#askliterature

Morgause had no idea who Disgrace was until he literally appeared on her doorstep. He had heard of her, of course, because she was the most famous necromancer on Gaia. He was quite a passionate necromancer himself and wanted to seek her help with training, troops, enchanted weapons, and so on. He was prepared to make serious deals with a powerful kingdom, but he didn't quite know what to expect when he flew into the Unseelie Court for the first time.

Morgause saw a huge fleet of mysterious armed men and undead heading towards her castle and said "oh hell naw", personally running outside to blast them into oblivion. But when she laid eyes on Disgrace, it was love at first sight...well, not "love" exactly, because monsters aren't capable of it. It was more like an intense, all-consuming lust that has gripped her by her shriveled ovaries ever since that fateful day...she thought the Overlord was the hottest thing on Gaia, and she proposed marriage within 10 minutes of meeting him.

Disgrace accepted her proposal, but only in exchange for troops and gold. Morgause gladly handed over a fat load of resources and had an impromptu wedding that night. Unfortunately for her, Disgrace still had business to manage back in the Serkel Desert, so he could not stay and be her king (not that he wanted to anyway). She bid him a dramatic farewell, but said he was welcome back so long as she remained on the throne.

So, yes...Disgrace is legally married to Morgause. She is also married to like 40 other dudes, so that doesn't mean much, but she does consider him her favorite husband because he is the only divine one. Their marriage is only legally recognized in Unseelie Court, other Great Kingdoms won't even acknowledge it.

Some Unseelie people are disgusted by Morgause's marriage to this high-profile terrorist, but most of them are so fatigued and so used to her crazy bullshit, they're just like "Yeah, that's classic Morgie...". Her other husbands are a collection of warlords, crime bosses, and other scumbags, so this is no surprise to them.

As for Disgrace, he hates Morgause. He truly despises her, thinks she's repulsive, and resents every second he has to spend around her. But she's officially his sugar momma, the one with the big money he needs for his operations, and the only Great Ruler who doesn't tell him to fuck off, so he has to play nice with her once in a while. She looks forward to his visits like Christmas morning, meanwhile he's dreading it like a root canal. They have a really funny dynamic imo.

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

One of the biggest problems I’ve had with HP’s werewolves (aside from it being written by the moldy uber terf) is the case of “good lore/ horrible execution”. HP does have the bones of good lore for its werewolves as victims of a dangerous, life altering curse and discrimination that comes with that. However the execution falls utterly flat to the point of being horribly ableist and having very… disgusting implications! Such as moldy terf stating her version of lycanthropy is a metaphor for HIV… and having a major werewolf villain who loves to purposefully infect children!? Or having our main werewolf character be the only good werewolf in the entire story, with the rest either all joining wizard hitler or having so little screen time they’re basically nonexistent! LG werewolves have a lot of similarities to HP’s werewolves, but does manage to sidestep a lot of these issues in the stories by just… treating lycanthropes as people.

Two big differences I wanna point out as the example between Evan and Remus is how other characters treat their lycanthropy, and their own relationship with their condition.

In HP, a lot of characters focus on how lupin’s lycanthropy affects them, never how it impacts Remus himself. Lupin could be in a completely isolated room and all the other characters would be focusing on “what if he gets out?” Or “ugh why does he have to have this now!” Or having characters using his lycanthropy to put Remus in comprising positions without any care or regard for how it would affect him (such as in a flashback with Sirius trying to lure snape into the abandoned cabin lupin used for his full moon transformations as a “prank”. Fully knowing and not caring how this would ruin lupins life if his werewolf form attacked snape. And the narrative just… never holds Sirius accountable for this!)

Evan meanwhile, both the characters are far more focused on how his lycanthropy affects him. Actually checking in on him and being more scared for him then scared of Big Bad (I love the scene with lukus just sticking his hand in werewolf Evan’s mouth to check his puke, and the crew all helping with the grief after he turns back). It really shows that they actually care for Evan’s wellbeing and realize he’s how his condition affects him.

