#used to know about norse myths back then

[sanctus-ingenium]

I’m really inspired by your world building and the creatures you use. I’m trying to kickstart my own world using Celtic, Norse and Scottish myths (it also involves werewolves because they’re cool)

But I’m stumped and a bit overwhelmed. How’d you start your project and what were huge sources of inspiration for you as you worked on The Black Horse?

hi there!!! this will probably get wordy i have a lot of thoughts on this but here's how i built up my inver setting

i had the characters first, and the werewolf establishment was basically the first thing invented about the world. I wrote a decent amount about the characters in the pre-1st draft slush pile just getting a handle on their voices, their history together, etc. the first slush draft was in painstaking chronological order telling of their lives from birth to like age 40 - it wasn't pretty to read but it meant I knew what big moments formed their worldview, their relationships with others, things like that. and then i got to pick and choose which ones would feature in the actual 1st draft, and which i would leave unsaid, in flashback form, or only in the form of vague allusions. the plot and world events changed significantly as i wrote the actual 1st draft so this ended up only being useful for backstory stuff and not book plots, but it was still good to have.

There was an important moment of a character being kidnapped into a faery realm, which is what started me off thinking about fairies in general. they weren't originally a part of this world - it was an undefined space before just for the characters to exist in, because i was (and still am) more interested in the characters than the worldbuilding. but i still like for there to be SOMETHING there in the background, and it gives a lot of opportunities to inform characterisation, so i started to make my setting. I picked the Púca as a pivotal being & major inspiration source to include because of its relatively large presence in the fringes of my childhood in stories told by my older relatives and i like the unusual aspects about it as well, how it has been both heroic and malevolent in different stories. you have to remember i grew up in this culture too, i knew a lot already, and that's what got me thinking of alternate Earth history - as in, the setting of Inver as alternate history, not wholly original fantasy set in a fantasy land.

So then I had to think about the implications of that, and here is where I think a lot of authors adapting extant mythology fall short. A world where faeries/mythological monsters/gods based in real cultures exist and people interact with them is indistinguishable from our own. We already live in a world where people interact with faeries in their own way; I've heard many older relatives recount stories of being trapped in their fields by faeries, how you can only escape by taking off your jumper and putting it back on inside out. There was no question as to whether they believed this was a concrete, meaningful interaction with a supernatural being. We have a motorway that was diverted while it was being built because the builders didn't want to risk cutting down a hawthorn tree. There is a deep stigma against harming hawthorns. Now, tell me how things would be any different if faeries were real irl? ftr I do not believe in the supernatural whatsoever, not even a little bit, but it is impossible to deny that I live in a world deeply shaped by it - I need only look out the window at the stands of whitethorn around my house to know that. because the main expression of that supernatural element is in how the people of that culture react.

you cannot, you cannot pick and choose only the monsters from a legend and leave behind the people who made & propagated that legend. you're only taking a single thread from a rich tapestry. I'm not arguing that other cultures should be untouchable, far from it, I'm just saying that to truly appreciate it, you need context for everything you adapt. you gotta know what you're writing about

in that sense, the people are more important to building Inver than the faeries. a citizen of Inver not immediately affected by the main plotline would likely never see or interact with magic in their lifetime, but their society is still shaped by it. so is mine (though that's more on the catholic church than anything else)

So now that I'd had that realisation, I decided to dump a lot of the traditional fantasy tropes I'd been working with. Think basic fantasy setting stuff, pop culture "The Fae" tropes, even the terminology of 'Fae' at all - that is not something I've ever heard the older generation in my life call them. It's just 'fairies' to them (although I did shift the spelling to match the Yeats poem because I could not handle writing characters making accusations of being A Fairy and have it not come across as a unintentionally homophobic accusation lmao). I did some research; mostly on JSTOR, using my institutional access, because my own university is mostly science and didn't have a big library of anthropological texts. I read An Táin Bó Culainge which is honestly one of the greatest stories of all time PLEASE READ IT if you are at all interested in Irish myth. It is a fantastic story and extremely comedic as well (a canon mmmf foursome lol). In terms of academic sources specific to the Púca, I have a drive folder of pdfs I will share with anyone if they ask.

I decided I was not going to include anything from what people actually think of as pre-christian Irish mythology - no fianna [rangers notwithstanding], no Ulster cycle, no Tuatha Dé, no Irish gods. All the things I include are post-colonial aside from the notion of the Otherworld in general. This decision wasn't necessarily accurate to what might have happened in this alternate history (given that christianity still has no real foothold in Inver) but it is a colonised society after all. It's why I got slightly steamed once when someone filed my Púca art into their irish deities/irish polytheism tag (I have my own issues with iripols/gaelpols for the same reason I dislike people taking myths out cultural context and in this case contemporary cultural context), because the Púca is in fact a postcolonial being - it comes from the UK, and likely the mainland as well

One of the last things I did before starting on my 2nd draft, which is what turned into Said the Black Horse, was decide to always capitalise the word 'Púca'. Because what really clicked from doing my research and remembering what I'd heard as a child was that the Púca is a specific character. Not a species, not a class of monster. A character, one guy. And you'll find this everywhere - the obvious example is the Minotaur being one specific guy, the son of Minos, not just 'a minotaur'. One very funny consequence of speciesifying mythological characters is dnd ppl saying their character is A Firbolg (fir bolg is plural!!). Fantasy bestiary books like Dragonology or Spiderwick Chronicles have done some amount of damage to how people relate to myths and legendary creatures, and I am not immune as someone who loves speculative biology, but in Inver I decided to cut all of that out.

Next once I got that out of the way I had to think about tone, atmosphere, and intended results. I didn't achieve my holy grail of a very atmospheric, undefined, and uncertain story that provides no answers, due to limitations in my own abilities, but I tried. I have given less than 1 second of thought to how magic or faery biology in Inver works because that is not conducive to the atmosphere of a fairytale. Many of these source myths and legends are really about the fear of the unknown. They are rationalisations to explain away something unknown, some mystery of life, and you cannot explain the unexplainable and expect it to carry the same punch as the original myths that you are drawn to adapt. That's also why I try to never actually give facts about fairies, but instead I talk about what people think of them. The word 'considered' does some insanely heavy lifting in that linked post lmao. Is any of what I wrote true with regards to the Red King?? It is for the people who believe it.

I'm saying all of this because these are all points I had to think about before writing that 2nd draft, but also because I think they're worth considering for your own story as well. I'll admit I invented my werewolves from scratch, they have no mythological basis, because they pre-date the faery stuff and also I wanted them to fill a very specific role and appear a little more concrete than the other supernatural elements. It is what it is; I wanted a werewolf element that didn't match myths and legends (and honestly was partially inspired by me rolling my eyes about those posts going around moaning and whining about 'the doggification of werewolves missing the point of werewolf stories'. I thought, well, there's more than one story you can tell with a werewolf - it isn't always 'i fear the beast within', sometimes it's something else! sometimes it's daddy issues! it's okay to make something new)

ok i think that's all i have to say.. modern Inver is a bit different, that worldbuilding is largely the same but with a big dose of actual ecology because the main characters are rangers and in Inver in 2017, rangers mostly do environmental monitoring. and that's a whole different sort of worldbuilding lol

good luck with your story!!

[samwisethewitch]

What Non-Pagans Need to Know About Fiction Featuring Pagan Gods

In light of Marvel's Loki show dropping a second season and a new Percy Jackson series on the horizon, I want to say some things about how fandom spaces can be respectful of real-life pagan religion.

Let's get one thing out of the way: literally no one is saying you can't enjoy fiction that uses pagan gods and heroes as characters. No one is saying, "Stop writing stories about our gods." In fact, many ancient cultures wrote fiction about their gods -- look at Greek theater or the Norse Eddas. The act of writing fiction about the gods is not offensive in itself.

But please remember that this is someone's religion.

The gods are not "just archetypes." Their myths are not "just stories." Their personalities are not a matter of artistic interpretation. For many pagans, the gods are very much real in a literal sense. I don't think Thor is a metaphor or a symbol -- for me, Thor is a real, autonomous spiritual being who exists outside of human perceptions of him, and who I have chosen to build a relationship with. Even if you are a hardcore atheist, I would hope you could at least be respectful of the fact that, to many modern pagans, the gods are both very real and very important.

When authors are not respectful of this fact, they reduce the gods, these very real objects of worship, to fictional characters. And here's the thing about fictional characters: they are fundamentally tools for authors to use to draw a desired emotional response from an audience.

Dracula's personality and behavior is wildly different depending on who is writing him, because different authors use Dracula to create different reactions in their audiences. In the 1931 film starring Bela Lugosi, he's equal parts alluring and disturbing, a symbol of America's mixed desire and disdain for foreigners. In Nosferatu, he's more strictly frightening and disgusting. In Francis Ford Coppola's movie, he's a tragic, romantic figure clinging to the last scraps of his humanity. In Netflix's Castlevania, he's an incredibly powerful being who has grown bitter and apathetic in his immortality. All of this is Dracula, and all of it is fine, because Dracula is not and never has been a central figure in anyone's religion.

Let's take a look at what happens when authors give this same treatment to real gods:

In Hellenic polytheism, Apollo is one of the most beloved gods, both historically and today. Apollo loves humanity, and humanity loves him back. He is the god of sunlight and of medicine, but also of poetry and song. He is one of humanity's most consistent defenders when one of the other gods gets wrathful. And while he does have dangerous or wrathful aspects of his own (he's also the god of disease, after all), he's also kind and soft with humanity in a way other gods often aren't, at least in some historic sources.

In the Lore Olympus comic series, Apollo is a villain. He's characterized as an abuser, a manipulator, and a violent man child. LO!Apollo is downright hateful, because the author wants us to hate him. Lore Olympus is a retelling of a myth about an abduction and forced marriage. Lore Olympus is also a romance. In order to get the audience to sympathize with Hades and root for his relationship with Persephone, Rachel Smythe needed to make someone else the villain. Apollo is the most obvious and extreme character assassination in Smythe's work, but several other gods (notably Demeter) also get the asshole makeover to tell the story Smythe wants to tell.

Here's where this becomes a problem: Hellenic polytheism is a fairly small religious community, while Lore Olympus is a massively popular webtoon with 1.3 billion views as of August 2023, print books available from major retailers, a TV adaptation in the works, and a very active online fandom. Rachel Smythe currently has a MUCH bigger platform than any Hellenic polytheism practitioner. Smythe and other authors are shaping how modern culture views the Hellenic gods, and that has a very real impact on their worshipers.

This means "Apollo is an abusive asshole" is becoming a popular take online, and is even creeping into pagan communities. I've personally seen people be harassed for worshiping Apollo because of it. I've seen new pagans and pagan-curious folks who totally misunderstand the roles Apollo, Hades, and Persephone play in the Hellenic pantheon because of Lore Olympus and other modern works of fiction.

There are tons of other examples of this in modern pop culture, but I'll just rattle off a few of the ones that annoy me most: Rick Riordan depicting Ares/Mars as a brutish asshole hyped up on toxic masculinity; Rick Riordan depicting Athena as a mother goddess; Marvel depicting Thor as a dumb jock; Marvel depicting Odin as a cold, uncaring father; DC depicting Ares as purely evil; whatever the fuck the Vikings TV show was trying to do with seidr; the list goes on.

All of these are examples of religious appropriation. Religious appropriation is when sacred symbols are taken out of their original religious context by outsiders, so that the original meaning is lost or changed. It requires a power imbalance -- the person taking the symbols is usually part of a dominant religious culture. In many cases, the person doing the appropriation has a much bigger platform than anyone who has the knowledge to correct them.

When Rick Rioridan or Rachel Smythe totally mischaracterizes a Greek god to tell a story, and then actual Hellenic pagans get harassed for worshiping that god, that's religious appropriation.

Religious appropriation is a real issue. This isn't just pagans being sensitive. To use an extreme example: Richard Wagner and other German Romantic authors in the 19th century used the Norse gods and other Germanic deities as symbols in their work, which was a major influence on Nazi philosophy. Without Wagner, the Nazis would not have latched onto the Norse gods as symbols of their white supremacist agenda. To this day, there are white supremacist groups who claim to worship our gods or who use our religious imagery in their hate movement. We are still reckoning with the misinterpretation of our gods popularized by Wagner and other German Romantics almost 200 years ago.

