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inkdemonapologist · 4 years

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Some of my doodles for Session Six of our Call of Cthulhu game!! We finally got back up with that potion-maker from Last Loop and tried to explain EVERYTHING to her, since she’s the one who seemed the most ready to believe us last time (Also, we saw her voluntarily possessed by a spirit at one point, so it seemed like it would be a good starting point to explain some of our problems).

This went.... chaotically, as there are 0 tells for who’s talking and everyone was very insistent on contributing to the conversation. The alive versions of Sammy and Joey mostly stayed out of this mess.

ALSO!! WE’VE PICKED UP SOME NEW INSANITIES! Henry has a mania that compels him to draw/document everything he learns (in case we lose memories or loop again), Sammy still has the mask thing, Joey’s picked up an obsession with symmetry after witnessing his body horrifically transformed by a corruption across half of it, and Sammy, after seeing the Star Pool lurker’s indescribably horrible non-ink-demon form, is filled with a terrified respect for it and has become strangely deferential. I DID NOT EXPECT SAMMY’S SANITY DROPS TO LINE UP SO PERFECTLY FOR CANON PROBLEMS,

Anyway, have some more out-of-context quotes!! Some of these are just conversation because imagining people trying to hold a conversation with three different voices coming out of “Henry” is my favourite thing now.

[Sammy is played by me, Joey is played by Boo (inkyvendingmachine), Henry is played by Maf (inkcryptid), and Thren (haunted-hijinxer) is our GM!]

[Sammy] *summarising* (So we're gonna run by Josephine and see if she has anything that maybe we should know, uh, based on our current predicament, which has gotten even more complicated than the previous time we talked to her, which hasn't happened yet!)

[Alive!Sammy] Is something wrong? [Henry] No! No, everything's fine. Let's go. [Alive!Joey] ...I don't think anything's been RIGHT for a while...

[Sammy] (Are we, as a, uh, unit -- do we have the mask on?)

[Ghost!Joey] There's... three of us in here? [Ghost!Sammy] Sure, that's a normal thing to say!

[GM] Josephine looks like she is trying to figure out what to say, but she is having... trouble. [Ghost!Joey] Have you ever had someone... hang out with you... during the festival? Like, kind of, possession? [GM] She raises an eyebrow, but nods, and says "Yes, that's part of my duty, as a leader of this religion." [Ghost!Sammy] Fantastic. That seems to be happening to us. [Ghost!Joey] We're not, exactly sure how we managed to get... in the past again... but we're -- *points with Henry's non-sketching hand over at the live ones* [Joey] Live!Joey just confusedly shrugs and sips his coffee. [GM] "...Uh, go back a minute."

[GM] "And you don't know how this happened?" [ghost!Joey] Not exactly? I -- [Henry] Sammy fell into a Star Pool, and Joey got killed, or, was a host for the cultists. [ghost!Joey] I don't know if I got killed, but, [Henry] Well, you looked goopy. [ghost!Sammy] I don't know what was going on with me, either; I still seemed to be running around. [Henry] Also very goopy.

[ghost!Joey] So, that's a confusing answer! Um. Let's pretend *points at alive!Joey* that he didn't listen to you, and he went up to the Star Pools anyway, without the potion, and then something happened up there that resulted in whatever is happening to us now, which included us losing our memories and waking up later as the same... entity, but we didn't know for a while, and.... uh... it looks like the last time we saw our bodies that weren't alive and human still, they looked... corrupted by the Star Pools. [ghost!Joey] Do you know what might've happened to cause all that? [GM] "...I think there's a lot to unpack there," she says.

[GM] And, indeed, one of them has turned up a pair of gloves! It's somewhat worn, but they don't have holes or anything. Though they might not match your ensemble. [Joey] As long as they match each other, that's fine! [GM] They do that. [Sammy] (I mean, Henry has-- not to rag on Henry's fashion sense, as a man who's worn nothing but the same shirt and suspenders for twenty years, but Henry doesn't have much of an ensemble going on, really.)

[chatting while Joey's player steps away for a moment] [Sammy] Sorry for making you guys deal with Alive!Sammy; Ghost!Sammy genuinely doesn't know how to argue for this. [Sammy] It's like, yeah I dunno! Sounds like a raw deal! [Henry] Henry also doesn't know how to argue for this, it's like, Hey! Do you want a whole bunch of awful, horrible, terrible memories? ....No? Oh. [Sammy] CANT IMAGINE WHY!! [Sammy] Like, please? I'd like my body back? ...it's your body, we'd be sharing it-- but not like this situation, uh, [Henry] Just please, take... I have... take Sammy back. [Sammy] Could you take this off of my hands, I'm really tired of dealing with it, [Henry] I love 'im. But I need a break. Please come take your lost.... self. [GM] Your wayward self. [Henry] Who's this sassy lost child. [Joey] *re-entering chat* Ah, we're talking about Sammy. [Sammy] OH MY GOSH.

[Henry] I ROLLED A ONE HUNDRED! [Sammy] Henry is VERY tired and distracted. [GM] Henry's sketching again. He was left unattended for a bit and he's sketching again. [Henry] Yup, [Sammy] *sputters* HE CAN'T BE LEFT UNATTENDED, WE'RE BOTH HERE [Joey] HE LITERALLY CAN'T!! [Sammy] THAT'S THE WHOLE PROBLEM!! SAMMY WOULD LOVE TO LEAVE HENRY UNATTENDED!!!

[Sammy] Is the voice familiar? [Joey] Is it the Lurker's? [GM] A bit...? [Henry] A bit familiar or a bit like the Lurker's? [GM] ...Yes.

[ghost!Sammy] Joey, what do you think it was? [ghost!Joey] I think it has something to do with our situation, and perhaps the fact that-- [ghost!Sammy] "OUR SITUATION" doesn't really clear anything up, that could be a LOT of things right now!

[Sammy] Sammy doesn't want to be back in the actual time we belong in! He's dead in that one!

[Sammy] I guess it's also Alive!Sammy's turn. I don't, uh, [Sammy] ...there's too many Sammys, [Joey] (Alive!Sammy just goes WHAT THE FUCK) [Sammy] Yeah, I don't think he's prepared, when he turns the corner, to find cultists with swords, and Henry immediately drawing a gun and screaming at them; I don't think he's prepared for any of this, or has a game plan for what to do in case this happens, other than just, yelling, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” [GM] at Henry, or the cultists? [Sammy] ....BOTH????

