#colonial magic | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

Visit Blog

Explore Tumblr blogs with no restrictions, modern design and the best experience.

Fun Fact

After the announcement of the deal with Yahoo!, there were 170K signatures of unhappy Tumblr users petitioning to prevent the sale in 2013.

booksteacupandreviews · 1 year

Text

5 Reasons to read Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Legendborn is a fantastic, gripping, action-packed and complex YA Fantasy with amazing world and characters. Here are 5 Reasons to read Legendborn. Legendborn (Legendborn #1) by Tracy Deonn Publication Date : September 15, 2020 Publisher : Margaret K. McElderry Books Read Date : November 22, 2022 Genre : Fantasy Pages : 501 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 5 out of 5. Tea for this book : Saffron +…

View On WordPress

1 note · View note

whereserpentswalk · 4 months

Text

Your city has captured an angel, it's all chained up with massive chains forged with sea serpent's blood. They caught it long before you were born, when the land was first being colonized by your culture. It's been just a normal part of your city's local culture for your entire life. It's been here for so long; nobody even knows the name of the god who gave it life.

It's a massive angel, with four wings, and the head of an eagle with burning eyes, and a fiery sword in its hand that they were never able to pry away from it even after it was chained. It's a symbol of local civic pride, they sell T-shirts of it and dolls of it in touristy areas, and it's the mascot for almost every local sports team, and most schools. Sometimes it's easy to forget that it's even real.

The angel has been in the largest local building, chained up, for nearly three hundred years now. People come and see it all the time. It used to speak, but it stopped around the time humans could record sound. They say for thirty years it slept, and for thirty years after that it wept, but it doesn't do that anymore, it just looks at everyone, watching and waiting, in an old brick building. Maybe it's judging you and waiting for its god to come.

They say its wings used to glow, and its eyes used to be bright yellow instead of its current fiery orange, you're not sure what that means. Its halo is almost impossible to see now, so faint and ghostly, it used to glow so bright they say ghosts and vampires were repelled from it as if it was the sun, now they swarm it like insects cowering by a flame. It would strike them all away if not for the chains, if it had the strength, if it saw the sun.

Everyone loves the angel. They use its blood and sweat to make medicine and fuel, it's light alone is one of the few renewable sources of energy in the local area. A lot of people think your city went into the industrial revolution early because of it being there. You wonder what other things the angel would have given you, if you had let it sit there willingly. It was born on the hill your city was built on, you don't think it ever would have left, even if it was not in a city ruled by those who believe you have to imprison something to have it.

285 notes · View notes

llyfrenfys · 4 months

Text

See, I personally find this quest to find pagan/pre-Christian elements in Welsh/Irish literature quite unnerving - I don't know about anyone else.

There's something to be said about genuinely discovering pre-Christian elements in a narrative or story and that being where evidence and study has led you. But I see some people on this fruitless quest to find pagan elements in very Christian texts and sometimes it feels like if no pagan elements can be found, people start making stuff up out of whole cloth - and that can be very dangerous for already not-well known texts in minoritised languages!

There's already so much misinformation out there about Irish/Welsh texts and literature in general - so it hurts to see people carelessly adding to the misinformation either out of ignorance or lack of respect for the source material.

I promise you the source material being Christian doesn't ruin it - you can in fact, enjoy these myths without making them into something they're not!

#I feel like general ire towards (particularly) colonial Christianity has informed how people think of and view anything that is associated #with Christianity - and ire towards some of the ills committed in the name of Christianity is very valid actually #but what it isn't is approaching any text written in a Christian context and immediately disregarding it for having anything unique or #insightful to say. And in a Celtic languages context #this can be especially othering and almost fetishistic of an imagined pagan Ireland and Wales which was 'covered up' by Christianity #and that desire for people outside of Ireland and Wales to impose a kind of 'pagan faerie culture' onto the modern countries directly feeds #into false depictions of Ireland and Wales as 'lost in time' or as magical places full of latent pagan culture &c. which can be really #damaging in its own way against people who live in Wales or Ireland or who speak Welsh or Irish #this goes for other Celtic speaking nations too like Scotland Brittany Isle of Man and Cornwall #But Wales and Ireland tend to be the most focused on for this kind of treatment #luke's originals #Welsh #Wales #Cymblr #Irish #Ireland #welsh mythology #irish mythology #irish literature #welsh literature #Arthurian legends #arthurian literature

336 notes · View notes

mtg-cards-hourly · 7 months

Photo

Rat Colony

No matter how crowded the den, everyone's welcome to squeak in for the festivities.

