#you inherited the legacy of the legend but your role in it is to die and make your father more compelling and tragic.

[attractthecrows]

i think the main thing that bothers me about fanon families (because i am a picky pedant) is that for the most part, they ignore things like how said families would impact the characters and overall story. like it's one thing to add siblings and other random relations just for flavor, I can't judge there, I do it myself... but you gotta keep in mind how they slot in. who are these people related to? how are they similar? what are the common learned behaviors of the family - because they're there even if said character makes a purposeful break from said family - and how do they manifest? why and where is this person even involved in the story?

like don't get me wrong, this sort of playing around is a lot of fun. but it's fun (to me anyways) because people are so complex and there's so many facets to them, so there's all sorts of ways for their bonds with others to interact and add flavor to the plot.

[genshin-impact-trash]

Zhongli/Tartaglia Fic Rec List 1

All We Hold Within Our Hearts – series (teen, wip, 4k) A series of character studies featuring Zhongli and Childe and how they relate to each of the five love languages.

Begin Anew, O Lost Child (explicit, complete, 200k) You may find time is too relentless to control and you cannot change your role. Zhongli’s expression is painfully gentle. It sends a flutter through his chest that anyone would look at the bloodthirsty Harbinger like that. He is silhouetted beautifully by the golden light. A golden prince for a golden city. “They say that souls never truly die. One day we might be so lucky to meet old friends again. Perhaps those we cared for most will find us again and we might learn the foundations of our friendship once more. I always thought time a relentless enemy but maybe time gifts us these moments of joy as well.” The hero Ajax walked the lands of Teyvat and his legend shaped the future. Heroes die but legends live forever. Their names are passed on, one generation after another. Those who bear the names of heroes are forced to confront the legacy they inherit. Childe grows up in the shadow of his namesake and rises to meet the challenge of legend.

bottom of the bottle and at my wits' end (teen, complete, 7k) While he's hunting down Scaramouche to reclaim the Electro Archon's Gnosis, Childe spends a night alone with his thoughts and a bottle of Fire-Water. AKA Childe character study

hung up (explicit, 45k) Childe moonlights as a phone sex operator to pay for his bills. Zhongli is a grieving man looking for a stranger to listen to him, rather than help him get off. It breaks the growing monotony of his late night calls, but Childe eventually finds himself falling for the deep-voiced man he knows only as "Rex."

Hydro Resonance (explicit, complete, 6k, includes Tartaglia/Yelan) Childe is looking through his correspondence when Ekaterina arrives with a nondescript wooden box. "Sir, someone from the ministry of civil affairs left this for you." He opens the box without much thought. He gets a lot of letters, and a package or two isn't anything too unusual. He frowns at what, at first glance, looks like a very strange bead necklace and a bottle of oil. The beads are all different sizes, sphere after sphere of glimmering cor lapis connected by a stiff string. Why would anyone send him jewelry? His eyes widen as he notices the note lying innocently over the thing. For you to train with. -Y Childe almost drops the box. No way. The beads are supposed to go inside him. --- Yelan and Childe have a mutually beneficial arrangement. Mr. Zhongli is just a friend, or so Childe keeps insisting.

In a family way (explicit, complete, 12k) “You-“ Zhongli’s voice is hoarse, face contorted in utter bewilderment. Still, he does not move, keeping Childe’s legs straight in the air. “You asked to be my mate. You wanted me to breed you. Ajax, you said that to me.” Oh, Celestia, they’re still connected. It’s all going to his head. Childe thinks he’s delirious. This can’t be real. “That was-“ His voice breaks in an awful squeak. “-that was dirty talk!” He never thought- Oh, fuck. Zhongli moves inside of him, and he can feel the cum sloshing through his guts. All this time. He’s an idiot. The signs, in retrospect, were so obvious. Zhongli has been trying to impregnate him. … Or, Childe learns the hard way to be careful what he wishes of an (ex) god. It might just get taken literally.