[Joey] Does Joey know of any way to interrupt magic? [GM] Injuring someone is a good, classic way to do that.

[GM] So, you can do an attack, whether it's with the gun or with your fists! [Sammy] *flipping through character sheet* I mean, I feel like I'm probably not just shooting him, I-- wHEN DID YOU ADD "DUSTPAN" TO MY WEAPONS???

[Sammy] The idea of Joey just continuously accidentally killing people is REALLY funny to me.

[Sammy] This is going MUCH better than the last time that we fought anybody! [Joey] Apparently Joey just needs to be really angry, and then my dice are like, “yeah, you can kill people.”

[GM] *flipping through the rules* Here we go, "Disrupted spellcasting, for example, if they are shot!" Well, okay then-- [GM] ......ohhh. [Sammy] Uh, [Henry] "Oh?" [GM] HM! ........ let me get a d8. [Henry] Concern...???? [Sammy] It's probably fine. It's... it's probably fine. [GM] ........ [GM] Uh..... huh. Well. That's an 8. [Sammy] On the d8. [GM] Yyyeah,..... you disrupted his, casting,,, it's not a serious spell so most of this stuff is not extreme, but I rolled an 8, and that says, [GM] "A mythos monster is accidentally summoned." [Sammy] WHAT?? [Henry] WHAT??? [Sammy] WHAT???? [Joey] *dying of laughter in the background* [Sammy] I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WAS AN OPTION??? OKAY!!! [GM] I didn't think it was, at this level of spell!! [Sammy] Remember when I said that this was going well? I NEED TO STOP SAYING THINGS.

[Joey] How is Sammy putting on the mask? [Sammy] With his.... hands...? [Joey] No, like, how is it laying on his head, [Sammy] OH.

[Joey] Ghost!Joey would like to turn it so it's like, in the middle of his head. But like, on forehead, so that they can still see. [Henry] (A fancy visor!) [Sammy] (...you can still see if it’s on the side...) [Joey] (Joey would really like it if we, put it in the middle.) [Sammy] (...I FORGOT YOU HAVE A SYMMETRY THING)

[GM] You felt, when Sammy and the cult leader were both giving the Lurker commands, that there was a kind of tug-of-war going on there, and it seems like the cult leader won that round. [Henry] Wait, we can give the Lurker commands? [Joey] We're allies. [Sammy] Yeah, we're the host. [Henry] Oh, um, [Sammy] Sammy asked it for help! It didn't, uh... this is how things always go for Sammy, so, I feel like this is correct.

[Sammy] (...Henry pulls out a gun, someone tries to grab him and he just bashes that person over the head, Joey tries to help by shooting this cult leader to stop him from casting a spell, and this horrible weird bendy monster is unleashed, Henry IMMEDIATELY kneels to this creature, and it starts listening to him, and he grabs the amulet and starts directing it to murder people after pulling the mask down over his face, so, yeah!! I can see that being pRETTY UNSETTLING actually!!)

[Joey] And I've already accidentally summoned a demon, somehow! [GM] This is just how Joey rolls, he just aCCIDENTALLY SUMMONS DEMONS, apparently! Even when OTHER PEOPLE are casting spells, Joey finds a way to accidentally summon a demon!

[Sammy] We do need those; those ARE our bodies running away,

[Lurker, when asked if he can shapeshift] It depends on the host! I didn't do this. It's pretty awesome, though! I feel like this is actually something that was designed to be this way, for the first time I can remember! Deliberate, you know what I mean? [Henry] “Yeah!” Henry says, not knowing what he means.

[Sammy] We're very focused on getting out of here. [Henry] We're channeling Wally Franks! [Sammy] NO! Don't channel Wally Franks! He didn't get outta there he just YELLED ABOUT IT, which is what WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW!! LET'S ACTUALLY GET OUTTA HERE!

[GM] You guys go around a corner that at least obscures you from immediate sight, though it's good the Lurker is as, uh...... [GM] ........ [GM] ........ [GM] ...uh, for lack of a better word, bendy as he is, [players explode with laughter] [GM] I TRIED, I couldn't think of anything else! [Sammy] NO I SAW THE GEARS TURNING IN YOUR HEAD

[GM] You have a small Bendy. [GM] He's blinking. [Henry] Henry is.... is having, a moment,

[Sammy] We're honoured you're joining us, but we really should get moving?

[Henry] Just let him ride on his shoulders like a kid, that'd be adorable! [Henry] Henry's having SO many emotions right now. He wants to be respectful, but also, oh my god, that's so cute?? and also my OC???? Oh my god??????

[GM] I don't think the Lurker is familiar with the concept of piggyback rides. I mean if he's asked I'm sure he's down for whatever, but, [Henry] Henry's gonna ask the Lurker if he wants to climb on his shoulders and ride. [GM] The Lurker thinks this is a FANTASTIC idea, because nobody has ever carried the Lurker around before!

[Alive!Sammy] Sammy's very pale. [Alive!Joey] You have a... Bendy now, Henry...? [Henry] Uh, kinda! This is the Lurker. [Alive!Joey] “The Lurker”? [Henry] The giant monster? He's... small now, so he's not a giant monster.

[Alive!Sammy] Henry WHAT is going on? Or, whoever you are right now, [Henry] It is me; look, I've been letting the others talk because I have no idea what's going on. I don't know... I just want to get everyone out of here alive. [GM] (What a Henry thing to say) [Alive!Sammy] *snarking* Well, we're alive SO far! Maybe don't run at people with swords, in the future? Might help with that. [Henry] That was Sammy. That wasn't me. [Joey] (*laughing* "By the way, that thing you were lecturing me about? That wasn't me, THAT WAS YOU!")

[GM] The Lurker settles down when it is clear that the hug is not a threat.

[Henry] (I AM LOSING IT! I hope you know what you've done to me!) [GM] (I was not expecting this either but here we are!!) [Henry] (Maybe it was my idea. I can't believe I've done this.)

[Joey] Alive!Joey at some point shows Bendy how to hold the pencil. [GM] He says "Oh, hey, neat!" and has an easier time. [Henry] Oh my god, cute? [Sammy] (*losing it in the background*) [Joey] I was just thinking that if he's sitting next to Henry, and he watches the Lurker fumble with the pencil enough, he's going to just, reach up and-- [Sammy] (I LOST NINE SANITY TO THIS ASSHOLE!!!) [Henry] (But he's so cute!) [Joey] (Well now he's cute, maybe you get some sanity back!) [Henry] (Like petting a cat! You get sanity back from petting the Bendy.) [Sammy] (Yes, he is adorable, I will serve him faithfully.)