Artist: Kisung Koh TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

#mtg #magic the gathering #tcg #kisung koh #rat colony #secret lair drop #creature #rat

279 notes · View notes

wodania · 10 months

Text

I wish critique of colonialism and feudalism in westeros was more welcome in the asoiaf fandom, considering the books are literally critiques of medieval and fictional politics. Like some people embody feudalistic lords a little too much when they see a critique of the most powerful ruling house in this fictional world and say “well so and so house did it too so shut up!!!” Like the inner medieval tyrant is showing. You are not a dragon you are a 20 year old from the United States of America. Quit dismissing every political analysis of a political book bc “so and so did it too”. You’re so boring.

#george created a world ripe for criticism with stories that focus on calling out the bad parts of this world #yet god forbid someone critique the politics of a family of magical overlords in a political fantasy novel #feudalistic and colonial politics are a massive part of asoiaf if you’re afraid of encountering them then watch d&ds fanfic idk

251 notes · View notes

ottogatto · 10 months

Text

I would like to submit two ideas because I think I'm poking something but not going in fully, so I would very much like your opinions and additions about it (of course, as long as they remain in good faith *side eyes possible antis viewing my post*).

Marauders and surface-level rebellion

I've finally put to words something that really bothered me with the Marauders, though I don't know the name for it.

It started when I read a reblog that said:

I remember Brennan saying “laws are just structured threats made by the ruling socioeconomic class” during an episode of D20 and we truly just had to stan immediately

This is something dear privileged white woman Rowling didn't realize/understand well, since she held a high socioeconomical status even during her """poverty""" stage. It's known that, despite seeming to be defending ideas of fighting against fascism and "pureblood" supremacy in favor of acceptance of the other, her books reek of colonialism/imperalism. The story of the Marauders, a gang of privileged boys like her, is an in-world replica of that problem where Rowling betrays yet again her actual mindset.

The Marauders adopt the "bad boys who break rules" to get style, while completely losing/staining the moral sense in it.

Let's take piracy.

Some people pirate stuff because they consider that the stuff they'd like to get comes from unethical companies that abuse their employees or use modern slavery, or people who spread harm against certain minorities (like Rowling against trans people and thus the LGBT+ community), so while they may want to access the content, they don't want to give them money and might even encourage pirating their stuff to make them lose money.

Some pirate stuff because otherwise it's lost due to unfortunate "terms of use" -- see video games companies like Ubisoft (deletes gaming account after a while), Nintendo (does not bring back old games), etc.

Others pirate stuff because they just don't have the money but they still want to try the stuff that might make them happy and forget that they're poor -- reasoning that the company isn't losing any money anyway, or not much, since they wouldn't have been able to pay for it in any case.

Others pirate stuff because they consider the price ridiculously high or they consider it shouldn't be something to pay for at all. (Like education stuff -- isn't education supposed to be free for all, so that it can actually uphold everyone's fundamental and unconditional ( = not conditioned by wealth...) right to have an education? Oh and before anyone asks: I've DEFINITELY bought the ~15 expensive books that's roughly worth 500€ in total and that my uni asked I buy to study and get my degree...)

Rowling's Marauders is a group that would pirate stuff just because they'd think it would give them an edge, because they'd think it would make them cool to be seen as "talented" hackers who "defy" companies. Companies... that their own friends and families would own, and as such, would find that kind of behavior funny and entertaining (while they would trash other people around for considering it).

