All in all it was a decent chapter. I enjoy all the little moments they have as a family.
Being strict parents and keeping Hope away from the sweet temptation
Learning the first word together
Trying to capture every tiny achievement she made.
And it continues
They said it takes a village to raise a child
But this time it just needs a little nudge from Daddy to make it happen
That goes straight in to the heart. I love that eventhough they're raising a royal heir they don't hire a nanny to help them during these events. They're very hands-on parents.. so anybody who thinks that he/she can raise Hope better than these two is seriously delusional.
The Unity Tour arrives in Portavira and Alice and the others participate in a celebrity polo match for charity.
Summary: The Unity Tour arrives in Portavira and Alice and the others participate in a celebrity polo match for charity. (slightly NSFW-sh at times)
Notes: I used some of the original PB dialogue and bedazzled it a bit. Also, fair warning, this is a long section (I don’t know when to stop, haha).
CW: references to terrorist attack
New to the series? Catch up here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8,Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23, Part 24, Part 25, Part 26, Part 27, Part 28, Part 29, Part 30, Part 31, Part 32, Part 33, Part 34, Part 35, Part 36, Part 37, Part 38, Part 39, Part 40, Part 41, Part 42, Part 43
The Handmaid of History*: Exploring the Coat-of-Arms of Cordonia's Duchies
"An emblem is but a silent parable" - Introduction to Emblemes, by Francis Quakes.
Heraldry is sometimes referred to as an ancient and exact science, a straightforward method of identifying individual people and the communities they live and work in**. It uses a combination of colours, shapes and symbols to represent - in most cases, but not all - a noble house. While heraldry was present in the ancient times (esp in Rome), the system of blazoning arms the way it is done in many English-speaking countries today was developed in the Middle Ages.
Heraldry itself arose from a need to distinguish participants quickly and easily in combat. According to Hugh Stanford London, the writer of Royal Beasts, armorial bearings were essentially military, and the early arms were identified almost as closely with the land as with the man. Later on, these coat of arms would be passed down a family (mostly aristocratic, but a non-aristocrat can make their own heraldic emblem) from generation to generation, such that the noble family would be identified with the emblem itself. Because of its distinctive use of symbols, heraldry is often viewed as "the fusion of fact and fancy, myth and manner, romance and reality. It is an exuberant union of family, art, and history." (Charles Burnett and Mark Dennis in Scotland's Heraldic Heritage: The Lion Rejoicing).
A number of factors go into the making of a Coat-of-Arms for a noble house, which I will briefly highlight as the following: the shape of the shield, and of the smaller shield superimposed (Escutcheon/Inescutcheon), colour (Tincture), patterns (Divisions/Variations of the Field, as well as Ordinaries/Subordinaries), and objects or figures that represent the family (Charges). We do not get to see the Coat-of-Arms for the five duchies we have visited thus far, so I will focus on - and explain in detail - the parts of their heraldry that we do see: the tincture and the charges.
Tinctures
In a broader sense, tincture refers to the limited palette of colours and patterns used in heraldry. It is commonly divided into three categories: metals, colours and furs.
Metals: This refers primarily to the metallic colours used in the coat-of-arms, and can be or (metallic gold/yellow) or argent (metallic silver/white/grey). White and yellow are often seen in heraldry as the 'metal' colours, and yellow has never been used to signify any other tincture besides or.
Colours: These refer to the colours that are non-metallic and are often used to offset and complement the metals. In the early days of heraldry, there were five colours: gules (red), azure (blue), vert (green), sable (black) and purpure (purple). There were two that were eventually acknowledged but not very often used owing to popular belief that they represented some sort of dishonour on the bearer - sanguine/murray (dark red/mulberry) and tennè (orange/dark yellow/tan). In the 20th century, a new colour bleu-celeste (light blue) was added to the list.
It is important to remember the "Rule of Tincture". The most basic rule of tinctures is that "metal should not be put on metal, nor colour on colour". This means that metallic colours cannot be used one over the other, nor can one do the same with two colours. It is said that this rule was implemented for purposes of design and visibility. There are exceptions to this rule, however. Legitimate exceptions include the use of furs, or using those colours in divisions on the coat of arms.
Violations to this rule are often either called armes fausses (false arms) or armes à enquérir (arms of enquiry); that is, any violation is presumed to be intentional, to invite the viewer to ask how it came to pass. According to the International Heraldry website, these exceptions tend to apply "powerful individuals who wish to emphasize that ordinary worldly rules do not apply to them".
Charges
Charges refer to any object or figure that is placed on a heraldic sheild or coat of arms. The emblem or the sigil that represents the House, so to speak. This can include animals, objects in nature, or even geometric shapes (the cross being the most popular). In the case of living beings, the attitude (posture) is equally important. Since a majority of the Cordonian noble houses (with the exception of Krona/Fydelia) use animals, this section will primarily focus on them:
Beasts/Land: This category can include both predatory animals and docile animals. They can be portrayed in a whole range of attitudes: rampant (upright on one hind leg, in a mode of attack), salient (leaping/jumping), passant (walking/running), statant (still and on all fours), sejant (seated with forelegs down and together), dormant (sleeping) - just to name a few. The most frequently seen beast sigil is that of the lion. Mythical creatures can also feature in heraldic sheilds, and the most popular among these include the dragon and the phoenix.
Birds/Avian: Creatures of the air have also been immortalized as sigils in heraldry. They can be found displaying the following attitudes: rising (open wings, about to take flight), displayed (wings outstretched to either side), close (closed wings), volant (in flight) - again, only to name a few. The avian can be shown either from the side or the front. The most frequently seen avian sigil is that of the eagle.