[GM] Make a navigate check. [Joey] *rolls terribly* Joey doesn't know where the fuck we're going. [Henry] I missed the navigate check too. [Sammy] Ohhhh boy, we better not get lost... [Joey] Sammy, do you remember where we're going? [Sammy] Oh, don't ask Sammy. Don't ask either Sammy. [Sammy] Alive!Sammy will eventually ask "You DO know where we're going, right?" [GM] You guys..... uh, get lost! Well, let me check one thing. [GM] *rolls* [GM] ... THE LURKER, APPARENTLY, CAN GET YOU BACK TO WHERE HE APPEARED,

[GM] What a useful pocket demon. [Henry] I love our pocket demon. [Joey] I love our son... [Sammy] Joey, [Joey] Firstborn... [Henry] Adopted from a cult! [Joey] We went to Haiti and adopted a son. [Sammy] Sammy's role as third wheel here is getting weirder and weirder.

[Sammy] I can't believe Binoculars is a Bendy fan.

[Joey] (Meanwhile, Ghost!Joey remembers something? There is an inscription on the floor between the laundry room, and Josephine's room, that does not allow the passage of evil spirits. I... don't think the Lurker is going to make it past that.) [Henry] (Ohhhhhhhhh) [Sammy] (Hmm. Also... BRINGING THE LURKER in to see Josephine feels, hostile???) [Henry] (OH... I didn't think about that; he's just my kid now!)

[Joey] (I have literally no idea for Joey.) [Sammy] (Gosh, what a thing to ask... I just have to appreciate, what a thing to ask a Type Three -- "Okay, what's YOU?") [Joey] (Joey looks down at the mask, feeling all of his inner masks,,,) [Sammy] ("I'M COMPOSED OF THINGS THAT MAKE OTHER PEOPLE THINK IM SUCCESSFUL,,,")

[Ghost!Sammy] After you. [Ghost!Joey] Actually, I would feel more comfortable if you went first, [Ghost!Sammy] ...Fine. Fantastic. [Joey] (This is-- I don't know if Sammy can feel it, but this is definitely out of, still thinking about the slight guilt that ran through him when Sammy was blaming EVERYTHING on him, and telling him to keep them out of this,) [Sammy] (I mean, Sammy just thinks this is risky and wanted Joey to be the guinea pig, so, that's nice that you were thinking of him!)

[Sammy] A quick kiss won't be enough time for Sammy to like, stop bluescreening in time to react to this? So, um, uh, he- he just, uh, needs, uh, a- a minute, but he, will be, blushing furiously. I think that's the only reaction! [Joey] Perfect~ [GM] The spirit lady probably flashes him a thumbs up. [Joey] *laughing* Sammy DIES. We did all of this to get him alive again, and he just DIES. [Sammy] SLAIN INSTANTLY.

#call of cthulu: haunted hijinx #when in doubt just keep drawing #sammy lawrence #joey drew #Henry Stein #I get way too much of a kick out of non-henry Henrys #i wanna draw so many of these convos but like ITS ALL JUST ONE GUY #TALKING TO HIMSELF

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lovemesomesurveys · 3 years

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The I Survey by joybucket

Do you have a big imagination? No. I feel like I have no creative bone in my body. Are you part Indian? No. What was the name of one of your childhood imaginary friends? I didn’t have one, actually. What's your favorite ice cream flavor? Strawberry, hot chocolate and marshmallow swirl, candy cane, cake batter, mint chocolate chip, cookies and cream. What illnesses do you suffer from (if you want to share)? I don’t want to get into it, but I have a few things going on.

Have you ever slipped and fallen on the ice? No. Have you ever read the book of Isaiah? Yes.

Have you ever wondered why "indigo" is included in the rainbow, when no one ever uses that word otherwise? That’s never crossed my mind. Have you ever heard anyone use the word "indigo" any other time then when listing the colors of the rainbow? Actually, yeah now that you mention it it’s not a word I ever hear or use. Do you know what color "indigo" is? Yes. Which of these names do you like best: Ivy, Iris, Irene, Indigo, or Infinity? Iris. Can you see any icicles outside your window right now? No, definitely not. It doesn’t snow here, but also it’s not nearly cold enough for icicles. It’s 50 F right now. Are you an indoor person or an outdoor person? Indoor, definitely. Do you know the meaning of the word "idiom"? Yes. Have you ever been hooked up to an IV? Numerous times. Do you know anyone named... Ivy? Ian? Isaac? Isaiah? Irene? Iris? Infinity? Izzy? Isabelle? Indiana? India? Indigo? Immi? Have you ever been to... Iowa? Illinois? Indiana? Idaho? Ireland? Iceland? an Ivy League football game? somewhere with lots of ice on the ground? an ice cream parlor? Have you ever... seen an ice sculpture in person? built an igloo? made a list of creative ideas? felt overwhelmed because you had so many ideas at once and didn't know which to act on first? crossed items off a to-do list? ordered a cold Starbucks drink with no ice? bought ice cream from an ice cream truck? purchased songs from iTunes? created a video using iMovie ? owned an iPod? owned an iPhone? worn a "Kiss Me I'm Irish" shirt? ate Irish soda bread? danced an Irish jig? been to a live Irish dance performance? wanted to learn to Irish dance? taken Irish dancing lessons? had a pet iguana? stayed overnight at an inn? bought furniture from Ikea? ordered pancakes at IHOP? been to the International House of Prayer? been in an interracial relationship? More Q's Are you Irish? I have some Irish. List ten things you associate with "Ireland." St. Patrick’s Day, beer, pubs, corned beef and cabbage, green, 4-leaf clovers, river dance, Irish coffee, leprechauns, and Irish whiskey. Have you ever played "I Spy?" Yes. Do you like to ice skate? I can’t go ice skating. Are you an introvert? Yes. List ten words you associate with the word "Indian." Indian food, Hinduism, Bollywood, yoga, spices, henna, the music, the attire, tigers, and silk.