Again, no one is saying you can't enjoy fiction based on pagan mythology. But there are a few things you can do to help prevent religious appropriation in fandom spaces:

Above all else, be mindful that while this may just be a story to you, it is someone's religion.

Recognize that enjoying fiction based on our gods does not mean you know our gods. You know fictional characters with the same names as our gods, who may or may not be accurate to real-life worship.

Do not argue with or try to correct pagans when we talk about our experience of our gods.

Don't invalidate or belittle pagan worship. Again, this mostly comes down to recognizing that our religion is totally separate from your fandom. We aren't LARPing or playing pretend. Our sacred traditions are real and valid.

If you see other people in your fandom engaging in religious appropriation, point out what they are doing and why it isn't okay.

Please tag your fandom content appropriately on social media. Always tag the show, movie, book, etc. that a post is about in addition to other relevant tags. This allows pagans to block these fandom tags if we don't want to see them and prevents fandom content showing up in religious tags.

For example, if I'm posting about Athena from the Percy Jackson books, I would tag the post #athena #athenapjo #percyjackson #pjo. You get the idea.

And if fiction sparks your interest and you want to learn more about the actual worship of the gods, you can always ask! Most pagans love talking about our gods and trading book recs.

If you are writing fiction based on real mythology, talk to people who worship those gods. Ask them what a respectful portrayal would look like. If possible, include a note in your finished work reminding audiences that it is a work of fiction and not meant to accurately portray these gods.

[the-au-collector]

Scalan Names

So something I've noticed about Missing Link is the names. It's very interesting that they're Roman myth names when the rest of the times we've seen Scala, we've only seen Scalans having Norse names. Especially since we have characters like Freya, whose name does come from Norse Myth, walking around with characters like Remus (and Neptune). I doubt Nomura did this on accident, so I'm curious about the implications of the Norse vs Roman names in Missing Link.

So I went back through Dark Road and Union X and gathered up all the characters with mythological names (yes this includes Missing Link beta content and theorizing). It's a long post, but stay tuned for the end where I've thrown all my Remus thoughts:

Skuld

So in Norse Myth, Skuld is a Norn. Specifically, the Norn of the future. The Norns also closely resemble the Fates from Greek myth, which is interesting. I find it really interesting that Skuld is named specifically after the Norn of the future when her game takes place in the distant past. Obviously all the Union Leaders travel to the future--so why is Skuld the only one named after a myth figure that specifically has to do with that? I can't wait to see how this all lines up later, since so far we've only had one game with her in it.

Baldr

He's the important guy, both in Myth and in Dark Road. In myth, he's the son of Odin that's deceived and killed by Loki, however it is Hod who deals the fatal blow. I feel like his name lines up with his myth inspiration very nicely--he's tricked by darkness, which ultimately leads to his death. However, one really interesting thing is that Baldr is said to survive Ragnarok, so does that mean we'll be seeing Baldr again someday?

Bragi

So Bragi is interesting. In myth, he's actually a poet who was diefied as the god of poetry. He's also known for his wisdom. The really interesting thing though is that myth Bragi's wife, Idunn, had a tree with the apples of youth, which keep the gods from aging. Really interesting that Dark Road's Bragi is actually Luxu, a guy who does not die... Clues lying in plain sight, really.

Vor

There really isn't much to find about Norse Myth's Vor, other than Vor was a minor goddess of wisdom. I just think it's cool that Vor's name is based off of a goddess of wisdom, since Vor's whole arc in Dark Road is figuring out who's right and what she wants to do.

Hermod

So in Norse myth, Hermod is the messenger god and a son of Odin. He also uses magic. In one particular myth, Hermod tried to rescue Baldr from the underworld, but ultimately failed. He has other myths where he acts like a messenger too. I don't really have much to say about Hermod's name inspiration and how it ties to Dark Road, but it is interesting how Hermod dies immediately after visiting the Underworld trying to find Baldr.

Urd

I... I have the least to say about her (at least about the main DR cast). In myth, Urd is a fate like Skuld, but she's the fate of the past. It's just weird she's named after the fate of the past and not the present. Or maybe not since this game is technically Xehanort's past...

Odin

Can you tell he was based off of Odin? He has the long beard, he's old, he's got a long coat, and a wide-brimmed hat (those are how Odin is usually represented). In myth, Odin is the god of war and also poets. He's got a horse named Sleipnir and was a magician. I know there are also theories floating around about Yen Sid potentially being Master Odin and honestly? Yen Sid fits the description.

Heimdall

In myth, Heimdall is the protector of the rainbow bridge and the entrance to Asgard. He also had heightened senses and didn't need to sleep. He and Loki actually ended up killing each other in myth as well. I have even less to say about the upperclassmen, honestly, especially ones like Heimdall who are only in a few scenes anyways. It is ironic that Heimdall was killed by darkness, though (and darkness, in my eyes, takes up a very Loki-like roll).

Helgi and Sigrun

I'm merging these two since their myths are very connected. So basically, Helgi was a Norse hero figure that is the son of Sigmund. He fell in love with a woman named Sigrun and ends up getting killed by her brother, Dragr. Sigrun eventually dies of sadness, but both she and Helgi are reborn. Sigrun is reborn into a Valkyrie named Kara whereas Helgi gets to keep his name. It's very interesting that their myths have aspects of reincarnation tied to them, which isn't true for any of the other DR characters. It's also very curious that Sigrun got a new name... and DR Sigrun looks like Strelitzia...

But that's just a theory a--

Vala

So Vala isn't an actual mythological figure, though they do show up in myths a lot. Basically, a vala is a priestess/shaman. In myth, they could use magic, see the future, and influence battles. I don't have much to say about Vala despite her being one of the more interacted with members of the upperclassmen, but she does appear to be the most wise/level-headed of the group.

Vali

I could have sworn Vali was a girl but Vali is, indeed, a guy in Dark Road. Anyways, in myth Vali is the son of Odin who was born to avenge Baldr and killed Hod. Vali does survive Ragnarok as well. It's just interesting how he has a reverse to his myth inspiration, considering be dies to Baldr and Darkness, though he does try to avenge Hod's death.

Hoder

The blind god of the night in Norse myth and son of Odin. Hod was actually tricked into killing Baldr and so was told by the other gods to avenge Baldr's death by fighting Vali. Vali won, Hod died, but when Ragnarok happened, both Hod and Baldr returned and survived Ragnarok. Very interesting implications when it comes to Kingdom Hearts...

Vidar

In myth, he's the son of Odin and was also fated to survive Ragnarok. He killed the wolf Fenrir, who's Loki's son who ate Odin. That's about all that's known about Vidar from myth. I do think it's very ironic that DR Vidar died to a Heartless when his myth inspiration killed Fenrir. Also interesting that his is the name of someone fated to survive Ragnarok despite him dying in DR...

Sigurd

I nearly forgot him but here he is! His name in myth is Siegfried. He's a hero figure who fought a dragon and awakened a valkyrie from sleep. In some stories, he's of noble blood but was an orphan. He's also associated with the ancient Germanic princess, Brunhild, who had Old Norse origins. Basically the story of Brunhild is that she vowed to marry the man who could beat her in strength, and Siegfried was able too, but he won her for another person. Brunhild got vengeful, and Siegfried died. Not every story of Brunhild leads to his death though.

He's a lot more interesting than I thought, especially for a character who shows up for like 2 lines in Union X's secret ending lol. Likelihood is, he's from another Society or the people in charge, and he welcomed Brain in Scala ad Caelum (this we know). Judging from his myth and what we already know about him, he's likely of noble or blue blood and is probably a Keyblade wielder. I wonder if we'll see any grand feats like fighting a dragon or if he'll die in Missing Link, though?

Freya

I can't really say much for Freya either since she's so new and her game isn't even out yet. She is the sister of Freyr in Norse Myth and is the goddess of love, fertility, battle, and death. So just keep in mind that she's an option for the tragic siblings trope.

Now for the really interesting guys!

Nept

I've decided to start with Neptune since Remus is a whole can of worms. So Neptune is the Roman god of the sea, and used to be just the god of freshwater until the Romans identified him with Poseidon. His myths are the same as Poseidon's: get eaten by his dad, get vomited out, draw sticks to see which realm he gets, yada, yada, yada. He was loyal to the Roman Zeus, Jupiter, and married Salacia, though he had many affairs. He also created horses and bulls!

We really don't know much about Nept since he only has a few released scenes so far, but the fact that he's probably named after the Roman god of water is interesting (i've said it before but Aqua's ancestor??? Perhaps???). I'm a little worried about the loyalty aspect though...

Remus

This. This fucking can of worms. Remus do you even know the implications of your own name?

So the myth of Remus and Romulus! Their mother, Rhea Silvia, was the daughter of the king of Alba Longa, Numitor. Numitor got removed from the throne by his brother, Amulius, who forced Rhea to take a vow of chastity by becoming a Vestal Virgin. Well she ended up having the god of war's, Mars', twin children: Remus and Romulus. They were cared for by Mars' sacred animals (she-wolf and woodpecker) and taken in by farmers, Faustulus and Acca Larentia. When the twins grew up, they killed Amulius and restored their grandfather to the throne. The twins then went on to found a city, and after Romulus built some walls around it, he killed Remus, and the city was named Rome after Romulus.

So this myth is interesting for a number of reasons. First and foremost: the siblings thing. Tragic siblings being a staple of the KH mobile games and all leaves Remus and Romulus perfect candidates for being the tragic siblings. This is also why I'm so worried about Remus being late to showing Player the Astral Realm because--is he already dead? His mythological self dies! It's practically written in the Book of Prophecies at this point!

However the second most important thing about the Remus and Romulus myth is how Remus and Romulus are the grandsons of a king who got overthrown. What if, somehow, the Baroque Society is the very last remnant of Ephemer's line/society? Somehow, what if Ephemer's line gets usurped and its last remains of his society dwindles down to at least 4 people (the question is if there's 5 members considering Freya's "another one" line)? After all, the scientists do say the founders' societies. Who are these other founders? Are they even real? What is going on with Scala ad Caelum's governing situation? We already know that it can't be good, but we don't know how bad it is.

Another really interesting thing is that Player specifically, very weirdly, reaches out to Remus when they're by Ephemer's statue. That scene was all shades of odd. Which begs the question--is Remus somehow connected to Ephemer? Is Remus is the descendant of Ephemer, and all these silver-haired characters are just there to throw us off? Did Ephemer's bloodline somehow get usurped? Is Missing Link going to be about reinstating his family line, or watching it all fall to ruin? Is Remus going to get killed by his own brother?

It's just. It's all shades of interesting and worrying at the same time. And I'm not even mentioning Remus' similarities to Lea!

Conclusion

Remus nearly made me forget this post had a point: the differences between Roman and Norse names. I thought maybe there was a connection between the "sons of Odin" thing going on, but no. Baldr and Hermod both are sons of Odin, but Baldr has a gold Master's symbol and Hermod doesn't. Even for the non-sons, Heimdall has a gold Master's symbol but Bragi doesn't.

It's also too early to really tell anything distinct about the new Missing Link characters, since a) we don't see much of them and b) the naming doesn't differentiate them either. Freya is a member of the Baroque Society alongside Remus and Nept. There's no distinction there either. There is no visual disctinction between Freya, Nept, and Remus except for their underclothes, and I'd say those design choices are more geared toward their personalities than anything else. They also don't have Master's symbols (which is another interesting thing. Sigurd doesn't have one either. Do they not exist yet? Are they the symbol of another society?). Even if they did, we still don't really know the difference between silver and gold ones, though one theory is gold = blue blood, silver = non-blue blood.

There is definitely a naming convention going on here, though. It's no coincidence that all of Dark Road's characters have Norse-inspired names, but not all of Dark Road's do. I just really want to crack why there's this distinction. I'm betting it has something to do with these noble houses/blue blood families, though (I'm willing to overlook Xehanort and Eraqus as they existed long before these concepts were even thought up.). For now I'll leave it at that and post this so that we have a bit of a collection of all the name inspirations for our myth-inspired Kingdom Hearts characters in one place.