Another example. In society, in history, it's been proven time and again that breaking rules -- going against the law -- is an eventuality that's important for everyone to consider, if they want to defend their rights. Anti-racism, feminism, LGBT Pride, etc, advanced because people broke rules. In USA states where abortion is currently being banned, women and minors (+ their close ones) must now consider breaking the rules to get an abortion. (Privileged people don't give a fuck about those people, and if they suddenly decide that (moral) rules don't apply to them and they will get an abortion, they will just take a plane ticket to a country where abortion is legal, fiddling with legal stuff if necessary thanks to the lawyers their fortunes can afford and the lobbies that they're instituting.)

Revolutions happened because people broke rules too. I particularly like the 1793 Constitution in France Because it asserts that the people have the right to break rules and riot if the power in place threatens their fundamental rights:

Article 35. - Quand le gouvernement viole les droits du peuple, l'insurrection est, pour le peuple et pour chaque portion du peuple, le plus sacré des droits et le plus indispensable des devoirs. Article 35. - When the government violates the people's rights, insurrection is, for the people and for each portion of the people, the most sacred of rights and the most essential of duties.

(Of course the power in place would state and enforce and make use of propaganda to say that it's completely illegal and illegetimate and that those who riot for legitimate rights are terrorists!)

Breaking rules is at the core of anti-fascism, anti-dictatorship, anti-totalitarianism. Breaking rules is essential when those rules are abusive. Too often, those who put those rules in place really are only setting their rules of the game to establish their power over the others. Or as the reblog says: "laws are just structured threats made by the ruling socioeconomic class".

Rowling's Marauders break rules because they are the socioeconomical class in power. As such, no one can do anything about it, no one will really tell them down for it. They get excused and justified and romanticized by their peers, just like billionaires & politicians are excused by their peers and notably mainstream media (which is owned... by other billionaires). They break rules -- not because they think it's necessary and the morally right thing to do despite the dangers it puts them in -- but because it makes them feel powerful, important, invincible, which for them is very fun. As Snape says: James and his cronies broke rules because they thought themselves above them:

“Your father didn’t set much store by rules either,” Snape went on, pressing his advantage, his thin face full of malice. “Rules were for lesser mortals, not Quidditch Cup-winners. [...]”

They break rules because they're allowed to.

Which is why, in reality, the Marauders aren't really breaking rules or defying anything or opposing an actual big threat. They're a bunch of jocks who are having fun in the playground that's been attributed to them thanks to their status and family heritage (others wouldn't get the same indulgence because they don't get that privilege).

They break rules because they want to look cool, to be the "bad boys". The message has been compleyely botched. Especially with Lily actually finding this hot.

Because Rowling finds this hot:

[...] I shook hands with a woman who leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, 'Sirius Black is sexy, right?' And yes, of course she was right, as the Immeritus club know. The best-looking, most rebellious, most dangerous of the four marauders... and to answer one burning question on the discussion boards, his eyes are grey.

(Anyone has an eyes washing station?)

Another quote:

"Sirius was too busy being a big rebel to get married."

(Nevermind the eyes washing, anyone's got some bleach instead?)

Stanning James Potter for being the leader of a gang that prides itself on breaking rules and always getting away with it -- it feels like stanning Elon Musk for being "innovative" and "a daring entrepreneur" despite being a manchild who exploits workers and modern-world slavery to play with his billions while always getting away with it.

They're not being "rebels" -- they're being bullies and flexing the fact they can get away with it thanks to abundance of privilege. Those are the tastes of a posh British white woman. She wanted the facade -- not the substance (that is, if she ever understood it).

You might say that they did oppose a big threat, the Death Eaters, but again, it's botched because:

they target a lonely, unpopular boy who's best friends with a Muggleborn Gryffindor, rather than baby Death Eaters like Mulciber, Lucius, Rosier, Avery, Regulus, etc.