List ten words that rhyme with "mice." Dice, lice, nice, rice, entice, vice, spice, thrice, ice, slice. Do you like Indian food? I’ve had chicken curry once, which I liked. I can’t have spicy food anymore, though. :/ Name someone you know who is from India. I had a friend whose husband is from India. What color are the irises of your eyes? Brown. Would you say you are... intuitive? imaginative? an idiot? an imbecile? interested in a lot of things? intersting? icky? easily irked? chronically ill? in love? inked (as in, you have tattoos)? impatient? Final Q's! Do you believe in the word "impossible"? Yes. Some things just really are impossible, no matter what. Do you have any irrational fears, and if so, what are they? I have a lot. Have you ever watched Inspector Gadget? Yeah, I did as a kid. Do you think the phrase "ily" is stupid? I used it sometimes back in the day. List ten names that have an "I" in them. Stephanie, Marie, Brianna, Cindy, Diana, Eileen, Fiona, Gina, Jackie, and Katie. List five things that you associate with the word "imagination." Spongebob (if you know, you know), creativity, talent, art, stories, artistic, writing, entertainment, dreams, and daydreaming. Name a song you like by Ikson. I’m not familiar with them. List five items you frequently buy at the grocery store. Coffee, creamer, sandwich stuff, soda, chips. How many of these words do you know the meaning to: infirmary, incandescent, iridescent, iodine, illiterate? All of them. How many of these words do you know the meaning to: impish, irate, ion, infrared, insidious? All of them. What was the last event you received an invite to? I haven’t received an invite to anything in quite awhile. What is something you would do if you were invisible? Hop on a plane and go somewhere.

#personal #text #survey #surveys #themed #abc survey #the letter i

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queercultleader · 5 years

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The Broom Closet Witch Guide

Hello, my dears! I’ve noticed since I’ve joined and also started posting, there’s quite a few witches who have to hide what they’re doing. The odd thing about me is that my family isn’t aware that I, y’know, dabble in witchcraft. It isn’t something we share at the Thanksgiving table. Living with a parent can make this difficult, though.

This short guide is mostly targeted at younger witches who are scared of their parents figuring things out or are in a dorm, however some of these tips can be used in other situations.

1.)

Altars

You may not be able to keep an altar in the open, but many witches use shoe boxes or old jewelry boxes to contain items. Mint tins have also been used to hold items or if you wanted to decorate the inside, you could use it as a way to pay respect to a deity. You could also use a suitcase to become an altar.

There’s some plane jane wooden boxes you can decorate at Walmart and Dollar General (that I’ve seen with my own four eyes, but obviously you can find them elsewhere). Also, I believe this is just a spring or easter type thing, at the Dollar Tree there’s currently decorative, small boxes of different sizes. The blue, glittery box at the end of this post is one I bought there.

I have an altar that’s out in the open but I also have a small travel altar I made from a mint tin. I have made a post about it previously where I discussed what I put inside of it and what the items’ purposes are-- that you can find right here.

2.)

Deities, Saints, & The Elements

It is not uncommon to use candles to represent deities but if you feel uncomfortable with owning many candles, you can get creative. You could gather rocks and paint them, draw a figure and cut them out, or use special items like coins or glass figures.

If you are wanting to have all the elements represented, there are ways to do this as well. In another blog of mine I mentioned that you could use fuzzy socks to represent fire because they would stand for warmth and comfort. You could use hand fans, small portable electric fans, or a feather to represent air. You can use a sea shell or a small spray bottle with water in it to represent water. For earth, you could collect rocks, dried flowers, or even make something from clay. Just like using rocks to represent deities, you could do the same for the elements by painting them with their symbols.

For my element rocks I created, they’re pictured at the bottom of this blog.

3.)

Resources & Books

If you’re scared of owning or buying physical copies of books, there’s still other ways of reading up and researching. Obviously, you have tumblr which provides so many ideas and tips. You can also find PDFs of books online through websites (example: PDF Drive). On eBay, there’s also very cheap PDFs of books.

Outside of this, public libraries still exist. You can read whatever book you’d like while you are there and then type in your phone’s notes what page you’re on. Continue where you left off when you return. There’s also normally library resources online where you use your library card number. Some of these sites are Hoopla, Freading, and Overdrive.

Lastly, there’s apps that can help inform you about astrology, moon phases, plants, oils, and crystals. I would suggest Plant Net, Spellcaster, Moon Calendar, My EO, Co-Star, Stone, and Picture This.

If you’re interested in tarot cards or runes, there’s apps also for this. I currently use an app called Rune.

4.)

Items For Your Altar

Using an empty candle holder, a small glass/ceramic/metal bowl, or a soap dish can have different uses. The candle holder or bowl can be used as an offering bowl or be used to burn sigils to activate them.The soap dish can be useful to become a make-shift incense holder or to also hold offerings or burn items. I have a soap dish shaped like a sea shell that is bowl-ish almost in shape that could work perfectly. To make an incense holder, use some candle wax to keep the incense in place.

For an altar cloth, you could use spare fabric for sewing or from old clothes, towels, and bandannas.

If you’re to buy any candle, a white candle is all-purpose. You could also use birthday candles. A small lighter would be perfect and discrete.

I also made a guide on easily obtained wands (that I haven’t posted on here, just amino) but one that may work perfectly if you’re trying to not raise suspicion —is using wooden pencils (yes, with their lead!). Some magical uses of lead include: concentration, protection, banishing negativity, providing stability, promoting contact with spirits, and etc.

5.)

Book of Shadows or Grimoire

Afraid of having your book found? You can use a secret language or.. use google docs or writing websites (take advantage of drafts, they aren’t published for the public but you can view them!) Google Docs can be used online or off if enabled in the settings. Writing websites used could be Wattpad, PoetBay, Quotev, Movellas, and etc.

6.)

Hiding Items and Material

You can always hide items in large books or inconspicuous places like pencil pouches, socks, and drawers. If you want to hide pieces of paper, try hiding them in scrapbooks, behind pictures in picture frames, or inside movie cases. There’s also hollowed out books that may be of use!

On apps like Instagram and Pinterest, you may find images of useful tips or spells that you want to save. To hide those pictures, you can install apps like Calculator+. This is a secret gallery of photos disguised as a calculator. You have a password you type in on the calculator and bam you get access to those pictures.

7.)

Divination

Pendulums are easy to make and take apart! You can use keys, rings, nails, and etc along with thread/string. If you want to make a pendulum board or mat to go along with them, they’re also easy to create. Just look at images of boards and make your own version.

I already mentioned there’s apps for tarot and runes but you can also use an ordinary deck of cards to read tarot. There’s guides online! I mentioned one guide in particular on my “Broke Ass Witch Guide: Dollar Tree Items” post you can find here.

