, SHL

Eklund posted really good results in the SHL this year. He is able to contribute offensively in many ways, and at this point his game seems to be more effective than astounding. Having succeeded at such a high level already it’s hard to imagine he won’t be able to make a difference on an NHL roster in a year or two.

 Kent Johnson, W, NCAA

Johnson might be a good foil to Eklund in that his play oozes skill, often able to makes and see plays at an extremely high level. He was able to translate it into both a strong performance at Michigan, and a high spot on Central Scoutings’ List. The fact that they ranked him above Beniers is very interesting to me, and says that scouts think his game will take well as he moves into higher levels. He is very fun to watch and attacks laterally in a way that only the high quality players can.

 Dylan Guenther, W, WHL

19/20 was strong for Guenther, and a short and strange season for the WHL was enough for him to grow his reputation. He averaged both a goal and an assist per game in 24 games this season, basically playing as well as he could have. The CHL leagues were probably most affected among top development leagues, so it’s hard to know how much that affected things. That being said, should he return to the WHL it’ll be a tall task to improve his offensive output. Despite playing at a lower level he is very much in the mix with Eklund and Johnson, and it is quite likely there will be nothing close to a consensus on which order these wingers are selected.

 Goalie

 Jesper Wallstedt, G, SHL

More and more often were seeing really high ranked goaltenders, and as more of them start to pan out, it’s hard to make a case picking against Wallstedt. Posting great numbers in the SHL as a skater is impressive, but in net the accomplishment becomes truly rare among draft eligibles. The position is volatile, and it often takes time to find the metal stability to be an NHL starter. That’s why despite the dominant results in the SHL, it’s probably best to err on the side of patience. That being said, it’s exciting to conceptualize that he might be able to make a difference at the NHL level in 2-3 years vs in his mid to late 20s as is common for netminders.

 Group C

 This group I would call likely 1st rounders, obviously some of this caliber of player can fall into round 2, even in more normal years. Some might even be able to push over some of the group B prospects ranked ahead.

 WINGS

 Matthew Coronato, W, USHL

The Chicago Steel have a great program, and seem to have a more consistent line of talent than most of the others in their league, perhaps similar to the London Knights of the OHL. That being said Coronato scored at a ridiculous pace, even compared to his teammates. In part thanks to the Steel this league is being seen as more and more credible when it comes to drafting prospects. It is still not quite as strong of a league as the SHL or NCAA, but it might be the only thing that keeps him from going in the top 10.

 Nikita Chibrikov, W, KHL

There is debate about who the best Russian forward prospect is between Chibrikov and Svechkov. In Chibrikov’s favour is the ranking from Central Scouting as well as a really strong U18 performance. It seems every year that the best Russian prospects don’t garner much respect from those who aren’t scouting the region specifically, so it shouldn’t be a surprise for all 3 Russians in this range (Chibrikov, Svechkov, and Chayka) to be selected earlier than one might expect.

 Fabian Lysell, W, SHL

He is not quite as good a prospect as Lucas Raymond from the 2020 draft, yet the two are similar in that they are small, offensively capable wingers who didn’t get much ice time in their draft years, and who are much better at pressuring the puck all over the ice than given credit for. It wouldn’t be a surprise for him to fall a bit due to his stature, but Lysell still figures to go I. The first round.

 Isak Rosen, W, SHL

 Simon Robertsson, W, SHL

 Brendan Othmann, W, SUI

Othmann has the size, power, and skating skills that figure to translate well to the pros. He has the shot and puck skills to be dangerous on the rush and gets a lot of chances to do so thanks to his abilities in transition and counter attacks.

 CENTRES

 Aatu Raty, C, SML

At one point a favourite to be the top ranked prospect in this class, Raty stock has cooled recently thanks to some less than promising results in the Finnish pro league. He’s big and strong enough to be effective along the walls in zone offence, and is able to find open ice in shooting positions. Typically, the Finns employ a utilitarian skillset, disposed to strong 2-way play or substance over style. I believe that this often causes the offensive capability of Finnish prospects to be undersold (thinking of Anton Lundell from the 2020 draft). If supported in the right way Raty could be a steal, especially given the scarcity of strong centres in this class.

 Fedor Svechkov, C, KHL

 Cole Sillinger, C, WHL

 Chaz Lucius, C, USNTDP

  DEFENCE

 Corson Cuelmans

 Carson Lambos

 Daniil Chayka

  Group D

 This group is players I have a first round grade on, but are by no means a lock to be selected afterwards. No doubt that some of this group will be selected from the mid second round and later. At this point there is a greater number of prospects, so I’ll merely name a few that I feel strongly about.

 Forwards

 Logan Stankoven

 Zachary L’Heureux

 Chase Stillman

  Defence

 Scott Morrow

 Stanislav Svozil

[evakuality]

Can you clarify why you said those things about Even? Expand on this please!

Can I expand on my absolute adoration for all things Even and indulge in some serious nostalgia?  Yes, yes I can, anon.  For reference, we are discussing this little moment of emotional overload.

First, I said Even is a variety of things: soft and sweet, a ‘cool’ guy, who is also kind and caring and unashamed of being a dork and embracing the cringy things he likes.  So the first thing I should probably do is address those.

Well, I mean where do we begin?  (sorry if this is stuff I already said before; I know I’ve waxed lyrical about Even before so this is probably repeats).  Even is usually unfailingly decent to everyone, he genuinely loves being around people and making them laugh and feel at ease.  I mean, the obvious one is Isak and the way Even is with him.  How he seems to intuitively know what Isak needs and gives it to him.  He’s so kind with it, letting Isak set the pace and parameters of what they do and when they do it.  When he’s going into a manic state, he shows exactly what the core of him is and cares enough to accept without even a hint of a murmur that Isak is uncomfortable kissing in public.  He’s ready to share his love with the entire world, bubbling over with this exuberant energy and yet despite that big romantic shout out (the ‘epic’ love story he loves so much) being where his heart is he still respects Isak and accepts the boundaries he sets.  And he does it immediately and with kindness and care.

There’s the way he’s willing to lie with Isak wrapped up in his arms, cuddling for basically as long as Isak wants to.  Isak, who’s never really had any softness to him, just melts when he’s in this situation because Even makes it safe for him to do so.  I mean, obviously Even gets something out of this as well.  When we see him with Sonja it tends to be kissing and making out rather than cuddling and intimacy and Even’s probably soaking that up as well.  But the important thing is that Even makes Isak feel safe, and he does it by being so gentle and kind.  

There’s the way he calms Isak down after their run in with the homophobe on the street, knows how to settle Isak with just a few words and touches.  His own feelings have been affected, and you can clearly see his own shock and the way it affects him before he springs into action and yet the one who matters to him is Isak and Isak’s comfort on his birthday.  His focus and attention is outside himself, and while this is the most obvious with Isak he’s not the only one we see Even doing this with.

And there are of course times when he pokes fun at Isak, but the way he does it is so gentle that it’s clear there’s no malicious intent.  ‘Blah blah blah good story’, the teasing about Nas, ‘you’re so young’ etc etc are all moments where Even is gently ribbing Isak and what he’s said or done, but he also laughs at himself, and makes it clear he’s laughing with Isak rather than at him.  For Isak this is probably a revelation, because while he and his friends are also inveterate teasers, they tend to do it in a much more biting or cutting way.  Think about the way they are with Magnus (who tbh sometimes deserves the roastings he gets), and then compare the way Even teases.  There’s no bite to it and it’s never about anything that really would hurt unlike some of the things the boys say to each other.

Speaking of Magnus, there’s the way Even takes his crisis of confidence seriously, picking up exactly what he needs to be able to pursue Vilde.  The boys are trying to coach him how to be like them, acting indifferent, being less desperate, trying to done him down.  Even, instead, sees Magnus as he is and gives him the recognition he needs that he can be himself, be ‘desperate’ and still be okay.  I guess that’s something I left out of what I said - that Even is perceptive and sees what people need and what he can do to set them at ease, and he cares enough to use it.

So that’s already a looong list of the things he does that show his sweet, soft, caring and kind side, and I could go on and on citing other examples of how he does this.  But there are the other sides to him as well.  The fact is that he’s introduced as the ‘cool’ godlike figure into Isak’s life (and tbh Isak never really loses this impression of him, which is really sweet in its own right).  And the thing is, this isn’t actually a veneer (as much as Even seems to play up to it a bit to attract Isak once he realises this will work).  Even really is effortlessly cool.  There’s an aura about him in the way he is at school and the way people react to him.  The first impression he gives off is of coolness even before he consciously starts to deploy it.

Noora and Eskild are both charmed by him easily when they meet him, the kids at school talk about him in a way that suggests that he’s been noticed in a good way.  Of course, any newcomer into a school is going to attract attention, but it can’t be denied that the type of attention he garners is generally positive and the fact that it has filtered to other years means he’s making a splash of some sort.  Think about the way Vilde talks about ‘Even in third year’ in texts to Isak (I think it’s Vilde - someone does anyway) and you get the picture.  His name is one that’s supposed to be recognised and generally not in a negative or judging way (there is some of that as well but it’s not the entirety of how they see him).

And then we have how he’s a dork and embraces the cringey stuff he enjoys.  He’s never apologetic at all about what he likes and what interests him.  From the ‘epic’ love story he creates for his film project, his unashamed claim of Baz Luhrmann as his favourite director amid Mikael’s roasting about it, to his sheer joy in Gabrielle despite Isak trying to make it seem like it’s not cool, Even is never one to back down from his passions even if someone else thinks they’re a bit cringy.  He tells tall stories to make others laugh, he encourages people to be true to themselves because he is true to himself.  

He refuses to be shamed for who he is.  He dances and sings with joy and abandon, he spreads his arms wide and does things with his entire being.  He’s not tied down into being any one definition of what ‘a man’ should look like.  He doesn’t care to be ‘cool’ except in so much as it attracts Isak and is what he uses to facilitate that, and even then he lets that guard down almost as soon as he can because he’d rather show himself to Isak as he is (though with the caveat that he hides his bipolar diagnosis).

And the thing is that Even is exactly the guy Isak needed to push him into loving himself.  It took someone who loves himself (though again with that caveat about the bipolar stuff) to help Isak see that he can also see the ‘cringy’ bits of who he is and let them shine out.  That he can be gay and like rap and hiphop music, that he can be a ‘bro’ but also soft and caring.  That he doesn’t have to be a flamboyant guy to be gay, that he can just love Even and that can be part of who he is and he doesn’t have to change to do that.  

Even’s example is so powerful because (as I’ve said before) Isak has very few models of what ‘a man’ looks like.  He has fairly rigid ideas of what gay guys are like, he has very set ideas of what he should be like to fit in with his friends, and they aren’t compatible with seeing himself as gay.  So it takes someone like Even who’s such a great mix of all this stuff - cool, manly, sweet, gentle, kind, caring, dorky - to show isak that there’s more to life than the roles he’s seen to date.  He was unlikely to be able to be true to himself with an Eskild, and he was equally unlikely to be able to be himself with someone like Jonas or the other guys.  They all have great nuances as well of course, but in terms of masculinity Isak sees things in a pretty black and white way - gay is flamboyant, straight is bro-ish. He genuinely needed someone like Even, filled with so many glorious shades of grey, to recognise the varied parts of himself and be able to flourish properly. 

[justlookatthosesausages]

“Lift the Spirit” :: a post-Frozen 2 Elsamaren fanfic

Chapter 4: On the edge of the abyss

“You are… Going to fight with those?” Muttered Ryder. 

“Yep.” Smiled Anna with a proud pout. 

“Those are… Yours, Kristoff’s and Eydis’ weapons?” 

“Yep.” 

“Should I be concerned if you three ever get angry at me?” 

“...Yep?” 

They looked at each other, then burst out of laughter. 

“Come on”, giggled the Queen as he closed the chest. “It’s time to eat.”

He followed her to the spot where their extended family was relaxing, and Eydis was already serving lunch. 

Ryder sat happily between Anna and Honeymaren, who had Elsa on her lap. 

“Ahh, the powerful trio of the three strongest women of the country!” 

The referred women frowned in confusion. 

“Excuse me?”

The brown-haired man grinned. “Well, Maren is the tribe leader, Anna the Queen of Arendelle, and Elsa the guardian of Ahtohallan. So yeah, you three are the most amazing women I’ve ever met.” 

There was a silence, and they exchanged unsure gazes. 

Ryder blinked. “Unless one of you doesn’t identify with the term ‘woman’? It’s fine then, just ask me and I’ll change.” 

Anna chuckled at his kindness. “I think we’re good with the woman appellation.” 

He sighed. “Okay. Cool. Sorry for panicking. I’ve spent a lot of time with Olaf on last Yule, and he kept talking about genders and pronouns, and…” 

Honeymaren tapped his shoulder affectionately. “You’re doing great, Ryder. Here, take some soup before you have a cardiac arrest.” 

Anna and the brunette laughed openly, however Elsa remained quiet. 

Despite her blatantly essential duty, she couldn’t help but think that she was less important than Honeymaren and Anna, who had game-changing roles that required more leadership than her. Also, they had to manage people, while Elsa had to manage magical beings. Those were just as stubborn as humans, if not more, but at least Elsa could feel their emotions and presence anytime. All of their exchanges were sincere, transparent. There was no way to be lied to in such a relationship. With the Northuldra and Arendelle, on the other hand… Not that the blonde considered them fervent liars, far from it, but one could never know about a human’s real opinion. Elsa had been Queen for 3 years, and in that experience, she had learned that people - especially male politicians - weren’t always trustworthy. 

She got jolted out of her thoughts by Eydis heavily sitting down next to her, and the princess sighed longly. 

“There. I hope you will all like it.” Smiled the little blonde, despite a clear stress, to the Northuldra present around them. “Bone at the teeth.” 

They nodded, and Elsa chuckled discreetly. “It’s ‘bon appétit’.” She whispered to her ear. 

Eydis frowned. “Isn’t it what I said?” 

“Never mind.” Smiled her aunt. 

They all drank their soup in silent content, and it was quite good, which they didn’t miss to tell Eydis. 

The princess started to daydream, looking in the horizon at the beautiful landscape they could admire from here. She saw two Earth Giants smile at each other as they exchanged their positions, switching to watch over the Northuldra land and prevent any surprise attack. 

“Auntie?” 