The leader sexually harasses the Muggleborn Gryffindor because he's sexually jealous of the unpopular boy who dared not take the insult about his chosen House and shut up. Lily is treated as an object, they don't listen to her, and they barely speak about her later. (Lots to say to show that, which I won't do here because this is not the main subject.)

When the Marauders do join the Order, they do it... because they primarily want to adopt a rock-n-roll style and play the "bad boys" again. Or at least that's the message that's given to the reader:

They seemed to be in their late teens. The one who had been driving had long black hair; his insolent good looks reminded Fisher unpleasantly of his daughter's guitar-playing, layabout boyfriend. The second boy also had black hair, though his was short and stuck up in all directions; he wore glasses and a broad grin. Both were dressed in T-shirts emblazoned with a large golden bird; the emblem, no doubt, of some deafening, tuneless rock band.

(God, the Prequel is so cringy.)

They don't choose Dumbledore as the Secret Keeper, they don't tell him they changed to Pettigrew -- even though he literally was their war leader -- James uses the Cape to fuck around even though he was supposed to be hiding with Lily and then Harry (until Dumbledore takes the Cape from him)... and eventually, their group exploded, with James killed off, Sirius thrown to Azkaban, Peter (the traitor) hiding as a rat and Lupin going off to find jobs to survive.

Why did that happen? Because they thought of playing their part in the Order like going on a teenage adventure rather than engaging in a resistance organization. It was, first and foremost, about playing "the bad boys" and having fun.

(Harry half-inherits this. While he doesn't break rules just to look cool, and actually has several moments where he does break rules because it's the right thing to do -- like under Umbridge or, of course, when Voldemort takes power -- he does often get pampered when he breaks them in his earlier years. By Dumbledore, but also McGonagall, however much Rowling tries to sell her as a "strict but fair" teacher. Or by Slughorn, now that I think about it. That's something that enraged Snape, as it brought up memories of Harry's father -- Snape's own bully -- getting the same treatment.)

It's not a coincidence that Rowling not only failed to properly convey through the Marauders the true value of breaking rules, but also lusted over them for adopting that "bad boys" trope. It speaks to her own privilege -- she who never had to put herself in danger and go against the law in a risky attempt to protect herself or other less privileged people.

(Here's a useful read to expand on those worldbuilding issues.)

2. Dark Magic, obscurantism and conservatism

For context: Opinion: The Dark Magic/Light Magic Dichotomy is Nonsense (by pet_genius).

The idea of "Dark Magic" as something that's repeatedly told to be "evil" magic and where you cross the line of the forbidden, while hardly putting in question that notion that was (for some reason) enforced by wizard society, is another blatant example of Rowling betraying her mindset of privileged British white woman.

Rowling couldn't put herself in the minds of a society of "outcasts (witches & wizards) deeply enough to consider they would not see any magic as "Dark" at all (being a ""Muggle"" concept), or that Dark magic is only magic that requires something unvaluable to be traded off -- like one's soul or health or life or sanity. Instead, she has Dark Magic defined as "evil" magic, even though her own books show that you can do evil stuff with normal magic, and that you can do morally good stuff with Dark magic. This thing happened because Rowling could not think past her own little world and instead she poured a conservatist mentality (+ typical "Muggle", anti-witch prejudice) into the HP (wizard society) worldbuilding without considering that there could, in fact, be fundamental differences between the two worlds that include thinking of magic differently. (This has a lot to do with Rowling's wizard world being a pro-imperalism fest.)

"Dark Magic" feels like a lazy, badly-executed plot device to tell the reader who's a good guy and who is not. Because of course, that's how things work in real-life, huh… (Did she ever hear of "don't tell, show"?) It's used as an excuse to define who's evil (teen Severus) or not (James), who's worthy or not -- not how their magic was used. Which is a BIG problem:

“I’m just trying to show you they’re not as wonderful as everyone seems to think they are.” The intensity of his gaze made her blush. “They don’t use Dark Magic, though.” / “Scourgify!” Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape’s mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, choking him —

Even worse, Rowling doesn't follow her own in-world moral framework. Dark magic is acceptable for some people (Rowling's partial self-inserts: Dumbledore, Harry, Hermione to Marietta...) but not for those that Rowling hates (Snape, who ironically represents the closest thing to rebelling by unapologetically obsessing over the Dark Arts). Again, this is at best unadressed in-world hypocrisy, at worst an expression of in-world and out-universe privilege (I get to do this and stay a good guy, but you don't).

