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nevertheless-moving · 21 days

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Hesina Willshaper AU

Step one canon divergence: Amaram's army doesn't do the kind thing. Kaladin's listed next of kin are sent a letter stiffly informing them that their son is a deserter and, thanks to the highmarshall's mercy, has been sold into slavery.

Step two canon divergence: a light spren has started following Hesina around.

The letter reaches hearthstone.

Hesina cries the bones of the first ideal through labor pangs. Their wretched diamond lamp grows slightly dimmer during childbirth.

Hesina and Lirin discuss if there's anyway they could possibly find their son and pay his slave debt. They're not optimistic.

Hesina talks with her lightspren.

Lirin and Hesina talk again about trying to find their son, now that Oroden is starting to be weaned.

Hesina appears to have grown taller. No one but the two of them seem to be aware but they're worried other future changes might be more noticeable.

Hesina and Lirin realize that she can mold rock as if it was clay with stormlight. A spark of hope for freeing their son emerges.

The two leave town.

They find a slave market in the nearest city. They see other parent's sons, but not their own.

Hesina swears to free those in bondage. Stormlight starts coming easier.

They make a tunnel. Rebellion follows. Lirin is horrified by the violence (the violence is not actually that bad all things considered. a couple guards dead. some bystanders frightened. Fair amount of property damage as they rob the military barracks food supply, steal every sphere that's not nailed down. and also steal the spheres that are nailed down. (Lirin won't admit it but the stealing from lamps part is kindof fun.)).

Many of those they freed flee. Some return to slavery willingly, scared of retribution. Many decide to follow the Radiant woman who has vowed to see others like them freed.

The group proceed to the next town. They find another slave market. They make a tunnel. There is more resistance than last time, clearly they were warned something might happened. Hesina kills a man.

Lirin is terrified by what his wife is becoming.

Hesina swears to shelter those without homes. The lightspren forms an unbreakable hammer, perfect for knocking crem free from buildings. And for knocking down men.

A now larger motley group seeks shelter in a mountain town razed in one of Alethkar's many skirmishes over the last decades. Hesina builds homes. Lirin begs her to stay here, to stop fighting before she goes to far down this path, not to go to war. The slaves they've freed are split, many wanting to stay, hide, some wanting to fight and free more, with a radiant at their head, there's a real chance to change things. Hesina lingers, practicing, spends some time falling in and out of shadesmar.

Lirin and Hesina separate.

Lirin stays with Oroden and the noncombatants. Hesina leads those who want to fight to another city, still trying to find their son, still trying to free everyone's children.

The town settles into a routine. Hesina and Lirin miss one another. This is the first time they've gone longer than two days without seeing each other in the last 25 years, and the two days was only when Lirin had to travel to where someone had overturned a cart on the road nearby and Hesina had to stay and watch the children, too young to travel. besides that, it had been every day. they keep turning to talk to each other.

While the army is gone, the free town is attacked by those trying to reclaim her property.

Hesina swims deliberately through shadesmar for the first time. reaches lirin just in time.

Lirin accepts that not fighting won't stop the violence. (It breaks him just a little bit)

Hesina shouts that one person's freedom ends where another's begins. She vows to fight against powers which would rather see their people in cages then homes. A thousand light spren rise up to grant her strength.

(yes I know she's moving fast through the oaths. but she's always been a thoughtful woman and she raised two children who asked difficult questions and now shes mother to another several hundred. honestly she had already worked through some of these concepts before they became actionable on such a grand scale.)

Lirin vows to support his wife through whatever trials the Almighty seems inclined to put her through.

The lightspren, who has started to get some memories back, remembers Oathgate Spren not terribly far from here by physical realm measurements, guarding a hidden human city

the stone remembers the way the radiants once traveled.

The path to a kingdom in the sky is slow — there are many cages to break on the way.

Kaladin doesn't know it right away, because people weren't exactly telling slaves about the freedom riots, but slave wagons start having harder and harder times reaching the shattered planes after him.

