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Refugium

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  1. Refugium

    Una's Children

    Refugium posted new chapter in The Six Swans

    Una did not know, when she entrusted the care of her father, King Edwin, to the chief minister, that the chief minister was a cousin of the witch of the forest, and a powerful sorcerer in his own right. With subtle potions he kept the king sleepy and weak at all times, not just during the monthly transformation. He ruled the kingdom in all but name, and thought to take the title of king as well. The minister had two sons and hired a tutor to see to their education. The tutor set pens bef
  2. Refugium

    Una's Silence

    Refugium posted new chapter in The Six Swans

    Una immediately went to the witch, who regarded her suspiciously. "Haven't needed the charms yet, then?" "I could find only six when we needed them. If I had found all seven, I could not be asking you for help now. Now my brothers are trapped in swan form because of what you did." "Your brothers are alive because of what I did, ungrateful girl," the witch snarled. "You asked for help. I did what I could." "Tell me what I must do to release them from this enchantment." A
  3. Refugium
    Oh, that guy? I wouldn't take his bragging seriously. I've seen his talking fish, and I wasn't impressed.
  4. Refugium
    Once there was a king of a small, bright, new country on the edge of a large, dark, old forest, and in the forest lived a witch. King Edwin was the son of the son of the son of the son of the son of the first king of that country. The witch was the daughter of the daughter of the daughter of the daughter of the daughter of the daughter of the last reigning queen of that country, from whom that first king had taken the kingdom, whether by force, or by stratagem, or by right of succession, none
  5. Refugium

    The Six Swans

    Refugium posted a story in Fiction

    A king with an open secret, six sons blocked from normal human adulthood, and a daughter who tries to save them by her silence. Based on "The Six Swans," "The Seven Ravens," etc., and the Oedipus cycle. In four parts.
  6. Refugium
    I'm picturing Derek Jacobi as the Lord Chamberlain, now that Alec Guinness is permanently unavailable. Or Zachary Quinto for a younger chamberlain.
  7. Refugium
    Once there was a princess who was the perfect age for her father to think she should get married. And there seemed on the face of it to be no reason why Princess Bluze shouldn’t be married: she was beautiful, she was intelligent, she had a sense of humor, she liked men, and King Leonardo was quite willing to offer a substantial dowry of gold and lands. But one consideration put her suitors off. It was this: she insisted on going out every night to dance with fairies, and told King Leonardo
  8. Refugium
    The suitor who wishes to marry Princess Bluze must accompany her to the fairy ballroom. Many refuse...
  9. Refugium
    Oh, thank you for pointing that out. Not the first time I've forgotten to mark a story complete.
  10. Refugium
    A basic understanding of old British currency is essential for reading English literature, as there is a hefty fine for reading the works of Shakespeare, Dickens or Scott without it. Although the system may seem complex, mastering a few terms will have you making change like a shopkeeper and cheering traditional class divisions. The British pound was invented by Charlemagne, who recognized that the English would need it in a few years. He called it a libra, a Latin unit of weigh
  11. Refugium
    If you’ve ever been confused by the British monetary system, then this explanation, a judicious balance of truth and lies, probably won’t help.
  12. Refugium
    Something silly tomorrow, not a fairy tale. The next fairy tales are a quick "The Princess Who Danced with Fairies," and a long version of "The Six Swans" which addresses the question: In what kind of family does the father have a secret that everyone knows but no one talks about, while the sons are unable to enter normal adulthood, and the daughter takes it on herself to save them by her silence?
  13. Refugium
    As Nikio berated himself for his uselessness, for his inability to help even one person, he heard a rustling in the wet leaves and a scrabbling on the mossy rocks, and the salamander appeared. "What net have you fallen into this time?" The salamander's voice betrayed some impatience. "I haven't fallen into any net. I've just realized that this has all been pointless. I don't know what I'm chasing after. I should just go home. I don't think I could drag the Golden Bird away. The B
  14. Refugium
    Twice a day, the hunter carried Nikio and the Golden Bird in their cages up to his courtyard, where he fed them as he himself ate. Then the hunter drank from the fountain, smiling as Nikio begged to be let go, and the Golden Bird chirped crossly. "If only I had found birds that sang more sweetly," the hunter said, "but, no, I don't think that would suit me. I like to hear you struggling in vain." When the rains started to drench the castle every day, the hunter moved his banquets indoors
  15. Refugium

    The Golden Bird

    Refugium posted a story in Fiction

    Loosely based on "The Golden Bird" (Grimm) and "The Firebird" (Russian folk tale), and on the temptations of the Buddha.
  16. Refugium
    "Sin otra luz y guía, Sino la que en el corazón ardía. " --Saint John of the Cross There were once a young King and Queen of a small kingdom, through the middle of which ran a broad river. The Queen, expecting her first child, asked the wisest old woman in the palace how she could learn if it would be a boy or a girl. The old woman said, "Make a toy boat of precious wood, and place in it one of your most valued jewels, and set it afloat in the river. If it drifts to the
  17. Refugium

    Chapter 2

    Refugium posted new chapter in The Fear of Fairies

    So Thomas began a divided life. By day, if anything, he worked harder than ever for Callan and for the village priest, trying to be godly, diligent and respectable. By night, he frequently slipped out of his sleeping loft and into the woods to dance in the fairy ring. Much that he learned about fairies was unexpected. They were all born to human parents, for example. And they were all male; even those who appeared to be female were male fairies in female attire. There were other races
  18. Refugium

    Chapter 1

    Refugium commented on Refugium's story chapter in Chapter 1

    Um... Click your heels three times?
  19. Refugium

    Chapter 1

    Refugium commented on northie's story chapter in Chapter 1

    Ooh. Spending most of the year tied up in the garage can't be good for one's health, despite everything the boys with the ropes say.
  20. Refugium
    First in a collection of gay-related fairy tales. As Thomas grows from childhood to young adulthood, he learns some shocking truths about supernatural creatures.
  21. Refugium

    Chapter 1

    Refugium posted new chapter in The Fear of Fairies

    There were once a young man and a young woman who were very much in love and wanted to be married as soon as they could. But they were very poor, and their parents said they must wait until the families had saved enough money to buy the wedding clothes and pay for the wedding feast and make all the other arrangements. But the two young people did not want to wait, and so they ran away into the forest. They wandered through the forest all through the day, and as night was falling, they cam
  22. Refugium
    Oh, my! I think I would have!
  23. Refugium
    I recommend Theodore Sturgeon's story "The World Well Lost," 1953 (astonishingly early for a gay-positive sci-fi story!) the-world-well-lost.pdf (wordpress.com)
  24. Refugium
    I fear that their weekly supply lists would soon progress, like the ones in Brokeback Mountain, from "beans, bacon, coffee, whisky" to "haricots verts, prosciutto, French Roast coffee (espresso grind), Glenlivet single malt whisky, more lube."
  25. Refugium
    Scenes from early in the development of the musical Oklahoma! provided by a very untrustworthy source.
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