There could have easily been rightful criticism of whatever could be defined as "Dark Magic". What if Dark magic was just something defined as "Dark" usually because the power in place doesn't want the people to touch it? Is abortion or contraception or a sex-altering or a goverment-threatening spell, Dark Magic? Is foreign or ethnicity-specific or female-centered or queer-centered magic, "Dark"? How about showing why (Muggle-raised but also neurodivergent) Severus thought Dark magic was so great, showing his point of view, while also establishing where the true limits are? If Lily can't be the one who sees past the "fear-mongering anti-intellectualism/propaganda", how about Harry being the one who does, thanks to him relating to Snape on a personal level? How about making Hermione go from someone who condems Dark Magic, to someone who entirely changes her point of view and understands that this is all bullshit -- effectively showing the dangers of only following what the books say, without putting them into question or thinking by yourself? How about a nuanced view of Dark magic as something that requires a significant sacrifice, which is conceivable for something they see as equally or even more important [Lily's life for Harry; Snape's soul integrity for Dumbledore]? How about making the Death Eaters, people who deviate that legitimate interest, rather than just evil guys who thrive in Dark magic for its supposed added evilness? How about showing that Dark magic was just a notion invented by Muggles to throw "witches" (real or not) to the burning stakes -- later taken by the witches and wizards in power to define, in the magical community, what was okay or definitely forbidden because it's the trademark of those who represent a threat to the magical community (understand: people who riot or strike or protest against the ruling socioeconomical class' politics)?

But there was none of that.

"Dark" magic in HP merely seems to be a weird concept that at best accidentally takes the form of an in-world obscurantism, at worst is just the trademark of someone who cannot imagine a "hunted, ostracized" community with a different culture and mindset than her own. Aggravating is the fact that she used "Dark magic" as a plot device to magically cast some people as good and others as never bad – again, probably reflecting her own questionable mentality.

The fact Rowlnig invented the notion of Dark Magic and had her world consider it seriously as an evil thing instead of being open-minded seems to be less telling of her wishes to show a wizard society that can be as prejudiced as the muggle one, and more of her own bizarre world where you must be evil if you are knowledgeable in or interested in certain "taboo" things (RIP neurodivergents).

Rowling glorifies the Trio and the Marauders for breaking rules. Yet when it comes to actually breaking expectations and norms, notably in the wizarding society -- like the use of another magical species as slaves, or the blatant anti-Muggle prejudice held by everyone including "good guys" (or anti-centaur while we're at it), or stupid anti-knowledge prejudice like "Dark magic is evil" -- there is none of that. At best, it's surface-level opposition that comes out as white savior syndrome. At worst, the protagonists make it their noble code to enforce those norms, and "sinful" characters (Snape, for one) are punished for not conforming. Too often, those sinful characters are punished by the "good guys" with the very thing that they apparently oppose so fervently.

Without ever adressing the fact that those characters were ("morally") allowed to do that because it was just, in the end, a matter of who gets the privilege to do that, and who does not.

There.

Do you have anything to say to develop on those ideas? I feel like I'm reaching my knowledge limit and I'd like to see if those ideas can be expanded.

#pro snape #severus snape #harry potter #dark magic #sectumsempra #anti marauders #anti jkr #fuck jkr #classism #imperalism #colonialism #hp #hp books #hp prequel #obscurantism #bad boys #piracy #virtue signaling

265 notes · View notes

pushing500 · 2 months

Text

Four-year-old Night Stalker wakes up, dons a flophat, begins working at the crematorium, and chooses violence. Big day for such a little guy!

