#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

-- the kobayashi curse

The symptoms of the curse are all the same. Weakness, phlegm build up, weak heart and possible heart palpitations. It's hard to tell if the curse itself is truly that... a curse... or if it's just genetic heart disease passed on from mother to child (mostly daughters).

The curse has existed since the day Inu Kobayashi, the Sun Wolf, sealed the Dark One into a demon mask and passed the heirloom down the clan line. In a sense, the mask radiates a sort of nuclear-like radiation that slowly degrades the life force of those who inherit it.

At some point, a Kobayashi heiress dropped the mask in their escape from the Sun Village, letting it land and fester deep in the core of the Lost Woods. The power would then form evil yokai, which of course led to the necessity of a guardian to slay the yokai while keeping mortals out of the realm.

The holy blade passed down Robin's particular family line is the sole barrier between the curse's effects and the user.

Had Miyuki Kobayashi kept on using the blade and slaying yokai, she would have lived many years more. It was her decision to raise her children and halt her quest that led to her sickness and ultimate demise.

The Sun Wolf ritual almost always leads to a slow fermentation of the curse's return after an attempt of expelling it with holy magic. Mortal humans cannot withstand the power in daily use- hence it's ceremony occurring only at spring solstice.

Only the true heir of the Sun Wolf name can endure the power and seal the Dark One away forever.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #in a sense the curse is v similar to heart cancer/attacks #women have different symptoms to heart issues than men so i was inspired to make that a main focus #it's also why doctors wouldn't take them seriously

[unclefungusthegoat]

EXODUS FROM EDEN

A Far Cry 5 AU: The Plagues of Egypt

Hope County Gothic 2018- WEEK 1- PROJECT AT EDEN’S GATE

Word count: 1327

WARNING: Blood, dead animals, frogs, insects, rotting food, sickness/disease, starvation, scars and wounds, self-flagellation, child death, major character death, child abuse references, self harm

A Pharaoh once sat on high, his towering empire built by the hands of enslaved Israelites. But he defied the commandments of God, and his hubris was punished with pestilence, famine and death, wrought upon his lands through God’s messenger- a man he once called his brother.

Joseph Seed sits on high, his Project, his Eden inhabited by the unwilling, the unrepentant. And now God sends another messenger, one who trusts in and upholds the law, to warn the false prophet-

Let my people go.

Joseph Seed seeks to build a garden. An Eden where God’s chosen will be saved from the fury of an impending, catastrophic reckoning. With those he loves at his side- his brothers, Jacob and John, his sister Faith, his wife and infant daughter- he fabricated a devout and holy empire, claiming the people of Hope County for indoctrination into his ‘family’. He believes he is saving them. He believes he hears the voice of God.

He is mistaken, misguided by demons.

In a small town on the border of Joseph’s empire, a young police Deputy wanders through the lush Montana landscape, seeking solace and serenity. They had once been a part of Joseph’s family, enticed by his soothing words, his condemnations of government and society, his genuine care for the world’s ‘unfortunates’. But they had seen his true face. His lust for power. His hungry gaze. His serpent tongue.

They had fled.

And it is in that liminal forest that they hear the true voice of God, whispered first through low hanging branches, slipping gently through evergreen leaves, before alighting a bush and illuminating the glade with an opalescent flame.

God’s message is clear.

The people of Hope County must be freed from the clutches of the false prophet. 

Under a star-ridden sky, silent in the early hours of the morning, the Deputy meets Joseph in his church and explains to the Father of God’s commandment.

Unwavering in his faith, Joseph simply replies:

‘God will not let you take them.’

The Deputy pleads, but to no avail. And so they deliver the first warning:

...I will strike the water...

The Henbane River, once blue and speckled with the green haze of Bliss, grows thick and stains slowly with crimson. John is holding a sinner below the surface of the water, seemingly cleansing him, but instead he watches in horror as his hands redden and the scent of bitter metal claws its way down his throat. The sinner in his firm grasp begins to thrash and, as John brings him back into the cool night air, he looks upon a man glossed with so thick a sheen of blood, that he wonders how he is not drowning.

...I will plague your whole country with frogs...

Soon, Faith collects flowers by the tainted river. The soles of her bare feet are slick with the blood that has begun to soak into the soil. It is not long until the wild lobelias she gathers are scattered along the grassy path where she fled, as frogs are spat from the river’s depths in their thousands.

...Smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice...

The prisoners in Jacob’s care, their clothes stained with the rotting juice from meat they devoured, are used to the bristle of the Judges’ fur and the itching of lice. But upon the Father’s third denial of freedom, they see their captors begin to scratch the skin from their scalps, bloody flesh under their fingernails, their bodies overrun with the gnawing of a hundred thousand tiny mouths.

...Pharaoh hardened his heart...

Upon the release of a swarm of flies, which in turn brought disease as they settled on the harvest, chewing their way into the stocks hidden deep within the bunkers, Joseph’s voice fills the Deputy’s radio frequency. His words are faint from the unceasing cacophony of wings. He asks that the Deputy cease the plagues. He promises freedom for the people of Hope County.

The land was cleansed of the infestation.

But still, the people were not free.

...the LORD will bring a terrible plague upon the livestock in the field...

The bulls in Holland Valley collapse in the untended grass, their ribs prominent as they starve where they lie. Ravenous cougars rip all but the prongs from the elk corpses on the hot tarmac road through the Whitetail Mountains. The meat is poisoned by sickness. It is not long before the wild cats also succumb.

... festering boils will break out on men...

