gooseweasel:

With permission from lettherebedoodles I decided to take their amazing Racebent Disney Princess Series and, rather than just seeing them as different versions of the original characters, give them stories and fairy tales of their own. I plan on doing her entire series- hopefully I won’t disappoint!

Some of the stories will be based on the culture the new heroine is based on, and others will be stories from other cultures (such as ‘traditional’ western fairy tales), even real life people will inspire these Disney-style Princesses and Heroines. But please remember- this is all for fun. I’m not pretending to be an expert on any of this. I’ll try my best to do right by these characters and cultures, and if there is something horribly offensive, please let me know how I can fix it.

Sorry I’m a crappy lazy graphic designer, btw.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Lupita – Duende

Lupita is the oldest child in her family, with two younger siblings, fraternal twins Felipe and Josefina. Lupita loves to paint, but after the death of her mother almost a year ago, she’s been very depressed. All she’s had time for is hard work and chores and keeping the household running. Her art has suffered, and she’s frustrated with life, and that the twins seem to only goof off and get into trouble.

One night, just before Dia de los Muertos is about to start, Lupita loses her cool and tells the twins to do something, anything, to help out around the house. Laughing, they run off into the darkness, Lupita chasing angrily after- only to watch them be snatched up by La Llorona.

As Dia de los Muertos begins, Lupita receives a visit from her mother, who tells her that she must save the twins before Dia de los Muertos ends and the spirits of the dead return to the afterlife. So Lupita sets out to find La Llorona, and in the process, find joy and laughter in her own life again.

Yara – Flow

Yara has always loved the river, just like the sirens she was named for when she was found orphaned as a baby. And her home, a floating village on the Amazon River, gave her plenty of reasons to be near the water. Even though the river could be dangerous, Yara was never afraid.

So when a group of wealthy explorers come, wanting to map the river and document wildlife, she happily agrees to be their guide. But these men are not what they seem, and when they commit an unthinkable crime- killing a river dolphin- the river begins to flood like never before. The villagers then tell her the truth about her origins. Yara isn’t just her name, she is truly an Iara, a mermaid of the Amazon. With help from a charming and handsome shape-shifter, Boto, she sets out to find a way to stop the flood from destroying her home.

Sedna and Qailertetang – The Legend of Us

Sedna is considered the most beautiful woman in the world. Qailertetang is her best friend… and thinks she may be falling in love with Sedna. But Qailertetang is too afraid to say anything, and then a strange man shows up at their village. He reveals himself to be a powerful spirit, who can take the form of a massive Petrel and control the weather. The Petrel spirit demands that Sedna marry him, and when she refuses, he kidnaps her and takes her to a distant sea cliff.

Heartbroken and desperate to save her friend, Qailertetang, sets off in a kayak to save her. Along the way, she saves a two-spirit shaman, and they tell her that even though love is confusing, she should tell Sedna how she feels. Meanwhile Sedna, trapped on a sea cliff, plots a way to escape on her own. Together, they find a way to defeat the Petrel spirit.

Together, they change in a way they would have never thought possible.

Author’s Note: Loosely based on what I’ve been able to find about the Inuit goddesses/spirits of Sedna and Qailertetang. I don’t think I’ve made any horrible errors here, and I wish I knew more about Inuit naming conventions to come up with a diminutive version of Qailertetang because that is a mouthful. But for the sake of not accidentally shortening it to something offensive, I left it as is.

P.S. Friendly reminder if you have any, LITERALLY ANY, resources on African (specifically Luo/West Niletic/East African- think the Jasmine edit) stories, folktales, even modern fiction, please let me know. I’m having a lot of trouble with it.