Elsa stopped staring at Honeymaren to turn to her niece. “Yes?” 

“How does the Earth Spirit works? I just saw two Giants communicate with each other without even saying a word.” 

Elsa grinned, and followed her gaze. “That’s because they use magic, just like I do when I communicate with them. We could call that telepathy. The Giants even have a way faster system to talk between them, as they are parts of one and only Spirit.” 

Eydis nodded longly. “So, it’s like a hive mind?” 

The blonde smiled at her cleverness. “Yes, exactly. Well, I’d say more like… An archipel. Because the Giants are like the visible islands on the surface, who actually are connected to each other in one and only land underneath.” 

Anna snorted. “You spend way too much time with Nokk. Water metaphors are heavy.” 

Honeymaren intervened as well. “Nah, that’s just Elsa. She’s a bookworm and her metaphors are constant.” 

“Uhm, I’m sitting right here.” 

She indeed was on her lap, and the brunette held her closer for cuddles, proving that this was just tease.  

“Anyway”, Elsa said, turning to the Giant who was guarding the place they were looking at on the horizon. “That’s Pebble.” 

Anna laughed openly. “Oh gosh, sorry, but… Damn, the names you give them. See? That’s the proof you spend too much time in the water.” 

“No, that’s the proof that he spends too much time with Nokk. They keep playing together. And in fact…” 

She closed her eyes and frowned slightly as she focused, tying a mental bond with the Giant despite the long distance. Eydis watched as the magical being named Pebble turned a bit to their direction, like he got called. 

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Chuckled Elsa as she opened her eyes again. “He was hanging with Nokk before arriving for his shift.”  

“That’s cute.” Commented Honeymaren, though the Snow Queen couldn’t tell if she was referring to the Spirits being good friends or to Elsa casually sharing a mind connection with a 12-meter tall being. 

“Hey, Maren, speaking about bookworms, did you read the novel I gave you on last Yule?” Asked Anna. 

“No, not yet. But it’s in the hut. On the nightstand, actually.” 

Kristoff snorted at his wife’s intentions. “Are you turning the camp into a book club?” 

The redhead laughed. “No. And no mockery! You know that the times I go to the Arendelle library on Wednesday nights are the only time of the week when I’m leaving you at peace.” 

Kristoff smiled. “I love hearing you rambling about your recent readings on Thursday breakfasts, though.” 

The Queen grinned lovingly. 

Elsa was happy to see that Anna had made friends with townspeople. Arendellians were very open minded and knew how to forget that she was their sovereign to casually chat about novels with her in a public building. 

“So, Honeymaren, are you going to join the book club once you’ve read her novel recommendation?” Laughed Kristoff.

“Oh, no, it’s not really my kind of thing anyway. I’m not much into reading.” 

“Wait, what?” Frowned the redhead. “But you’ve finished several novels I told you about though.” 

“I know. It’s because Elsa is the one reading them. She reads them aloud to me at night. I can’t resist it, she has the softest voice in the world.” 

“Aaaaawwwww.” Melted Anna. 

Elsa blushed, a bit pouty. That was a private habit… 

“She does have a soft voice.” Admitted the redhead. “The kids want her to read a bedtime story everytime they can. Well, Isak at least. Eydis says she’s too old for stories now.” 

She gave a look at her daughter behind Honeymaren and Elsa, and the young blonde grumbled. 

“Though, the other night, she was listening to the one we told her brother. You’re still a fan, aren’t you?” 

“Mooom!” Frowned Eydis, grumpy. 

“Who wouldn’t be a fan of stories? You know, I’m certain that even animals love stories. You should see when we talk around the campfire. It’s like the entire Forest stops living to listen carefully.” 

She even remembered the occasions when Elsa talks about her day to the reindeers, and the same phenomenon happens every time: rabbits, birds and squirrels gather near to listen to her from behind the bushes. Nevertheless, Honeymaren refrained herself to share this enchanting trivia with the others, because she realized that her wife was tense since she had talked about the reading sessions. She caressed Elsa’s back gently, and kissed her bare shoulder. The blonde looked down at her, and their eyes met. She gave her a forgiving sigh, but her azure blue irises sparkled as a warning. Honeymaren grinned, her lips stretching but still in contact with her skin. 

They finished eating happily, until Anna stood up and slapped her thighs in both determination and excitement. “Alright! Let’s go scout around the camp.” 

Kristoff blinked. “Can’t we take a nap first?” 

“Heroes don’t nap.” Huffed the redhead. 

Honeymaren giggled. “She’s kind of right. Also, I’m not saying we should tempt the devil, but if we walk around, it will give the possibility for Victor to attack, and we’ll catch him at his own game.” 

They agreed and stood up along. “We’ll make two teams. I’ll go with Eydis and Elsa down the valley.” Suggested the Northuldra leader. “You two, with Ryder, across the woods.” 

“Excellent.” Beamed Anna. 

As they parted ways, she walked up to Honeymaren. “I trust you earnestly, but please make sure that Eydis is safe.” 

“Don’t worry.” Assured Honeymaren, winking. “I’m responsible.” 

Elsa scoffed sarcastically. 

“What?” Frowned the brunette. 

“The very first thing you taught my niece was to climb to trees, and how to hang up upside down with her legs without falling.” 

Honeymaren gasped. “And isn’t that a practical thing she still uses today? That she could use in this very battle? It is, so stop staring at me like that.” 

The two sisters eye-rolled. Eydis intervened to defend her aunt. 

“I still thank you for that, actually. It’s not the kind of thing I’d learn from a princess royal training routine.” 

“See?” Flinged Honeymaren. 

“Eydis, you’re not helping right now.” Said Anna. 

“I will keep an eye on your daughter, fire head. I promise.” 

The princess turned at the nickname. “Hey, by the way, why do you call her ‘fire head’?” 

Elsa giggled. “Because when she met your mother, it was the first time she ever saw someone with ginger hair. Nobody in the Northuldra tribe has such a hair color, you see?” 

“Oooh.” 

“This isn’t the only reason.” Precised Honeymaren. “When I have fight practice with Anna, her face gets all red from the effort.” 

“My face doesn’t get all red. My cheeks are like, slightly more red than usual, at most. If you tease me one more time with that, Maren, I swear that we’ll have a training session right now and it will get very real.” 

Ryder laughed behind them. “Liar. You secretly love that nickname. Because it sounds like a war title.” 

Anna shrugged in admission, and Eydis grinned. It did have a ring to it. 

She also noted how Ryder, Anna and Kristoff called Honeymaren ‘Maren’, while Elsa went for ‘Honey’. This family was really weird. She sighed. 

“Shall we go, then?” 

=======

“I just want to be a cooler uncle than Honeymaren to Eydis.” Insisted Ryder. 

He never had gotten the chance to talk about that topic, because his niece was always around when he saw Anna and Kristoff in Arendelle. Now that they were in separate teams, it was the perfect time. 

“Just tell me how!” 

Kristoff laughed openly at his struggle. “It’s not something that we can advise you on, my friend. You’ll have to trust your instincts on that.” 

“You know, the coolest aunt badge is already taken by Elsa.” Giggled Anna, sarcastic. 

“Figuratively and literally.” Grinned the blond. 

Ryder gave them a death stare as they all walked among the trees. “Can’t you help me instead of being sassy?” 

Kristoff shrugged. “To be honest, Eydis is starting her teenager crisis years. So anything that we adults say to her is never ‘cool’ enough. She’s a bit indifferent to Elsa’s powers now.” 

Ryder widened his eyes in shock. If she found the Fifth Spirit mundane, how could he ever compete? 

Cogs turned in his mind as he thought of something. 

“Having a digestive walk in the Northuldra woods, your Majesty?” 

Suddenly said a voice behind them, and all three startled and turned around. 

Someone was approaching, at a low and assured pace. It was a man, given his silhouette, and he seemed old, but also fit, like a retired guard. 

“Are the Arendelle’s castle gardens too small for your taste? Not that you belong there anyway…” Said the mysterious man in a low voice.   

He was wearing a dark purple cape, almost black. As he walked to them, and they were standing still, he took off the hood. Now they could see his face, that he didn’t plan to hide; Victor Eiglatson in person was standing in front of them. 

“You…” Frowned Anna. 

In her mind flashed images of his threats, his arrestation, his assaults described by Kristoff, Honeymaren, Elsa and the Northuldra, and, more importantly, the two innocent men who had died after his first attack. 

“You will pay for what you have done!” Shouted Ryder, and he approached the old Arendellian. 

Victor flicked his right wrist up to down in the Northuldra’s direction, and a dark slime blow hit his head from above. In a swift shock, the man groaned and fainted, falling head first in the grass. 

“RYDER!!” Exclaimed Anna. 

She then twirled to the enemy, her long red hair waving with her like a mane. 

“I’ll have you killed for that!!” 

Victor eye-rolled. “Calm down, Queenie. He’s only unconscious. I’m not gonna waste my magic on some random guy. You, on the other hand…” 

Kristoff followed his gaze. He was strictly staring at Anna. 

“Why are you interested in me?” Hissed the woman in question. 

“That’s really obvious. You’re the Fifth Spirit’s biggest weakness. I’ll have her at my feet once I’m done with you.” 

Anna frowned at his plan. She also wondered why he didn’t call her Elsa, but pushed that thought away to focus on clenching her fists. 

“Well I’ll beat you up, you old--” 

Kristoff’s arm stopped her in her momentum. She was strong, but he was even more muscular, so he easily held her in place. 

“You’ll have to go through me first.” He threatened. 

Victor didn’t even flinch at his sentence. “That can be arranged.” 

He flipped his wrists, and a burst of dark slime spluttered out of his palms. Two liquid monsters formed on each side of him, and started running to them. He cackled like a maniac as they immediately ran for their lives before the creatures touched them with their long crooked fingers. 

Kristoff was dragging Anna along his run, but soon understood that there was no need; she was even faster than him. 

He gave a peak behind to check if there were safe, and saw to his biggest fright that the arm of the closest creature changed of form. When the goo assembled at the end of its fingers and solidified in the shape of a long blade, Kristoff’s heart leaped. 

“WATCH OUT!” 

He tackled Anna, and they rolled in the grass to dodge away from the attack. They stumbled to stand up, and he stared at the monster which had its blade planted to where they had been standing, now struggling to take it off. So it was solid. 

Since when could they do that? Did they evolve? Did Victor learn from his past mistakes? Was he able to upgrade his creations, just like Elsa did? He gulped in apprehension. 

The second creature quickly made him come back to reality; it used the same technique, but with both arms. Two black slimy blades cut through the air, whistling in the woods, and the two Arendellians jumped back to avoid being sliced in half. 

They hadn’t plan this walk correctly, and Kristoff looked around to search for anything that could be used to repel the enemies.  

The King then saw a trunk on the ground next to them, and he ran to it. He quickly valued his actions: he could use a fallen tree, right? He wouldn’t disrespect Nature, for this was a dead tree anyway. Kristoff nodded to himself and put his right foot on the trunk, then grasped with both hand the thickest of its branches. It was so wide his thumbs didn’t even touch his fingertips, but he managed to pull and pluck it out with a loud grunt. 

Immediately, he twirled around and started to swung the branch in the direction of the creature. 

He could effectively stop the left blade of the creature, but it got stuck in the wood, which surprised both him and the monster. It didn’t wait for another blow, though, and made its second blade sing in the air, aiming right at his throat. Kristoff frowned, and thought faster than light; he grabbed his stick with his hands in reverse order, and moved it towards the creature’s elbow moving in his direction. In a swift shift, the monster accidentally planted its blade in its other arm. Looking a bit dumb now, it had both arms tied together, and Kristoff pushed its body with a strong blow of the branch. 

The monster fell on the ground. It then was confused on how to stand up now, with its arms like that, and it looked like it was punished and sitting with handcuffs on. 

Anna grinned at the state of the enemy, and when Kristoff turned around, panting, his happy brown eyes suddenly widened in terror. 

“What?” Said the redhead. 

“Duck!!” 

In any other context, Anna would have allowed herself a joke about the animal. Now wasn’t the time. She shrieked, curling down, and Kristoff jumped above her crouched body to slam the head of the monster who was about to spike his wife. 

The racquetball-like move was given with all his strength, and the creature was stunned, losing its balance and falling backwards. Anna stood up slowly, looking at the two outperformed monsters. She breathed out with a gasp at the shock to have been close to death, and stared at Kristoff from head to toes. She made a pause to admire his muscles glistening with sweat, and his intense stare due to adrenalin. 

“Gods I love you.” Sighed Anna, staring at him with arousal. 

They stared at each other, and walked the meters separating them with their gaze lost in the ocean of the other’s, like the entire world had ceased to exist around them. 

The approaching steps of the enemy brought them out of their reverie. Victor clapped his hands slowly with sarcasm. “Waow, truly effective, your Majesty. But you’re aware that you can’t beat them, right?” 

He snapped his fingers, and the stunned creature toddled up, standing up again, while the other saw its arms vanish, then be created again. It went on its feet too. 

Kristoff twirled his thick branch around, ready for round two. However, it now was covered with black magic ink, so he dropped it in a disgusted wince before he would get infected. 

The Queen whinged at how they now were defenseless again. 

“Why didn’t we take the weapons we brought?!” She exclaimed, blaming herself. “I’m so stupid, stupid, stupid!” 

“Now is not the time for self-undervaluation, feisty.” 

Anna grumbled, for he was right. She immediately placed her hands on each side of her mouth, lifted her head and sang the Spirits Call, as loudly and clear as she could. It rang in the woods and filled the air. 

Victor burst out of laughter. 

“What are you trying to do, nightingale? The Spirits cannot interact with my magic. Those are basic Nature rules.” 

Anna gave him a side look that was overcharged with sarcasm. “I’m aware. Elsa, however, received Ahtohallan’s blessing. You’re screwed, Eiglatson.” 

He shivered at her confident teal blue eyes. She wasn’t bluffing. 

The old man looked around frantically, now fearing the worst. They had split up in groups, but Elsa could arrive in no time. He gritted his teeth and made his creations disappear with a hand flick. 

“You’ll regret this. Deeply. Next time, I’ll have no pity.” 

He stared at Kristoff and his wife, and turned around, running away. The blond frowned, not agreeing to let him escape. He ran after him, following his dark cape floating in his move, dashing through the woods. The King followed the man for a long time until the cape suddenly vanished, like it was made of the same goo than the monsters. 