Joseph dabs soothing ointment upon the sores on John’s back, where they nestle among his deep scars. They grow inflamed and fever racks his body, droplets beading across his brow as though he was newly baptised. He bandages Jacob’s arms, where the patchwork of vermilion welts have given way to a new shroud of bulging sores. The Father is kept awake through the humid night by the screams of his infant daughter, boils burning into her tiny face.

...The LORD sent thunder and hail...

The Angels in the fields were nothing more than dust now. Each was incinerated by a lightning strike that evaporated their milky eyes, before claiming their bodies entirely. The church in Fall’s End no longer had a steeple, the hail having shattered it down. The people of Hope County had heard it crumble. The bell had tolled endlessly as ice rained upon it, and had then fallen silent. The thunder had rocked the earth and reduced the mighty statue of the Father to rubble.

...they will devour what little you have left...

There are no longer pumpkins at Rae-Rae’s farm. No longer are the fields blotted with fleshy fruits, but instead, dark with locusts that even devour the metal fencing, the wood of an old dog house, the tarp that covers a rusted truck. Radio towers appear like pillars of black salt, writhing in the fading sunlight. Joseph hides with his family, still ignoring the Deputy’s pleas.

...darkness that can be felt...

Madness came with three days of darkness. The Seed family kneel before the altar, whipping the flesh from their backs, unable to comprehend why God would allow this false prophet to punish them, his chosen, when they have all suffered so much already. Many of their flock walk out of the compound, never to be seen again. The shadow is suffocating, the silence oppressive. Joseph knows no light can be found in sleep- they are all haunted with nightmares.

...loud wailing... worse than there has ever been or ever will be again...

Joseph doesn’t cry when his baby daughter suddenly pales in his arms, her skin and lips fading to a periwinkle blue, cold to the touch. He does not respond to his wife’s heavy sobbing as she clings to the swaddled child. He holds her hand, gently winding his rosary around her palm. He doesn’t cry when he hears John screaming at the hunched figure of his eldest brother, blistered hands gripping at Jacob’s well worn camo jacket and oddly peaceful face, in desperate hope that he might wake. He barely hears the wailing that rings through the compound, through the valley and the mountains. God’s chosen few, chosen no more.

Instead, he radios the Deputy. He speaks in a quiet voice. It is a voice that lingers in the hollow space somewhere between forlorn resignation and tempestuous rage.

And the people of Hope County are at last freed. Purged of Bliss, their scars and swollen tattoos bandaged, the Deputy walks with them through the gates, as the sun rises once more.

Joseph watches them go. 

He sits alone in the ruins of his garden. His Eden. He waits for guidance, an echo of the Voice that had let him climb so high and then allowed his world to be torn apart around him.

He is met with silence.

It is the same aching silence he had known as a boy in the moments after his Father had finished beating him. Perhaps he was still there now, in that moment, resting on a porch in the heat of a Georgia summer. Perhaps he would indeed see the Red Sea part, in the form of a gash in his back where leather met skin.

Perhaps this was not his promised land.

And taking a knife in his malnourished fingers, he cuts into his tall forehead, a permanent reminder to his forsaken soul:

Exodus 7:17

“By this you will know that I am the Lord”.

-----------------------------------

Bold quotations are from the Book of Exodus. Painting is The Great Day of His Wrath, by John Martin.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed! This is my first fanfic for this fandom- I haven’t actually written fanfiction for a few years, (at least, not written down, I write it in my head all the time hahaha) and I’ve been concentrating on my meta essays for FC5, so I apologise if I was a bit rusty!

Also, disclaimer: I’ve never actually read the Bible, and obviously this is a fictional interpretation, so there are almost definitely some inaccuracies, but I tried to research as best I could! I wasn’t sure whether the death of the first born applied to daughters as well as sons, or to adults who were firstborn, but I used both for the sake of story.

Finally, I unashamedly acknowledge that I was 100% inspired by the Prince of Egypt.

#hope county gothic #hope county gothic 2018 #far cry 5 #far cry 5 au #far cry 5 fanfiction #project at eden's gate #joseph seed #john seed #jacob seed #faith seed #it's pretty wordy #and descriptive #but I was too frightened to write dialogue for my first fc5 fic #also confession #I've had this in my drafts for months #I was too scared to post #I've been putting it off all week too #but the first week of the gothic event is nearly over #so I had to pull myself together hahahaha

[moiraineswife]

Mor/Moriel Support post

Because there’s been some stuff going around recently that has been making me feel sad/mad on this subject I thought I’d spread around some love and positivity for my favourite ship. 

One of the biggest reasons I love this ship is the obvious history they have together and the mutual respect and  trust that that’s built up over the years. these two know each other so, so well. They understand each other’s reasons, motivations and histories - they were both there when most of the others’ demons were born. They care about one another so much and I love the...subtlety with this ship. They’re both quite quiet about things but...The depth of feeling and compassion they have for one another is...soul destroying to be frank. I’m just going to quote...a hundred or so of my favourite ‘tiny caring moments’ and scream about them all because this ship is just so good. And they love each other so much I can’t deal. Ahem. This post is gonna be loooong in case you hadn’t guessed. 

It’s really just...extended Mor, Azriel and Moriel meta. That’s it. All the things. All the meta. All the feelings in one easy to access place. 

I’ll do some Az first. The interesting thing about this dynamic is that his...devotion to Mor seems much more apparent emotionally. But it’s quiet and shadowed and rarely brought to the surface directly from him. We hear more about it from other characters or see it through Feyre’s eyes. Mor tends to be more...vocally explicit and also physically explicit (she does things whereas Azriel more just...feels them and lives them. This will become more apparent when I pick apart examples. I hope.) 

Rhys said with soft wrath, “Eris left her for dead in the middle of their woods. Azriel found her a day later. It was all I could do to keep him from going to either court and slaughtering them all.”