You can also use dice for divination. For my pocket altar, I didn’t have any dice on me but I did have clay-- so I made one. You can do the same or maybe make one from paper using a ruler or an already existing template. However, I’ve also seen regular packs of dice at Dollar Tree.

Just A Note

Because I’m a sap.

You are still a witch with your current limitations and I adore you. Don’t threaten your safety if you’re in a strict household. One day you will be on your own and be able to do whatever makes you feel happy and complete. Witchcraft is not about expensive cauldrons, crystals bigger than Texas, rare herbs, and aesthetically pleasing photos for tumblr. Witches are crafty and adapt, they use what they have on them. Some items I would suggest as a basic kit would be: colored ink pens, a wooden pencil, paper, thread (for binding, for making a pendulum), a white candle (if possible!), a small lighter, a spray bottle with a mixture of water and salt (for cleansing), and your creativity. You have a big brain under that pointy hat, I know it.

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thelarryficrecplace · 5 years

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2019 Summer fics I’ve read and enjoyed

Hello friends! As some of you might know already, I took a small break from Tumblr and Fic reading as I had to focus on life for a few months. Honestly, I was almost sure I was going to delete this blog after coming back from travelling but now I’m home it turns out I’m more into reading fics than ever so here’s some fics I’ve read after my break that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed:

Delicate by FallingLikeThis:

Summary: They say opposites attract.

Maybe that’s why nerdy, shy Harry Styles has such a huge crush on rough, brash Louis Tomlinson.

And now, he's stuck in a lift with him.

Word count: 1,492

2,870 Miles by SadaVeniren:

Summary: Harry hated the BT Sports commentators, but considering he couldn’t fly to Baku while eight months pregnant this was all he had if he wanted to watch his husband in the Europa League final.

Word count: 1,508

Moon Dances Over by LadyLondonderry:

Summary: Louis knows that his tail is, frankly, stunning. His iridescent blue scales shimmer in even the slightest sunlight, and his fins have grown since he presented, delicate and almost transparent in their webbing.

He also knows that that means he’ll be one of the first to pick tonight, as the most beautiful omegas are blessed to pick their mates first. It’s considered a huge honour, since the guppies they’ll eventually birth will certainly be beautiful as well, bringing favour on the whole clan.

Louis has a stubborn streak, though. He’s always been rather a fan of mating for love, and there’s someone he’s had his eye on for a long time now.

Word count: 1,982

On the edge of the next nine years by forreveries:

Summary: In which Harry and Louis come out at the Met Gala.

Word count: 2,503

Public Display of Erection by dinosaursmate:

Summary: Louis has moved into his new flat and is surprised by what he witnesses out of his window.

Word count: 2,283

White Stripes by allwaswell16:

Summary: Harry’s roommate is gorgeous, kind, generous, and basically everything Harry has ever wanted in another alpha. The only problem is that he isn’t even sure that his alpha roommate is into other alphas. In an effort to finally get over him, he lets Niall set him up on a blind date.

Word count: 3,148

or are you giving it to someone else by louistomlinsons:

Summary: or, louis hears his neighbor having loud sex through the walls and it's not a problem until it is

Word count: 3,337

Understanding Silences by Jennifer_Kaid:

Summary: Staring at the black swirling ink was something everyone did, fantasizing the voice speaking those words, picturing the scenario that would lead them to find their soulmate. Harry did that too, only, he wondered why would those be his soulmate's first words. It was not a light curiosity, it was big question in his life.

Word count: 3,486

tiny exaggeration by jaerie:

Summary: Louis is frustrated that they've been dating for months and still haven't taken their relationship to the next level. Sometimes the foolishness of the past lingers in the present. Louis wants that to change.

Word count: 3,812

Roll the Dice by allwaswell16:

Summary: Louis has been in love with Harry since they were eighteen. It isn't until Harry's thirtieth birthday in Las Vegas that Louis must finally decide to either tell Harry how he feels or let him marry someone else.

Word count: 3,870

getting high in mine by bottomlinsons:

Summary: Getting home from a festival is miserable by any method, but a three-hour train ride is truly the bottom of the barrel.

This time, though, with the help of the cute guy sitting on the floor, it might not be so bad.

Word count: 3,951

Nothing Can Come Between by HamPalpert:

Summary: Louis comes over for film night, and Harry keeps his hands to himself. Literally. But what's supposed to be a secret self-love session quickly spirals out of control.

Word count: 4,121

take on me by bottomlinsons:

Summary: Louis is an assassin. Normally, he's a very good assassin. This hasn't happened to him before.

Word count: 4,155

hard for me to know i might see you around by coffeelouis (silverspoonharry):

Summary: [or, a TINDER AU where Harry swipes left on Louis' joke of a profile, then ends up stuck next to him on a trans-Atlantic flight.]

Word count: 4,204

Home Remedies by kingsofeverything (FullOnLarrie):

Summary: Louis’ hiccups just won’t stop. Harry, his roommate and best friend, is willing to do anything to help.

Word count: 4,230

Finally Their Time by lightswoodmagic (sarah_writes):

Summary: (Or, Harry and Louis attend the Met Gala together, and suddenly the whole world knows)

Word count: 4,230

Stealing Flowers by lululawrence:

Summary: Or the one where Louis pines after the Sexy Stranger on the Subway and almost asks him out. That's when the strange posters start showing up around Brooklyn.

Word count: 4,287

to be a king beside you somehow by nauticalleeds (metamorphosis):

Summary: Or, Harry and Louis come out at the 2019 Met Gala. It's not supposed to be easy. Somehow, it is.

Word count; 4,723

bloom! by turnyourankle:

Summary: Harry is a florist, and Louis is the very taken repeat customer he can't get out of his head.

Word count: 4,835

My love, he makes me feel like nobody else, nobody else by SilverShadow1:

Summary: The one where Harry screams, 'Daddy!' at a party and what follows is the best night of his life.

Word count: 4,963

Whisk me off my feet by allwaswell16:

Summary: When Louis locks himself out of his apartment in just a pair of novelty underwear, he hopes his new neighbor can come to his rescue.

Word count: 5,054

Thumbing My Way Back to You by 13ways:

Summary: Louis is on his way back to London after the Hits Live Birmingham concert. Harry is flying to New York for the Met Gala. They connect.