Speaking of violence, Magic Man and Fracturedivine did some damage of their own to poor Flea, who wound up in our small hospital with a few bitten-off toes. Nice work, M.M.?

Buckeye is being strange, and it made me wonder if she has some sort of psychic link to her un-sprouted child that gives her pregnant lady mood swings.

Euclid continues to be the best tailor I've ever had in a colony.

I imagine cooking back-to-back with someone who has massive wings and a long prehensile tail is uncomfortable at best, and downright impossible at worst. Blackdragon seems to be making the best of it, though.

I've been doodling the mechanitor from the next run on everything, and getting the Archonexus popup in the wrong colony amused me.

Then finally, we had some heartfelt reunions as visitors came to see us. We're going to see if we can recruit Mr Zannakos (Vasso's dad) and Synesthete (Socks' wife) before the guests leave. It will upset their faction, but family reunions are more important, dammit!!

First | Next | Previous

51 notes · View notes

witchofthesouls · 6 months

Note

I saw one of your questions in regards to the Transformers and various interactions with the fae, and it has me laughing at the idea that some of the Decepticons wouldn't be intimidated at first until they fuck around and find out.

Like with Rumble and Frenzy stealing something strange from the beach or the Nemesis having a supernatural creature enough to shake the entire warship, it won't be long before the Decepticons endure the fae's wrath and that's hilarious.

Look, I had ✨️ Thoughts ✨️

Selkies are shapeshifters, so what if they shift into a form that's suited to the thief's own species?

So now, Soundwave has a new spouse "roommate" of supernatural origins because of Frenzy's and Rumble's "Ohhh, check out this swag!" moment and the idiots lost it somewhere inside the massive chaos the their private quarters?

At first, the other 'cons are baffled, then snickering, and end up either terrified or put off because, despite her stunning looks, she is otherworldly, frighteningly bizarre.

The thing is, humans only recorded the tales of a seal-wife trapped in a human form upon land and separated from her colony.

There are no tales of a seal-wife living inside a massive ship at the bottom of the ocean, right at the bosom of the abyss and cradled between sea and earth.

(Oh, and that's a Kraken getting cozy with the Nemesis. At first, it was upset and apprehensive at another potential predator in its turf, but now it's quite delighted it's able to bear its titanic mass.)

#ask #transformers #transformers g1 #g1 #soundwave #frenzy #rumble #magic #animal bride #creature #maccadam #my thoughts #ughhhhh now i want to hash out selkie and other sea folk culture #as well as how they interact #like a selkie colony and a melusine reef in a mutual symbotic relationship

54 notes · View notes

ciel-em · 11 days

Text

Is there a fic of the bats being their regular human vigilante selves only to be hit with magic or whatever and suddenly having a/b/o dynamics thrust upon them for a month? Because it will take time to return them to normal for plot

First week coming to terms to their new dynamic traits, then the following week getting hit with bond formations, and then the next week for platonic heats/ruts. This family needs the cuddling excuse since they'll never ask outside of it.

Last week being calm all things considered and the coming relief (but also something else mourning) that it'll all be over. One's feelings no longer being available to others against their will, but also no understanding when words fail because they can feel it too.

And when I mean bats I'm talking about Bruce, Alfred, and Bruce's six legal kids. Stephanie and Barbara too. Kate, Helena and Luke. Other bats can be added as wanted like Bette or Selena or whomever.

#the colony being spoken of because of this #instead of this vague thing they know but don't talk about #and the cave/manor becoming a real home or nest or whatever #maybe making the magic last to 3 months so there's more angst at the end of it #I actually don't have a preference for how it ends #whether they decide to live with it for the rest of their lives or let it go #because they know now what they want and that it's worth the work #batfam #batfamily #bat clan #batman

20 notes · View notes

booksteacupandreviews · 1 year

Text

Nubia: The Awakening by Omar Epps, Clarence A. Haynes - YA dystopian fantasy

Stunning, gripping, complicated, and tense #YA #dystopian #fantasy Thanks for the free book @PRHGlobal Check out full #bookreview ⬇️

