Naberius Tern - Tumblr Posts
this post sent me on a babs rabbit hole bc i've really never thought about him much other than things like "ew"
anyways here's naberius tern (harry styles' version (walmart version))
p.s. I know it doesn't look exactly like harry-- I just briefly referenced him while sketching
best part of the locked tomb is if it was ANY other story naberius would be the number one guy. he’s a prince and somehow also a bodyguard and he’s a gifted fighter and devoted to the princesses and he has swoopy hair and dreamy eyes and no one gives a shit, because they’re all married/gay/focused on the actual plot. naberius is the lost love interest from a shitty ya fantasy novel that culminates in a love triangle between him, corona, and silas. this man is harry styles in a room full of lesbians
babs but like he's loosely based on harry styles because I saw a post abt it
So I know the entire narrative in The Locked Tomb is like « oh ahaha Babs, what a loser » but I genuinely think that there might be something really interesting about him. Babs was the only person in the whole galaxy to know about Ianthe and Corona’s secret. And I’m starting to think that as much of a natural asshole he is, at least 50% of what we see of him in GtN is acting.
Let me explain: he is obviously in puppy love with Corona, and dismissive of Ianthe when Corona is looking. But privately, he is terrified of her. He knows she’s his necromancer and NOT Corona; this is proven when the Second challenges the Sixth, and Corona wants to intervene but Ianthe says no. Ianthe is 100% certain that Babs will do as she says, but Corona is actually surprised. And when he finds Corona duelling Gideon, he is scared and tells her that he will not tell Ianthe. I think Ianthe probably threatened him behind Corona’s back one time or a dozen. And I think Babs isn’t just protecting their secret, he might be trying to protect Corona from Ianthe’s anger too. Being the annoying go-between, the butt of the joke, the meat shield. On purpose.
Pay close attention to when he’s being a contrary asshole for no reason. A lot of it seems to come naturally to him, sure. But also: when Jeannemary finds the human ash and asks for Corona of all people to help her identify the deceased: he immediately redirects attention by being a mega-asshole. Corona ends up not having to do any necromancy; her secret is still safe. Similarly, later on in Dulcinea’s sick room, when everyone is having a discussion about necromancy: he makes a tetchy comment, prompting Corona to whisk him away like ‘oh ahah he’s getting hangry’. How familiar is this routine for them?
I think deep down, while he’s an arrogant dickhead, Babs isn’t evil. He’s shocked and appalled that Silas went and took Dulcinea’s keys, and I don’t think it’s because he wishes he thought of it first, as Jeannemary accuses. I think he genuinely thinks that’s dishonourable. And when Corona tries to stand up for the Sixth and Ianthe says no, Babs follows her order, but is pissed about it.
But hold on, you might say to me, five minutes later HE is the one to issue a challenge to the Sixth!! Yeah, after a tense stare-off with his necromancer. After, perhaps, coming to some conclusions of his own about the Third house’s chances regarding the key situation. Ianthe herself says to Corona: you need a facility key. This is your only chance. Might be that Babs figured something similar!
When Harrow answers the call, his face is frozen in a look that’s both cautious but trying to look though. When Jeannemary jumps on the table, he immediately backs out. Without waiting for Ianthe to call him off. He tries to play it off, but Babs is pretty consistent on NOT wanting to fight the teenager.
In conclusion: the dude is a dick but I think he’s got honour and he is stuck between a rock and a very hard place. AND he fights Ianthe after the lyctoral process for a surprising and impressive long time!
Also: lmao when he jumps off the table he mutters ‘should have just stayed home and gotten married’. Okay??? Babs what’s that about? 👀
way back in GtN, during Gideon&Babs' duel, specific mention is made to Naberius' proportions physically. Specifically that he was shorter than Gideon, with LONG long arms -- aka the perfect sport fencing build: a relatively small target (clavicle to sacrum, arms exception) combined with a long reach, will very efficiently prevent anyone from being able to touch you in a proper duel. and I'm thinking abt Ianthe "we'd fix him" the First and how Babs HAD to be the best with absolutley no room for anything less and I'm thinking about his physical proportions being perfect and like. the Third House definitely did that to him. very sinister. much to think about.
first of all I had to find the quotes and honestly the dialogue before is just. I don't even know.
"more eager and jovial" you want to fuck this eighth battery shit brickhouse so bad, babs, it makes you look stupid. like, dude, of all the people present you chose him? colum the eighth? to bother?
earlier, being rebuked like that by ianthe and what babs does? babs goes on a (seemingly) mutual conversation with colum. colum had to say something about buckler to have naberius talking about it.
and poor colum who has to deal with silas DAILY, gets another twink to bother him at canaan house. colum asht suffers more than gideon jesus without any praise.
