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catholic-character-tournament · 10 months

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Round 4 - Catholic Character Tournament

Propaganda below ⬇️

Harrowhark

I'm pretty sure you've already got plenty of submissions for her so I'll just say she was raised in what is basically a cult (technically a nunnery but let's be real) dedicated to keeping the body of the thing that will kill God behind the rock. One of their prayers is actually "I pray the rock is never rolled away". Harrow is extremely devout as penance for her earlier heretical actions in the tomb as a child (spoiler!) so the Catholic guilt really comes through

imagine being a catholic nun and you meet god, but it turns out he’s a twitch streamer from new zealand who became god because everything got a little bit out of hand. and just before you met him you gave yourself a diy grief-fuelled lobotomy with the help of your best frenemy. imagine how insane you’d be. now multiply that insanity by nine. that’s the fictional love of my life right there.

she meets god. she’s not inspired

she’s number one practitioner of space Catholicism. The locked tomb is chock full of Christian (catholic) imagery themes metaphors etc. just look at her she’s got a bone rosary

They're Catholicism with extra bones. Everyone is a nun. They have what is basically a rosary made from knuckle bones. They technically worship the same God as everyone else, but they're waaaay more focused on The Body in the Tomb (Mary) and we get a moment where we find out that while everyone else prays the equivilent of The Lords Prayer, they're doing the equivilent of Hail Mary. And they paint their faces with skulls.

She thinks leaving dry bread in a drawer is taking care of someone. She's in love with a 10,000 year old corpse (the same one they worship). She spent ALL NIGHT digging with her bare hands to make sure a field had bones every 5 feet so she could fight her girlfriend - I mean, greatest enemy. Spoiler territory: She's been puppeting her parents corpses since she was 8 years old. Instead of grieving her dead girlfriend, she gives herself a lobotomy. She makes soup with bone in it so she can use the bone IN THEIR STOMACH to try and kill them.

The author is/was Catholic and the entire series had heavy Catholic overtones. https://www.tor.com/2020/08/19/gideon-the-ninth-young-pope-and-the-new-pope-are-building-a-queer-catholic-speculative-fiction-canon/ A good breakdown of how it's Catholic

Anti-propaganda (spoilers)

I love the Locked Tomb series but Harrowhark has daddy issues with God, had a childhood crush on God's cryogenic partner, and is in love with God's daughter, not to mention that she's essentially a bone-bender. The religion on her home planet exists in a way that is technically against the will of the canon in-universe God, even. All of this to say, Harrowhark is heretical at minimum if not an outright witch. Terrible Catholic. Burn her.

Ronan Lynch

Uhh fun fact he saw the devil flash his father once, and that's one of the reasons he goes to church on Sundays <3

context for this scene from book 2: ronan is in church with his older brother declan, younger brother matthew, and ghost friend noah "Joseph Kavinsky isn’t someone I want you being around,” Declan added. “Don’t snort. I’m serious.” Ronan merely invested a look with as much contempt as he could muster. A lady reached over the top of Noah to pat Matthew’s head fondly before continuing down the aisle. She didn’t seem to care that he was fifteen, which was all right, because he didn’t, either. Both Ronan and Declan observed this interaction with the pleased expressions of parents watching their prodigy at work. Declan repeated, “Like, actually dangerous.” Sometimes, Declan seemed to think that being a year older gave him special knowledge of the seedier side of Henrietta. What he meant was, did Ronan know that Kavinsky was a cokehead. In his ear, Noah whispered, “Is crack the same thing as speed?” Ronan didn’t answer. He didn’t think it was a very church-appropriate conversation. “I know you think you’re a punk,” Declan said. “But you aren’t nearly as bad ass as you think you are.” “Oh, go to hell,” Ronan snapped, just as the altar boys broached the rear doors. “Guys,” Matthew pleaded. “Be holy.”

Gay Catholic streetracing farmer. Consumed by catholic guilt NOT because of the gay thing but because he can Create things in a way he thinks should be only God's business. Will literally roll up to mass on sunday morning still drunk and bloody.

THIS GOTH KID IS LITERALLY GOD. This is a god trapped in the body of a Catholic teen and if he ever stopped feeling Catholic guilt he’d end the world!!. How is your confession every week that you creating a whole new being? Babygirl the God is coming from inside the house

eldritch entity from beyond the mortal plane wants to be a Real Human Boy, becomes a real (ish!) human (ish!) boy, goes to mass every sunday

Gay boy got his crush an apartment above his church so he could have his two favorite things in one place

gay. I'm not caught up the the series but I went through the tag when the latest book came out and I remember seeing a quote that said he worried if his boyfriend would make it to heaven when he dies because of his agnostic tendencies.

Kid is like a dream warlock who creates psychic horrors and never goes to confession because why would he? and he’s gay

There are no words

basically ronan's powers are inherited from his dead father niall and it means he can bring anything from a dream into real life. so he's got this whole crisis about whether he is a living piece of blasphemy because men are not meant to have the powers of gods or whether he literally is god. which is not acceptable to him for a number of reasons but mostly because he hates himself. his love interest's name is adam and adam lives in a small apartment above a church which the book says focuses the objects of his worship neatly into one building. I love them both dearly. also, this entire page makes me feel like I'm going insane. Ronan Lynch believed in heaven and hell. Once, he’d seen the devil. It had been a low, late morning at the Barns when the sun had burned off the mist and then burned off the chill and then burned the edges off the ground until everything shimmered with heat. It never got hot in those protected fields, but that morning, the air sweated with it. Ronan had never seen cattle pant before. All of the cows heaved and stuck their tongues out as they frothed with the heat. His mother sent Ronan to put them in the shade of the cattle barn. Ronan had gone to the searing metal gate, and as he did, he’d glimpsed his father, already in the barn. Four yards away from him had stood a red man. He was not truly red, but the burned orange of a fire ant. And he was not truly a man, because of the horns and the hooves. Ronan remembered the alienness of the creature, how real it had been. Every costume in the world had gotten it wrong; every drawing in every comic book. They’d all forgotten that the devil was an animal. Looking at the red man, Ronan had been struck by the intricacy of the body, how many miraculous pieces moved smoothly in harmony, no different than his own. Niall Lynch had had a gun in hand — the Lynches had an enormous number of guns of all sizes — and just as Ronan had opened the gate, his father had shot the thing about thirteen times in the head. With a shake of its horns, the unharmed devil had presented its genitalia to Niall Lynch before bounding off. It was an image that had yet to leave Ronan. And so Ronan became a reverse evangelist. The truth burst and grew inside him, and it was laid upon him to share it with no one. No one was meant to see hell before they get there. No one should have to live with the devil. So many homilies on faith were ruined once you no longer required it for belief.

Our boy CHOOSES not to receive the Eucharist because he doesn’t believe he is worthy. The spiritual insight, the devotion, the fact that this teenager is worried he may have a mortal sin weighing on his soul…this boy isn’t just going through the motions, he’s putting work into this.

#polls #r4 #cct polls #tumblr tournament #tumblr bracket #tumblr polls #harrowhawk #harrowhark nonasigmus #tlt #the locked tomb #Ronan Lynch #the raven cycle #raven cycle

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pretty--in--purple · 11 months

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Necromancing the Crane Wives: Safe Ship, Harbored (2011)

I happened to be listening to TCW when i first read the books and now they are inexorably linked in my head. So, I'm going through the Crane Wives' discography and seeing how each song can be linked to the Locked Tomb series.

Contains spoilers for the Locked Tomb series!!

Can't Have It All: getting Alecto vibes from this one, with "you won't find me where you left me / I'm long gone / you can't bind me in the state you kept me / for so long" and "my mind's made up, though my head still aches and / all my love you tried to take, but / you can't have it all" - which contains a neat little Harrow lobotomy reference to boot! You can see this as Alecto talking to Jod, a warning at the end of Nona.

The Diving Bell: GIDEON!!! This song is wholly about sacrificing yourself for another person out of love, there's water imagery ("i will drown for you", "hold your heart like waves / open my lungs to let you in", "water rushes in / and i will welcome it"), and lines like "swallow my heart whole / seek me like a soul" and "i am not afraid / to give you everything" !!! It aligns perfectly with the part of HtN where she begs for Harrow to consume her and go full Lyctor.