Also, if anyone knows more about ancient myth than what Google could tell me, please let me know! I absolutely could have missed something!

[stalkedbytrains]

“Cheryl? Where is the file for the next appointment? I can’t find it anywhere.”

“It’s the folder with the green tab,” Cheryl called from her desk at the front of the tiny office.

There was the sound of many papers shuffling around and finally an “aha!”

“The Rainbow Snake?” Came the voice from the office. Cheryl’s boss often read out loud when they were studying a client. Just a weird quirk of theirs. “Australian Aboriginal Deity. Oh I do remember them. We were at a party together… 2,000 years ago give or take. I don’t think they’ll remember me, ah well thems the breaks. Let’s see… hmm… I can see that this is going to be a problem Cheryl. Damn colonialists. I wish we could make the British gods fade away. Fucking King Arthur deserves to be relegated to the dust bin. I can tell that we’re going to need some deep cuts on this one. Start making a list of Australians we can contact, I have a feeling.”

Cheryl did as she was told. Her boss was almost always right about these things. She knew what the gods wanted before they even got here.

Several minutes later there was a knock at the office door. Cheryl got up to open it and invited in the dark skinned person and the beautiful snake they wore like jewelry but that might have only been because the snake itself was a living work of art. Like living breathing stained glass.

As Cheryl escorted the Rainbow Snake in, her boss came out and bowed deeply to their guest.

The chipper woman had tied back her full brown hair and smiled widely at the Snake and their human escort.

“A pleasure to meet you again,” the boss said, “it’s been many centuries but I am glad to see you once more. Please come in to my office. Would you care for any refreshments?”

After settling and getting water for the Rainbow Snake, Cheryl sat back down outside the office and listened to the pitch. She never got tired of listening to it.

“How can I help you?” Her boss asked.

“We heard that you can help us gods. Stop us from fading. We need faith. We need followers. The people are dying, the language is dying,” said a dual voice. The voice from the snake, and the voice from the human.

“We can do that. Sort of. I am sorry to say that it’s not a direct thing. I don’t just snap my fingers and make you some new believers. Human beings a wonderful little creatures. They crave us. They need us even if they don’t believe in us anymore. They want our stories and our myths. And that is what I provide. Stories.”

“How does that help us?”

“Do you know how down bad the Norse were? The Christian’s basically destroyed their religion, all we know of it is this bastard version of what was left after the Jesus freaks invaded. But then the comics happened. The Mighty Thor! And don’t get me started on Neil Gaiman and his Sandman and American Gods stories. I send that man a fruit basket every year. I love him. Have you seen how well the Norse pantheon is doing? Loki has seventeen penthouses, and more belief than he knows what to do with.”

“Bah. Western religion. White religion.”

“You are right. I am sorry that was a poor example. Perhaps I should have started with Māui and how well he’s doing with that Disney film Moana. I set that up.”

“You did all of that?”

“Well. Not directly. You know how us gods work. I gave some inspiration here and there. Got a writer to have an idea. Got a director and a bunch of executives to see the bigger picture and how it could be a hit. They did the rest themselves. Like I said, whether or not they know it, humans want us.”

“You can make me a hit movie?”

“Or a TV show or a video game. Those are hard though. Movies are kind of easy now a days, TV is having a resurgence now but you run the risk of cancelation and things like that, video games can be hit or miss honestly. Only the Greeks and Norse really pulled that one off and hoo let me tell you they paid for that one. Great games but still. I don’t want to look at those God of War games ever again. Books are easy. Worked really well for the Greeks and some of the Egyptians. Rick Riordan does great stuff. It all depends on what you want.”

“I can have anything?”

“Sure. Internet stories are easy. Quick and cheap but you are really gambling with the payoff. Could be either a total wash or go viral. Not something I can really recommend but if you need something now it can be done. Movies or tv can be great but there are also risks. It might be two or three years before you see anything.”

“Do I get to choose who does the work?”

“A little. I can influence certain people but sometimes the best person for the job is some down on his luck writer in a hovel in LA. Sometimes it’s Neil. But Neil is expensive.”

“I want a movie, I want it to be written by one of my people.”

“I can do that. But the problem is that reach might be very tiny. There are plenty of Aboriginal writers, I’m sure some can even be extremely talented, but something big and grand and bringing in all the faith and worship and stories you may way may be limited. If you want the Disney treatment you have to give up a whole lot of control.”

“No. I want it to be of the people.”

“Very well. Now, I can influence and give inspiration all over. I can even get this in the right people’s hands. But it is always a crap shoot. All I need to do is channel some of your power into the right person when I find it. Then creativity takes over, they do their work, I nudge some agents and companies their way and if we’re lucky you see some return on investment in a couple of years.”

“What do you get out of this process?”

“My dear, I’m the Muse. I feed off the creativity. These artists come to me most of the time. I just set them up with gods who need a little faith. And six points on the back end. I have a lot of alimony to pay.”

[shegeekery]

Reparenting Loki

I want to talk about a dynamic in the Loki/Mobius relationship (in the Loki TV-series) that I've seen touched on but not really discussed in depth.

Note to Lokius-lovers: nothing I say here in any way precludes a healthy romantic relationship. They're both consenting adults, after all, and this wasn't a formal therapist-client relationship.

There's a technique in therapy called "reparenting". The idea is that trauma and behaviors caused by bad parenting can be addressed to some extent if the therapist assumes the role of a "good parent".

I think we can all agree that the "All-Father" was crap as an actual father. Odin knew that Loki took after him even more than Thor did, but many of those shared traits were things that he tried to hide from everyone, while Thor better represented the image he wanted to project. The result was a cruel favoritism, which was picked up by Thor and the rest of the Asgardians. Frigga's love and support wasn't enough to counteract that cruelty, particularly in a strongly patriarchal society like Asgard.

Side note (because I'm that kind of geek): there were so many similarities between Odin and Loki (Odin's friend and blood-brother rather than his son) in the old Norse myths that some scholars have suggested that Loki was at one point simply an aspect of Odin. There's also evidence that the stories as they came down to us were manipulated by the Christians who committed them to writing to shoehorn Loki into something more like the Christian Devil.

Anyway, getting back to our guys... Within the context of the TVA, Mobius represented an authority figure to Loki, who had a long history of rebelling against (or betraying) authority for obvious reasons.

I think the first turning point in the relationship for Loki was:

Loki: I am smart!

Mobius: I know. Loki is rarely left speechless, but his only response to Mobius's simple affirmation was a very un-Loki-like "Okay..." He didn't know how to respond because he wasn't used to that kind of thing, particularly from someone who had power over him. It happened again with:

Loki: A villain.

Mobius: That's not how I see it.

The dynamic between these two people throughout Season 1 was like that. Mobius's genuine love (whether you read it as romantic, platonic, fatherly, brotherly, or a mix of any or all of these) for and non-judgmental acceptance of Loki was apparent from the start, but of course Loki's experiences during his very long lifetime made it nearly impossible for him to trust that until Mobius's actions convinced him that it was real. Learning to trust Mobius also allowed Loki to see himself in a new light.

For his part, Mobius consistently modeled what a good father would have been: loving and accepting, yes, but still able to apply "tough love" when that was warranted. Mobius didn't put Loki into the bad-memory loop to punish him because he was angry (though he was angry, or at least a bit hurt and disappointed). He was just trying to force Loki to acknowledge a truth about himself so that they could move forward — and it worked!

Mobius's instincts and experience as an actual father to two boys, one reasonably well-behaved and the other a mischievous troublemaker, served him well in this, even if he didn't consciously remember his life on the timeline.

Mobius all but confirmed this when he said:

Mobius:  I see a scared little boy, shivering in the cold... 

It's also significant that when Loki brought this up later, he called it "patronizing", which we usually use to mean "condescending", but can also mean "supporting" and has its root in the Latin word "pater" (father).

I see the hug in episode 1-5 as a sign that the reparenting had taken hold, and that Loki, while not completely healed (it would take a lot more than that!), was at least in a place where he could trust someone, accept love/friendship, and think beyond his own wants and needs.

By Season 2, the relationship between the two men was evolving into one of equals, but even then Loki still occasionally looked to Mobius for guidance. Mobius's approval had become important to him. When Loki witnessed the firm but compassionate way in which Don dealt with two boys who were so like himself and Thor (despite being a stressed-out single dad rather than a god-king with tremendous resources at his disposal), he had to have seen that this was at the core of who Mobius was. Moreover, Loki — and any viewers who had similarly survived a traumatic childhood full of emotional abuse and neglect — probably guessed that Don himself was a survivor who was determined to see to it that his boys would never have to deal with that. If that was the case, then Mobius didn't just see his own son in Loki. He saw himself and couldn't help but empathize.

Don wasn't perfect. His frustration with his younger son was very evident, but Loki, observing, could see the love that lay under it. He may even have thought of times when Odin was driven to anger by Loki's actions and realized that the anger didn't necessarily mean that Odin didn't really love him. Learning to forgive what can be forgiven is another aspect of recovering from childhood trauma.

It's worth remembering that Mobius knew Loki in much the same way we do. We got to see the things that Loki never let anybody see: the fear, the vulnerability, the pain, the longing, and the sadness. (Doesn't hurt that TH can turn a simple reaction shot into a freakin' soliloquy!) The difference is that, while we only get to see the highlights (and lowlights) of Loki's life, Mobius had access to all of it and he had centuries to study it.

Mobius literally knew Loki better than anyone else in (or out) of the multiverse. How could he not love him? And for Loki, knowing that somebody who knew him that well genuinely cared so much for him (same with Sylvie, who understood him in ways that only another Loki could and vice-versa) had to have shaken him to his core and made him rethink a lot of things. The fact that it was Mobius to whom Loki turned in episode 2.6 when he thought he might have to kill Sylvie shows how much he still looked up to Mobius in many ways.

This was a show about redemption, yes, but also about healing from childhood trauma. They did an amazing job with it.

[vavialdavi]

Frozen fandom, I have a message for you!

Y'all really need to calm down on the asumptions cause it's possible that none of them turn on canon. I'm gonna adress the two big ones: Norse myth and Hans (by extension Helsa)

Unless, we've heard completely different speeches, Jennifer Lee never mentionned Norse myth. The castle in the sky could be Asgard as much as it could not. Let's not forget the question castle ruins in Ahtohallan. Ahtohallan already being its own entity. Norse myth could play a role in F3 and F4 as well as it could not. Yes, Frozen has inspirations and references to Norse myth, but it's not the only one . One thing you tend to forget is the great inspiration of Saami culture the Frozen franchise have, especially in the second movie. It would be more logical if they keep that way for the new movies instead of going after Norse myth as their main base. Nothing's confirmed.

Y'all have the right to make every theory you want but, keep in mind that at the end of the day, they remain theories. Mrs Lee told us to not hold onto that concept art. Let's consider all possibilities. It could be completely wipped off and we wouldn't know before 2027. Don't forget they were still chanoine the script a few months before F2 premiere and that Elsa was villian before Mrs got involved in the project. We're never sure with Frozen.

I'ma be fully honest, I don't want Hans to be a relevant character again and I'm quite fine with him being a joke along the franchise. The idea of a redemption arc with him having a positive role in the sisters' story, the possibility of Helsa even more make me sick. BUT all I'm about to say could also apply to my views on Honeymaren and elsamaren.

"Coming out of Frozen 2, we still have some questions. A lot of questions. That is just page one. Now you see why it will take two films to answer them. Just a tease, once again just a tease." These are Mrs Lee's words

This more looks like a list of the questions they've received. Rather than the ones F3 and F4 are gonna answer. Mrs Lee didn't say that. Considering the fact that the first two are already answered. Ahtohallan. The fifth spirit is the human spirit, Elsa and Anna are the bridge between spirits and humans (one side of each). Just watch Frozen 2 and the Myth short, please.