Sea-creatures/Aquatic: This could refer to fish or other creatures that reside in the waters. They are often found displaying the following attitudes: hauriant (vertical with head up), urinant (vertical with head down), naiant (swimming fesswise), embowed (arched, as though it were leaping) - again, to name a few.
Plants: Plants are common in heraldry and figure among the earliest charges. Trees also appear in heraldry; the most frequent tree by far is the oak (drawn with large leaves and acorns), followed by the pine. Apples and bunches of grapes occur very frequently, other fruits less so.
Heraldry in Cordonia
Cordonia is a monarchy, and its people compromise of aristocrats from major and minor noble houses as well as people who do not hold a recognizable rank and are referred to as commonors. The national symbol is established to be the lion, and the national colours are blue-and-gold/silver (while Leo tells us in RoE that silver is the second national colour, many of the royal outfits show it as gold). In Book 3 of The Royal Romance, we learn more about Cordonia and its people - the nobility in particular - due to the Unity Tour.
In each chapter from Chapter 3 onwards, the MC is required to gain the favour of Cordonia's most powerful and influential nobles, because their presence at her wedding will add glamour and glory, and perhaps revive the public's positive opinion of the monarchy. Part of gaining their favour involves showing them that she has done her research and knows their region well, and one of the ways she does this is by wearing their house colours. These diamond-option outfits are usually accessorized with the house sigil.
Many of these sigils are common to many European noble houses, but a few are present as a reference to the Five Kingdoms in The Crown and the Flame, which revolves around the history of Cordonia. In this essay I will be exploring all the sigils we will be shown so far, and theorizing on the sigils of Lythikos and Valtoria. I will not be covering the Cordonian royal seal, King Liam's family crest, because it has already been explored in detail here.
Portavira
(Apologies for this creepy smile that I forgot to crop out. It was 1 in the morning)
Tinctures: Or (gold) and Purpure (purple). Gold is said to represent generosity and elevation of the mind, and purple is said to represent royal majesty, sovereignity and justice. These tinctures were also the colours associated most with Ennan, the coastal capital of the ancient kingdom of Fydoria.
Charges: Purpure, a narwhal naiant or. In both the MC's necklace and Penelope's belt, the narwhal is gold, ergo one can assume this is how it appears in the family crest as well. The narwhal is facing right, or sinister in heraldic terms. The narwhal is said to be the 'unicorn of the sea', and indeed in medieval Europe the narwhal tooth/tusk was often passed off for a 'unicorn horn' and considered to be of inestimable value.
Portavira is primarily a sea port, so it makes sense that they would use an aquatic animal as their sigil. The narwhal is unique to the whale species owing to its massive tusk (which is in fact a tooth). Emmaline and Landon are seen as people who stand out among the crowd of aristocrats owing to their commitment for Portavira and its people, so much so that Drake, the commoner in the court, looks up to them and wants to be like them if he marries the MC. I would imagine that Penelope stands out in court too, primarily because of how her social anxiety changes the way she interacts with people, and her connection to her support animals. The narwhal therefore could also be fitting to Penelope on a symbolic level.
Castelsarreillan
Tinctures: Argent (silver) and sable (black). Silver is said to represent peace and sincerity, and black is said to represent constancy. While Abanthus is more often associated in the books with the Nevrakis family and Olivia, the Castelsarreillan duchy seems to have the same tinctures as them. It is possible that the modern Nevrakis family has different colours at present.
Charges: Sable, an owl with wings displayed argent, as seen from the arm band given to the MC. Kiara's pendant is also silver in colour, but the wings are closed. Since the MC is the one who has the responsibility of winning Kiara's family over by accurately representing their duchy, I will assume that the armband is a more accurate representation of the crest. The Armorial Gold Library website, touted to be "the largest heraldry symbolism library on the Internet” has this to say about the owl being used as a sigil: "Usually shown full-faced or guardant, a hawk-like creature, the owl is the bird of Athena (Minerva), Greek goddess of wisdom and favourite daughter of Zeus. Athena is best known for her embodiment of reason, strength and wisdom and for assisting others on their heroic journey for self-mastery and understanding; since this century's old connection with Athena/Minerva the owl has been used to denote one who is vigilant, prudent and of acute wit."
Kiara is often called the smartest person in the court, and has been praised for her intelligence and skills by everyone from the MC to the very exacting Madeleine (however, they tend to say this only when they need something from her). She is smart, ambitious and knows ten languages. She understands sooner than the others that she might not have a chance with Prince Liam during the social season, and spends the rest of her time building alliances and cementing her place in court.
Her parents Hakim and Joelle are known for their skills as a diplomat and artist respectively, and contribute in significant ways to the betterment of Cordonia. Hakim is so skilled a diplomat that he manages to placate a livid Olivia Nevrakis in a matter of minutes. Joelle shows incredible foresight when she explains why her family and the King Father have very different views of what constitutes progress in Cordonia: "Hakim and I don't just want Cordonia to be stable and peaceful. Those are blessings, naturellement, but our kingdom can do so much more than survive". King Liam speaks of her as the kind of person King Fabian would have approved of. It is possible, therefore, that the owl represents Kiara as she is in the court, and her family's standing in Cordonia.
Krona
Tinctures: Sable (black) and vert (green). Black is usually associated with constancy and green with hope, joy and loyalty in love. Sable is not often used as a metal in heraldry, but certain cases, it takes on that role. Perhaps the fact that this duchy is allowed to place colour on colour (if the Rules of Tinctures applies to Cordonia) is an indication of how powerful the family is.