I love this bit, obviously for the insight into the history that we get, the fact that it was Azriel who crossed court lines and located Mor and brought her back to where she was safe. Which is..incredibly important for both of them as characters. Azriel has lived his entire life feeling and being treated as though he is unworthy of basic rights. His blood family saw him/treated him like an animal, he has never felt as though he had any value. Naturally Mor’s family almost repeating the abuse that he suffered and turning her into what he was perceived as (worthless) upsets him, it makes her want to help him and it makes her want to hurt the people who hurt her as they no doubt remind him of his own abusers. 

I think there are some..really interesting parallels going on here. Mor, had a very different upbringing to Az, she had so much power, so much status, as essentially a princess, but she almost had a similar problem? She was never treated as a person, as an individual. No-one ever so her, no-one ever saw her value as her. They saw her power, they wanted to breed that into their bloodlines, they saw her as little better than a prize bitch that they could use. 

Once she lost her virginity she no longer had any value to them any more. Her father brutalised her then left her with a sadist telling him she was ‘his problem now’ She went from broodmare to worthless problem all because of how her family perceived her. Which is exactly how Az grew up too. He knows exactly what she’s going through and that he is the one to save her, to think her worth saving despite the fact that all of her ‘value’ is now deemed worthless is...Important for their story. 

Maybe I should have asked Mor to come. But she’d left after dinner, pale-faced and jumpy, ignoring Cassian’s attempt to speak with her. Azriel had taken to the clouds to contact his spies. He’d quietly promised the pacing Cassian to find Mor when he was done.

I think, and I’m doing a liiittle bit of leaping here but I don’t think it’s a huge stretch, that Mor and Azriel can talk to each other about things they can’t really put on the others. And that’s because they understand each other. As I mentioned above even though the...class if you like, of their upbringing was totally different, their situations, the abuse that they suffered, is incredibly similar. It allows them to relate to one another, it allows them to understand one another and get through to one another even when no-one else can. Even when they won’t let anyone else...They’ll let each other.  There’s such a deep bond between these two, so much care and so much love, they’re constantly, quietly, looking out for one another. 

“Does he mind what he does? Not the spying, I mean. What he did to the Attor today.”

“It’s hard to tell with him—and he’d never tell me.[...]But Azriel … Cassian tries, I try—but I think the only person who ever gets him to admit to any sort of feeling is Mor. And that’s only when she’s pestered him to the point where even his infinite patience has run out.”

Two things in this part - as above, even when Az pushes others away and won’t let them in...He will with Mor (as she will with him) The second thing is Mor’s persistence. One of the arguments I’ve seen a lot about Mor is that she doesn’t seem to care about Az that much or that she doesn’t push him enough into overcoming his insecurities when it comes to a relationship with her. She doesn’t seem bothered enough to make the effort to get through to him but..That line of thinking is completely and utterly countered by this? We know how much Az will shut himself off and brood, we know how much he represses, how much he contains, how little of himself he wants to show, how hard Feyre has to work to even wring a smile from him when he’s upset with himself. We know how much patience Azriel has so we therefore know how much effort it must take for Mor to get through to him, to open him up, to let her in, to let him share his burdens and allow her to help. And she does that. She does that for him, she sits and she works away at his endless patience because she knows him and she knows that he needs to talk about this he just can’t. So she makes it possible for him to do that. 

Azriel continued his attempt to infiltrate their courts—still to no avail. I heard about it mostly from Mor, who always knew when he’d return to the House of Wind, and always made a point to be there the moment he touched down.

There’s just...so much in here if you actually dig into it? The fact that she knows when he’s going to get home from his super secret spy missions. (which is...a whole other can of worms that may or may not get opened at a later date) but the fact that she always makes sure she is there. She is the first thing that he sees when he gets back from spying and torture and risking his life. She is there and she gives him that opportunity to be vulnerable, to just be Az before he has to be the High Lord’s spymaster and report to him. She gives him the chance to talk to her and decompress and open up if he needs to. And just the fact that she’s there. Every time. Not even Az can mistake that, the effort she puts into this, into him, into making sure that she’s there to take care of him is just...So much? 

Especially when you factor in that this is the House of Wind. She can’t winnow in there and she doesn’t have wings. So unless she pesters Rhys or Cassian to carry her up every single time Az comes back (which I doubt) she climbs up ten thousand stairs just so she can be there when Az lands, just in case he needs her, just in case this time he lets her in and lets her help him (because this is Azriel. she probably satisfies herself that he’s physically okay, tries to ask after him emotionally and he just nods and tells her quietly, politely, but coldly, that he has to see Rhys) I have Feelings about this, okay. 

And this isn’t the only example of her going above and beyond the call of duty to help Az and make him even a little bit happier: 

Getting Azriel to take any time for himself that didn’t involve workor training was nearly impossible. And when I pointed out that he didgo to Rita’s with her whenever she asked, Mor simply informed me that it had taken her four centuries to get him to do that.

Four hundred years. It took her four hundred years to convince him to just let himself have a night off and go dancing with them. It took her four hundred years to convince him that he deserved that, that time off, that time to be a little selfish, to think about himself for once. She spent four hundred years doing this for him, she never gave up with it because she cares about him, she loves him, and it doesn’t matter how long it takes her, how much effort and energy she has to expend to coax him into doing these things...if it will benefit him she does it. And she ‘simply informs’ Feyre. She doesn’t make a big song and dance about this. She doesn’t wax eloquent about how difficult it was for her, how stubborn he was, how hard she had to work to get him to do this. Because it’s not about her. It’s about Az. And this has made his life a little bit easier, has made him a little bit happier...and that’s enough. 