And also on their personal relationship with their lycanthropy these two characters are also vastly different. Remus is just constantly miserable, the narrative never letting him have any happiness in his condition unless it’s to spite it. A lot of the time almost seeming to apologize for his own existence, a trait that SURE couldn’t mean anything coming from what’s basically a disabled character (what was that about disgusting implications before?). Meanwhile Evan, while his condition does cause him a lot of fear/ stress/ and self loathing, the narrative allowing him to have moments of self acceptance and neutrality with his lycanthropy. That and much of his anxiety and self loathing coming from things outside his lycanthropy (I like Evan but dear fuck is he a mess!)

This is a very interesting comparison, thank you so much for this! I've never read Harry Potter myself, but I have seen lycanthropy (and similar conditions) used as an allegory for different things like illness, sexuality, disability, etc. in other fiction and I think it has to be handled very carefully. I have heard from many people that J.K. Rowling is heavy-handed in her writing and does not do subtlety well, and what you've just told me here confirms that. That sounds...not great. Wow...

Evan is a character with a serious, life-alerting condition. Some of the ways it alters him are beneficial (it's literally the only thing keeping him alive) and some are devastating (the real risk of harming someone under the full moon). I want to highlight both of these facts at the same time throughout the story. It's not a flawless superpower, but it's not constant misery either, because Evan doesn't let it be. He chose this for himself, and he takes responsibility for that decision every day. Doesn't always do a perfect job of it, but his earnestness is what makes him endearing I think.

Connor is sort of meant to be his dark shadow, showing what Evan would be like if he didn't take responsibility, if he shed everything he is and just identified completely with his lycanthropy. The disease rules Connor completely, to the point where Connor is barely Connor anymore, he is just a walking, talking case of lycanthropy. He willingly let this happen to himself because he's convinced that it IS a flawless superpower and sought the disease for greedy, selfish reasons. He did not care how it might affect others.

Evan is a lycanthrope, yes, but above all else he is a person with thoughts, feelings, and impact on the people around him. He is loved by others despite his condition, and sometimes because of it. Not everyone is willing to love him because they fear what he is, and the series doesn't really demonize them for that. The narrative acknowledges that it can be dangerous and the fear is warranted, but also shows that Evan is a pretty good guy who goes to great lengths in order to help people. He has to earn peoples' trust, it isn't just given to him like it's given to most people. He adapts to the position he put himself in.

Connor doesn't get the love and support Evan does, and not just because he's a lycanthrope, but moreso because he's a shitty person who happens to have lycanthropy. Evan is a kind person with lycanthropy, and so his kindness outshines the condition. He remains a multi-faceted human being who does not let one aspect of himself define his whole existence, so he gets treated with more nuance than just "wolf-man scary".

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

The potion has a 90% chance of transforming them into their most desired form, yet also has a 10% chance of turning them into their most appalling form. What these two forms are depends entirety upon what they would consider most desirable for themselves and vis versa.

What would be each crewmen’s most and least desired body be? And how does the potions outcome affect their life?

Interesting question! This answer is lengthy, so I will place it under a cut.

Well, we know Ivy played the violin, so it's very possible that Dusk Manor had a music room with other instruments in it. If anyone played the organ, it was probably Morgana (since she literally has "organ" in her name, hurrhurr)

Otherwise, I can imagine Dimitri randomly slapping away on the keys just to annoy the hell out of everyone lol

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

I think headdress/headcloth is an appropriate name for it. It's not part of his mask, he can take it off.

I imagine the top is very stiff and hard. It probably has a metal plate under the fabric to protect the skull, and the portion below his neck is more cloth or leather-like. It likely clips into his hair or maybe just grips the skull really tight. I feel like it would be designed to come off easily so that if an enemy yanks on it, they won't take his head off with it!

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

These questions have very long answers, so I won't be able to cover it in one post. I will be happy to break this up into pieces though! I'll answer question 1 here and address the other in a different post.