Oceans Between Us – series (mature, wip, 200k) There was more to the contract than a gnosis and test of Liyue. It seemed like a simple deal five hundred years ago: so long as Morax never had a soulmate, the Tsaritsa would never harm Liyue and she would not get his gnosis. But the moment he gained a soulmate, all that belonged to him was forfeit. He thought the deal left Liyue safe—he'd lived thousands of years without a soulmate. The Tsaritsa would be dead and gone by the time she'd have a chance to collect. Five hundred years later, Childe appears in Liyue, Zhongli gains a soulmate mark, and everything falls apart. (The obligatory soulmate AU, featuring a Zhongli with trauma, an oblivious Childe, and demon-worshipping cultists.)

The Inaccuracy of Infinity (mature, complete, 250k) Zhongli finds himself in quite the conundrum when a simple day trip with Childe, gone wrong, ends with him turning Childe immortal instead... And how he fails to inform the harbinger about this new development. Though, Zhongli supposes there'll be time to fill him in on this small detail sometime during the journey around Teyvat Childe has managed to rope him into.

To the Rhythm of Your Racing Heart (teen, complete, 90k) A mysterious shopkeeper offers Childe a bottle of wine that will make him forget about the one he loves. Childe is more than willing to accept it.

Two Truths and a Lie (teen, complete, 13k) There is a popular game in Snezhnaya, one that originates as an activity to keep children occupied during the long winter days stuck indoors while arctic winds howl outside, knocking against doors and windows and carrying with it a violent storm of ice and frost. The game has since been adopted into a drinking game by bored young adults similarly trapped inside those cold, dark grueling months. The game’s rules go something like this. Each person takes a turn telling two truths and one lie about themselves while the rest of the participants have to pluck out the lie. If the guessers guessed wrong, the person telling the information gets the point. If the guesser guessed right, then the person gets no points. There is no real end to this game. Children play it until they become bored, adults play it until they become drunk. Childe plays it until… Come to think of it, Childe’s not entirely sure why he’s playing. -- A Childe introspection story where he tries to find his heart.

Weighing Contracts (teen, complete, 150k) The final contract of Liyue. That’s what Rex Lapis had called it. An agreement to test his people, to see how they would be able to stand on their own and to allow them to move on from the age of gods and monsters into the dawning age of man. Rex Lapis knew they would be challenged in ways they had never been before, but despite appearances, he would be there to catch them if they fell. However, there were things he hadn’t accounted for despite all his careful planning. He had known that the Tsaritsa’s Fatui were sent to cause chaos - that Childe was a Harbinger and therefore would be at the epicentre - but he hadn’t expected this. As his ancient foe rose from the depths of the Guyun Stone Forest, the Archon weighed the final contract of Liyue against the first and made his decision.

[red-catmander]

Charr and Norn: Collectivism vs Individualism In Martial Cultures

Norn and charr are an interesting bunch, huh?

Typically in MMO’s/Fantasy games you tend to have one big burly warrior culture. Often orcs, since those tend to be the go-to human opposition faction (a role filled by the charr, in this case). Guild Wars gives us two! Both place great emphasis on combat, both are extremely large and physically imposing, both are filled with independent, prideful warriors. Why, then, do they feel so different? What separates them? What do they have in common, besides an element-based cult of woman-haters?

Let’s talk about combat, death and legacy.

First up, the norn! Ten feet tall and well aware of it. Norn revere the legend. The ideal self, the you at your best, the you who kills the big monster, the you who masters your chosen profession, the you who does something fantastic enough to be commemorated in song forever, long after you’re dead (of anything but old age). Glory in battle, glory in the hunt, you, you, you, you, you. Surnames inherited from famous parents (looking at you, Eirsson) aren’t marks of pride as being related to a famous person doesn’t grant you respect. They are, if anything, benchmarks. Burdens. You haven’t found ‘you’, yet, so you’re named for someone else. Norn society is highly, highly focused on the self. As a result, it’s not uncommon to see self-obsessed, bullying norn.

I can’t think of a single thing worse in greater charr society than just being ‘you’. 

Communal fosterage makes the warband, the family/battalion system a lot of charr seem to actively dislike but are stuck with anyway. Children are taken at a very young age and trained to be lethal, efficient killing machines in their warbands. Save for the few who kill their way up the ranks (thank you Rytlock you hot mess) there is no individual. There are warbands and gladia. You have a surname or you do not. You are a person or you are not. War memorials don’t list forenames, only ‘bandnames. Even your children, your flesh and blood, aren’t associated with you. To be commemorated individually you have to pull a once-in-a-generation feat of astounding impact (check out those statues in the Citadel!) but if you’re just a run-of-the-mill war hero, congratulations, you’ve put your warband on the map. Then you die and that’s it. No gods, no masters, no comfort, no crying at funerals you big baby.