Mor keeping her distance from Az and not crossing lines with him, not pushing him into a relationship with her and not trying to fix all of his problems isn’t because she doesn’t care. It’s not because she’s not willing to put in the effort. It’s not because she doesn’t love him. It’s not because he’s not worth it. She spend four fukcing centuries coaxing him into taking a little bit of time for himself. She would probably spend eternity convincing him that he’s worthy of her. The reason isn’t her lack of care/empathy/love/patience/whatever. It’s respect. 

(if you haven’t sussed it out yet...this is going to be Long. so. cuts are being introduced now...venture onwards for more of the above)  

“So if he were ever interested would you … ?”

“The issue, actually, wouldn’t be me. It’d be him. I could peel off my clothes right in front of him and he wouldn’t move an inch. He might have defied and proved those Illyrian pricks wrong at every turn, but it won’t matter if Rhys makes him Prince of Velaris—he’ll see himself as a bastard-born nobody, and not good enough for anyone. Especially me.”

“But … are you interested?”

“Why are you asking such things?” Her voice became tight, sharp. More wary than I’d ever heard.

Mor knows how Azriel feels about her (the whole of bloody Prythian knows how Azriel feels about her okay) she’s not ignorant or oblivious to him. She just refuses to pressure him into something she knows he’s not ready for. At this point the reader knows how much Azriel wants Mor, but she knows if she took her clothes off right there in front of him and offered herself to him on a silver platter, he wouldn’t take it. She is not the one that’s stopping this relationship from moving forwards. Azriel isn’t ready. She knows that, she knows he’s insecure, knows he doubts himself and she tries so hard to help him with that. 

But there is a limit to what she can do. You can’t wave a magic wand and just ‘fix’ someone with those kinds of insecurities. She can’t just say a few sweet words and smile at him and tell him ‘no it’s okay Az! you’re totally worthy of me!’ and erode an entire childhood corrupted by abuse built upon the foundation of Azriel’s lack of worth. It’s not that simple. Mor knows that and SJM knows it too and gives it its due full credit to her. it’d be so easy to just have a big dramatic scene where Mor tells Az everything he thinks is rubbish that she loves him, has always loves him and that she wants him and it’s all great! But she hasn’t done that because it’s not realistic with what Azriel has been through and believes about himself. 

I think Azriel is pretty damn aware that Mor wants him. I think he knows how she feels. I think, in 500 centuries, it’s pretty obvious to them that they love one another and what they want. But he doesn’t think he’s good enough for her. He thinks she deserves better. And that is something that is very deeply ingrained in his self and his past and his history and it can’t simply be erased. People saying Mor should just go tell him how she feels! Go fix all his insecurities and make him believe he’s worthy of her clearly don’t understand how those things work. But Mor can’t just make them all go away with a few nice words. If she could she’d have done it centuries ago - not even for romantic purposes just to help him be happier and more comfortable in his own skin. But she can’t. Suggesting otherwise is shortsighted and ignorant tbh, this isn’t something you can easily talk away. And it also shouldn’t be put upon Mor to try and solve 500 years worth of issues that stem from an incredibly traumatic childhood just because she’s a romantic interest of Azriel’s. That’s not fair either. 

On a slightly lighter note I also sort of love the way Mor reacts to Feyre’s questioning. This is, to my memory, the only personal question Feyre asks Mor that she reacts in any way badly to. (And keep in mind that this woman...pretty openly talks about the horrific abuse that she suffered at the hands of her family amongst other, really cheery topics, that Feyre brings up. She’s not reserved as a character, she’s incredibly open and trusting) Azriel is the only thing that causes her hackles to raise, the only subject that makes her wary and defensive. She doesn’t want to talk about her relationship with Az, she doesn’t want to talk about her feelings for Az.  

This starts to ere on the side of headcanon but...I think it scares her. I think the way she feels about Az, the depth of that feeling, the things that she would do for him terrify her. 

Mor closed her eyes as she tipped back her head, sunning her golden face with the same irreverence that Cassian perhaps sought to shield Azriel from—and Mor herself perhaps tried to shield Azriel from as well.

[...]

“I’ve had lovers,” Mor clarified, “but … I get bored.”

I think Mor is afraid of commitment. I think that irreverence is for self-protection. She doesn’t want to get close to anyone, she doesn’t want to love or trust anyone to the extent that they would have any power over her. But I don’t think she can help that when it comes to Az. But I think that what they have now...She can love him, she can care for him, she can pester him into looking after herself but...She’s still behind that line. She’s still safe. And I don’t think this is about keeping herself safe. I think it’s about keeping Az safe. 

Mor is...pretty self-aware/switched on in general as a character and she’s pretty open about things that might not make her look that good (she fairly openly admits, for example, about getting bored with her lovers and moving on fairly quickly and without much mourning) I think that Mor has a habit of shutting people out when they get in too deep. I think there’s that surface openness and the appearance of wearing her heart on her sleeve and being happy to give anyone a chance and just trust them and love them as much as they like but...Only for a little while. 

Once things start getting serious, once there might be actual ties getting formed I think she panics and I think she backs out. She values her freedom, she values being able to make her own choices and I think she needs that. I think it’s affirming to be able to back out of these relationships and be completely in command of herself again. I think she gets scared and she has a very natural reaction and she runs away. And I think she’s petrified of doing this to Az, she’s petrified of hurting him and it’s so much easier to just...maintain what they have. She gets to be around him and love him and look after him but there’s none of the risk of ever hurting him the way she fears she might. 

“We try not to talk about the Incident. He and Cassian … I’ve never seen them fight like that. Hopefully I never will again.” 

[...]

