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esther-dot · 2 years

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I remember when A stans complain that Cat never truly care for A hair and that's why they are messy or she forced to brush A hair is forcing her to feminine role. There was passage in AGOT when A is frustrated with Nymeria as how she isn't sitting still for A to brush her fur. Does that mean A hate Nymeria? Does that incident not reminds us how A and Nymeria are similar in not liking their hair got brushed?

Oh yeah, I think the author makes that comparison pretty obvious by talking about how Arya and Nymeria have tangled hair/fur and are both coated in mud, and then, in case we missed it, he outright says it.

She found Arya on the banks of the Trident, trying to hold Nymeria still while she brushed dried mud from her fur. The direwolf was not enjoying the process. Arya was wearing the same riding leathers she had worn yesterday and the day before.

"You better put on something pretty," Sansa told her. "Septa Mordane said so. We're traveling in the queen's wheelhouse with Princess Myrcella today."

"I'm not," Arya said, trying to brush a tangle out of Nymeria's matted grey fur. "Mycah and I are going to ride upstream and look for rubies at the ford."

"Rubies," Sansa said, lost. "What rubies?"

Arya gave her a look like she was so stupid. "Rhaegar's rubies. This is where King Robert killed him and won the crown."

Sansa regarded her scrawny little sister in disbelief. "You can't look for rubies, the princess is expecting us. The queen invited us both."

"I don't care," Arya said. "The wheelhouse doesn't even have windows, you can't see a thing."

"What could you want to see?" Sansa said, annoyed. She had been thrilled by the invitation, and her stupid sister was going to ruin everything, just as she'd feared. "It's all just fields and farms and holdfasts."

"It is not," Arya said stubbornly. "If you came with us sometimes, you'd see."

"I hate riding," Sansa said fervently. "All it does is get you soiled and dusty and sore."

Arya shrugged. "Hold still," she snapped at Nymeria, "I'm not hurting you." Then to Sansa she said, "When we were crossing the Neck, I counted thirty-six flowers I never saw before, and Mycah showed me a lizard-lion."

Sansa shuddered. They had been twelve days crossing the Neck, rumbling down a crooked causeway through an endless black bog, and she had hated every moment of it. The air had been damp and clammy, the causeway so narrow they could not even make proper camp at night, they had to stop right on the kingsroad. Dense thickets of half-drowned trees pressed close around them, branches dripping with curtains of pale fungus. Huge flowers bloomed in the mud and floated on pools of stagnant water, but if you were stupid enough to leave the causeway to pluck them, there were quicksands waiting to suck you down, and snakes watching from the trees, and lizard-lions floating half-submerged in the water, like black logs with eyes and teeth.

None of which stopped Arya, of course. One day she came back grinning her horsey grin, her hair all tangled and her clothes covered in mud, clutching a raggedy bunch of purple and green flowers for Father. Sansa kept hoping he would tell Arya to behave herself and act like the highborn lady she was supposed to be, but he never did, he only hugged her and thanked her for the flowers. That just made her worse.

Then it turned out the purple flowers were called poison kisses, and Arya got a rash on her arms. Sansa would have thought that might have taught her a lesson, but Arya laughed about it, and the next day she rubbed mud all over her arms like some ignorant bog woman just because her friend Mycah told her it would stop the itching. She had bruises on her arms and shoulders too, dark purple welts and faded green-and-yellow splotches; Sansa had seen them when her sister undressed for sleep. How she had gotten those only the seven gods knew.

Arya was still going on, brushing out Nymeria's tangles and chattering about things she'd seen on the trek south. "Last week we found this haunted watchtower, and the day before we chased a herd of wild horses. You should have seen them run when they caught a scent of Nymeria." The wolf wriggled in her grasp and Arya scolded her. "Stop that, I have to do the other side, you're all muddy."

"You're not supposed to leave the column," Sansa reminded her. "Father said so."

Arya shrugged. "I didn't go far. Anyway, Nymeria was with me the whole time. I don't always go off, either. Sometimes it's fun just to ride along with the wagons and talk to people."

