DVD Commentary - "Dark and Light Magic"
DVD Commentary, for odette_river.
Title: Dark and Light Magic
Fandom: Arthurian Legend
Character/Pairing: Morgan le Fay, Nimue, Morgan/Nimue
Summary: Morgan invites Nimue to dinner.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Power dynamics, double crossing.
This story feels as though it was written a very long time ago. It wasn't, really, of course - it was preceeded by Dark Side of the Sun, which I have such copious notes on that, with that one, I feel as though I'm still in the middle of writing it. But "Dark and Light Magic" was written quickly, a little colored glass piece of a story without a real plot, and mainly written to just experiment with the pairing. Technically speaking, it's a not a very good story, either.
Nimue was not entirely certain how it had happened. Morgan had invited her to dinner; her husband was away, she said, and she wanted a woman’s company. This, of course, is utter nonsense on Morgan's part, for the simple reason that she's not in the castle she shares with Uriens. My Morgan has two castles, one being Uriens', in Gore, and the other being that vaguely magical place where she seduces and enchants so many knights in all the French romances. Unlike Morgause with Orkney, she has no real emotional connection to being the Queen of Gore, and all important things take place at the second castle. The two of them had long been enemies, and Nimue did not trust in Morgan’s good intentions, so she brought with her a dagger and several charms that could have gotten her out of there if need be. Because she's going to the castle that's partly in Faerie. See how that works? Though she did not believe that Morgan’s intentions were entirely friendly, she thought that if Morgan wanted to kill her, she would have done it already. More likely it was some sort of business, perhaps relating to Arthur or Merlin.
My Nimue is odd, and I don't think I really have a handle on writing her. I have this sense of her as much younger than Morgan - more like Arthur's age, actually - and having immense power but not being entirely sure how to use it at first. The fact that she and Morgan are enemies, yet it Nimue who defeated Merlin is an odd thing.
The table was only set for two people when Nimue arrived, which made her feel more uneasy. If Morgan was having a dinner party…well, then she might still be suspicious, but less so. Frankly, I don't know if Morgan has dinner parties but, if she did, I imagine they would be slightly frightening. But Morgan was polite enough, and so Nimue was as well, remembering proper table manners as she sat down to eat, things long forgotten because they are no use when one eats alone. She's enchanted Merlin by this point, and I don't think she really has any desire to take on random companions, not yet, anyway. Morgan’s every gesture was elegant, even the littlest things, like the way she lifted her goblet to her lips. This is something you can notice in a lot of my stories that are actually focused on a pairing - I do a great deal of describing one character watching the other. It was as though she was born to such things, though in her mind Nimue saw the frightened, angry girl of Merlin’s memories, and the wild, feral young woman who had begged him for knowledge. I think that everything with Morgan - from how she took Gorlois' death, to taking he ron as a student, to her subsequent betrayal - had more of an effect on Merlin than most people realize. He doesn't fail often, and I think he's very aware of the fact that, with Morgan, he really did. Nimue knows Merlin in this, odd, specific, incredibly close way, and so is very aware of that. There was little of that left in the elegant sorceress clad in black and purple (the color emperors wore, just a touch of blasphemy from Morgan who carried herself already like a Queen) velvet. Morgan is a stereotype, but a deliberate one. But Nimue thought she could see it in Morgan’s eyes, just a hint, at the edge of her vision and then gone. Just like the magic. Nimue can have compassion for the girl Morgan was, however, which seperates her from Morgan, who sees people in black and white.
The wine was good. Nimue drank perhaps too much of it, though maybe it was to see Morgan lift the pitcher and refill Nimue’s goblet with one swift, graceful gesture, her long sleeves somehow managing not to get into anything I think I use this same image in Graceful Statues (Nimue was used to doing that, but could never accomplish it quite so beautifully as Morgan). Again - younger, less experienced at this. In the flickering candlelight, and with the wine beginning to go to her head, Morgan looked far more beautiful than Nimue had remembered, her straight black hair looking almost like water as it flowed, loose, over her shoulders. And Nimue, Lady of the Lake, could appreciate water. This would be a good point to remark that I don't know how Nimue became the Lady of the Lake. That would be an interesting topic for a story.
