Remember I Do These Sometimes?

Fantasy Guide to Employment: Household of a Castle

The castle does not run itself. The castle would remain a pile of stones without servants to keep it running. The guide below focuses on the private household of the lord himself, anybody who worked inside the main keep of the castle. I will be expanding outside the walls in a future post.

The Steward/Seneschal

This person was the head of the household staff. They would have the task of running things on the Lord's estate. They are the managers, so it is up to them to keep the staff in line. The steward would keep the castle accounts and keep the lord informed of all of the goings on of the lands and tenants. They would have to be educated needing to do accounts and write letters. Though the castle's Lady would be expected to do all these things, the steward served as a backup and assistant in all the tasks even representing the lord and lady when they were unavailable.

The Chamberlain

The chamberlain is the servant employed to look after the Lord's bedchamber. He would look after the Lord's clothes as well and keep track of the other servants' liveries, the official uniforms of the guards, pages and squires. This was not always the case, some larger households had a separate office but most medium seized manors and castles lumped them together. The chamberlain's main task was ensuring the lord was kept happy. He would even be the last servant a lord would see at night before he went to bed at night. They would be educated.

The Marshal

A Marshal was in charge of the stables as well as the military presence in the castle. They would oversee the household's horses, carts, wagons, and containers. He oversaw blacksmiths, horse grooms and stableboys. He also oversaw the transporting of goods. The Marshal was sometimes in charge of disciplining servants. They would likely come from a middle class background as well as having military experience and education.

The Page

A page was a young noble boy about seven years old who would be sent to serve a Lord. He would be in charge of tidying up after the lord, carrying messages to other servants and occupants of the castle and serving him at meals. Unlike others on the list, the page would not be paid. His experience was his payment as he would learn the running of a castle and manners of a lord.

The Lady's Maid

The lady's maid is be the female body attendant of the castle's noble women. She would be in charge of caring for the lady's chamber and her things. She would dress the lady and attend her wherever she would. (The lady's maid would basically do all the work a chamberlain would but you know the wage gap...)

Maidservant

A housemaid/maidservant works to clean the castle. She would be among the first to awaken every morning. Her first task would be sweeping the floors. The thing with mediaeval floors a that they were often covered with a thin layer of rushes, a kind of grass. Weekly if not daily, a maidservant would be expected to change out the rushes and scatter new ones. If it really needed it, she would scrub the stone floors which would be done with a soap called lye, made from ashes and lard. The maidservant would also be expected to go into the bedchambers when the occupants awoke. She would empty the chamberpots if need be. She would get rid of the ashes from the fire and ready the fire for later. She would make up the bed or strip it for the laundresses. She would wash anything that needed washing including furniture and ornaments.

Laundress

The laundress was responsible for the cleaning of anything made of fabric in the household. The laundress would have to fetch their own water either from the castle well or from a nearby river. They would heat the water in large vats and add lye soap (the most popular of the cleaning agents). The constant exposure to soap and hot water was physically tough on the hands of the laundresses and their backs. When the detergents were added to the water, the laundress would dump them into the vat and stir that shit like soup. To dry it they would pin it out on lines or beat the water from it. The laundress might make money by selling secrets. Since they are handling unmentionables, they knew what happened behind closed bedchamber doors or what didn't.

Nursemaid

The nursemaid was in charge of the castle's children. They would ensure the child was fed, washed and generally kept alive while the parents would either be away at court or busy with the lands. The nursemaid would be a common woman from the surrounding lands who would come in to care for a noble child in the stead of the mother who would be expected to get on with other jobs. The nursemaid would be an underlying of the noble governess, a sort of hands-off nanny.

Cook

The cook was one of the most important servants in the castle. They would have the task of overseeing the running of the kitchens and keeping supplies in order. They would likely be on call at all times. Henry VIII's cook was often woken in the night because his royal master wanted a midnight snack. The cook was a valued member of the household and would have been highly sought after if they were a very skilled cook. Cooks would have been paid a handsome wage.

Scullion

The scullion was the lowest member of staff. They would be responsible for scrubbing and cleaning the servants quarters and the kitchens. They would scrub floors with lye, scour pots with sand, sweep put the fireplace and clean up after the other servants. They were the first to rise in a castle and tasked to light all the fires in the kitchens.