This extends to their clothing, too! Let’s take a look. Religious clothing would be particularly ornate, so I’m going to exclude that for the sake of fair comparison.

A merchant would want to flaunt their wealth and success and these guys are flaunting the hell out of it. The brooches and clasps are made of precious metals, worked into ornate patterns. The clothes are dyed. Fur serves both a practical and fashionable purpose. Looking at these two we’re seeing not just norn merchants but a thousand hours of the efforts of other norn reflected in these merchants. A little bit of someone’s legacy, used to elevate your own.

Charr don’t give two shits about that. They’re constantly at war. Charr don’t even have ‘civilians’, just ‘off-duty soldiers’. These are rags. This is leather stapled together. Is it pretty? No. Does it cover your genitals? FUCK IT, IT’LL DO! 

It’s also a nod to the charr’s many, many ranches. With obligate carnivores comes hides. With hides, leather. With leather, that whole fashion situation up there.

Before we move on, what’s this outfit called again?

D’awww....

To round off my point, I’m going to present a hypothetical. There’s a huge predator causing problems for trade caravans. For the norn, a twelve-person hunting party is dispatched. For the charr, a twelve person warband. Unfortunately, the animal gets the upper hand and eleven members of each party die. The surviving member, almost dead themselves, get a lucky shot in and kill the animal, and to prove it they take its head. A lone norn, limping back with a trophy from a rampaging animal that killed eleven men, would be celebrated. It’s an amazing feat, something to add to their legend, something to brag about. That the other men died is sad, yes, and they’ll mourn, but it’s just the way of things.

A lone charr limping back with a trophy and no warband would have to live with the shame. Everyone either implies or outright states that they should have died. There’s a significant chance they’ll be charged for desertion, forced to wander the Citadel and tell everyone about how shameful they are. You may also be tortured to death.

In conclusion, norn feats generally revolve around the idea of leaving a great, lasting legacy. Charr feats are far more immediate, celebrated when alive and individually forgotten on death.

[whateverafterhigh]

Worldbuilding Succession Systems: Goodfallow

Most of what we see or hear when it comes to the succession systems in the universe that Ever After High is set in relates to fairytales and the inheritance of specific character roles. Many of the fairytale royalty are born into their royal bloodlines or otherwise marry in. But there are some kingdoms where things aren’t as easy as that. One such kingdom is the Good King’s Kingdom – which I named Goodfallow in another post.

The Good King is a fairytale character, but his role in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is small. In fact, depending on the adaption of the story you read he might have already died by the time the story has officially begun. He’s not quite dead yet in the series, seeing as he’s still raising Raven Queen, but it is never acknowledged that Raven is in line for the throne. Not even as a “Hey, maybe Raven has her dad’s destiny…” kind of way, which you would expect given Raven is constantly fighting for any destiny other than her mother’s. Going that route might seem like too easy a fix to acknowledge in the series, especially early on, no matter how powerful a red herring that would be for the readers. It could have even been used to make Grimm start to worry on whether or not he actually guessed right when it comes to writing the fake book. Grimm doubting himself would have been great, even more so if it’s a big thing to have forgotten that the Good King needs an heir too.

The potential for drama aside, there must have been something else that made everyone think they were right so conclusively (and I’m not speaking of the gendered characters, there are too many female characters who have their father’s destinies for that to be the reason).

Then I had an idea.

The Goodfallow Crown

I wanted to create a succession system for Goodfallow that would be able to stand up to the Storybook of Legends on something akin to even ground. Obviously, I didn’t want it to have such a grand scale. But I knew I wanted something magical, and I knew I wanted it to be possible that the Storybook of Legends (the original) could guess wrong. (I mean what even is the point of having an antagonist as powerful and insufferable as Headmaster Grimm if he wasn’t able to grasp at some straws to save face and avoid even the harshest of punishments?). Still I wanted Grimm to be arrogant enough that he wouldn’t have worried about Raven’s position as the Evil Queen until she was throwing the book in his face on Legacy Day.