Nubia: The Awakening Nubia is gripping, fast paced, tense and amazing YA dystopian fantasy. Nubia: The Awakening by Omar Epps, Clarence A. Haynes Publication Date : November 8, 2022 Publisher : Delacorte Press Read Date : December 2, 2022 Genre : YA, Fantasy Pages : 368 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. Tea for this book : White + Saffron Tea Disclaimer : Many thanks to PRH International for…

View On WordPress

#Book Blog #book blog feature #Book blogger #Book review #book review blog #Books Teacup and Reviews #Clarence A. Haynes #Climate change #colonial magic #Dystopian #Futuristic #Indian Book Blogger #Nubia: The Awakening #Omar Epps #oppressive government #PRH Global #racism and classism #reviewer #YA Fantasy

0 notes

crazycatsiren · 1 year

Text

White witches, you have got to stop calling everything witchcraft.

Native spiritual practices are not witchcraft. Indigenous cultural traditions are not witchcraft.

Just because some of us BIPOC do call ourselves witches, doesn't mean our people all practice witchcraft.

#witches of color #witchblr #witches of tumblr #witchcraft #magic #colonialism #racism

260 notes · View notes

emry-stars-art · 4 months

Note

Not sure if you answered this already; But does Stuart have a place in the Royal au? Since Nathan still killed Mary and is out here joshing and trying to re-kidnap her son multiple times

GREAT question bc yeah he is def not around to help much huh TT

I think the tragedy of it is Mary was planning to run just like she had in canon, but this time didn't manage it before Nathan caught wind and. Probably just killed her yeah. And it being an arranged marriage still makes total sense in this au, so who knows WHERE Mary and her family are from, because of the possibility it was some sort of protection/alliance thing yknow. Maybe the Hatfords were getting favor so they could keep/gain power, running one of Evermore's colonies. I don't imagine the family being anywhere near the castle proper based on what I remember of canon but maybe that's dumb actually

Stuart still exists for sure, but everything in those times was slower - especially travel, whether it be travel of people or travel of news/word. If Stuart is still in a separate home kingdom/state doing his own business, maybe he did try getting some sort of sway or custody of Nathaniel. But that would be an extremely difficult and long process, with very little hope of success. There's a good chance that after Nathaniel ran off, the first word he heard of it was after the fact - likely word from Evermore assuming Nathaniel had died while on his mission.

The REAL problem is that, after Abram's recapture, it takes anywhere from a little less than a month to a few months for word of it to even reach Stuart, that his nephew is alive after all, and even if he started the journey then, he or anyone he sent wouldn't have reached Evermore for another month or more. Abram is at Castle Evermore for much longer than he was canonically in Baltimore, obviously. I'm just not convinced it would have been physically possible for someone in another country/colony to get there before he either escaped or it was too late.

Thankfully Stuart's intervention isn't necessary here like it is in canon, or this would have been a VERY different story that I don't think I could write 😅 no, Kevin Day still knows more about the workings of Castle Evermore than most of the Moriyamas are comfortable with, and he knows who he can correspond with under the table when Kings Tetsuji and Kengo won't cooperate and Prince Riko refuses to give Nathaniel up.

#*ominously* the last moriyama...#gonna have that family chart done soon or so help me #idk in reality how far away the hatfords would be #i imagine them being a Very Important family from a neighboring place #which could be either a neighboring country or in fact an Evermore colony/extension #but. unfortunately this au is low fantasy at MOST #no fast travel or magic communication 😔#if theres a massive plot hole here that i glossed over you can lmk lmao #im working with pieces at a time here #not art sorry guys #asks #royal au

25 notes · View notes

glitterblossom · 3 months

Text

Note: We’re Arab, not Native American, so listen to their opinions on this before ours.

I wanted to have hope that Outlaws of Thunder Junction would be handled well, or even just not awfully. But the evidence is starting to rack up, folks, and it aint pretty:

At MagicCon, Blake Rasmussen (mtg’s Senior Communications Manager) said that, “everyone’s a newcomer to Thunder Junction.”