Someone mocks Lirin for having a wife so determined to pursue the masculine art of war. Lirin gets pissy and decides to show them by learning to read and write to help support the administrative side of his wife's kingdom wide asskicking.

The highprinces lead a fairly successful misinformation campaign about the slave riots, lots of accusations of rampant violence, the dregs of society lashing out, you can probably imagine

The ongoing rebellion is large enough that word trickles to the bridge crews, encouraging bridge four's hope for escaping, while also making it substantially more daunting, as the crews are even better guarded than canon.

Rumors of a female radiant swirl around. Most people assume it's a woman in shardplate with some sort of tunneling fabrial, which is still pretty crazy, but several major players Take Note

A very large and tired huddled mass of people reach Urithiru. there's just enough squires, and two new willshapers with their own oaths, to make tunnels through the shattered planes and reach the oathgate without being seen by the alethi armies

the parshendi army is another story, but some are willing to take a chance listening to the neshua kadal, and come with them.

The political implications of Dalinar freeing 1000 slaves is slightly more complex, especially considering the rebellions have been impacting Sadeas the hardest

About a week after being freed, Kaladin hires a spanreed intermediary to write home and find out if his hometown is alright (again, a lot of misinformation and rumors about the violence of the riots)

Is informed by Laral that his family left town looking for him shortly before the riots started, were presumed dead

Kaladin is under the impression that 1) his parents are dead because of him 2) the Rebellion is not the righteous fallback plan that he and the men were hoping it was.

Hesina has many reasons to go to the shattered planes. Nearest part of the trade network for food and necessary goods. Many slaves to be freed from there, and a part of her still hopes to find her son, even thought its been so long. Home of Alethkar's political leaders, the source of Alethkar's slavery.

I have spent. A LOT of time imagining many possible reunions between kaladin and his mom in my highly specific high oath hesenia au. She has a couple faces she could wear when visiting the planes. Brightlady. Radiant. Cagebreaker. Queen of Urithiru (not her real title, they're tentatively trying the Listener council model, but they know what the Alethi will understand). Even darkeyed mother, if she and Lirin approach slowly from a different direction. Honestly, pleased as I am with all of the above, a lot is flexible, the key here is kaladin going "MOM??" In some fashion

Thank you @sorchasolas for conversation and the urithiru ideas and for leading me to actually write all this down <3

#stormlight archive #my au #stormlight au no 2 #hesina cagebreaker #the stormlight archive #stormlight au #Hesina willshaper au #ok for the growing taller thing: hear me out!#like she's a tall woman #she can reach the crem on most rooftops with her crempick #like 95 percent of the rooftops #and that 5 percent of rooftops that she can't quite reach she always forgets to bring a stepstool #so she's a tall woman. but her Identity is that of an even taller woman.#do you see my vision #Lirin leaves to bring her the little stepstool because she always forgets when she's hired to clear the baker's building.#but she doesn't need it #he had noticed...but he had honestly just assumed he had gotten shorter. musculoskeletal atrophy happens to men of a certain age.#he's on the younger side but the heralds know it's been a difficult few years. he didn't bring it up but neither did his wife #now he's looking at his wife and is:#Lirin: I am certain you needed a ladder to reach this roof before #Hesina: I did? Are you sure?#Lirin: yes I'm sure you always—Hesina!#Hesina: what?#Lirin: i am. CONFIDENT. that for the last 20 years my eyes have been level with your chin.#Lirin: not your...#Hesina: not my...?#Lirin:#Hesina:#and then they go bone #ok i'm done thank you for listening <3

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ryllen · 6 months

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i'm so happy to see you've fallen into twisted wonderland, but i did NOT expect you to fall in love with Sebek. good for you!

Love is an overstatement.