Charges: In Book 3 Chapter 9, we are told that the house sigil of the Krona duchy/Fydelia county is a tree, but not which tree it is. We do know, from one of the dialogue options that to the people of this estate the tree symbolizes 'life and knowledge'. However, it isn't too hard to figure out which tree graces the House sigil.
Madeleine tells Olivia, when the latter calls her outfit 'ridiculous', that the leaves on her bodice represent a tree native to Fydelia. One look at the Fydelia estate and we can easily catch the presence of pine trees on the carefully manicured lawn, and see the leaves on Madeleine's bodice as very similar to pine leaves. The pine tree itself is the second-most common tree to be found on heraldic sheilds. According to the Armorial Gold Library website, this is what pine trees tend to represent: "The tree of life and humanity. A pine tree in the forest symbolizes long-suffering, steadfast friendships, and enduring fame. According to Virgil, early Romans decorated pine trees with little masks of Bacchus (a fertility god). As the wind blew the masks around, Bacchus was believed to grant fertility to every part of the tree the masks faced. It is said to symbolize immortality, resiliency, longevity, and rebirth."
While Madeleine is often shown to be toxic, twisted and cruel, it must be said that she also shows tremendous resilience in the circumstances she has found herself in. Constantly dubbed a failure by her father, Madeleine picked herself up time and again, and started over, in the belief that each failure would help her eventually attain the title of Queen. When she mourns the way her dreams have been snatched twice, the MC has the option of suggesting that she "find a new means", since it wasn't just the title that was important to her but also the prospect of helping and protecting Cordonia. And that is exactly what she does in accepting the role of press secretary. Through her masterful gestures (such as the "oath of the orchard") she also attains enduring fame as a courtier and politician.
One can also make a connection to Adeleide through the above note on the pine tree's symbolism. After all, Bacchus/Dionysius is also the god of wine, theater and wild revelries, and you can't get more Dionysian in TRR than Adeleide!
However, it gets a little more confusing when we see Adeleide's attire:
The pendent Adeleide wears seems to show us a different tree, the design of which seems a little similar to that of the oak tree in heraldry. As R. Theo Margelony in his article "The Garden in Heraldry: The Great Oak of the Forest" on the Metropolitan Museum of Art website says: "In heraldry, the oak is the tree and the tree is the oak. It’s seen as a symbol of strength and endurance; even its leaves display a tenacity, less easily shed in the fall than the leaves of other trees...A tree without any other description is always assumed to be an oak."
Adeleide's tendency to drink and engage in revelry is often seen as her weakness, but when you scratch the surface she shows an incredible perceptiveness and a will to survive in court on her terms, never once apologizing for being who she is. She is her daughter's only source of support and encouragement, even though her ways of doing it don't always help Madeleine.
It is also important to mention that the only tree mentioned on a large scale in The Crown and the Flame is the Heart Oak tree, which produces wood that looks deceptively like wood, but is as strong as metal. Liam has spoken of at least one occasion of how duplicity comes naturally to Madeleine, and she tends to mask her pain and fear of failure behind a calm, stoic demeanor. Adeleide seems flighty and distracted, but can hold her own against her cousin Regina and daughter Madeleine even though they seem to have stronger personalities.
Two trees have been associated with this duchy: the oak and the pine. There are two ways one could view this:
1. The sigil itself could be just a tree in general (ergo an oak tree), and Madeleine simply wears the pine-tree outfit to independently represent her county Fydelia.
2. The county could have an additional coat of arms, so Adeleide is representing the duchy of Krona with the oak tree pendent, and Madeleide is representing her county's coat of arms with the pine-tree gown.
In closing, I would like us to look back at the option the MC has of correctly interpreting the symbolism of the tree: that it represents life and knowledge. I believe that Adeleide and Madeleine represent extremes of either quality: Adeleide prefers to enjoy every moment of her life, even if it means she is perceived as an embarrassment to her court, house and family, and Madeleine is single-minded in her pursuit of knowledge and duty, to the extent that she forgets to actually live her life.
Ramsford
Tincture: Going by the MC's clothes at Beaumont Bash and Maxwell's squid suit, I would say argent (white, in this case) and azure (blue) or bleu-celeste (light blue). Silver/white is said to represent peace and sincerity, and blue, truth and loyalty. As you can see above, at the Beaumont Bash the MC's attire represents the Beaumont House colours, whether it's the princess gown she wears or the bluebelle (Perhaps why bluebelle was fashioned that way, and why no one really says anything most times if she wears it. She would still be representing her House colours, like the rest of the suitors). And either way, if we convince him Liam matches her with a white jacket with blue flowers and bowtie.
Charges: House Beaumont is the only noble family whose sigil is revealed in Book 1 itself, and perhaps the only one whose mottos we know of (if "something about vendettas and giant squid" counts). This should come as no surprise, considering this is the house that is sponsoring the MC and she is pretty much considered an honorary Beaumont at some point. Moving on to the sigil, the squid in heraldry used to be rarely ever called as such - it is often identified as calamarie. Unlike the polypus (octopus), the calamarie (squid) usually has ten tentacles.
There is no recognizable meaning given to the calamarie, but this quote from 1635 refers to it as the following: "The Calamarie is sometimes called the Sea-clerk, having as it were a knife and a pen. Some call him the Ink-horn-fish." Indeed, calamarie comes from the Latin word calmus, meaning pen, and is also called the "pen-and-ink" fish. Which is what comes to mind when I envision Bertrand, poring over his accounts and worrying about the honour of his family.