“Shit.” He muttered. 

He had been fooled. This was an illusion. He grunted loudly, and punched the nearest tree in disappointment. 

Anna helped Ryder stand up, and looked at where her husband had been running, wondering if he had managed to catch him. Though, she thought, Victor had magic, and if he was as skilled at Elsa, he would be able to disappear without a trace if he didn’t want to be followed. She knew how effective that was. 

“Did he hurt your head?” Worried the Queen. “Did your skin get touched by it?” 

“No, I’m okay. I had my hat on, thankfully. I knew that it would save my life one day.” Chuckled the Northuldra nervously. 

Ryder retrieved his balance, when suddenly something blurry and white arrived at high speed right next to him, and he shrieked with a jump. 

“ANNA!” 

The blonde grasped her sister’s arms in less time that it took him to blink. 

“Are you okay?! What happened? Why did you call?!” 

Before Anna could even answer, Elsa counted only two persons out of three, and inspected the woods. “Where is Kristoff?!” 

Gale arrived in a woosh, and made a noise, looking down at Elsa. Kristoff was okay, they said, but angry because he couldn’t catch the enemy in time. 

“I’m fine, Elsa.” Assured the Queen. 

“Okay, good. Good.” 

“Can you please put me down now?” 

The Snow Queen blinked in confusion and realized, in her panic, that she had been holding Anna by the arms like a clamp. The younger sister was stuck in her grip with her arms rigid along her body, her legs hanging in the air. 

“Oh, sorry.” 

She put Anna on the ground, and the redhead smiled sadly. She took Elsa’s hands in hers. “Breathe. It’s okay. He’s gone now.” 

“But I couldn’t catch him!” Hissed Elsa, upset. 

“I know.” 

“Now we know how he looks like, and his fighting style.” Said Ryder, angry as well, so he switched his mind to an analysing mode. “Anna, tell me everything that had happened while I was unconscious. I’ll inform the warriors, and we’ll prepare.” 

“Yes.” Encouraged Anna. “And this time, we will have our weapons at the ready.” 

She put her hands on her elder’s cold shoulders, resolutely. 

“Elsa, our next encounter with him will be the last. I vow to it.” 

=======

Anna cracked her knuckles once they all gathered in the armory hut. 

“Okay. Briefing the Northuldra, check. Updating their positions, check. Ours, check. Now…” 

She rubbed her hands excitedly, and Elsa lifted an amused eyebrow when she recognized where she saw that expression. 

“...Weaponry.” 

With an excited - and a bit evil and scary - laugh, she opened the chest that they had brought on their wagon. 

“Isn’t it a weird that a Queen who swears to be a pacifist and to never lead her kingdom to war is this thrilled about a battle?” Mocked Honeymaren. 

“That’s because you haven’t seen my armor.” Winked Anna. “Also, a lady got to be busy. My hobbies include fight, what can I say?” 

She opened the chest wide for everyone to observe, and took out weapons one by one. 

To Kristoff, she gave his axe, and it shone in the soft light of the hut, its cheek and blade bright blue. The whole head that was normally made of the finest Arendelle metal had been crafted in ice, and could only had been done by one person. Elsa smiled proudly and admiratively, as her work of art got enhanced by the sun rays and floating dust that surrounded the weapon when Kristoff happily made it twirl. 

“Perfectly balanced. As always.” He winked to the Snow Queen. 

Elsa blushed. They bantered a lot about ice, and spend a considerable time talking about harvesting and such, but when he complimented her unique customizations, she felt a bit shy. But she deserved that praise; she had spent a lot of time on crafting the ideal addition for their weapons. She smiled bashfully and nodded, approving that her ice blade married perfectly with the wood haft. Victor’s monsters could be killed by her ice? Let it be so. But with some elegance, please. 

Elsa’s eyes looked down at the grip that had Arendelle crocuses engraved on it, while Kristoff held the axe with both hands to inspect it. The blonde then congratulated herself on the density of the ice, which she could feel in the air from where she was standing. The back of the head, that had a hammer poll, looked more solid than anything despite its transparency. Since Ryder had laid eyes on the axe when Anna had showed it to him before meal, he couldn’t help imagining how Earth Giants themselves would be groggy if they got hit in the face with it. 

Anna smiled and bent down again to pick up the next weapon. To Eydis, she gave her mace, whose numerous spikes shone so well that they seemed like sparks. Magically sharp, actually even sharper than razors, the blades glittered in the same way than Kristoff’s axe head, with a beautiful transparency that also scared by its density. Eydis’ mace had a classical grip, but all eyes were obviously staring at the top of it; it alternated between a blade and a spike, making it a fearsome item. 

Honeymaren grinned. “So, your weapon of choice is a mace, uh? That’s a nice nod.” 

“A nice nod?” Repeated Eydis. “To what?” 

“Well, with what happened with Thor years ago. Did you pick this one because you’re at ease with hammers?” 

The princess snorted. “Maybe. It’s handy in every meaning of the term.” 

Just like her father, she spun the weapon in all ways once Anna gave it to her. She hit the air around in several expert ‘woosh’s, practicing her moves. 

“I like the way it feels during fight.” Grinned Eydis. 

Ryder widened his eyes at the sight. Yep, she was her mother’s daughter. However, when he saw the careful gaze that Anna was giving her, he could tell that Kristoff was definitely the one who approved on this mace. Nevertheless, Ryder would bet that Anna simply sighed and shrugged when Eydis asked for permission to make this her weapon. 

The Queen returned to the chest. 

Finally, she took the last weapon, hers, which was to no one’s surprise but to everyone’s honest impression, an enormous sword. 

While the Northuldra siblings gasped in admiration, Kristoff sighed longly. “You had to bring your biggest sword, uh?” 

“After seeing Victor Eiglatson earlier, I absolutely don’t regret it, dear.” 

Honeymaren’s jaw dropped, and she came closer to observe it. Anna made quite a show when she tried it out. Obviously, the whole blade was made out of ice as well. Elsa smirked from where she was. It shone around as Anna wielded it, and even reflected on the wood walls of the hut. It was, out of the three weapons, the one with the biggest amount of ice, so it made a great impression.  

Honeymaren was impressed as always by the beauty of her wife’s magic. Though, despite all of that, what impressed her the most was how effortlessly Anna was lifting the sword. It was an impressive work of art that surely weighed more than Honeymaren would even expect. How the heck did she make it seem effortless? 

Eydis gasped excitedly. “Awesome! I never got to see this one close before!” 

When Anna put it down against the wall of the armory hut to look for their battle outfits, the princess eyed the sword with envy, walking to it. 

“Can I borrow it to try it out? With auntie’s ice blade, it’s gorgeous.” 

Anna turned around and was about to give her answer, but Eydis, in her iconic nerve, already lifted the sword up. She rose it to see the cross-guard closer, but the blade was way heavier than she thought, and the weapon tilted. With a yelp, she lost her grip, and the sword fell forward to the floor. 

“Holy hell!” Muttered the princess. 

Anna smirked as she caught it. “I was about to suggest you to not lift it. This sword can’t be wielded by anyone, sweetheart. There is a reason why Elsa custom-made it for me.”

She approached her astonished daughter. “Only I am able to use it. It actually took a lot of training to master my moves. Also, see how long that grip is?” 

“Yeah, it’s longer than any sword I’ve ever seen.” Murmured Eydis. 

“That’s because it’s a two-handed sword. You lifted it with only one, so it was a foregone conclusion.” Smiled Anna. 

She placed it back against the wall. 

“So you put both hands on the grip?” Asked Eydis, curiosity and enthusiasm making her voice high.  

“It depends on the move or feint you intend to make. Most of times, I place one hand on the grip…” She showed it to her. “And the second one on the pommel.” 

Her hands now covered the pine green grip and the pommel proudly engraved with the Arendelle crocus. With its green hilt and its purple round hilt end in each hand, it gave the Queen an astonishing aura by reminding the flag’s colors. She demonstrated the easy twirls that this two hands position allowed to do. 

“It’s the most beautiful sword I’ve ever seen.” Exhaled Honeymaren, in awe. 

Anna smirked proudly while Elsa blushed with a soft smile. 

“Elsa made it entirely for me.” 

As if the entire ice blade wasn’t enough of a hint, the rain-guard - which, just like the grip, was made of high quality leather dyed green - had a embedded snowflake symbol. It was the upper half of the snowflake, and it gave the feeling that it introduced the upcoming blade to sight when one observed the stunning weapon. The scabbard, which Anna had discarded next to the chest after she proudly made the sword sing by taking it off, was breathtaking as well. All along were traced drawings that seemed to have been made by both Elsa and Anna. Honeymaren wondered if they had been crafting it together, and easily imagined them giggling as they did in a warm sharing moment. 

“Why a two-handed sword, though?” Asked Ryder. 

“I suggested it to her since that stubborn idiot refuses to use a shield.” Smirked Elsa. 

“A really good suggestion.” Said Anna, who preferred to ignore the derision. 

They went out of the hut for Ryder to show them the staff that he would be using. None of the Arendellians commented negatively on how simple his weapon was compared to them. First because they were nice and enough open-minded to not judge ahead, and second because all three of them actually knew the aching pain that followed a hit in the shins. Ryder didn’t train often, but had won a few rounds thanks to that. From what they had seen, Victor Eiglatson wasn’t wearing any armor, and that might even be the blow that would take him down. After all, the most effective attack is the one one doesn’t expect, and Ryder was an expert at sliding down to hit weak spots. 

While they were outside and Elsa and Honeymaren started to chat a bit further, Eydis came close to her mother. 

“Will auntie be okay? During the fight?” 

Anna frowned. “What do you mean?” 

“Well, I’ve never seen her truly be mean in her blows. She’s not very direct. She’s a bit scared to be offensive, no?” 

The redhead blinked as she stared at Eydis, then suddenly laughed loudly, her head wiping back. “Oh dear, you truly have no idea, do you?” 

“What?” Grumbled the princess. 

Anna coughed as she tried to retrieve her breath. “Yeah. Right. Sorry. You can’t know, because Arendelle and Northuldra have both always known peace since you were born. So you’ve never seen her actually fight.”

Eydis was upset by her mother’s giggles. “What is so funny?” 

The Queen smiled. “Let me search for an example… Well, you have a big snowball fight with her at every Yule, uhm? Remember last year when you asked her to stop holding herself back, to have an actual challenge, and you came back to the castle exhausted?” 

Eydis scoffed. “It’s not that amazing, I remember I got to touch her once or twice with a snowball.” 

Anna smirked. “Because it was a game. Now imagine what she does when it’s a fight. Did you see Elsa pick up snow from the ground when she, for once, didn’t force herself to slow down?” 

The little blonde widened her eyes at that realization. Elsa had been crafting those snowballs out of thin air. “No.” 

“Did you see her being out of breath, just for one second?” 

Now Eydis gulped. She had been able to hit her aunt several times, but was panting once the game was over. On the other hand, her aunt was perfectly fine. 

The princess got suddenly aware that she had been fooled all along. Elsa had only pretended to be hit to make her happy. How dumb was she to not have understood this before? Her aunt was astonishingly athletic, she knew it. Once, she had seen her race with Nokk on the fjord shore and she had been running faster than them. And they have the shape of a horse. 

Eydis’ jaw dropped. “Okay, now that is just creepy.” 

Anna nodded with a smirk. “You don’t have to worry any second of her abilities on a battlefield. She could kill us all in our sleep, trust me.” 

Kristoff approached to put a hand on Anna’s shoulder and a kiss on her cheek. 

“I’m gonna go train with Ryder, we’ll see you later.” 

He was happy for such a context, and his wife snorted. “Don’t wear yourself out. It’s better if you’re in good shape for the upcoming fight. Be careful, okay?” 

The blond man smiled at her care. “I will.” 

He followed Ryder to the training area, and not even two full seconds later, he tripped over a root, and almost fell to the ground. 

Eydis burst out of laughter as her father grumbled. Anna remained serious to not make him feel ashamed. 

“Damn, I lost my ice harvesters reflexes.” 

“Too many king activities?” Teased Ryder. 

“If you want, I can show you how to use an axe again.” Laughed Eydis. 

“Don’t mock me, you two!” 

Eydis bit her lip to hide her smile. 

“Sorry. Well, I’m not gonna lie, you taught me all I know about resourcefulness in the wild and how to be an ace at ice harvesting. So I can’t demean you.” 

Kristoff gave her a smile, then rejoined Ryder. 

Anna went to Honeymaren and Elsa, where the brunette was preparing her bow for the battle. 

She was intrigued when she approached the leader. 

“Wait, don’t you usually have a bigger bow? Where’s the one you hunt with?” 

Honeymaren smirked. “Judging on sizes, your Majesty?” 

Anna snorted. “Of course not.” 

The Northuldra made the bow twirl left to right and back with her hand on the grip. “This bow is a warrior one, that’s why the size is different.” 

“Uhm, excuse me, a what? As much as I love this name, I’m confused. Why ‘warrior’?” 

The brunette smiled. “It’s the type of bow. You know, they come in all shapes and sizes, just like people…” 

“Stop with the tease, dummy.” 

She got a smirk in return. “The one you see me use during hunt is a long bow. Very long, in fact. It’s optimized for stealth, with a light wood and silencers on the string to be as discreet as possible. We also craft them that long because we use them from a very far distance. With those features, we do not frighten the animals, and therefore are respectful of Nature. We have a more tender meat as their death was quick and without fear.” 

Anna gulped at the powerful statements. 

“This one...”, said Honeymaren, lifting the bow she was holding. “Is quite exactly its opposite. Notice how its wood is way shorter and curved three times, even at the tips. It’s optimized for fighting. I’m not a fan of what it represents and the context it’s used in, but it’s very effective. As we stand closer to the target, we don’t need a long bow, and this size allows faster recharge.” 

“A bow for warriors on the battlefield…” 

“Yes. Its unique asset is its main default, however. As we can’t draw the bow very much because it’s shorter than the usual, it only is for close range.” 

Anna blinked, retrieving from those incredible details. She then smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll give you a window to shoot.” 

“I count on it.” Smirked the brunette. 

She went to pick up new material in the craft shed to change the grip of the bow and make it brand new. On her way, she passed by Eydis, who was staring at the stunning collection of bows all hand-crafted by the tribe. 