Sansa knew all about the sorts of people Arya liked to talk to: squires and grooms and serving girls, old men and naked children, rough-spoken freeriders of uncertain birth. Arya would make friends with anybody. This Mycah was the worst; a butcher's boy, thirteen and wild, he slept in the meat wagon and smelled of the slaughtering block. Just the sight of him was enough to make Sansa feel sick, but Arya seemed to prefer his company to hers.

Sansa was running out of patience now. "You have to come with me," she told her sister firmly. "You can't refuse the queen. Septa Mordane will expect you."

Arya ignored her. She gave a hard yank with the brush. Nymeria growled and spun away, affronted. "Come back here!"

"There's going to be lemon cakes and tea," Sansa went on, all adult and reasonable. Lady brushed against her leg. Sansa scratched her ears the way she liked, and Lady sat beside her on her haunches, watching Arya chase Nymeria. "Why would you want to ride a smelly old horse and get all sore and sweaty when you could recline on feather pillows and eat cakes with the queen?"

"I don't like the queen," Arya said casually. Sansa sucked in her breath, shocked that even Arya would say such a thing, but her sister prattled on, heedless. "She won't even let me bring Nymeria." She thrust the brush under her belt and stalked her wolf. Nymeria watched her approach warily.

"A royal wheelhouse is no place for a wolf," Sansa said. "And Princess Myrcella is afraid of them, you know that."

"Myrcella is a little baby." Arya grabbed Nymeria around her neck, but the moment she pulled out the brush again the direwolf wriggled free and bounded off. Frustrated, Arya threw down the brush. "Bad wolf!" she shouted.

Sansa couldn't help but smile a little. The kennelmaster once told her that an animal takes after its master. She gave Lady a quick little hug. Lady licked her cheek. Sansa giggled. Arya heard and whirled around, glaring. "I don't care what you say, I'm going out riding." Her long horsey face got the stubborn look that meant she was going to do something willful.

"Gods be true, Arya, sometimes you act like such a child," Sansa said. "I'll go by myself then. It will be ever so much nicer that way. Lady and I will eat all the lemon cakes and just have the best time without you."

She turned to walk off, but Arya shouted after her, "They won't let you bring Lady either." She was gone before Sansa could think of a reply, chasing Nymeria along the river. (AGOT, Sansa I)

I think we're meant to see the humor here that Arya wants Nymeria to endure what she is in the process of rejecting herself. It's funny, and I think it indicates that as much as she rejects all efforts to "tame" her, she is influenced by Cat and Sansa, she does love them and want approval, and reading this passage sympathetically, you can see how Sansa also feels rejection from her. People simplify these dynamics a great deal in order to act like no one cared for Arya and that she was mistreated when the reality is, she was loved, she experienced a lot more freedom than Sansa did, and that her perception was skewed in one direction just as much as Sansa's was skewed in the other. They both have a point here, neither is wholly right or wholly wrong.

Anyway, regarding Cat's interactions with Arya, we have so little to go on, but when she talks about her girls, it is almost always both girls spoken of together. Listen to her talk about the girls:

"Sansa was a lady at three, always so courteous and eager to please. She loved nothing so well as tales of knightly valor. Men would say she had my look, but she will grow into a woman far more beautiful than I ever was, you can see that. I often sent away her maid so I could brush her hair myself. She had auburn hair, lighter than mine, and so thick and soft . . . the red in it would catch the light of the torches and shine like copper.

"And Arya, well . . . Ned's visitors would oft mistake her for a stableboy if they rode into the yard unannounced. Arya was a trial, it must be said. Half a boy and half a wolf pup. Forbid her anything and it became her heart's desire. She had Ned's long face, and brown hair that always looked as though a bird had been nesting in it. I despaired of ever making a lady of her. She collected scabs as other girls collect dolls, and would say anything that came into her head. I think she must be dead too." When she said that, it felt as though a giant hand were squeezing her chest. "I want them all dead, Brienne. Theon Greyjoy first, then Jaime Lannister and Cersei and the Imp, every one, every one. But my girls . . . my girls will . . ." (ACOK, Catelyn VII)

Arya made Cat's job impossible, but her words...she knew the girl inside-out, one of those situations where she probably could predict Arya's next step before Arya took it. Maybe this is something you have to have experienced to understand, but sometimes, the child that gives you fits is the one that is...well, it's the child that is grafted into you. Acting like Cat didn't love Arya ignores the fact that it is Sansa and Arya who Cat keeps fighting for, would sacrifice getting justice for her husband for, would sacrifice it all for:

"If your crown is the price we must pay to have Arya and Sansa returned safe, we should pay it willingly." (ACOK, Catelyn I)

If Arya had wanted to sit, I think Cat would have loved to brush her hair. That choice to compare her hair to her wolf's fur and note that her wolf wouldn't cooperate anymore than Arya herself did...I think it's clear the point isn't that Cat was neglectful or that she and Sansa were oppressive, but used for characterization of Arya. This sounds like the point:

"Arya had always been harder to tame." (ACOK, Catelyn VI)

And knowing she ends the story sailing away on adventures, it means she never will be. <3

#ask dot

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marzipanandminutiae · 2 years

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The sharpes for the ship game

who is more likely to hurt the other?

Hoo boy. This one has the potential for a world of emotional hurt, and all entirely unintended. Through what's left unsaid or undone, these two can hurt each other in a myriad ways and they will NEVER talk any of it out with each other. Oh, the Gothick tragedy of it all.

But we've seen that one of them can be pushed to physically hurt the other, and said "other" won't even do so in self-defense, so. Let's go with Lucille, even though she felt Very Bad about it afterwards.

(Until she shifted the blame onto Edith.)

who is emotionally stronger?

I mean...they're neither of them bastions of emotional strength.

I think Lucille is able to endure more psychological abuse without breaking, but Thomas is more emotionally resilient.

He could live without her, though he'd be heartbroken. As for her- well, I don't think she intended to survive her encounter with Edith. Even if she'd won.

who is physically stronger?

Lucille. He's taller, but she has that whole Terminator, powering-through-intense-pain thing.

who is more likely to break a bone?

Lucille is more likely to be in situations that could result in broken bones, so I suppose it's her. Although if Thomas keeps up that recklessness around his machine that got him burned, who knows?

who knows best what to say to upset the other?

I don't think they'd ever upset each other on purpose. Lucille's better at manipulation, though she'd resist seeing it that way.

who is most likely to apologise first after an argument?

Thomas. Sometimes because he genuinely thinks he's wrong; sometimes because he just wants to avoid Unpleasantness.

who treats whose wounds more often?

Historically, Lucille has gotten wounded more, so I'll go with Thomas.

who is in constant need of comfort?

You know how sometimes cats act completely aloof and nonchalant while twining around your legs, blocking your computer screen, and in all ways generally demanding Affection while pretending they aren't?

Lucille.

who gets more jealous?

I mean, we have a canon answer to this one. Although we never got the chance to see jealous Thomas, he sort of seems to want Lucille and Edith to at least be friends.

who’s most likely to walk out on the other?

I can't see that ever happening.

who will propose?

Nobody. Why would they need to have a wedding? "My brother/sister" already means to them exactly what "my husband/wife" means to most people, and more.

who has the most difficult parents?

The "same hat" meme, but it's "same parents."

who initiates hand-holding when they’re out in public?

They don't walk hand-in-hand in public. It would attract attention. But the occasionaly affectionate hand-clasp is acceptable to Victwardian sensibilities re: sibling relationships, and Thomas always initiates that. Lucille doesn't like PDA, possibly because she's paranoid about anyone guessing their secret.

who comes up for the other all the time?

I don't understand the question, I'm afraid.

who hogs the blankets?

Lucille, and it's a good thing, too. If it were Thomas, she'd just lie there and shiver rather than take them back.

who gets more sad?

Lucille.

who is better at cheering the other up?

Definitely Thomas. He actually has a sense of humor, for one thing.

who’s the one that playfully slaps the other all the time after they make silly jokes?

If we can sub that for "tsks with mock severity at them," Lucille.

who is more streetwise?

Honestly, neither really are. Thomas has actually been around the world and society more, but he's still fairly naive. Lucille just Doesn't Do People and as such has far less direct experience.

who is more wise?

Thomas. Simply by virtue of the fact that he CAN, eventually, sort of be made to see that their living situation- murders, etc. -is miserable and unsustainable.

who’s the shyest?

Lucille. It's not sweet, blushing, giggly shyness in the slightest, but she Doesn't Do People, as mentioned above.

who boasts about the other more?