The squid is also associated, however, with a sea animal many Choices fans are familiar with: the kraken, and the fact that this is the animal associated with the Beaumonts is proven by Maxwell wearing a Bubbles pendent at Coney Island. A notorious figure in Norwegian and Scandinavian mythology, the mythical Kraken was known particularly for grabbing passing ships and breaking them apart. Henry Lee, in his book Sea Monsters Unmasked, speaks of the kraken as "peculiarly the object of popular wonder and superstitious dread". While it is seen often as being destructive, there are stories that perceive it as also being very peaceful. One such story highlights a bishop mistaking a resting kraken for a huge rock, erecting an altar and performing mass over it, to which the sea monster responded by respectfully waiting till the mass ended before returning to shore.
In The Crown and the Flame, we first encounter a baby kraken at Hex's lab at Lykos Castle, and since it was captured at the Wolf's Mouth one can view it as being native to Abanthus. Affectionately called Bubbles, the baby kraken grows attached to Val and is freed to live in the sea where it belongs just before the battle begins. He is perceived as adorable and harmless (one of the options is for Val to state that she cannot protect him during the battle, and she states that he cannot help her: "what can a little blob like you do against --"). However, when his mother joins him in The Battle of the Bay, flinging ships with her tentacles, Val confesses that she underestimated Bubbles' usefulness.
Perhaps that is why the kraken is so closely associated with House Beaumont, and especially with Maxwell. The story of the kraken in TCaTF reminds us of how the smallest, most underestimated beings can become powerful allies in time. Maxwell is often seen as the flighty, funny wingman in the group, with no perceptible quality or talent, but it is Liam who points out his resourcefulness (in Shanghai) and perceptiveness (in New York before he proposes). The story of the krakens is also a story of family, because Bubble's mother defends the people who rescued Bubbles in battle, and no matter what happens, the Beaumont brothers always stick together and have each others' backs.
--
Above are the duchies whose tinctures and sigils have been confirmed in the books so far. The same cannot be said of two duchies that are very important to the plot: Lythikos and Valtoria. One belongs to the Nevrakis family, the last living heir of which is Duchess Olivia. Valtoria is one of the duchies Liam aims at revitalizing, and now belongs to the MC. We are not given any clear indications of what their coat of arms are, so whatever I write below is mostly guesswork and conjecture, and can be contradictory by canonical information in future chapters.
Lythikos
Original Tinctures: Sable (black) and argent (silver). In TCaTF, Kenna can be seen wearing black-and-silver on two occasions: at the alliance meeting her mother Adriana holds for the rulers of the Five Kingdoms in which she meets her untimely death, and to forge an alliance with the Nevrakis family against Empress Azura of Ducitora. Both are determinant (and the latter requires diamonds), but essentially strategic - in wearing their colours, Kenna is sending a positive message to those allies.
Possible Modern Tinctures: Could be gules (red) and sable (black), or gules (red) and argent (silver). Because Olivia's default outfit is a beaded black gown, it has been assumed for a while that the colours hadn't changed. But given that Castelsarreillan's coat of arms uses these colours, and that Olivia wears red to a Ball where everyone else is wearing their house colours, it is possible to assume that the modern Nevrakis family's coat of arms uses red and black. It would also make her alias in the public - "The Scarlet Duchess" - connected to her family and something that she must have taken pride in before the blackmail note.
Further proof that red could be a colour identified with the modern Nevrakis family, comes in the form of Olivia's aunt Lucretia's outfit. She wears a dark red plain gown and a sapphire necklace encased in silver. The shade Lucretia wears is sometimes considered a separate colour (sanguine/mulberry) in heraldry, on that is not often used because it is rumoured to indicate dishonour on the part of the bearer.
In any case, both gules and sanguine, on a symbolic level, seem to be related to battle: gules represents military strength and magnanimity, and is considered the colour of warriors and martyrs. Sanguine represents one who is patient in battle, yet victorious. Olivia is often associated within the narrative with battle and war motifs, and has shown a clear aptitude for the martial arts and military strategy. One cannot say much about Lucretia this early in the game, but if she is in fact an antagonist in the story and involved in the plot against the crown, "one who is patient in battle" may probably suit her.
If the tinctures of the Nevrakis coat of arms are red and black - not red and silver - and Cordonia follows The Rules of Tincture, then Lythikos will be the second duchy that places colour on colour. It must be noted that the only other duchy that seems to do this is Krona, and both are very powerful, and very influential families.
Charges: The Nevrakis sigil has never been spoken about, either in TCaTF or in TRR, so at this point one can only guess what it could be. There are two conclusions I can derive from her outfit alone:
Sword: Olivia wears sword-shaped earrings, at the ends of which hang rubies shaped like drops of blood. The sword type seems to be the kind that is commonly seen in heraldry: a long straight blade, with a cross handle. If red is indeed one of the Nevrakis colours, then the symbolism of the sword would further give credence to her military skill. According to the Armorial Gold Library website, the sword "symbolizes power, protection, authority, strength, and courage. It is a symbol of knighthood and chivalry...To the Teutonic Knights, swords were the symbols of truth and honour and were bestowed on one of stature".
Olivia's association with battle imagery within the narrative features heavily in the books: sometimes as a running gag, and sometimes as a way to show how contrasting, yet complimentary, is her mindset to that of Liam's. She tells us in book 2 of how the Nevrakis family is known not for being safe but for "crushing our enemies". Sun Tzu's The Art of War is one of her favourite books and she confesses to preferring Wagner or Puccini over Mozart because "they really knew how to compose tragic stories of ill-fated couples or bloodshed". In Book 3, she is an enthusiastic (perhaps a little too much so) supporter of King Liam, often calling those reluctant to support him 'cowards'. At Applewood, it is her suggestion - that people should see their anger and desire for vengeance mirrored in the MC - that proves most effective in winning public approval. Her earrings in this chapter strongly resemble Kenna's short sword, her first weapon, the one she may be perhaps most comfortable with.