“You don’t have those bows in Arendelle, uh?” Grinned the proud leader. 

Eydis puffed. “Even if I did, I can’t buy a single thing in the kingdom without thinking of mother, anyway.” 

“What, she scolds you when you buy useless things? A bow is far from being useless.” 

“No, because there’s her face on every coin.” Snorted the princess. 

They both laughed. 

“She never scolds me for anything I buy. I could ask a chocolatier for my weight in candies and she would even encourage it.” 

They laughed again. 

She saw that Honeymaren had sit down at a table to extend a band of leather and cut the parts she needed. She would be using the dagger she had at her waist, and that all adult Northuldra were wearing constantly, for how multifunction it was a for a people living in the wild. 

“Hey, could you do the trick again?” 

Honeymaren, who was about to simply take the dagger of its sheath and casually use it, smirked. She untied the leather pouch, twirled it in the air, then placed her wrist under it to make it spin around, and took out the dagger with expertise and elegance. The whole movement had been smooth, and Eydis’ eyes sparkled. 

“Never gets old.” 

Honeymaren waved her eyebrows and turned the knife between her fingers before getting to work. 

A few minutes passed, and Eydis admired all the weaponry. Several ice arrows were on a table near the wall, and she approached her hand.  

“Waow, those are superb. Look at the very precise and intricate heads…” 

“Don’t touch that!” Exclaimed Honeymaren, rushing to her niece. 

Eydis’ admirative eyes switched to angry ones. “Damnit! Why can’t I touch anything?!” 

“Language.” Scolded Anna from afar. 

“Sorry, Eydis.” Said the Northuldra leader with a pout. “Those are extremely sharp. Elsa upgraded them since the last time I used them, and even myself have to be very careful when handling them.” 

She slowly placed them back in her quiver, and wondered why she had been leaving them there. Northuldra children could have hurt themselves… When they joined a whole stack of others in her quiver, she realized that in fact, Elsa had been crafting new ones after their meal. 

She admired her wife’s dedication and work on their weapons. Each of them had been enhanced with Elsa’s unbreakable ice. Their efficiency against the monster would be unprecedented. Even Ryder’s staff was covered with a thin layer of ice to strengthen it, keeping the traditional way of fighting. 

When Elsa had announced that she would be using a spear entirely made out of ice, and she had crafted it under their eyes, Honeymaren’s knees had almost buckled at the flashing image of how attractive her wife would be when she would fight with it. The spear was blue - obviously -  and had - as usual - intricate details, for Elsa couldn’t help being extra. The shaft had all the colors of the Spirits spreaded on it, with the four diamond shapes and their symbols proudly displayed along. The head of the spear wasn’t the classical one but a four pronged trident, inspired by the four Spirits’ harmony. The blades were long and placed facing each other two by two, forming a round cross and looking like the cardinal points. Anna had made the remark that if she crafted this quadrident spear while on Nokk, she would look like Poseidon, but Honeymaren didn’t get the reference. 

The odds for the fight were really good. Honeymaren smiled proudly and positively when the two sisters joined them. 

“With Elsa’s expertise, we will defeat Eiglatson in no time.” 

Anna wanted to support her positivity, but she shivered. “‘Next time, I’ll have no pity’, he said. I just hope that we will be strong enough. May the gods be on our side.” 

Elsa nodded, then suddenly widened her eyes. It was like she had remembered or realized something out of nowhere. 

“We will be prepared, Anna, don’t worry.” Assured Honeymaren with a firm leader voice. 

They all agreed. Anna suggested to help Honeymaren refine the Northuldra warriors’ strategy, and Eydis to sharpen their weapons. 

Elsa was the only one not to move, and she remained oddly silent, staring down. 

Anna turned to her, and lifted an eyebrow, about to ask what was wrong. 

“I need to take a moment alone before the fight.” Said the blonde, forcing herself to smile. “I’ll take a break in Ahtohallan.” 

Her sister nodded. Elsa certainly needed to recharge in every meaning of the term; as an introvert with a bubble of calm, and a magical being with the ancient glacier. She had noted long ago how better the Snow Queen’s mood was after meditating in the magical source. 

Honeymaren watched her lover go, slightly suspicious. But she shrugged and walked with Anna to the hut where they had spreaded a giant map on a table. 

“Okay… Strategy thinking…” Mumbled the redhead, and Honeymaren got amused by her pout. “Maren, do you consider yourself lucky?”

The Northuldra leader snorted. “Well, I got to marry a Spirit who also is the most beautiful woman in the world, so… I certainly am.” 

Anna eye-rolled comically. “I meant, if we make a back-up plan based on chance, would that be in your favor or not?” 

“Yeah, sure.” 

The Queen stared at Honeymaren, because now she had been silent, and the distance separating them from the hut was long, so that would soon be awkward between them. Anna noticed that the brunette was fidgeting with something on her left hand, but didn’t get to ask. 

“You must think that I’m a hopeless romantic, uh?” 

Anna smiled. “No, not at all. I mean, yes, you really are, but I don’t mind it, if it’s what you’re afraid of. I find your couple adorable. And you know already how Elsa’s happiness deeply matters to me, so to know that she’s living a perfect married life with you fills my heart with joy.” 

Honeymaren smiled. “I’m the thankful one, I swear. You know, she changed my whole world.” 

She rose her hands, showing the woods surrounding them. “First, by freeing the Forest, and then, by teaching me on her first night in the camp that constellations had names. It was barely hours after I discovered the existence of stars. Imagine how overwhelming that was.” 

“I easily do.” Grinned Anna. “She’s a real nerd. I’ve known her for such a long time - I can’t say my whole life, that would be lying - and she still teaches me stuff about science and physics. It’s crazy coming from someone who also defies those laws with magic.” 

Honeymaren chuckled tenderly. 

“Once, she crafted a sextant for a little girl in the village.” Continued the redhead. 

“A sex… What?” 

Anna burst of laughter. 

“It has nothing to do with sex. It’s a navigation tool, based on the position of stars.” 

“Oh, I see. Old Northuldra told me that our people used to watch the stars to find their way.” 

“All people used to.” Smiled Anna wisely. 

Honeymaren nodded. It was also true figuratively. Elsa was the brightest star that ever shone to her eyes. She could follow her everywhere, like her true north. The brunette fidgeted with her ice ring again at the image of her wife giggling when she ran after her stunning figure in the fields, and Elsa turning around with a smile that warmed her heart like nothing else did. 

“Mareeeeen…” Called Anna’s voice, probably not for the first time, and finally succeeding in bringing her back to Earth. 

“Oh, sorry, you were saying?” 

When she turned to the redhead, she was smirking. “Uhm, correct me if I’m wrong, but the hut is that way, no?” She said, pointing the other way.

Honeymaren blinked and look at where she was heading. Three more steps and she would bump head first into a tree. 

“Y-yes, yes, I was… I’m coming.” 

She cleared her throat, and followed her smiling sister-in-law to where she was supposed to go. 

=======

When they went out of the hut more than two hours later, Anna stretched next to Honeymaren, then she suddenly heard a neigh in the distance. 

She saw a familiar horse, gleaming between the trees, and trotting through the camp in their direction. 

“Oh, hi Nokk!” Smiled Anna, waving. “What are you doing here? Isn’t Elsa with you?” 

She then saw that someone was on their back, but not seated like they rode them; that person had been picked up and transported. 

Nokk stopped walking in the middle of the camp, about twenty meters away from them. Honeymaren’s eyes widened at the platinum blonde hair of the of woman. 

“Elsa?!” 

The blonde groaned, shook her head and massaged her forehead. She forced herself to sit up, but she clearly had difficulties. 

“Elsa, are you okay?!” Panicked Anna, staring at the blonde. 

Nokk neighed loudly. 

“I’m fine.” Murmured Elsa, getting down from the Water Spirit with as much composure as she could. 

Nokk neighed again, insistent. 

“Okay, I may not be.” Muttered the Snow Queen, and only the horse could hear that. 

She let go of Nokk’s neck and lurched along the path. Anna and Honeymaren had come close, sensing that something was wrong. 

“Elsa, you’re usually pale, but now you’re white as a sheet. What happened?” Worried her sister. 

“Do you need help to walk?” 

“I can walk, it’s okay…” 

Honeymaren didn’t insist, noticing how stubborn Elsa was. However, as her and Anna gave way for her to walk through the camp, her knees suddenly buckled. 

“Elsa!!” 

She collapsed to the ground, and Honeymaren rushed to catch her. The blonde fainted in her arms, her head dropping back, and Honeymaren lifted it up. 

“ELSA!!” Screamed the brunette a second time, starting at her lover’s face with alarmed wide eyes. 

She shook Elsa’s body desperately. She pressed her ear to her chest to hear if her heart was beating, but her own heart was beating so fast that she couldn’t focus on the right sound. To make it even worse, Anna had fallen to her knees next to her and was breathing faster and louder each passing second, inspecting her elder’s face. 

“ELSA!!” 

The Snow Queen didn’t respond, still unconscious, her eyes closed. Honeymaren kept her hand behind her head and fumbled at her belt with the other. She grabbed the knife at her waist and drew it in one swift move, then contrasted with that speed by delicately placing the blade under Elsa’s nose. Time seemed to hang in the air while both Anna and Honeymaren stared desperately at the metal, until it covered with condensation. Elsa was breathing. 

They both sighed heavily, their shoulders slumped. They now were sitting on their heels, gripping the blonde’s body. Honeymaren shook her arms. 

“Please, please open your eyes, Elsa. Please stay with me. Please stay with us.” 

She shook her body again, and Elsa blinked tiredly, opening her eyes very slowly. 

Honeymaren gasped and held her tight, muttering a long line of prayers and gratitudes to the world for bringing back her wife. As she hugged her, she felt the ice and snow clothes under her fingers, and she only realized then that it should have been the best clue to know that she hadn’t left them; the magic fabric would have melted away otherwise. 

“I like it when you hold me in your arms like that…” Muttered the voice of her lover next to her ear. 

The Northuldra leader detached from the hug, and kept her wife in her arms, but away enough to stare at her face. 

“What happened to you??” 

The Snow Queen’s weak features twitched in a smile. “I found the password, Honey…” 

“What?” Blinked the brunette. 

“‘Only time itself will tell’... Kronos. It was Kronos.” 

Anna and Honeymaren remained silent in confusion. What the hell was she talking about? 

“Kronos… The greek god of time…” Murmured Elsa with a weak, almost imperceptible voice. 

She however had an obvious sly smile, and Anna blinked. 

“Wait, what? What are you talking about?” 

Had her sister gone mad? She sounded delirious. 

Honeymaren, on the other hand, had connected the dots. She shook her head, as stunned as Anna, but for a different reason. She sighed at the brilliant mind of her wife. 

“You’re incredible, Elsa, I swear… In all meanings of the term.” 

The blonde allowed herself a grin despite her lack of strength. 

“Would someone care to explain?” Frowned Anna, upset that she was missing something that clearly was important. 

“The code word that would unlock the repressed memories of the previous Fifth Spirit… It was ‘Kronos’.” Said Honeymaren. 

Elsa felt happy as the two people she cared the most about exchanged a gaze with huffed smiles. Though, when their eyes reverted to her, her forces left her; her eyes turned up again and she plunged back into darkness. 

=======

When Elsa regained consciousness, she slowly opened her eyes, recovering her sight in blurry steps. She first saw the floating blue candle jars hovering just below the ceiling of the hut. So she was in her bed. At the idea, a feeling of warmth invaded her heart. She then saw, as her vision sharpened, Honeymaren looking at her in distress, then deep relief as she sighed when she saw her wife smile. 

The brunette cuddled next to her and pressed her forehead to her temple. 

“Thanks Ahtohallan, you’re alright.” She murmured. 

“Actually, what happened is Ahtohallan’s fault…” Pointed out another familiar voice, filled with reproach but also concern. 

Elsa’s smile went larger as she turned her face and saw her sister bent over her as well on the other side of the bed. Anna’s sarcasm left her face to quickly be replaced by happiness when she crossed her elder’s gaze. 

“Hey you.” 

The blonde winced. “Actually, it wasn’t entirely Ahtohallan’s fault.” 

Anna sighed. “Yeah, once again you had to go to far, and now you regret it. Seriously, is she this alluring? Is the need to know the truth like a drug or something?”

Honeymaren and Elsa chuckled. 

“Gotta say, the Spirits call can be breathtakingly beautiful sometimes. I can’t imagine how attractive it is when it comes from the source itself.” Admitted the Northuldra leader. 

“And in addition to your dorky snoop personality…” Smirked Anna. 

“Says the one who keeps asking me about gossip!” Gasped Elsa. 

“Well, at least, I’m not risking my life when I ask!”

Elsa eye-rolled. The sisters grinned, and hugged each other warmly. 

“You scared me a bit there.” Murmured the Queen against Elsa’s ear. 

“It’s a good thing you’re used to my drama then.” 

“True.” 

After Anna detached from the hug, Honeymaren stared at her wife in a scolding expression. 

“You really shouldn’t have done that! Don’t make me quote the song. When will you finally...” 

Her frowned eyebrows suddenly shot up, the rest of her sentence vanishing in her throat as she realized what she was doing. “Oh no. I shouldn’t be angry at you. You could have died, and I’m lucky enough for you to be alive…” 

Elsa’s hand quickly slid on the sheets to hold hers. “You’re my wife, Honey. That’s what married life does. You get deadly worried about the other.” 

Anna winced at the word ‘deadly’. 

“You care about me with all your soul, and you’re angry because you weren’t there to protect me.” Continued Elsa.

“So you agree that it was extremely dangerous.” 

The blonde winced. “Yes.” 

“Your hella curious personality will be your undoing, Elsa.” Grumbled Anna. 

“Without my curiosity, we wouldn’t have known about Runeard’s plan!” Reminded Elsa coldly. 

The two other women couldn’t deny it, and remained silent. 

Honeymaren sighed in an upset way. She didn’t like how Elsa purposely went to Ahtohallan alone right when she figured the code word, because she would definitely have prevented her if she was accompanied. 

She passed a hand in her wife’s hair, retrieving her smile. 

“So the previous Fifth Spirit was a nerd as well, uh?” 

Elsa frowned as she was sitting up with her elbows.

