moved! :)

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@stjusts-arc
moved! :)
okay so the new blog is being set up rn. uh, you can find me at the same url. it will definitely be a smaller space than this blog and will be extremely low activity as to not put pressure on myself lmao.
okay so the new blog is being set up rn. uh, you can find me at the same url. it will definitely be a smaller space than this blog and will be extremely low activity as to not put pressure on myself lmao.
reminder that i've moved! you can find me at the same url @stjusts. :)
okay so the new blog is being set up rn. uh, you can find me at the same url. it will definitely be a smaller space than this blog and will be extremely low activity as to not put pressure on myself lmao.
honestly?? I’ve kind of been debating moving because this blog is becoming so cluttered.
We all are caught in the middle
Of one long treacherous riddle
Of who trusts who, maybe I’ll trust you
But can you trust me?
Wait and see!
Portrayal Meme for the Muns
Do you like how you portray your muse?
Do you think you do your muse justice?
Do you portray your muse differently to the general fandom?
What aspects of your muse do you most want to explore?
Are you looking to write any particular relationships with your muse?
Is your muse canon-divergent? How? Why?
Is there a controversy or fandom disagreement revolving around your muse that has changed how you portray them?
Do you use narrative text differently between muses, or does your writing stay the same style for everybody?
What thread types (e.g. angst, fluff) do you think portrays your character at their most genuine?
Are there any crossovers you’d be especially interested in writing?
Do you write drabbles/headcanons for your character? Do you discuss them OOC, away from Tumblr?
Do you think your muse would act differently if they had interacted with different characters in the past?
Do you have any plans for the future of your muse? Would you like to see them grow a certain way?
Do you wish you had a better grasp on a certain aspect of your muse?
If you could start your blog again with a clean slate, what would you do differently with your muse? Would you change any of their base principles?
aloe, begonia, belladonna!
aloe: how does your muse handle grief?
this is such a loaded question and one i'll definitely have to dedicate its own post to but for the most part... not great. i think margot is currently at the point where she's mourned and grieved so much that she just feels somewhat numb to grief but that's not really a good thing?? because then all of those emotions are left to fester in her and end up spilling out in extreme ways (i.e. shouting, yelling, crying... most often a combination of all three.) this grief can also channel into anger like with st. cyr and the whole thing with him almost having armand beaten to death.
honestly, she just feels emotions so strongly and grief isn't an exception to that; she doesn't know how to cope with it most of the time and it just boils into extremes the more she tries to repress it and keep herself composed. i think it's only after the events of the novel that she'll truly start learning how to process grief in healthy ways, but for now... it's a whole can of worms that margot would prefer not to confront.
begonia: how cautious is your muse? are they prone to noticing red flags, or paranoid to the point of untrusting most everyone? why or why not?
i wouldn't say she's paranoid, but i do believe she is more anxious and cautious because of all of the betrayals she's had in the past. she truly doesn't know what most people's intentions are, and that terrifies her to a point. there's also that whole distinction between lady blakeney and marguerite, which makes her more cautious given most of respectable london's opinion of her (somewhat favorable as a collective, but individually... not great).
after the events of tsp, i do believe she would be more quick to catch onto red flags, but there's still that element of trepidation that's pulling her back. she would also try and not let her impulsiveness cloud her judgement, given how that has gotten her into some... pretty sticky situations. she'd be cordial, but closed off to most people, and would only open up to people she trusted extremely well at that point. yeah the blackmail really did do a number on her.
belladonna: how does your muse respond to silence? do they take comfort in soundlessness, or seek to fill the void with noise?
it's... complicated, like all things with margot. i think there's a push and pull factor between both finding comfort in silence and wanting to fill the void, because margot does want to be with her friends and loved ones. she cares for them and loves them with every fibre of her being, and it brings her so much joy when they're all together and getting along.
on the other hand, she realizes that silence and isolation is really the only time she can pull off the mask and truly be herself. after tsp, i imagine she'd open up to percy a little, but she still pulls back. she wants people to like her, she wants people to enjoy her company, but she fears that marguerite will not be liked by those who only know lady blakeney. (in my mind, there is some obvious stepford smiling and distinctions when it comes to the front vs. her "true" self, but that's for another day). as such, she does relish and find comfort in the fact that, once she's away from the public eye and in a private corner of the house, she can forget about her duties as lady blakeney and just go back to being plain marguerite.