As Nimue watched Morgan looking at her almost idly, she thought that perhaps they were not so different after all. Perhaps one of them wore black and purple and red and the other wore white and blue and green, I'm fond of color symbolism. Make of this what you will perhaps one of them supported Arthur and the other hated him more than almost anything in the world, but both were Merlin’s students at one point, both had felt the thrill of magic running through their veins, and Nimue was sure that at some point Morgan must have raised her arms to the sky and laughed with the joy of the pure power she had. Both Nimue and Morgan see the power of magic as an end unto itself. Morgan had abandoned Merlin and Nimue had done the complete opposite (whatever anyone else said) Because she kept him close to her, only hers, forever and ever, and that's not abandoning but how could they not both understand the other’s reasons for doing so? Nimue's wrong. Morgan doesn't understand her at all.
They spoke little but watched each other often, each trying to understand what the other might be thinking. Finally they had both finished eating, and Morgan, without a word of explanation, stood up and walked to where Nimue sat. Nimue stood up immediately, though under the influence of the wine she had just drunk she was not quite inclined to assume that Morgan was there to make some sort of attack on her. The wine, and all her sympathetic musings. So when Morgan leaned in to kiss her, Nimue kissed her back. We don't get Morgan's thoughts here because we don't need them. It's easy to justify Morgan seducing Nimue, it's Nimue's compliance that poses a problem.
It was a surprisingly gentle kiss, and the sensation of it combined with the feeling of Morgan’s hand unlacing her dress slowly, until the white fabric pooled at her feet, Mild water imagery here. made Nimue weak in the knees. And so she didn’t even notice when Morgan took the dagger Nimue had brought to defend herself. She was caught off guard when it was pressed against her neck, cutting her slightly. “I hate you.” Morgan whispered, her voice as gentle as if she had said the complete opposite statement. Because Morgan nurtures hate the way most people nurture love. “Now, I need information.” She said, her voice calm. “Tell me where you’ve hidden Merlin and stop interfering in my plans with my dear brother, and I’ll let you live a little longer.” See - Morgan doesn't see it as defeating Merlin, she sees it as keeping him far away from her and safe. She laughed, her red lips parting to show white, even teeth. She enjoys playing the fairy tale character, like the Wicked Queen from Snow White. “Of course, that’s not a guarantee that I won’t keep you here for some time before letting you go. After all, you are beautiful, despite how utterly aggravating you are, and I, of all people, am not one to let opportunities escape me. I didn’t with Lancelot, and I shall not with you.” This is another reference to one of those aforementioned French romances. This story is from that background.
Nimue was standing nearly naked, her mind addled with liquor, but yet she managed to gather her wits together and take advantage of a brief second when Morgan’s hold on the knife and her caution wavered to grab Morgan’s wrist and twist it so that the knife fell from her hand before grabbing her other wrist and pulling them both above her head with one hand before muttering a few words under her breath to conjure rope and tying Morgan’s hands together with it. Double crossing! These kind of power games are a guilty pleasure of mine. When she finally met the other woman’s eyes, she saw anger, and a grudging respect. “Will you kill me now?” Nimue was glad that there was no fear in Morgan’s voice. She would not have expected that. They both respect one another. They're good adversaries.
Nimue smiled, pushing her pale hair out of her eyes. “No. That’s more what you would do, Morgan. I’m not one to stoop to killing. That’s a thing for evil sorceresses, not the Lady of the Lake.” She's joking here, in an odd sort of way that I don't think Morgan recognizes because Nimue isn't confident enough in it yet. But, later on in Nimue's life, Morgan would appreciate it, because there's a Machiavellianism to Nimue that Morgan shares.
And as Nimue began to rid Morgan of her clothing (which was indeed well made and slid over the other woman’s body as though it was water), More water imagery. Perhaps I went a little overboard, but I love describing cloth. Morgan laughed with what might have been delight and easily broke the rope around her wrists before grabbing Nimue’s shoulders and pulling her close, their hair touching, white-gold against black. And we never know how it ends, because they could double cross one another forever, at this point.
A final note: In the Hallmark miniseries Merlin there are two characters, Mab and the Lady of the Lake (confusingly, Morgan and Nimue are different characters altogether) who are deliberately paralleled in the fact that they both are played by Miranda Richardson. It was that sort of duality that inspired this story.