“Why do you say that?” 

“Oh, don’t go ‘anyone could have guessed the Kronos password’. You know that none of us would have found it. Did you see memories of him making jokes about Orion’s belt?” 

Elsa slapped her arm, and she grinned. 

“Those jokes would be so bad that he probably put them in his repressed coded memories, though.” 

She received another slap, and this one was stronger. 

“Well, I’m glad to see that your regained strength.” Laughed Honeymaren, rubbing her bruises. 

Elsa couldn’t help but smile, and shook her head. 

“Can you stand up?” Asked Anna. 

“I think I can.” 

She however put her hand in Honeymaren’s stretched one, just to make sure that she wouldn’t fall if her knees buckled. Nevertheless, she could step easily through the hut, and even started to go outside. As a double reward, the Northuldra who were working near the hut turned to her and beamed to see that she was okay. Elsa smiled back, and she felt infinitely better. Now that she knew all the truth and was replenished, she felt ready to fight Victor. 

“You know, I wouldn’t be surprised that Ahtohallan gifts each Fifth Spirit with sarcasm, drama and nerdiness.” Smiled Anna’s voice behind her as she and Honeymaren got out of the hut. 

Elsa gave her a stare. “Don’t encourage her.” 

The two women simply shrugged, amused. Though, Elsa’s sudden serious face changed the mood. 

“Actually, let’s go back inside. We need to sit down.” 

“Uhh, what? Are you okay?” 

“I’m alright. But I have to tell you all the truth about Victor Eiglatson. And it’s best if we do it privately.” 

The Northuldra and Arendelle leaders exchanged a worried glance, and followed her back inside, closing the door behind them. 

Elsa then proceeded to explain that they got a lot of things wrong about him, as they sadly expected. 

“He has been planning his revenge on the Fifth Spirit for years. Longer than any of us three was born.” 

“This is a really spooky introduction, thank you very much.” Commented Anna, her eyes wide. 

“I’ve had access to every single memory that the previous Fifth Spirit had been ashamed of and hiding, even to himself, and…” 

Elsa shivered. That meant a lot coming from her. Honeymaren understood now that her weak state wasn’t only because going far in the secret past had impacted her magic; it was an emotional wreck as well. 

“I’m gonna explain it from the very beginning.” Told Elsa. “So, first of all, Victor Eiglatson had a wife, called Niks.” 

Her sister puffed. “How could a man like him have been married?” 

Elsa gave her a stare. 

“Anna, I love you with all my heart, but I’m begging you to not interrupt me until I’m finished.”

The redhead pouted in a sullen expression, and Honeymaren bit her lip with a smile. ‘Let her continue’, she said with a gaze. 

“Victor and Niks both were merchants, who traveled around the country, and they both had dark magic.” 

“What? How??”

“Anna…” 

“Okay, okay, I’m quiet.” 

Elsa resumed. 

“While Victor kept it low profile, Niks kept using her dark magic for larceny. Robbery, bullying… She kept wielding her powers for evil ends. One day, they were delivering supplies to the Northuldra, and she had threatened the people during the night. The Fifth Spirit had noticed, and spied on her to see if she would do it again. He saw her doing it repetitively each night Victor and her had stayed in the camp, as they had asked for board and lodging for a week. 

Two days before they left, the Northuldra leader told her that he knew what she was doing. He warned her, stating that the next time she would use her powers for such acts, he would have to punish her. She didn’t take him seriously at all. On the following night, she blackmailed a young mother and her child, saying that she would send monsters and hell on the poor family if they didn’t give her half of their crops by the next time they would do business here. The Fifth Spirit saw everything. On the morning after their departure, he followed their caravan, and…” 

The Snow Queen interrupted her story. It was a bit sudden, so the others wondered what had happened. 

“He…” Elsa stopped to gulped. She took a few seconds, then retrieve the needed courage. “He killed her. He killed Niks with his ice and snow magic.” 

Anna and Honeymaren let out synchronized gasps. Anna’s hand flew to her mouth. Elsa closed her eyes and lowered her head. 

“I saw everything. I mean, it was in ice statues form, but… Still. And as he used the same magic than I do, I could almost… Feel what I saw. He impaled her in one go.” 

Honeymaren’s throat tightened, a ball forming in her throat, and she guessed that it was the same for Elsa. She placed a tender hand on her shoulder, and the blonde squeezed it tenderly. After a breathe in, she continued. 

“Victor saw everything. He was boiling with sorrow and rage. He wanted to kill the Fifth Spirit right away, but he froze his lower body and walked away, returning to the camp. He said that it was what needed to be done.” 

Elsa’s hands had returned in her lap, and she clenched her fists nervously. 

“He didn’t even apologize. Victor had spend the day screaming and shouting until the ice melted with the heat of the sun. Once it had vanished, he realized that he had to bury his wife properly before setting off to the camp to murder the Northuldra leader. On her tombstone, he swore to avenge her, and built a plan. Only, when he came to the Forest days later…” 

She looked up at the ceiling, like she could see the sky from where they were. 

“The mist had fallen.” 

She shrugged sadly. “He tried all he could, poured all his magic into his efforts, but it was in vain. As you know, only Anna and I can open the mist. Only the Bridge can. Only the Fifth Spirit can. And the Fifth Spirit… Had just died in turn.” 

Elsa looked at the wall absentmindedly as she remembered the ice statues. “Victor learned about his death through rumors as he came back to the kingdom. He noticed how some soldiers were hateful towards the Northuldra, and he enrolled in the army to train for the day the mist would lift. He planned and planned and planned, and his dark magic got better and darker each passing year. The only thing that separated him from his revenge was a wall of smoke.” 

Her eyes lifted to Anna. “Years later, he learned that I was the Fifth Spirit. In fact, that we both technically were. He started to shout to everyone that we did not deserve to be Queens of Arendelle for that reason. You know the rest. He got sent to prison for such words, but he escaped with magic. His goo monsters slipped through the bars really easily…” 

She once again couldn’t help but let out a little bit of admiration for his creations, despite some disgust. 

“It was less than a month ago. He had trained a lot since. But… Despite hating the Fifth Spirit with all his soul, and his promise to avenge his wife’s death... He actually doesn’t plan to kill me.” 

Honeymaren gave her a look that meant ‘Let me guess, it’s way worse?’ 

“His goal is to rip my magic out of me.” 

The two other woman widened their eyes in utter astonishment. And to make things worse, Elsa kept going. 

“He cleverly thought of that because with his research, he understood that the Fifth Spirit reincarnation is a cycle. Ahtohallan gives the ice and snow powers to a new person each time the previous dies, for them to be the only one to read her memories. And if he kills me, the chain would not stop, it would simply continue. However, by absorbing my magic, his revenge will be complete.” 

Anna had at least a hundred of questions burning her lips at Elsa’s statements. Yet, the elder lifted a finger. 

“Wait, that’s not all; I also saw a memory on his frieze that wasn’t there the last time we checked it with Honeymaren. It was the most recent one. From this afternoon.” 

She gave a pause, and gulped. “He’s planning to attack Ahtohallan’s tonight, and rot it to the core with his goo magic.” 

The two women let out the same gasp, quickly replaced by a deep groan. No one would touch Elsa, and no one would touch Ahtohallan. For Anna, the magic glacier was the source of her magic and who she was and had allowed her to be fully proud of her identity. For Honeymaren, it was this and even more; Ahtohallan was her deity, a representant of the sacred laws of Nature, and she would never let anyone profane the entity that the Northuldra worshipped since forever. 

“We’ve got to unite all of our forces and prevent him from crossing the Dark Sea.” Stated Elsa with emotion. 

A silence fell, and she looked at them with sad eyes. 

Anna didn’t dare to react verbally yet. 

“Uhm… Are you finished?” 

Elsa sighed. “Gosh, I hope so. Yeah, you can talk.” 

“Well, I don’t even know where to start.” Exhaled the Queen. 

“The only thing I retain from all of these news is that I call dibs on the first shot to Victor’s heart.” Grumbled Honeymaren, fire in her hazelnut eyes. 

“Honey, no.” Calmed Elsa. “Violence is not the solution. I mean, of course we’re going to fight him with all our forces, don’t look at me like that, but we’re not going to kill him. This is not who we are. He’s the murderer, not us. He will have to face justice.” 

Honeymaren sighed in a pout. Elsa was right. 

“M’kay.” 

She didn’t seem so convinced, but admitted that shooting arrows at a human’s heart wasn’t really the way to show a good example. 

Anna passed a hand in her hair, and tucked it behind her ear. “So… People with magic can… Rip magic out of other magic people?” 

Elsa gave her a sad look. “I didn’t even know it was possible until today. And I’ve been exploring the abilities of my magic since the Great Thaw, so for nearly 20 years. Never would I have thought that I could extract magic out of someone’s soul…” 

A silence floated in the room. Honeymaren and Anna exchanged a gaze, not daring to ask the question. Finally, Anna did. 

“And… Do you think that you…” 

“No. I would never do that. I don’t want to learn how to do it, and I never want to do it.” Stated Elsa, her voice firm and strong. 

Her azure blue eyes had been so intense that the two other women got stunned by it, then they had grateful smiles. Elsa had god tier powers, but never would she commit such an act. 

However, guilt roamed the Snow Queen’s body as she remembered that the previous Fifth Spirit, on the other hand, had come to a decision of this gravity. 

She looked down as she passed her hands on her arms, curling a bit on herself. “First my grandfather… Now him… I’m tied to criminals.” 

“Don’t say that!” Exclaimed Anna. 

“He killed, Anna. My previous incarnation killed someone.” 

“He’s not you. You are not defined by his action. You’re you own person, even if you have identical powers. You’re no evil, Elsa. Do you hear me?” 

The redhead had been grabbing her sister’s arms for impact, but also to make her stop cowering. 

“You’re literally the most gentle, nicest person I’ve ever met.” 

Elsa blinked sadly. Honeymaren nodded firmly next to Anna, and passed a soft hand in her hair and along her face. 

“Yes, you are, snømus. Would I have made a murderer my wife? I don’t think so.” 

A snort escaped Elsa’s sad lips. 

With the way her sister and lover were holding her, she could cry instantly, so humor was a good way to prevent that. She took a long inhale, and stood up. 

“Yes, it’s no time to get emotional. Victor is cruel and reckless. Tonight we face him with all that we got.” 

The Snow Queen walked to the entrance of the hut, opened it, and turned around to face the two women who looked at her in undeniable awe. With the light passing by the wood slits and the candles projecting blue hues on her face, she looked like a fierce Valkyrie on the warpath. 

She gave their stunned faces a big grin. 

“Let’s suit on.” 

A second of impressed silence fell. Anna let out an amazed puff. “Waow, look at who’s all confident about conflict now. Who are you and what have you done with my forever insecure sister?” 

The blonde gave her a judging look. She had just ruined her epic attitude. 

“I’m not saying that negatively.” Assured the younger. “Only… Damn, you’ve become such a badass. What happened to you?” 

Honeymaren put a hand on Anna’s shoulder. 

“She married me.” 

Elsa smirked.

=======

Anna helped Eydis to put her armor on, then Elsa helped Anna with hers. Sometimes, the redhead had so snap her sister back to reality, because she was admiring the beauty of some steel pieces and taking a lot of breaks.

“Elsa, you’ll get plenty of time to admire my armor once I have it entirely on.” 

“Yeah, sorry. Am I too slow?” 

“No, it’s fine. It’s actually touching that you love it so much. I like to have your opinion on those kind of things. But right now, I’m starting to lose my balance.” 

Elsa hurried to place her boot correctly. She then asked for Anna to turn around to tighten her brigandine. Anna had a proud grin as she stood with her hands on her hips while Elsa was busy. 

“With it, there’s no way those monster’s dark slime will touch my skin.”

She was about to turn to look at Elsa, when an annoying noise came from her neck. “Damn, my gorget keeps squeaking. Can you do something about it?” 

Elsa turned once she was done with the bodice. 

“Well, my magic may do a lot of miracles, however ice and snow are everything but oily. So I’m afraid I can’t.”

“I was talking about actual grease, dummy. Do you have some?” 

“Oh. Yes.” 

Anna smiled as Elsa went to get some in the shed. It was funny how, long ago, the Snow Queen would never have dared to use her magic for anything, and now it was her default option. 

“A Northuldra is using it next door, he will bring it back. Apparently, Kristoff have the same problem.” Smiled Elsa. “I know it’s a good sign, but when was the last time you two wore armors?” 

“It’s not that it’s rusty”, defended Anna. “They are pure work of art from Arendellian’s best craft people. But they need some… Restoration?” 

The blonde grinned. She kept helping her sister place the armor’s pieces one by one, picking them up from the chest where only hers had remained. Her smile faded when she saw how red Anna’s face had gotten when she lifted the faulds and was about to place them. 

“What is it? You seem uncomfortable.” 

Anna looked away with a little pout. “It’s nothing.” 

“No, it’s something. Your freckles almost are disappearing under your blush. What’s wrong?” 

The Queen looked at the faulds. “They’re very large, aren’t they?” 

Elsa blinked in incomprehension. “Uhh… Yeah, they’re meant to go around the waist and hips to protect them. So, by definition, they are.” 

“No, I mean…” 

She was unable to finish her sentence. Elsa frowned as she tried to understand. “You mean your hips and waist are very large.” 

Anna looked away again, and nodded silently. The Snow Queen put away the faults in a brisk move, which the redhead interpreted as revulsion. That’s why she was confused when both her hands got seized in hers. 

“Anna, look at me.” 

The redhead had startled at the touch, and she turned to her sister. “What?” 

“You can’t possibly be saying that you don’t like your body, right?” 

The teal blue eyes went down. “So you agree. You think I’m fat too.” 

“Oh Ahtohallan, no, Anna, hey, look at me.” 

She quitted holding her hands to place soft palms against her cheeks. Anna looked at her, and she was on the verge of crying. 

A silence passed, and Elsa’s gaze switched from one eye to the other. 

“What if you are.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“What if you’re fat?” Said Elsa. 

Anna blinked. It surprised her so much that her tears went away. 

“Yeah, what if you’re fat. Does it matter?” Asked Elsa. 

The redhead blabbered. “Well, of course it does!” 

“No it doesn’t. Stop me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that Kristoff has seen you naked a couple of times or more, didn’t he?” She asked, half-teasing. 