Payment & Lifestyle

Within the mediaeval household, payment came from the hand of the steward. As the Lord's manager of accounts, he was in charge of paying staff.

The grander jobs in the castle such as the marshal, the chamberlain, nursemaid and lady's maid would pay better. They would have certain privileges including better bedchambers.

A nursemaid who was breastfeeding the Lord's children would be a valued member of staff. She would be fed better than the other servants.

The page would sleep in a chamber off the lord's bedchamber or sometimes at the foot of the bed. A page would wear the Lord's livery so he would be dressed on the Lord's coin.

The chamberlain would have rooms close to the lord and lady, just in case they were needed by the master in any kind of emergency.

The cook would sleep near the kitchens so they were close enough just in case they are needed in the night.

The other household servants would all sleep in chambers together. The women would sleep in one and the men would sleep in another. Nightly dalliances were frowned upon massively.

Most servants came from the surrounding lands of the castle. When the lord and his family were away at court or somewhere else, there would be a drop in employment. Everything would be cut down ex. Instead of three laundry maids, only one might stay on after the lord goes. The steward, the marshal, the chamberlain, the page, the cook, the nursemaid and the lady's maid were all important staff so their job would be permanent.

Gameshow Time

Yao: Hello and welcome to our favorite game show: Is He Good Enough For Him (Probably Not)! Today we have Alfred with us who just introduced his new bae to his family at home! Alfred: Hi I'm Alfred and I've been friends with Ivan for months and we just made things official! My family knows him so I'm just wondering what they think of him. Yao: Well you've come to the right show! Now let's look at our contestants today: We have Francis, Matthew and Arthur! Alfred are you ready? Alfred: Yes I am! Here's question number one, what is the noise you guys collectively made when I walked into the house and announced Ivan as my boyfriend: A. "oooh" B. "ehhhhh" C. "ughh" Arthur: B. ehhh. Yao: And ding ding ding, that's correct! Alfred: I didn't know that "ehhh" was you guys' reaction to Ivan being my boyfriend. [guilty silence] Matthew: W-Well that was before we got to know him! Arthur: Yeah now it's more of an “UGHHH" Alfred: What? Arthur: I said what I said. Yao: Alright I'm checking my watch and it looks like it's time for our new segment: Who Said That? Alfred you're gonna read each of the statements on that card and match them to your friends or relatives or whatever they are to you. Alfred: Okay, when asked do you like Alfred's boyfriend the following answers were given: A. "If he's happy then I'm happy, if he likes him then I like him" B. "I don't think I've gotten to know how him well enough to say if I like him or not, though I was kinda turned off when he made that 9/11 joke at dinner." C. "I hate him." Arthur: I'll give you a clue I'm the one who hates him! Yao: That wasn't really a clue, you kinda just gave him the answer. Alfred: Why do you hate him?

Arthur: Because, you git! He's a psychopath who probably abuses people in his spare time! Francis, strained voice: Arthur, we're on television.. Arthur: I know! I HOPE YOU'RE WATCHING THIS, IVAN! Matthew: For the record I'll support you no matter what. You could do cocaine off a gas station toilet seat and I'd still be cheering you on. Alfred: Aw thanks Mattie! Yao: OKAY let's move on please, Alfred read the third question. Alfred: Okay, so which one of these do you think is my type: A. Introvert who is really polite and looks innocent when he's really not B. A try hard cutie who's stressed all the time but has a good heart C. Creepy psychos with murderous tendencies. Arthur: C. Matthew: C. Francis: C. Alfred: Seriously!? Francis: Sweetheart I'm sorry but all the people you date are either batsh*t feral or eerily calm, and either way they're ALWAYS in the mood to kill someone. Arthur: Even your anime kins are psychotic. Like come on, who even likes Toga Himiko? Matthew: Yeah I have to agree. Natalya wasn’t good candidate. Arthur: Natalya literally tried to KILL you, Alfred. Alfred: I don't know why you guys are so quick to judge, you don't know him like I do! He's actually a very sweet guy! Francis: I hate to keep bringing this up but he did say that 9/11 joke. Alfred: THAT WAS ONE TIME. Francis: I would argue that's still too many. Arthur: You know he's just gonna hurt you in the end! Yao: Uhhh I think it's time for the next questi- Arthur: AND I THINK IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO SHOVE IT UP YOUR ARSE! Francis: Arthur this is a family friendly program! Matthew: I think what Arthur's trying to say is- Arthur: You're making bad choices. You date questionable people, you don't even use protection! Francis: Ooooh. Matthew: Um we're on live tv in case you all forgo- Alfred: Who are you, my dad!? Arthur: You know what? I hope you get STD, so it will teach you a lesson! Yao: ANDDDD WE'RE BREAKING TO COMMERCIAL AND NEVER COMING BACK.