Most recently, she impresses Mara with her fighting techniques - whether she wins or loses - and her first response if you consider her gown the best of their group is to confess that she "can't fit a dagger under this dress, but even an inch-long knife to the right pressure point will kill a man". I find this statement particularly intriguing, because in TCaTF Book 1, this is exactly what Kenna has the choice of doing before entering Aurelia, and keeping it with her gives her an edge in the fight against Marco and the Nevrakis soldiers. It is clear that within the narrative, Olivia would definitely work as both a Queen and a military strategist.
Her more aggressive approach tends to act as a good foil to Liam's focus on peace and thriving through the promotion of the arts, therefore highlighting why she would be an apt choice for the role of Queen in case the MC does not marry Liam. The sword, therefore, would be an incredibly apt sigil for her family, and for Olivia herself.
Spider: This is not as obvious as the sword, but if we examine closely the way Olivia's dress is designed, it is possible to interpret the glittering black criss-cross lines on her dress as resembling a spider's web. The Armorial Gold Library website lists the spider as symbolic of "tenacity of purpose, heedfulness, and cunning". Olivia possesses all these qualities in spades, especially the first and the last. She is persistent in her determination to find the truth behind the blackmail in Book 2, and in her belief in and support of Liam in Book 3.
The spider is also an incredibly resourceful animal - as Walt Whitman would put it, this insect launches forth "filament, filament, filament, out of itself/ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them". Similarly, Olivia shows incredible resourcefulness in her investigation, discovering in a very short time who could have been behind the leaked photographs of Liam's bachelor party faster than Drake and Bastien combined.
Another possibility could include the wolf, as reference to the Wolf's Mouth in Abanthus, where Kenna and her allies prepared for the famous Battle of the Bay. The wolf was widely used in Mediaeval heraldry. Though commonly reviled as a livestock predator and man-eater, the wolf was also considered a noble and courageous animal, and frequently appeared on the Arms and crests of numerous noble families. It typically symbolised the rewards of perseverance in long sieges or hard industry.
Valtoria
The problem with attempting to interpret a coat of arms for Valtoria is that we are going in with very little information apart from the fact that the sigil is "avian". Numerous birds and avian creatures grace the coat of arms of noble families, so the possibilities could range from a hawk to the very popular eagle to a dove. Since we have not even seen our estate yet or figured out where or which region in the Five Kingdoms it is, we can't exactly know for certain how accurate our guesses are.
However, we can make a few educated guesses by looking at two outfits in our wardrobe. The first is the diamond outfit for the Costume Ball: which highlights both our House colour and our sigil, and has been proven to be the event where all the major noble houses of Cordonia will dress in accordance to their coat-of-arms. The second is a free outfit that has not been used at any of the events thus far. It is titled "The Lady of the House", comprises of two colours and features a bird, which the description states to be a dove. Alongside using a moniker that speaks of ownership and belonging, this outfit seems to have all the trappings of being representative of the duchy we own.
It is possible, therefore, that Valtoria's house sigil could be one of two birds: the pheonix or the dove. The dress at the Costume Ball has plumage that resembles that of a pheonix, and the pheonix itself has deep ties with Cordonian history. The Lady of the House dress is predominantly white with red designs, and the cape is fastened by a clasp comprising of two doves. One must note that red features in both dresses, ergo red must be viewed as the common factor here.
Phoenix
Tinctures: Presumably gules (red) and or (gold/yellow). As mentioned in the Lythikos section, gules is symbolic of military strength and magnanimity, and is often associated with warriors and martyrs. Or (gold) is said to represent generosity and elevation of the mind. There is a predominant orange tint in both the outfit and the TCaTF bird, and orange is said to be representative of worthy ambition - however, it is a colour not often used in heraldry. These colours are also predominant in the fiery plumage of Dom's phoenix. If Olivia's house colours are red and silver, the MC's red and gold will be indicative of their complementary roles in the past.
Charges: In this case, it would be the mythical bird, the phoenix, that "lives for 500 years, builds its own funeral pyre, is consumed by the flames, and rises anew from the ashes. This bearing symbolizes the rising and setting of the sun, as well as immortality, resurrection, and life after death". In heraldry it is only ever shown in one position: rising with wings displayed from the flames, enveloped in fire. It is usually shaped like an eagle. It represents rebirth, new beginnings, starting over.
In The Crown and the Flame, the phoenix emerges (if one pays diamonds) the moment Dom says his final goodbye to his beloved pet hawk in the spirit world. Having just defeated/been defeated by his shadow, this orb from which the phoenix is born is the final gift his hawk has to give, and is one of Dom's many links to the spirit world. It is from the same spirit world that Dom eventually learns to let go of the idea that Kenna needs him to constantly protect and defend her, and eventually "finds his dragon". Both the pheonix and Dom's dragon form meet and fight against the Abanthus forces together in the Battle of the Bay, and both use fire to destroy their enemies.
The MC has to be 'reborn' especially in two books in the TRR series, each time in a new role. In Book 2, she must emerge from the ashes of her ruined reputation, fighting fire with fire as she confronts the powerful people who have wronged her. When she returns to court, people are amazed that she has the audacity to come back after the scandal, and she wins most of them back, slowly but surely. In Book 3, she has already emerged out of the scandal, triumphant, become a duchess, and must now help Cordonia to rise out of its own ashes and prosper. This symbolism is never more prominent than when the MC is given the option to make a rousing speech, about how ash "enriches the soil" thus allowing the Cordonians in Applewood to hope that they can rise out of these ashes and rebuild their orchard. She is also associated with dragons - especially in Shanghai where Liam compares her the dragon koi. As a symbolic phoenix, then, the MC would represent rebirth, rejuvenation and hope.
