Fertile Feet: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

There are a lot of ways to tell the White Hats from the Black Hats, but one pretty good [[A Worldwide Punomenon|rule of (green) thumb]] is that anyone who can bring flowers into existence just by stepping on soil is ''probably'' not evil. This person is not just a [[Friend to All Living Things]] but a potent force for good who is very likely [[The Messiah]], a [[Physical God]], or a credible runner up. At the very least they have a [[Green Thumb]], and in extreme cases are so powerful and so Good that their aura bleeds out into the world as [[World-Healing Wave|a source of healing and growth.]]

 

Not related to the giant Aurgelmir in [[Norse Mythology]], whose feet [[Squick|mated with one another]] and gave him the son Thrudgelmir, the first of the frost giants.

{{examples}}

* [[Hayao Miyazaki]]'s [[Princess Mononoke]] had this trope with the Forest Spirit, who gave and took life. Where-ever he stepped, plant life shot out of the ground, only to regress and presumably die when his foot left the ground.

* In ''[[Pokémon 3]]: Spell of the Unown'', the illusory Entei makes crystals grow where he steps down on the ground. The plot of the movie involves the Pokémon Unown causing similar crystals to grow, and since they created Entei, it serves to connect the two together. It becomes obvious that the Unown can only affect reality within an area defined by the crystal growth. Hence Entei isn't making crystals grow wherever he steps, the Unown are making crystals grow so Entei can step on them.

* [[Naruto]] displays this to a degree once he {{spoiler|takes control of the Kyuubi's chakra}}. Even the artificial wood of Yamato's mokuton sprouts vibrant leaves in his presence. Subsequently weaponized when it's discovered that {{spoiler|the life-giving power of the chakra can cause Zetsu clones to revert into trees}}.

* Belldandy does this in the "Fighting Wings" duology of the ''[[Ah! My Goddess]]'' anime. Lind grows a flower in the palm of her hand, showing that even [[Badass]] [[An Axe to Grind|halberd-wielding]] [[Valkyries]] have a softer side.

 

== Card Games ==

* One of the features of the ''World of Warcraft'' card game—Item cards. They can provide you rare items in-game. Two of them has said effect: Trinket "Path of Illidan" which leaves green fire footprints as you walk and "Path of Zenarius (Cenarius?)" that make flowers (and grass) appear as you walk.

 

== Comics -- Books ==

* Poison Ivy subverts this, over and over.

* In an early issue of ''[[The Books of Magic]]'', the protagonist has just defeated the Manticore, the secret plague that's been turning the Fairy world into a desert, but has been badly wounded in the process. His blood is chock-full of magic, though, so even as he's bleeding out stumbling around, his blood droplets restore plant life to the world.

 

== Films -- Animation ==

* The Spring Sprite in the "Firebird Suite" segment of ''[[Fantasia]] 2000'', most likely inspired by ''[[Princess Mononoke]]''.

* Crysta by the end of ''[[Fern Gully]].''

* It happens in ''[[Kirikou and The Sorceress]]'' {{spoiler|when [[Kid Hero|Kirikou]] pulls out [[Hot Witch|Karaba]]'s magical thorn from her back, automatically, [[Heel Face Turn|making her good]] and reverting her [[Walking Wasteland]] so the plants and flowers grow back prettier than before. Truly eyeful!}}

* The [[Animated Adaptation]] of ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia|The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe]]'' has Aslan do this after resurrecting from the Stone Table.

* In the ''[[Barbie]]'' adaption of ''The Nutcracker'', Clara walks through a snowy landscape and wherever her feet step, the snow and ice melts and little purple flowers bloom in the melted footprints. She doesn't notice.

 

== Films -- Live-Action ==

* Anneke in the Russo-Finnish production ''[[The Day the Earth Froze]]'' briefly caused flowers to bloom in her wake when Lemmenkainen and Ilmarinen rescued her from the witch Louhi. Louhi and her imps then went on a frenzy of stomping the flowers, because ([[For the Evulz|being evil and all]]) she hated anything beautiful.

** When this movie was given the ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' treatment, Joel looked at the witch during this scene and pondered, "Geez, I wonder what her Myers-Briggs test was like."

 

== Literature ==

* Flowers are said to have sprung up in the wake of Blessed Elua in Jacqueline Carey's ''[[Kushiel's Legacy]]'' books.

* Hannah, protagonist of Meredith Ann Pierce's ''Treasure at the Heart of the Tanglewood'', grows plants appropriate to the season—which usually seem to end up being useful—''in her hair''. She also, as it turns out, brings the seasons with her when she travels, including flowers in spring, grains in summer and falling leaves in autumn. {{spoiler|[[Sarcasm Mode|Surprisingly enough]], she turns out to be [[Living MacGuffin|the]] [[MacGuffin Girl]] whom both the [[Big Good]] and the primary antagonist were after.}}

* Easter/Eostre of the Dawn does this in ''[[American Gods]]'', on her way to {{spoiler|bring Shadow back from the land of the dead.}}

* In [[Ian McDonald]]'s ''Desolation Road'', there's a green evolved human from the future. Grass grows in the desert in his footsteps.

** At the beginning of ''Towers of Midnight'', Rand descends from Dragonmount after resolving his internal conflict and makes an entire orchard of [[How Do You Like Them Apples?|apples]], which had been shriveled by the Dark One's touch, bloom instantly. Later, he makes bitter tea turn fresh just by entering the same room. It gets to the point in the book where virtually everyone can tell when Rand is near, simply because the sun starts shining, and everything starts blooming like there's no tomorrow (though this is purposely excluded in a capital city ruled by one of his lovers).