SpaBel brainrot, why is there not more of them😔

i made an askblog for my cardverse for ✨funsies✨ (also to improve my skills bc haha artblock) Here's the link if you want to try and send an ask (warning im not good at drawing, i just have a wild imagination😭)

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My Version Of Spades👌

Bc i dont agree with Hima's / good chance to improve drawing skills / the askbox is open woo

So hey, I got bored and turned a desk scribble into a Cardverse map. I have no idea what I’m doing, but I’ve made some theories about the different kingdoms off this map. Spades(Blue)- With the spades being the largest Kingdom land wise, they have a wide ranging culture and resources. While they are the most powerful kingdom, they are forced to work with their neighboring kingdoms in order to thrive.

Cloves(Green)- Cloves, being almost completely made up of islands, are heavily based around trading, boating, and seafood. The islands in the north and the mainland of the Cloves are great trading ports and are places meant for cultural fusion. Because both the Spades and the Hearts reply on them for trade, the Clove Kingdom is a peace keeper between the 2 kingdoms.

Hearts(Red)- With their large landmass, the northern part of the kingdom is almost completely different from the southern part of the kingdom. Because of this, the south is a place for great arts and food, and influence from their Diamond neighbors and their Clubian friends across the pond, while the north is known for their architects and fruits.

Diamonds(Yellow)- Unlike their Heart neighbors, a lot of the Diamond culture is condensed into their small landmass. This includes good food, wine, weapons, and book making. The shared border of the Hearts and the Diamonds have caused many issues in the past, but after the incident of the Tangerine Islands, they have calmed down.

Tangerine Islands(Orange)-A territory that was commonly fought over because it was one of the best trade ports between the diamonds and hearts. Both kingdoms have tried to take it, but after many years of infighting, a former member of the high heart court declared it as independent and told both kingdoms to calm down before they close off ports completely.

???(Birb)- A very weird island with many cats. There are people living there, but they don’t classify as any part of any kingdom

Do your Spadesverse characters go through heats?

yep! but when Al was working as a bodyguard he took suppressants from Yao so that he wont go through them (he cant be "incapacitated" while on the job)

Top Ten Hetalia Dilfs:

1. Germania

2. Rome

3. Sweden

4. France

5. Prussia

6. Spain

7. Denmark

8. China

9. Norway

10. England

HI! (●’◡’●)ﾉ

How are you? Is Alfred your favourite character? Or do you think he's just the most attractive of the allies? XD -🪽

I'm great, thank you for asking!🥰

And yes he's indeed my favorite character HAHAHAHA hes my ultimate hyperfixation i literally dont focus (or care) about any of the characters other than him😭😭 HES JUST SOOOOSOSOSOSO i get cuteness aggression just looking at him omg

love their modern outfits!

Fantasy AU

Imagine Amelia as a rebellious healer princess and Anya as a knight of a rival kingdom. Amelia's family is corrupt and she knows it, so with a strong sense of justice she runs away to stop the war and defeat her kingdom. She gets lost in a forest and almost gets killed by bandits when Anya, a knight who deserted the army and is on the run from the law, rescues her. Anya has no desire to join the war and refuses Amelia when the latter asks Anya to come with her and help. Amelia knows Anya is on the run (she recognizes her from the wanted posters) and said she'd expose Anya's whereabouts, so the latter had no choice but to go. The forest is dangerous full of dangerous magical creatures and bad people. Anya protected Amelia battle after battle, and afterwards Amelia heals her. Anya pines hard for the princess but keeps her feelings to herself. Once the war was over and they won Anya finally confesses and Amelia FEELS THE SAME WAY and the monarchs of the rival kingdom gave their positions to Amelia and Anya after retiring so now Anya is a badass queen who protects her healer queen wife Amelia thank you for coming to my ted talk