happy Sunday this is p&m’s entire dynamic.
marguerite & morality, part i: a deeper look at st. cyr.
choices, consequences, and the weight of those consequences are some of the most important aspects of the original novel, and most of all, marguerite’s storyline, with her actions dictating the events of the narrative, and even life and death for many of the characters. from the denunciation of st. cyr, to the fate of her brother, armand, marguerite is constantly put in extremely demanding circumstances, all of which affect her deeply, and cause somewhat of a moral crisis for most of the novel.
what marguerite fears, most of all, is being a bad person — a fear which is reflected in many of her actions and how she weighs them. this fear and moral conflict is one of the key aspects of her character in novel, and one aspect that many adaptations tend to fumble on, either by undermining or completely devaluing the weight of her actions entirely.
in order to understand marguerite’s moral compass, her actions and how she processes them, i want to look at two events that i believe are crucial to understanding this aspect of her character:
the incident with st. cyr.
her blackmailing via chauvelin.
with these being the two events that she has the most direct involvement in throughout the novel, marguerite’s motivations are portrayed directly, yet, like most aspects of the novel, they are not completely black and white. to say that marguerite is entirely innocent or entirely guilty would be an oversimplification, and there are many underlying aspects to them that must be taken into consideration in order to understand marguerite’s place in the narrative.
A/N: this part only covers the st. cyr incident and marguerite's involvement in it. given how long this part already was (this is over 3k words...), there was no way that i would be dropping this entire meta in one go.
“Ah, yes,” added the Comtesse, whilst a look of haughty disdain and intense bitterness shot through her melancholy eyes. “There was that woman, Marguerite St. Just, for instance. She denounced the Marquis de St. Cyr and all his family to the awful tribunal of the Terror.” “Marguerite St. Just?” said Lord Antony, as he shot a quick and apprehensive glance across at Sir Andrew. “Marguerite St. Just?—Surely . . .” (...) “No mistake is possible, Monsieur,” rejoined the Comtesse, coldly. “Marguerite St. Just’s brother is a noted republican. There was some talk of a family feud between him and my cousin, the Marquis de St. Cyr. The St. Justs’ are quite plebeian, and the republican government employs many spies. I assure you there is no mistake. . . . You had not heard this story?” “Faith, Madame, I did hear some vague rumours of it, but in England no one would credit it. . . . Sir Percy Blakeney, her husband, is a very wealthy man, of high social position, the intimate friend of the Prince of Wales . . . and Lady Blakeney leads both fashion and society in London.” “That may be, Monsieur, and we shall, of course, lead a very quiet life in England, but I pray God that while I remain in this beautiful country, I may never meet Marguerite St. Just.” ––– CH IV, THE LEAGUE OF THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL.
there's a lot to unpack in this quote, but the main idea (and what the reader gathers) is that 1.) marguerite denounced the marquis de st. cyr and sent him and his family to their deaths and 2.) it's become somewhat of the hottest “scandal” for lack of a better term, and many — in particular, the comtesse de tournay — don't take to the rumors very lightly. although marguerite has become well respected and the pivot of social london, there is an air of disdain that comes with her name, which is only reinforced when she meets the comtesse face to face, who has some… less than flattering things to say about her, to put it lightly.
“Hoity-toity, citizeness,” she said gaily, “what fly stings you, pray?” “We are in England now, Madame,” rejoined the Comtesse, coldly, “and I am at liberty to forbid my daughter to touch your hand in friendship. Come, Suzanne.” ––– CH V, MARGUERITE.
wherever marguerite goes, her reputation precedes her — given the cold shoulder by most of the people around her, including her own husband, for this wicked deed she has committed. so, why did marguerite denounce st. cyr? what could he have possibly done that caused her to denounce him and send him to his death? well, her motives for st. cyr’s denunciation are much more personal than that of many others in a time such as the reign of terror.