New Colors: this one's a bit more vague, but i connect it to John pre-resurrection, especially the lines "to climb up in the sky / and steal new colors / away from the sun", plus the chorus literally saying "don't tell me that i can't" - very mad scientist/cult leader/twitch necromancer. Also it opens with the line "orange, yellow, green" which in my TLT brainrot i always link to a) Gideon's hair - and by extension, Wake's - b) gideon's eyes - and by extension John's and Alecto's - and c) the fact that Canaan house was the first time Gideon and Harrow saw vegetation.

Caleb Trask: Gideon to Harrow in GtN. The song's about feeling too guilty and inherently evil - specifically because of the actions of your family ("so you got bad in your blood") - to accept love and comfort. There's even a line saying "there's no reason to live out in chains". Slam dunk.

Counting Sheep: this song is about living a humdrum existence in a world that's falling apart ("as the sunlight filters in / then your daily dread sets in / the cycle's beginning, and in your head alarms are ringing"), so i link it to the world of New Rho and the lives of the people there. Also, there's a section at the end where they repeat Frere Jacques in english, which they translate as "are you sleeping, Brother John?". Could be linked to his absence in NtN and the way Alecto finds him in bed.

Hole in the Silver Lining: this one's very simple, with only really two sections that repeat. I link the first section to Palamedes and the rest of the Sixth House, especially "i'll be the one (...) to find it / i take it upon myself to make sure / i do" and "but i turn it over in my hands until / my fingers wear it through". These lines strike me as very Pal, with all the scientific curiosity he shows but also the responsibility he takes for dangerous information.

Safe Ship, Harbored: Harrow in Harrow the Ninth. "things i forgot i cannot do", "i wasn't born a safe ship / something wore me down", "don't waste your blessings on me"? Very Harrow. The chorus (specifically "i am a safe ship, harbored / losing all of my good years to the shallow water") also makes me think of the fact that she's being severely coddled by Jod and unable to leave the Mithraeum without supervision.

Naked, the Night Falls: strikes me as a Harrow love song to Alecto. "into your arms / sell my sorry soul" is basically what Harrow says to the Body, "been enraptured and tied" definitely aligns with Harrow's devotion. Also, the first line is "softly, a cold wind paints my face", which is such a fun Harrow line.

Ancient History: Ninth House vibes because this one has bones!! ("my dream keep digging up the bones of memories / discarded remnants of former times / now every skeleton is slapping its knees") Weirdly, I kinda think of Anastasia, even though I know we don't have much of a canon personality for her. - we know she was a failed ascension and the line "and my poor heart is an open wound / it's ancient history / that's bleeding out of me / so what am i supposed to do?" has some juicy angst for just such an occasion. This song has only two verses, so not tons to say.

October: oooooh Griddlehark! Interestingly, this one can be taken from both sides. Lines like "i know you, you're the daughter of a lonely man" and "I am naught but a scar upon your breastbone" cut both ways, although at slightly different times. Very cute, very sad, very Griddlehark.

The Crooked, the Cradle: this one uses the word "mercy", but unfortunately doesn't make any sense for her or the OG lyctors. Another Harrow the Ninth song, it seems! "and the devil won't know all the love i just couldn't let go", "this cradle still burns like a hole in my chest", and "but i pray / when it's done, when it's through, i'll have something left for you" are all very Harrow-having-feelings-about-the-lobotomy lines.

I Ain't Done: Tridentariiiiiii!!! "i am a pretty young thing / i am consumed with selfish wanting / carelessly broke you down but i ain't done", "a woman in love has no regrets", "wreckage in the wake of cruel betrayal / paid my sins in blood, but i ain't done". The actual narrative of the song doesn't align with her very closely - it's about the ghost of a woman killed by her husband for infidelity - but there's a real Ianthe + Corona vibe to it.

#necromancing the crane wives #< the tag if you want to block or follow #tlt #tlt meta #the crane wives #the locked tomb #gideon the ninth #harrow the ninth #nona the ninth #alecto the ninth #gtn #htn #ntn #atn

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inheroes--wetrust · 2 years

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ok this is based on first read only so it might get crazy but there is no fucking way that kiriona is gideon. evidence below anyone please feel free to discuss i am FERAL over here

(EDIT: no fucking way that kiriona is *full gideon. i am now fully in camp "kiriona is gideon with some very very key pieces missing like oh i dont know her love and humanity")

1) during the broadcast and in the book, it's made very clear that gideon's body is dead. she's described as waxy like naberius (who we all know is dead as a doornail). if it's gideon's body and gideon's soul, they should snap back together no issues. palamedes seems to think that just bringing nona close to gideon's body would draw her soul out and gideon would be whole again, and palamedes is the smartest necromancer of his generation (love you bb). there's a soul piloting a body here. they aren't cohesive.

2) tamsyn said in a recent interview (https://books.tumblr.com/post/693388542787846144/writer-spotlight-tamsyn-muir-tamsyn-muir-probably) there is a pecking order to POV characters. paraphrasing here, but she said that if possible, gideon is first and foremost the POV character. we obviously see this in HtN - gideon is narrating the mithraeum chapters of the book, and as soon as she comes to the surface, she is the POV character. when they first came into contact with gideon's walking and talking corpse, i half expected POV to switch to gideon, but we never got that.

3) a fucking FRIENDSHIP BRACELET? with IANTHE???? hell fucking no. what in the world. why would they even put that there? it makes absolutely zero sense, there's no point to it other than for nona to point out they're working together. chekhov's friendship bracelet. maybe ianthe is controlling gideon's corpse somehow? i have no idea it's four in the morning.

4) the way she interacts with everyone but especially the sixth house. you expect me to believe that gideon nav sees a dying cam for the first time since her sacrifice and is just like oh hey cam looks like you're dying soon? absolutely not. the sex pal thing was also aggressive. very "hey palamedes remember that thing we did together who else would know i called you sex pal once". iirc, she never actually called him that - she was just pointing out a fun gideon fact.

5) she doesn't care about harrow. gideon cares EXCLUSIVELY about harrow. gideon "it was not my thumb to let them bite off" sees alecto piloting harrow's body and just says sure i'm going to let that happen? not in ten thousand years.

this obviously leaves a million questions starting with 1) who is kiriona and 2) WHERE IS GIDEON but these are 100% two different souls. tamsyn i need alecto now please and thank you.

EDIT: More evidence on the second reread.

6) when cam and nona-as-harrow go to see ianthe, ianthe says, "How are you surviving, Harrowhark the First? How can you stand beneath the light of Number Seven? Unless I am addressing..." and then nona screams, there's a general panic, and ianthe is like FINE OKAY FUCKING RELAX and tells nona she's coming back to the emperor with her. lyctors can survive an RB when their cavs are at the forefront. harrow's cav is gideon. and pre-NtN, harrow had a lobotomy that caused her to have a breakdown at the sound of gideon's name. what else would she have been saying other than "Unless I am addressing Gideon Nav", which should make no sense considering ianthe knows full well that kiriona exists. unless of course kiriona is not gideon or at least not gideon all the way.

7) https://www.tor.com/2022/09/13/tamsyn-muir-on-lyctorhood-as-genderfuckery-and-greasy-bible-study-in-nona-the-ninth/ new interview by tamsyn for the nona release. the last question strongly hints that gideon's body and gideon's soul - or at least not all of it - are not in the same place, and at least some of it is still with harrow.

8) pyrrha says john shouldn't have been able to pull gideon's soul all the way back to put her back in her body. she explicitly says that harrow still has a piece of gideon and john could not have gotten it back, AND that john should have been able to do better. he resurrects. that's LITERALLY his thing. he should have been able to bring gideon back perfectly, but he didn't. why?

9) get in line, thou big slut. on first glance, this is gideon nav to a t. i love her so much. however. i find it SUPER interesting that slut, which has (to my knowledge) never been used in the previous two books, is used twice in NtN both by ianthe - once about the original lyctors, once about corona. idk what it was about it, but the use of it three times in the book, when previous insults have been along the lines of "you mutant, you mistake, you great big calf-eyed fuck-up" just struck me a little. iffy. this one is definitely more out there but the use of slut in the book just stood out to me for some reason (a sentence you can only type when talking about the locked tomb).

upon further review i have decided that kiriona and gideon are definitely not 100% the same soul, but kiriona could have a piece of gideon's soul, because a lot of the ninth house stuff is very gideon, especially with crux. i still want alecto now.

#nona the ninth spoilers #ntn spoilers #nona spoilers #the locked tomb spoilers #nona the ninth #the locked tomb #gideon nav

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bereft-of-frogs · 1 year

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Favorite Books of 2022:

Okay here's the positivity, I've split my list into New vs Rereads.