Word count: 5,286

I’ll Show You Magic by kingsofeverything (FullOnLarrie):

Summary: Louis didn’t mean to go home with a Muggle, and he didn’t mean to sneak out of his flat in the morning. He definitely didn’t mean to wind up in that same flat a month later, attempting to steal a magical object before the Muggle gets home.

Word count: 5,330

Hey, Mr. DJ by allwaswell16:

Summary: Harry really, really does NOT want to go out to a club tonight and be hassled by a bunch of alpha knotheads, but against his better judgement, he finds himself alone on the dance floor, barefoot, with an orange in his hand. This is all Niall's fault. At least the DJ is the most strikingly gorgeous alpha he's ever seen...

Word count: 5,513

wild love twisting all over for you by angelichl:

Summary: Harry and Louis meet on the set of a video.

Word count: 6,067

Easier by allwaswell16:

Summary: The last person Louis wants to see is his ex-boyfriend who also happens to be his soulmate.

Word count: 6,148

burnt & tied up by tilthesundies:

Summary: Come to the show tonight, Harry told him. Begged him. Pleaded with him.

Louis isn’t doing this for him.

Word count: 6,327

Won't You Love Me? by Halos_Boat:

Summary: Where Louis is Spider-Man, Harry is oblivious, Liam has a problem with communicating his feelings, Zayn is frustratingly handsome and Niall has a pet turtle.

Word count: 6,478

Stay forever by allwaswell16:

Summary: For the last year and a half, Harry has spent his coffee break at the same cafe every day, not because he loves their coffee, but rather because of the gorgeous omega behind the counter making the coffees. As a beta, he’s sure he doesn’t stand a chance with him, so he goes online to find as close a substitute as possible.

Word count: 6,481

Graphic design is my passion by kingsofeverything (FullOnLarrie):

Summary: Graphic design student Louis Tomlinson has exams to study for and final art projects to complete, if it would stop raining long enough for him to walk across campus. Luckily Harry Styles has an umbrella, and he’s perfectly willing to share.

Louis doesn’t plan to get his heart broken and he doesn’t plan to make almost a hundred silicone dildos. One of these things definitely happens.

Word count: 6,482

'Sup by MediaWhore:

Summary: Gemma really wants her little brother to sign up for a dating app and get back in the game after a messy divorce. Harry thinks he’s way too old to swipe. They compromise to devastatingly embarrassing results.

Meanwhile, all Louis wants is to finish the play he’s been commissioned to write, but one of the regulars at his local coffee shop keeps distracting him.

ft. older larry, pushy gemma, harry being a disaster gay and silver fox louis.

Word count: 6,712

Act Out by feermartsant:

Summary: Harry and Louis try to spice it up a little for their 10th year marriage anniversary. Cliché role play ensues.

Word count: 6,721

Traffic Light by dinosaursmate:

Summary: Harry, a university student fresh out of a relationship, attends a Traffic Light Party. He knew all about the red, yellow and green cups, but the blue one confuses him. What does DTF mean, anyway?

Word count: 7,120

streetwise hercules by bottomlinsons:

Summary: Uni AU, where Louis pretends to be Harry's boyfriend to scare away his one night stands.

Word count: 7,272

A Little Bit Like Fate by Galaxie:

Summary: Louis stumbles upon a kiss-in protest for LGBTQ rights, and he meets Harry. They click. It feels a little bit like fate.

Word count: 7,744

i was getting kinda used to being someone you loved by werebothstubborn:

Summary: Louis has a brilliant idea. Harry begs to differ. Until he doesn't.

Word count: 8,376

The Charles Compass Trilogy by SadaVeniren:

Summary: Louis Tomlinson is a successful writer who rents a beach house on the Cape to try and finish the final book in his successful Charles Compass trilogy.

Word count: 8,671

The way you smile by allwaswell16:

Summary: Harry doesn’t need to go on holiday. Unfortunately, his mum and sister disagree, which is how he ends up alone on holiday in the Caribbean. Luckily, he's not alone for long.

Word count: 9,619

You Turned Up (Like a Friend of Mine) by lululawrence:

Summary: Or the one where Harry disappears on graduation day only to show up on Louis' door looking exactly the same ten years later. Through a series of strange events, maybe they can finally figure out that they're destined to be together, no matter what.

Word count: 10,070

Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy by lovelarry10:

Summary: Harry's a barman at Flaming Saddles, a country and western themed gay bar.

Louis’ a customer who’d like to see if the tall barman is as good on the ropes as everyone says he is...

Word count: 10,222

Everything I need I get from you by jaerie:

Summary: In a world where music and sound are just as vital to health as food, Harry is stuck in a town that thinks professional music is a scam and a relationship he never wanted. One chance event changes his life.

Word count: 10,456

all the strings attached by floweredhalo:

Summary: “He wasn’t good enough for you anyway, H,” Louis says and continues eating. Harry’s still reeling from the fact that Louis is jealous. Part of him wants to prove that Louis has nothing to be jealous about, that Harry is fully Louis’ and no one else’s. The other part wants to punish Louis for acting spoiled. But Harry can’t act on either urge, he tightens his hand into a fist in his lap instead.

“No, he wasn’t. He didn’t quite fit the job.”

“Harry, it wouldn’t be a job to date you. It would be lovely,” Louis says, almost in a whisper. They’re sitting closer, Harry just now notices. Louis’ body is completely angled towards Harry and Harry’s body is not far behind.

Word count: 10,517

come together by bottomlinsons:

Summary: Harry and Louis slept together three weeks ago, and haven't talked.Their coming group project is gonna change that.

Word count: 11,079

couldn't be more in love by cabinbythesea:

Summary: Louis Tomlinson is thirty-one. Harry Styles is not. (Best friends with a seven year age gap who fuck because they are both actually smitten and, let’s face it, hot as fuck together).

Featuring an engagement ring without actually being engaged, a Medicine by Harry Styles reference, and a painful playlist.

Word count: 11,502

Eyes Wide Open by lovelarry10:

Summary: The X Factor House. Louis wanks. Harry watches. Everything changes...

Word count: 12,046

Waste the Night by wickedarcher_08:

Summary: Harry is excited to finally see his favourite band in concert and his favourite person, the guitarist of the band, Louis Tomlinson. Little does he know what the night has in store for him.