the reason marguerite had denounced st. cyr — which is hinted at in an earlier chapter but not elaborated on until later — is because he had her brother, armand, beaten “within an inch of his life.” for what reason? for falling in love with his daughter, angèle, which the marquis had deemed unacceptable given the st. just’s middle class background. while such incidents, as orczy puts it, “was of almost daily occurrence in france,” marguerite was horrified and appalled by armand’s beating by st. cyr’s men, and swears that she will have her vengeance on the marquis. this motive behind marguerite’s actions is something that also tends to get lost in adaptation; in the 1934 film, it is one of st. cyr’s sons who wants to marry marguerite instead of armand being in love with angèle, to which the marquis has her imprisoned in st. lazare in retaliation. in the 1982 film, her motive remains the same, only she never acts on it and is resolved of her guilt; instead it’s chauvelin who puts her name on the arrest warrant out of spite. in the 1999 miniseries, st. cyr is responsible for the death of her parents, while the musical doesn’t seem to touch on the motives behind st. cyr’s denunciation, which paints marguerite in a pretty negative light in that regard.
while adaptations have their reason for adjusting marguerite’s motive in st. cyr’s denunciation (or completely absolving her of the responsibility), what many of these adaptations fail to realize is that, by changing her motivation in the st. cyr incident, they actually tend to 1.) undermine the relationship between marguerite and armand and 2.) entirely miss the mark on a crucial aspect of marguerite’s character, which is how she loves — particularly those close to her.
“I was tricked into doing this thing, by men who knew how to play upon my love for an only brother, and my desire for revenge. Was it unnatural?” (...) “Listen to the tale, Sir Percy,” she said, and her voice now was low, sweet, infinitely tender. “Armand was all in all to me! We had no parents, and brought one another up. He was my little father, and I, his tiny mother; we loved one another so. Then one day—do you mind me, Sir Percy? the Marquis de St. Cyr had my brother Armand thrashed—thrashed by his lacqueys—that brother whom I loved better than all the world! And his offence? That he, a plebeian, had dared to love the daughter of the aristocrat; for that he was waylaid and thrashed . . . thrashed like a dog within an inch of his life! Oh, how I suffered! his humiliation had eaten into my very soul! When the opportunity occurred, and I was able to take my revenge, I took it. But I only thought to bring that proud marquis to trouble and humiliation. He plotted with Austria against his own country. Chance gave me knowledge of this; I spoke of it, but I did not know—how could I guess?—they trapped and duped me. When I realised what I had done, it was too late.” ––– CH XVI, RICHMOND.
the bond between marguerite and armand is incredibly close, a direct result of their parents dying when they were still children. while their birth order tends to be swapped in later sequels, this fact remains the same throughout. armand is marguerite’s only family, who raised her and was her guardian until she married percy. they have one of, if not the closest, bond in the novel, which brings up the second aspect; how marguerite loves people.
to say that marguerite loves very intensely would just be touching the surface. when it comes to the people she loves, she would do anything for them, including risking/endangering her life. while she never vocalizes it in the novel much, this aspect is seen in almost every important relationship she has, especially with armand, though they’ve grown somewhat distant when the events of the novel begin. so for marguerite to discover that armand, whom she loves more than anything else, was beaten almost to death for what she believes is an unjustified reason, her anger and subsequent want for revenge against st. cyr is justified, and given how marguerite’s first mention in the novel is explicitly about her involvement in st. cyr’s execution, we know that marguerite eventually triumphed in getting her revenge.
the st. cyr incident is not a simple black and white issue, however, and we soon learn that marguerite had no intention of sending the marquis to his death. in fact, when she discovered that he and his family were to be executed, her reaction contradicts what we have been told about marguerite thus far: she was horrified.
