is there anything so undoing as a daughter?

✨🌞✨

[melmedardaapologist]

✨ Intro post ✨

✨ yes i discuss mel as a morally nunanced character (despite the username) AND am her #1 lawyer, it's called duality

✨ this is a side blog where i occasionally write meta analysis of mel-related content (under #mel rambles) or aesthetics like architecture etc., reblog art/gifs/other meta, multishipper but partial to melvika

✨ adult, discussion on posts is welcome but please don't be mean to others

✨ i want to be a source of positivity here and i generally avoid fandom discourse, but i do not tolerate racism, sexism, homophobia or any form of hate

✨ other interests: linguistics, worldbuilding, media analysis

✨ follow me on @daemonologywrites for star trek fanfiction and rambling about what i'm reading at the moment

My favorite posts:

Mel costume analysis/character agency

Ambessa costume analysis/war and family

Art deco and art nouveau/Piltover and Zaun

Mel and Silco as foils

Mel’s father: pre and post Ambessa novel notes

Brutalist architecture and Noxus

Mel analysis/summary (short)

Ambessa and Mel poem

Piltover’s geopolitical implications

[saga-ordsmed]

Writing Vi and Mel working together and slowly bonding over how they both struggle with loving individuals who cause harm, pain and fear really reminds me of what a waste it was to whisk away Mel from the Piltover/Zaun conflict in S2. These two have so much potential for heartbreaking character moments: No matter how much Jinx terrorizes the cities and no matter how much Ambessa’s military campaigns Vi can’t stop loving her sister and Mel can’t stop loving her mother.

[fruchtfleisch-art]

"I'm not allowed to devote myself to anything like this," Mel murmured, more to herself than to the stranger. She traced over the mountain rays without touching the painting itself. "Not allowed? Do you need permission to devote yourself to beauty?" "I don't think my mother knows what beauty is." She wasn't sure why she even let the bitter words slip from her mouth, but there was a comfort in their anonymity.

Sketchy practice with young Mel that I've been sitting on way too long. I want to draw more Chosen of the Wolf fanart at some point...

[melmedardaapologist]

this was a reply under one of my au ideas, and while i appreciate the enthusiasm, there’s something that rubs me the wrong way, and i’ll try to articulate why:

i write fic. but i don’t write it a lot. nothing i’ve posted so far is over 10k words and i average roughly 2k per work. in my original pinned post for my fanfiction-specific tumblr i specified periodic stress and burnout before i decided i don’t have to justify when/how i update, but those reasons still remain true

so when i post ideas on tumblr, the vast majority of the time i am not presenting jumping off points that will be written up and posted on ao3 in the near future. i am not a machine that produces fic on demand. while well-meant, the idea of producing work to feed this type of passive audience reception makes me feel uneasy, not just only in my inability to do so, but also on principle

[daemonologywrites]

piltover/zaun literary tradition: some headcanons

so basically Piltover is associated with the Victorian era, so going off of that, i was thinking about what sorts of literature they'd read, so going off on the similarities between the two (industrial revolution and urban life), i think they'd be at the tail end of their own victorian literature, whose traits are mainly that the novel is a transmission of social value (Progress being the elephant in the room here) with formal structure with a focus on realism and "objectivity," which matches up philosophically with their faith in science and technological advance. book clubs are totally a thing. after the end of season 2, however, with hextech having gone so very wrong, some of that idealism would be lost, and so i think there would be a swing towards modernism, with more experimentation and nihilism and subjectivity included as the former shining ideal of Progress had led to disaster

in Zaun, i think theatre would be a bigger phenomenon? ofc it would also exist in Piltover, but i think Zaun is where it really blooms, starting up as small acts in bars after the miners' shifts are over, and then gradually gaining popularity until acting troupes form, probably with strong jazz and burlesque influences. entertainment is their biggest goal, but as tensions with Piltover rise, more and more playwrights emerge making satirical depictions of the upper city, probably with some crackdowns over the more "inspired" takes, leading them to form a "code" based on innuendo and symbolism within the subculture, so while not as "polished" as piltover literature, there is still an incredibly rich literary tradition, especially when it comes to insults and ridiculing someone. after the day of ash, elegies and folk songs commemorating the event surge.