New:

Nona the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir - not over it, obvious answer, what more is there to say?

In the Dream House, by Carmen Maria Machado - really clever and creative memoir, I'm currently rereading Her Body and Other Parties because I just love Machado's writing so much.

This Is How You Lose the Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone - fun fact I originally read this because I'd gotten it for my friend as a late Christmas present last year but then read it before giving it to her, so it was the only one of my top 5 that I didn't own. Until this Christmas when I got it from my brother who, and I quote, 'googled what you should read if you like that lesbian space necromancer series' which is also 100% how I picked it out for my friend and also 100% true.

The Secret History, by Donna Tartt - the seminal dark academia text, I read 300 pages in a single day and I am already planning on going as Murdered Vermont Farmer using things already found in my closet for next Halloween.

The Fifth Season, by NK Jemisin - oh my god this was so good. Both an excellent example of how good second person narration can be and how satisfying good plot twists can be. I 'guessed' this one early and was so gratified as it developed.

Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - what an unexpected delight for a book I essentially read because of BookTok drama. In case you'd already forgotten, the routine Classics vs YA drama took an unexpected turn in January when the first shot about how the booktok girlies should read Crime and Punishment was parried with 'um Crime and Punishment is a YA novel actually', and lead to 1) at least one Booktokker trying to read it and gifting us with their angry annotations like 'omg why is this book so bleak and depressing' (it's Russian Lit, there are so many memes about this) and 'um is this book really about him murdering an old lady' (yes that's the plot that's on the cover what did you think the 'crime' was), 2) a solid year of jokes, 3) me reading it sincerely and really enjoying it. So thanks booktok!

Ok, now onto the Rereads:

1. & 2. Gideon and Harrow - yup I read these both twice this year, still faves, still cry every time, not over them either.

3. American Gods, by Neil Gaiman - always a favorite.

4. Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel - This one for sure hit different after COVID, but is still so, so good.

5. Lord of the Rings - I really like my new 3 in 1 copy, it’s so pretty and drives home that these are really one extended story spread across 6 volumes rather than a true trilogy, so yeah I recommend a 3-in-1 edition if you are in the market for LotR books. It does make it rather heavy to carry around, but at least it’s paperback and I found this one wasn’t too hard to physically read.

Honorable Mentions: Dracula (Dracula Daily was THE MOST fun I had all year), The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (takes place in the What We Do In the Shadows Universe you cannot take that headcanon away from me, Dracula is the #Drama, no notes, a worthy successor), The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones (excellent), The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (the amount of hate this book gets on Tiktok is unnecessary and kind of toxic, imo), Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matthew Stover (Stover, why are you Like This? Why?)

If anyone has StoryGraph and would like to follow me/be friends, I’m on there under bereft_of_frogs, so please feel free to friend me!

The #Salt (aka my bottom 5 books of 2022 and a little mini rant on each) under the cut:

2. Rule of Wolves, by Leigh Bardugo - Another really disappointing sequel that made me wish I’d stayed a Six of Crows duology-only girlie. Though I did really like King of Scars, specifically for the continuation of Nina becoming a necromancer and infiltrating Fjerda. That part really fell apart in this book. A lot of things fell apart. It honestly felt sort of like Bardugo just wanted to be finished with this universe? Because a lot of things were resolved in really weird ways and really quickly. It also felt like it lost some of the interesting nuance in the worldbuilding that SoC had. And of course, she really showed off how bad she is at portraying the passage of time in her writing with this one. I was given the impression by King of Scars that it was taking place months at most after the events of Crooked Kingdom, and then out of nowhere it’s actually been 2 years so Nina can totally move on! But it still never felt like it had been 2 years and I feel like the end of the grief narrative was really abrupt and I just…couldn’t get into the romance because of how rushed that resolution was. I hope she’s done with this universe, aside from whatever extra writing/retconning goes on with the TV series - or at least, I’m done with this universe aside from the TV series. In future rereads, I’ll likely stick to my unofficial trilogy of Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom/King of Scars.

3. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, by VE Schwab - This book is SO HYPED and for WHAT? I’m a big fan of lyrical, plotless writing, but that means actually having lyrical writing and no plot. This book just decided to do all the plot in the last 30 pages. So it was like 70% meandering, 30% rushed weird romance plot? And I’m sorry, I will NEVER be over the ‘not like other girls’ feminism of the main character. You cannot convince me that she would not have been in favor of the French Revolution. She’s an anti-clerical feminist but as soon as the Revolution happens it’s like ‘ew those peasant women are too violent, fuck all of them, I’m getting out of here.’ It’s a prime example of the hollow historical feminist archetype that is luckily starting to get some critique, where the main character fits perfectly with modern ideas of feminism, without the author actually having to put that much thought into their actual principles and how that fits into the historical context.

4. Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke, by Eric LaRocca - This one was just bad. Read like a first draft. Went nowhere, said nothing.

5. Nothing But Blackened Teeth, by Cassandra Khaw - I almost put this together with the above, because I think they had similar problems. Really under-developed, but at least this one had good writing. It was beautifully written, it just…went nowhere. The characters and their relationships were really surface level, and the intriguing premise just…never really went anywhere. Both I think get more hype than warranted because they’re rather short and they have striking covers. Both I compared to short films that a young/student horror director would send around to short film circuits or use as film school theses while they were working on developing and funding the feature-length project, but unfortunately that’s just not how book publishing works so we’re not going to get to see the fully developed works.

Dishonorable Mentions: Dead Space by Kali Wallace (just finished it, the flattest characters I think I’ve ever encountered in fiction), If We Were Villains by ML Rio (I had this rated higher and then I actually read The Secret History and was like…oh my God, this is so much worse, what a poor imitation), Winter’s Orbit (I feel real bad about this one but…maybe I just don’t like romance, but I could not stand how 50% of the book was just miscommunication), Lost Stars by Claudia Gray (still got 3 stars, but I think this one is just overhyped. If you want to know what reading this book is like, just watch the original trilogy, pause at any major plot point, watch the ‘are we the baddies?’ Sketch and then continue on), What Moves the Dead by T Kingfisher (I also gave this one 3 stars, and I think it’s…really not that bad but I can’t stop thinking about the hubris of saying that you’re going to write a more fully fleshed out version of The Fall of the House of Usher and then add on a whole sub genre, 4 extra characters, another whole plot, and barely make it any longer)

#books #reading #my brother and his gf got me the little cat statue! and a mug that looks just like the void creature it is so excellent #thank you booktok drama for the crime and punishment rec that was truly your peak

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iviarellereads · 1 year

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Full TLT series to date thoughts on rereading Harrow the Ninth, chapters 1-5

A probably semi-regular weekly bonus to my reread blog, since sometimes you realize things on reread that just make you need to yell in a full spoiler space.

I love seeing all the ways Harrow's haunting affects her when she can't remember why. The sword, Wake's spirit, literally burning her. The Body, in all her loving glory, who she can remember… mostly, but not entirely why. My poor trauma baby sitting in the bed she made.

The moment where Harrow, or perhaps Gideon, thinks that John can see "the Body" but it's a trick of the eye still gets me though. What would John give to see Alecto? What would he do if he did? Well, I suppose say "good morning" given the end of Nona, but you know what I mean. It's only a matter of time until we find out at least.

And, of course, Alecto appearing with a sword. She understood, on some level, what she made herself for him. A cavalier. She loves him still. I think nobody can be all bad if Alecto loves them. (Which is why Nona's reaction to Ianthe delights me so.)

I don't think we got any confirmation that those five hundred or so people had made it to the Ninth ahead of Nona's finale, did we? Never thought about that discrepancy before, and definitely didn't notice it the only time I read Nona on release day.

I know a LOT of people in the fandom really hate John, think he's an irredeemable villain. And, I can't fault any of the reasons why they jump to that conclusion. Just look at his manipulation of Harrow in chapter 2, the self-effacing, "Nooo, don't kneel to me, if you knew the whole truth you'd probably hit me instead." Still… I want to believe this is going somewhere better than that.

"Number Six had better be dead, because Cyrus won't be coming back." Did the ultramassive black hole keep Cyrus's soul, in such a way that John couldn't retrieve it?

Alecto the spirit's voice, with the "uncanny echo" of other voices… I see so much of the setup for Nona this time around.

I'm still inordinately proud that I figured out the lobotomy and Gideon this early. I don't want to lead anyone too hard if I have first time readers in the posts… but it's COMPLETELY fair to start to make guesses when John stumbles over Harrow saying Ortus instead of Gideon. As soon as G1deon showed up I knew, not the entirety of Dios Apate Major obviously, but I definitely knew that "ORTUS" was who Gideon's mother was yelling at/for.