After I got what I wanted, after … everything, I didn’t like that it caused a rift with him and Rhys, or even him and Az, so … never again.”

“And you were never with anyone after it?” Not the cold, beautiful shadowsinger who tried so hard not to watch her with longing on his face?

“I’ve had lovers,” Mor clarified, “but … I get bored. And Cassian has had them, too, so don’t get that unrequited-love, moony-woo-woo look. He just wants what he can’t have, and it’s irritated him for centuries that I walked away and never looked back.”

This scene has been picked apart a fair few times and...it never seems to make Mor look all that good but...I don’t know I always thought this was one of her main reasons for not being with Azriel. And it’s the same as the above - it might hurt him. Mor isn’t oblivious to what happened after her decision to sleep with Cass and how it affected everyone else. I don’t think she says ‘it’s irritated him for centuries’ as a jibe at Cass, I think it’s the opposite, I think it’s a jibe at herself. I think she knows how she affected Cassian, I think she knows how she’s affected all of the lovers that she’s been with for a night or a week and then walked away from because it got too much and I don’t think that’s something that she ever, ever wants to put Azriel through. And I think this is what Cass is trying to shield Az from as well - they’re both doing the same thing for the same reasons. 

And if you look here...she doesn’t talk about herself at all in this moment. ‘After...everything’ ‘everything’ being her family brutalising her in such a way as it leaves Rhys fresh from the horrors of Under the Mountain lost for words centuries later, and she doesn’t talk about herself at all. She mentions that it caused a rift between Cassian and Rhys and Cassian and Azriel and that she didn’t like it and this is one of the big reasons behind her not pursuing Azriel. She doesn’t want to upset his relationship with his brothers. She places more value on that than a potential romantic relationship with her. 

I also think that Mor herself doesn’t want this dynamic around her to change and it’s not difficult to see why. If she and Azriel get together the Inner Circle will change. It might drive a wedge between Az and his brothers, it will change things between them and I think that scares her a lot. I think Mor needs this little family that she’s built up around herself. I think they make her feel safe - they are the first and perhaps only people who have truly, deeply cared about her the person. The people who don’t see her as a power, who don’t see her as breeding stock, who don’t see her as The Morrigan, they just see Mor. And they love her just for that and will risk their lives for her and will keep her safe and out of danger just for her. I think she’s terrified of losing that little network of support and trust and love, she’s terrified of upsetting that balance, of losing that. 

I don’t think Mor anticipated what was going to happen to her after she slept with Cassian. 

“They knew what my family would do for debasing myself with a bastard-born lesser faerie.” She brushed a hand over her abdomen, as if she could feel that nail they’d spiked through it. “They were right.”

They knew. They were right. Rhys and Az were aware of what would happen to her but I don’t think Mor was. And I don’t think that’s a huge stretch. Her family might have been, a bit cold, a bit rough and business like, selling her off to the highest bidder without a thought for her choices even if he happened to be a sadist but...That kind of thing was normalised in the Court of Nightmares. Mor had witnessed this taking place with her cousins and probably other females. This was just the done thing. I don’t think a 17 year old girl would ever suspect that her family were capable of what they did to her. And I think this probably gives her a fairly serious host of trust issues, even now. The same way Azriel’s past affects him I think Mor’s past affects her and she’s scared of changing things and ruining the only true home and family she’s ever had. 

I love all the little moments between this ship. The tiny looks, the little ways they look after each other - Mor interrupting Cass at the first dinner at the House of Wind to stop him telling Azriel’s backstory before he’s ready. The way Azriel moves closer to Mor in the mortal realm when she gets upset with the queens and he wants to help her. Mor telling Feyre to paint Azriel’s eyes next to hers. The way Azriel watches Mor. Azriel snarling at Jurian and letting some of that rage show through when he calls her a liar. Az warning Mor against going to the mortal realm, not wanting her to risk herself. The way Mor looks to Az and silently warns him not to volunteer for yet another dangerous task when Rhys mentions going to The Weaver. So many of them I could talk about for the next six years. But I also love the bigger moments that happen towards the end and I want to look at them a bit more closely... 

Faster than any of us could see, Jurian fired a hidden ash bolt through Azriel’s chest.

Mor screamed.

[...]

Cassian and Rhys hauled Azriel between them, his blood splattering on the floor behind us as we went up the twisting stairways of the king’s castle.

I tried not to step in it as Mor and I followed behind, Jurian at our backs. Mor was shaking—trying hard not to, but shaking as she stared at the protruding end of that arrow, visible between the gap in Azriel’s wings.

 I just...enjoy it when we have characters who are usually fairly aloof and lacking in any strong emotional reactions (which Mor and Az both are. Az is far more reserved across the board but...Mor very rarely lets any strong, deep emotion show through. She’s bright and bubbly and carefree whenever she can be but in the rare moments when she is upset or scared or in pain she pushes people away and withdraws, exactly the same way Az does) display them because someone they love is suffering. The angst demon in me lives for it. 

Mor, on her knees beside Cassian, hurtled for the king with a cry of pure wrath.

He sent a punch of power to her. She dodged, a knife angled in her hand, and—

Azriel cried out in pain.

She froze. Stopped a foot from the throne. Her knife clattered to the floor.

The king rose. “What a mighty queen you are,” he breathed.

And Mor backed away. Step by step.

“What a prize,” the king said, that black gaze devouring her.

Azriel’s head lifted from where he was sprawled in his own blood, eyes full of rage and pain as he snarled at the king, “Don’t you touch her.”

Mor looked at Azriel—and there was real fear there. Fear—and something else. She didn’t stop moving until she again kneeled beside him and pressed a hand to his wound. Azriel hissed—but covered her bloody fingers with his own.