[creatingblackcharacters]

Well!

Do you know the history of Juneteenth?

Kinda? I know it's for Black Americans but not why

No

Yes

I plead 'Not American'

Voting ended onJun 20, 2025

So first, let's clear a common misconception: no, President Abraham Lincoln did not love Black people nor see them as human equals. At best he was centrist about it (though, even his implication that 'exceptional' Black men ought to vote got him assassinated).

"My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do, it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union...I have here stated my purpose according to my view of official duty; and I intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be free."

The "freeing of slaves" after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 was meant to kneecap the economic and military powers of the seceded South. Lettuce stop making a white savior figure out of Lincoln, or thinking that my people's shackles were unchained via anything other than desperate war strategy and extreme violence. Think on that, for a moment.

That being said!

Juneteenth

Juneteenth is a time to gather as a family, reflect on the past and look to the future. Discover ways to celebrate this African American cul

But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas.

Consider going through the Smithsonian website to learn about Juneteenth! Recognize why it's an actual day of freedom, versus July 4th and the independence of a select few.

[samirasystole]

ahhh so you're shown to be capable of recognising that people's trauma can make them act irrationally and unpleasantly! you recognised it in the white man! can you also recognise it in the brown woman? no? she's mean and bitchy and uncaring? i see

[ajokewemade-finrodsfriend]

All credit goes to the creator @reigningskies

[annannjay]

Day 7 - Saltwater kiss

@melvikaweek2026

[mel-arcane]

Upward camera panning to show Mel admiring Viktor's and Jayce's first progress with Hex gems

Arcane season 1 episode 3

[g-vlssz]

1° lesson: Don't judge a book by its cover (part 1/2)

Sevika hated her job...ok, that wasn’t entirely the truth. She actually hated the bar. It was full of college students, that she constantly had to deny service for being unable to handle a couple shots. Full of middle-aged men who hit on everything that moved, and sometimes caused her problems.

Sevika didn’t particularly like anyone who came into the bar. They were too loud, trying too hard to have a good time and she often didn't pay enough attention to care, just get the money, serve the drinks, wipe the counters, and kick any asshole that wants to give her a headache.

But tonight.. something was different.

The heavy door to the bar creaked open, cutting through the haze of cigarette smoke and stale beer like a fresh breeze. Sevika's eyes flicked up from the sticky rag she was using to scrub a ring of condensation off the counter. 

There, framed in the dim glow of the neon sign outside, stood a woman who didn't belong in this dive—tall and poised, her dark skin glowing under the flickering lights. Her curves were wrapped in a fitted golden dress that hugged her hips and dipped low at the neckline, revealing the smooth swell of her cleavage. Loose curls framed her face, cascading over shoulders that carried an effortless grace, and her full lips curved into a subtle smile as she scanned the room.

Sevika's hand stilled, the rag forgotten in her grip. The woman's presence pulled at her like a magnet, silencing the usual clamor in her head. Those deep green eyes locked onto the bar, and for a split second, Sevika felt exposed, her broad frame suddenly too still behind the counter. The dark-skinned beauty moved with purpose, her heels clicking against the worn floorboards as she approached, weaving past a cluster of rowdy frat boys without a glance. Sevika swallowed, tasting the faint bitterness of her last sip, and straightened up, her muscles tensing under her shirt. Who the hell was she? And why did the air suddenly feel heavier, charged with something Sevika hadn't felt in this shithole for a while..

"We don't have any fancy drinks here, Love. Everything here is too strong for your liking."

"Well, that's a bit rude. You're just supposing it because of my appearance."