But let's say, all of these questions are gonna get answered. Some of them can just be mentionned a few seconds. And It's still not a confirmation of Hans's return and even less of a potential redemption arc. You can theorize what you want but Hans could also remain a blatant franchise joke. Or we could just see a memory of him in Ahtohallan showing what he became. Mrs Lee didn't confirm which characters are coming back for the sequels (even though it seems clear our five MCs and the Nokk are). We don't know anything about Hans's future.

1- Long story short, I'm not telling y'all what you should believe or not, I'm just asking to not act like what is NOT confirmed is. Don't hold too much on your asumptions cause you might end up not appreciating the actual movies if none of them happens. As an elsamaren shipper, I feel what I say.

2- I also fear y'all might start a new misinformation wave. Critical thinking and media literacy being concepts unknown in most of the fandoms, it can turn out really bad. I haven't forgotten how dirty some of you did Honeymaren just you didn't like the idea of lesbian Elsa. To this day, there are still being convinced she is her cousin. I remember really well how many people fall for that ai fake news made by a SATIRE disney account that Elsa was getting married to a woman in F3...

[genericpuff]

Hi Puff! Idk if anyone has asked you this yet but what are your thoughts on the god of war game series? Are they actually more "accurate" about the greek mythology then LO? xD

oh lord, I'm def not a good person to ask about this question because I haven't played through all the original God of War games (though it makes me laugh to think about them because watching my oldest brother play the first game when I was like 7 years old was the first time I'd ever seen video game boobies LOL) but considering it's just a hack and slash game in which you brutally murder the gods... ima give it a big noooo on that one LOL it's about as accurate as LO in that it's more about spectacle and drama than it is about actually being accurate to the myths they're based on lmaoo

As for the Norse series of games, I actually HAVE played both God of War 2018 and Ragnarok and loved them both, though I'm not as well versed in Norse mythology so I also can't say if what they take from Norse myth is accurate. Obviously I know that Atreus/Loki has zero relation to fictional character Kratos from Greece and I have basic understanding of general concepts like Yggdrasil and the nine realms among other things like that, but the finer details regarding the stories of the characters themselves I'm not as brushed up on. Hella great storytelling though and I appreciate the lengths they went to to make it feel like a Norse-myth-inspired environment, even down to the vocabulary and terms used.

Just like with LO, you shouldn't be taking any of what God of War does or says at face value. If you like the games (or LO), use it as an opening hook to get more into the actual myths if they interest you. But definitely don't use them as any sort of credible source LOL

Now that I'm typing out my thoughts on this though, I think the biggest difference between GoW and LO (one that makes GoW far superior to it) is that the creators of GoW never once led their audience to believe that they were more than what they were, a hack and slash video game inspired by specific myths. What you see is what you get with GoW, but LO - and Rachel - constantly feel like they're actually trying to be taken seriously and that's what makes it all the worse when their storytelling is godawful and the amount of actual "myth" they have in the comic amounts to as much as a Family Guy cutaway gag. Just completely directionless and uninspired to the point you wonder why it's even an Greek myth retelling to begin with. At least GoW fully immerses itself in the myths their games are based on and has a shitload of fun with it, with LO it'll just source some copy pasted Princeton document or lazily tell some mythological metaphor that has nothing to do with the overarching plot so that it can remind you "hey this is a Greek myth retelling!" before getting back to its bland Keeping Up with the Kardashians romance. The mythological "inspiration" in LO feels more like tired lip service at this point rather than actual inspiration, which is really bitterly ironic considering Rachel used to tote around calling herself a "folklorist" and claiming that everyone else's knowledge of Greek myth compared to hers was "basic af".

TL ; DR: The biggest difference between GoW and LO in their retellings is humility IMO.

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

not sure if anyone's asked you this before/yet, but so you have any opinions or thoughts of the relationship between all of the pantheons? general relationship and possibly some more personal ones?

I've read many different headcanons and fanfiction where people have mentioned their thoughts on it, but nothing they've ever gone into detail about.

there's nothing really preventing them from interacting *👀 I keep remembering the smallest tiniest hint of freypollo we got* but that doesn't mean they go out of their way doing it, yk?

OKAY SO-

The pantheons I'll be mainly focusing on are the Greek, Roman, Norse, & Egyptian ones. I'll probably make little nods to other ones too tho :3

Don't be surprised if this mainly centers on Apollo XD He's my guy <3

GREEK & ROMAN

Let's kick it off with these two!

"But aren't they the same-?"

Nope! The Roman pantheon started off as their own sets of gods - the thing is, they had very little myths written down so we don't know much about how they were characterized :(

Howmever. We do know that when they were synchronized with Greece's gods, you can see the little differences between them - for instance, the Roman gods were more Forces Of Nature than gods who went out and Did Stuff, like Greece's.

Jupiter for example! He didn't have the "fucks around" rep Zeus does! Jupiter from the Roman's perspective didn't go out and do much. He rooted on Aeneus, yes, but the myths of his children weren't quite as popular in Rome as they were in Greece (probably because they were. ya know. Greek heroes, and not Roman)

And Apollo. Oh, Apollo...the only major god who didn't have a Latin equivalent.

Rome loved you so much they adopted you and went "no. no. he was always here. no we aren't lying. see? he's in the Dii Consentes!" XD

Fun Fact: Apollo is basically multiple gods in a trench coat. Paion (Mycenean), Smitheus (Mycenean), Aplu (Etruscan), Apaulinus (Hittie), Grannus (Celtic), ect were all Apollo-equivalents who historians have concluded to be past incarnations of Apollo!

which is INTERESTING because...do those gods still exist in the RRverse? Are they connected to Apollo in some way? Are they little voices in his head? DO THEY HAVE DRINKS TOGETHER?

I have questions and I need answers.

Greek & Egyptian

Saving the Norse for last because we all wanna save Freypollo for last <3 the best for last lmao

RIGHT OFF THE BAT I'M GONNA SAY THAT ZEUS DOESN'T LIKE THE OTHER PANTHEONS! I BET HE DOESN'T!

Which sucks for him because Apollo has friends in Egypt XD

I do think Apollo and Horus would be friends! Not only are they both associated with the sun in some way, but they were actually identified with each other when Greece met Egypt!

Greece: Oh so you have a super-powerful son of the king of the gods associated with light? So do we! :D

Egypt: Oh my gosh we do! :D

You know the myth of Typhon? Apollo transformed into a hawk to escape, and you know who has a hawk head?

Horus. :D

also Horus took over the thrown from Osiris - sure, not in an overthrow way but still. he overthrew Set and claimed the throne

sounds like something we all want hmm...

Also, I headcanon that Helios and Ra go WAAAAYYYY back and Apollo only met Ra like. once. before Isis did her blackmailing and Ra disappeared.

SO WHEN RA CAME BACK, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN DURING HOO BTW, APOLLO HAS NO IDEA! HE'S ON DELOS AT THAT POINT! THEN HIS TRIALS!

So when he rolls up to the next sun god meeting he sees Ra and is like "wait what who are you- OH WAIT!"

And Ra's like; "WHO LET THIS CHILD BE PUT IN CHARGE OF THE SUN???"

Apollo: I'm over 4,000 years old-

Ra, pointing: BABY

(Headcanon that Ra & Amaterasu are like. the defacto sun god 'leaders' who keep the meetings rolling. Amaterasu was very tired when Ra disappeared and she had to wrangle these fiery gods together XD)

(Also Helios thought Horus was a lil' upstart XD)

Finally, I also saw someone else mention that Apollo could have learned some Egyptian magic and used it to create the border of CHB!

Headcanon Hecate snuck along with him and it's their little secret :3

Greek & Norse

HERE. WE. ARE.

LEMME GET MY MAP OUT

SO.

Green highlight is where Greece is. Blue is where Hyperborea is (see this post for details)

In that post, I came to the conclusion that Apollo Totally Definitely Has Met Norse Gods BECAUSE OF HIS WINTER VACATIONS!

AND IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE BALTIC SEA-

STOCKHOLM.

AND WHERE DID APOLLO MEET THAT HOT GOD WITH A TALKING SWORD???

A TAVERN. IN. STOCKHOLM!

FREYPOLLO LIVES (<-knows very well it's basically already canon XD)

Fun fact: the people of Hyperborea were most likely the mythological avatars of the Norse people! :D

SO I CONCLUDE-

Apollo takes a trip across the Baltic Sea and flirts in the Stockholm tavern and that's how Freypollo happens <3

Other Pantheon Thoughts

Hindu: This thought came while I was creating my @underrated-lovers-of-apollo-poll - Apollo & Indra!

They shared an elephant ride that one time! Wouldn't it be fun if they also kissed? :3

also Indra is a storm god with thunder and lightning think of the angst-

Shinto: Amaterasu taught Apollo Japanese when he discovered the haiku for the first time - sadly, only Athena ever bothered to learn it to experience the haiku in its fullest. pushing my sibling agenda again haha

Because haikus always sound better in their native language <3

Hittie: This connects to the 'Apollo trenchcoat' thing earlier - if Apollo is like. the current form of Apaulinus, would the Hittie pantheon like. drop in from time to time like 'heyyyy we miss you <3'

Apollo: *trojan war flashbacks*

Apaulinus was heavily associated with Wilusa, whom historians have confirmed was Troy, and Apollo's first temple doesn't show up under AFTER the bronze age collapse and the war happened BEFORE that happened meaning HE WAS APAULINUS WHEN THE WAR HAPPENED MY HEART-

i need to look into more pantheons. it's so much fun making these connections and coming up with headcanons for the RRverse :3

[acrystalwitch]

(***NO N*zis or TERFs allowed to interact with this post or my blog*** This is a post for Norse pagans or polytheists looking to work with Odin. This is all based on my own experiences working with the all father and nothing here is to be taken as a hard fact. If your practice differs from my own that is totally fine. There will be a lot of UPG and SPG)

An incomplete summary of Odin in Norse mythology.

Odin, god of war and wisdom is a key figure in the Norse myths and is involved in a lot of the stories. He is the head of the Norse gods and is called the All father, because it’s by him that all of humans were created. He is married to Frigg and together they had Baldur and Hodr. Odin also has other sons, Thor, Vali, and Vidar.

He has two ravens Huginn and Muninn, and two wolves Geri and Freki.

He only has one eye, he sacrificed his other eye by throwing it into Mimir’s well in exchange for knowledge that could better help him prevent Ragnarok.

Another famous story of his is when he hung upside down from the tree of life for nine days and nine nights to get knowledge of other worlds and to be able to know everything about the runes.

The type of magic he practices (Seiðr) was a feminine type of magic that wasn’t always looked highly on when men would participate in it. Yet our Allfather was very practiced in it.

My experience working with him: One thing to know about working with Odin going in, he will be very honest and blunt. My other deities have a habit of being softer on my feelings than I’ve heard other devotees say they’ve been with them, I’m assuming because I’m very sensitive. But Odin..? He does not care. He will stop giving advice if I tell him I don’t want to hear it. But, if I ask for advice…oh boy, am I gonna get his full opinion. He is very much a father in the way he goes about things, he cares but he wants his followers to push themselves as much as they can, learning as much as you can and always growing, never staying sedentary for too long.

I have a notebook dedicated to him that I’ve been using to work on learning the runes and that seems to be the best offering to give him in my practice right now. He never misses a chance to remind me I need to get back to learning the runes too.

I always wondered why it mattered so much to him that I learn them. Eventually he told me that it was because they really would be useful in spells, and wards and making bind runes out of them is something I’m learning to do now.

He is not the easiest deity to work with, he may even push your buttons on purpose to get you to think harder on things. I’ve noticed he’s even been rude before just to see if I’d stand up for myself and set boundaries and then he’ll explain himself after. Lots of tests trials and teachings. But man, is it worth it for the immense amount of knowledge and mentorship that he can bring. All in all, I’m glad he came to me later in my practice as I might’ve been scared off from deity work if he was the first. But, I love him to pieces and hope to work with him for a long time.