I'm sure the POV use in Harrow is significant at all times, but chapter 3 puts a wrench in all my theories about how and why. It's third-person, but not in the River-bubble, which is the only other time third-person is used in Harrow. I can't explain WHY this bothers me in the post or even draw too much attention to it but it does, in fact, bother me greatly now that I've noticed it.

I'm still mad in the fun way that Muir threw us such a red herring in "She was the eighty-seventh Nona of her House". The nerve! The cheek! Never stop! <3

The lengths to which Harrow went to avoid killing Gideon, to avoid a world without her in it. Every dang time, y'all. Gets me right in the feels. I am, however, rather annoyed at Gideon for seeing the letter, maybe seeing everything, and still believing Harrow wanted to be rid of her rather than that she couldn't bear to live without her. Oh, kids.

#tlt #the locked tomb #gideon the ninth #harrow the ninth #nona the ninth #nona the ninth spoilers #nona spoilers #tlt spoilers #the locked tomb spoilers

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thunderon · 3 years

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Talk rarepairs to me

anon you are opening my pandora’s box. first of all im a multishipper and it takes very little for me to be like “yeah i could ship that” and muir gives us a book full of characters i can point at and say “gay” so im a kid in a candy store

right now i have an extremely niche set of rair pairs i am interlocking in my head. this all has pretty much 0 canon context but im having fun. so hear me out on something i diehard shipped in gtn: judith/marta. immediately shipped it on my first time reading gtn and we’re finally up to 5 whole fics in the tag.

the two most recent ones here and here captured pretty much the dynamic i had imagined for them

before i say anything: marta dyas is 100% my favorite minor character and i have a Lot of Feelings about her and i ship her and judith in gtn. i really like the dynamic of them both being ‘perfect’ soldiers but they allow a level of comfort around each other that they can’t have with anyone else. it’s so obvious that they have an implicit trust between each other and that marta would follow judith anywhere and judith is totally confident in the fact that marta will have her back. and the fact that tamsyn muir says that if cytherea hadn’t showed up, no one but ianthe would have become lyctorhood, i can reasonably believe a scene where judith would be forced to choose between gaining ultimate power to enter the emperors service as lyctor and marta, our perfect necromantic soldier would choose marta.

i think this ship could get really interesting with just how different the seconds necro-cav relationship is. again, the second necromancer’s specialty is the opposite of the eighths. while the eighth drains their cav like a battery, the second is said to augment a cavalier. i am so curious about the science behind it, and im assuming it works sorta like the final fight scene in gtn when harrow gets in gideons head and talks to her. i wanna see judith give marta some gogo juice so she can kick ass. in my head i view it as a pacific rim type “drift compatible” thing and i believe in the inherent eroticism fighting in sync with someone and trusting them more than you trust yourself, knowing them better than you know yourself.

i would just love to see that specific dynamic and power between marta and judith. and just a side note but i can imagine they got paired together pretty young like isaac and jeannemary, and i think that’s a skill they’d develop over time. i can imagine when they first got paired marta could see judith as nervous/bossy and i could for sure see judith struggle to trust marta at first, but i really want to see how they developed into the unified team they presented at canaan house.

now for the angst. marta dyas is 100% a person who would die for something she believed in, and i think it’s very clear that she believes in judith. marta followed judith’s lead unquestionably and it was judith who made the call to fight teacher and signal the emperor: a call that directly led to marta getting killed. that scene where judith refuses medical attention and tells them to help marta, who is obviously dead, just kills me every time. judith refusing to leave marta’s body and her line where she says “no one should have to watch their cavalier die” had me choked up so bad tbh.i think that’s a decision judith has to live with in htn and i think it is really going to change her in some way.

as for ships with them in htn, i like the idea of judith/coronabeth etl arc and i really like the idea of dulcinea/marta (yes i said dulcinea/marta) in the afterlife. i have a whole mental storyline of how those relationship arcs would go but for the sake of brevity ill stop here lol. i have a lot of feelings about these characters tho

#asks #the locked tomb #no i will not shut up about marta dyas #i ship like 4 pretty rair pairs in the locked tomb #i am probably the only one in the world that ships marta/dulcinea #im sorry this is so long #long post

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callunavulgari · 4 years

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Yuletide Letter | 2020 edition

Dear Yuletide author,

Hi there! First, I’d like to apologize for the fact that parts of this is almost entirely copy/pasted from last year’s yuletide letter. I’m aware you probably had no idea, but I’m gonna feel weird about it unless I say something. Secondly, thanks so much for telling me a story! My most sincere wish is that you have fun writing this. I trust that I’ll love whatever you come up with. :)

Fandoms:

The Locked Tomb trilogy, Wolf 359, Rolling in the Deep, Stormlight Archive, Spirited Away, Modao Zushi.

Over all, I’m pretty sure I’ll be pretty happy with whatever you decide to throw at me. I’m not particularly picky, and enjoy a variety of ratings, themes, and genres. I have a list of over 2000 bookmarks on Ao3, which I would like to say might help you find the things that I like, but odds are you’d just get stuck in it.

General flavors on things: I really love atmospheric settings, stories that you can really feel. A great example of this is A Cornstalk Fiddle. Or wild peaches. I enjoy alternate universes in almost every variation, from soulmates to daemons to canon divergence (I really like canon divergence). I’m super fond of slow burns, though it’ll be hard to convey that in a yuletide fic unless you’re REALLY inspired and/or bored and decide to make it 20k+.

Other things I like:

sun/moon trope

enemies to lovers

poly

YEARNING

AUs that are almost entirely canon except one of the characters is secretly some kind of creature (vampire, demon, selkie, etc)

magical realism

post-canon fic

found families

I do tend to prefer a fic to have some kind of ship to it, but that’s definitely not required. I am fully on board with explicit fics, but do ask that if there is smut, it’s not just smut. I like how introducing sex to a story changes various character dynamics, and I really, really like the sexually/emotionally charged lead up, but when it really comes down to it, I’m reading the story for the characters.

Dislikes:

Non-con

Dubious consent is usually okay, but varies based on the circumstances and the pairing. My anon box will be on for the duration of the holiday season, so if you feel the urge, just ask me.

Most hard kinks. Again, it varies, and you can ask me, but I’m not particularly interested in any hard smut for the above fandoms.

Mpreg and/or omegaverse

And then more specific info on the fandoms below the cut because this is already long.

The Locked Tomb trilogy

This series has basically wedged itself right up under my ribcage and made itself at home. I’m okay with a variety of the characters in the tag set, but I mostly would love to see a story centering around either Harrow and Gideon or Augustine, John, and Mercymorn. I am super, super weak for enemies to lovers AND all things yearning and tragic it’s really no surprise I seized onto both of these. I would love a fic exploring the relationship between the above three (the more pining and tragic, the better). But like, that fic would also probably delve into some dubious consent, which again. Is fine to a point. But I mean? Two characters who are torn between loving the third and hating him (and at least slightly torn between two different feelings with each other? Poetic cinema.

If you go the Harrow & Gideon route, I’m actually kind of interested in the idea of an AU that still keeps the necromancy? I mean, necromancers in space is a great concept and I LOVE it, but I also love the idea of necromancers who work in a flower shop! Or a morgue! Or who have a shitty kiosk job at the mall and keeps raising rabid undead squirrels and setting them loose in the food court for fun.

Wolf 359

This podcast. Haunts me. It has basically ruined me for all other podcasts. I adore all of the characters, so you can feel free to write about whoever you want. Favorites are Eiffel, Jacobi, and Hera, so if you throw something at me that has the three of them interacting I could probably die happy. I’m good with gen fic, but I’m also a fan of Jacobi/Kepler, Eiffel/Jacobi, Hera/Eiffel, and would honestly probably fully embrace any other ship you could possibly throw at me.

I like the idea of Hera getting a body after the series. I like the idea of Eiffel finding himself again. I like the idea of Jacobi finding a new family (cough, Hera and Eiffel). I like the idea of Jacobi and Hera becoming best buds. I like the idea of Jacobi working through his grief over Maxwell and Kepler. I like the idea of Hera learning how to be herself in a big wide world that isn’t entirely on her side. I like the idea of every single member of the crew who touches back down on earth learning how to be people afterwards. I like the idea of Minkowski and Lovelace getting closer, especially if Minkowski’s husband is a part of that dynamic.