All i want to do is tease & scrunch his whole being into a little ball. 🤣

#fhshsh #do i love sebek? i don't know #i'm like dad with cat he doesn't want #that be like i don't want sebek and here i am with sebek fhshshs #i don't think i would even go out my way to collect his cards or anything #he'll just be there if he chose to be there #sebek just feels like he's free to grab because no one wants him compared to other characters #it doesn't feel like he's too good for you because of how annoying he is fhsh #surprisingly tumblr people seems to hold him in quite a high regards #but honestly speaking i'm sure i don't think of him as good as these ofher people feel about him #but i am trying to see the good part of him more by trying to look closely more on his fanarts #fshs adorable yes #but i still don't see it as much as ehy people would put him as number one in their mind #maybe one day #he needs to work it out still if he wants to brings me down on his knees with whatever charming side he actually has fhsh #maybe later shdn the diasomnia book out #we'll see #it's interesting how he has several main similar points with jade #eats a lot #tidy appearance #tall #not exactly a human #have thing to be obsessed about #LMAO but oh sebek #take it down a notch ur wakasama obsession #people probably start puking when they hear malleus name bcs u talk to them about him too much #fhshdgh #questions #yell at me as much as u want sebek u're not even close to jade & trey-senpai #>:^)

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cerise-on-top · 4 months

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heya, could you deliver someone kate head canons on how’d she’d be in a relationship! i adore your stuff by the way!!!! Thank ya

Yeah, of course I can! Glad to hear people like my silly HCs, imagines and drabbles! Thank you for the request, I hope you can enjoy it!

General Dating HCs for Laswell

First things first: There’s a chance you might not see her as often as you’d like. She has a very high position at the CIA, and thus works a lot in other countries as well. While Laswell does her best to make time for you, this isn’t always possible due to her job. However, when she does finally have time for you she doesn’t particularly want to leave your side either. Regardless of whether the two of you are relaxing while sitting on the couch and drinking tea or you’re at an amusement park, chances are Laswell will be by your side.

She’s not a fan of PDA, and that’s something you’ll have to respect. Laswell, generally speaking, isn’t that into physical contact with other people, not even you. You can ask her to cuddle every once in a while, you can ask her for a hug too, she won’t mind that too much, but too much physical contact is just suffocating to her. Laswell prefers to show her affection through other means. She has an amazing memory and remembers just about anything you say that might be useful. If you ever wanted a certain gift, Laswell has the means and the money to get it for you, even if you just made an off-handed comment once a few months ago. It will be yours eventually. And because she has a good grasp on how people react to certain things, chances are most of her gifts to you will be something you’ll like.

While she may not be a chef, she’s a pretty alright cook too. Cooking isn’t something she does very often, not that she hates it either, but she, more often than not, doesn’t have the time for it. Usually she just gets something on the go, eats out or orders takeout, but with you, if cooking is something you like, she’s more than happy to help you out. Just give her the order to cook the noodles or cut the tomatoes and she’ll do it. While she does like to make some chit chat with you at appropriate times, especially during cooking, if you prefer silence so you can focus better, then that’s okay as well. When she thinks a meal turned out especially well then she’ll have you try it by spoonfeeding you a bit.

Laswell is an older, but classy woman, she will want to go to fancy restaurants with you at some point just to drink some wine and maybe eat some fresh seafood. Naturally, you don’t have to eat some salmon and shrimp, but you don’t have to hold back either. If you want the pizza, the schnitzel or the burger, then that’s more than alright as well, but please, at the very least, consider the steak and the champagne. Considering the restaurants she picks are very expensive, it’s very likely that she’ll be paying for the food there. You can return the favor by paying next time you’re out to eat Chinese at the buffet or, if you want to, you can also just help her a bit with the chores and do a few more of them. This isn’t her trying to get out of doing them, though, she just wants to spoil you and show you the world of upper class people.

If you want to spoil Laswell as well, then I can tell you that unless your workplace pays you very well, you likely won’t be able to afford the things she likes. Whiskey or wine of several hundreds of dollars are not very cheap, so Laswell won’t mind you not getting her anything like it as well. However, she can appreciate you remembering the small things about her. You remember her liking lambs and got her a cute keychain? You made her the salmon filet she likes so much? Bought her favorite movie on DVD? Yeah, she notices and will be grateful. Those small things, however, might sometimes turn into something bigger with how she always likes to repay her “debts”. And so, an I love you has turned into a vacation in the Maldives at one point.

