vampfrinfic-notebook

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

I like doing card readings to help with fic planning sometimes and decided to do the same reading but with my 2 decks. On the left is a new deck I'm still getting used to, and the one on the right is a deck I've been using for a while now and am used to.

I will analyze later when I can sit down and jot down notes.

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Looping Arc Ideas

◇ Siffrin asks Loop how they occupy themself when they aren't talking

▪︎ he offers to bring them books from Dormont's library

▪︎ eventually Loop accepts and asks for language books (after speaking Vaugardian almost exclusively for 2k+ loops, they've started forgetting other languages)

◇ the Wish Craft keeping the Forgotten Island forgotten is stronger than Siffrin's ability to reanimate following their first death; he will use this (work on logistics maybe?? Or keep it vague and focus on emotion)

◇ Runaway Letter in secret room: Siffrin remembers part of the night his parents tried to run away with them the night the Forgotten Island went on lockdown

◇ "Savior. Mirabelle was beginning to hate that word, for all the energy she poured into trying to live up to it."

◇ "Mirabelle never considered that she may have to choose one life over another -- that she would /want/ to. But when that monarchist pulled Siffrin into the well, her first thought had been to beg the Change God to trade the bastard's future for her friend's."

◇ "She was supposed to be Vaugarde's Savior, but as the King had risen to encase the country in ice, sparks had been flying, setting it aflame."

◇ "Siffrin had told her what feels like years ago that she should keep her heart soft. But the bruises just hurt too much."

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

More:

◇ met 2 other vampires before Siffrin

▪︎ unnamed vampire in Hireth that like Hadrian was scheduled for execution but escaped with help from the Resistance

▪︎ "I almost wished I could have told my mother 'I told you so' after hearing their story!"

▪︎ suggests Hadrian wanted to help the Resistance, tying in to the coded messages Odile finds in his office; Hadrian's mom wanted him to keep his head down, worried he'd otherwise grab the attention of Peacekeepers

▪︎ Vittoria he met in Poteria; she'd run away from her foster home after her guardians found put why she was sneaking out

▪︎ her story is where it's brought up that vampires age more slowly than others

◇ Hadrian sees killing people as a worse sin than puppeting them

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

X

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

I did not originally picture them with infinity glasses frames but they fit her i think

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Transcript edited under cut:

Star Crest:

The star crests were created by Euphrasie, so she could cancel out the King's Tears when they fought. His power overwhelmed hers, so Euphrasie ran, scattered the crests, and then scattered the orbs and blessed Mirabelle. Her blessing for Mirabelle was created using the same Wish Craft she'd used to make the crests. Euphrasie had originally had the crests (the metal part) made to make lockets for her, the King (when he went by Gwendal), and Amabilis and then started repurposing them for using them to fight the King after Corbeaux froze. The King couldn't bring himself to destroy the crests and instead put Nostalgie Sadnesses in the rooms where the crests were to guard them.

Symbol meanings:

◇ tear drop

▪︎ for Amabilis

▪︎ always wears mourning lockets for Marte and other Asmu'urian rebels that were executed

◇ clock, without hands

▪︎ for Euphrasie

▪︎ has been studying Time Craft for years

▪︎ always late

◇ star

▪︎ for Gwendal

▪︎ stars are important to him

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Transcript under cut:

Discovery:

The possibility of ghouls was discovered not long after it was discovered vampires could reanimate after death. An undead vampire volunteered to be tested on, and his blood was used to heal 3 different patients: one with minor injuries, one with moderate injuries, and one with severe injuries. All 3 became suseptible to the vampire's suggestions to different degrees; the patient with severe injuries was most pliable to the vampire's commands, and he also showed signs of bloodlust while also developing a dependence on vampire blood.

Mind control:

Vampire Hunters:

Once discovered, focus was placed on ensuring ghouls aren't created, rather than studying how it happens. Someone who dies with vampire blood in their system remain complete ghouls and can only be freed from sire's control in death. For those that are still alive, they can slowly come out of their sirens control the longer they go without drinking vampire blood (risking bloodlust). Challenges vary person to person, but it seems the milder the injuries they had initially, the easier they leave the sire's control.

As vampires need to feed ghouls their blood to keep them under their control, 3 or 4 is the typical limit. After that, the vampire stretches themself too thin, is more likely to lose control when facing bloodlust, and their abilities to problem-solve, make sound judgments, and think clearly can be affected as well. It can be hard keeping that many ghouls in line, so often, a vampire keeping multiple ghouls will give them the same orders when they don't need anything specific.

Hunters use the existence of ghouls as their big justification for hunting vampires, even children. When one of the Forgotten Island's kings was turned into a ghouls by an anti-monarchist rebel, Hunters were named an official government body.