I just really like found family and people holding each other up when the going gets tough, and this podcast has that in spades. Also? Have you listened to Zero Hours? Because if you want to introduce some of that dynamic I would be forever in love.

Rolling in the Deep

I honestly wasn’t sure whether to include this one in my list of wants or not, but ultimately decided on it because I think that anything you wrote for it I would be happy about. I’ve left the character section blank because I’d be okay with whoever you wrote about. This is one of those books where I don’t have many shippy feelings, but love the concept. Though, if you want to write about the mermaid they brought back with them and ANY of the characters, I would be particularly cool with that.

I just really liked this book a lot, so yeah. Anything. Bonus points for post canon. Bonus bonus points for mermaids.

Stormlight Archive

Kaladin/Shallan/Adolin. I know Sanderson said that thing about how Adolin and Shallan would be down for it, but Kaladin would balk and just - listen to me: forget all that. My default reaction to love triangles is usually to happily ship them in a poly setting and these three are no exception.

You want to write me an AU? Sure! Throw it at me! Canon and/or canon-divergence? Even better! Daemons? Yes, please.

Alternatively, if you’re not really crazy about poly, I would be okay with something exploring the relationship between Shallan and Jasnah. I really adore Jasnah’s character and wish we had more of her headspace.

Spirited Away

Spirited Away is my ultimate comfort movie. It is my go-to when I’m sad or sick or upset, and let’s be real here. It’s been a particularly upsetting year. And I would really love post-canon content with either Chihiru, Haku, or both.

I would love fic where they find each other again. Where they keep finding each other. Where Chihiru walks from her new house down through the forest and just, stares at the entrance for a while. Where Chihiru is haunted by that place through the years, where she both yearns for it and marvels at how like a dream it felt. Where it’s changed her fundamentally, like walking into the fae realm. Where she meets spirits in strange places and speaks to them, only to realize no one else can see them. A fic where Chihiru is twelve, and then fifteen, and then twenty-three, and then even older, and is still just so taken by that place she disappeared to when she was a child and the people she found there.

Above I mentioned wild peaches as an example of a story that I really like, which is a fic of Sarah in the aftermath of the Labyrinth. That is almost precisely the feeling I’ve been craving from a Spirited Away fic, basically since I first watched the movie.

Modao Zushi

I’m weak for Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian. That is basically all it comes down to. The yearning. The rivals (kind of?) to friends to enemies to friends to lovers concept in this had me really messed up, let me tell you. I am particularly weak for Wei Wuxian as the Yiling Patriarch. That could tread close to the dubious consent line if you want it to, or it could not. Don’t worry about it. As long as it’s not non-con, I will happily accept whatever you have to offer.

I am also pretty okay with basically any AU for this. Not really picky. I will say though that I am particularly enamored with the idea of a dancer and/or composer/musician AU for this one. I’ve written about it twice and it still hasn’t scratched the itch. I just really want them to dance with each other.

#heather says what #yuletide letter #yuletide #yuletide 2020

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mariequitecontrarie · 7 years

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It Must Be Magic: A Gold Family Fic

Summary: Neal receives an unexpected morning visitor—his six-year-old brother, Gideon—landing him smack in the middle of a family drama. Rating: G Word Count: 5,775 A/N: For my Missy, @beliza-fryler. Happy birthday! Written for @a-monthly-rumbelling: icee, pixie, doctor. This takes place about seven years after the events of Passing Inspection, which DOES NOT need to be read first. Rumple never dies and neither does Neal. Gideon is born and a few years later, their sister Isabelle (Missy) comes along. It's basically giant Floof Family feels. You're welcome.

{ON AO3}

It Must Be Magic

Rat-tat-tat. Rat-tat-tat. “Psst! Hey, Neal! Neal!”

The whispering, coupled with the insistent tapping on the bedroom window, disturbed his pleasant dream. He heard his name whispered again, and snorted himself awake, blinking up at the ceiling fan.

Still the whispering continued, getting louder and more demanding. A flash of red entered his peripheral vision, and he became aware of a small yet powerful presence hovering outside the master bedroom window.

“Gid?” Neal squinted at the dreamcatcher through the sun-streaked glass. “Kiddo, is that you?”

Grumbling under his breath, Neal threw back the covers and rose to open the window. His little brother scaled the siding and hopped over the windowsill with the exuberant grace of youth.

“It’s five o’clock in the morning and all decent people are sleeping,” Neal said around a yawn. “What are you doing?”

Gideon peered over his shoulder at the smooth, empty side of the bed and ignored the question. “Where’s Aunt Emma?”

“On her back in a field of wildflowers, till you woke me up,” Neal complained.

“What?” The boy cocked his head to the side, his brow furrowed in confusion.

“Never mind.” He rubbed a hand over his face, flicking the sleep out of each eye with his thumb and sighed. “Moms’ weekend with Regina and Henry. What happened this morning? And why can’t you use the door like normal people? You could have broken your neck!”

Gideon twisted his mouth and moaned. “Aunt Regina’s not here either?”

Neal chuckled. The kid wasn’t the only disappointed one. “Sorry buddy. You’re stuck with me.”

“Where’d they go?”

“New York.”

“Ohhhhh! Statue of Liberty?”

“Prob’ly.” “I wanna see the—”

“Yeah, I know.” The kid had been obsessed with the monument for months. He probably wanted to see if he could make it disappear or something; he was always plotting his next magical feat. “Maybe in a couple weeks, if you’re good. Now quit changing the subject. How did you get here?”

The kid rolled honey brown eyes that were far too discerning for his six years. But what else would he expect from the son of Rumplestiltskin and Belle Gold? Shrewd like his father, resourceful like his mother, and with the combined stubbornness of both. “Walked.” Gideon puffed out his little chest and crossed his arms. “It’s not that far, Neal.”

“Is everyone ok? Your mom? Missy?” Neal asked, heading toward the en suite bathroom to relieve himself. Gideon followed, watching his every move, and Neal shrugged. Guys had to pee first thing; it was a fact of life.

“Yeah, she’s good…now.” Gideon stood behind him, rolling his eyes in the mirror.

Fighting back laughter, Neal decided to wait a while before unpacking that statement. Missy, whose birth name was Isabelle, was Gideon and Neal’s baby sister. When she was born, Gideon started calling her ‘Issy’ because he couldn’t pronounce Isabelle. From there the nickname evolved to Miss Issy, until everyone in town referred to Belle and Gold’s infant daughter as Missy.

“Do Pop and Belle know you’re here, kid?”

Eyeing his sleep-deprived reflection, he washed his hands then scratched his whiskered cheek. Shaving could wait till tomorrow.

“No.” Gideon pulled a pout, his little mouth drooping. “Papa’s mad at me.”

Neal was unsurprised. The oldest and youngest Gold men had been crossing swords a lot lately. “How’d you get past his wards?”

“He forgot about the window.”

Neal smiled thinly. It was rare, but when Pop was angry, his magic sometimes got sloppy. “What’d you do, shimmy down the drainpipe?”

“Nope.” Gideon’s grin was cheeky. “Tree outside my window.”

Neal shook his head and plunked back down on the bed. He looked longingly at Emma’s smooth pillow, wishing she was here to do the maternal stuff. He had a bad feeling Gideon’s visit must be about magic, and that was his wife’s department. Or Regina’s. He’d welcome either one of them at this moment with open arms. “You and windows. Thank the gods you didn’t fall! You’re lucky we’re not driving to the hospital right now to see the doctor. So what happened, Gid?”

His chin wobbled and he cast his eyes to the floor. “Alls I wanted was for Missy to stop crying. Mommy was upset. She said Missy’s teeth hurt. I made it better.”

Neal huffed out a breath. “That doesn’t sound too bad.”

“Papa said it was. He said I had no bidness, uh, innerfacing.”

“Interfering?” Neal corrected gently.

The kid tugged one of his pixie ears, identical to their dad’s. “Yeah. Ok.”

“What did you do?” Neal leaned back against the pillows and crossed his arms behind his head.

Gideon plopped down at the foot of the bed, bouncing lightly on the mattress. “I sang her a magic lullaby, but I guess I did it wrong.”

“How’s that?”

His cheeks turned as red as his t-shirt. “All Missy’s teeth came in at once. Big ones. She looked like a bunny.”

Neal smothered a chuckle at the image of their six-month-old baby sister with a mouthful of twelve year molars and giant frontal buck teeth. “I think this conversation calls for food. Come on, let’s get some breakfast.” And coffee. Lots of coffee.