 Ahhh, the moment the hallelujah chorus began in the minds of every moriel shipper and we finally had Our Moment. (delivered while crouching in a pool of blood but, that’s just how you identify my otp at this point MOVING ON) 

Right, first off, I want to discuss the fact that Mor has no magic  at this point. All she has is a knife in her hand and she is facing down a sadistic, wildly powerful tyrant king who is holding all over their magic in thrall with nothing but a dagger. And then I want to talk about the fact that IN SPITE OF THAT she still could have gotten close enough to wound him. The only thing that stops her from killing or seriously wounding the king and putting an end to this war here and now...is Azriel. 

Juuust let the wonderfulness of that sink in okay. Azriel, who has so many doubts, so many insecurities, so little self-worth, who thinks he has so little value watches the woman that he love refuse to change the tide of a war, the course of history, because she can’t bear to let him die. (I don’t think, for the record, this is going to be something Az reacts well to. I’m fairly sure he’s going to be drowning in survivor’s guilt in ACOWAR and is going to be fairly soundly convinced that they should have let him die for the greater good. but...ignoring that for the moment) 

There’s just..so much of what they do for each other, how much they understand each other and each other’s history contained in this one little scene. Mor makes this huge decision for Az, for saving his life and you get the impression that...There is nothing she wouldn’t do to save him in this moment here. She stops, she backs away, she backs down, she doesn’t fight back, she softens herself, makes herself be meek, makes herself be submissive because the alternative is losing Azriel and that is the one thing she cannot and will not stand. 

And then there’s Azriel’s line. Az, an arrow piercing straight through his chest and out his back, lying there in a pool of his own blood, barely able to lift his head, snarls at the king of Hybern, who is controlling the poison that’s in currently in his blood, because of how he speaks to Mor. And I don’t think this is base jealousy, okay, Az is above that. This is because of what the king says to her in the line preceding his. 

‘What a prize.’ The king looks at Mor and he sees what her family saw. He sees an object. He sees a trophy. He sees a tool for breeding. He tears her back down to that terrified 17 year old virgin, a prize to be won, a thing to be sold off to the highest bidder and Azriel won’t stand for that. He won’t stand for him treating her in that way, reducing her to that again, won’t stand to see him touch her with those thoughts in his head and he will do whatever it takes, even when he’s literally lying in a pool of his own blood dying to stop her ever enduring that fate again. Even for a second. 

And that final little beat between them. Mor looking at him, with that fear, that real fear that she lets them all see for him and that ‘something else’ (which I’m pretty sure is just....love. but it probably needs a bit more debate than that) not taking her eyes off of him as she walks back to him, kneels at his side and places a hand over his wound (in a lovely mirror to the end scene where she heals him) Az placing his hand over hers and just completing that little circle between them it’s just..a really, really beautiful moment. 

Okay...I have...run out of moriel moments to yell about (no I haven’t there are so many more little ones I never properly fleshed out or quoted) but this is...quite long enough and I think I have made the points that I wanted to make (albeit in a rather long, meandering and roundabout fashion) but I just...really wanted to remind myself and...anyone else who manages to struggle through this, why I love this little ship so much. I can’t wait to see what happens to them in ACOWAR. I don’t think it’ll all be easy, I don’t even know if they’ll have a happy ending I just...want them to have an arc, I just want more and that’ll be a start. Anyway, if you struggled along to the end of this with me, bless you, and come yell at me because...if you’ve made it this far you probably love these two a lot and we therefore have many things to yell about. 

#moriel #morrigan #azriel #acowar #acomaf #acotar series #moriel meta #my meta #mor meta #azriel meta #acotar meta #ship: shadow fire #otp: a whisper of darkness among the stars #have i mentioned how much i love this ship lately #this is...more heavily mor/moriel weighted than it is Az #because I think...in this aspect...Az is pretty talked over #his feelings appear to be pretty obvious #Mor is the one people seem to have more of an issue with so I focused more on her #but Az definitely gets a good lot of mentioning because #i can't help myself #anyway #i just felt like...spreading some positivity #and there have been a lot of these points i've been meaning to make for a while now #so here they are #text post tag #long post

[wolfvirago]

thinking about the pain of being the chosen of gods, and what happens to Robin once she ascends and becomes a kami herself.

Robin literally goes through a purification ritual to ascend and in the process she purges her best friend/lover Kagemori from her soul, killing him for good….

And then once the Dark One is dead and sealed away, she’s left alone, bloody, a god in her own right but unable to bring back the dead. Haruki is still missing, if not dead. Kagemori is dead. Her best friend, the night spirit, might be dead too thanks to her light.

She has her mother’s people/clan to support her but it isn’t the same.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #;how does a shibe use an iphone with paws? (mobile)

[wolfvirago]

--- on trauma

Robin has C-PTSD.

Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is formed when an individual endures long-lasting and repeated bouts of ongoing trauma, typically in childhood. Survivors often find themselves caught in an inescapable cycle of grieving that lasts months and years beyond the loss and remains fresh and raw in spite of the time and changes that have occurred since the event.

The individual is tethered to the past by an inability to move on from their loss. In psychology this is referred to as Complicated Grief and though it is most commonly discussed with death, it can present itself for grieving lost time, stolen youth and lives unlived.

This appeared in her at a very young age, considering her mother and father died within a year of one another and she was never able to leave the Lost Woods as promised.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #will prob flesh this out more later but #i was reading a meta somewhere else on another character and eyezoomed on this disorder #*chuckles* i'm in danger (saw herself too much in a psychoanalytical headcanon post)

[wolfvirago]

au centric meta -- the vault and survivor-beast

Like many of the Vaults created by Vault-Tec, Vault 98 was used for experimentation purposes. This Vault was located within NY state, specifically on the border between NY and PA. Settled in a forested mountain on the outskirts of a residential area, the Vault was in good location for many willing inhabitants.