Strengths and weaknesses:

◇ greater endurance

◇ higher pain tolerance

▪︎ can lead to accidental overexertion doing feats of strength

◇ undead and ghouls who dealt with severe injuries prior to being turned require human blood as well as vampire blood

◇ younger ghouls especially can't deviate from sire's commands

◇ tend to ignore bodily needs (if alive); sire has to remember to tell them to eat/sleep/use the bathroom/etc

◇ undead ghouls don't require food/sleep/etc

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Transcript with edited info under cut:

First appearance:

It varies slightly between individuals when a vampire first starts craving blood, but in general, it tends to be during precocious puberty. In rare cases, a vampire's blood-thirst might not be felt until a few years after puberty starts, but in such cases, the vampire is more likely to be sickly and go into bloodlust more severely and often.

Triggers:

◇ losing blood

◇ healing from moderate to severe injuries

▪︎ or frequent/numerous mild injuries

◇ going too long without blood

▪︎ more than a week (alive); 3+ days (undead)

◇ adrenaline rush

▪︎ especially when giving chase

▪︎ when flight/fight is triggered

◇ part episodes happening in a short amount of time makes future episodes more likely

◇ drinking alot of blood following restriction

▪︎ usually referred to as "blood drunk"

▪︎ more likely for people who are caught in a cycle of binging and abstaining, instead of keeping a regular drinking schedule

Fugue State:

There are levels to a vampire's bloodlist. A full-on fugue state is the most severe, and if a vampire lapses into a fugue state at an early age, they are more likely to succumb to bloodlust, so intervention used to be given early on, to help teach young vampires how to calm themselves. Breathing exercises and meditation are the most common strategies and often show good results.

More typically, bloodlust results in sudden giddiness -- in rarer cases, mania -- and playful behavior that may appear unfit for the current situation (ex: "toying" with an attacker, rather than merely incapacitating them/running away). Smiling more (to show fangs) and glassy eyes are sometimes reported, and occasionally, cuddly behavior. They may follow a person they have latched onto (idolizing and stalking behavior is not uncommon), and the vampire may goad the object of their attention into attacking or running away, in order to prompt a hunt.

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Odile:

◇ born during her dad's first year of uni

▪︎ raised primarily by her grandparents while Masaru studied labor law with focus on workers' rights

▪︎ Masaru never told anyone who Odile's mom was; he didn't even tell Odile her mom was Vaugardian until she needed to choose a language class in school

◇ she was close to her dad and asked his advice after she escaped arrest after her first protest

▪︎ when she started learning Body Craft, he was scared she'd get caught but promised to protect her however he could

◇ closest to her older cousin Natsu

▪︎ birthdays are close together and they celebrated together growing up; Odile would sent her random objects as gifts while traveling

◇ pulled away from friendships while working with rebel group

▪︎ not on purpose at first; she was busy

▪︎ pulled away even more after Akimitsu got arrested; Odile worried she was putting loved ones in danger

▪︎ made an effort to reconnect after Kei's suicide; she blamed herself for not seeing the signs

▪︎ Akimitsu (childhood friend), Haruki (uni friend), Kei (former TA), Mayumi (old neighbor and friend that saw the vampire on her way home through woods), Masato (former roommate who writes her novel-length letters and has a sister who teaches blood-letting Scissor Craft)

◇ was abrasive with some fellow rebel group members, especially Tomoko, who gets the honor of being Odile's first crush, much to her horror

▪︎ others helped Odile forge her travel papers after her father's death and uncle Kenji's hospitalization

Siffrin:

◇ their parents suspected they were a vampire when he aged so slowly compared to other babies

▪︎ when his canines grew in first and were sharp, their suspicions were confirmed

◇ they moved to the fishing house to be more isolated, worried about neighbors becoming suspicious about Siffrin still looking like an infant when they were almost 2

◇ they were tested at 7 by Priest Parent and tested Scissors Type

▪︎ higher percentage of Scissors Types among vampires compared to general population

▪︎ given to Mage Tymara to study under soon after

▪︎ she knew about their vampirism and promised to protect them with her life

◇ due to isolation + becoming an acolyte, Siffrin didn't get to become close to extended family

◇ was always shy and Mage Tymara had his papers forged to say he was younger than they were

▪︎ most assumed they were a mage's kid despite their acolyte robes

◇ few friends prior to running away: Hemi (roommate), Anahera (another mage's kid), Niillas (one of the cooks)

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Isabeau:

◇ youngest of 5 kids

▪︎ Antone (37), Alois (37), Henri (35), Nicolas (32), Isabeau (26)