Also at that MagicCon panel, Aaron Forsythe (VP of Magic Design) called it an “unspoiled land.”

Mark Rosewater (mtg Head Designer) says that, “prior to omen paths [sic], it was uninhabited.”

Could this just be three white guys saying White Guy Things? Sure. Especially since they’ve all shown themselves in the past to be kinda uninformed on the particulars of their product’s storyline. But it’s not a great look.

The narrative that lands are uninhabited and ripe for plunder is inextricable from the American colonial genocide of indigenous nations (which has never stopped). This is especially the case in a setting based on the American West, rife with the trappings of the imperialist genre of American Westerns, and fraught with the colonialist propaganda of “frontier fantasy.” For this world, they’ve even created an ethnic group explicitly based on the Diné nation, per the official MTG Twitter account. Yet they still chose to center the set’s story around the genocidal selling point of “exploring uninhabited lands to find untold treasure and fortune.”

Yes, they’ve said they used cultural consultants. And, sure, that’s gone well-ish (though not without great flaws) for NEO and LCI. But whatever influence those consultants were allowed to have on OTJ, it was clearly not enough. Because holy shit, even the (otherwise amazing) side story, No Tells, says, “Thunder Junction’s a new plane, one that’s still beginning.” (Do NOT go hating on the author; I doubt he had control over that level of worldbuilding.)

All of this has shattered my hope in the set being respectful, or even not actively harmful. You can say, “wait and see,” and we will, but we’ve seen a lot already—and gang, it has not looked good.

#Glittancy #Yasmin #Fifi #mtg #magic the gathering #outlaws of thunder junction #mtg community #mtg lore #vorthos #mtg spoilers #mtgcommunity #mtgotj #colonialism #indigenous #genocide #america is committing genocide #racism #imperialism #magic the card game

21 notes · View notes

melvolkman · 9 months

Text

Happy September 🍂

It feels as though an eternity has passed since my last post.. I'm overjoyed to announce that after a very long search, I've finally found a place where my heart can rest and my soul can thrive. Last week we closed on a c. 1800 antique colonial lovingly preserved in idyllic mid-coast Maine amidst picturesque mountain views, forests, and wildflower fields. We even have a small, centuries-old apple orchard to explore and care for 🥹

From the moment I arrived, I knew I had discovered my sanctuary 🕯️ Antique homes have always held a special place in my soul and now I find myself living out the dream that has danced in my imagination for years.

There’s a sense of timelessness that lingers in the air.. The walls adorned with stories of days long gone. The wavy panes of the window glass, gently distorting the world beyond. The large fireplaces bearing witness to the warmth and laughter that once graced these rooms. The worn wide wood floors, aged with a beautiful patina — a testament to centuries of lives and dreams that have unfolded here.

Every crack and creak an invitation to embrace the imperfections of life.

I can't begin to express the depth of gratitude that fills my heart as I embark on this new chapter. I’m excited to share with you the beauty that surrounds me in this special place, and I’m eager to dive back into photography and the studio — to paint and create once again.

This week, we began clearing out what will soon become my art studio, housed in the barn converted workshop that was built c. 1800 and is situated just beyond a majestic weeping willow.

To those who have stuck with me throughout this journey, your support means the world to me, and I am forever grateful for your continued encouragement.

So here we are, at the beginning of a new chapter. This is my return, and I can't wait to share more with you 🤎

Instagram — @melvolkman

#autumn #fall #September #happy september #cozy #cottagecore #autumn aesthetic #moon autumn magic #melvolkman #antique #vintage #antique house #colonial #colonial home #New England #Maine #downeast #autumn 2023

148 notes · View notes

Last Seen Blogs

treasure-my-aurora

You need a Pirate King

aexjonah

Aex’s Tf Blog

divinemusing

add-white-congress

Untitled

djkennymatos-blog

Orlando city soccer