Offerings and associations of Odin

(Odin does not eat food so I’ve seen many people say not to give him food offerings, I disagree! Give him things that he can feed to Geri and Freki. He is known to still fill his plate and just give them bits over meals. So don’t hesitate to gift him any food offerings you would to any other Norse god)

-colors: gray, dark blue, black

- tree Imagery, Yggdrasil in particular

- raven Imagery, black feathers

- wolf Imagery

- clear quartz

- onyx

- blue goldstone

- amethyst

- carnelian

- the hermit tarot card

- the hanged man tarot card

- the four of cups tarot card

- the king of swords tarot card

- mead, wine, alcohol

- poetry (he writes poems!)

- mugwort scent/incense

- Ansuz rune ᚨ

- learn about the runes

- learn his myths

- learn useful and practical knowledge

- read books

- ask him for advice

There are many more ways to learn about him and get close to him. A great one is reading the Hávamál. If you meditate or do tarot or rune casting those are also great ways to contact him and get closer to him.

Signs he might be reaching out; seeing ravens more than usual or in non native areas, very windy days, rain, seeing his name often, feeling drawn to his mythology, seeing his tarot cards pop up often, you already work with one of his sons (I think he sent Thor to me first to soften my idea of the Norse gods and be a warm intro into their pantheon.)

He is a great god to work with, lots of work though. Odin is not for the weak minded, but he’s been so worth getting to know.

[mask131]

There is one thing people should get more accustomed to: when talking about a piece of folklore, of legend, of superstition, of anything - it should become to norm the add a brief explanation about the "why" of the folklore or superstition. The cultural, religious or historical context that explain it. Because there are a lot of people who just repeat some specific facts about myths or legends without explaining why it was so in the context, and as a result people lose a lot of background info needed to understand it.

For example, I'll invent an example: In France, an actor, a theater-performer, a comedian had much higher chances to become a vampire, just like people committing suicides. (I made this up, except for the suicide part, it was indeed believed people who died by suicide had a likely chance to return as vampires).

If people repeat this fact again and again because it was in the legend, in turn other people are going to say "Oh yes, being an actor was what caused the vampirism". When in fact no. Why would actors be more likely to become vampires? Because for centuries and centuries, in France, actors were not considered Christian people, were refused any right to be part of the Church or partake in religious rituals, and as such they were denied a proper grave in Christian soil, or a place into a cemetery. And thus just like suicides, they were buried in un-sacred, non-consecrated earth, outside of any proper funeral ritual - hence the threat of returning as an undead monster. [Note: While I invented the part about actors being vampires, the whole burial thing is actually true. Up until the late 18th century in France, actors were considered mortal sinners by virtue of doing theater, and thus they were refused all Christian rites and rituals, from weddings to funerals, and even the greatest and most beloved actors were thrown into large corpse-pits and unmarked crossroad-graves like vulgar criminals]

This is just an example, but this shows how an important thing when dealing with folklore and legendary beings and other traditions of various cultures is to place it back into the religious, social and historical context that explains it. Today a lot of people consider that blacksmiths should have been "good" people in terms of folkloric beliefs - because media popularized the idea for example of how iron was used to protect from fae, and how legendary blacksmiths forged the weapons of great heroes, and thus there is this tendency in folkloric-fiction to depict blacksmiths as these positive, helping figures. But a lot of people don't know that in some parts of Europe during specific centuries, blacksmiths were rather seen with suspicion, fear and dread if not hate - because due to them being these massive, powerful men wielding dangerous tools, due to them living by heat and fire and soot, due to them knowing a mysterious and hard craft some associated with things such as alchemy, there is a recurring belief that smiths were sorcerers, warlocks, or associated with the devil, or that they would return after their death as vampires.

But if you just say randomly "Oh yes, it was believed blacksmiths could return as vampires", people might read this as "It was the job of being a blacksmith that caused the vampirism", when in fact the real reason behind this belief was the smith's association with devilish/hellish elements like fire and flames and soot, and the equation of his secretive and marvelous craft with other mysterious prodigious arts like "magic". Hence a tradition of blacksmith-warlocks...

I have been using European vampire beliefs here, but the same can be applied to anything. Someone who doesn't know about the concept of "hubris" will misunderstood half of Greek mythology. Someone who doesn't know what is wrong with being "effeminate" in Old Norse society will miss half of the subtext of Norse mythology. Someone who doesn't know about the tradition of "Jack tales" will be quite puzzled upon finding so many folktales involving a "Jack"...

[toastandjamie]

You know how in a previous post I talked briefly about how Mat is subversion of masculinity? Yeah that but now I’m also going to talk about how all of that and the contradicting nature of his character can all be traced back to him being Odin. Bare with me lmao.

So let’s start with the fact that Odin as a god covers a LOT of domains, and a lot of them contradict eachother. He’s a god of war and death but he’s also a god of healing and poetry. He’s a god of wisdom and knowledge but also frenzy and bloodlust. A god of royalty favored by princes and also a good of thieves and tricksters. The Allfather indeed! Odin is a god but very importantly he’s Mortal, he’s a god of wisdom because he seeks it out, he is a surprising Human god, with complex and often selfish motivations. Which is very perfect for a character like Mat. But this post isn’t just going to be me pointing out every single thing about Odin that parallels Mat because we’d be here all day and even though I can because everytime a mythological reference appears in those books and twirl my hair and kick my feet I will refrain lol

The main focus of this post is talk about one really interesting facet of Odin’s domains and myths. And that is his connection to magic, specifically the distinctly feminine magic tradition of Seihdr(and that in of itself is a whole thing that’s makes me scream and blather in reference to wheel of time). Odin stands out as a male practitioner of Seihdr, which is traditionally considered a ‘feminine’ craft. Seidhr is a type of magic related to telling and shaping the future(so no shock Odin as the ever curious god of knowledge practiced it) but according to Snorri in the Ynglinga saga the practice of Seidhr leaves the practitioner weak and helpless thus male practitioners were considered ‘ergi’ a designation for men in Norse society who were unmanly and feminine. Odin was no exception being called ‘ergi’ by Loki in Lokasenna.

This is really interesting when we view Mat’s characterization through this lens. Specifically he’s described in relation to other more traditionally masculine characters and his relationship to the one power specifically Saidar. Long before I did any research involving Seidhr and Odin I had noted to myself that Mat would’ve had an easier time channeling Saidar vs Saidine. I’ve always felt that Mat was better at embracing and submitting to power and change than he ever was at forcing it, which of course is mostly because of his adaptability and flexibility which make him such a great general in the first place. There’s a reason Mat never got a handle of the flame and the void despite both Rand and Lan trying to teach him in books 1 and 2. Mat also acts the most like the women in the series in comparison to say Rand or Perrin. jokingly I’ve mentioned how in Shadow Rising a big plot point in Rand and Elayne’s relationship is a miscommunication because Elayne was upset Rand didn’t ask her to stay when she left for Tanchico, and Mat practically has the same exact fight with Rand over Rand not asking HIM to stay when he said he was going to leave before the battle at Cairihan. I also want to point out that in the Wheel of Time, daggers and throwing knives are mainly used by women(see, Min, Faile, Berelain, Tuon) with Mat and Thom being the only men we see using throwing knives(something something the idea that subterfuge and caution are feminine traits) while swords and axes are mainly used by men or women specifically breaking gender convention such as Cha Faile and Elayne’s Queen’s Guard. interestingly spears(Mat’s other weapon of choice) is an androgynous weapon used by both men and women(this is solely because the entire Aiel culture uses spears and will fight with them), bows are also a relatively androgynous weapon in the context of WoT used pretty universally. There’s also something to be said about how the entire subplot with Tylin puts Mat in the role of the ‘pursued’ or as Mat himself puts it ‘the woman’ where Tylin takes the commanding and dominant role in their dynamic. There’s a whole different essay to be written about Mat’s romantic relationships and the vast power dynamic disparity in them and how the relationships with Tylin and Melindra primed him for the way his dynamic with Tuon works but once again that’s a different essay.

Mat’s relationship with the one power is also really interesting, because for a non-channeler he’s pretty heavily linked with magic. He’s effected by the magic inherent in the world despite for all intensive purposes being perfectly normal to start with. The Aelfinn and the Eelfin, the fact that he’s hunted by the Gholam who was created solely to assassinate channelers. Both of his sisters being born with the spark and him marrying a woman who was trained as a sul’dam(and in a prophetic vision said woman literally collaring him after we had just been introduced to the concept of a’dams). His medallion that negates channeling, the cursed dagger and him getting the first powerwrought weapon of the series in his Ashandarei. Mat’s practically rolling in magic nonsense despite wanting nothing to do with it. Not all of this was created by the one power, but he’s still very associated with it whether he wants to be or not. It’s also probably safe to say that between his sisters and being Ta’veren it’s likely he could probably learn to channel if he wanted to, of course he never would want to learn and as I established earlier I think he’d have a hard time channeling Saidine in the first place. Trying to wrestle a force of nature using brute force isn’t exactly his forte.

There’s also another essay about Mat and Elayne’s dynamic and how I think Elayne is a Freya parallel, and how that relates to Odin and Freya being the two patron gods of Seidhr- but I digress.

[cas-backwards-tie]

Chapter One: In the Dead of Night

Vladimir Makarov x Reader

The Long Road Masterlist

Summary: Soon after your fiance's murder you find yourself diving face first into enacting a plan to avenge his death. Regardless of your friend's approval, your wellbeing, livelihood, or future, you find yourself in it for the long-con.

Words: 2.2k

Warnings: Violence, Guns, Death, Major MW3 Spoiler, Main Character Death, Grief, Loss, Angst, Anger, Hatred, Revenge, Dark Themes,

A/N: This is... sooooo self-indulgent and utterly crack, tbh. I'd thought it up a while ago and keep thinking about it. I kept trying to think of a way to make it realistic, but... I just feel like there is no way of doing that, so I'm just gonna write it. However it goes, it goes. Also fyi I am using google translate so I really hope it's coming out okay. I do speak Russian, but only Duolingo tiny bit. divider by @saradika

You were prepared for this, you knew it was bound to happen one day, you just didn't know when that day would be. It only looks like, now, it's finally come. As you sit at the counter, stirring the bowl of oatmeal you'd just made and are trying your best to get to cool down, you can't help but think about the man currently in the other room.

You'd expected an entrance something akin to that of a Mission Impossible movie: a loud boom, doors knocked down, guns blazing, venomous words shouted in a language you've hardly begun to understand despite the tedious month of learning to the best of your abilities. Thunder cracks in the distance, rattling the windowpane in the next room; you don't know when the heavy downpour started, but it hasn't given any sign of yield since his arrival only a half hour ago now. Part of you can't help but think back to the myths and legends your husband... husband--your fiance--you remind yourself, mentally scolding as this isn't the first, and you doubt it's the last time you're going to mentally interchange the two words. Part of you can't help but think back to the myths and legends your fiance used to tell you.

The rain reminds you of the the way the Vikings would personify the Norse Gods to Earthly elements. Sure, you know some of the comics, like Thor, and Loki... but nevertheless, with your upbringing, the heavy pounding of the rain against the tin roof and the approaching thunder only makes your thoughts drift back to him. Johnny.

What would he think? What would he do? If he knew you were here... Maybe it's the spiritual part of you that never quite left, possibly having been ingrained from your grandparents when you were younger, or an aunt, an uncle of some sort, perhaps... but you think he'd do something silly like this. Come back as a thunderstorm, manifesting himself as something so threatening and dangerous, symbolizing his distress, unhappiness, and worry for you with torrents of rain, yet trying to protect you from the beyond even with lightning. Yet, you know that's impossible, and certainly not the case. Your heart begins to ache once more as you think of him, not wanting to get caught up, again, in the overwhelming grief you hadn't fully let yourself fall into. This is for him, you remind yourself once again.

"What are you giving her?" The voice comes from the doorway, and you're not entirely surprised by the venom in his tone, albeit taken aback. While he's not loud due to the (presumably) resting woman in the next room, you know that the lack of volume doesn't mean he wouldn't yell if the situation were anywhere else.

