#crielle

Hi anon!

I have no specific number and no plan, I am completely winging Underline the Black! Much like I did with Falling Falling Stars.

Now, the last story that featured Efnisien as a main character ended up being 140 chapters long and 779k words long, and while I don't think UtB will be that long, I don't think we're anywhere near the end yet either.

I can probably say 'we're not halfway yet' with some confidence. Are we close to halfway? I think so! Do I know for certain? Nope! I have no idea!

This is a playlist for my dude Gwyn ap Nudd. Help me find a better name bc “The Kings of Light and Sorrow” is already taken by my Gwyn/Ash playlist. Please send any song recommendations for these playlists my way!(Mostly about his perseverance and strength aka not a lot of gentle songs. A lot of Johnny Cash songs so be warned. American Southern Gothic vibes bc I said so.) Link at the bottom.

Achilles Come Down // Gang of Youths

Gwyn being talked into believing himself worthy of things despite what Albion and Crielle say.

Glitter and Gold // Barns Courtney

Total “walk like a badass” song.

“Do you walk in the valley of kings, Do you walk in the shadow of men, Who sold their lives for a dream?” Becoming a king of both courts (respectively, not at the same time) because of the Oak King and the Raven Prince.

Black Eyes // Radical Face

“While I slept you crept in and pulled the rug right out from under me” Augus finding out the truth of his alignment.

Broken Crown // Mumford & Sons

“And I will not speak of your sins, There was a way out for him, The mirror shows not, Your values are all shot” Gwyn mourning Mafydd (god I hope I spelt that right) and swearing to keep his alignment a secret.

Ain’t No Grave // Johnny Cash

“Ain’t No Grave, Can hold my body down” No matter what level of fae he is, nothing can keep him down.

God’s Gonna Cut You Down // Johnny Cash

“Go tell that long tongue liar, Go and tell that midnight rider, Tell the rambler the gambler the back biter” Gwyn saying hey I’m the new king tell everyone and I mean EVERYONE I’m not tolerating any shit.

Black Sun // Death Cab for Cutie

“And there is death upon the vine, There is fear in the eyes of your father” Not that Lludd was ‘afraid’ of Gwyn but he was a little worried about his powers. “Death upon the vine” refers to the end of the family line bc Gwyn ruined any chance of them having more kids.

Sinners // Barns Courtney

“Let’s go have some fun before, They go and put us in the ground” A rousing war song for the unseelie armies.

Blood On My Name // The Brothers Bright

“When the fires are consuming you, And your sacred stars won’t be guiding you, I’ve got blood, I’ve got blood on my name” when Gwyn looses his light in the Ice Plague.

Grave Digger // Blues Saraceno

“Let me be the one that got away” Gwyn escapes as underfae from Albion’s grasp.

I Hung My Head // Johnny Cash

Idk this song reminds me of Gwyn going to Augus the first time after he made that one guy eat his father’s heart (or was it the other way around I don’t remember).

I Won’t Back Down // Johnny Cash

“You can stand me up at the gates of Hell, but I won’t back down” (I warned you there’s a lot of Johnny Cash lmao.) Gwyn standing his ground as king.

Redemption // Johnny Cash

“My old friend Lucifer came, Fought to keep me in chains” Crielle trying to keep him under her control even after her death.

Bottom Of The River // Delta Rae

“Don’t you lift him, let him drown alive, The good Lord speaks like a rolling thunder” this song has two meanings: that one scene where Augus drowns Gwyn and the other is Gwyn training with Lludd and him not letting up on him bc that’s what Crielle (the good Lord) has said.

Old Devils // William Elliot Whitmore

“And they tell me there’s a war without no end, The old devils are at it again” Gwyn and the gang going after David and Olphix who created the Ice Plagus and the fire that burnt Mosk’s family.

Hurt // Johnny Cash

“Everyone I know, Goes away in the end, And you can have it all, My empire of dirt, I will let you down, I will make you hurt” Gwyn feels unlovable and he just wants the kingship to be handled by someone else.

Crielle in colored pencil. Got new ink pens and decided to test them on her. I loathe them. They smear. Its her fault. Lets blame her.