Thomas. He has more people to boast to, since he. You know. Sees people. And he thinks Lucille hung the moon.

who sits on who’s lap?

Lucille sits on Thomas' lap on rare occasions, but not often. Mostly because she's a few inches shorter.

#ask #ask meme #ask game #lucillesharpeismybaby #incest mention.#long post.#the sharpes #sharpecest

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jd-loves-everyone · 4 years

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Who are these 9 boys?

Kim Woojin: The 3rd year, chicken enthusiast with an angelic voice and an adorable smile.We met when we got paired up for a school trip. I was so nervous about being next to a 3rd year (that I didn’t know) that I barely looked at him for at least the first 30 minutes of the trip. His age plus his broad shoulders and tall stature, only served to intimidate me more. Oh, how wrong I was to think he’d be any bit intimidating.

In truth, his body type only added to his personality in a way that made him resemble a giant, cuddly, teddy bear.

He was gentle and polite as he tried to get me to come out of my tightly sealed shell, with lame jokes and the cutest laugh.

We even shared my earphones, which was how I found out about his utterly divine voice. After complimenting him, he blushed a pretty pink, and asked about my own hobbies and talents. After much prying, he was able to figure out that I also loved singing, but had little to no confidence at all in my own voice (especially after hearing his).

So by the end of the trip, he promised to help me show my voice to the world. And he’s unknowingly succeeded, considering that when we’re alone, he’s my whole world.

Bang Chan: The 3rd year, Student Council President and an aspiring artist, who was too afraid to take a step in the direction of his dreams, so he is now stuck in a path that he doesn’t want to follow.

He is also my neighbor, who gives me a ride to and from school everyday, I’ve learned a lot about him during these rides (and I can only guess, that so has he), like the fact he has a puppy (from the dog hair in his backseat) and that he writes music (really good music). He’s seen all of me: he’s heard me sing more than once (sorry Woojin) and I’ve even broken down in his car (and he held me through it).

I’ve already followed his advice many times, so I hope he follows mine, just once, and goes after his dreams.

Lee Minho: My first crush and the one who made me fall in love with dancing (and him too, in the process). No wonder he’s the captain of the school’s dance club. He’s just mesmerizing to watch.

Despite his very flirty nature, he’s not a player, just very friendly (maybe too friendly). And in spite of this, he still likes to fiercely declare that cats are better than people (especially his 3 cats: Dori, Soon-ie and Doong-ie). The reason why his contact name on my phone is “Crazy Cat Minho”.

Considering that when we first met (at 12 years old) we only spoke briefly, I didn’t expect him to remember me (or for him to have such a… colorful personality, considering his cold demeanor upon first meeting me), let alone want to get as close to me as he has become recently. He even invited me to his house a few times (his little brother is adorable, but he always seems to be staring oddly at me. Is there something on my face?)

I hope my longtime-brewing feelings for ‘The school’s dancing gem’ don’t change how close we’ve gotten, because I’ve really come to value him as a friend, more than just a crush.

Seo Changbin: The 2nd year “bad boy”, who’s really just a softie. Despite him being known as such for being part of the boxing club (and doing pretty good on it) and owning a motorcycle, he also works part-time at the cafe (there, I discovered that he has the cutest smile).

Even the way we met goes against the way he’s been stereotyped. He showed me (on my first, nerve-filled, day) the way to my class (which I later found out was nowhere near his own class).

I refuse to admit that my increased number of trips to the small, cozy cafe is for me to catch a glimpse of that beautiful smile, the fondness in his eyes as he talks to his little sister when she visits him at work, but it is most definitely not because of how much I’ve come to enjoy the giggle-filled conversations we have during his breaks and slower days. I instead like to blame it on my borderline addiction on coffee and hot chocolate.

I hope that, as time goes by, we can talk more. I’d love to see that wonderful smile directed at me more often. I just wish that he never invites me to one of his fights, because I don’t think I’d be able to handle seeing the wounds beneath all those band-aids he always wears.

Hwang Hyunjin: The school’s certified pretty boy (and the most popular one). He sits next to me in most classes, so I got to know him for not just his looks, but his intelligence as well, and during dance club, I got to know his humorous side and the passion he holds for dance. I also found that he is a lot shier than most would expect him to be.