"What do you mean? This?" You quirk an eyebrow as you continue to stir in the little additives you'd put into the oatmeal: honey, sugar, and a pinch of salt. "It's oatmeal?" You explain, the confusion obvious in your tone as you hold the bowl up a bit, angling it for him to better see. As if the man has never seen oatmeal in his life; the thought would elicit a whirlwind of laughter from you any other time, or, more accurately, if it were any other person... but this was him. Makarov.

Vladimir Makarov: Thirty-six years old; born in Moscow Russia. Commander of Konni; the ultranationalistic private 'military contractor' group.

You'd done what research you could, found what information you had access to, some you didn't. Utilized what connections, resources, and favors were owed to you. Maybe some of them did it out of pity, out of guilt, or some other sense of failure on behalf of the SAS. Regardless, you'd set your plans into action, intent on making your promise to your late fiance come true. You will kill the man before you. It won't be today. No. After all, that'd be too soon, you have to earn his trust first. Only then, after he's comfortable, and settled, will you pursue your slow and agonizing torture.

"Христос," he curses, "she said you're poisoning her," he speaks slowly, a menacing quality to his tone as he unravels the crossed arms from his chest. Anger is evident in his irises as he stalks toward you with each step, eyebrows in a thick and harsh line. "I ask again-"

"The medication? Is that what you're talking about?" You ask. Feeling your own anger continuing to effervesce in your gut, you turn to face him on the stool, sliding from the counter. While he's still a couple feet away, you have to be more than a handful of feet shorter than him. Of that, you're sure. "Because from what I've deduced so far from being here, she bribed the last caretaker to not give her the medication on the agreement that she'd get more time off!"

He shifts his weight onto his left foot, eyes widening ever so imperceptibly, yet he remains quiet, so you continue. "They gave me her medication, told me to give it to her twice a day, so I'm doing that because she's been prescribed that medication. She clearly needs it, as per her doctor's orders. So unless you think the doctor isn't right, then, that's not my problem! I, however, am not surprised if she's telling you that since she obviously didn't even want me here in the first place."

Rounding the counter, you continue about your--at this point it could be considered daily--routine. Hand grasping your cool blue glass of water, you take a few sips while silently studying him. Despite having infiltrated his life and unknowingly (to him, ethically) disposed of his mother's last caretaker, you haven't officially met your late fiance's murderer till tonight.

KILLER

Slaughterer...! You destroyed him... You took him away from me. You're the reason he's gone. All the thoughts continue to run through your head rampantly, and you can't help but turn to face the wall opposite of him. Pretending to be busy with some of the drying dishes, you try to calm yourself. Acting on impulse and emotion will get you nowhere, you know this.

A heavy sigh permeates the silence that'd fallen between you, and there are the following taps of approaching dress shoes against hardwood floors. Quickly turning to make sure he neither invades your personal space nor dares to touch you, you're met with the visage of Makarov slumped at the counter, head in his hands.

You don't speak, you don't know what to say. Silence fills the space between you. Seeing him like this is weird considering all the stories you'd heard about him. Though you suppose even the most evil of men are still that... human. "How long have you worked as a caretaker?" He suddenly questions.

"A few years," you answer, swallowing the anxiety that starts to bubble up in your throat. "I started as a nurse and thought maybe I'd become a doctor, but it was... too much for me, and... not what I wanted to do. I discovered I liked helping people better as a nurse." It's not all lies, in fact, most of it is true. The only thing that meets your admission is silence, and that fact only raises the tension building within the cottage. Wincing at the rumbling outside, the sound does nothing to help the obvious discomfort you're experiencing finally facing him in person.

"And would you say you're good at your job?" He asks, eyes slightly narrowed in questioning as he slowly raises his head from his hands. The intensity of his dark brown eyes scream hostility and a hurt you can't immediately place your fingers on. Yet despite it all you refuse to waiver underneath his gaze.

"Yes. They wouldn't send me all the way out here otherwise. Not with a case like hers, Sir," you reply.

"Then what-" he tests, pronouncing each word clearly, "would you suggest I do?" He asks. There's a slight breathiness to his voice; with the thin windows, you can't help but feel as though the torrents of northern lake air through the meadow with its water.

Eyebrow raising in response, you're honestly shocked he'd ask such a thing. You're a complete stranger! A whirlwind of emotions go through you; excitement, bewilderment, shock, curiosity... you can't get ahead of yourself. With a sigh out, you shake your head. It may come across like disappointment to him, but really, it's to clear your head and collect yourself.

"Look... it's not something anyone wants to hear, bu-"

"Tell me!" He interrupts, demanding.

"But..." you emphasize, considering you were only putting up polite pretenses for show anyhow. "Really, family members do better when they're living with the family, even with caretakers to help. Whether you can't do it because you're busy or have other priorities, I understand."

"But at the end of the day, family members usually pass more quickly estranged like this on their own in a separate house because they feel lonely and like no one comes to visit. Maybe they have no one, or maybe they feel like they have nothing to live for anymore? She said you only visit her once or twice a year, if that... and while you write letters, that sometimes isn't enough for people, unfortunately. If you really want the truth."

Finished while your spiel, you shift your weight to the other foot as you place the finished oatmeal on the tray you reserve for his Mother. While, yes, you may despise him to the end's of the Earth... his Mother didn't do anything besides give birth to him. You accepted that the night you met her. Afraid to take another sip of your water, you stand in waiting, observant as Makarov seems to silently process everything you've said, his eyes shifting back and forth for a moment.

"I'll be back," he declares before sliding from the stool and rounding the corner into the small living space his Mother used to use more frequently. Shoulders sagging, a breath leaves you that you hadn't realized you'd been holding in. Onto your nightly routine with dinner, you attempt to distract yourself from the continuous torment of thunderstorm outside, meanwhile inside you can hear urgent demands in Russian faintly from the next room. It's clear he's on the phone... but with who? His goons, of course... right? Who else? But to kill you? To background check you? Do you need to prepare to flee?

As you stir the pot of soup you've just put on the stove, you can feel yourself start to sweat and panic. In an attempt to switch gears, you finish her dinner. Oatmeal ready, medication on the tray, you grab the lemonade you two had made the day prior and pour a glass for her before getting a steady grip on the tray and taking it down the hall. With a gentle rap of your foot as best you can against the doorframe, you announce your presence.

"Привет, Как вы себя чувствуете?" You ask, knowing the word for 'hi' and having figured out early on with the help of technology to ask how she's feeling.

"лучше теперь, когда он здесь." She responds with a soft but tired smile. It's a good sign that she's sitting up and alert at this time of night too. You don't understand the first part of what she says as she's talking too fast and you also don't have your phone out to capture what she says into your real time translation app, however you can grasp the last part. 'He's here.'

Placing the tray down on her lap, you shake your head and signal behind you with a frown. A second attempt, pointing to her, you give her a thumbs up and a smiling face for a moment, and then do the opposite. With a thumbs down and a sad face, you try again. "как дела?"

With a wave of her hand, she shakes her head now with a chuckle. "хорошо," she responds, lifting the spoon. "мой Володя!"

Whipping your head around, you find him standing there leaning against the doorframe most likely having been observing the two of you. Hopefully not for long... or maybe not at all since she would've said something. "она так просто с тобой разговаривает?" He says to his Mother, walking up to the bed and into her outstretched arms for the hug she craves.

"она не очень хорошо говорит по-русски," she quietly answers, holding him tightly for a moment, rubbing his back before letting go. With a pat on the bed next to her, she looks between the two of you. "My baby," she struggles to pronounce the word, "Vladimir." A proud smile sits upon her lips for a moment as she gestures to him. He smiles at her, too, and you nod.

"Yes, да. I have met your son just briefly. But it is good to officially meet," you tell her, even if you know she doesn't understand all of it. Shifting your gaze, he meets it with animosity. "Vladimir," you repeat.

"My mother tells me you are," he repeats your name, to which you nod, "it's a pleasure to officially meet you. Now that you're both here, I have news."

"News?" The question pops out of your mouth before you can stop it.

"Yes, news. Since you're taking care of my mother, you technically work for me. What you said stuck with me. You're right-" he shifts his speaking from you to his mother. "I've been a bad son to you, Mama. ты собираешься жить со мной." Again, he shifts his focus back to you. "We have to pack. You will both live on my compound from now."

~~~~~~~~

acronyms|translations:

Христос = christ

Привет = hi

Как вы себя чувствуете = how are you feeling

лучше теперь, когда он здесь = better now that he's here.

как дела = how are you

хорошо = good / fine / ok

мой Володя = my voldoya (nickname for vladimir)

она так просто с тобой разговаривает = she speaks to you so simply

она не очень хорошо говорит по-русски = she does not speak very much Russian

да = yes

ты собираешься жить со мной = you're coming to live with me

~~~~~~~~

forever taglist: @ohdamnadam , @safarigirlsp , @jynzandtonic , @moonlightsolo

[11queensupreme11]

We already have the Percy baby au but are we also in that same au "The biggest custody battle ever"?

We start with the normal baby Percy, where instead of a teenage Percy we have a baby Percy, but this au is also a mix of the pregnant Loki au

In the PJ universe, Sally got pregnant and gave birth to Percy normally and since Percy is Poseidon's only daughter she gives her a little attention and affection, but during the night baby Percy is taken across the magic bridge, I forgot the name sorry) to the ror universe and reappears in loki's womb exactly the same way it happens in pregnant loki au

By then we all know what happens so I'm going to skip the part where the Norse and Greek family get attached and start to love baby Percya, my interesting idea comes after this

Meanwhile, in the ror universe, Loki gives birth to baby Percy, who during the gestation period became a deity, I will explain more about this concept below:

for the divining of baby Percy I am based on two myths the birth of Dionysus and the creation of the Milky Way, in the first myth it is said that after showing his real divine form to one of his lovers it is pulverized leaving it in the dust only the baby she was pregnant with and to avoid the death of the fetus Zeus opened a slit in her thigh where he placed it until birth and because he was generated for three months in a divine body when he was born he already possessed divinity, In the myth of the Milky Way, Ivy is tricked by the Antenna into breastfeeding Hercules, but he suckled with such force that he hurt the goddess's chest, who with a scream moved away and ended up spilling her divine milk towards the sky, ending up like this for creating the Milky Way

Percy had already been born when she was transposed into the Ror universe, but as she didn't yet have the Achilles curse, her little body would disintegrate, so to prevent this from happening, Bifrost placed Percy in Loki's womb (I can't think of a specific reason, maybe he was just the closest compatible person at the time? I kind of like to think that Bifrost is conscious and chose Loki thinking about his compatibility with Percy)

for being generated for another nine months (or less) in a divine womb, Percy's humanity was being consumed by Loki's divine power (imagine red paint and white paint, a small portion of the two was mixed which resulted in a pinkish tone, Now imagine that this same pink tone for months received small amounts of a new shade of red, the shade of pink that was once a perfect balance between red and white has now become a new shade of red, you and I know that this shade before it was pink but anyone looking at it now would be unable to know that as the pink/white tone has been diluted to the point where it almost doesn't exist; this is exactly what happened to Percy's human genes, they were consumed and eventually erased by the genes loki's divine genes until all that was left were ror poseidon's also divine genes)

In some myths it is said that a large part of Hercules' strength comes from the fact that he was suckled by the divine milk of Hera (who had the strongest milk among all the goddesses), so drinking Loki's divine milk would be the final nail in the coffin to kill Baby Percy's humanity (mainly because Loki spent several months breastfeeding Baby Percy, unlike Baby Hercules who was only breastfed once by Hera)

Meanwhile in the PJ universe the gods finally discovered where baby Percy went and how to get her back, Poseidon tells Sally that he is going to get their baby and after much imputation on Sally's part he agrees to take her along, the two of the other Greek gods use the Bifrost of their universe to reach the ror universe

That's when all the shit happens:

With an explosion of light from the Bifrost, the PJ Greek gods, enter the ROR universe and meet their ROR counterparts.the first thing Sally sees is baby Percy and she screams for her baby and that's what breaks everyone out of their trance, Loki is obviously offended as a random human screams that it's his baby's hand, pj Poseidon holds her arm stopping her to run towards Loki

