velociraptor-sisterhood - Tumblr blog

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this (but blonde) is lannister hair to ME.

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Blaise: Would you call me selfish?

Thea: No, not to your face.

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Thea: Women know. We just know. Even if we didn't know, we would know. Men won't get this, but women will. Because we know.

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Rosamund: Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.

Rosamund: So, don’t eat pears and don’t talk to the cat that lives down the street. You can’t trust him.

Thea: I mean, I’ll try, but if he talks to me first I’m not gonna be rude.

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My first painting of this style, a loose interpretation of Lupe Acevedo from The Night World books by LJ Smith!

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Poppy North by januarysstar on Deviantart. Posted 09/03/2003.

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Iliana by nightlock. Post to LJ’s website.

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Bracken: So I guess you'd like to know how it all happened.

Jez: I mean, I think I can figure it out. I was born, and then everyone started lying their asses off.

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100% stand with gay!blaise I love it with almost my whole heart except for the teeny tiny peice of it they kind of ships her with Phillip

Night World: Spellbinder

Let’s talk about Blaise!

Spellbinder stars the blonde, animal-loving nice witch Thea and her cousin the dark haired seductress Blasie. LJ Smith was clearly revisiting Faye and Diana here, though with Thea being the protagonist she couldn’t be quite as ethereal and perfect as Diana.

Blaise is very much Faye. She is described like a lioness, dark haired and curvy, able to get guys just by existing. And then she convinces her crowds of paramours to do more and more extreme things to prove their love. Guys ditch their girlfriends, give up treasured possessions, and commit crimes for her sake. And Blaise’s attention leaves them damaged. One of her past followers turns up in a horror scene in the book and his mind was clearly broken by his experience with Blaise. Another ex tried to burn down the school to prove his love.

Blaise says, “When they give in completely there’s a ‘pop’ like a balloon breaking…. And after the pop, they just kind of collapse, and everything they are, their whole self, just sort of pours out in this internal hemorrhage. And after that, of course, they’re useless. Like a stag that’s too old to mate. they’re just—over.”

It seems like Blaise is just talking emotion here, not magic. I don’t think she’s sucking the boys’ souls to fuel her spells or anything, she just likes ruining lives. And ye gods Ms. Smith is a weird writer. You can just tell she really imagined herself into the emotions inside Blaise’s terrible brain, it’s amazing. Ms. Smith is no Pratchett, nobody is, she’s no Garth Nix, but she’s got something.

There is one moment that hints that Blaise might be unhappy with her life of being awful. A boy grouchily asked, “What do you want?” and Blaise is momentarily taken aback and says, “Nothing I can have.”

What could it be that she wants? I assume in Ms. Smith’s mind this is a hint that deep down Blaise wishes she could experience actual love, with a partner who loves her for herself rather than being blinded by her sex appeal. Maybe by pushing her followers to more extreme acts of devotion Blaise is hoping to find one who stands up to her and can be her equal. But if that’s the case, why is she chasing human boys rather than witch boys?

Spellbinder tells us that witches in the Night World tend female. “More girl babies are born and more survive to grow up.” so every make witch has plenty of female witches interested in him. Maybe Blaise with all her beauty and charm can’t compete. Or maybe male witches can see that she is in fact a horrible person and run like hell.

But there’s another possibility. Blaise wears a tuxedo to the school dance. This isn’t proof of anything; straight girls can wear tuxedos too, and Blaise is very clearly out to seduce boys in her red silk bow tie and cummerbund. But is it possible that what she really wants, and can’t have, is a female partner?

This was 1996 when being gay was not accepted like it is today, but I would think it would be accepted among witches. “Sisterhood is the strongest bond there is—for a witch.” And if there are more women than men and the Night World witches tend to see humans as vermin so it makes sense to pair up between themselves. So why would Blaise think she could never date a girl?

One possibility is that witches need to marry other witches to have witch babies. We never really learn how the magic is passed down and there are definitely some witches with lots of human ancestors, but maybe you’re more likely to get a baby witch out of two parent witches. Which would make it more sensible to detach biological parenthood and active parenthood, let witches choose a bio-dad and a father for their children separately, live in mom-munes or harems, all kinds of unconventional families… all of which are too wild for 1996.

The other possibility I thought of is that witches could have a “hetero only” rule to stay under the radar in human society. Being different could get you noticed and that could get your magic noticed. Maybe some witch once delivered magical justice on some bigot and almost revealed the whole Night World. Witches go to great pains to hide their magic; familiar animals have been outlawed so outlawing unusual relationships makes sense.

I don’t really think Ms. Smith meant for Blaise to be gay. I think she was aiming for hetero and leaving things vague in case Blaise got her own book later. But I do think Blaise being gay is a valid headcanon if that’s the way you want to go. Blaise never did get her own book so her fate is left to our imagination.

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Blaise: I’m very generous! Remember that time I gave blood?

Thea: Whose blood?

Blaise: Eh, some guy’s.

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-- créditer LUX.

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Maggie: I care. I care a lot. That's kinda my thing.

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Iliana: Keller, what’s wrong?

Keller: It’s nothing.

Iliana: Just tell me.

Keller: Why do you need to know so bad?

Iliana: So I can cheer you up!

Keller: It’s not your job to cheer me up.

Iliana: Yes, it is. Cheering you up is my job.

Keller: Well then, you’re fired.

Iliana: You can’t fire me. I’m union, bitch.

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Rowan: Sometimes you ask too much of people.

Mary-Lynnette: I do? Give me fourteen examples.

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Testing.

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Blaise: I just ended a five year relationship.

Gillian: I’m so sorry, are you okay?

Blaise: Yeah, it wasn’t mine.