Anna blushed. “Uh, yeah.” 

“Did he ever say anything negative about your body? In 10 years of marriage?” 

“I… No, quite the opposite.” Muttered Anna. “But he could be lying.” 

“Oh. Sure. So, allow me to ask: when was the last time Kristoff has ever lied to you?” 

Anna was speechless. Why was Elsa so good at this? How did she knew exactly which arguments do use? How did she knew precisely what Anna had to be reassured about? The elder sister brushed her cheek with her thumbs to take her out of her thoughts. 

“Anna. You gave birth to two beautiful, amazing children. Your body changed from that. There is nothing more normal in the entire world. Nature gave you the space to bear children.” 

As if those touching words weren’t enough to wreck Anna’s entire soul, Elsa’s left hand went to Anna’s lower belly. “You carried life. Life is the most beautiful thing in the world. Don’t you think that life deserves as much space as possible? And you carried it with love. Love is the most important thing in the world. Don’t you think that love also deserves as much space as possible?” 

The redhead’s lips trembled, and she could barely talk as they stretched in a smile. 

“Y-- Yes.” 

“Then cherish each and every single ounce of your body that fills that space today.” 

Anna’s eyes closed and her tears fell, then she launched herself in Elsa’s arms for a tight hug. It was truly tight with her armor, but the blonde couldn’t care less. She closed her eyes as her little sister’s doubts faded away, and she could almost feel how lighter her soul was. 

“Thank you so much, I… I…” 

Anna had troubles breathing, and gasped over her shoulder. 

“Hey, take your time. It’s okay.” Elsa said gently, rubbing the back of her hair. 

Anna soon detached from the hug to rub her tears and sniff. “I should stop crying though, or this armor really will get rusty.” 

Elsa smiled. The Queen stared at her resolutely. 

“You know, you often say it for yourself, but I swear that I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

“Nonsense. You rule a kingdom. And are the most admired monarch of Arendelle’s history.” 

A silence passed, and they looked at each other with sighs, until Anna stopped sniffing. Elsa picked the iron piece from where she had left it. 

“Now, can I please put your faulds on?”

“Yes.” 

They kept going with smiles, continuing component after component. 

“Can you promise me you won’t tell anyone about what just happened?” 

Elsa smirked. 

“Sure, don’t worry. I’ll take your secret to the greave.” 

Anna stared at her sister, then down at the piece of armor she was holding around her leg, then stared at her again, and this time in a judging way. 

“Was that a pun?” 

Elsa wheezed, not able to retain herself. “It was a good one, admit it!” 

“I can’t freaking believe that my sister just made a joke about a grave. Oh my gods. Hey, stop laughing. No, don’t fall to the floor. Elsa!! Put the greave back on my… Ugh. You’re impossible!!” 

She grunted as she placed the piece herself, shaking her head at her elder’s giggles. With the shake, the gorget squeaked, which made Elsa howl with laughter even more. Actually, the blonde’s laugh was so contagious that Anna laughed as well. 

“That really was an awful joke. I hereby declare, Queen Anna of Arendelle, that you are not allowed to enter the kingdom’s territory anymore. We don’t tolerate this bad humor.” 

Elsa snorted. “Oh, come on. Everyone knows how acclaimed I am in Arendelle. People would riot if they don’t hear my stupid jokes from time to time.” 

Anna sighed dramatically. “Granted.”

“You wouldn’t get rid of me that easily anyway.” Smirked Elsa. 

Anna kept going on her drama. 

“I know. That’s my burden. Being stuck with you as my sister for my whole life.” 

She turned to the door when she heard Eydis come in the hut to pick her gauntlets. 

“Eydis, could you come over here please?” 

“Why?” Frowned the princess, wondering what her mother was talking about from behind the changing screen. 

“Would you grab your mace and kill me? I can’t stand Elsa anymore.” 

The girl knew her mother’s ramblings enough to understand that she was joking, and didn’t even lift her head from the gauntlets she was tying up at her wrists. 

“Sure. Do you want to be knocked on the head or in the face?” 

The sisters laughed. 

“Gosh, she’s a future mercenary.” Chuckled Elsa. 

“She’s actually aiming for ice harvester mixed with sailor.” Shrugged Anna. 

Soon, they were finished. “Come on, let’s go outside so I can admire it in the sunlight.” Beamed the Snow Queen. 

=======

“So now you’re the one in need of a tissue. Do you need one?” Grinned Anna. “We probably packed some.” 

Elsa breathed in and out heavily as she blinked to chase her emotional tears. 

“You just look… So great, in this, Anna. I’m…” 

She let out a noise that was a mix of a gasp and a squeal. “I’m really proud of you.” 

The Queen of Arendelle smiled widely at the compliment. “Thank you, sis.” 

Anna’s armor was entirely polished with a matte golden color, and it made her look like a stunning legend. The absence of reflections gave her a serious aura and the detailed finishing touches showcased her. Each joint of the metal and seam of the reinforced garment were engraved and embroidered with ivy motives. On both of her shoulder pieces were drawn Arendelle crocuses, one in green and one in purple. Her plackart proudly displayed the kingdom’s flag, and it married perfectly with the gold color of the whole outfit. 

Gods, was it hard for Elsa to not burst into tears at the whole sight. 

She approached to wrap her arms around the redhead. It was rare that Elsa was the one to initiate embraces, so it meant a lot to Anna, and it warmed her heart. 

When they finished hugging, Elsa held the face of her little sister in her hands, sniffing at her beauty. “You’ve become a wonderful woman, Anna. A passionate Queen, a devoted mother, and a hero with a heart of gold.” 

The redhead snorted modestly. “You’ve only seen me in that armor for like, two minutes.” 

Elsa shrugged. “And yet, I can attest you that you would look way better on a Joan of Arc style portrait than I’ll ever do.” 

Her younger laughed. “This might be the best compliment in the world.” 

“Looking really good, Anna!” Approved a voice behind them, and they turned to see Honeymaren with a thumb up. 

Anna giggled and thanked her with a comical curtsey.  

“I’ll join you in a moment, I’m gonna suit up too.” Informed the Northuldra. 

“Okay.” 

She disappeared in the armory hut, and the Snow Queen smiled when her eyes landed on the redhead again. “With Kristoff and Eydis, you three look absolutely amazing. This really looks like the Arendelle flag was brought to life.” 

Anna smiled. “Let’s hope that it will fly forever, then.” 

The exchanged a gaze, their eyes sparkling with emotion. 

Elsa looked over to where Kristoff and Eydis had been standing, and the sisters spent a long time talking about the specificities of each. Kristoff’s one definitely was a mix of a knight armor and an ice harvester outfit, while Eydis’ one seemed like a miniature of her mother’s, but in silver. With her blonde hair, she was really pretty. All the armors, in their own way, demonstrated how talented Arendelle’s craftspeople were.  

“I like how we got those armors made to measure.” Said Anna. “It allows easy movements, while it assures efficient protection.” 

“Yeah, it’s…”

The blonde’s answer vanished in her throat. Elsa suddenly disconnected from reality as she stared behind Anna, but it was like she was staring at nothing. Or rather, at something divine. 

“Hey, are you with me?” Said her sister, snapping her fingers in front of her eyes. “Did your brain fry in Ahtohallan or what?” 

Elsa didn’t respond. With a frown, Anna turned around to follow her gaze, and when she saw Honeymaren step out of the hut, it was like the Forest itself had stopped its activity to stare in awe. 

The brunette was wearing a traditional war outfit only wore by Northuldra leaders, and it suddenly became very clear to Anna why Elsa hadn’t been able to make words. Anyone had to admit that Honeymaren was giving a stunning impression with that attire. Anna’s jaw dropped when the brunette took a few steps outside and looked over the tribe with a stare that made her aura matching the one of a falcon, except that her eyes were filled with pride and care for her people. The redhead then realized that she was looking for Elsa among the crowd that was staring at her, and when she finally recognized the platinum blonde woman behind Anna, her satisfied smile went larger in a beam. She made her way to her, and the Queen wondered if Honeymaren was ready to see up close the ravenous look that Elsa was giving her, and if Elsa was strong enough to not faint right when the leader would be breathing near her. 

With amusement, Anna’s eyes darted from one woman to the other, and it was certain now that Elsa had never seen Honeymaren wearing that outfit. Which made sense, given the current peaceful times. 

It was a mix of a tunic and an armor made of hard leather. The latter fabric clearly had been reinforced with an unusual thickness that was reserved to battle gear, and Anna was impressed by the details that however had been drawn on it. How much time did the Northuldra have spent on this? It required a lot of expertise and talent for a tribe that only used manual tools. Several bands of lighter leather crossed Honeymaren’s torso and fell from her shoulders to land on her hips, both holding her weapons and assuring that the flexible armor would stay in place. A large band of thick leather crossed the leader’s belly and juxtaposed her traditional belt, to which was still attached her usual dagger. Beautiful darker pieces were covering her forearms so she could easily protect herself from the blows, and Anna noticed the sames on her thighs and shins, tied above her tunic. Her left wrist was protected on the inside as well, the leather also serving as a guard to avoid any injury when archery is involved. The outfit was objectively magnificent with all its practical yet sophisticated pieces, all dyed with different natural colors that made it soar. Some were pitch black, others a deep brown interlaced with ochre bands - which highlighted her chestnut eyes - and others, especially her tunic, were bright beige. 

Honeymaren had completed the outfit with her bow in her back and her quiver at her waist, and it looked like she was ready to slay. In fact, Anna was almost considering the idea to let her go to battle on her own and take care of everything. Who could stand up to her? 

Elsa let out a noise when her wife arrived to her level, and it betrayed the fact that she had forgotten to breathe for a moment. 

“H-- Hey-y… You.” 

Both Anna and Honeymaren bit their lips to hide their giggle at Elsa’s rare fluster. For a very articulate person, she seemed to have lost all her vocabulary. 

“H-Honey…” 

She tried to say a full sentence, but was simply unable to. 

Bruni trotted nearby and squeaked, and Anna smirked. Was it to admire the Northuldra leader and compliment her outfit, or to check that the Fifth Spirit wasn’t on fire? 

“Are you okay?” Grinned Honeymaren, teasing, though a bit concerned. Now wasn’t the time for Elsa to faint again. 

“I-- I’m beautiful. I mean… I’m not... I’m super-- I’m great.” 

Anna giggled, but she managed to hide it behind her palm. Elsa was too busy staring deeply at her lover to even notice it. 

“Breathe, love.” Smiled Honeymaren, passing her hand along the blonde’s cheek. 

One could think that this would make her arousal even deeper, but the brunette actually succeeded in taking Elsa out of her transe. She gulped as she retrieved her normal behavior. 

“Yeah, uhm… Uh… Let’s get ready, shall we?” 

She coughed and turned around, inviting the others to follow her. 

“Auntie, what will you wear for battle?” Inquired Eydis, running a bit to go walk next to her, her mace bouncing on her shoulder. 

Her little eyes were sparkling as she imagined the most amazing armor possible. Elsa recovered from her fluster and looked at her niece with a smirk. 

“Why, my work outfit of course.” 

As she walked, and there was no need for her to stop nor slow down, she flicked her wrists up in unison. Gusts and twirls of glittering magic appeared from her palms and went in two ways. One move went down from her wrists and added layers of protection to the casual white tunic she had been wearing. The other move went up like embers of ice that floated in the air, which then deposited on her bright white outfit like petals. The magical dust formed new shapes on her shoulders, knees, chest, belly, hips and shins, creating the most perfect ice armor. It couldn’t be more custom-made, and it obeyed each and every motion she made, being comfortable and ergonomic. It also was incredibly beautiful with its breathtaking details and decorations, once again reminding the four other Spirits. Most of the parts were diamond-shaped. Despite the whole piece of art it made, its transparency didn’t fool anyone; the armor was sturdy, if not more than regular ones. Elsa admired her own work. 

“...With a few additions, I’ll admit.” She smiled. 

Honeymaren’s chestnut eyes got lost at the sight, having not missed any of the show while she walked on Elsa’s other side. That was, for the lack of any other word, a divine transformation. Her eyes filled with tears. Were they due to emotion or because the outfit was bright white and gave the feeling to stare at the full Moon herself? She blinked to dissimulate them. 

“Not very stealthy, but I guess what we’ll have to deal with it.” Shrugged Honeymaren, to joke about it and switch her mood. 

She giggled when she received a white-covered elbow nudging her ribs. 

Elsa shook her head, then looked at the horizon. Her gaze now was more focused than ever. 

“Okay, Victor. You wanted to face me? I’m not alone anymore. Here we come.”

[teejaysnow]

Did anyone ever translate Tarjei’s Elle interview? Because I’ve been having trouble sleeping (*fistbumps Isak*) the last couple of days and ended up doing it to try and beat my brain into something at least slightly unconscious. So for anyone interested, here it is...

Annoyingly adult

It’s just about six months since the last day of school, and work has been lining up for 19 year old Tarjei Sandvik Moe, aka Isak in Skam. Now he’s once again ready to take the viewers by storm, both in cinema- and theatre auditoriums. This fall we’ll see him both in the thriller En Affære and in the family show Snøfall. And he has several, so far secret, projects coming up.

After the last episode of the successful series Skam had rolled past the screen, 24th June last year, the days were all but relaxed for Tarjei Sandvik Moe, known as Isak Valtersen in the series. In addition to finishing his last year at the drama programme at Nissen high school, he was active in the theatre group Antiteatret and taking part in the production of the musical Grease, which was performed at Chateau Neuf from January to March this year. He’s acted in a historical play at Smøla and, not least, landed his first movie role. Now he’s to be seen on cinema screens around the country in En Affære, side by side with film and theatre veteran Andrea Bræin Hovig. Tarjei himself is just grateful for all the work, and deals with his hectic schedule with an offhand approach.

“These days it’s neverending with theatre rehearsals at Oslo Nye Teater, I’m in the production of Snøfall, which premieres at the beginning of November. At the same time there are a lot of interviews and work associated with En Affære. And I’ve just moved away from home for the first time, together with two friends. Things are working out so far, I can’t complain. And it’ll probably be easier than when I went to Nissen anyway. There I worked every day after school in addition to me being a sociable guy who likes to go out on the weekends. Mum said that I was going to burn out, but fortunately it went well.”