Title: Dark and Light Magic
Fandom: Arthurian Legend
Character/Pairing: Morgan le Fay, Nimue, Morgan/Nimue
Summary: Morgan invites Nimue to dinner.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Power dynamics, double crossing.
This story feels as though it was written a very long time ago. It wasn't, really, of course - it was preceeded by Dark Side of the Sun, which I have such copious notes on that, with that one, I feel as though I'm still in the middle of writing it. But "Dark and Light Magic" was written quickly, a little colored glass piece of a story without a real plot, and mainly written to just experiment with the pairing. Technically speaking, it's a not a very good story, either.
Nimue was not entirely certain how it had happened. Morgan had invited her to dinner; her husband was away, she said, and she wanted a woman’s company. This, of course, is utter nonsense on Morgan's part, for the simple reason that she's not in the castle she shares with Uriens. My Morgan has two castles, one being Uriens', in Gore, and the other being that vaguely magical place where she seduces and enchants so many knights in all the French romances. Unlike Morgause with Orkney, she has no real emotional connection to being the Queen of Gore, and all important things take place at the second castle. The two of them had long been enemies, and Nimue did not trust in Morgan’s good intentions, so she brought with her a dagger and several charms that could have gotten her out of there if need be. Because she's going to the castle that's partly in Faerie. See how that works? Though she did not believe that Morgan’s intentions were entirely friendly, she thought that if Morgan wanted to kill her, she would have done it already. More likely it was some sort of business, perhaps relating to Arthur or Merlin.
My Nimue is odd, and I don't think I really have a handle on writing her. I have this sense of her as much younger than Morgan - more like Arthur's age, actually - and having immense power but not being entirely sure how to use it at first. The fact that she and Morgan are enemies, yet it Nimue who defeated Merlin is an odd thing.
The table was only set for two people when Nimue arrived, which made her feel more uneasy. If Morgan was having a dinner party…well, then she might still be suspicious, but less so. Frankly, I don't know if Morgan has dinner parties but, if she did, I imagine they would be slightly frightening. But Morgan was polite enough, and so Nimue was as well, remembering proper table manners as she sat down to eat, things long forgotten because they are no use when one eats alone. She's enchanted Merlin by this point, and I don't think she really has any desire to take on random companions, not yet, anyway. Morgan’s every gesture was elegant, even the littlest things, like the way she lifted her goblet to her lips. This is something you can notice in a lot of my stories that are actually focused on a pairing - I do a great deal of describing one character watching the other. It was as though she was born to such things, though in her mind Nimue saw the frightened, angry girl of Merlin’s memories, and the wild, feral young woman who had begged him for knowledge. I think that everything with Morgan - from how she took Gorlois' death, to taking he ron as a student, to her subsequent betrayal - had more of an effect on Merlin than most people realize. He doesn't fail often, and I think he's very aware of the fact that, with Morgan, he really did. Nimue knows Merlin in this, odd, specific, incredibly close way, and so is very aware of that. There was little of that left in the elegant sorceress clad in black and purple (the color emperors wore, just a touch of blasphemy from Morgan who carried herself already like a Queen) velvet. Morgan is a stereotype, but a deliberate one. But Nimue thought she could see it in Morgan’s eyes, just a hint, at the edge of her vision and then gone. Just like the magic. Nimue can have compassion for the girl Morgan was, however, which seperates her from Morgan, who sees people in black and white.
The wine was good. Nimue drank perhaps too much of it, though maybe it was to see Morgan lift the pitcher and refill Nimue’s goblet with one swift, graceful gesture, her long sleeves somehow managing not to get into anything I think I use this same image in Graceful Statues (Nimue was used to doing that, but could never accomplish it quite so beautifully as Morgan). Again - younger, less experienced at this. In the flickering candlelight, and with the wine beginning to go to her head, Morgan looked far more beautiful than Nimue had remembered, her straight black hair looking almost like water as it flowed, loose, over her shoulders. And Nimue, Lady of the Lake, could appreciate water. This would be a good point to remark that I don't know how Nimue became the Lady of the Lake. That would be an interesting topic for a story.