The boy shook his head and scratched at the comforter like a sad puppy. “Not hungry.”

“Awww, come on.” Neal raised his eyebrows. “We may not have New York City, but we have New York bagels.”

“Blueberry ones?” Gideon sent a hopeful glance in the direction of the kitchen.

Neal looped his arm around his little shoulders. “Would I steer you wrong? I even have blueberry shmear.”

Ten minutes later they were seated side-by-side at the breakfast bar with bagels and cream cheese. Gideon was cramming bites of bagel into his small cheeks like a squirrel, and with his large, brown eyes and soft brown hair, Neal chuckled at the comparison.

“What about your mom?” Neal asked, pouring a glass of milk for his brother. “Was she mad?”

Gideon sipped his milk and frowned. “She laughed, then Papa acted mad at her, too.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “D’you think they’re fighting ‘cause of me?”

Neal’s heart tugged, understanding the root of his little brother’s misery. “No way.” He swiped at the kid’s milk moustache with a gentle finger. “Listen, Gid, it’s never your fault when adults argue, ok? Besides, no one loves your mom more than Papa does. Even when he’s angry, he still loves her.”

“Papa said Mommy’s tired and I need to make things easier. I try to help, but Missy…she’s such a baby,” he spat the last word, an expression of disgust creasing his small forehead. “She can’t walk or talk or cast a spell. She ain’t no fun!”

“Isn’t.” Neal shuddered. “Gods, don’t let your mother hear you say ain’t!”

“Better than Missy. She can’t say isn’t or ain’t!” Gideon flicked his fingers. “Watch this!”

The kitchen exploded into a whirling dervish of gold and red nuggets, popping and flying, until Neal was ankle-deep in Captain Crunch Cereal. “Whoa!” He bounced on the barstool, then gripped the edge of the countertop to keep from landing on his ass.

He looked at his brother. Gideon’s eyes were wide as he scanned the room, his face contorted with horror. Crunchberries littered his hair. “Oh no! Neal, I’m sorry!” The sheen in his eyes told Neal tears weren’t far behind.

Neal brushed bits of cereal off both their bodies and smiled. “Forget about it, buddy.”

If shenanigans like this were regular occurrences in the Gold household, it wasn’t too hard to decode why Papa and Gideon were at odds. The old Victorian where they lived, once filled with knick-knacks and antiques, had been cleaned up and childproofed after Gideon’s birth. Even his father’s shop, cluttered and dusty as it could be, was a shrine to organized chaos.

Truth was, he felt sorry for the kid. It hadn’t been easy growing up with such a powerful father, and Neal wasn’t even magical. He couldn’t imagine the burden of being in the shadow of the one of the greatest sorcerers who had ever lived; of being born with abilities you had no idea how to use.

“But…aren’t you gonna tell Papa?”

“You know me better than that.” Neal winked and stomped his feet in the piles of cereal, producing a satisfying crunch. He grinned. “We’ll wait for Aunt Emma and Aunt Regina to come home and fix it.” That will teach them to go off on a fun city weekend and leave me alone to deal with all this magic. He kicked some cereal into the hallway for good measure, laughing as it skidded across the floor.

Instead of joining in the fun, Gideon frowned at the mess. “Everyone likes Missy better ‘cause she’s normal. You like her better, too.”

“That’s not true,” Neal said, his heart clenching at the kid’s woeful tone. “I love you both the same, but for different reasons. You have a special gift.”

“Papa doesn’t think so.” He chewed his lower lip. “Mommy laughs when I do tricks, though, even when they make trouble. How come?”

Neal stroked his beard. Belle had never been phased by magic, unless Papa was using it for wrongdoing. His father was the one who had a hang-up about it, especially where his younger son was concerned. Papa knew the dangers, the consequences to magic; more than anything, he wanted to protect his family from its often harrowing price.

That fear was something that Neal understood all too well. He’d spent his childhood railing against his father’s curse, then later watched him subdue the darkness for the sake of his loved ones. Now Neal was married to the Savior and close with Regina. He’d always loathed magic, but living with it was the consequence of being part of this extraordinary family. And if there was one thing Neal had learned from Belle and his father, it was that if you loved someone, you had to accept all the things about them, good and bad.

Neal pushed his empty plate away. “Your mom—she has this incredible ability to see beyond people’s actions to their intentions. She always sees the good in everyone, even when they don’t deserve it. Even me.”

Gideon’s eyes were as wide as Frisbees. “For real? You were bad?”

He smiled grimly, recalling his jealous rage toward Belle, and how he’d called her a colossal mistake who would only steer his father down dark paths. But Belle had done the opposite, bringing light and love into his father’s life and making their family whole. “Yeah. I remember when we first met. I was totally wrong about her. Actually, I wasn’t a very nice future son at all.”

“You weren’t?”

“Nope, but look how great everything turned out.” He ruffled the kid’s dark crop of hair. “As for your sister, cut her some slack, ok? You didn’t do a thing but cry and eat and poop for years and we still loved you.”

“You said poop!” Gideon broke into a fit of giggles.

Neal grinned at him. Children were so resilient. Resilient and easily distracted.

“Can I have some of your coffee?”

And impertinent.

Neal yanked the mug closer and rescued a soggy bit of cereal before it sank to the bottom of the cup. “Not a chance. We’re not stunting your growth on my watch, pal.”

xoxo

“It has to stop, Belle.” Rumplestiltskin jostled Missy on his knee, trying to soothe the hungry infant while Belle stirred together rice cereal for her breakfast. “Last night it was the business with Missy’s teeth. On Tuesday, he made her bark like a dog. Last week, he brought her stuffed animals to life and made them fight to the death!”

Belle stopped mixing the baby food and looked out the kitchen window. Her shoulders were shaking and Rumple narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

“Stop laughing, Belle!”

“I’m sorry, Rumple. It’s just listening to you talk about dueling teddy bears…” Another burst of laughter, then she turned toward him, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. “I can’t seem to help it.”

“Giving his sister scales so the animal rescue van would come and pick her up?” He shuddered as he shifted the baby on his lap, thinking back on his own reptilian ugliness. “We have to get Gideon’s magic under control.”

Belle’s eyes flashed with mischief. “I’m rather fond of scales, myself,” she said, then returned to hulling strawberries as though nothing was wrong. “Can you put Missy in her highchair, please?”

Rumple strapped the baby into her seat, irritated that Belle wasn’t taking Gideon’s waywardness seriously. “Mommy’s not listening to Papa,” he complained to the infant, who in turn bopped his nose with her wet, chubby fingers.

Two pairs of identical blue eyes blinked at him. Rumplestiltskin sighed; he was well and truly outnumbered. If only Neal were here, then someone could side with him.

“I hear everything you’re saying, Rumple.” Belle started spooning cereal into Missy’s mouth. “But Gideon’s only a little boy and adjusting to a baby sister is hard after having all the attention for so long.”

“Giddy!” Missy gurgled and Belle gave her a fond smile.

“See? It doesn’t bother her,” Belle reasoned. “She loves him.”

He snorted. “Yes, well, a diaper full of crap doesn’t bother her, either. She’s an infant.” Rumple nuzzled his daughter’s rosy cheek and brushed a dark curl off her forehead. “Surprised he’s still asleep, it’s nearly seven. I expected he’d be howling at me to remove the wards.”

Belle pressed her lips together. “He’s not here.”

“Not here?” Rumplestiltskin tugged on his earlobe. “Where is he then?”

Belle studied the little plastic bowl of cereal and fed Missy another bite. The baby smacked her lips. “He’s at Neal’s.”

“Since when?” he asked, clenching his teeth until they squeaked.

“Since he snuck out this morning.” At last Belle met his eyes, her lips quaking with the effort not to smile.

“He knows how to break my wards?” Rumple flung his hands in the air, and bolts of lightning exploded against the ceiling. Missy pointed and laughed, waving her plump fists at the brilliant lightshow.

“This reaction? This right here is why I didn’t tell you,” his wife said calm-as-you-please, and swooped her arm in a wide arc to deliver another spoonful of cereal to the baby.

He sputtered. “You knew? Stop making airplane noises and listen to me. I’m his father, Belle!”

“Yes, my love, you are. And if you weren’t here to remind me, that vein throbbing in your neck certainly would,” she said, setting down the spoon. “Gideon is with Neal. He’s safe.”

“How can you be so calm?” he snapped.

“Because this problem has a simple solution.” She walked to the stove, poured him a cup of tea, and set it on the kitchen table.