A playlist of songs I think describe Gwyn and Crielle’s relationship

Baby, I’m Yours // Arctic Monkeys

Basically Gwyn pissing off Crielle by saying I’ll always be tied to you whether you like it or not.

No Children // The Mountain Goats

“You are coming down with me, hand in unloveable hand” Crielle accepting that she’s going to die but she will ruin Gwyn along with her death.

Too Late To Say Goodbye // Cage the Elephant

“Oh my precious ember burning, my sweet glowing light” Crielle not realizing the truth of Gwyn’s powers and still has adoration for him in the womb, but then shit happens and she hates him now so yeah.

There Isn’t Any God // Rusty Cage

“Then I close my eyes and just remember this song” (song = existence of Gwyn) I feel like she’d sing this as a lullaby in a human AU just to scare Gwyn. Or she just doesn’t believe there is a god who is looking out for her because she had Gwyn.

Rather Die // Barns Courtney

Gwyn perservering through the abuse and times of war he was forced to go through due to his parents.

Curses // The Crane Wives

“Lay my curses all to rest, make a mercy out of me” Crielle planting the seeds that lead up to that One Betrayal™️ with the mind reader (I’m trying not spoil y’all if you haven’t read it yet but it’s a doozy lmao). She thinks Gwyn’s death will be a mercy to herself and to others.

Tongues and Teeth // The Crane Waves

“And I know that you mean so well, But I am not a vessel for your good intents” Crielle understanding that Gwyn just wants her love and approval, but completely ignores it for her own sake.

(Author's note: I'm going to answer both of these from the character's perspectives separately, rather than them being in the same room. I don't usually do Ask the Fae for anyone other than Augus/Ash/Gwyn/Gulvi, but I thought I would here).

*

Albion: After his machinations to become Seelie King, it surprises me not at all that he's managed to manipulate his way to the head of the Unseelie throne. My research has revealed that he's been manipulating Gulvi for a long time, and that he was able to manipulate Ash through putting his brother, Augus, in the Seelie Court - whom he obviously had no intention of ever keeping there in anything but the shortest of terms.

I think Gwyn can enjoy a short Kingship; and, given that he was always paying lip-service to the idea of disliking it, perhaps he'll be grateful that I intend for him to be Unseelie King for a far shorter term than he was the Seelie King.

*

Now that the Unseelie trows are within the Court, I am using their contacts to both order bolts of fabric to make clothes for Gwyn myself, and to get in touch with their tailors who - perhaps surprisingly - are exceptional.

I cannot contact a lot of the older tailors I used to trust, as my name is currently worth very little in the Unseelie Kingdom, and very few people will accept my trade.

So I have both made Gwyn shirts myself, and commission out other designs to tailors. A King must be seen in fitted clothing, after all.

As for his style. His sense of rustic farmboy chic is all well and good in the highlands of Wales, but it needed to be dressed up a little for the Court. I do not mind his wearing of natural fabrics like linen - a lot of fae still remember when white linen was considered the pinnacle of desirable fabric, after all - nor do I mind the colours he chooses for himself. I have, however, taken to adding buttons to his shirts, and collars - for all that he tugs at them. And I have introduced a dark blue formal shirt into his wardrobe, which he has - so far - refused to wear.

I must be careful with Gwyn and clothing. I suspect that Crielle made formal fittings a nightmare for him - literally, I daresay she could inflict a lot of damage on his body with pins, needles, even a measuring tape if she wanted to. From what I have gleaned, her revenges upon him were petty, painful and cruel. He shows a profound dislike for formal wear which I think moves beyond simply disliking feeling uncomfortable in clothing - which, he shouldn't have to, I don't believe in making myself uncomfortable for the sake of clothing either.

So I tread carefully, and make changes slowly. I took his formal measurements a week ago and he did not talk to me, or - actually - anyone, for approximately six hours afterwards. I've seen him deal with actual pain with far more grace; which does lead me to suspect previous trauma.

So here are the pictures we took at Katsucon!~ (we didn't take that many pics because we were too busy taking videos haha) 

The Raven Prince giving Augus a valentines day present and then Crielle holding a valentines chocolates!~

You can see that both of them are "drama queens" haha. (well in Augus' case its drama king but whatever haha)