Word count: 12,196

Breathe In, Breathe Out by dinosaursmate:

Summary: Louis Tomlinson begins visiting a new pub on his lunch break, mostly because he really fancies Harry, the cute, curly-haired barman. As Louis gears up to ask him out, he doesn't realise that there is a huge stumbling block in his way: Harry is taken, and by someone rather familiar.

Word count: 12,408

No Bunny But You by crinkle-eyed-boo (KimmieRocks):

Summary: A slow Monday night behind the bar turns into something else entirely thanks to a new mural and a new customer.

Word count: 13,043

In a sky full of stars, be my Northern lights by we_are_the_same:

Summary: Harry: Hello! Harry: Thank you for swiping right Harry: I have a proposition for you

Word count: 13,420

Could you love me anyway by SadaVeniren:

Summary: aka Harry and Louis begin playing ping pong during the X-Factor Tour. It quickly gets out of hand.

Word count: 13,444

The Boy With The Pearl Earring by lovelarry10:

Summary: Harry heads home after the Met Gala to get ready for the After Party, but there's a surprise waiting for him...

Word count: 14,252

just one look (and i fell so hard) by disgruntledkittenface:

Summary: Harry has wanted to go to the Shubert Theatre ever since he moved to New York and lucked into a rent-controlled apartment just outside of the Theatre District. When he finally gets his chance, he hopes the night can meet his sky-high expectations. But the last thing he could have expected was the man seated next to him.

Word count: 15,274

tonight's not over (come over and stay) by louistomlinsons:

Summary: or, harry is a famous singer and louis is a student who just wants to write his novel

Word count: 16,990

Fiction Romance by rougeandtonic:

Summary: Harry has a type.

He likes older, sophisticated, mature men. Well-educated men. Men with life experience and passion for arts and social causes. Men who are established in their careers, who've sorted their lives out.

Niall knows this.

And so Harry can't understand why he's sat here opposite Louis Tomlinson.

Word count: 17,560

I Want You S'more by 2tiedships2:

Summary: Or the one where the least alpha-y alpha and the least omega-y omega show that secondary genders aren’t set in stone and sometimes it works when you kinda share that.

Word count: 17,939

You Have to Retreat to Advance by 2tiedships2:

Summary: Or the one where Harry is expected to bring his longterm omega to the company's mountain retreat. Since he hadn't told anyone that they'd broken up months ago, he now has to find someone willing to play the part.

Word count: 18,056

Leather And Lace by DEAdea:

Summary: Or a short BDSM AU where Louis wants someone to make him forget how to speak and Harry will do everything to make him say all the words.

Word count: 19,319

say that you can see me (i'll speak up i swear) by coffeelouis (silverspoonharry):

Summary: [or, the liberal arts COLLEGE AU where Harry knows Louis as the best friend of the boy he has been hopelessly in love with for years now and Louis knows Harry as the boy he wished would look away from Zayn long enough to notice him.]

Word count: 20,053

Be Mine, Dear by louisgrindsonharry:

Summary: The one where Louis just wants to meet his mate, and all it takes is for him to get a new neighbor.

Word count: 20,104

Drunk in Love (last thing I remember) by MrsStylinson:

Summary: Or the one where Louis wakes up, naked, in a stranger's bed and has no idea how he got there. Maybe it's foul play. Maybe it's just the kindness of a handsome stranger amused by his drunken antics.

Word count: 22,102

I Drove All Night (To Get To You) by lovelarry10:

Summary: Harry’s job as a chauffeur for the rich and famous was not as flashy as he’d thought. Late nights having to listen to the ridiculous demands and whims of these high profile clients leaves him disheartened with the world he thought was all glitz and glamour.

One night his boss asks him a favour. To collect one last client before he clocks off. Only problem is when that client gets into the car it’s Louis Tomlinson. As in Harry’s all time crush. As in future husband and father of all his children Louis Tomlinson.

He can be cool and professional, right?

Word count: 23,481

The Daddiest Place on Earth by lovelarry10:

Summary: Louis. Harry. Instagram. A whole lot of confusion and a whole lot of laughs...

Word count: 23,558

Whipped Cream by writingstylinson:

Summary: [Harry is a deaf photographer in charge of taking Lottie's wedding pictures. Louis is determined for Harry to be his plus one.

Word count: 24,186

I Can Be Your Hero Baby (Just Let Me Get My Sword) by CalamityK:

Summary: Or that AU where Louis is a private investigator with London's biggest crime boss out for his head, and Harry is the Musketeer he accidentally calls through time to save him.

Word count: 24,531

you are half of me (and I am all for you) by angelichl:

Summary: One Direction, an obscure indie rock band, is about to embark on their first cross-country tour, living out of Louis' beloved van named Patricia.

Harry is in love, and Louis is oblivious. Or is he?

Featuring skinny-dipping in Texas waterfalls, getting lost in the desert, stargazing under the New Mexico sky, performing in front of crowds that grow in size each night, and falling in love on the road during the greatest summer of their lives.

Word count: 24,731

(Something's Been) Hiding In My Heart by lululawrence:

Summary: Or a Sweet Home Alabama AU where Louis comes home to finally get his divorce from Harry finalized so he can move on with his life. Alderford holds its own set of challenges when he returns, but by facing his past maybe he can find the healing he so desperately needs.

Word count: 25,569

Play Me A Memory by jacaranda_bloom:

Summary: Louis lives with his nine-year-old son Jake in a peaceful beachside community on the east coast of Australia, working as an entertainment coordinator at the local five-star resort. Harry is a recluse who lives on millionaires row and writes musical scores for blockbuster movies. When the roots of a wayward willow tree create havoc at his home, Harry is forced to stay at the resort while repairs are carried out.

Cue matchmaking storms, muffin preferences, laughter, love, and a whole lotta music.

Word count: 26,932

And That's The Tea by 2tiedships2:

Summary: Or, the one where Louis loses his soulmate before even getting the chance to meet them, and he is in no way prepared for the kind of distraction his new friend Harry proves to be.

Word count: 27,590

i can reflect the moon by bitterlee:

Summary: it's 1976. harry writes songs. they're about louis. it's none of his business.

Word count: 28,577

gorgeous (it makes me so mad) by resurrectdead:

Summary: or: Harry is a hot mess. Liam is a brilliant roommate. Niall is a wise lesbian co-worker. Clifford is a good boy. Louis is a bad boy. Circumstances are bizarre.

Word count: 29,940

the act of making noise by suspendrs:

Summary: Or, Louis's famous, Harry has no idea who he is, and they get snowed in together at a ski lodge in Vermont.

