Gnomevember 2021 day 27

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Queens and Orphans,” so here’s the Gnomish queen-to-be of “Tock the Gnome,” Princess Bartelbia, encountering someone of a much lower and needier class than her usual company!

Bartelbia is a very sheltered character – she’s lived most of her life in the palace, her movements very, very controlled – and I’m not sure if we’ll get to see her in the comic proper. But I feel like there’s a story here, at very least. There aren’t many orphans in Gnomish culture, currently, but those that exist are taken in by temples of Shipley (the god of animals and families) and cared for as well as possible. In order for this encounter to happen, the Princess would have had to sneak out of the palace, out the noble and wealthy class areas and into the lower and poor sections of the city, maybe finally curious to see what life is really like for her people!

So maybe this is happening right now – while Tock is away, perhaps one day Queen Adamine is busy with her work, leaving an opening for Bartelbia to choose how she spends her time, for once. Perhaps something she’s read recently, or something she overheard the councilors saying when they thought she wasn’t listening, inspires her to be curious and bold. Perhaps she commandeers a carriage and a driver, using her status to swear them to secrecy, and she sneaks away and out the dividing sections of the castle grounds – into the wealthy sections, past the public gardens and into the working class areas. Perhaps she steps out of the carriage, not minding that she’s still in full finery, not disguised at all. Perhaps she wanders past the shops and the airship docks and finds herself at a nearby temple, drawn there for comfort since her late father was a priest before he married her mother. And perhaps, finally, she really sees.

And though this young Gnome is close to destitute, especially by comparison, there is a fair amount of worship of the royal family in Gnomish culture, so to suddenly see the Princess – even more, to be able to reach out and touch her! – would be a wonder for them indeed. And that simple fact would, of course, have an impact on the Princess all on its own.

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Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

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Gnomevember 2021 day 26

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Duel!”

Duels absolutely happen between the Gnomes of “Tock the Gnome” but are uncommon, held as a last resort in emotionally-charged conflicts. Most Gnomes tend to settle things logically and practically, and dueling is technically illegal. The Crown highly discourages them and in the noble/wealthy class, any dueling parties who are caught are always arrested. For the most part in the lower class areas, local law enforcement turns a blind eye to such matters – preferring to let such disputes resolve themselves instead of getting their own hands dirty, when they do (again, infrequently) occur.

I imagine these two are relatives, arguing over who’s going to have control over certain parts of their family’s situation, after an older relative has passed – all formal-meetings and lawyered-paperwork attempts at resolution having failed.

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Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

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Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi

Gnomevember 2021 day 24

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Gathering/Place of the Heart” ….again. Whoops. Made a bit of a mistake on the list on day 1! So, taking this as more of a free day – though plant magic is absolutely heartfelt for Gnomes, and magic is just gathering energy, right? 😉

~

Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

~~~

Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi

Gnomevember 2021 day 23

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “(T)roll for initiative” – so, taking the definition of ‘initiative’ a little more broadly than who gets to roll first (💚), I thought about how recent inspirations have helped me take initiative with my own Faerie work. Which means, again, my recent enjoyment of “The Folk of the Air” series by Holly Black – represented here by Aslog, from the most recently published “How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories,” illustrated by Rovina Cai.

(I do not imagine she would react well to Tock handing her a bowl of flowers, no. But don’t worry, Onna’s right off screen ready to help if need be! Though of course, Tock can save her own skin with her wits, first and foremost.)

~

Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

~~~

Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi

Gnomevember 2021 day 21 (Sunday Gnomedays)

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Gnome’s Worst Fear” – which got me thinking of Trolls immediately, so we have something very, very AU for Tock and Onna!

With slight canon nods, however:

(Full disclosure – I’ve been d y i n g to draw this since I thought of it the other day! And I feel, tonally, this was very strongly impacted by my recent inhalation of “The Folk of the Air” series by Holly Black, via the audiobooks read by Caitlin Kelly. I highly, highly recommend it.)

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Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

~~~

Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi

Gnomevember 2021 day 20

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Amulet.”

The Gnomes of “Tock the Gnome” don’t invest faith in magic as a rule – they know it technically exists in the world within other people, but they don’t have it, and most of their teachings describe it as a nuisance with unpredictable consequences. Impractical, and such a bother. So any heirloom jewelry they have wouldn’t be directly magical.

BUT.

There IS power in the warmth there, in remembering a loved one fondly who passed something down to you!

So in this case, though this Gnome woman isn’t getting any Grand Special Abilities from her pendant – inherited from her grandmother, who was a priestess of Carwen – there is still, at least, a circumstance bonus inherent in that love.

~

Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

~~~

Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi

Gnomevember 2021 day 18

~ Rachel Terwilliger ~ Leave a comment

Today’s prompt being “Wealth/Carrying.”

Which got me thinking about leisure moments.

Which got me thinking about how a) such moments, how many of them one gets, would be a measure of wealth indeed for the Gnomes of “Tock the Gnome.”

And b) to have a small book like this, a novel, would not only be dangerous (since recording non-practical information in current Gnomish culture is a big no-no) but also a great symbol of wealth in itself.

(Not that one could flaunt it openly. But still.)

As for “Carrying,” I believe wholeheartedly that Story – tales – carry us ALL through challenging circumstances. So I hope this speaks to that, and I hope you think of your favorite story and send it some love today!

~

Full prompt list here 🍄 (Inspired by Qdnox and Hitorikart‘s Orctober lists! Used with permission.)

~~~

Patreon ~ Etsy ~ Ko-fi