▪︎ Isa hasn't been in contact with his siblings and doesn't know any of their partners or kids

▪︎ Isa suspects his siblings are mad he forgave their mom when she reached out of apologize after she Changed; she hasn't heard back from any of Isabeau's siblings either

◇ Nicolas still lives in Jouvente and was apprenticing to their dad before Changing and became a housemaiden instead

▪︎ will be first sibling to reach out to Isabeau after King is defeated

◇ Henri moved to small town by Elothenian border

◇ Antone and Alois moved to Elothen prior to King's march

◇ Isabeau isn't interested in talking to his dad but has been trying to get to know his mom

▪︎ gets along better with her partner Yvette

▪︎ doesn't understand why his mom and dad don't become unbonded

◇ no friends prior to Change but made several good ones at House and Defender School

▪︎ Marianne and Elise (housemaidens and sisters); Josef (Elothian scholar studying Vaugardian and Musmeerian literature); Aremy, Corbin, Vevius, Isak (Defenders)

Mirabelle:

◇ was a surprise baby

◇ wrote/received letters to/from her dads regularly prior to the King's Curse

▪︎ she isn't especially close to her dads, but it's not a strained relationship either

▪︎ she was closest to her uncle Rainier as a kid and stayed with him and his partners when she and Priscille got into bad fights

◇ her dads moved to Poteria when she was 9, and she wanted to stay in Dormont to go to the house soon as she was old enough

▪︎ she stayed with her uncles Aubin and Benoît in the meantime

▪︎ she got along with her cousin Renée (4 at the time) but ended up in a rivalry with Priscille (same age)

◇ Mira was friendly with everyone in the House but took a while before she could make friends

▪︎ Claude (current roommate), Isai (helped her on kitchen duty), Shikha (student from Mwudu), Thomas (pushed her out of Curse's way), Chloe (big bow), Vivi (grape-stomping class), Simone (previous roommate that was on their pilgrimage when the Curse started)

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Odile & Ka Bue's Police

◇ Ka Bue has a retributive justice system

▪︎ suspects are presumed guilty and have to prove innocence

▪︎ capital punishment is illegal, but gov sometimes looks the other way when police "accidentally" kill prisoners or suspects

▪︎ protestors were regularly targeted when Odile was in uni

◇ Odile joined a protest after one of her professors was beaten by police during an arrest

▪︎ got away while many classmates got arrested

▪︎ she met a group and learned Body Craft; she joined the group and helped organize rallies and made zines to help teach others Body Craft

◇ her participation in the group severed many relationships

▪︎ her uncle Kenji tried to turn her in to police; her friend Akimitsu took the fall for her

▪︎ her father and uncle got into a fight that turned physical, leading to her father's death

◇ Odile got help to forget traveling papers and left Ka Bue

▪︎ decided to go to Vaugarde after several years of traveling

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Transcript with edited info under cut

History:

The orbs were Crafted at the same time as the House's front gate, so only the orbs can unlock it. This was done when the House was still a castle, and the orbs were imbued with all kinds of Craft, so if invaders tried to use Craft to open the gate, their Craft would only get absorbed to strengthen the shields. When making their initiation vows, housemaidens at Dormont feed a bit of their Craft into the orbs. This connection to the orbs is how Mirabelle can sense them and how Juliet found the 5th orb.

Siffrin:

The orbs reacting to the Dead Zone also reacted with the Craft from the virus -- like being hurt dekm debris from an explosion. The virus was Crafted using a combination of Body, Healing, shielding, Scissor, and Wish Crafts. When they put the orbs back into the gate by themself in Act 5 he ends up having a similar reaction, though not as dramatic or intense. When Mirabelle is around, her attachment to the orbs keeps the reaction small enough that Siffrin barely notices it after the first few times. So in Act 5, he's already injured going into the House, and the only one he can get blood from is the King.

Dead Zone:

Since the orbs were Crafted in such a similar way as a Dead Zone, the orbs are capable of creating a path in the shape they make, their shields repelling each other. The reacting Crafts can end up making a lot of noise, usually sounding like bells or ricocheting metal.

Reason:

All the places the orbs were sent are places Euphrasie had gone to get information about Wish Craft, which she'd first learned about in Corbeaux. Euphrasie hoped that Mirabelle would fins her files and notes and find a way to use Wish Craft to defeat the King.