Will want you to be acquainted with either Nikolai, Price or both, preferably. Because she’s aware something bad can happen any time, she wants you to know them so that, in case something bad happens, you have someone to turn to. Besides, they’re her closest friends, she knows she can trust them with you. If you get along with them? Even better! That way she can invite you to the occasional drink with them and you can talk about anything and everything. And if you ever were in trouble and couldn’t reach her, then either of them would always pick up, no matter what. Your safety goes above all else, of course, but sometimes, some things can’t be prevented entirely, so it’s for the best you know them.

Overall, she’s a very caring partner, regardless of whether she’s your girlfriend, fiancée or wife, she’ll make sure you’re always happy. She’s been through enough herself to know what it’s like to be unhappy with where you are in life, so it doesn’t matter to her what she needs to do in order to see you smile again. Make sure to return the love and you’ll find yourself with one of the most loving, loyal partners out there. She’ll go to the end of the world and beyond to find you and make sure you’re okay. Make her a warm meal, give her some nice gifts and spend your time with her, the last thing is all that Laswell really wants in her life. As long as the two of you are together, she’s sure everything will be alright.

#cod #cod x reader #kate laswell #kate laswell x reader #overnight came four requests and I genuinely don't have all the time in the world to work on all of them immediately #even if they're good #so if requests keep coming at a rate like this then I might have to close the ask box for a few days so I can work on them #I've never gotten requests this quickly on my other blog but then again that game wasn't as popular either #I'm glad I took on this HC style again because I don't think I could write scenarios with this many requests #might also implement a character limit sometime in the future #saves me some time since working on requests does take up quite some time actually #I might just rework my entire introduction post in general and implement some rules in the future #it doesn't look like much as it is right now after all #but anyway #thank you for requesting! as I've said many times before I love Laswell and it makes me happy that people love her as well!

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lunarharp · 8 months

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i've run out of things to say when i just have a bunch of scribbly stuff again

#witch hat tag #orufrey #i've decided not to squish up tons of things when i've drawn things i quite like but this is truly just randomness so i dont even care bye #no i dont do much but draw. could i be more hyperfixated. no. christ #easthies and lulucy look like tseng and elena... (ff7) and the magic police occupy a similar role to the turks... to me.#so it's funny that easthies doesn't drink since the turks get drunk at places like junon. tseng if he was like Juice for me please.#i hope i draw the rest of the angel au today...do the things in the queue...#ok this probably isn't true (?) but what if im the person who has drawn the most witch hat images. Like..i must be in the top 3. maybe. (?)#quality over quantity is what they say.......🙃 what if i actually focused on one really good piece every few days. What then. lol

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somecunttookmyurl · 1 year

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all the while society conflates "being an adult" with "having a proper job" and "having money to make arbitrary Adult Purchases" disabled people who can't work - or can only work part time or can only do entry level baby jobs - will never be 'allowed' to be adults

you can say "being an adult is looking after yourself you don't have to have a job!!!" all you want but most people who say that will still assume anybody who doesn't either can't or won't 'look after themselves' actually. and every 'marker' of 'adulthood' that's observable and thus actually counts or whatever loops back around to... having a job and 'contributing' something