Marguerite, impulsive, thoughtless, not calculating the purport of her words, still smarting under the terrible insult her brother had suffered at the Marquis’ hands, happened to hear—amongst her own coterie—that the St. Cyrs were in treasonable correspondence with Austria, hoping to obtain the Emperor’s support to quell the growing revolution in their own country In those days one denunciation was sufficient: Marguerite’s few thoughtless words anent the Marquis de St. Cyr bore fruit within twenty-four hours. He was arrested. His papers were searched: letters from the Austrian Emperor, promising to send troops against the Paris populace, were found in his desk. He was arraigned for treason against the nation, and sent to the guillotine, whilst his family, his wife and his sons, shared this awful fate. Marguerite, horrified at the terrible consequences of her own thoughtlessness, was powerless to save the Marquis: her own coterie, the leaders of the revolutionary movement, all proclaimed her as a heroine: and when she married Sir Percy Blakeney, she did not perhaps altogether realise how severely he would look upon the sin, which she had so inadvertently committed, and which still lay heavily upon her soul. ––– CH VIII, THE ACCREDITED AGENT.
orczy makes it a point to emphasize that marguerite’s intention was not to send st. cyr to his death, but instead to humiliate him, which she saw as “just” revenge for what he had done to armand. still, with marguerite swearing vengeance on st. cyr, the fact that she is horrified that he is to be executed — and even goes as far as attempting to stop the execution from happening — is extremely telling about her moral judgement, beliefs, and her morality overall.
when it comes to the morality regarding marguerite’s involvement in st. cyr’s arrest and execution, there are two things to keep in mind:
marguerite’s intentions weren't good, but it wasn’t malicious either.
marguerite’s impulsiveness, brashness, and naïvety (to a point) play a major role in her decision to denounce st. cyr.
while marguerite’s life prior to marrying percy is never explored in detail, the fact that a staunch republican like her, who has actively supported the revolution, would be horrified by st. cyr’s death brings up a question: why? if marguerite wanted revenge against st. cyr so badly, why wouldn’t she be happy that he would be sent to the guillotine? well, that’s the thing: the death of st. cyr and her direct involvement in it goes against everything marguerite stands for morally.
while the alternative to execution (humiliating him and soiling his reputation) isn’t ideal, marguerite did not denounce st. cyr with the intention to send him to his death. in fact, she had no intention of sharing his involvement with austria with anyone really, let alone revolutionary officials, with it being revealed that marguerite was tricked into denouncing st. cyr by using her love for armand and her desire for revenge against her. while this does indicate that marguerite is “morally” innocent when it comes to st. cyr’s death, i don’t believe that’s the case. despite ultimately being manipulated into sharing st. cyr’s involvement with austria, it was still marguerite’s choice to denounce him at the end of the day, giving her an active part in st. cyr’s denouncement and eventual execution. if this aspect of the st. cyr incident were to be ditched — which is what most adaptations tend to opt to — it downplays and devalues a large majority of marguerite’s motivation and actions in the latter half of the novel, where she is desperately trying to “atone” for her sin.
then there is marguerite’s impulsive nature, which ultimately got her into this situation to begin with. i think it’s important to note that although marguerite is clever and sophisticated, she is incredibly impulsive, brash, and to a point, naïve, which all leads back to her upbringing; she was sheltered in a convent for a majority of her formative years, and when she left the convent, she was under the guardianship of armand. she hasn’t had enough opportunities to really confront more difficult situations, let alone an entire revolution in the years leading up to its reign of terror. as a result, marguerite tends to act before she can really consider the consequences of her actions, something which comes to haunt her later on.
along with this, marguerite is definitely someone who cracks when put under enough pressure, i.e the opera box chapter, which will be more thoroughly dived into later on. given what the denunciation of st. cyr meant for the revolution, for her, and for the people pressuring her into telling them about st. cyr’s correspondence with austria, it’s likely to believe that she simply didn’t have the time to contemplate the decision thoroughly enough. for her, the denunciation meant that st. cyr would finally see “justice” (he would be humiliated) for armand’s beating, and that her desire for revenge would be satisfied. while outside forces did play a major role in her decision, marguerite had denounced st. cyr in the heat of the moment and did not have the time to properly weigh the morality of her decision, and did not take the consequences into consideration. she saw the opportunity to seek revenge and she seized it. marguerite hates st. cyr, that is true, but she would never wish death upon him, let alone the rest of his family, who were completely innocent in this whole affair.
for her, the denunciation meant that st. cyr would finally see “justice” (he would be humiliated) for armand’s beating, and that her desire for revenge would be satisfied. while outside forces did play a major role in her decision, marguerite had denounced st. cyr in the heat of the moment and did not have the time to properly weigh the morality of her decision, and did not take the consequences into consideration. she saw the opportunity to seek revenge and she seized it. marguerite hates st. cyr, that is true, but she would never wish death on him, let alone the rest of his family, who were completely innocent in this whole affair.
