#zeroatthebone

I just think they’re neat

L - a stolen kiss

"Lirael. Are you okay?"

Lirael felt someone catch her arm, and tensed for the slightest moment, before she realised it was only Nick; for just a moment, she hadn't recognised him in his Ancelstierran dinner suit. Not that it didn't make him look extremely dashing, in an odd and unfamiliar but quite intriguing sort of way, but she pushed that thought away for later.

It was even odder, seeing him without feeling the bright warmth of Charter magic that seemed to surround him all the time these days, responding to and reflecting the magic in her own blood. She didn't think she'd ever quite get used to being this far south, in Corvere where she could barely feel the Charter at all.

But Nick, of course, seemed to sense her disorientation too; he was looking at her in concern.

"I'm fine" she said, feeling herself relax under his touch; not for the Charter magic in it, just for the presence of him, his care for her. Impulsively, she reached out and placed her golden hand on his against her arm; the hand was harder to use here, but she could still feel a little through the fingers.

"I'm glad" said Nick. He grimaced, dropping his voice. "Sorry about this. Didn't know my parents would be so keen for you to meet the whole extended family. Suppose I should have expected it, though, really" he gave a little laugh. "Can't run off to the Old Kingdom, become a vessel for Charter magic itself, and marry a strange foreign lady who brings a sword to dinner without being treated like a bit of a curiosity when one comes home to one's dear family, I suppose."

Lirael had a moment of doubt. "...Should I not have brought the sword?"

Nick laughed, reaching out and squeezing her hand. "On the contrary...if you ask me, they could use a few more people carrying swords around here. Adds a little interest to proceedings." He gave her an affectionate smile, eyes crinkling at the corners. "Really though. I promise, everything you've done has been just perfect."

"...Would you tell me, if it wasn't?"

"Of course."

She couldn't help it; she leaned forward and stole a swift kiss. In her haste, she missed slightly, mostly got the corner of his mouth, smiling as he blushed all across his face. That, at least, didn't change this far south of the Old Kingdom, nor did his abashed smile, nor, indeed, did the way he couldn't help but lean in to chase the kiss and steal it back.

"Well" she said, offering Nick the crook of her arm with a nod, in the manner she had seen Ancelstierrans do. "Are you ready to go back?"

Elladan and Elrohir.

Tolkien has a habit– a lot of writers have this very annoying habit– of writing twins, especially identical twins, as if they are one person in two bodies. Identical features do not mean an identical personality. (As for the common fanon of them being pranksters, I assume this is a bleed-over from the Weasley twins. Twins do not automatically equal prankster, either.)

Elladan and Elrohir grew up as many twins do: forced proximity and age means built-in playmate. It also means built-in enemy. There were periods of getting along and periods where it seemed all they did was fight. As they grew up, it became easier to get along. Maturity helps. And they became best friends.

Things changed for them when Arwen was born… but not as much as in mortal families because Elladan and Elrohir were adults when she was born. They had their own lives already and it was great having a younger sister around– but they didn’t have to live with her crying at all hours of the night, etc.

I’m not quite sure what they did in Imladris for the couple thousand years between their adulthood and Celebrían’s departure. Because things absolutely changed after that. Canon’s clear that they spent much of their time hunting orcs from then on. From that, I assume that those couple thousand years were learning a variety of things about how to run Imladris, diplomacy, and military skills.

They dress identically in order to create confusion among their enemies. They are far more relaxed about it in Imladris. (As a side note, my twin and I often came out of our own rooms in high school dressed in the same colors, though not the same clothes. We never planned to do this; it just happened.)

They sail West.

Argon doesn’t exist. um, sorry, this is as close as I can get to anything unpopular and I’m not sure if this is actually completely conventional, but people do seem to not-infrequently add him in and a) there are too many characters in the Silm to keep track of already; and b) if Fingolfin actually had a son who died at the Battle of Lammoth, or on the Helcaraxe, or wherever Tolkien’s notes might have put him, I feel like it should have influenced the course of events more?

una mccormack is such a... interesting weirdo i remember i found her ao3 first and then realized she had actual published star trek novels and. i mean. well. she's very consistent

omg i had no idea she had an ao3 account???? wow, she’s living the dream tbh. this is the only thing by her i’ve ever read but i liked it a lot. i’m always chasing those Bajor feels, and this book had plenty even though 80% of it takes place on Cardassia

gregorvorbarra replied to your post “july books”

SAGA IS SO GOOD. i haven't read past 3 yet but it's so good

heckofabecca replied to your post “july books”

SAGA

IT’S SO GOOD. i’ve only finished the first 4 still but god, everything is happening so fast and it’s got like ten million tropes i adore packed into it??? deserters (especially low-level soldiers who desert because they realize the war they’re involved in is garbage), found families, children being raised in unconventional/dangerous settings, endearing fugitives, people who lose their shit when you attack their loved ones, language barriers and culture clashes, ruthless bounty hunters with hearts of gold, traumatized kids who get a chance to live and grow and be happy with people who care about them

and the art is gorgeous and everyone is SO HOT. what the fuck. i have a crush on half the main cast, Marko and Alana and Gwendolyn and the Will and the Brand....damn. anyway both of you should feel free to yell at me about Saga over tumblr messenger because i would love to talk to someone about it

zeroatthebone replied to your post “july books”

Isn't March spectacular? :D

Oh, he knew. It would have been hard to miss it, what with the way Nie Huaisang was after a bad nightmare - fingers a bit too sharp, eyes not the right shape, headbutting him with horns on his head. If Nie Mingjue hadn’t agreed to let his little brother climb in with him, he wouldn’t have known.

Still, that could all be explained away as dreams, since it never lasted into the daylight. The first time he knows for sure that he isn’t dreaming, he’s spent a full shichen convinced that he’d somehow lost his younger brother only to find him sunning himself in a pile of fabric on a chair. He’s still small enough to tuck into Nie Mingjue’s robes at that point, settling first in an inside pocket and then, when he got too long to for that, wrapping around his arm, his head seated just at Nie Mingjue’s neck to peek out at things.

It’s not that Nie Mingjue kept it a secret, you understand. It just didn’t seem to be something anyone else needed to know.