“Oh, I see. Simple. Why don’t you illuminate the situation for the rest of us, please?” He tossed four lumps of sugar into his cup and stirred violently, sloshing tea all over the table.

Belle sighed and mopped up the mess with a burp cloth. “One of us happens to be a very powerful sorcerer, and it’s not me. You want our son to control his abilities? Teach him, Rumple. We’ve known he has magic since he was three months old, but you haven’t nurtured his gifts. Why is that?”

He shook his head and gripped the back of a kitchen chair. Belle didn’t know what she was asking. “He’s just a boy.”

Missy squawked and waved her arms for more breakfast, her mouth gaping like a baby bird.

“Yes. And he needs his Papa’s particular brand of guidance.” Belle started shoveling mashed strawberries into Missy’s mouth. “Rumple, don’t you see? He’s trying to be like you. You have to teach him how.”

“Baelfire never…” he pinched his nose. His oldest son had wanted to be anything but like his father.

“That was Baelfire, love. Gideon is unique. All our children are.”

As she fed and cooed at their daughter, Rumplestiltskin studied his wife’s profile. He felt a stab of guilt at his outburst. A six-year-old and a six-month-old were a handful on the best days, and the dark circles shadowing Belle’s eyes revealed how hard she was working to care for their family. He shouldn’t be adding to her stress. And Neal? What would he say when he brought Gideon home?

They were doing their best, weren’t they? Belle certainly was, but he seemed to be striking out at fatherhood. Doubts plagued him, that nagging feeling that he was missing something vital.

He dropped into a kitchen chair and wiped his hand over his face. “I thought we wanted Gideon to be good. Light. Like the hero in that book you’re always reading to him at bedtime.”

There was a brief silence, then Belle pulled out the chair beside him. She sat down and covered his hand with hers. “I think I’m beginning to understand.”

“Do you?” he pleaded, his voice like gravel. “Because I don’t know…I can’t…”

“Rumplestiltskin, you are a good man. Time and again you’ve turned darkness into light. You always put the people you love first. Me. Baelfire. Henry. Gideon. This sweet girl right here.” She tugged on Missy’s chubby toes, eliciting a drool-filled giggle. “You can show Gideon how to do the same.”

“What if his magic is dark?” he whispered, closing his eyes. The idea that he may have passed a cursed form of magic onto their boy...he couldn’t bear to think on it.

“Harmless pranks aren’t evidence of dark magic. You’ve said so yourself.” Belle stroked the back of his hand with her fingertips.

“And what if I fail?” Gods, he felt helpless and stupid and utterly out of his depth. He had been a disappointing father to Neal in every way, and now he was failing all over again—a veritable house of cards, ready to collapse at the slightest wrong move.

“Stop that,” Belle said, squeezing his hands. She shook her head. “You’re wrong about yourself.”

“How am I wrong?” he challenged, trying to yank his fingers out of her grip. But she only tightened her hold.

“So you had a disagreement with Gideon, and this time he got the best of you.” She shrugged. “It wasn’t the first and it won’t be the last. I’ll have my share of struggles with him, too. With both of them,” she said, nodding toward Missy. “Don’t you remember when I first met Neal? How difficult it was for all of us? But we learned how to love each other. We grew together and we became a family.”

“This is different,” he protested. “I’m—”

“Wonderful,” Belle finished for him. She dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around his waist. His heart pounded as she lay her head against his chest. “We all fall short; we all make mistakes. I’m far from perfect, myself. But you won’t fail in this. I believe in you, Rumple. I believe in you, and our son does, too.”

“The last time I tried to teach someone magic, it was Regina. I nearly destroyed her life, twisting her pain, teaching her to channel hate.” He swallowed past the lump in his throat. “I-I’m afraid.”

“I know, but you’ve changed since then,” she said, squeezing him so tight he could scarcely breathe. “You’ve worked through your pain and recognized your mistakes. So let’s make a deal, ok? I’ll be the brave one, and you be the resourceful one. We can do what’s best for Gideon, but we have to do it together.”

“You’re right.” Rumple smiled down at her, cupping her cheek. She turned her head and kissed his palm. Gods, she was a wonder! She would be brave for all of them, and he would teach Gideon how to use his magic for good. But first he needed a plan.

“Sweetheart,” he said, standing up and bringing her gently to her feet. “I might be centuries older than you, but you have all the wisdom of the ages.” He brushed a kiss to her lips as he turned to leave.

“Where are you going? It’s Saturday,” she called out as he strode toward the back door that led outside to the basement.

“I won’t be long, my darling. I’m going…I need to spin.” With a deep breath, he stepped outside into the humid summer air.

xoxo

After Neal and Gideon had filled their stomachs with bagels and played a couple of rounds of Minecraft, it was time to take the kid home. With one arm slung around Gideon’s shoulder, he was about to knock on Papa and Belle’s door when the kid wriggled free of his grasp.

“Neal, wait!”

“For what?” He squinted at the doorknocker. “We’re here. This is your house.”

“Can’t we go to Dark Star Pharmacy for an icee?” he wheedled.

Neal sighed, knowing a stalling tactic when he heard one. “You mean one of those sickly sweet cherry slushies?”

Gideon nodded. “They have blue raspberry, too.”

“You know, whenever Henry does something wrong, he tries to buy time by begging for hot chocolate,” Neal said.

Huge brown hopeful eyes stared at him, that cherubic face stretching into a winning smile.

Neal snorted. He’d seen that puppy dog look before. Hell, he’d used that puppy dog look before. “Gold Family Charm doesn’t work on me, pal.” He waggled a finger. “You snuck out. Now you’ve had your fun, and it’s time to face the music.”

“You sound like Papa,” Gideon complained.

Oh gods, it was happening. He was turning into his father.

“Hello!” Neal called out to Belle and Papa above the roaring in his ears and unlatched the front door. Seizing Gideon by the hand, he led him through the foyer into the living room.

The room was empty, but Neal heard footsteps upstairs. Belle was mostly likely with Missy, putting her down for her morning nap. Suddenly, his father appeared in a swirl of crimson smoke.

“Papa! Hey!” Neal moved behind Gideon to rest his hands on his shoulders. Yeah, the kid had done wrong by taking off this morning, but he needed an ally. Especially if their father was still pissed off.

“Gideon!” Papa crossed his arms over his chest, emotion softening his sharp features. “We’ve been worried, son.”

“Papa?” Gideon’s voice quivered. “Are you still mad at me?”

“Actually…”

Neal could tell by the look on his father’s face that it was regret, not anger, that dogged him. Good. Pop could take over, and he could go back to bed. It was Saturday morning, for crying out loud.

“Well, here he is,” Neal interrupted, relaxing his grip on Gideon’s shoulders. “Home, safe and sound. I even fed him. See you guys soon.” He waved and spun on his heel to leave.

“Oh. No, no. You harbored the fugitive. You’re staying.” Rumple jabbed a finger toward the living room.

Neal closed his eyes. “C’mon, Pop…”

“Sit down, Baelfire,” his father said with a grim smile. “I’m calling a family conference.”

He groaned. There was one non-negotiable rule in their family: if there was an argument or a dispute between two or more family members and you were involved, you stayed and talked the problem out until it was solved.

“But this isn’t…I’m not…” He backed toward the door, a pointless attempt to postpone the inevitable.

His father hiked a dark brow. “He came to your house, and that means you’re involved. Besides, you’re raising Henry, and look how well he’s turning out. I could use the moral support.”

“Fine,” Neal grumbled. A smart man knew when to give in. “I’ll stay.”

Satisfied, his father nodded, then pivoted into the hallway. “Belle!” he bellowed up the stairs.

“Already here, Rumple,” she said from behind. She thrust Missy into Neal’s arms with a wink, then leaned down to hug Gideon. “Mother’s intuition.”

“Morning, Belle.” He smiled at his stepmother then settled on the sofa with Missy cradled in the crook of his arm. “Hey, angel.” He crooned to her, then kissed the baby’s auburn curls. Her sweet scent carried a magic all its own. “Come on up, Gid,” Neal teased, patting the spot beside him. “She won’t bite you; she only has a few teeth now.”

Gideon scowled at their sister, but climbed up on the couch, squirming toward Neal till their thighs were smashed together.

xoxo

Rumplestiltskin’s three children looked at him, expectation etching their features. He glanced at Belle, whose gaze was also fixed on him. All of them were waiting for him to do something. Anything. Even little Missy was quiet and attentive, her wide blue eyes gleaming with innocent hope.