Sevika paused, her hand resting on the edge of the scarred wooden bar. The woman's voice cut through the din of laughter and clinking glasses like a sharp blade, laced with a confidence that made Sevika's lips twitch into an almost-smile. She looked up, meeting those piercing eyes framed by dark lashes, and felt a flicker of curiosity pierce her usual indifference. This one wasn't slurring her words or leering; she sat poised on the stool, her fingers tracing idle patterns on the countertop, nails painted a deep crimson that matched the flush creeping up Sevika's neck.

"Fair enough," Sevika conceded, leaning forward slightly, her voice dropping to a gravelly murmur that carried over the rowdy chatter. "What's your name, then? Can't keep calling you 'Love' all night."

The woman tilted her head, a sly curve playing at her lips. "You can call me Mel."..

Full here

[melmedardaapologist]

i know mel's exile to piltover is meant to be her getting sent out of the way of danger, but a part of me finds it hilarious, because if there's any geographic location on the runeterra map that would be subject to constant conflict even before hextech and shimmer, Piltover/Zaun is set directly in the bullseye:

like, look at that! a strait controlling access to/from what is essentially the in-universe mediterranean sea! the quickest way from one side of the map to another whose blocking would force a ship to go all the way around the north or south continents! a natural chokepoint of trade! "something to put piltover on the map" my ass, this would already be a flourishing cultural and trade center purely based on the geography, mel!

[sylvanas-girlkisser]

I personally interpreted it as Ambessa's way of losening her grip on Mel, without being willing/able to fully let go of her.

Because you're right, Piltover is right in the bullseye for international conflict, but it's also surrounded by Noxus on all sides. Mel basically has no way of leaving the city without either going through Medarda lands, or extremely dangerous regions (serpent isles or Ixtal).

In a way, its almost a gilded cage for Mel; one that Ambessa can easily deny the existence of. Sure Mel can do whatever she wants, she can even leave; Ambessa is just going to know about it. And if something happens she disapproves of, then Piltover has no standing army, and Ambessa can close off trade into the city.

[melmedardaapologist]

that is actually such an excellent point that i completely missed—it still wouldn’t explain why piltover isn’t presumably “on the map” as per mel in s1e2 (and purely within the show noxus is narratively treated as a distant threat instead of a neighboring nation, which makes me squint a bit), but the concept of piltover-noxian symbiosis is giving me thoughts, i.e. the possibility of piltover maintaining its illusion of a bastion of liberal progress and erudition by developing and selling technology and weaponry to noxus in exchange for protection against shurima and bilgewater

[melmedardaapologist]

adding onto my own words bc arcane’s fundamental idea is that hextech brings piltover into the international world and subsequent attempts at interference, represented by ambessa (narratively portrayed as a foreigner and not essentially neighbor to piltover), which is complicated when we look at piltover and zaun on runeterra’s map in wider lol lore where piltover being “removed” from larger conflict is nearly impossible due to its proximity to noxus

so anyway now i’m thinking of an arcane/lol lore mesh where the piltover-zaun conflict still happens but with the addition of noxus’s enemies supporting zaun in an attempt to destabilize noxian control of sea trade, transforming vander’s attempt at an uprising into a bloody proxy-war with a technological arms-race included

[questionablecuttlefish]

I've always seen Piltover as being a bit of a 'watering hole' -- sure it's right in the middle of all these conflicting nations, but it's also a powerful trade hub with a tremendous amount of wealth and influence so it's able to leverage neutrality.

Looking into the OG lore that is presumably still canon-ish, Piltover and Zaun came to be because the wealthy class of the original Shuriman city of Oshra Va'Zaun decided to blow a big hole in the isthmus and create a canal / sealock called the Sungate that allowed them to control trade between the entire eastern ocean and the Conqueror's Sea.

Only the explosives were a little too enthusiastic and collapsed the older, poorer part of town into the fissures, and the inhabitants were only spared by a miraculous intervention attributed to the goddess Janna. The wealthy built Piltover literally 'over' the mess, Piltover got its Progress and its Sungate and its control of trade but the Fissures created the Zaun we know today.