This meant I needed something with so many possibilities that something like the Storybook of Legends would have a hard time even coming up with the most likely outcome for the Next Good King. Something that could be affected up until the moment that the Good King has been crowned. And something that had the magical power to break the magical contract to the Storybook of Legends that signing it would create without extensive repercussions – something that would cause a page to fall out on its own if need be.

Also it needed to be something that played into what a Good King should be, it is what is choosing the reigning monarch after all.

In Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the Evil Queen is defined by her attitude and treatment of the kingdom’s people, so it only makes sense that the Good King be defined in the same way. So I played with the idea of the Good King being an elected position that passed down the bloodline out of convenience and all the things that real life kings and queens have to do to make sure that the people don’t start up a revolution. Something like the Sword in the Stone from King Arthur’s legends could do that, the same could be said for Thor’s Hammer (though I wasn’t actually thinking of Mjolnir when spider-mapping ideas).

I couldn’t see it being an actual sword, as cool as it would be for the Good King to actually have the kingdom’s blessing of sorts to raise his sword at those who wronged him. And after reading the fairytale Prince Darling, where there is a ring that pricks the young Prince on the finger every time he does something wrong in hopes that it will make him into a good person, I thought of using a crown.

The Goodfallow Crown, named such because it is the physical manifestation of the collective will of all the citizens of Goodfallow ticks a lot of the boxes for what I wanted.

It’s magic, powerful enough to break the bindings created by the Storybook of Legends because I’m the author and I say so. A lot of citizens in Goodfallow mean a lot of different possibilities for whether or not they think a candidate is the best for the Good King. It can still be meddled with before the inheritance ceremony, popularity and propaganda are going to be important – the same goes for whether or not a candidate knows what they’re doing. In turn this could be what makes Grimm so arrogant in his assertions that Raven will have her mother’s destiny.

The students at Ever After High are shown to be scared of Raven to the point they scream and run away from her. At the start of the books she assumes that this is just a side effect from her destiny as her mother had mentioned that something of the sort would happen when she reached a certain age. But it could be argued that this has more to do with how bullying of Raven (or any supposedly-evil-aligned character) was encouraged by Grimm or other members of the faculty, high tensions from how close Legacy Day is for her etc. Because Raven does get more popular as the books go on, and because the characters act a similar way in the beginning of the show’s canon it could be argued that she get’s popular enough to win Thronecoming.

But it’s not just Raven’s lack of popularity. Grimm makes all the final class decisions when it comes to what subject’s students can take, so he can ensure that Raven never takes classes that would prepare her for being the Good King (Kingdom Management, Throne Economics, etc…) and then there’s the low possibility that the people of Goodfallow would accept someone who willingly signs up to potentially marry the king of a neighbouring country, abuse their power, and even get arrested or die before having kids as their Ruler. This is one case where the Storybook of Legends doesn’t need to be real for the damage to be done. And Grimm has no reason to not be arrogant about his guesses until Legacy Day where Raven declares she wants to write her own destiny on the in-verse equivalent of international television he’s not going to worry too much.

The tangent into Grimm’s motives and assumptions show that having Goodfallow’s succession system be like this will only add another layer to some of the things going on in the series, and this can even be applied to other characters too. Raven would have grown up in a kingdom where your actions mean more then what you say, so even agreeing to sign the Storybook of Legends and live her own life after would have not been in the cards for her (not to mention it would cheapen Apple’s own story if she asked that of Raven), and Queen White would have also grown up in Goodfallow given the Good King is her father as well, and that could add a really interesting layer to her own character and her obsession with popularity. Especially in the context of the Class of Classics comic which shows that Snow was once a studious student like Apple was but has now seemingly forgone that in favour of focusing on popularity (which is the same in the books as well as Dragon Games). It certainly speaks of there being more to her character then what we’ve gotten.

Now it’s just a matter of figuring out how the Good Fallow Crown works.

It seems a bit much to have someone attempt to wear the crown for the first time on their coronation, and I’m also understanding of the fact that it’s technically headwear and therefore can’t get heavier if the kingdom seems to disagree with an idea or something else – also Goodfallow isn’t a hivemind? So there would need to be some kind of inheritance test. Perhaps for officially declaring a Crown Prince or Princess.