on this reread of gideon the ninth I am picking up on the frankly hilarious background thread that naberius genuinely seems to want to be buddies with colum asht, in his third house mean girl kind of way. and colum seems to count this as a genuinely painful event amidst a life defined by suffering fhdskjsha
(they're seated next to each other at magnus and abigail's party and naberius keeps trying to drag colum back into conversation (by telling him he's wrong of course) while colum mostly suffers in silence and tries to eat his dinner, and before the duel that was supposed to happen between the eight and the seventh naberius invites himself along to the walk there chattering the whole time and it makes colum, and I quote, 'look like he wished he were deaf'. how hard do you have to work at it to be insufferable to a guy who hangs around silas all day long. can colum ever catch a break. can we just see him have a chill time for like two minutes in alecto the ninth. maybe have a drink with a little umbrella in it. I realize I hope for too much but has he not suffered enough? his day job was basically to go to day trips to hell already, of all the people who could end up stuck in there he's deserved it the least let's fish him out before the series ends huh)
Ianthe Tridentarius: Surely you can describe the thrilling goings-on via commnet, Naberius. Naberius Tern: eighth have had a few Ianthe Tridentarius: Joy of joys. Naberius Tern: and the master templar or whatever is back here getting like Naberius Tern: impregnated Naberius Tern: no exaggeration he is being semi-publicly fucked as we speak Naberius Tern: BY HIS CAVALIER The Eighth get messy at a Third party. The Third observe.
My extremely silly first posted eighthcest fic 🫡 Hope you guys enjoy!
i remembered that tazmuir was constructing the names to have same fragments bcs it's "... way that other necromancer-cavalier pairs who love each other very much do in the book" and went insane.
coronabeth/ianthe naberius
abigail magnus (they do not share a full syllable but the resonance is here)
camilla palamedes
dulcinea protesilaus.
and like. the fourth are not here! they're children. they didn't have enough time. the third are here! whatever she called naberius when she was mad aside, corona loved him. the second are not here! they had more professionalism in their relationship despite judith's crush. the eighth are not here! bcs... ugh. and our favourite cav-necro from the ninth are not here too.
Hi I know I don’t know you but I need you to know that your 3rd/8th house swap is propelling me rapidly back into my tlt hyperfixation. I already am so attached to 3rd house Silas it’s not even funny. He’d be so fucking mean. And in canon his faith is the biggest thing keeping him from Lyctorhood, so if he’s not eighth the only thing stopping him is his love for Colum, and whether that love succeeds or fails it’s just. So Juicy
Oh my god and eighth house Ianthe! Ianthe who’s had control over the religious lives of the Nine Houses since she was a kid! Corona would probably just be her cavalier instead of pretending to be a necromancer since the eighth isn’t as big on lies and secrets. So she would just have two cavaliers… and she’d have to pick which one to sacrifice? Plus, the Harrianthe drama of the Ninth being out of the religious control of the Eighth cannot be overstated 👀
And that’s not even touching on Colum or Corona or Naberius!!! I’m just. Thank you. You are feeding me with this AU
Omg haha I'm so glad you liked it!! It truly hit me like a truck to even think about and now I've been possessed by the image of him wearing like, slutty gold chainmail and being a cunt. He would be THE FUCKING WORST!!!!!!! I like to imagine that his faith remains very strong, but that he's also like a classically Third trashy whore in some regards because it's his Duty, as the Crown Prince and the Mouth of the Emperor and the Heir to the Throne of Ida, to get out on the floor and get the fuck down. Colum would still be completely tortured by this. And I totally agree that if he didn't have the theocratic power to declare something heretical and attempt to purge it entirely from the face of the First, it would be the fact that Colum has been his beloved cavalier and only real friend since the day he was born that held him back from eating him.
And YES, Eighth Ianthe (and Corona and Babs) would be fucking insane!!! The concept of Ianthe, who Corona starved for oxygen in the womb, feeding on Corona's soul due to their perfect genetic compatibility and making her weaker and weaker over time, more and more like Ianthe herself...AUGHHHHHH
Reading Gtn: haha! Babs is just like, the classic “perfect boy” lmao
After reading tug:
Oh
way back in GtN, during Gideon&Babs' duel, specific mention is made to Naberius' proportions physically. Specifically that he was shorter than Gideon, with LONG long arms -- aka the perfect sport fencing build: a relatively small target (clavicle to sacrum, arms exception) combined with a long reach, will very efficiently prevent anyone from being able to touch you in a proper duel. and I'm thinking abt Ianthe "we'd fix him" the First and how Babs HAD to be the best with absolutley no room for anything less and I'm thinking about his physical proportions being perfect and like. the Third House definitely did that to him. very sinister. much to think about.
best part of the locked tomb is if it was ANY other story naberius would be the number one guy. he’s a prince and somehow also a bodyguard and he’s a gifted fighter and devoted to the princesses and he has swoopy hair and dreamy eyes and no one gives a shit, because they’re all married/gay/focused on the actual plot. naberius is the lost love interest from a shitty ya fantasy novel that culminates in a love triangle between him, corona, and silas. this man is harry styles in a room full of lesbians
NABERIUS TERN IS LITERALLY JUST ERIDAN AMPORA THIS IS DRIVING ME INSANE
do you ever think about corona and gideon. how ianthe and harrow respectively refused to consume them. how they took it as a sign of rejection when it was a symbol of love. or are you normal.
fun fact I actually own the “lurk laugh loathe” t-shirt that Ianthe is wearing