So it already had that massive power as not just a maritime port but the chokepoint of all east-west trade between three continents. We're seeing in real-time events how a smaller nation with control over an important maritime channel can bring pain to much larger geopolitical rivals >.> so I could certainly see even Noxus not wanting to openly invade this independent city state that is presumably moving a lot of Noxian trade and travel through on its own.

Not when Ambessa could plant the heir of her house in an important position and have her there passively generating wealth and prestige for House Medarda while keeping her very far from the warfronts that Noxus is actually fighting on! Consider Noxus' military fronts here:

Demacia - waaaay over west, geographically very far from Piltover, with all the independent kingdoms of Valoran in between forming a 'buffer zone'. Also, Demacia is militarily defensive and rarely strikes outside its territory except to avenge a direct attack or eliminate a direct threat (see; Dawhold/Frostheld). So it's never going to threaten Piltover.

Ionia - waaaay over there to the northeast, a nation of mostly-pacifists invaded and colonized by Noxus that only recently managed to kick them out. Also not interested in threatening Piltover.

Bilgewater - an independent city-state, almost entirely pirates. This one is the big threat to Piltover's sea trade but also not interested in directly invading it when it can gleefully chip at its merchant vessels for fun and piratical profit, yaarr!

Shurima - enormous sprawling continent that used to be a powerful empire, that completely collapsed in the Darkin/Void war and is now a collection of mostly unaffiliated city states and nomad tribes. Emperor Azir has recently returned from the dead and risen his lost empire from the sands but... wow the timeline on when that happened in relation to Arcane is a bit hazy and our boy Azir is gonna need some time to re-establish his empire and there's the Void and Xerath to contend with so it's a mess down there. He's probably not invading Piltover any time soon.

Ixtal - enormously powerful mage civilization hidden in the jungle. Extremely isolationist after the war that annihilated its old ally/rival Shurima, to the point that most of the rest of the world doesn't know Ixtal exists. And the Ixtalis are happy that way, the ruling caste has the populace convinced that every other civilization was wiped out in the ancient wars and they're the only people left. So...not a threat to Piltover---BUT---as of current-League-lore, both Noxus and Piltover are poking their noses into Ixtali territory and doing a bit of colonizer b.s, Piltover poaching jungle animals, and stealing mining resources and artifacts, Noxus setting up military bases. The Ixtalis are trying to ignore this for now, the only one who wants to act is Qiyana, but she's a firebrand and a powerful one and would really love to smack Pill-tover all the way out of her jungle.

The Freljord -- crazy viking-esque raider culture but they're also all the way up there and Noxus is in between Piltover and them.

I think Piltover is actually pretty safe -- from everyone but Noxus.

So the idea of Noxus as this kind of militarily powerful neighbour with a complicated unspoken "you play your part and you get to stay independent" dance with Piltover, almost a protection racket, would make total sense to me.

And of all the Councilors I can see Mel alone with her Noxian cultural background being fully and painfully aware of all the nuance of this, and a lot of the other councilors being arrogantly oblivious to just how precarious Piltovan independence really is.

TONS of room for good fanfic/storytelling there.

[melmedardaapologist]

i know mel's exile to piltover is meant to be her getting sent out of the way of danger, but a part of me finds it hilarious, because if there's any geographic location on the runeterra map that would be subject to constant conflict even before hextech and shimmer, Piltover/Zaun is set directly in the bullseye:

like, look at that! a strait controlling access to/from what is essentially the in-universe mediterranean sea! the quickest way from one side of the map to another whose blocking would force a ship to go all the way around the north or south continents! a natural chokepoint of trade! "something to put piltover on the map" my ass, this would already be a flourishing cultural and trade center purely based on the geography, mel!

[sylvanas-girlkisser]

I personally interpreted it as Ambessa's way of losening her grip on Mel, without being willing/able to fully let go of her.