1 whatvare racial background of FGG and Dtifter Hollows inhabitants? Can you write their species besides their racial background so I don't get lost?

FREELANCE GOOD GUYS

Evan: (Human) Claims to have Skylind, Westlander, and Gildfolken ancestry. Probably has some Grisa in there too.

Lukas: (Human) I don't think Lukas ever mentions his ethnicity in the series, but just by looking at him and his parents I would say mostly Lagaal/Westlander ancestry. Possibly some Balxee.

Glenvar: (Human) Claims 100% Gildfolken ancestry, which is probably true given his tribe's extremely remote location.

Alaine: (Human/Mermaid) According to her, she is mostly Moorenock with 1/6 Gildfolken blood.

Jeimos: (Red Elf) Red elves are an amalgamation of many elven races that were forced to breed by the Zygrow Corporation. Jeimos' ancestry probably contains a little of everything, but based on how they and their parents look, I think the Aiya and Boanningwad blood is dominant.

Isaac: (Human?) This is actually mentioned in the upcoming story, but Isaac's ancestry is suspected to be a specific branch of the Odazi ethnicity called the Alqami-Odazi.

Linde: (Elf) Probably Ela/Marienna, based on her parents' appearances and places of origin.

Balthazaar: (Human) Based on his appearance and birthplace, I would say Solra/Lagaal/Odazi.

Skel: (Goblin) Skel has no clue about his ancestry because he was born into slavery, but based on appearance he looks to have strong Feregra and Vankza genes.

Javaan: (Centaur) Very strong Ebony genes, going by appearance and birthplace. Possibly some Dappleback as well due to his curly hair texture.

Elska: (Centaur) Very strong Shaghoof genes, also going by appearance and birthplace.

Mr. Ocean: (Cecaelia) Mostly Teetaktee, a bit of Kakee.

Zeffer: (Elf) Zeffer doesn't know anything about his ethnic background. But his appearance suggests strong Ela genes, probably some Aiya and Marienna as well.

DRIFTER'S HOLLOW

Flora: (Nymph - Limniad) Daisy. Gwyneth: (Elf) Strong Marienna genes. Brogan: (Satyr) Bluelander/Archtop, based purely on appearance. Ginger: (Satyr) Mostly Bluelander, but has a Twister nose shape. Itchy: (Satyr) He's just...everything. It's noted that his mother has gold eyes, which is an exclusive trait of Goldengaze, so we can say that for sure. Tomato/Cinnamon: (Satyrs) See Ginger and Itchy. Olof: (Centaur) Obviously Patchback based on appearance, but given the location of his tribe he may have some Shaghoof ancestry as well. Frederick: (Centaur) Patchback, possibly Shaghoof, and based on his dark hair I think he might have some Claycoat in him from his mother's side. Dr. Che: (Satyr) Probably Rockknock/Spotted. Philippa: (Centaur) Her full name contains the word "Claycoat", which checks out based on her appearance and birthplace. Ironically I think she has significant Pygmy ancestry as well. Lilian: (Elf) Her natural hair is white, so clearly Ela. Her face and skintone suggests strong Tanyel genes as well. Azadora: (Human) Balthazaar is her uncle, so they share a similar profile. I think Azadora has more Lagaal in her though.

I think that's it, my apologies if I forgot anyone!

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Great question! Indiga probably forbade her family from attending Azura's wedding, so Azura would have to choose someone else outside the Fanaka family.

She would choose a random guest, probably Evan, because "we're both Evangelites, so we're practically family!". She doesn't realize what a mistake she made, because Evan has absolutely horrible aim...Jelani picks Lukas, and Evan ends up with a suction cup arrow right in his eye lol.

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

LUCKY THERE'S A SALARY GUY...

"Hey Tarajeen, rememba da time our daughta went to da moon? Nyehehehehe!"

(Thanks a lot Anon, this is officially the most cursed image on this godforsaken blog lmao)

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost