#*changes

[sleepyz-circus]

I would REALLY love to get a good, consistent art style for Backstage Attraction but FFFFFFFFFF

[bookwyrminspiration]

(Ophelia) Didn’t Tam say something about them actually having to earn the crystal for the next class or something? Like it was a possibility that they wouldn‘t even be allowed to come back to the Exillium? I‘m pretty sure he said something like that in his entry in Unlocked, but I might be wrong because I don’t actually own unlocked so I can’t check- I’m sorry if I am. (And even if he did say that there’s a possibility that he was exaggerating depending on the context.)

hello, Ophelia!! Excellent point--I don't know if it was Tam who said that or whatever coach was passing out the beads, but that was definitely a thing. Give me a moment to check. Okay I think I found the part you're referring to on page 399-400 of Neverseen: "'To our new Waywards, who do not understand our traditions,' the red coach said. 'We offer beads only to those we deem deserving. But it's always your choice to refuse or accept.'" It's possible Tam also referenced this in Unlocked but I don't know that book as well as I know the other ones so I used this quote instead because I knew where to find it. Hope you don't mind!! I can check Unlocked too hang on. Yes! He did mention it on page 295, saying, "Oh, and for added fun, we had to prove that we deserved to get one of the beads to find the campus every day." (page numbers taken from paperback versions)

Damn. That is. That makes Exillium even worse. The Coaches go on to say that there's no consequence for refusing to take a bead, so these kids really can just...leave. They can completely leave elven society to go live somewhere in the neutral territories. And this is all directed at children!! Linh and Tam were like 10-11 when they were first sent to Exillium so can you image if they refused a bead? That's an irreversible decision because no one would come after them. There'd be two 10 year olds alone in the woods (as that's where they were staying, near a forest that got infected) trying to survive with absolutely no support and no one to care for them except each other.

But back to the original point of this ask--the coaches could just...not give someone a bead! I don't know what would constitute a situation where someone wouldn't be given a bead, but it Does Not sound good. Given that Sophie was worried she wouldn't get a bead after saving the gnome (I think that's when it was? it was sometime around there), I'm willing to bet it's not taken as seriously as they make it seem. that was one strike against her record there and she was worried she wouldn't be given a bead. I wonder what minor offenses people committed that ended in them being cut off permanently from this one last place they had as a sort of hellish refuge.

I also wonder how guilt affects that, as I surmised in that other post that the council didn't feel guilt because they convinced themselves Exillium was a place of alternate learning instead of the cruel punishment it is and that the people there were still technically being cared for (in the loosest sense of the term). i'm assuming that since it's up to the performance and behavior of the individual, it's seen as like a "you did this to yourself. you knew the rules and did it anyways," so that way it doesn't feel like their decision to cut off the kid, even though they're the one who passed judgement and chose not to give them a bead. Perhaps they also convince themselves that the kids have a good chance out there, that they aren't doomed once cut off and that anything that happens to them after being cut off is a result of their own incompetencies and not a result of their judgement

you know it feels like the dramatics of "elven minds shatter from guilt so don't you dare ever feel it" was created for the purpose of a few specific points in the plot (alden and prentice) rather than as an impact on the world as a whole. Because it seems like a lot of the shattered minds and guilt things aren't being used unless it's important for the plot, but when it's realistic and creates a situation where it would actually come into play it's brushed under the rug and I gotta find a way to interpret it so it makes sense.

Exillium is incredibly fucked up and we only brush the surface. There is absolutely no way that everyone survived it; kids had to have died. Like that's just. it had to have happened. Maybe not something that will ever be mentioned in canon, but given the way it's set up it's not something that's survivable! Sophie did make a bit of an impact by getting Oralie to fund it better, but the effects of that remain to be seen. Just because it's nicer doesn't make their banishment better.

This is just a little personal thing that I always think of when reading the scenes about Exillium, but Sophie mentions that when she shows up after yelling at Oralie and Bronte that now there's breakfast, which is...pastries (pg 486). As a small child I was like cool! breakfast now! and moved on. But...pastries?? These children have to be severly malnourished and desperate for nutrients and the council went "yea let's give them all these sweets to say sorry for throwing them out of society and forgetting about them." Like please. Can we get them some veggies. Fresh fruit. Proteins and vitamins. The things they need to survive. Some bottles of youth because I highly doubt they were given any. That's a personal thing and I know it doesn't matter and I know why it was added, but every time I read that I want to roll my eyes like yes. Jam filled pastries are definitely the right way to go /s.

all this to say that you're very right!! Exillium is awful, but on top of that these kids can be cut off even more! They can be completely abandoned as children, so definitely not happy about that one. it's one of if not the biggest flaw in elven society. Their inability to care for members of their own society who don't provide anything positive in their eyes is...telling, to say the least.

[karenwilson]

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[crobby]

i could be creepycrobby

[multixkitten]

Sorry I disappeared again guys. I made the mistake of going out to check the mail and the twenty degree temperature change we had overnight caused the air pressure to be too much for me. I was having trouble breathing and it completely wrecked me, so I’ve been resting.

I’m completely fine now, don’t worry. It happens unfortunately, but that’s why I disappeared. Not ignoring those asks, I’ll get to them after I make food.

[lummophoenix]

BNHA: Chapter 73 v Season 3 Episode 3

First, we’ll make them understand... that their peace rests in our hands.

[enchantas]

gn yall!!! i have a feeling that when i wake up im going to come back to a big big mess skjkfgkjg