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

The Book from the Fortress

◇ Found in Euphrasie's desk on first floor in fortress tower

◇ Mira gets squirrelly upon reading part of the book and lies to Sif that it's an epistolary romance

◇ Collection of letters from Marte, a vampire from the Forgotten Island living in Asmu'ur

▪︎ worked as spy in Bachalla for Asmu'ur for several years before joining an Asmu'urian resistance movement

▪︎ Marte became undead after an assassination attempt when he was 28 but was later executed via beheading at 32

◇ letters were kept by his partner Amabilis, who escaped to Elothen after Marte's execution

▪︎ later ran to Vaugarde when Elothen decided to extradite them back to Asmu'ur; they were offered sanctuary and befriended Gwendal and later Euphrasie

◇ Amabilis gave copies of the letters to Euphrasie to help her with her research

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Transcribed (with edited info) below:

◇ Origin:

Vampirism is a Crafted virus that was created on the Forgotten Island a few years before the island "disappeared." The virus bound to the DNA of those it infected. Two carriers are needed for the child to end up with the condition. When it was discovered that they could infect others (turning them into highly-suggestable ghouls) when undead, the Island's government panicked. An undead radical had turned one of the kings into a ghoul before she was imprisoned and executed. A Wish was Crafted to lock down the island to quarantine it and round up all the afflicted for imprisonment.

◇ Escape:

Before lockdown, vampires could travel out of the country, but they needed to bring a companion (preferably two) to act as their blood donors. When the vampires started getting rounded up, some managed to escape, then lost all memory of home and what they were. Approximately 100 vampires were outside the Forgotten Island's borders, but by the time the fic starts, about 40 are dead and 20 are undead. Most ended up in Asmu'ur, Poteria, and Hireth, with fewer ending up in Vaugarde and Gael. Enough carriers had been traveling for a few vampire children to be born outside the Forgotten Island after the lockdown.

◇ Abilities:

Alive: increased speed and agility, heal quickly, superhuman senses, can go days without rest, slowed aging

Undead: few ways to kill them, increased strength, can command ghouls with ability similar to telepathy

◇ Drawbacks:

Alive: resistance to Healing and Body Craft; needs blood every 4-7 days depending on individual, injuries, stress levels, etc; violent fugue state when they wait too long to drink blood

Undead: sensitivity to sunlight; sensitivity to silver; needs blood every 2-3 days depending on individual, injuries, stress levels, Craft usage, etc; violent fugue state more likely especially right after first death

◇ Named Vampires

▪︎ Siffrin, Vaugarde, 30yo, alive

▪︎ Rose, Voimort, Vaugarde, 48yo, undead at 48

▪︎ Hadrian, Douillette, Vaugarde, 44yo, undead at 29

▪︎ Vulle, Ka Bue, killed at 26 by vampire hunters, would be 39

▪︎ Marte, Asmu'ur, executed by beheading at 32, would be 38

[vampfrinfic-notebook]

Plays Siffrin Has Seen

Vaugardian

◇ Chocolate Soldier

▪︎ inspo: Arms and the Man

▪︎ satire tragedy about war

▪︎ playwright escaped Bachalla and ended up in Vaugarde

◇ A Single Grain of Sand

▪︎ both a tragedy and comedy (same script for both)

▪︎ playwright intended for same actors to perform in both but in different roles

◇ When They Come Knocking

▪︎ based on coal uprisings

▪︎ actors sing old mining songs throughout play

Poterian

◇ Nightmare of Kings

▪︎ tragic opera based on rebellion in Poterian history

◇ Sky Prince

▪︎ adaption of a Forgotten Island's play

▪︎ no one remembers original playwright

▪︎ originally called Star Prince

◇ Life of a Muse

▪︎ based on trial of an old Poterian Duke for murdering his wife

Baktanian

◇ The Moon and Tide

▪︎ based on northern Baktanian mythology

Ka Buan

◇ Doomed Victory

▪︎ shadow puppet play

▪︎ based on southern Ka Buan folktale; warning against hubris

Gaelish

◇ Confluence of Self

▪︎ identical triplet actors

▪︎ different reality's versions of MC coming together into a single god-like entity

▪︎ tragedy

▪︎ boxoffice bomb (written by director and written quickly with little editing)

◇ Winter's Weave

▪︎ based on folklore

▪︎ often shown during harvest festivals

▪︎ very little dialogue; narration is sung and from an old epic poem

▪︎ inspo: Calleach Bheara

Hirethian

◇ A Wish for a Kiss

▪︎ comedy romance

▪︎ originally Forgotten Island play but far removed from source material

▪︎ popular in Poteria and Vaugarde (rewritten for extra drama)

▪︎ party watches it after getting 5th orb

◇ Shattered Crown, Bloody Gauntlet

▪︎ underground play

▪︎ banned by official theatres

▪︎ playwright ran to escape prison

▪︎ anti-monarchy and anti-war message