Robin's family lived on the very outside of the town, and since her father was a veteran, they were able to get space inside the Vault. When the bombs fell in October of 2077, the Kobayashi Calatia family was ushered inside with 34 other residents.

What awaited the family was not kind. The Vault's experiment was to try and fuse the human inhabitants with animal traits, to prepare and make better soldiers in the (supposed) ongoing war.

Many people did not survive the experiments. Robin and Haruki were quick to become some of the only living subjects, placed into stasis to see if the mutation would slow down and not kill them as it had the others.

Due to faulty cyro pods, Robin and Haruki were sealed much longer than expected. By the time she woke up, the Vault was completely abandoned. The faulty pods had allowed some subjects to escape, which caused the researchers and employees to be massacred by the stampeding horde of mutant chimeras.

Robin finds her brother's pod is empty. But there's no blood around the pod, and she swears she can sense his scent still lingering. She heads out into the Wasteland, desperate to find her brother and try to make sense of the world they were reborn in.

#v; what makes you SPECIAL (fallout au) #;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

Weapons Robin is highly proficient in: swords, longswords, knives, longbow

Proficient + semi-proficient: axes, handaxes, hand-weapons such as lances and hammers, bows, staffs, scythes

Not At All Proficient: gun.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #only verse she can use a gun is the mando au lmao #otherwise she is dropping it like a hot potato

[wolfvirago]

--- AU centric meta [Mando AU]: The Lost Clan

When Robin fled from her home's burning remains, she was rescued by a pack of wolves. They guided her and raised her, using her and their Force sensitivity to communicate. Eventually, the lead wolf led her to a group of Mandalorians who knew the pack and camped near their territory every spring.

Robin was then taken in as a Foundling by this small clan, who raised her and trained her in teachings of old. They taught her to respect nature and life, only killing if needed to survive.

This clan would be called the Taiyo Clan (Taiyo meaning "sun" in Nipponian dialect), due to their repeated visit to the planet Nippon where Robin was born.

However, when Robin reached early adulthood, her clan was all slain by the Imperial Forces. To this day, she is unsure if any members managed to escape like she did.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #v; daughter of the loth wolf (mandalorian au)

[wolfvirago]

--- on sun village and ise shrine

The Kobayashi clan exists within Ise... But how can that be? The original Ise village where the "Saiō" (斎王) would reside was buried long ago, now only existing as a replica in today's Japan.

The truth is that the village the clan resides in is a mirror- a drop of time frozen. Much like the Lost Woods, members inside age slower than they would in the outside world. Some members have existed for centuries, claiming the kami's grace have allowed them to exist this long.

Their leader, a mysterious blind matriarch known only as "Ama-oba-san/sama," or Grandma Ama, foretells visions the kami and gods gift her every summer solstice.

A ceremony known as Jingū Shikinen Sengū is held every twenty years at the Ise shrine to honor the many deities enshrined within it and other shrines throughout the world. In this mirror Sun Village, the village and shrine are metaphorically torn apart and rebuilt anew for the kami.

Because of this ritual, the mysterious location of the Sun Village changes. Only a strange nursery rhyme and the mirror of light may guide their chosen to them.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

--- important items in Robin's inventory (2/??)

An item that does not fall into Robin's possession until later in her story, a key item in sealing away the Dark One is an item used by the kami to keep Amaterasu-omikami from retreating into her lair.

This is the Yata no Kagami (八咫鏡)... A sacred mirror that has existed for thousands of years. In order to prevent normal humans from using it, the mirror appears eroded and covered with rust. Nobody can see their reflection within.

It is within the Yata no Kagami's true mirror's edge that Robin witnesses her true self, a woman who existed many eons ago, continuously reborn as Kobayashi matriarchs until the true heiress of sun would come. It acts as the guide to finding the Sun Village and Ise Shrine to complete her purification.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

--- important items in Robin's inventory (1/??)

Her mother's sword, passed down through generation to generation of Kobayashi matriarchs. Over time, the sword has lost its true name and abilities, however, it is aptly skilled in slaying yokai. The blade gleams white on occasion, seeming to perfectly reflect sunlight into fine light.

In actuality, it is the Dojikiri Yasutsuna ((童子切) demon cutter). Over time its tsuba has been changed to represent the Sun Wolf kami of the Kobayashi caln's teachings.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

Robin cannot walk in heels. She has never needed to, beyond maybe trying her mother’s old ones as a little girl when playing dress up. She would probably fall over if you made her wear heels to a fancy event.

Geta, however? She can run and battle in them fine.

(Yes, even the single tooth geta like what an oiran wears. How is that different from heels? Idk ask me later.)

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #;how does a shibe use an iphone with paws? (mobile)

[wolfvirago]

Descendant vs Ascendant

The magic used by wielders of the Sun Wolf Kagura is highly corrosive. The human body can't logically take it, which leads to the slow dwindling of energy and life force from unexperienced users.

Inu's hair was always pale, however, it became pure white once she began to use her powers more and more. The same would happen to her descendants.