Historically, Crown Princes or Princesses seem to given the title when they are ready for it. With the announcement happening sometime between the ages of fourteen and eighteen, unless their parents were dead, and they were ruling through a Regent. Raven is fifteen when Legacy Day takes place so sixteen seems like a more reasonable time for the ceremony to happen. Though obviously some of the kingdoms would name their children the Crown Prince or Princess earlier (I’m thinking Briar and Hopper might have been given their titles when their Magic Touch developed, given its significance to their stories).

So the sixteen year old heir would try the crown on. It would be impractical for the circle of people who can hold or lift the crown to be small a la Thor’s Hammer, especially when it’s the literal Will of the People. So, magical girl transformation?

Very basic, plain clothes are to be worn with no jewellery – because you might lose it otherwise. If the people agree with the Prince or Princess being a good candidate for the throne then they’ll get decked out in finery when the magic is a match. If not then there’s no change. (Not that that prevents rumours from spreading to the contrary).

“Rumour has it the Evil Queen tried to wear the crown once and it set her on fire.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, that’s why her hair is like that now.”

Of course, the changes don’t stop at the Inheritance Ceremony. Just because the Goodfallow Crown doesn’t get infinitely heavier when the Good King does something the people don’t agree with that doesn’t mean that nothing happens. Raven’s dad is described as being bald in the books, and I like to think that the reason for that is the people of Goodfallow not agreeing with him marrying the Evil Queen, while still understanding why he did it. But there would likely be other affects as well. Such as increased stress, anxiety, paranoia, etc. Maybe a lack of motivation in his day to day life? I don’t know, but the Goodfallow Crown does take the phrase “Heavy is the head that wears the crown” to a whole new meaning.

I love the whole thought of this, as evidenced by the fact it takes up almost three whole pages in a Word Document. Definitely one of my favourite pieces of worldbuilding I’ve done for any fandom ever.

[tipsycad147]

Legend of the Decent of the Goddess

Our Lady would solve all mysteries, even the mystery of Death. And so she journeyed to the Underworld in her boat, upon the Sacred River of Descent.  Then it came to pass that she entered before the first of the seven gates to the Underworld.  And the Guardian challenged her demanding one of her Garments for passage, for nothing may be received except that something is given in return.  And at each of the gates, the Goddess was required to pay the price of passage, for the guardians spoke to her “Strip off your garments, and set aside your jewels, for nothing may you bring with you into this our realm.”

So she surrendered her jewels and her clothing to the Guardians and was bound, as all living must be who seek to enter the realm of Death and the Mighty Ones. At the first gate, she gave over her sceptre, at the second her crown, at the third her necklace, at the fourth her ring, at the fifth her girdle, at the sixth her sandals, and at the seventh her gown.    She stood naked and was presented before Death, and such was her beauty that Death himself knelt as she entered.  He laid his crown and his sword at her feet saying: “Blessed be thy feet, that have brought you down this path.” Then he arose and said, “ Abide with me, but let me place my cold hand on your heart.”

She replied: “I love thee not.  Why do you cause all things that I love and take delight in, to fade and die?”

“My Lady,” replied Death, “it is age and fate, against which you speak.  I am helpless, for age causes all things to wither; but when men die at the end of time, I give them rest and peace, and strength.  For a time they dwell with the moon, and the spirits of the moon; then may they return to the realm of the living.  But you are so lovely and I ask you to return not, but abide with me here!”

But she answered: “No, for I do not love you.”  Then said Death: “If you refuse to embrace me, then you must kneel to death’s scourge.” The Goddess answered him: “If it is to be, then it is fate, and better so!”  So she knelt in submission before the hand of Death, and he scourged her with so tender a hand that she cried out “I know your pain and the pain of love.”

Death raised her to her feet and said, “Blessed are you my Queen and my Lady” and gave her the Five Kisses of Initiation, saying: “Only thus may you attain to joy and knowledge.”

 And he taught her all of his Mysteries, and he gave her the necklace, which is the circle of rebirth.  And she taught him her mysteries of the sacred cup, which is the cauldron of rebirth.  They loved and were joined in union with each other, and for a time the Goddess lived in the realm of Death.