Yet she had done these things (...) just as two years ago the Marquis de St. Cyr had perished through a thoughtless word of hers; but in that case she was morally innocent—she had meant no serious harm—fate merely had stepped in. ––– CH XVI, RICHMOND.
this concept of “fate” stepping in, which will come up again when marguerite is blackmailed by chauvelin, is one that orczy uses to show how marguerite rationalizes her part in st. cyr’s death; the situation was out of control, she didn’t know any better. despite this, marguerite still feels an extreme amount of guilt, one which haunts her enough that she confesses to percy in a way which “might have sounded unpleasant to an english ear,” and which motivates her to try and repair her marriage and eventually save percy.
the st. cyr incident is a turning point for marguerite, as she realizes that the revolution, in her eyes, has gone too far. with her word being used to arrest and send st. cyr to his death, she realizes that her words hold more weight than she had previously thought, and that they can be used against her if they would fulfill an agenda (which, in this case, was the revolution). if st. cyr had died by her word, then just how far would they go in the name of the revolution? how many more people would die by her hand? would she be safe from meeting a similar fate at the guillotine? it’s questions like these that weight heavily on her, and by the time that the events of the novel begin, she is still incredibly guilt ridden due to this incident with st. cyr, which is why she is against aiding chauvelin in his mission to uncover the pimpernel’s identity until she’s blackmailed — she doesn’t want to be responsible for another death, despite knowing what is at stake.
it’s her direct involvement in st. cyr’s death that causes her to question the morality of the revolution and ultimately what it stands for. while she never gives up her ardent republican beliefs, marguerite is disgusted by the pointless bloodshed in order to keep the revolution alive. her role in st. cyr’s death is one of the key motivators for her actions in the novel, and is always weighing heavily on her conscience despite her efforts to “atone” for her sin. there’s also a feeling of betrayal that marguerite has to come to terms with; she was tricked into denouncing st. cyr by people she once considered her closest confidantes, who played on her love for her brother and her desire for revenge in order to do so. as a result, marguerite has become wary of people’s intentions and motives, and in a way, she’s almost paranoid that a betrayal such as this could happen again. it’s sort of marguerite’s “pandora’s box” or “temptation of eve” moment, where she learns that her actions will have dire consequences if not considered carefully.
while the story still works if you were to rid marguerite of her guilt and involvement (see the ‘82 film), it feels pointless and only waters down the weight of her actions in the latter half of the story when she goes to rescue percy. though i want to believe that adaptations have good reason to mess with this aspect of marguerite’s storyline, it’s really just another aspect that shows the disconnect and evolution of the story as the years passed on, going from marguerite’s story to percy’s, with her role in the narrative becoming smaller and smaller as the story continues to be adapted for a modern audience.
¹ @debreuil : « for many months this has been my task. »
i know you, a small voice echoes, threatening to crumble the front masking her trepidation. there is some sense of comfort stirring through her –– she knows, better than most, how scarce old friends are to find in this cataclysm consuming the streets of paris –– however, comfort turns to fear, and fear to indignation and caution as she meets milady's gaze with a wide-eyed, puzzled stare.
‘ i knew you once, anne, ’ the name rolls off her tongue so easily, as if she's always remembered and cherished it, like a prayer she said before bed. anne instead of milady, i knew you instead of we were friends. her voice threatens to break, and she already finds her composure cracking beneath her. ‘ i knew you once, and this wasn't — this isn't — heaven above, what's happened to you? ’ i've already seen too much death. i've already lost too much... i don't want to lose you too.
pansy : does your muse often reflect on their own actions ? do they ever think a lot about the past , and what they could have done differently ?