Dove
Tinctures: Going by the free gown that references Valtoria, gules (red) and argent (silver/white). Red represents military strength and magnanimity, and silver peace and sincerity. On the surface these two look like they could be contradictory, but I feel striking a balance between the two is what could make its bearer, the MC, a great leader. If the MC's house colours are in fact red and silver/white, Olivia's might be red and black, which would be as complementary as the previous option.
Charges: Possibly gules, a dove volant argent. Based on the clasp one can surmise that the dove is in flight (volant), head raised and wings outstretched. Symbolically it is viewed as "the emblem of temperance, the symbol of innocence, the token of inspiration, and the ensign of peace". If depicted, as it often is, with an olive branch in its bill, it becomes the harbinger of good tidings.
Most of this fits the role the MC has to play in the series to a T. She is viewed as an inspiration, both to her friends and lover (Liam highlights this in the Statue of Liberty diamond scene in Book 2), and if she does things right, to the public at large ("she's the Esther DuPont!" Camillia says in Applewood, in my playthrough). The attack at the Homecoming Ball was organized to instill fear in the Cordonian people and shake their faith in Liam, but her wedding itself is speeded up to ensure people have something to look forward to and maintain peace rather than chaos.
While the doves on the clasp do not have an olive branch, it is clear that this is what the MC is doing with the various noble houses she visits. She is offering an olive branch to them, during a time when they are not sure they can support the monarchy. She learns their ways, observes them, attempts to figure out what they want so she can fulfill it and gain their support. Each parent winds up lending support after seeing her genuine concern for their issues, and her ability to think up creative solutions - in some cases - to resolve them. She is also - again determinant on the player - able to help people get past their differences and work together (Godfrey and Adeleide, Hakim and Constantine). While on a logic standpoint a lot about this Unity Tour is questionable, within the narrative it is clear that it is meant to unite Cordonia in an event where all the major noble houses can put aside their differences and come together, thus forging peace and instilling hope among the people.
Conclusion
Auguste Vachon, in his book A Guide to Heraldry from A Canadian Perspective, describes heraldry thus: "Heraldry constitutes a powerful link between the modern world and medieval times, which continues to fascinate because of its pageantry and ideals. It is an ancient art with its own captivating and mystifying properties, elements which are needed to maintain the effectiveness of any symbol. It is still thriving because it responds in a powerful way to the need for symbols among all humans, individually and collectively."
Cordonia has a rich and illustrious history that dates back to Queen Kenna Rys and her fight to win back Stormholt and unite the Five Kingdoms. Much of this history is shown in the coat of arms of some of Cordonia's major ducal estates, and it is a history they all take pride in. In wearing their colours and learning their sigils, the MC is showing respect to that history, and participating in promoting it.
By becoming a duchess and owning one of Cordonia's oldest duchies, she is now an integral part of that history as well. This is her home. This is her history. And by proudly wearing reminders of it, she is keeping it alive.
* Heraldry has been dubbed as "the handmaid of history" by Archibald Barrington in his book Elements of Heraldry.
**From the Scottish Tartans Authority website.
(Many thanks to @alicars with the help on some of these symbols, particularly the pine tree and the phoenix, and @ladynevrakis for being the resident TCaTF expert xD I will be reblogging my sources, as this post has hit the mobile Tumblr's 100 blocks limit).
"In sandy soil, when deep you delve, you reach the springs below; The more you learn, the freer streams of wisdom flow." - Kural 396, Thirukkural, Thiruvalluvar.
Hana's first truly individual scene in Book 3 follows the pattern that a number of her diamond scenes have followed: learn from Hana, use her skills, get her insight to gain an advantage. These scenes are usually my favourite, because often Hana gets to give us an insight both into courtly life and into her inner mindscape.
The Cordonian Waltz scene gives us an insight into her broken engagement, the Moonflower Scene into her dilemma between staying true to herself and not being able to let go of her parents yet, and the Patisserie and Champagne scenes allow us to view her at different phases of her journey towards self actualization.
The Polo scene is, likewise, meant to improve the MC's skillset and provide her with an added edge in the next day's fundraising match. As is the case with dancing, baking, modelling, ice-skating and dressage, polo was one among the many skills Hana learned in order to bag a noble suitor. Skills whose uses she is beginning to question now.
Polo Moves
Playing polo for Portavira is not entirely about winning a match - it's about putting up a show worth watching for the crowd. This is a benefit match, meant to raise funds for the disaster-struck area, and it doesn't matter so much who wins or loses as it matters that people get their money's worth watching it.
Hana's gift does not lie simply in knowing how to impart skills, but in knowing which skills to impart. She understands the context of this match and what is truly important - she anticipates the needs of their audience and helps the MC deliver accordingly. Her polo lesson is as much about artistry and performance as it is about winning this match.
Hana imparts three important pieces of advice that will help us gain an advantage during the match: one focussed on the game aspect, and the other two on entertaining the crowd.
"Watch the line of the ball" helps the MC figure out how to ensure that she strikes a goal and wins. Her advice that "you can only cross [the ball's] path if there's no chance of someone running into you, or if no other players have the right of way" becomes effective in the match when the MC races Maxwell to the ball, understanding that if she distracts him adequately (either by mentioning a corgi or a dance party) she can earn sole right of way and score for her team. This allows the former Queen Regina, who is mostly silent the rest of the match, to compliment the MC on her skills ("what a play!").