Because you're right, Piltover is right in the bullseye for international conflict, but it's also surrounded by Noxus on all sides. Mel basically has no way of leaving the city without either going through Medarda lands, or extremely dangerous regions (serpent isles or Ixtal).

In a way, its almost a gilded cage for Mel; one that Ambessa can easily deny the existence of. Sure Mel can do whatever she wants, she can even leave; Ambessa is just going to know about it. And if something happens she disapproves of, then Piltover has no standing army, and Ambessa can close off trade into the city.

[melmedardaapologist]

that is actually such an excellent point that i completely missed—it still wouldn’t explain why piltover isn’t presumably “on the map” as per mel in s1e2 (and purely within the show noxus is narratively treated as a distant threat instead of a neighboring nation, which makes me squint a bit), but the concept of piltover-noxian symbiosis is giving me thoughts, i.e. the possibility of piltover maintaining its illusion of a bastion of liberal progress and erudition by developing and selling technology and weaponry to noxus in exchange for protection against shurima and bilgewater

[sylvanas-girlkisser]

Yeah it feels like geopolitics wasn't really a priority when writing season 1, which on the one hand helps it keeps a tight focus but also makes Mel's story feels a bit strange in season 2.

I'm right there with you on the Piltover-Noxus symbiosis giving all sorts of ideas. It could also explain why so much of Piltover's ruling class was just okay with Ambessa showing up and taking over. To their minds that was always the plan if the undercity got out of control: Pay the Noxians with their enormous colonialist war machine to stomp out the problem then rewrite history to claim you had no idea about the Noxian atrocities.

It kinda makes me wish for an alternate version of season 2 where Mel got to stay in Piltover and work against Ambessa.

[melmedardaapologist]

i know mel's exile to piltover is meant to be her getting sent out of the way of danger, but a part of me finds it hilarious, because if there's any geographic location on the runeterra map that would be subject to constant conflict even before hextech and shimmer, Piltover/Zaun is set directly in the bullseye:

like, look at that! a strait controlling access to/from what is essentially the in-universe mediterranean sea! the quickest way from one side of the map to another whose blocking would force a ship to go all the way around the north or south continents! a natural chokepoint of trade! "something to put piltover on the map" my ass, this would already be a flourishing cultural and trade center purely based on the geography, mel!

[sylvanas-girlkisser]

I personally interpreted it as Ambessa's way of losening her grip on Mel, without being willing/able to fully let go of her.

Because you're right, Piltover is right in the bullseye for international conflict, but it's also surrounded by Noxus on all sides. Mel basically has no way of leaving the city without either going through Medarda lands, or extremely dangerous regions (serpent isles or Ixtal).

In a way, its almost a gilded cage for Mel; one that Ambessa can easily deny the existence of. Sure Mel can do whatever she wants, she can even leave; Ambessa is just going to know about it. And if something happens she disapproves of, then Piltover has no standing army, and Ambessa can close off trade into the city.

[melmedardaapologist]

that is actually such an excellent point that i completely missed—it still wouldn’t explain why piltover isn’t presumably “on the map” as per mel in s1e2 (and purely within the show noxus is narratively treated as a distant threat instead of a neighboring nation, which makes me squint a bit), but the concept of piltover-noxian symbiosis is giving me thoughts, i.e. the possibility of piltover maintaining its illusion of a bastion of liberal progress and erudition by developing and selling technology and weaponry to noxus in exchange for protection against shurima and bilgewater

[melmedardaapologist]

adding onto my own words bc arcane’s fundamental idea is that hextech brings piltover into the international world and subsequent attempts at interference, represented by ambessa (narratively portrayed as a foreigner and not essentially neighbor to piltover), which is complicated when we look at piltover and zaun on runeterra’s map in wider lol lore where piltover being “removed” from larger conflict is nearly impossible due to its proximity to noxus

so anyway now i’m thinking of an arcane/lol lore mesh where the piltover-zaun conflict still happens but with the addition of noxus’s enemies supporting zaun in an attempt to destabilize noxian control of sea trade, transforming vander’s attempt at an uprising into a bloody proxy-war with a technological arms-race included