#yeah i have netflix on all day #i am quite literally signed off of work for the -rest of my life-#what the fuck else would you like me to do with my time when most people are in fact at work #or did you think i can't have the tv on and put laundry away at the same time or something #must i work on commissions on silence in a dour room to be perceived as an adult #anyway 'looking after yourself/your home/your pet' is not observable #to anybody who doesn't like ACTUALLY live in your house #unless you are extremely obviously NOT doing it #if a tree falls in a forest etc #owning a house? job. like not even 'in this economy? lol'#disabled people LITERALLY can't because we aren't allowed to have enough savings for a deposit #car? would you honestly trust me with a vehicle lol but also: job #you mostly cannot buy a car without one it's a requirement for the lease #otherwise you aren't 'trusted' to pay it on time #incidentally most landlords will also - perfectly legally - refuse to rent to you because you are going to be unreliable with the rent #which is being paid directly by the gov anyway like take your trust issues up with them bro #a family? if i get married or cohabit with a partner my income gets sliced in half #so to support even myself let alone a child would require. drumroll please. employment #savings? adults have savings right? yeah but unlike you i have a gov enforced cap on mine #'good furniture not shit from ikea' (someone has remarked that ikea furniture is 'college dorm-y' it's going here)#i mean do i have to say it

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givehimthemedicine · 1 year

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hot take: I could see it being possible Will picks up smoking, and very unlikely Max picks up smoking, for the same reasons just opposite.

Joyce doesn't hide her smoking but she is conscientious not to smoke in Will's presence (she does smoke right next to Jonathan though). iirc she almost never smokes at home when Will is home, and puts it out before she goes in his room. I'm sure she would advise her boys against the habit, but I don't think it would be terribly ooc if they picked it up as a stress response learned from her. they both probably associate the smell with their mother, who is a positive and loving presence in their lives.

btw I have a crisp $1 bill that says pre-s1 Joyce has caught Jonathan smoking before and that's why she feels ok to do it around him

then you've got Max, with multiple varyingly abusive family members who smoked (and drank) in her presence all the time. she comes and puts out Susan's cigarette when she's asleep even though it's already safely in an ashtray, meaning Max just doesn't want to have to smell the rest of it. she resents her mom for blowing so much of their resources on her addictions. plus there's Billy who smoked (and drank) in front of her all the time, both in their house and in his car, and I don't have to tell you Billy is a negative presence in her life.

in my mind Will and Jon are, at a minimum, at peace with it whereas the smell could be almost triggering for Max

#will byers #jonathan byers #max mayfield #i don't have to have ever seen him do it to know jonathan stress smokes cigarettes at least sometimes #look at 16yo jonathan working extra shifts to help cover rent and raising his brother #and tell me that boy doesn't drink black coffee instead of sleeping and without taking the cigarette out of his mouth #seems quite likely that both neil and lonnie smoked too tbh #remind me if lonnie is canonically a drinker or is that just the vibe I get?#will and jon seem like a very low alcoholism risk #will's had enough of altered states for a lifetime #will has the escape of creativity in a way that jonathan doesn't which is why he does turn to altered states for escape #which will doesn't really Get. or probably sympathizes but can't identify

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firstroseofspring · 2 months

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b’elanna vs her mother at similar ages, plus some sketches!

#my art #star trek voyager #my very first deanna…. my original obsession. if i ever read as much about betazoids as i do klingons we’re all in grave danger #also wrt the first image b'elanna is. 12 years old and as such is about to go emo mode but not quite yet. the girly girl thing is a front #sometime in winter she'll chop her hair off without permission #what do we think? human girl look to fit into the image her father has while he's still around or after to try and get him back?#miral is also a little bookish like b'elanna but on different subjects.... likes to keep to herself naturally but is also loudmouthed and #got told she shared her opinion too often a lot in university. didn't stop her though she speaks up when she thinks (knows) she's right #what did she study? don't ask me my answer changes with the weather #botany....linguistics.....military strategy.....chemistry....... uhmmmm religious studies. or even better the klingon system doesn't have #starfleet equivalents and she spent ages 15-22 doing apprenticeships for a certain (or multiple) disciplines #anyway.#kessik 2352 b'elanna has trouble sitting still for photos until she gets a little older so all the pics from before 7 are of her father #physically holding her so that she won't wander OR off guard shots or super blurry. theres more videos of that time than anything

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front-facing-pokemon · 10 months