The interest in theatre and acting came as he shelved football practice and signed up for a musical course as the only boy among 20 girls.

“It’s a pity that it’s basically only girls who do musicals and dance, it’s so much fun. I learnt early on in the course how important it is to just not give a fuck. I didn’t have any experience with either singing or dancing at that time, and I think that’s helped me a lot as an actor as well - to be able to let loose is important. I probably hadn’t been comfortable taking these photos for ELLE a couple of years ago for example. To sit in that bar and focus 100 percent on the photographer - and give everything to get a good photo. You can’t be very self conscious then.”

Being able to put the self consciousness aside was also helpful when some of the more intimate scenes in En Affære were to be filmed. The film is described as an erotic thriller and is about the relationship between a PE teacher, played by Bræin Hovig, and her pupil Markus, played by Tarjei. He himself thought it was completely unproblematic to both film the scenes and watch the final result on a big screen.

“It’s almost like I’m not seeing myself. I don’t know why, but I’ve realised that it takes quite a lot to make me embarrassed. I’m totally fine with doing scenes like that without feeling that it’s awkward or difficult. So I’m looking forward to seeing how far I can take it in the future, where is, like, my limit. Because I have yet to experience thinking that, ‘no, this isn’t working…’ or that something is uncomfortable. And of course it’s an advantage to act against someone who is the same in that area. Like Andrea. We were so comfortable with each other that it never was weird. We laughed in between takes, had fun and were friends. We recorded some sex scenes, and then there was a coffee break,” he laughs and continues:

“Before I got this part I’d been thinking that I wanted to play exactly that kind of role, that it would have been fun and something I could have done well, so it’s a bit funny that it happened. I also like the character I play a lot, he has an incredibly confident and masculine way of presenting himself. It’s like he wears a mask when enacting with others, and that reminded me a lot of the typical footballer guys in my team during secondary school. Those athletic types from the West End of Oslo, I did know a lot of those. And it’s a bit amusing to play someone who doesn’t just remind you of, and are similar to, yourself, but where you can recall people you have met and use that in the role. Recall how they moved, behaved and talked.”

Due to the role as Isak in Skam, the slightly insecure and anxious boy who had trouble understanding and accepting his homosexuality, Tarjei feels like many people are surprised by how different he is in relation to the part he played.

“I often play slightly insecure people, so I understand that many people think that I’m like that too. But I’m really very secure in myself, and a true people person. I’m always delighted and happy to meet new people.”

But despite his sociable self he isn’t as delighted with all the attention from strangers that followed his success.

“There are people who want to take photos and talk to me and stuff, which is nice. What I don’t like as much is the feeling you can get that someone maybe just laugh at things I say because I’m well-known and not because they actually find them funny. That people are more interested in me than they should be. I’m just a completely ordinary guy, and what I say and do isn’t necessarily more interesting than what others say and do. You can get thoroughly paranoid by things like that, but I try not to think too much about it.”

As everyone knows it wasn’t just here at home that the NRK series was a great success. The fans reaches from Europe to the USA and Asia, and many got so interested in the actors that they went to Oslo in hope to get a glimpse of their idols. And that became a bit much, even for the outgoing and sociable Tarjei.

“Skam was aired on TV when I attended Nissen, and there were at times huge groups of Asian tourists in the schoolyard during breaks. The principal finally had to let them know that they weren’t allowed inside the school. And there are many foreign fans attending my theatre performances who are there just to film and take photos of me without understanding anything of what’s being said on stage. It’s rather weird and a bit uncomfortable. Julie Andem told me, before Skam had completely taken off, that you don’t have to feel like you owe somebody something just because you play a part that might mean a lot to people. So I have very little guilt about not giving a lot of myself to the fans. I’m not on social media where I bow and say thanks for all the love and attention. My job is to act, and part of that package is that I’m on TV and people can see me, and that’s fine. But I don’t feel like it’s part of my job, or my responsibility, to use a lot of my time on fans.”

While many of the series’ actors have hundreds of thousands of followers from all over the world on Instagram and willingly share their lives there, Tarjei chose to delete his account when his stardom really took off.

“I had Instagram before, but deleted it between season 1 and 2 of Skam. I realised that I couldn’t walk around and think about it. It just steals your focus. I hear from others that it’s important to have it to promote yourself, but I think that it’s just as good to do interviews and stuff like that on occasion. Not try to control how I want to portray myself through an Instagram account. But of course you won’t always be portrayed as you’d want by doing interviews either. I want to be honest, but not revealing. Before I became famous I thought I’d never do interviews and rather be like some kind of mole who just appeared here and there, but it’s often part of the contract that you will promote the projects you do. My work isn’t really finished just because the director says cut for the last time.”

It’s not just acting that occupies the busy 19-year old's time. He’s also working on writing his own scripts and dreams about producing both short films and musicals.

“I’m doing a bit of writing already, but I want to get a bigger understanding for dramaturgy and storytelling. I don’t think I could write novels, but I feel that writing scenes are in a way more like being an architect. You make some sort of blueprint. To work as a director would probably not be for me, but to see something based on my thoughts and texts would be incredibly cool. I’ve tried a lot of genres and am very fond of contemporary drama in a setting I, and hopefully a lot of others, can recognise.”

For someone still in his teens, Tarjei has achieved incredibly much careerwise, and he says that he often feels ‘annoyingly adult’ when he, unlike his friends, turns down a gap year and to ‘travel to find himself’. The plans for the future are clear, both in terms of career and where to live.

“To me, the story I tell through the roles that I play is more important than how big something is or how much money I make. I enjoy performing something on a tiny scene in front of 20 people just as much as being on a big film set as long as the story is good. That’s why I’m not eager to for example travel abroad to ‘go get it’ just to have done it. I don’t dream about trying my luck in the USA. Norway is fine, and Oslo is my universe. I’m a very interested and curious person, but not so adventurous when it comes to exploring the world. It’s fun to go on holiday, but I don’t feel the need to live anywhere else than Oslo. There are still so many exciting people here that I haven’t met yet.”

[ayellowcurtain]

My thoughts: Lundi (22:16): I certainly like the good vibes radiating from both of them but why does Eliott always have to be so intimate around Lola? In order to show friendship it is not nescessary to always touch someone and to look at someone as if you are in love with this person. This feels totally odd and it destroys my sympathy for Eliott and Lola because it always feels like Eliott does not appreciate Lucas enough and like Lola intrudes their relationship. Why can´t it be more neutral?

I was too, so very happy that both of them were in a better place. 

But Lola 3 days prior to that said to her sister she was thinking about ------- and on that same night, I couldn’t stop reading people saying that Eliott was a bit “off” on the Friday clip because he was still probably struggling, a bit down, maybe. So yeah, it was good to see them happy, but also rushed? Based on the information the show gave us not even 3 days before, I wasn’t expecting to see two rays of sunshine, happy to be talking again. 

I order to ever think Eliott and Lola were ever friends, I needed so many changes, anon: 

Don’t go talk to a stranger at her mom’s funeral. I’m sorry, this may be personal, but if A STRANGER came to talk to me during such a horrible day, I would walk away. 

I needed to see them talk. Not at random parties for a minute or two, once a week or so. I mean texting, adding each other on social media, liking each other’s posts, talking about art or whatever. No damage control text, to see them bond over things they like or don’t like. Every time we see a text convo, we see the past conversations and it might seem stupid, but even with text we “aren’t supposed to be focusing on”, we still get content. (remember that thing Isak did in the shower?) 

We should know how the fuck does Lola know where Eliott work? If I was editing this show, I would erase that clip and put one a little later, when they were done with that movie. Lola could ask why the hell Eliott likes these old movies, he could tell her about why he likes them, why is he working there. She could open up a little bit, etc. 

Even more conversations through text and social media! Not her showing up again at his workplace and for him to think she’s perfect for a role he wrote for the guy he’s dating for over a year?

More conversations! Her checking with him if it’s really okay with Lucas for her to play his part. Eliott could tell her a little more about his relationship with Lucas. 

This is the most important one: If you wrote an entire season about sexual assault, you DO NOT make a single clip that’s ten times worse than that entire season just for Eliott to be the charming prince that comes save the day. Don’t use this traumatic, horrific situation just so you can have a man coming to rescue her. Flavie’s acting during that clip was out of this world amazing! I never felt so scared, not even during seasons 2 and yet, she was fine the next day and what happened that night was never mentioned again. 

Don’t make the film. Period. Don’t create yet another situation just to have more drama that adds literally nothing to Lola’s plot. If she can’t say she loves the girl she likes, then give her time. She’ll say it later, don’t worry. No need for her to kiss a boy just so she realizes she loves a girl. 

Another important one: Don’t make her drag Eliott to a very bad night, headspace just so they can be bad for each other. Don’t make them act like it was nothing a week later. I don’t want Lucas to go full hedgehog on her, saying stupid things because the girl is almost breaking in his home where things might not be going great. But I also don’t want Eliott to act like he was the only one in the wrong

I think that’s all for now. hahaha 

For the longest time, we were all scared for that spoiler, thinking it couldn’t get worse than that. 

I said this before and I was talking to a friend about it too, but I don’t understand Eliott anymore. Especially for the past few weeks. And sure, this might be my fault for creating this idea of him that’s not at all matching what I’m watching now, but I’m not the only one. I see some people that - thankfully - make me feel like I’m not completely out of my mind with this opinion about him. We won’t see their future, so at least I can pretend they’ll work things out and be together forever. But what I’m seeing of Eliott is not how I expected him to behave some times. 

Like I said before, apparently, Lola and Eliott have this magical, out of this world connection that doesn’t even need development, that’s how amazing and strong their connection is. 

[romancing-lady-whistledown]

the fandom was exactly like this, every time Lucas or Eliott weren't a perfect human and had flaws the fans here would say they were ruined. like Lucas saying some ignorant things on s5 and s6 doesn't mean they ruined him?? and it wasn't ooc he said some ignorant things on s3 as well. but he apologises. fans are obsessed with purity, they want their fave characters to be 'woke kings' . I read fics where Lucas was super "woke" and honestly it made me cringe so much bc that's not him

Hi anon! I have no idea when I recieved this as Tumblr never notified me about it, so I’m sorry if this response is really late! This got kinda long so I’ll leave my response under the cut.

 Personally when it comes to Elu-fanfiction (which is the only type of fanfiction I read, actually) I’ll enjoy anything that can give me the Elu-feelings, just in different ways depending on the genre/trope, and that also includes when they’re pure fluff and the angst that maybe would’ve happened in the actual show is cut down or cut out. Sure I’ll notice when Lucas or another character says something I could never hear canon Lucas say, but overall as long as the character has enough traits from Lucas, whether it’s more from soft Lucas or more from fiery Lucas, I’ll just take that as the writer using their freedom to make the tweaks to the characters that they wish for their story. With that being said, when it comes to the canon characters themselves and the way they’re created and presented in the show (and this is in general not just in Skam France, but definitely also in Skam France), I completely agree with you. Alot of people do want their favorite characters to be morally pure and fully woke, but that has never been Lucas or Eliott and personally I don’t know anybody in the real world who are perfect in that way either. 

To me personally a well-rounded and well-developed character is a character that on some level feels real and relatable, rather than a character that always pose as an example for the ideal response to every situation they’re put in. The latter will, to me personally, make them feel less real, well-rounded and relatable because nobody has the ideal response to every situation they’re put in. People do mess up and they mess up often, whether it’s in what they say or what they do. People also do grow and change and learn but that takes time. I won’t recognize any real human I know in a character that always does and says the right thing. That’s not to say that every character with flaws is a great character (examples of characters I personally don’t think are well-crafted, relatable or likable on any level are Charles from Skam France and, from the little I’ve seen of her, Kato from Wtfock). I think the key to creating a great character is giving them a combination of flaws and pleasant traits that make them either interesting or lovable or both, in a way that fit with the role they’re supposed to play in the story, whether it’s as an antagonist or a protagonist or something in between. 

What makes Lucas so lovable to me is the combination of him being hot-tempered and passionate and him also being very emotional and incredibly soft and sweet with the people he loves. He wears any emotion on his sleeve, whether it’s sadness or joy, anger or love. He’ll demand an explaination about Lucille multiple times until he gets one, but when he knows it’s Eliott and him he’ll turn into a softie who demands kisses every other minute and buys Eliott flowers and croissants when he’s not feeling well. He’ll lose his temper and he’ll sometimes say ignorant things as we saw in both S3 and in the newer seasons, but he’ll also apologize for things he say, as we saw both with Arthur, Lola and Chloe. Lucas is to me the perfect example of a character with a lovable combination of positive traits and flaws. 

My one big complaint about Lucas and Eliott’s parts of S5 and S6 is not that they were ruined in any way, it’s that I feel like the writers started an arc on screen that didn’t get a good conclusion on screen. They introduced insecurities for both Lucas and Eliott that we got to see them discuss with others (Imane, Arthur, Lola) but never with each other. We actually saw Eliott very rarely in S5 and Lucas very rarely in S6, but when we did see Lucas in S5 it was partly for the part of the storyline where Arthur felt left out and in S6 it was basically to set up the club-incident towards the end of the season (that he understandably got upset about), and in both S5 and S6 his tendency to get angry and speak before thinking (that always has been there) got a bit more focus on screen than his soft and sweet side (although it was still present), but that doesn’t mean that his soft side isn’t there just as much as before. To me that is a problem in the writing and storytelling with them prioritizing showing the angst a lot more than the happy or healing moments, instead of having a better balance, but it did by no means ruin Eliott, Lucas or Elu for me. I saw enough in S3 to fully believe that the conversations that needed to happen did happen or will happen, and sometimes conversations between them were referenced but not shown on screen, like when Lucas told Lola at the video-store that Eliott had explained her and Eliott’s relationship to him.

I think it’s important to acknowledge that Skam is always gonna be frustrating with things like this because of the one POV per season thing. Conversations that we would very much like to see will take place off screen when the main isn’t there, we did for example not see Isak and Even talk about Mikael and Isak’s jealousy or Noora and William talk about their drama in S4, we were always told about this through Sana, and the people we did see Lucas and Eliott discuss their insecurities with in S4-S6 were always the mains of their respective seasons. But the thing with Skam France is that they did break the POV for the Fifi-clip or Basile and Daphne talking during S5, so it’s hard not to wish that they could’ve done that here. I also wanna add that when I say I wish they gave Lucas and Eliott’s arc in S5 and S6 a good conclusion I don’t mean Lucas and Eliott getting rid of their insecurities so they’ll never be a potential cause of conflict ever again, because I don’t think insecurities work like that. I don’t think being in a loving relationship for a year will take those insecurities away. As I said earlier, growth takes time, and deep-rooted insecurities are certainly no exception to that.