Robin's hair is not pure white yet. After ascending to a kami, it became even further blonde rather than clear white.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)

[wolfvirago]

DETAILS ABOUT OCS [accepting] [x]

asks combined for one mega meta post

@uncxntrxllable said: 🚗 CAR — does your oc have a driver's license? can they drive/operate any automobiles/machinery besides cars? 🎻 VIOLIN — does your oc play any instruments? what is their skill level (beginner/intermediate/advanced/virtuoso/etc)? 💯 HUNDRED POINTS SYMBOL — share three random facts about your oc that others may not know. 🐉 DRAGON — what is your oc's favorite mythical creature? 💛 YELLOW HEART — how many languages does your oc speak? what language(s) are they learning, if any? 🖤 BLACK HEART — has your oc killed or seriously wounded anyone before? have they broken someone's heart and/or broken someone's trust? 🍔 HAMBURGER — is your oc good at cooking? are they good at baking? which one do they prefer? 🧐 FACE WITH MONOCLE — is your oc more logical or emotional?

@lambfated said: 😓 DOWNCAST FACE WITH SWEAT — is your oc open-minded or stubborn? are they inquisitive or do they prefer to keep to their bubble of knowledge?

under the cut for length

Q: does your oc have a driver's license? can they drive/operate any automobiles/machinery besides cars?

A: Technically Robin can drive, her parents had a car brought into the forest, and sometimes cars of forgotten souls have wound up there. However, because Robin hasn't left the forest, she really doesn't have an actual license lmao

Q: does your oc play any instruments? what is their skill level (beginner/intermediate/advanced/virtuoso/etc)?

A: In certain verses, she's educated in traditional instruments such as koto and shamisen. Her mother left behind a shamisen, but mostly Robin has it on display rather than using it. She's afraid to touch it.

Q: share three random facts about your oc that others may not know.

A: 1: Robin was originally a Zelda based OC, 2: At one point Robin had red wings Maximum Ride style, 3: her favorite food is Japanese katsu curry plate.

Q: what is your oc's favorite mythical creature?

A: She's tied between the large wolf beasts of ancient times and dragons. As a kid, she liked kitsunes best, but her opinion on them has since soured.

Q: how many languages does your oc speak? what language(s) are they learning, if any?

A: English and Japanese. She still studies the latter since her mother was the only one who spoke it consistently inside her home.

Q: has your oc killed or seriously wounded anyone before? have they broken someone's heart and/or broken someone's trust?

A: Human wise... Not yet. But she did seriously wound Ashireiko when the nogitsune first tried to consume/possess her. It was the second time her powers activated unconsciously.

Q: is your oc good at cooking? are they good at baking? which one do they prefer?

A: Cooking! She has good experience from her parents and cooks to feed herself 99% of the time, since there's no take-out restaurants in the Lost Woods realm- just the occasional ghost konbini/convenience store.

Q: is your oc more logical or emotional?

A: She'll claim she's a mix, but really she's more emotional than logical.

Q: is your oc open-minded or stubborn? are they inquisitive or do they prefer to keep to their bubble of knowledge?

A: That's hard to say. She can be open-minded to learning new things about people, places and things... But stubborn about why she can't just leave family tradition behind to become her own person.

#uncxntrxllable #lambfated #;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #;letters delivered (asks) #long post /

[wolfvirago]

-- on the lost woods (cont.)

If you're not careful, you can accidentally slip out of bounds of reality. It's hard to explain how or where they happen... Perhaps an abandoned house's wall that's a shade too dark compared to the others. Doors that shouldn't lead anywhere. Ground not meant to be stepped on, or a tree not meant to be leaned against. Perhaps a hole beneath the roots of said tree, revealing a tunnel into strange realities...

The Lost Woods seems to be its own pocket dimension. It creates an infinite loop, trapping unwary travelers inside of it unless they know the proper path. It’s evident that space is distorted in this area. It’s not too far-out of an idea that it might even warp space to reach other worlds.

Try not to panic. Panicking causes you to lose your senses and make noise, which may attract unwanted visitors.

May the kami save you if you hear something wandering around in the brush nearby, because it sure as hell has heard you…

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta) #unreality / #i need to research more about the backrooms since that sorta feel is what i want for the lost woods

[wolfvirago]

-- on the lost woods

Touched by heaven, a tear of kami; the forest on the edge of reality is a sacred place.

An a seemingly infinite woodland with trees towering above any who look up... Daytime will feel like one is within a dream, the soft whistle of the winds will whisk across the tops of the trees, the branches slowly moving back and forth in the wind, the azure sky glistening above. After hours of this seemingly endless peace, night will fall, the sky turns black, cold uncaring mists and fog filters through the trees, with branches dark as night; dangerous supernatural entities wander the forest floor hunting for prey.

The Lost Woods are presumed to be infinite but some reports indicate that assumption false. However, only a small handful have returned from the forest, and speak of a strange wolf-witch and a sunlight infused blade that guided them from the mists back to society.

Compasses refuse to work. Climbing the trees may lead to nothing but endless leaves and branches, a sky so far out of reach.

Most of the Lost Woods terrain is forested land with occasional varying terrain, such as hills and mountains. Rivers may also be rarely seen and can even be used to exit the woods if a wanderer is lucky enough. Multiple distinctive tree species populate the forests, along with smaller flora including but not limited to bushes, shrubs, tall grass, and fungus. Strangely, dead trees emanate depression and dread, and the reasons for this phenomenon are currently unknown. Wanderers often experience depression due to various factors. On occasion, wanderers experience 6-second lapses of their greatest regrets and mistakes, resulting in depression, or will mistakenly hear the voices of loved ones calling to them from the fog.

Only one clan has ever settled here and managed to evade the effects of the Lost Woods' strange curses and monstrosities.

The Lost Woods is only found if you want to get away. A place to disappear. A place where one falls between tree and earth, sky and ground. Light and dark. Dusk and night.

Regardless of where you are in the country, one false step, one cursed wish, is all it takes to fall into the haunted realm of lost souls.

#;from the depths of the woods where the wind was born (meta)