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#barboach #their mouth is so tiny… like… i know they're a fish and all but. it's so small. how do they get anything in there #barboach is that one “4x weakness to grass my beloved” bitch who always threw me off as a kid when i was trying to beat it #because i would be like. ah yes. this is a Fish. i will use an electric-type move. wah-wah #unfortunately that tendency persisted quite a while for me. i think i did it even in legends arceus to be quite honest. but i know now #i have it memorized. this bitch and whiscash are ground-types. for. no reason. i guess it's because they live in swamps or whatever #and so. ground? but also whiscash's pond doesn't really look like a swamp. wouldn't lend itself to being a ground-type zone #i dunnoooo. i think there's a lot of passion for barboach out there tbqh. i don't think i've seen it with my eyes but it just Feels like a #'mon people would be passionate about. any barboach out there please let me know how the hell you are using tumblr with no arms #and from underwater. do you have special water computers. and also why are you a ground-type. thanks

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storfulsten · 6 months

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my silly viera wol alt bc reasons uwu

#very messy tablet doodle could be better but eh it's something lol #anyways ye this is my edgy bunboi alt whom I like very much #it's about the vibes #I guess #if you don't get the vibes then congratulations I envy you I wish I wasn't so hung up on them tbh geez #ye he's silly af but I'm just having fun so lol #and really he doesn't look all that silly ingame I'm just projecting nonsense quite a lot I guess ha #his hair is actually black with purple details not all dark purple but I improvised and it ended up like that so eh #it works I suppose #he ninja'd his way up through hw danced through sb and is now reaping his way through shb and beyond yeehaw #shame his favorite facemask is bound to ninja only though bc the one he has to use as reaper is so clunky but eh it works #and there's always the bandana options for variety I guess ha #gonna continue through shb with this guy soon when I get the time #catboy's 'bout to ruin this poor bunman's life even more letsgooo #anyways enough random rambling sorry #enjoy or don't it's whatever #ffxiv viera #wol #idk if I should tag the finger flipping but eh let me know if I should I guess idk lol #I draw what I want #also unrelated but go stream DISDAIN on your platform of choice or don't I'm not your mom but either way yay music highly recommend yessir #anyways next artpost will be bombeep or at least fnf related in some way I swear to jeebus #fingers crossed something'll be doodled soon yeehaw

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luveline · 4 months

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jade darling from the little i know about your current job i feel like you might need to take this new one! me and your current boss are beefing

he's not a very nice man 😅 the thing is I totally understand being corrected and scolded but he got belligerent, like he wound himself up shouting at me to the point where he was actually tired afterwards 😭 and he never pays me on time (arguably worse than the shouting) I really wish I could take this new one but I think it's just too inaccessible right now for me. I did apply to a few closer that I'm really hoping to hear back from !! But for now I'll just have to be on my absolute best behaviour at work and hope I don't do anything else wrong

#I absolutely don't want to quit before finding a new place because it doesn't look good on your CV #But yeah conflicted about it 😅#Thank you for caring my love and you can totally beef with him if you want to! My sister asked me if I wanted her to go speak to him and I #Was like thank you so much but absolutely not #Never ever #Gotta pull my big girl trousers on and cope!!

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nightswatchdisbandmentera · 1 day

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Something rubbed against his leg beneath the table. Jon saw red eyes staring up at him. “Hungry again?” he asked. There was still half a honeyed chicken in the center of the table. Jon reached out to tear off a leg, then had a better idea. He knifed the bird whole and let the carcass slide to the floor between his legs. Ghost ripped into it in savage silence. His brothers and sisters had not been permitted to bring their wolves to the banquet, but there were more curs than Jon could count at this end of the hall, and no one had said a word about his pup. He told himself he was fortunate in that too. His eyes stung. Jon rubbed at them savagely, cursing the smoke. He swallowed another gulp of wine and watched his direwolf devour the chicken. Dogs moved between the tables, trailing after the serving girls. One of them, a black mongrel bitch with long yellow eyes, caught a scent of the chicken. She stopped and edged under the bench to get a share. Jon watched the confrontation. The bitch growled low in her throat and moved closer. Ghost looked up, silent, and fixed the dog with those hot red eyes. The bitch snapped an angry challenge. She was three times the size of the direwolf pup. Ghost did not move. He stood over his prize and opened his mouth, baring his fangs. The bitch tensed, barked again, then thought better of this fight. She turned and slunk away, with one last defiant snap to save her pride. Ghost went back to his meal. Jon grinned and reached under the table to ruffle the shaggy white fur. The direwolf looked up at him, nipped gently at his hand, then went back to eating.