[melmedardaapologist]

i know mel's exile to piltover is meant to be her getting sent out of the way of danger, but a part of me finds it hilarious, because if there's any geographic location on the runeterra map that would be subject to constant conflict even before hextech and shimmer, Piltover/Zaun is set directly in the bullseye:

like, look at that! a strait controlling access to/from what is essentially the in-universe mediterranean sea! the quickest way from one side of the map to another whose blocking would force a ship to go all the way around the north or south continents! a natural chokepoint of trade! "something to put piltover on the map" my ass, this would already be a flourishing cultural and trade center purely based on the geography, mel!

[sylvanas-girlkisser]

I personally interpreted it as Ambessa's way of losening her grip on Mel, without being willing/able to fully let go of her.

Because you're right, Piltover is right in the bullseye for international conflict, but it's also surrounded by Noxus on all sides. Mel basically has no way of leaving the city without either going through Medarda lands, or extremely dangerous regions (serpent isles or Ixtal).

In a way, its almost a gilded cage for Mel; one that Ambessa can easily deny the existence of. Sure Mel can do whatever she wants, she can even leave; Ambessa is just going to know about it. And if something happens she disapproves of, then Piltover has no standing army, and Ambessa can close off trade into the city.

[melmedardaapologist]

that is actually such an excellent point that i completely missed—it still wouldn’t explain why piltover isn’t presumably “on the map” as per mel in s1e2 (and purely within the show noxus is narratively treated as a distant threat instead of a neighboring nation, which makes me squint a bit), but the concept of piltover-noxian symbiosis is giving me thoughts, i.e. the possibility of piltover maintaining its illusion of a bastion of liberal progress and erudition by developing and selling technology and weaponry to noxus in exchange for protection against shurima and bilgewater

[melmedardaapologist]

i know mel's exile to piltover is meant to be her getting sent out of the way of danger, but a part of me finds it hilarious, because if there's any geographic location on the runeterra map that would be subject to constant conflict even before hextech and shimmer, Piltover/Zaun is set directly in the bullseye:

like, look at that! a strait controlling access to/from what is essentially the in-universe mediterranean sea! the quickest way from one side of the map to another whose blocking would force a ship to go all the way around the north or south continents! a natural chokepoint of trade! "something to put piltover on the map" my ass, this would already be a flourishing cultural and trade center purely based on the geography, mel!

[iwillmissourtalks]

Tried editing for the first time!! I’m too busy to work on my fics atm but it turns out these are really fast to make which is cool :)

I have truly so many thoughts about how Le’blanc was just stalking Mel her entire life. I was rewatching S1 and Amara is just There, all the time, whenever Mel is on screen. It’s crazy.

Also that necklace. Giving Mel a symbol of innocent life being taken before her eyes and putting that symbol on her brother, first? Life ruining.

[iwillmissourtalks]

I have more to say about this actually.

That fucking necklace dude. Mel was ALREADY weird about it, she paints it abstract and bloodstained on the ground; on a canvas big enough that it takes up the majority of her entire wall. Then she hangs it above her bed. Crazy.

No one knows what that means but her; no one else even sees it but her. The rest of the room is empty. It’s just the bed and the source of her nightmares. Mel is a freak.

Then Le’blanc comes along and is just unimaginably cruel. She prys into Mel’s mind and finds this thing that affects her more than anything else and she puts it on Kino. She takes the face of the dead girl and wears that, too. She could have conjured any object to give to Mel and she chose that specific necklace. What’s worse is it feeds into Mel’s already pre-ingrained awful response to grief.

“Wear this thing around your neck, carry it with you always. No one can see it. It will kill your mother; just as it killed your brother and your friend and that girl in your dreams.”

The level of simultaneous possessiveness and cruelty is insane. Every aspect of Mel’s mage design feels like physiological torture and I’m never going to be over it.