marguerite's actions hold an incredibly heavy amount of weight throughout the course of the novel, and she does spend a lot of the time reflecting upon them and what she could have done differently. the most notable example is st. cyr, of course, and the aftermath of that whole debacle, but when you look at how she handles the "either/or" that chauvelin gives her, it gives the reader a whole new insight to this self reflection that margot is constantly doing. the novel plays with the idea that fate had "merely stepped in," and while i do agree to some extent that marguerite is a fatalist, i think this aspect is a lot more complicated than meets the eye.
margot has a horrible guilt complex, and the guilt she feels over st. cyr is immense and so is the guilt from the either/or once she discovers that percy is the pimpernel. to some extent, she feels incredibly guilty about her part in the estrangement and how she had shunned percy throughout it (even though he did the same to her but that is a story for another day!) while she does believe that the outcomes of many situations were out of her hands, she does constantly think about what could have gone differently if she had made different decisions, i.e. if she hadn't been so brash and impulsive with st. cyr, if she had told percy the truth about her involvement in st. cyr. she thinks it would have saved her all of the trouble from the first book, and even though margot and percy reconcile and clear things up in the end, she still feels horrible for everything she had done in this first novel, despite only being inadvertently responsible for a lot of the horrible things before and during the novel.
despite this guilt complex and wishing she could change things, she kind of just accepts them in the end as "it happened and i can't change that" while also having deep-seeded fears in the back of her mind that she's a horrible person. while in england, she also has a lot of homesick — partially for paris, partially for normandy another place from her childhood that she can't quite remember. she's lonely and alienated by london society for 1.) the whole st. cyr thing and 2.) being a frenchwoman who is believed to have a part in the revolution, so she definitely craves happier memories during these lower times in her life.
❥ 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐍𝐒 [ 𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙳 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃𝚂 ] .
headcanon prompts with questions based on plants & what they represent in flower language . happy roleplaying !! ♡
abatina : is there anything in life your muse has changed their mind about over time ( due to becoming more educated on the topic , certain experiences , etc . ) , or that they would change their mind about under certain circumstances ?
acanthus : is your muse deceptive , or willing to lie or deceive to achieve certain means ? why or why not ?
aloe : how does your muse handle grief ?
amaryllis : what is something or someone that your muse takes pride in ? how do they express that pride ?
anemone : how does your muse view the world ; as a cruel & unforgiving place , a land full of wonders , or something in - between ? where does that world view come from ( what experiences , life lessons , etc . ) ?
angelica : where does your muse draw inspiration in life ? what motivates them ?
apple blossom : how does your muse go about expressing or not expressing their sexuality ?
bachelor’s button : does your muse actively seek romantic companionship , or cherish the liberties of being single ?
basil : does your muse have a love - hate relationship with anyone or anything ?
bay tree : does your muse seek glory & accolades , or do they favour a simpler , more personal life ?
begonia : how cautious is your muse ? are they prone to noticing red flags , or paranoid to the point of untrusting most everyone ? why or why not ?
belladonna : how does your muse respond to silence ? do they take comfort in soundlessness , or seek to fill the void with noise ?
bluebell : does your muse learn from their past , or are they prone to repeating the same mistakes ?
carnation : what is your muse’s relationship with their gender ? how do they express or not express this relationship ?
chamomile : what is your muse likely to take away from a painful experience ? are they one to be haunted by adversity , or to use what they’ve gone through to become stronger ?
chrysanthemum : how does your muse express romantic love ? how do they feel about love as a concept ?
daffodil : is your muse one to be loyal in relationships , or are they likely to quickly move from one bond to another ?
daisy : did your muse ever feel as though their innocence had been lost ? what moment in their life could be described as the end of their innocence ?
edelweiss : what was the bravest moment in your muse’s life ? are they known to be courageous from then on ?
fern : does your muse believe in magic or cosmic forces , or are they more likely to think their life is ultimately a matter of their own control ?
forget - me - not : has your muse ever forgotten something that is or was important to them ? are they afraid of forgetting things like that ?
gardenia : is your muse one to confess romantic feelings early on , or to conceal them for long periods of time ?
gladiolus : describe a moment from your muse’s life that they will never forget .
goldenrod : does your muse believe in luck or fortune ? why or why not ? where do they believe these things come from ?