The ror gods are exuding a huge murderous aura, especially Poseidon and Loki, so PJ Zeus begins to explain that they are from another world and that in fact Baby Percy is the son of PJ Poseidon

OBVIOUSLY the ror gods do not accept this explanation and a huge fight ensues, the ror gods and the PJ gods are arguing about which of them has the right to the child, and then someone (probably ror Eris) proposes to decide this in a divine court/judgment, the PJ gods argue that ror Zeus will be partial to his brother so everyone decides to bring in another Zeus from another dimension (maybe the Zeus from "BLOD OF ZEUS")

The entire trial would be a much more violent version of that biblical tale where King Solomon had to judge which of the two women was telling the truth about being the real mother of the living baby and which of them was lying and was actually the mother of the dead baby

The PJ gods argue that Percy's biological parents are Sally and Poseidon since it was his seed that impregnated Sally and it was she who originated, carried, cared for and breastfed Percy until she was kidnapped from her crib and taken to this world

The ror gods argue that they are also Percy's biological parents since Loki also carried, cared for and breastfed Percy, they also emphasize that Percy is a complete God and not a demigod therefore it would be impossible for Sally to give Percy the necessary care

Of course, the Norse ror gods also enter the discussion, I argue that if Bifrost chose the ror gods as parents, it is because he judged that the PCs would be incapable of properly raising the child, Grandpa Odin is not willing to let anyone take away his granddaughter. of the family and Uncle Thor (who will be a secret romantic yandere hahaha) won't let anyone take his niece (and future wife) out of his reach

This arouses the interest of PJ Zeus, who now really wants to take Baby Percy back (maybe he will also discover that Percy is essential to the future survival of Olympus) PJ Poseidon argues that he will take Sally and Baby Percy to live in Atlantica

which is countered by ror poseidon who points out that the tides over PJ Poseidon's domain are tainted and who asks why he didn't take Percy to live with him sooner (think that before the trial boz Zeus analyzed each of the worlds and how were the conditions of the parents)

I just imagine Sally crying and begging them to give her baby back, PJ Zeus says that if they want a child so much, just ror poseidon and loki make one instead of stealing one from a pair of worried parents

of course the ror gods are being supported by the other ror pantheon, everyone fears and hates Poseidon and Loki but they still love baby percy who is so cute and charismatic always trying to pull her hair and smiling whenever she is held by someone

Loki is not moved by Sally's crying and absolutely denies that anyone other than him has the title of Percy's mother, Ror Poseidon seems to me like those men who find it disgusting to create someone who has no biological ties to you but the way he is a hypocrite he will probably become the number one defender of that saying "father is the one who takes care"

Meanwhile baby Percy is being held by boz Zeus who is in the judge's place, she doesn't even have the mental capacity to understand what is happening so while the tension and the desire to kill grows she is playing with some toy until she feels hungry, at that moment she cries and boz Hera says that she is probably hungry and at that moment both Sally and Loki get up with the intention of going to Percy to breastfeed her

This is the breaking point because after seeing Sally get up Loki tries to attack her, the PJ gods defend her and in the end they all decide to determine custody in a battle to the death, so now years before Ragnarok the gods are organizing the coliseum to carry out the greatest battle that has ever happened, God against God with only one objective: to have custody of baby Percy

This conflict is so big and violent that it makes all the confusion that generated the Trojan War seem like child's play, baby Percy is literally the new golden apple that started a war between worlds, in the background the PJ and Ror Éris are wondering if MAYBE Baby Percy isn't actually a descendant of one of them

honestly it's very difficult to write an idea and in my head it had much more detail, I can't even imagine how exhausting it must be for you to write a fanfic, you DEFINITELY have my respect I would also love it if you could present how you think the ror poseidon would react, I tried but trying to write about him seemed impossible, and thank you so much for that comment you wrote about how I should be a dark romance writer, it inspired me and I'm really going to start organizing myself to start writing and post on my tumblr 😘😘😘)

first off, this was so beautifully written, i was entertained by every word you typed 😭 you are very big brained 🧠

i can just imagine, as an act of desperation, maybe one of the pjo!gods would (zeus??) would mention the great prophecy and how percy, as one of the children of the big three, would be a strong contender for being the prophecy child that could save/raze olympus

but that would be a huuuuuuuuge mistake to mention because that would just make the ror gods pissed 💀 they're essentially asking for percy back just so they could use her, plus, none of the ror!gods would give a shit if the pjo universe was in danger, they'd be happy if they were all to die

either way, i definitely see the poseidons having a whole cat fight in the middle of the court. idk, maybe one of them tried to teach percy how to say 'dada' and the other one just lost his shit 😂 as for sally, poor woman's gonna need to be guarded 24/7 cuz she's in the BIGGEST danger in here. not only is she human, but she's claiming to be percy's mother, i definitely see some gods trying to assassinate her when the chance comes

[dmc-brainrot]

i loved the yamato! reader fic! please continue it! also here is a real question! how do you think the yamato would look as a human?

Eternally Soul Bonded (part 2)

Vergil (DMC5) x Yamato! reader

warnings: reader is a humanoid version of Yamato, reader is also a bit obssessed with Vergil (mild yandere behaviour that seems to be growing), a bit of angst, fluff, mild smut, strangling, things get a bit heavy

summary: after a whole year of you two being together, there seems to be a huge wall separating you two… and you intend to break it by force, no matter what.

word count: 2k

a.n: hi again! thank you so much for the feedback :D! Here's part 2 of the fic!! I posted a small doodle I made about my own interpretation of a personification of Yamato on my blog! Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, I'll probably make a part 3 of this since I'm having fun, and things are getting steamy~ thank you again for your support and my ask box is always open! o/

After what happened between you and Vergil, it seemed the two of you had gotten closer.

It was still unexplainable however, how you had come to exist in the world… as a personification of Yamato, and more. Ever since you had woken up in that body, you felt as if you were no longer simply “Vergil’s sword”, but also a person of your own.

It had been an entire year by now… that you two had been together in this old raggedy apartment. In the beginning, Vergil was training you hard to unlock every potential within you as his sword, ever since you unlocked his Devil Trigger. But, things were different… it felt as if your potential was permanently locked within that body you woke up as.

Training wasn’t the concern now. It wasn’t about whether you still had the potential of Yamato within you or not. It wasn’t about whether Vergil believed you were in fact the sword he’d been looking for the past 20 years. No, the problem was completely different. It was about your connection as one.

It was if… Vergil didn’t know anything about the emotions he was able to feel, because all this time, he had buried those deep inside for the sake of his hunt for power.

After the episode where he broke down crying from the first time, you were expecting, maybe even hoping that you two would grow closer again, that it meant something, and that it’d make a difference.

But it took a completely opposite effect.

Vergil… refused to talk about emotions or his feelings with you after that day. And that’s how the remaining of the year went by.

Obviously you wouldn’t let that be your reality. After all, you had just gotten him back.

…

Vergil was in his room reading when you approached the entrance. It seemed now that things had settled, he was trying to partake in more hobbies other than fighting. He had always enjoyed reading, and there was even a time where he wrote poems, although you weren’t sure if he did that anymore.

He seemed to completely ignore your presence, up until you sat down on the edge of the bed with him. Only then he looked at you.

“What do you want?” He asked in that nasally annoyed tone he always had.

“What are you reading?” You asked, ignoring his cold tone. You were used to it anyway.

“Human fiction is pretty fascinating to me, I’m reading some stories about Norse Myths”

“Do you think those kinds of things are real?”

“What things?”

Great, you two were having an actual conversation. This is how things were supposed to go to begin with.

“Gods, and all sorts of things. We’ve only had to deal with demons and demon Lords… and wannabe angels…” You spoke, leaning against his arm to take a better look at the book he read. “…But do you really think… there is such a thing, as multiple gods… that live up there in the sky?”

Vergil was silent for a moment… you could tell he was tense and uncomfortable, probably because you were so close to him.

“I don’t care about gods in the sky. These are merely myths created by the feeble and limited human mind because their existence is so insignificant in comparison to their surroundings, they feel the need to believe in something greater to be responsible for them.” He spoke even more coldly, closing the book he held. “…Now, what do you want…?”

“…I just wanted to see what you were doing.” You whispered, looking back at him. “…I think… you’re right about that. About gods… and humans.”

“…” Vergil sighed, almost in defeat, opening the book again and continuing his reading. “Do you want me to tell you more?”

Your eyes sparkled with the idea, looking up at him as if he had just offered you salvation.

“Yes…please…”

You ended up falling asleep for a brief moment after a while of Vergil reading to you. But, you could still hear his voice vaguely in the distance.

“…You present yourself as a human, you act and feel like a human, you even have needs like a human…” his raspy and quiet voice echoed in the walls of your mind. “…at first… I thought it was just an elaborated gimmick… to protect yourself against me using your full capabilities…”

“…You… are just like V… so maybe that means… the real  Yamato is somewhere out there for me to find… and all I have to do is to merge you two together.”

Oh.

Of course.

He still… wanted just his sword.

You were foolish to think… after a whole year, your relationship was anything more than that.

“…What did you say, Vergil?” You shot your eyes open. They were dark and unforgiving, the light behind them was gone, just in that time where you punctured his heart. There was a coldness and lack of humanity behind your voice, as your bloodlust filled eyes stared right at the man who was tucking you in on the bed.

Vergil seemed surprised as you stared at him, his hands still holding onto the blanket he was using to tuck you in. He froze in place.

“…I’m just… an incomplete half, you say?” You continued, unblinking. “…That, you’re holding onto me just to find the ‘other half’, you say?”

You didn’t move from your spot.

“…So I can go back… to being just your sword… who can’t speak, or feel, right?”

Vergil didn’t move either.

“…I’m not like V.” The room had then filled with an unspeakable amount of despair. “…Do I have to keep proving myself, time and time again for you to understand?”

You sat up finally, holding onto Vergil’s hands and squeezing his wrists tightly so he wouldn’t leave your grasp.

“…Are you that miserable and pathetic without a sword to wield? Do you really only see me as a tool to use and regain power? I have bad news for you Vergil… son of Sparda…” You said as you pulled him closer.

“…You have no control… over the things that happen in your life.” You stared right at his icy blue eyes, eyes that at this moment were still widened in shock. “…You had no control over being trapped in Hell, or becoming some other devil’s puppet knight, or even when Nero was born and absorbed me into him.  You were never behind anything, and when you were, you had to split yourself into two to even be able to achieve something.”

“…You’re nothing without the circumstances that present themselves to you. And at the end of the day, even if you do win… Dante never loses, does he? Isn’t that what pisses you off the most?”

“…Stop talking.” Vergil spoke through gritted teeth. “You think talking about my weaknesses will make me cry again like last time? Please. You really are a one-trick pony, aren’t you?”

“I’m not done talking.” You squeezed his wrists again.

“…I know every bit of emotion you feel inside your heart. The anger and jealousy, the envy, the frustration, the pain, the grief, everything. You’re sick and tired of Dante getting his way for everything, that you’re always in the shadows, that he’s always winning and you’re always losing.” You spoke through gritted teeth. “Wondering time and time again if your positions were switched… if you could’ve had a different outcome.”

Vergil’s eyes widened at your words again, you knew he could come out of your grasp at any time, but he chose not to.

“…And you think… that if you have your sword, you’ll try… countless…. and countless of times… to achieve that different outcome.”

“…Why are you… even alive right now, Vergil?”

Vergil let himself go from your grasp. He placed his hands beside you on the bed, and bowed his head for a moment.

“…I see.”

“…You’re saying… I don’t need a sword by my side to get a different outcome?” He smiled a little, before finally looking at you with a gaze you’ve never seen on his face before. “Then… I don’t need you, is that right?”

Before you knew it, his hands were on your throat.

And he started strangling you.

But you weren’t scared. You knew he needed this to overcome his weaknesses.

So you smiled.

“…I really… do love you, Vergil” You spoke with a smile as he strangled you, your eyes filling with small tears as he did, but you couldn’t help yourself. You couldn’t stop smiling.

It was like it had awakened something in him. Not a new power, or ability, or even a new form.

But a new feeling.