For there are three mysteries in the life of Man which are Sex, Birth and Death and love controls them all   For to fulfil love you must return again at the same time and place as those who loved before. And you must meet, recognise, remember and love them again.  But to be reborn you must die and be made ready for a new body.  And to die you must be born, and without love, you may not be born amongst your own.

But our Goddess is inclined to favour love, and joy and happiness. She guards and cherishes her hidden children in this life and the next.  In death, she reveals the way to her communion, and in life, she teaches them the magic of the mystery of the Circle (which is set between the worlds of men and of the gods).

This text begins with the ancient Mystery teaching that the Goddess was originally incomplete.  In order to possess the knowledge of all things she first had to descend into organic matter and experience death.

As the myth unfolds we understand that she must relinquish certain possessions to each Guardian as payment.  The seven Gates are symbolic of the Seven Planes, which are;

The Ultimate Plane

The Divine Plane

The Spiritual Plane

The Mental Plane

The Astral Plane

The Elemental Plane

The Physical Plane

In effect, she had to surrender her Self in order to obtain enlightenment.  The items required by the Guardians represent an isolating aspect of Consciousness.

At the first Gate, she relinquishes her sceptre, which is a symbol of her personal power and influence over things around her.

At the second Gate, she relinquishes her crown, symbolic of her authority over others.

At the third Gate, she relinquishes her necklace.  This item is symbolic of her claim to personal value, her achievements and accomplishment and her wealth.

At the fourth Gate, she relinquishes her ring.  The ring is symbolic of class level and personal labelling. To remove the ring is to stand alone without connection, association or definition.

At the fifth Gate, she relinquishes her girdle.  The girdle symbolised social status and the personal facades we establish.  It is the recognition of our personal limitations and imperfections in our outward appearance.

At the sixth Gate, she relinquishes her sandals.  This represents the chosen path we walk or the politics we adhere to.  To remove the sandals is to let our personal views drop away.  We stand alone without personal agenda, self-direction or political position. Thus stripped of our self-imposed limitations we can only walk the way of our spirit.

At the seventh and last Gate, the Goddess drops her gown as the final payment to the Guardians of the Portals.  The gown is the mortal covering, the connection to linear existence.  It is also the Self and its fragile veneer; covering the spirit in a mantle of self-expression it is what isolates the spirit from the whole of spiritual experience.  Once the gown is removed then the spirit may join in union with the Community of Spirits.

At this point in the Legend, the Goddess is brought to the Lord of the Underworld.  She stands naked before him and so struck is he with her beauty that he kneels before her.  This is symbolic of the point at which life and death, increase and decline, meet and renew the endless cycle.  The Lord of the Underworld tempts her to remain with him and to embrace his realm of existence.  This is the temptation to rest in slumber and avoid the labours of the day, for the seed to sleep beneath the soil and never struggle towards the light.  The Goddess can end all strife and unite with her opposite but on his terms only.

She resists the Lord of the Underworld and protests against his role in the decline of life.  Since she will not embrace him freely he compels her to accept his scourge.  He teaches her that he is not responsible for decline and death; his is a role of comforting and transforming those who have crossed over.  Thus the Goddess passes into an understanding of her polarity and incorporates it into her own Being.  This is reflected in her proclamation of newfound love for the Dark Lord.

Next, the Legend tells us that the Lord and Lady reveal their respective mysteries to each other.  The Goddess receives the necklace of rebirth, symbolic of the link between the worlds.  The Dark Lord receives the cauldron of rebirth, symbolic of the manifested power.  They then love and become one, symbolically achieving the balance between life and death.  No longer are they enemies, but equal participants in a cycle of renewal.  The three mysteries in the life of humankind are revealed: Sex becomes the gateway to life from the Underworld, Birth is the renewal, and Death is the transformation.

The Legend continues with the Mystery Teaching concerning reincarnation.  Here we are told that we must meet, recognise, remember, and love anew.  This teaching originates from the time of the early clans and is connected with the Slain God myths.  The sending of the willing sacrifice to convey the needs of the tribe before the Gods themselves is a very ancient concept.  Once the sacrificial victim was killed, the clan held magickal rites designed to ensure the rebirth of the soul among his or her own people.  This is one of the reasons hereditary Witch families are so concerned about bloodlines.