Gideon looked fearful, and was pressed as close to Baelfire as was possible. He was grateful for their bond, but he wished his sons felt as comfortable with their father as they did with each other. How could a heart thrill and ache at the same time?

He paced in front of the fireplace. He’d spent two hours at his wheel, trying to weave a plan as he would a fine fabric or delicate strands of pure gold. But now, facing his family, he felt no closer to a solution than he had last night when he’d shouted at Gideon and barricaded him in his room. Everything in him wanted to cancel this farce of a family meeting and disappear into the basement again. But running away from problems was never an acceptable solution—he’d learned that the hard way.

He squared his shoulders. “Do you know why we’re here?” he asked at last.

Gideon nodded and piped up, “You hate my magic. You’re good at it, but I’m bad, so you don’t want me messing everything up.”

Rumplestiltskin flinched. Leave it to the child to cut straight to the heart of the matter. “Gideon, no…” He sighed, searching for words. All the feelings inside of him were locked away; when it came to expressing emotion, he lacked eloquence, and uncertainly fed his despair. He sought Belle’s gaze again and she nodded, encouraging him. “That’s not strictly true, son. I do want you to develop your talents. What I don’t want is for you to be like I once was—someone who used magic for the wrong reasons, or even for the right reasons in the wrong way.”

Gideon chewed his lip, considering.

“What Pop means is, magic is something we have to be careful with,” Neal said, putting a comforting arm around Gideon. “It’s not something we can take for granted. With great power comes great responsibility.”

He nodded at Neal, grateful for the clarification.

“But Papa’s a hero.” Confusion filled Gideon’s face as he looked at each of them. “You all are.”

“No. At least I wasn’t always,” Rumplestiltskin said. “Your mother thinks I am, but I’ve never believed it.”

“That’s silly.”

“No, it’s far from silly.” He sat down on the couch and faced Gideon. “Long, long ago, centuries before you were a glint in my eye, I became the Dark One. My inability to control my magic cost me everything—I lost your brother because of my weakness. Through the grace of the gods, he came back to me. But I will never make that mistake again—not with you or anyone else I love. Fathers, good fathers, want better lives for their own children than they build for themselves.”

Shame washed over him, and he met Baelfire’s gaze over Gideon’s head. He would never be able to apologize enough for making his firstborn believe that power was more valuable than he was.

“It’s ok now,” Neal said, patting Gideon’s knee. “Papa and I are fine. I didn’t always understand and accept his powers. Magic has scared me ever since I was young. But because I know he loves me, that he’s using his magic to help people, now I know it’s ok.”

“That’s why you don’t want me to use magic, Papa?” Gideon asked. “You’re afraid, like Neal was?”

“Yes, and it’s my own fault.” Admitting it was hard, but it wasn’t too late to change. “I’ve been remiss in your training. That’s why you’re going to start coming with me to the shop after school. We’re going to look at some spell books, mix simple potions…”

“For real?” Gideon’s eyes glowed with excitement.

“Yes,” He smiled a bit, relieved that Gideon was warming to the idea of learning.

“Awesome!”

“It won’t be easy.” He rested his hands on the boy’s shoulders. “Light magic isn’t driven by hatred or anger. It’s fueled by love.”

“So if I want to do magic the right way, like you, I have to use love?” Gideon edged closer to him. “How?”

“By channeling your energy toward someone important—someone you care about.” He turned toward Belle. “For me it’s your mother. She makes me a better man.”

“What about me?”

“It’s your choice, but I thinl you should use your love for someone that you sometimes have a hard time loving. What do you think?” He looked at Missy, who was cooing at Baelfire as she stroked his beard with her tiny fingers.

“Missy?” Gideon echoed, sounding outraged. “But she stinks!”

Belle snorted and Baelfire wheezed a laugh then covered it with a cough. Rumplestiltskin prayed for patience—apparently the room was filled with children of all ages.

“Gideon,” he said, “your sister is a part of this family. As important as anyone else. We understand you might be jealous sometimes of all the time and attention that Missy needs, but you don’t really dislike her, do you?”

He scrunched his face like a prune. “ I guess not.” His tiny shoulders slumped. “I…I’m sorry, Papa. I wanted to help you and Mommy.”

“That’s all right, my boy. We know you mean well,” he said with a smile. “You’ve been trying to help us in the only way you know how. I’m sorry for doubting you.”

“That’s right,” Belle said, kneeling in front of Gideon. “We know you don’t mean to hurt Missy with your magic. Spending time with Papa at the shop is going to be good for all of us. While Missy’s learning to walk and talk, you’re going to be growing up in your own special way. There’s no one better than your father to show you how to use all those feelings and abilities, and do you know why?”

Spellbound, Gideon shook his head. Rumple couldn’t blame him; he was as enthralled by Belle as his son was.

“You are so much like your Papa.” Belle stroked Gideon’s brow; her eyes shining with mother love. “He’s the best man I know. The best husband, the best father, that anyone could ask for. Because you remind me of Papa…that’s one of the reasons I love you so much. He’s always been my handsome hero and now you are, too.”

Tears scalded Rumplestiltskin’s eyes. Each time Belle praised him, his underserving soul swelled with happiness. Right now he thought he would burst with pride.

Gideon hurtled into his arms, making the moment all the sweeter. “Papa, can we start my training today?”

“Yes,” He stroked the boy’s narrow back and closed his eyes, savoring the warmth and softness of his child. “I love you, son. I couldn’t be more proud, do you know that?”

“I love you, too, Papa,” he whispered.

His boy trembled in his arms and he held him close until he squirmed. Rumple chuckled and released him, and Gideon scampered off to play.

Missy, who had been content in Baelfire’s arms, grabbed a fistful of his hair, yanking hard enough to make him yelp. His cry startled the baby, and she started to sob.

Belle rushed in to rescue Bae, scooping their daughter up. She patted Missy’s bottom, rocking and shushing her with a gentle sway of her hips until the baby nuzzled into Belle’s shoulder to chew on her blouse.

Neal ambled toward him and cleared his throat. “So, uh, that was interesting.”

“Yes,” Rumple replied, giving his oldest son a grateful look. “Thank you for being what Gideon needed this morning. And for staying.”

“No problem.” Neal patted him on the shoulder and nodded toward Gideon, who was digging through the toy box, his tongue wedged between his teeth in concentration. “You did good, Pop. You did real good.”

xoxo

“Feel better, kiddo?” Neal asked, launching a matchbox car across the coffee table with his free hand. Gideon was engrossed in his toys, and Missy was in his arms once more, babbling happily around the teething ring in her mouth.

“Yeah.” Gideon reached out to touch Missy’s dimpled hand. “Papa’s going to teach me magic, and Missy’s gonna help. I guess she ain’t so bad.”

“What did I tell you before about that word?” he asked, low and urgent. He glanced at Belle to make sure she hadn’t heard Gideon slaughtering the English language, but she was across the room with Papa, her arms wrapped around his neck and her eyes bright with joy.

“What are they doing? Ewww. Gross,” Gideon wrapped his own hands around his throat, pretending to choke. “They’re in love.”

Missy dropped her toy and giggled at Gideon’s expression. He gagged himself again, encouraging laughter.

“They used to do that to me, too, buddy. They still do. Last week, I ate lunch with them at Granny’s and I think they forgot I was there.” He chuckled, remembering his first hamburger dinner with Papa and Belle. Belle had been so nervous that she started playing footsie with Papa under the table—and had accidentally come on to him instead. “Some things never change.”

“Did you get to eat their fries?” Gideon asked solemnly.

He laughed. “Do you ever think of anything but food?”

“Yep. Cars, magic, games. Can we go for icees now?”

The pleading look on the kid’s face undid him. He was getting soft in his old age. “Why not? Get your sneakers. We’ll put Missy in her stroller and take her along so Papa and Belle can have some time for just the two of them.”

“Neal?” Gideon asked, slipping his small hand into his as they headed toward the door. “Does love make magic? Or does magic make love?”

Floored by the perceptive question, he eyed the kid askance, then glanced back at Belle and Papa. They were snuggled on the couch together now, murmuring endearments, content to bask in each other’s presence. No matter what happened in their world, the love between them was a constant, a reminder to Neal that hope always had a home.

He smiled at his brother. “Both, Gideon. Both.”

###

#rumbelle #rumbelle fic #Neal Cassidy #Gideon Gold #the gold family #Rumplestiltskin #Belle French #papafire #implied swanfire #implied swan queen

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