The half-pass is primarily a well-known and often-judged dressage move, and a very challenging one. Unlike the easier leg yield - where the horse is bent only slightly away from the direction of travel - the half-pass is seen as more advanced, requiring greater balance, engagement, and collection from the horse. Denise Cummins, in her website The Thinking Equestrian, describes the half-pass thus: "The half-pass is not a trick. It is a skilled movement that requires the horse to have the proper muscle development and agility".
Essentially, Hana has managed to teach the MC an immensely difficult - and risky, were it a different horse (the MC's personal steed, if she has bought it, is a Derby champion and has proven to be skilled enough for dressage routines) - skill in the course of a single night.
Teaching this dressage move benefits the MC and her horse into two ways: it allows her horse to wow the crowd, and the "diagonal motion" ensures she reaches the ball before Neville does. The half-pass is more about the agility of the horse than it is about the grace or skills of the rider, so teaching her this move allows the crowd to "applaud [the horse's] elegant gait".
The other secret move that Hana passes on is one of her own invention: the windmill. She exhibits this skill when the MC asks her if there are moves she - and not just her horse - can exhibit to win over the crowd. Hana acknowledges that "riders don't usually do anything showy" but nevertheless has the perfect trick up her sleeve:
I think this tells us a lot more about Hana's intuition and perceptiveness than it does about her polo-playing skills. While yes, this move is largely a mark of her creativity and initiative, it also shows us her ability to go above and beyond the game itself to think of what could entertain the audience. For the windmill is a move that was clearly invented to be a crowd-pleaser, to draw attention to the player. This is a move that relies as much on dramatics and showmanship as on timing, allows the MC to look good, and is easy for the crowd to do as well.
If one opts for this diamond scene and gets the additional option of exhibiting this move, it results not only in the crowd enjoying it but also emulating it. Dozens of people are described "mimicking the 'windmill' with handheld flags and anything they can find at hand". Hana definitely knows what the people on the stands are looking for in a match, and is able to mould her skills to deliver just that - and in this lies her biggest gift. I will elaborate on this in a later section.
Skills and Passions
Before I go into the crux of this section - which is what Hana knows vs what interests her, I'd like to look back at a very interesting point Liam made about Hana in his Diplomacy diamond scene:
Hana's a tough one. She's clearly had the kind of lessons I'm giving you now, and then some. Her posture's almost always polite and attentive...but when she feels strongly about something, you can sense her real feelings even before she speaks up. Her eyes grow darker and more serious.
While the book does not explicitly mention her eyes, there is a clear change of tone when Hana is talking about skills she has picked up, versus things she is passionate about. Compare, for instance, the way she speaks about ice skating to piano:
(Screenshots from the Abhirio YouTube channel)
Throughout the books, we see Hana adopt a largely neutral stance about things she has learned but isn't entirely interested in (ice-skating, traditional dancing, baking, dressage, modelling, polo). In these scenes, the moments where she does show joy in the activity include her friends. Dancing becomes more appealing to her when she's competing with Maxwell, cooking and baking when she has someone to pamper with her food. She confesses to enjoying polo more after teaching the MC.
With the activities she loves doing, however, Hana is more involved, more expressive. She shows a range of emotions and is a lot more talkative on the subject of playing piano, or books, or flowers, or tasting good food.
None of these sequences mention her eyes much, but you can differentiate by her reactions what she loves and what she does not. She becomes emotional while talking about her connection to music (specifically piano), gazes in wonder with the MC as the moonflower unfurls, whispers excitedly and conspirationally about reading Wuthering Heights in secret, and does a 'happy dance' in her seat at the simple joy of tasting a french fry dipped in her milkshake. When Hana is excited about the things she is doing, she seems to be a different person altogether.
Where Do I Go From Here?
Prior to her journey in Cordonia, Hana had always assumed that the skills she was pushed into learning were all she would need. She had expectations to fulfill, she had a future mapped out for her, and her aim in life amounted to that future becoming a reality and her life as the wife of a nobleman being set. Because she grew up with the notion that her needs were deterrents to her aim, rather than an aim in and of itself, it never really occured to her to think any differently.
Which was why she was unable to properly answer Peter when he asked her if she loved him. Which was why she constantly assumed that no matter how many Pinstop boards she made, her wedding plans would happen the way her parents wanted it to happen. Because she spent long enough believing what she wanted didn't matter, it took her a while to even be able to discover what she wanted, much less articulate it.
Hana's background made her acquisition of skills that would appeal particularly to aristocrats essential. As a woman who has some Cordonian noble blood in her (through her mother) but may be at a disadvantage because she may not have a title of her own, her parents' expectations had always been focused on ensuring a marriage to a titled, reputed noble who could not just look after Hana but provide her the kind of status and stature in society that (I'm guessing here) her mother may have lost in marrying a foreign businessman. They were clear about the direction they wanted Hana's future to go in, and prepared her only for that kind of future.
In the old, hierarchical Cordonia, perhaps Hana would have been well prepared enough. A Cordonia where she was expected to be the perfect hostess and giving wife all rolled in one, where her skills would equip her for the occasional court activity and increased possibilities for hosting. But post the Homecoming Ball, there has been a phenomenal shift: she is in a position of power at court (even more so if she is marrying the MC), in a country torn apart by civil strife and filled with citizens who do not feel safe and are therefore wary of the monarchy's ability to protect them. The skills she learned were meant for activities suited to court and an aristocratic home, but what matters now is what she has to offer outside of court.