** All of this is because of the prophecy stating that [[Fisher King|the Land is one with the Dragon]]. The spoilage of previous books is because of him moving towards the darkness.

* In Zilpha Keatley Snyder's novel ''The Changeling'', Martha and Ivy invent a fantasy kingdom of Tree People with [[Amazing Technicolor Population|pale green skin]] and [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|dark green hair]] in which flowers grow naturally. (The Tree People later developed into Snyder's [[Green-Sky Trilogy]] and, eventually, the "Below the Root" video game.)

* Clive Barker's ''[[Weaveworld]]'' has two examples of this. The first plays the trope straight, with a temple so chock-full of magic that any disturbances (such as walking through it) sprouts a lush undergrowth. The second is an inversion, with a Garden of Eden-like setting covered in flora, which withers away and turns to sand when someone walks through it.

* Briar Moss uses this in Tamora Pierce's ''[[Circle of Magic|Street Magic]]'' invokes this when he has a [[Tranquil Fury|very rational and very controlled]] [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]. Briar has [[Green Thumb]] in asskicking, so when he has enough, he uncorks his power and seeds and plant-based material come to live and sprout in his wake. In broad daylight. Most mages make an effort to fit into normal society, so seeing one obviously not making the effort was a great way to encourage people to get out of his way.

* In L. Jagi Lamplighter's ''[[Prospero's Daughter|Prospero Regained]]'', the Water of Life has this effect on its environs. Even in Hell.

 

== Music Videos ==

* Ditto for the video of Linkin Park's "In the End", where Mike Shinoda leaves a trail of growing grass.

 

** Traditionally, vampires were corpses possessed by demons; it reminds them if their host is destroyed, they will return to Hell.

* There is a Yiddish folktale about two girls, a kind one and a mean one. The kind one received a blessing that caused roses to spring up where she walked, and the mean girl got a curse that made nettles spring up in her footsteps.

 

== New Media ==

 

== Religion ==

** The Christmas carol "Good King Wenceslas" has a variation where the ground gets so warm that grass grows in the middle of winter.

** It's also a pretty common motif in psalms. There is one Swedish example of God's footsteps not only bringing flowers but also overflowing with fat. [[It Makes Sense in Context|Food wasn't as plentiful back then.]]

* Also, Suvetar, the Finnish goddess of spring.

* The newborn Buddha is sometimes said to have left lotuses in his footsteps when he walked after birth.

 

== Tabletop Games ==

* Benediction of Archgenesis, a Solar Circle Sorcery spell from ''[[Exalted]]'', is basically this. However, unlike most examples, you actually have to [[Cast from Hit Points|cut your feet and trail the blood around the area you want blessed with life.]]

** There's also the Moon And Earth Blessing from the Ink Monkeys, a Lunar Charm that allow them to do the same, on a smaller scale. On the other hand, they can do it as a dramatic action, it doesn't require anywhere near as much essence much less a massive blood sacrifice, and they can do it any day of the year rather than just on the first day of the first month.

 

== Video Games ==

* In ''[[Black and White]]'', made by the same people who later made ''[[Fable (video game series)|Fable]]'', a very Good Creature has the same effect. Conversely, a very Evil Creature leaves smoldering footprints.

* When you're maxed out good in ''[[Fable (video game series)|Fable]]'', a halo appears over your head and flowers and butterflies also randomly show up when you stand still. As soon as you move, the effect disappears.

** Amaterasu. The faster she runs, the more lush the foliage, although it disappears just as quickly as it sprouts up. In water, Amaterasu leaves a trail of lily pads behind her; in midair, a flurry of autumn leaves. This passive ability is amplified after gaining the Growth Brush technique. The flowers in her wake are already bloomed, and at full speed, the flowers turn ''gold''.

** Amaterasu even does this in ''[[Marvel vs. Capcom 3]]'', while running up [[Fantastic Four (Comic Book)|Super-Skrull's]] outstretched arm. With [[Viewtiful Joe]] riding her, yet!

* ''[[Bayonetta]]'', from the [[Platinum Games|same development studio]], has Bayonetta leaving behind a small trail of black plants whenever she is running in panther form.

* In ''[[Oracle of Tao]]'', Ambrosia, after becoming the Oracle, has a massive shadow beneath her feet ([[Faux Symbolism|probably representing that her dark half is now part of her]] ), and grows massive amounts of some generic weed, most likely [http://www.ontariowildflower.com/images/plantain_common.jpg Common Plantain]. Also, in flashbacks ( {{spoiler|since this power was originally hers}} ), she as a kid grew tiny sprouts inside her shadow when she moved.

** God also has this power.

 

== Web Comics ==

** [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209193759/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3826 Jesus is somewhat more active.] [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209161148/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3827 same result.]

** [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209175524/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3903 After the angels, the gun goes not BOOM but BLOOM]

 

== Web Original ==

* After he becomes the Avatar of Life Magic, Lwan Eddington of ''[[Tech Infantry]]'' tends to have plants and animals spontaneously spring up around him wherever he goes. He even manages to create an entire fertile region on an asteroid-blasted Earth.

 

== Western Animation ==

* The second season opening of ''[[Jimmy Two-Shoes]]'' depicts Jimmy as being able to turn anything he touches into a happy, beautiful thing. He never has this power in the show, though.

* This happens every Friday the 13th for Misery in ''[[Ruby Gloom]]''.

 

== Real Life ==

 

{{reflist}}