heliotrope : does your muse believe in soulmates ?
hibiscus : how does your muse view the gentler , daintier things in life ? as things worth preserving & caring for , or things only bound to wither & disappear ?
holly : how strong is your muse’s sense of intuition ? are they aware of it ? do they ever fear that it is only paranoia ?
hollyhock : how strong is your muse’s sense of ambition ? what’s something they strive for in life ?
hyacinth : is your muse athletic ? does it come naturally to them , or have they had to work for their physique and/or skill ?
hydrangea : how much does your muse value communication in their relationships with others ? are they prone to being misunderstood ?
iris : if your muse could convey one last message to someone they have lost or left behind , what would it be ?
ivy : what are your muse’s views on marriage ? do they believe it is something strictly for love , or an institution rooted in business & social benefits ? do they desire or have they desired to be married ?
lavender : how easy is it to gain your muse’s trust ? once their trust is broken , how might one go about mending it ?
lilac : what was your muse’s childhood like ? how has their upbringing affected them as they’ve aged ?
lily : how does your muse view their mother ?
lotus : has your muse ever felt as though they’ve been reborn ? have they ever desired the feeling of a fresh start , or a better understanding of themself and/or the world around them ?
magnolia : describe your muse’s relationship with nature & the natural world .
marigold : is your muse prone to jealousy ? how might they handle envious feelings ?
mint : does your muse view themself as virtuous & moral ? what do these words mean to them ?
nasturtium : describe your muse’s relationship with their birthplace , or homeland .
oak : who would your muse consider the strongest person they know ?
pansy : does your muse often reflect on their own actions ? do they ever think a lot about the past , and what they could have done differently ?
parsley : describe a holiday your muse enjoys , and why they enjoy it .
peony : what would a ‘ happy life ’ look like in your muse’s eyes ?
poppy : what comforts your muse ?
rhododendron : is your muse receptive to warnings & advice given by others ?
rose : how much does your muse value other people ? do they wish to have many friends , lovers , and/or associates ? are they an easy person to love ?
sage : what is your muse’s legacy ? what do they want to be remembered for & what might they actually be remembered for ?
salvia : is your muse possessive over people or things that matter a lot to them ? how do they express that possessiveness , or lack thereof ?
snapdragon : is your muse merciful ? why or why not ?
southernwood : how seriously does your muse take themself ? do they prefer a solemn & intellectual atmosphere or do they delight in jokes & banter ?
sunflower : what brings your muse the most joy in life ?
tulip : how does your muse view people in general ?
violet : how does your muse respond to betrayal ?
willow : how does your muse handle sadness & depression ?
zinnia : how has the loss of fallen comrades and/or loved ones affected your muse ? has it taught them anything or given them any new perspectives ?
* THE MODERN PROMETHEUS. sentence starters from mary shelley's novel, frankenstein ; or, the modern prometheus. from the original manuscript, the original published edition, & the 1831 revision. feel free to change pronouns / terms / tense / etc.
do you understand this feeling ?
I desire the company of someone who could sympathize with me.
I shall do nothing rashly.
remember me with affection, should you never hear from me again.
I will not rashly encounter danger. I will be cool, persevering, & prudent.
will you have the kindness to inform me whither you are bound ?
I have lost everything, & cannot begin life anew.
you may easily perceive, [name], that I have suffered great & unparalleled misfortunes.
with what interest & sympathy shall I read it in some future day !
the world was to me a secret, which I desired to discover.
it was the secrets of heaven & earth that I desired to learn
no youth could have passed more happily than mine.
do not waste your time upon this ; it is sad trash.
I believed myself totally unfitted for the company of strangers.
have you really spent your time in studying such nonsense ?
I am happy to have gained a disciple.
remember, I am not recording the vision of a madman.
a resistless, & almost frantic impulse, urged me forward.
you must pardon me, if I regard any interruption in your correspondence as a proof that your other duties are equally neglected.
how can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe ?
how glad I am to see you !
it gives me the greatest delight to see you.
you look as if you had been watching for several nights.
how ill you are !
what is the cause of all this ?
oh, save me ! save me !