Jon I, AGOT

It's interesting that GRRM would dedicate several paragraphs to a seemingly unimportant exchange between a boy, his wolf, and an unfriendly third party. But there's just something about this passage that has continued to nag at me for years since I first read it because, considering how heavy handed GRRM was with the foreshadowing in AGOT, this feels important.

Jon is sitting at table full of squires - aka would be knights. We don't really know who they are or what families they belong to, but it's safe to assume that they come from a certain level of privilege; this is considering the fact that it cannot be financially easy to be a squire. And these boys already have a slew of tales detailing all their previous knightly exploits regarding "battle and bedding and the hunt" which suggests that they have some capital. So you have boys who will soon be men. And they will, presumably, become men of some power.

These lads eat their fill of the chicken until only half remains, which Jon then gives to Ghost. The direwolf's name is not so important here but what he represents is. Throughout the series, we're told that Ghost is reminiscent of the weirwood trees (because of his red eyes and white fur). He's stated to be of and from the Old Gods and since he's a personification of the weirwoods, he might as well be one of them. It's almost as if Jon is presenting whatever is left on the table to the Old Gods (Ghost). He lets them devour his offerings while he silently watches. And the motif of watching is so interesting here because it's kind of like Jon takes on a stewardship role - to watch over land/people/etc. He oversees Ghost eating the chicken, so he's overseeing whatever has been given to the Old Gods. This is not new imagery to his arc. As a brother of the Night's Watch and eventually its leader, we have several instances where he leads people to adopting the Old Gods in some fashion. In ADWD, several recruits swear their vows to the Old Gods while he watches on as their Lord Commander. The Old Gods are also primarily of the North and we're told that Jon has more of the north in him than his brothers; interesting that this also includes Bran. So perhaps whatever is being offered to the Old Gods relates to the North.

We must also note that Jon initially thinks to give only a small portion, a leg, before pivoting and providing the entire thing. It feels to me a bit like the process of carving up a kingdom or something similar. The lords (represented by the squires) take what they want and leave aside what they don't; or perhaps they have eaten to their fill and can take no more. Then when his time comes, Jon first considers a small piece of land/group of people before eventually absorbing all of whatever is left behind. The concept of carving up a kingdom rings harder considering that we have several callbacks to the ideals of kingship in this chapter. Robert, Jaime, Tyrion, and even Mance though we don't know it yet, all play into this. And then there's the aspect of Jon letting the chicken slip between his legs which evokes birth/fatherhood, a very curious choice when GRRM could've just had Jon place the chicken on the floor. So land/people are carved up and Jon then uses whatever is left to birth his own type of kingdom. And this kingdom is one for the Old Gods.

This also touches on something that has been quite prevalent throughout Jon's arc. It's the concept of accepting the "others" or "those left over" who live apart from the accepted social norms. Arya (a tomboy), Sam (a gender non-confirming boy), the Night's Watch (criminals, extra sons, and men who have no future left or place to go), and even the wildlings are all examples of this. And Jon takes on a leadership/paternal role to every single one of them. He looks after them as a leader would/should. Sometimes, in the case of Arya and the wildlings, he's equated to a king. He's a steward/shepherd/king. There's messianic undertones to this:

Come unto me, all you who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30).

If you're familiar with Judeo-Christian tradition, you'll know that Jesus is often personified as one who spent the majority his time among the outcasts. The idea is that he came to save them too and that anew kingdom (or new earth depending on your translation) would spring up after the end of the world where he would forever rule as king; which presents the idea of a final king after the earthly ones are done away with. Now GRRM isn't so heavy handed with Christian allusions as other authors out there, but he does have a Catholic background and Jon is so overtly a Jesus figure. And in Revelation, Jesus is king and god at the very end....