Those hands that strangled you, had let go of your neck, to hold onto something else.

And the man who was just now strangling you like he wanted to kill you, was now… using his lips to kiss you.

It was weird, because you had never kissed anyone before, but it felt almost natural to do this, so you kissed him back.

You would never know what clicked inside Vergil’s head for him to do this, you would never know that he was practically seeing a reflection of himself in you. A sword that reminded its master of his weaknesses that needed to be purified. A reminder of why he’s alive. Why he needs to be more powerful.

And oddly enough, that really… aroused him beyond comprehension. It was what motivated him to keep going.

His kisses were rough and sloppy, but it wasn’t much of a problem since you were too. He held your cheeks just as strongly as he did your neck seconds ago, and you were locked in place.

He seemed absolutely desperate. Either it was for affection, or for human touch, or if it was because he wanted to feel powerful again. Maybe all of the above.

But you on the other hand… the amount of pleasure you were getting from his desperation was more than anything you could possibly dream on.

He was yours.

And you were his.

And he was yours, forever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever… until the ends of time, and there was nothing he could do to get rid of you anymore.

“…Take off your clothes, Vergil…”

“Show me… how much you crave power.”

After a year of coldness and barely anything between you, you had finally done it. You had finally broken him.

You had him, right where you wanted him to.

And with the two of you as one, finally there was absolutely nothing that would get in your way again. Because, after all…

You were the strongest.

“Take it off, Vergil… Let’s… become one.” You smirked, offering your arms for him.

He stared down at you for a moment longer, as if he had been presented with a choice he couldn’t back away from.

And so he made his choice.

He took off his shirt, exposing his toned form, and slowly began to unbuckle his pants.

There was no turning back now… he was finally becoming one with the one person that would always be the only one for him eternally so.

He leaned down, kissing you again, this time rougher, and even more desperate. He moved his hands to your legs, lifting them up and making sure they were wrapped around his form, locking you in.

You wrapped your arms around him, and you could feel the warmth his crazed desperation was emanating… and despite never having done this before you incorporated in this body, it all felt natural to you, like before.

This would be a very… long night.

[perotovar]

Hello friend I would kindly like to request one Max Phillips / Loki please and thank you 🙏🏻 ♥️

oh, my darling tings, i couldn't think of a better person to work on this match up!

i will say, upfront, loki is a not a bad guy. he gets painted that way a LOT, marvel didn't help, and a lot of what we know about the myths were either written by the christians or lost to time. we sort of have to take everything with a grain of salt, just like, in general with this belief system. but you can do a LOT with him, so i'm excited to see what you do!

-

Blood-brother to Odin. Has several children with (at least) two women: Sigyn and Angrboda. With Angrboda, he sired Jormundgandr, Fenrir, and Hel. Loki himself gave birth to Sleipnir, Odin’s 8-legged horse, as a female horse. A shape-shifter that can turn into many creatures such as a horse, a bird, a fly, a flea, and a salmon, as well as other men and women.

God of mischief, chaos, and a trickster.

Loki’s gender is a bit ambiguous because he shifts into being a woman so much. Often seen as one of the main sources of transness, genderfluidity, or nonbinary people within the Norse Myths. Thus, this makes people use ‘they/them’ pronouns for Loki sometimes.

Often had interesting ways to fix problems, usually by starting off causing mischief, a lot of chaos would ensue, but ultimately the end result would bring a lot of good. A bit like an anti-hero.

However, he was the cause of Baldr, Frigg’s son’s death. She loved her son so much that she made it so nothing could hurt him, except for the mistletoe plant, which she failed to ask. Loki found this out and convinced Baldr’s brother, who was blind, to throw the mistletoe plant at Baldr, causing his death. Odin and Frigg asked Hel, goddess of the underworld, if she could bring him back to life, and she said she would if every creature wept for Baldr. Loki shape-shifted into a giantess and refused to weep, thus keeping Baldr dead.

There are various sources with different retellings of stories/sagas so it’s hard to pinpoint any one way to see Loki. In one version, Baldr’s death does happen, but Loki isn’t even mentioned or present, so it’s hard to villainize Loki.

A very polarizing and misunderstood figure. Often seen as the “villain” or the “bad guy” of Norse Mythology, but there’s a lot of nuance to who Loki is. Associated for why Ragnarok even happens since Loki’s children are at fault, but a lot of Ragnarok is heavily Christianized, so it should be taken with a grain of salt.

A good way to see, or sum him up is thus: “many of his acts are the doings of a naughty boy, rather than crimes against the righteous gods”. In most stories, he’s playing tricks on the gods because he finds it funny more than anything. Later stories are where he’s seen as more “evil”, but most of those stories are very Christian-influenced.

Like a fun older brother. Very playful and mischievous. Very straight-forward. Protector of outcasts; lgbtq+ folks, disabled people, neurodivergent people, etc.

Associations/Offerings: Horses, birds, red jasper, carnelian, cloves, cinnamon, coffee, sweets

and your moodboard:

[mischiefandlies]

You're a pain in my neck

Tom Hiddleston x Reader

Masterlist

Notes: yo, I'm just starting my classics course and Google said Mr. Hiddleston himself also studied it (posh bastard, of course he did). Figured I'd make a little fic, but made it super cheesy and teenagery, bc why not? It's also my first time writing for Tom btw, not sure if I'll do it again.

(Also, sorry if the Shakespeare is wrong, I was doing it from memory b/c i couldn’t be bothered to fact check it.)

Warning: none? but I've left a little note at the end too.

You hadn’t been studying classics for very long, but the gods interested you greatly. You used to read myths as a child, Theseus and the Minotaur, or Orpheus and Eurydice, or even the trials of Hercules. You and your brother grew up on Greek tragedies and tales, so you had chosen to keep learning ten years on. The course covered both Roman and Greek mythology, politics, literature. Along the way however, your studies took you to other types of myth. Egyptian and Greek culture were closely related, but the European mythology around Celtic and Norse mythology was what really took your fancy.

You were sat in the library re-reading the myth of Athena and Arachne when you heard a man’s voice speak. “Is this seat taken?”

You glanced up. In front of you was a young man, blonde unruly curls atop his head, and a shy smile on his face. You smiled back, “Take it. I’m not waiting on anyone.”

He slid his rucksack off and sat across from you. “Thanks. I’m new here, so still finding my feet.”

“Me too,” you reply. “Just trying to get through the week.”

“What are you studying?” he asks.

“Classics and Sociology. You?”

“I’m doing classics too!” he says. “What’s your name?”

“Y/N”

“I’m Tom. Nice to meet you.”

You began to meet in the library regularly. Tom and you seemed to get on really well, helping each other with essays and chatting about life. The two of you began to meet often, catching coffee and studying together, going to the cinema, trips to museums and the like. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the two of you were only friends. When he came to you about advice about girls, asking people out, or just lovelife gossip, you could feel your heart constrict painfully. In all honesty, he was probably one of the most genuine people you had ever met, and you didn’t want to ask him out for fear of ruining whatever friendship the two of you shared. And, even if you did decide to take that leap of faith, there was no way to be sure that he would feel the same. He certainly hadn’t given you any indication of liking you, he had been friendly, and on occasion flirty, but nothing ever came of it. It was like everything you wanted was dangling right in front of you, but you just couldn’t reach to grab it for fear of falling.

Tom, little did you know, was in much the same predicament. His mates had actually nicknamed you “Mrs H” because of the puppy eyes he had whenever he saw you. He admired you; the way you spoke so eloquently, your intelligence, your beauty. The way you could stand your ground confidently, backing yourself no matter what. He often found that when you and he were debating ancient politics or learning Latin phrases, he would find himself zoning out, too busy daydreaming about an imaginary future between you and him.

It was just before the summer half term that Tom and you decided to take a picnic one Saturday, so that the two of you could power through some essays and then chill and enjoy the scenery. And so, the two of you trundled up to Richmond Park, deciding that that would be the best location, sat near King Henry’s mound*, looking out onto the London skyline. Once you’d finished all your essays and eaten enough quiche and salad, you both lay, looking out onto the beautiful scene. You had lay so that your head was resting on his thigh, with his using his pullover as a pillow. He had been asking you to test him on his lines for Macbeth that he was supposed to be learning.

“… life is but a walking shadow,

A poor player that struts and frets about the stage,

And then is heard no more. It is a tale told

By and idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

He waited.

“Signifying nothing…”

…

“Y/N, it’s your line.”

You jolted at the sound of your name. “Huh? Oh sorry, I must’ve drifted of.”

“You asleep?” he chuckled.

“No, you're just really comfy. I wouldn’t mind sleeping with you.”

He froze, smiling. “What?”

“I said I wouldn’t mind sleeping on you.”

“No you didn’t,” he said teasingly.

“Yes I did.”

“You said you wouldn’t mind sleeping with me.” It was your turn to freeze. “Oh. I’m sorry, I must’ve been in dreamland.”

“Are you sure?” he joked. “Might be your subconscious trying to tell you something.”

“Doesn’t matter anyways.” you said, “You’re way out of my league.”

He frowned at you, looking slightly confused. “What makes you think that?”

“Well, you're so handsome, and your tall and pretty and have cheekbones that could cut diamonds and you’ve got all that muscle that I know you hide because I’ve seen you play rugby, and you’re-”

“A lanky beanpole, I know,” he interrupts. “My love, you’ve got it wrong. You’re out of my league.”

You snort out a laugh. “You’re a bad liar, Thomas William Hiddleston.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter, because you’d rather sleep on me than with me.”

“Of course I wouldn’t.” You said before your brain caught up with what you were saying.

He looks at you, staring so intently you feel mortified. Fuck. He could feel his heart going twenty to the dozen, his brain running at the speed of sound. Did you mean it? Could you really be his? After all this wasted time pining over you, trying desperately not to fall for you? You –feeling suitably mortified- turn your head so fast to turn away from him that you pull a muscle in your neck. “OW, fuck.”

He scoots closer to you and looks to see what's wrong. “Are you alright?”

“I’ve pulled my neck. I'm fine.” you mutter back, trying to stay still so you don’t irritate it.

“Let me see,” he says, gently prying your fingers away from your neck, so he can gently press his palm to it. “Do you need heat on it? Did you want me to get you anything?”

“It’ll be fine. It'll just be tense for a little while,” you say.

He is right up against you now, gently rubbing the sore area of your neck trying to get the muscles to relax. Slowly, ever so slowly, you find yourself leaning back into his touch, letting him rub the pain away and relaxing a little more.

“Can you move your neck at all darling?”

You try, but all you do is wince. “Nope.”

“Not at all?”

“No.”

“Then I think now is probably a good time to ask; what did you mean of course you want to sleep with me?”

You can feel yourself turning red. “Tom, I… well, even I have to admit your very handsome, and, I dunno, I guess… I really like you. A lot. And I just thought, if I said anything, then I’d lose you as a friend, and I didn’t want to risk it… but now, I mean, if you don’t want, y’know, we can just pretend I never said anything, it doesn’t have to-”

“Pretend you never said anything?” he repeats. “Pretend you never said anything? Not a chance darling, not when I have been dreaming of you saying that to me. I’m just glad you beat me to it.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“I… I like you too,” he says.

“Oh.”

There's a bit of a silence. You wait a sec to digest what he’s just said. “Tom.”

“Yes?”

“As much as I’d love to kiss you right now, my neck is really fucking sore.”

He just laughs, and presses a kiss to your cheek. “C’mon. I’ll get you a hot water bottle when we get home, then maybe your neck will fix itself.” He helps you to your feet. “And then darling, I can kiss you all I want. Deal?”

“Deal.”

notes

*I feel the need to clarify, King Henry’s mound is actually the name of a hill in Richmond Park, and unfortunately, is not an old sex joke (like most things in history). There’s an old piece of legislation from the 1500s that states that you must always be able to see a certain part of London from that particular hill, because Henry wasn’t there when Anne Bolyn was beheaded, so told then to send up a smoke signal when she was dead. He saw it on that hill, hence the name “King Henry’s mound”. It's still illegal to build a skyscraper blocking it. Anyways, fun facts, go back to your fanfics now.