As Nimue watched Morgan looking at her almost idly, she thought that perhaps they were not so different after all. Perhaps one of them wore black and purple and red and the other wore white and blue and green, I'm fond of color symbolism. Make of this what you will perhaps one of them supported Arthur and the other hated him more than almost anything in the world, but both were Merlin’s students at one point, both had felt the thrill of magic running through their veins, and Nimue was sure that at some point Morgan must have raised her arms to the sky and laughed with the joy of the pure power she had. Both Nimue and Morgan see the power of magic as an end unto itself. Morgan had abandoned Merlin and Nimue had done the complete opposite (whatever anyone else said) Because she kept him close to her, only hers, forever and ever, and that's not abandoning but how could they not both understand the other’s reasons for doing so? Nimue's wrong. Morgan doesn't understand her at all.
They spoke little but watched each other often, each trying to understand what the other might be thinking. Finally they had both finished eating, and Morgan, without a word of explanation, stood up and walked to where Nimue sat. Nimue stood up immediately, though under the influence of the wine she had just drunk she was not quite inclined to assume that Morgan was there to make some sort of attack on her. The wine, and all her sympathetic musings. So when Morgan leaned in to kiss her, Nimue kissed her back. We don't get Morgan's thoughts here because we don't need them. It's easy to justify Morgan seducing Nimue, it's Nimue's compliance that poses a problem.
It was a surprisingly gentle kiss, and the sensation of it combined with the feeling of Morgan’s hand unlacing her dress slowly, until the white fabric pooled at her feet, Mild water imagery here. made Nimue weak in the knees. And so she didn’t even notice when Morgan took the dagger Nimue had brought to defend herself. She was caught off guard when it was pressed against her neck, cutting her slightly. “I hate you.” Morgan whispered, her voice as gentle as if she had said the complete opposite statement. Because Morgan nurtures hate the way most people nurture love. “Now, I need information.” She said, her voice calm. “Tell me where you’ve hidden Merlin and stop interfering in my plans with my dear brother, and I’ll let you live a little longer.” See - Morgan doesn't see it as defeating Merlin, she sees it as keeping him far away from her and safe. She laughed, her red lips parting to show white, even teeth. She enjoys playing the fairy tale character, like the Wicked Queen from Snow White. “Of course, that’s not a guarantee that I won’t keep you here for some time before letting you go. After all, you are beautiful, despite how utterly aggravating you are, and I, of all people, am not one to let opportunities escape me. I didn’t with Lancelot, and I shall not with you.” This is another reference to one of those aforementioned French romances. This story is from that background.
Nimue was standing nearly naked, her mind addled with liquor, but yet she managed to gather her wits together and take advantage of a brief second when Morgan’s hold on the knife and her caution wavered to grab Morgan’s wrist and twist it so that the knife fell from her hand before grabbing her other wrist and pulling them both above her head with one hand before muttering a few words under her breath to conjure rope and tying Morgan’s hands together with it. Double crossing! These kind of power games are a guilty pleasure of mine. When she finally met the other woman’s eyes, she saw anger, and a grudging respect. “Will you kill me now?” Nimue was glad that there was no fear in Morgan’s voice. She would not have expected that. They both respect one another. They're good adversaries.
Nimue smiled, pushing her pale hair out of her eyes. “No. That’s more what you would do, Morgan. I’m not one to stoop to killing. That’s a thing for evil sorceresses, not the Lady of the Lake.” She's joking here, in an odd sort of way that I don't think Morgan recognizes because Nimue isn't confident enough in it yet. But, later on in Nimue's life, Morgan would appreciate it, because there's a Machiavellianism to Nimue that Morgan shares.
And as Nimue began to rid Morgan of her clothing (which was indeed well made and slid over the other woman’s body as though it was water), More water imagery. Perhaps I went a little overboard, but I love describing cloth. Morgan laughed with what might have been delight and easily broke the rope around her wrists before grabbing Nimue’s shoulders and pulling her close, their hair touching, white-gold against black. And we never know how it ends, because they could double cross one another forever, at this point.
A final note: In the Hallmark miniseries Merlin there are two characters, Mab and the Lady of the Lake (confusingly, Morgan and Nimue are different characters altogether) who are deliberately paralleled in the fact that they both are played by Miranda Richardson. It was that sort of duality that inspired this story.