One last thing: the mention of the mongrel who challenges Jon has always been rather interesting but confusing to me. A mongrel doesn't really relate to one specific type of dog. But it's interesting that Jon notes several roaming about where he is. They follow the serving girls who carry the food to be offered. Mongrels are used to describe antagonist/villainous groups in ASOIAF. Sometimes, they're used to describe slavers in Essos. But what's interesting is that most of the time, they're used to describe Euron's Ironborn especially in Victorian's POV. So I don't think the mongrel who challenges Ghost is a supernatural threat of death (i.e., the Others) but rather a human one. They represent those who are called to the scene once the lords have finished playing their games. It almost feels like a feast for (carrion) crows....

But it doesn't really matter because this mongrel isn't much of a challenge for Ghost. Though the mongrel is much larger, the direwolf is able to fend her off very effortlessly. Given that "mongrel" is used to describe Ironborn raiders, could this exchange between Ghost and the mongrel point to reavers or sea raiders who rise and fail challenge Jon kingdom? There is a historical King Jon Stark who did this....

When sea raiders landed in the east, Jon drove them out and built a castle, the Wolf's Den, at the mouth of the White Knife, so as to be able to defend the mouth of the river.[1][2] His son, Rickard, followed him on the throne and annexed the Neck to the north.

ref.

So this might shed some light not only on Jon's already published arc, but also on what we can expect in the future. We have some foreshadowing through Jon's ADWD dream that he will not only rise with the dawn (thereby live through the Long Night), but will be in a position to lead people (wildings in that chapter) to a new peace after a hard fought war. Also remember that the wildlings, rather enthusiastically, swear oaths to him as if swearing oaths to their king. In this instance, the supernatural (a dream of the war for the dawn) is followed by the natural/human. So perhaps this particular passage (and Jon's dream) can be used to predict that Jon comes out on top, and quite effortlessly too, as a leader. And he becomes a leader who rules by association with the Old Gods; or rules a kingdom for them.

To end, I think it's of note that this passage immediately precedes Jon's conversation with Benjen where he voices his desire to go out on his own - the hero's call to action. This is the adventure that's going to kickstart his growth as a man, warrior and most importantly, a leader. So it looks like before we even began, GRRM telegraphed how it would all end in just three short paragraphs.

#jon snow #asoiaf #valyrianscrolls #ghost the direwolf #some random extra thoughts:#the aspect of fatherhood is closely tied to kingship as kings are often regarded to be the fathers of their nations #so we might see a parallel where jon-like dany-doesn't have children of his own physical body #but rather rules a kingdom as its symbolic father #think of how odin-a mythical parallel for jon-is called the all father because he is father to all men/lands #also it's interesting to me how kingship is a theme but it's almost like the actual theme is that of kings coming of going #but jon remaining and prevailing above all #we have robert who is a disappointing/bad king and his rule doesn't last very long and neither will his dynasty #jaime looks like a king and even if grrm didn't go through with his original ideas he was never meant to rule for long #in the new story jaime is symbolic of rhaegar a would be king whose time comes and goes leaving jon to pick up the pieces #then tyrion who stands “as tall as a king” but not quite! he still is not as tall as jon and tyrion also says in a later chapter #that soon he'll be even shorter than ghost + tyrion wasn't hand for long #mance who is hidden also has his time as king but it's very short lived and jon later absorbs his kingdom to make his own #so we have the wolf devouring the “left behinds” in a way but the interesting thing is this happens in reverse doesn't it #might Jon's new kingdom not only be made of remnants of the nw and wildlings but also have those left behind from the rest of the 7k?#it's possible since jojen tells us that once night comes all cloaks become black 🙂#so yeah this is all just more jon endgame king of winter/a new north propaganda lmaoooo

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