There are just a few problems with my growing interest for him: 1- his crazy fangirls (who drive me crazy for only appreciating his visuals), 2- my childhood friend, Jisung, hates him (and it seems to be mutual) which makes for some interesting classes, considering I sit between them and 3- my, infinitely more talented, best friend, Maia, has a crush on him (at least she did last time we talked about it, which we don’t do often, for obvious reasons, so maybe it’s passed?)

Despite all of this, I can’t help but feel attracted to the boy with the purest giggle and an eye-smile brighter than the sun itself.

Han Jisung: My childhood friend, we’ve basically been joined at the hip since we met. Despite this, even he doesn’t know some of my deepest secrets. I didn’t tell him about most boys in this ‘list’, but every time I spoke about any of them, he acted like an overprotective brother, talking about how they didn’t deserve me and things like that. I don't even want to imagine what he would have said or done if I told him about my interest in Hyunjin, considering they're basically mortal enemies.

He’s the one Maia keeps pushing me to reveal my feelings to (because apparently, he'd be the most likely to return them. Something I don't agree with). Although she'd also like our boyfriends to be able to at least look at each other without rolling their eyes.

And I can see why she does this, I mean, he's handsome, adorable, thoughtful, reliable and knows me like very few people do. But, as cliché as it sounds, I don't want to ruin our friendship because it really means a lot to me.I sometimes wonder if simply by being his friend, I'm only hurting myself more.

Both his sisters treat me like family and I see them as the sisters I never had, during broadcast club (which we have together) I not only get to listen to his soft voice for long periods of time, I also get to experience how truly thoughtful and attentive he is everyone around him as he solves all the problems sent in by students with a gentleness I sometimes wished was directed at me more often.

Lee Felix: The 2nd year, australian transfer student, with the cutest freckles. I never thought I had a thing for accents, but Felix proved that, in fact, I do, and don't get me started on his voice, deep enough to make basically anyone swoon, it has nothing to do with his cute face (and even cuter personality). Before meeting Felix, I had no doubts that Hyunjin was the most handsome boy in school, but now I'm questioning that fact. There’s just something about him, everything fits so perfectly.

I still remember how lost he looked on his first day. With barely any decent English speakers other than myself and a few others, I inevitably became his korean tutor and quite close to him. With his talent for dancing I doubt he'll have problems getting a job, but I hope I can help him become fluent in time for the exams.

Kim Seungmin: My mother’s best friend's son (confusing, I know). The 1st year from the photography club, who asked me to go with him when he went abroad to continue his studies in college (at the time I said I’d think about it but I know it wouldn't be possible).

We met at his mom's birthday party, where we kept each other company throughout the (screeching-filled) event, as the other kids were much younger than the both of us.

In that one afternoon (that dragged on to night), I found out a lot about him, like the fact that his dream is to become a world-known photographer, or the fact that he is incredibly shy (I had to start the conversation even after about 5 minutes of sitting in awkward silence) and because of this, he doesn't smile much, only giving me small, polite and tight smiles in the beginning of our conversation. I was only able to get a real smile out of him when I glanced at one of the pictures on the wall, complimenting him on it. He immediately got this light in his eyes, even if he (at first) tried to act bashful. After I praised his vision, his smile turned wide, broad and genuine as he went on and on about his passion.

On that night, I also found out something about myself, the fact that I'd do anything to keep that beautiful smile on his face, even if it took him away from me.

Yang Jeongin: My new, 1st year, neighbor and Seungmin’s best friend.We actually met once Seungmin told me how desperately in need of help he was in English. So, despite my already busy schedule, I offered to help him. And, after discovering that he had recently moved into the house across from mine, we walked home together (after cancelling my plans with Chan).

The boy was friendly from the start, lively, energetic, and all around an actual ball of sunshine.

With so much love to give and so little confidence in things like his wonderful voice, I suspect he hasn't received a lot of love back. I wish I could be the one to give it to him. I guess I should take Woojin’s advice and get him to come out of his shell too.But with how often he seems to blush around me, I doubt he has enough experience with girls to know what a crush even feels like and I'd hate to confuse him with my own feelings.

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