For the first time Hana has to now think of what she can give to the country that has given her refuge and a sense of freedom, and she is now confronted with how little her upbringing has actually prepared her for this. Cordonia's well-being is incredibly important to her, and now more than ever she needs to prove to herself - as much to everyone else - that she can be an asset.
Some of her skills do come into use: particularly her penchant for negotiation and now her proficiency with polo, but how long are her particular talents going to prove useful and at what point will Cordonia see how ill-equipped she feels, with regards to handling this situation?
I would argue that even within this, it's possible to see that she has gifts beyond just the things she has learned. As I have specified earlier, this scene not only highlights how talented a polo player she is, but also that she has an eye for what will appeal to people and encourage them to get involved. She has oftentimes managed to help the MC secure allies by paying attention to the other person's needs and passing that information on to the MC (funnily enough, in all of these instances it is Hana who does the research and coaches the MC, and it is largely the MC who reaps the benefits and gets the credit). While this may not seem like a skill in and of itself, it is a pretty strong foundation for other, newer skills that she can use to help Cordonia.
Hana is often seen measuring her usefulness, and her skills, by whatever goal she has set herself out to achieve. She considers herself a failure when - despite her talents - she is unable to get/sustain a match. Right now her goal is to be a useful citizen, to help Cordonia out of its crisis, and this doubt manifests itself in this question: "Are the skills I have enough to save Cordonia? Am I enough?"
Romance
(The first two screenshots are from @kennaxval s playthrough, and the third is from the Abhirio YouTube channel)
As with Liam's Diplomacy scene, most of the romance emerges from the MC's choices rather than as a part of the default narrative.
The romance options are interesting, particularly in terms of timing and placement. All three of them revolve around the MC's desire to be a little playful, to distract Hana and get her to relax when she overthinks. The MC balances her out: she is playful to Hana's serious, gut-instinct to Hana's strategy. She gets Hana to think beyond the logistics of the activity and to enjoy what she's doing.
However, there is one problem.
The above options present themselves at a crucial point in the conversation between Hana and the MC, where Hana is unsure about what she'd like to try out if she could choose to do something she loves. In both the LI and non-LI scenarios, the "full-time best friend" is given as a choice. This makes plenty sense in the non-LI playthrough, and very little in the LI one because "best friend" doesn't even begin to cover what Hana represents to her fiancèe now.
The major problem here lies more in what has been left out in this scene. So far, Hana's future in both playthroughs have remained largely the same. Like Drake, she may acquire a title when she marries the MC. Unlike Drake, she doesn't get the opportunity in the narrative to ask questions about her future position as duchess, which is strange considering that it is so extensively analyzed in the Drake LI playthrough.
In Drake's playthrough, they discuss his upcoming new position as a Duke, his discomfort in being part of the nobility that had shunned him for so long, his need to be taken seriously in court as the MC's future husband, what he wants to do with his title, his need to provide for and protect his future wife and children. There are a number of stumbling blocks in his way, the biggest being the class barrier and how the court sees him.
Hana's marriage to the MC has, in contrast, only been discussed in the first two chapters, where she worries that she is imposing her desires and dreams on the MC and not adequately listening to her partner. This would have been perfect, had the MC not become a duchess and was not such a prominent political figure in Cordonia.
Ideally, Hana's playthrough should involve discussions on what her marriage to the MC should entail. This would include the following:
1. In what ways has her training prepared - and not prepared - Hana for this role?
2. In their first conversation with Neville and Rashad, the MC has the option of promoting Hana's advantage as a suitor primarily by extolling her skills as a hostess and housewife. Very little mention at this point is made of Hana actually running an estate. This is an arrangement that I'm sure Hana and the MC will never adopt in their marriage, considering Hana wants to be more involved, and the MC sees her as an equal in their relationship. It is not entirely clear whether there is a distinction, given that the only aristocratic women we have seen are largely heirs to their estates - Adeleide, Madeleine (to her county Fydelia), Emmeline, Olivia.
3. Shouldn't we have a discussion, then, on how her skills will translate into running their estate? What can she do to make Valtoria better than what it was earlier? How will they manage to run things and revive this duchy? What are their plans?
4. In keeping with her potential future crisis point, why do we not see Hana giving us a clear idea of whether she can run the duchy or not? Like Drake, her future is uncertain if she does not marry the MC, so both their efforts are channeled towards helping Liam and/or Cordonia. If they are married to the MC, both Drake and Hana face differing conflicts with regards to becoming landed nobility. Both deserve to be discussed in depth.
5. With reference to the above option list given, why can there not be an option for "duchess"? Why is she still "professional best friend", when Hana's closest friend in their circle is the MC herself, and their relationship involves a bigger role once they get married?
6. What Hana can do for Cordonia as a Duchess is also a question that needs to be raised in the story. It would still fit in with her overall narrative arc, but it would also present different issues and avenues compared to what she can do as a member of the MC's court.
Overall, I feel that while Hana has an interesting character arc in this book overall, it isn't being explored as extensively as it deserves to be, and doesn't seem very different from a non-LI playthrough of her story.
Sources:
"How to Ride a Half-Pass", by Denise Cummins from The Thinking Equestrian website.
Special thanks to @kennaxval and the Abhirio YouTube channel (@abhirio) for screenshots from their Hana-centric playthroughs.
TRR: King Liam x Duchess Esther DuPont: Portavira Moodboard/Aesthetic My faceclaims: King Liam: Daniel Henney Esther DuPont: Alexandra Daddario Second in my TRR Book 3 Unity Tour Liam x Esther moodboard series.