Anyway, this got long and ranty and I’m sorry about that, but the bottomline is this: I definitely agree with you that there seems to be a huge need in for beloved characters to remain as morally pure and woke as possible in the fandom in order for them not be concidered “ruined”. In reality the flaws we saw in both Lucas and Eliott in S5 and S6 were, in my opinion, very much present in S3, I think they were very much in character, but the difference is that now we only got small glimpses of the characters, their words and their actions, they were not the main focus and we didn’t get to see them up close with all of their qualities explored the way we got in S3. We only got what we got in those glimpses, and sometimes that was a glimpse of Lucas and Eliott doing or saying something they shouldn’t have, but that doesn’t mean all the good qualities of them as characters and as a couple disappeared, we simply didn’t get to see the full picture on screen the way we did in S3. In S5 and S6 I had some issues with the storytelling for Elu, just like I did for other characters, but to me personally the characters and the couple were by no means ruined.

[queensconquest]

florabled said:  Every other symbol for Isake!

( IN DEPTH HC MEME )

☠ : Are there any recent/daily thoughts they have about death or dying?    Not  really.  Isake  isn’t  one  to  dwell  on  the  thoughts  of  death  or  dying.  He  keeps  in  mind  the  situation  of  the  clan  and  what  the  effects  of  certain  actions  can  be.  But  otherwise  he  isn’t  one  to  focus  on  thoughts  about  it.

♥ : Name one thing about the way their emotions work that they despise.   That  they’re  not  difficult  to  override.  Isake  ,  like  all  true  Fuuma  ,  puts  his  own  emotions  after  the  needs  of  clan.  Even  though  he  HATED  (  and  i  mean  REALLY  HATED  in  the  movie  )  the  former  clan  head  for  making  him  kill  his  father  (  aka  his  father  tricking  Isake  via  disguise  to  kill  him  so  Isake  could  become a  full  Fuuma  )  ,  even  then  Isake  didn’t  act.  It  was  only  after  the  former  head  said  screw  Orochi  ,  protect  me  ,  that  Isake  attacked  and  ultimately  killed  the  former  head  bc  that  was  what  was  best  for  the  clan.  Isake...does  sometimes  wish  his  own  emotions  were  stronger.  Unfortunately  ,  they  are  not.

☁ : Describe how they would spend a stormy, overcast/rainy day.    Isake  would  do  whatever  he  needed  to  do  ,  regardless  of  the  weather.  But  ideally  ?  He’s  not  really  sure.  It’s  not  like  he  has  anyone  to  spend  it  with.  Maybe  bake  some  and  sit  by  the  windows  and  just  watch  the  rain  for  a  while  or  do  some  light  readings.

εжз : What about nature do they find calming? What about nature do they find disagreeable?     He  grew  up  on  the  mountains  in  the  forest  by  cliffs  and  rivers.  Nature  is  extremely  calming  ,  he  far  prefers  being  in  nature  than  in  a  bustling  city.  He  enjoys  the  sounds  ,  from  chirping  birds  to  the  murmur  of  the  river.  That  said  ,  the  natural  disasters  can  be  quite  terrible.  It  has  the  inconvenience  of  isolation  at  times  too

☛ : What is their typical response to being given orders?    To  follow  them.  Freedom  is  hell  to  a  ninja.  Orders  mean  that  there  is  a  purpose  to  fulfill  and  a  role  to  play.  Isake  typically  follows  orders  ,  even  asked  Tenka  to  give  him  some  as  Shirasu.  Now  that  he’s  actively  the  leader  ,  he  isn’t  given  orders  ,  and  if  he  was  ,  he’d  think  about  it  for  the  sake  of  his  clan.

✄ : Are there any reasons why they would ever think of self-harm? If so, what are they?    No  ,  i  don’t  see  Isake  ever  actually  doing  it.  He’d  feel  it  would  be  dishonorable  to  his  father  and  mother  and  his  twin.  They’re  all  gone  now  ,  he’s  the  only  survivor  of  his  bloodline.  To  hate  the  life  he  has  thanks  to  his  family  giving  up  theirs  ,  he  could  never.  No  matter  how  much  he  hurt  ,  how  alone  he  might  feel  ,  he  couldn’t  do  it.

❥ : Describe a verbal way they would express complete trust.    A  verbal  way  to  express  trust  for  Isake  would  be  talking  about  his  family.  He  doesn’t  talk  about  them.  His  twin  he  does  a  bit  more  just  because  some  saw  and  met  him  ,  however  brief  that  time  was.  But  talking  about  his  family  is  a  sign  of  trust.  Even  in  the  story  he  told  Tenka  ,  he  never  explicitly  mentions  his  parents  or  twin.

⊗ : What is something that causes them to question themself?    His  emotions.  Even  though  he  ultimately  always  chooses  the  clan’s  needs  first  ,  his  emotions  do  call  him  to  question  himself.  As  Isame  noted  ,  and  Isake  remarked  ,  meeting the  cloud  brothers  was  his  mistake.  He’s  more  emotional  than  he  would  have  always  been.  Even  though  Shirasu  Kinjou  was  a  lie  ,  not  everything  was  a  lie.  But  definitely  being  more  AWARE  of  his  emotions  causes  question  occasionally. 

☤ : Is there anything about their health they are continuously on edge about? Something they disregard?       Not  particularly  ,  no.  He’s  in  very  good  health  and  didn’t  have  any  issues  (  unlike  his  twin.  )  He  does  tend  to  disregard  injuries  pretty  quickly  though  which  isn’t  great.

❣: Describe a way that will earn affection (whether platonic or romantic) from them.    Ooo  this  one  is  hard.  Just  spending  time  and  getting  close  to  him  will  earn  affection  over  time  (  as  long  as  its  neutral  or  positive  time  spent  together.  )  Conversing  ,  having  a  meal  ,  it’s  the  simple  things  like  that  which  earn  affection  from  him.

♆ : Are they prone to violent outbursts or thoughts?     No.  Isake  has  always  been  more  level-headed  and  calm  out  of  the  twins.  Even  when  he  does  have  an  outburst  ,  it’s  a  very  calm  and  cold  anger.  He’s  careful  and  analytical  about  it.  In  some  ways  ,  it’s  far  more  terrifying.  Isake  doesn’t  make  the  same  mistakes  someone  in  a  fit  of  rage  does.

✉ : Do they tend to rely on words or actions more?    It  depends.  Isake  has  certainly  used  his  words  a  lot  in  his  life.  His  words  tend  to  preface  his  actions  ,  so  I  would  say  he  relies  more  on  words  than  anything.  To  gain  support  of  the  Fuuma  killing  the  old  head  ,  telling  his  story  to  Botan  ,  even  his  threats  tend  to  come  before  his  actions.  So  words  for  sure.

۞: Are there any inner demons they can never seem to get rid of? What are they?    Sometimes  the  though  that  twins  are  a  curse  ,  that  he  is  cursed.  He  lost  his  father.  He  lost  his  mother.  He  lost  his  twin.  He  had  to  give  up  the  Cloud  Brothers  for  the  sake  of  the  clan.  Everything  slips  between  his  fingers  like  water  ,  he  can  never  keep  anything  himself.  Sometimes  Isake  wonders  if  the  curse  of  twins  is  true.  He  knows  logically  it  isn’t  real  and  it’s  a  horrible  belief  ,  one  that  is  no  longer  part  of  Fuuma  culture.  But  it  hurts  him  still  ,  especially  in  the  middle  of  the  night  ,  because  that’s  when  he  used  to  talk  with  his  father  or  go  visit  Isame.

[inmyarmswrappedin]

Matteo ranty thing please?

Hi anon 🍝 Okay, so! Matteo. For as much as I do like Matteo and I think he’s a great character and a great addition to the wider Skam universe, I also never had this instantaneous love at first sight that many Matteo fans had. 

Like, I remember when the first Druck clip dropped and people were going WILD over this sleepy eyed stoner who all but sat on Jonas’ lap. I feel like, out of the first four Isak remakes (Lucas L, Martino, Shay and Matteo himself), people wanted his season the most because of that clip alone. 

I remember one person who said that Matteo just looked like a Skam character, in the sense that as soon as he made his appearance they could perfectly imagine him at Nissen and in the world of Skam (as in the og). And I think there’s some of that, and also a certain je ne sais quoi about him, like Michelangelo Fortuzzi should be playing a whole roster of fragile young men who died too soon. (This was Leonardo di Caprio’s whole career until he grew out of those roles btw! I know Michi just LOVES Leo.)

For me personally, what I like about Matteo is that I think, while Druck’s writing is rather uneven, he lucked out and got the best character arc. You more or less can see how his relatively happy go lucky Jonas follower fell into a personal crisis and just stopped taking care of himself (physically and emotionally). And then he falls in love and he doesn’t get over his crisis FOR love, but rather feeling things strongly again, feeling GOOD about something or someone, makes him realize just how far gone he really was. And, by the end, he hasn’t figured things out yet, but he’s a lot happier. I can relate a lot to his not knowing what he wants to do, but not saying no to anything, giving things a chance: going on a hitchhiking trip, (making an attempt at) renovation, helping out with David’s movie, reconnecting with his mom and so on. 

I also really like how deeply Matteo feels for David. My favorite thing about the scene where Matteo comes out to Jonas is that Jonas keeps trying to lighten the mood with jokes, but Matteo is like, “dude, you just don’t understand... how much I care for this guy, it’s all I can think about.” And of course Jonas takes a while to get it, because it’s just so unlikely, no? Here’s this scruffy guy who doesn’t seem to have any zest for life, his insta pic is literally him making a :6 face, his room has like two pics and a floating shelf as decoration, a memelord and a gamer, but when he talks about David it’s like... You get the feeling he’d be writing poetry if he knew how to go about it. I genuinely don’t get people who think the season didn’t establish why or how Matteo loves David.

I think David and Matteo are really well-matched, and they both bring out each other’s sillier side. I know Matteo is probably seen as the sillier of the two, but somehow, I feel like having this certainty that David gets him on a spiritual level, makes Matteo more confident and more likely to be a little shit. Like just knowing David is in his corner regarding Stefan, makes Matteo more likely to fuck with Stefan, for instance. In other words, rather than keeping Matteo on a leash, David enables Matteo, because David finds Matteo’s antics hilarious and great (even when he grumbles and pretends to be put off). 

On a less positive note, I’ll say that Matteo’s internalized homophobia arc should’ve been written better (please stans of other remakes, do NOT take this as a compliment of how your fav remake wrote YOUR fav’s internalized homophobia arc because Matteo and Cris handled it the best all things considered lmaooo) and I really think the anxiety attack and sensory issues should’ve led to at the very least agreeing to see a therapist and get a diagnosis. But those are my major Matteo qualms, overall he’s one of the best Skams characters, and I like how specific he is. Imo a lot of Skams mains are a bit generic in order to maximize the amount of viewers who can relate to them, but Matteo is specific even at the cost of having plenty of viewers not relate to him or get him. 

[skamamoroma]

Weird question but do you think the Isak’s and evens have pet names for each other? Like sander has chosen ‘cutie’ for Robbe which is the fucking cutest thing in the world but what about the others!

Gosh I am getting the best questions today!

First off, I am not a soppy pet name kind of person but I AM a sucker for nicknames and fond names. It’s weird if people call me ‘Megan’ and when people eventually start calling me ‘Meg’ when they know me better I go all 🥰 not to mention if they call me their own nicknames. I have many and I cherish them!

Starting with Sander/Robbe, I mean, Sander is smitten as all hell and I feel like ‘cutie’ may just be the tip of the iceberg. Sander is 100% going to unleash all the fondness on Robbe once they get their shit together, he’s genuinely not ready. With Robbe, I’m not sure yet, I need to see more but he’s a total sweetie that I bet he’d have this one name he calls Sander that nobody else does and Sander flat out can’t handle how happy it makes him

Isak/Even. Now we know “baby” is kind of a thing (and god that one is one I’m never a fan of) but I definitely think they have sweet names for each other, just maybe not overly soppy. I feel like they’d have kind of weird quirky but meaningful nicknames, like based off inside jokes and experiences they had together. They 100% have those names that only THEY call eachother, you know? Even definitely brings up the boy who couldn’t hold his breath under water thing every now and then and there will 100% be “Romeo” thrown in there at some point!

Eliott/Lucas. Oh Christ. These two absolutely undoubtedly are the worst 😭 they will have endless amounts of disgustingly sickening nicknames for each other. I’m talking ‘hérisson’ being the tamest! Lucas already has Lulu I feel like that’s a staple for them too but I genuinely dread to think with these two. They will definitely keep up the “Lucas Number 1” thing too and I feel like these two are the pair where they’ll both be as bad as each other...!

Marti/Nico. These two are all about familiarity. Their bond is soul deep but they’re not showy and overly soppy, however, they are very very sweet to each other and love each other in this profound kind of way. Nico is a romantic and Marti is the kind who shows love and affection also through teasing so I feel like they’d have these playful names for each other. We already have “Ni” which is adorable but I bet they have these really meaningful names for each other that they use in private. Nico definitely has the sweet names for Marti that he rolls his eyes at. Marti will call Nico an ass but Nico knows Martinese!

Matteo/David. Oh god, come on these two absolutely have pet names but I feel like they’re almost entirely teasing and jokey. Like, David will drag Matteo and smile and Matteo will legitimately swoon even if he’s being pseudo insulted because that’s definitely their love language. They’re a very touch orientated pair so I feel like that’s more important than their words and they thrive off teasing and playing.

Joana/Cris. All the cute names. Joana already has a list at this point... I mean they’ve called eachother beautiful and given each other romantic historic names based off fiction, Joana has nicknamed Cris “frog” because of her adorable eyes. They’re sweet and ridiculous and they are consistently full of each other so I think they have tons and tons of names for one another for any occasion - including role play it seems!

Anon, this made me smile! I hope this was what you wanted ❤️