I dare say you wish to be indulged in a little gossip.
are you always to be unhappy ?
my dear friend, what has happened ?
even cato wept over the dead body of his brother.
I am afraid, tears instead of smiles will be your welcome.
I do not know what you mean.
no one believes it, surely ?
did the murderer place it there ?
I cannot go alone.
I did confess, but I confessed a lie.
I hope you do not believe I am guilty.
I cannot live in this world of misery.
Do you think that I do not suffer also?
men appear to me as monsters thirsting for each other’s blood.
I would sacrifice my life for your peace.
devil ! do you dare approach me?
begone, vile insect!
I expected this reception.
all men hate the wretched.
abhorred monster !
be calm ! I entreat you to hear me.
have I not suffered enough?
I do not wish to hate you.
I was benevolent & good ; misery made me a fiend.
make me happy, & I shall again be virtuous.
you, my creator, abhor me ; what hope can I gather from your fellow-creatures, who owe me nothing ?
cursed be the day, abhorred devil, in which you first saw light !
relieve me from the sight of your detested form !
I ought to be thy adam, but I am rather the fallen angel.
I stared back, unable to believe that it was indeed I who was reflected in the mirror.
was I then a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled, & whom all men disowned ?
cursed creator ! why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust ?
pardon this intrusion, I am a traveler in want of a little rest.
I thank you, & accept your generous offer
at length the thought of you crossed my mind.
to whom could I apply with more fitness than to him who had given me life ?
I do not intend to hurt you.
I am content to reason with you.
if I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear.
I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart, so that you curse the hour of your birth.
this is what it is to live !
where does he now exist ? is this gentle & lovely being lost forever ?
does it now only exist in my memory ?
I could pass my life here.
I had rather be with you.
hasten then, my dear friend, to return, so that I may again feel myself somewhat at home, which I cannot do in your absence.
had I the right, for my own benefit, to inflict this curse upon everlasting generations ?
what is it that you intend ?
do you dare to break your promise ?
I can make you so wretched that the light of day will be hateful to you.
beware ; for I am fearless, & therefore powerful.
I will be with you on your wedding night.
villain ! before you sign my death-warrant, be sure that you are yourself safe.
why do you answer me so roughly ?
why did I not die ?
are you better now ?
I am sorry that I am still alive to feel this misery & horror.
can I do any thing to make you more comfortable ?
on the whole earth there is no comfort which I am capable of receiving.
persecuted & tortured as I am & have been, can death be any evil to me ?
a fatality seems to pursue you.
do you not love another ?
it is your happiness I desire as well as my own.
if I see but one smile on your lips when we meet, I shall need no other happiness.
you are sorrowful, my love.
this night is dreadful, very dreadful.
why did I not then expire ?
I am satisfied, miserable wretch ! you have determined to live, & I am satisfied.
for many months this has been my task.
my reign is not yet over.
learn from my miseries, & do not seek to increase your own.
do you think that I was then dead to agony & remorse ?
you throw a torch into a pile of buildings, & when they are consumed you sit among the ruins, & lament the fall.
but it is even so ; the fallen angel becomes a malignant devil.
you hate me ; but your abhorrence cannot equal that with which I regard myself.
soon, I shall die, & what I now feel will no longer be felt.
like eve before you
George Frederic Watts, Eve Tempted (detail) • Vievee Francis, "Apologia" • Edmund Blair Leighton, The Keys (detail) • Maria Tatar, Secrets Beyond the Door: The Story of Bluebeard and His Wives • Angela Carter, "The Bloody Chamber" • Heinrich Aldegrever, Adam and Eve • Gustave Doré, Illustration for "Blue Beard" • Paul Dukas, Ariane et Barbe-bleue • Glen Duncan, I, Lucifer • Hans Baldung Grien, Eve, Serpent and Death • Erika Steiskal, Illustration for "The Bloody Chamber"
why does my golden pretending leave me with nothing to hold .. but my dreams? (WHEN YOU LOOK IN THE MIRROR, WHAT DO YOU SEE?) , marguerite st. just of baroness orczy's the scarlet pimpernel. almost exclusively novel based. written by anya.