The final passage in the Legend tells of the enlightenment gained by the Goddess in the Descent.  To be one of her hidden children is to descent into the shadows and unite with her Mysteries.  In so doing the soul is aligned with her renewal and unites with her in a spiritual union.

In the last verses, we are told that the magick that will align us with the Goddess will be found between the worlds.  The Magick Circle on this plane is the ritual circle wherein we celebrate the wheel of the year and the Lunar rites.  Once properly cast the Circle moves between the world and we are magically aligned with the Goddess.  As above, so below, the Circle of Magick is the unfolding of the Legend of the Descent where we will encounter the Dark Lord and inherit the legacy of renewal and rebirth.

http://sacredwicca.jigsy.com/legend-of-the-decent-of-the-goddess

[my-secret-sketchpad]

Gowther’s gaiden expectations - replies

OK people I am so glad that I sparked some discussion with my post. I wouldn’t imagine that so many people would react to it and honestly, it makes me really happy. I love discussing theories with other people even if they don’t agree with me because that’s the purpose of theories after all. So feel free to point any problematic points in my theories, I am more than OK with it AS LONG AS you do it in respectful and decent way.

Ok, so onto the replies.

@x-strokeofmadness-x Oh, thank you Diana, I am glad that you liked it (well you know about it but I will write it here anyway XD). About the clothes thing I think I haven’t explained it correctly. Idk, but her clothes give me vibes of a demon design. It doesn’t have to mean anything I know, it was just my observation that it may somehow point to her demon origin (because demons in general seems to be more OK about revealing their bodies than humans for example, not that there’s anything bad about it).  About that experiment thing. Yeah, in fact she does that as well (with Arthur and Escanor for example). She genuinely cares about them but at the same time she sees them as object of her research. I’ve been thinking about it a bit and I came up with a theory that Merlin may be actually continuing her father legacy with her research. Maybe that’s one of the reason why she had stopped her time and continues to live for millennia although it must be really hard (let’s take Mel for example, he tried to die multiple times but he cannot and it’s really frustrating for him. Living so much behind your natural lifespan is damn hard).

@ladyjericho Thank you for your reply. I get your point BUT I still cannot see that connection with the goddess clan. OK she may be connected with them somehow, but I don’t think she’s a goddess hybrid. Maybe I am just biased against it, I’ll admit it because I really don’t like the theory that she’s half demon half goddess. Don’t ask me why I just don’t like it. I think that’s it OK to be biased for something as long as you don’t hurt others because of it after all we can just theorize now we will eventually learn what she is. If Nakaba decides to make her half goddess I’ll have to accept it. And yeah I know that Nakaba doesn’t always follows legends to the letter ;) That’s why I said that it seems he may follow it this time. But thank you for your response anyway, you didn’t sound rude or anything don’t worry ^^

@hope-is-a-four-letter-world Aww, thank you Marti, you totally made my day with those tags hehe (but you know that already as well XD) I cannot wait to hear those headcanons, well, my theory may not be true but I am sure there will be some really sad backstory for Merlin and Gowther so I am sure you will have enough inspiration for some damn sad headcanons... About inheriting magic... I think it’s very likely that they do. We know that clans share certain magical abilities so genetics must play some role in this. It can be predicted that if the parents have a strong magic they kids may inherit is at least partly as well. (well, not the concrete type of magic but like some trait that enables them to develop a strong magic later).

@ladymerlin Thank you for your reply. I think that your reply is pretty good I have to agree with you on some points but as I have mentioned already I simply don’t like the idea of her being half goddess half demon. I don’t mind if she’s related to the goddess clan in some other way (I don’t know exactly how), tbh maybe she really is but if you admit that the Gowther guy is her papa then if you want her to be directly related with the goddess clan then her mama should be a goddess. Or what exactly you want her to be? I am just asking... I must admit that the part about her clothes was a bit weird and unsupported and probably shouldn’t have included it at all. But basically I can see demon-human vibes in her, I may be wrong, we’ll see next week... I made that post just to state my personal predictions. I usually spend more time on my theories but this had to be done fast because we’ll probably get the answer for it (or at least more clues) next week. That’s why this was so sloppy but thanks for reading it and replying to it anyway.