Word count: 32,084

Welcome Back From The Friend Zone by 2tiedships2:

Summary: Or the one where an idea to create a fake wedding with the sole intent to receive gifts from billionaires took a turn no one, but also everyone, saw coming.

Word count: 32,354

Latching Onto You by reminiscingintherain:

Summary: Or, the one where Louis wants to book Harry Styles to perform at his best friends' wedding.

Word count: 34,313

Found My Hallelujah by crimsontheory:

Summary: As an engagement gift from his parents, Harry and his fiance receive an all expenses paid cruise trip for two. But one week before they're set to sail, Harry walks in on his fiance cheating on him. Newly single, with the cruise tickets in hand, and his bags already packed, Harry brings along his sister instead. And maybe the cute bartender on the ship might just be the person Harry needs to help him put back together all of his broken pieces.

Word count: 34,753

Counterbalance by YesIsAWorld:

Summary: Harry Styles loves two things: teaching ballet and racing motorcycles. Those two worlds collide when his greatest rival on the track, Louis “Tommo” Tomlinson brings his tiny siblings to Harry’s class.

Word count: 44,777

That's What I'm Here For by taggiecb:

Summary: Louis Tomlinson is a dairy farmer on a tiny farm in eastern Canada. His wife of nearly thirty years has left him and his children are all grown up and out of the house. Louis needs help running his business but has no idea where to even start looking. Luckily for him his children know just the man for the job.

Word count: 46,838

Tied to Fate by littlelouishiccups:

Summary: After his estranged father’s death, Harry inherits a castle in England that has belonged to his family for generations and he knows nothing about. When he breaks up with his boyfriend, Harry decides England is the perfect place for a small vacation. He isn’t prepared to meet Louis Tomlinson, a ghost who once lived in the castle and has haunted it for over five hundred years. He’s even more unprepared to fall in love with him.

Word count: 52,313

Shine On (You Crazy Diamond) by larrymaybe22

Summary: The year is 1974 and Britain’s glam rock scene is in full swing. Enter Louis, a broke and dejected student who finds himself on a tour bus of all places, working as a roadie for the enigmatic “womanizer” Harry Styles. Along the way, Louis discovers the cruelty of fame and that maybe there is more than meets the eye beyond the curls, cocaine, and crazy suits.

Word count: 58,750

waiting for the tides to meet by nauticalleeds (metamorphosis):

Summary: Soulmate AU. Everyone is born with heterochromia — one eye is their own eye colour, while the other is the colour of their soulmate's. It's only when they meet their soulmate for the first time that their own eyes match properly. After a hazy night at a frat party, Louis wakes up to blue eyes and the shocking realization that he had met his soulmate, without any sober recollection. Seven years pass where Louis comes to terms with the fact that he'll never know who his soulmate is. Then one fated summer, a beautiful green-eyed photographer arrives at Louis' workplace, with promises of endless laughter and a familiar feeling in Louis' heart.

Featuring a lovely cup of OT5, a road trip down the coast, and a scene where Harry eats a whole head of lettuce. Don't ask why.

Word count: 59,871

Becoming Us by sweariwouldnt:

Summary: Married at First Sight is a television show in which hopefuls looking for The One are matched by experts deeming them to be the perfect match. The twist? They meet each other for the first time at the altar. When they exchange their 'I do's'. And get married for real.

One Harry and Louis find each other at the altar. They have five weeks to make or break the set-up marriage.

Word count: 59,880

Consequences by allwaswell16:

Summary: Two years ago Harry let his powerful family come between him and the love of his life, something he deeply regrets. Louis has tried to move on from their devastating break up. Sometimes, he even thinks he has. It only takes one moment to freeze them back in time.

Word count: 78,566

Face Your Fears by SadaVeniren:

Summary: Harry is a single father, pretending to be a beta after his alpha mated him and left him. He’s getting by just fine raising the twins when Louis walks into his bakery. Too bad him and Louis will never be a thing.

Word count: 92,219

Tired Tired Sea by MediaWhore:

Summary: As a B&B owner on the most remote of all the British Isles, Louis Tomlinson is used to spending the coldest half of the year in complete isolation, with his dog and the sea as sole companions. Until, one day, a mysterious stranger on a quest to rebuild himself rents a room for the winter.

Word count: 113,303

Take Me As I Am by lovelarry10:

Summary: “Suppressant? But… why would I need a suppressant? Alphas don’t take suppressants.”

“You’re right, they don’t.��

****

Secrets. Lies. Deception. Betrayal. Self-discovery.

Alpha. Omega. How far will they go to hide the truth?

Word count: 117,895

#larry #larry au #personal fav #masterpost #larry fic #larry fics #larry fic rec #larry fic recs #fic #fics #fic rec #fic recs #larry stylinson #larry masterpost

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visceryl · 4 years

Text

HPHM D&D Club

Before getting into the prompt, I wanted to thank everyone who allowed me to use their characters! @hogwartsmysterystory @angrynar @one-very-angry-hufflepunk @ruby-and-opal-withers @aleksia-aries-hogwartsmystery @elefseija and @kathrynalicemc

-----

In the midst of a dim-lit stairwell, four cloaked figures teetered on their feet, heads constantly winding back over their shoulders to keep watch of any others who might be lurking. After a moment, the door to the Slytherin common room creaked open, a lithe figure curving around its frame before easing it shut again.

“It’s about damn time,” Ethren scolded in a hushed whisper.

“Are you kidding? You can’t rush perfection, Whitecross, you had me get the supplies. Sneaking them took time.”

Konn’s smile beamed from beneath his own cloak, pulling it back to reveal a small sack full of parchment, quills, and ink. His gaze glanced over the other three joining them. Skylar looming off to the side with his arms crossed over his chest, Daisy looking ready to bounce right out of her skin with excitement, and Hal who had his face pressed against the glass window hanging above the staircase.

The broad Hufflepuff blinked into the inky darkness of the water and jolted back, nearly tumbling down the steps, when something appeared to blink back. Hal quickly righted himself, a hand shooting up through his hair as he cleared his throat. “Sweet, let’s do this thing.”

A sigh ushered from Konn’s lips as he shook his head, stifling the beginnings of a smirk.

“Are the others waiting for us?”

“Hopefully. I told them to meet us right next to the clock tower entrance,” Ethren replied.

“Kath may back out.” Skylar leaned back, a white, glittering grin rising to his lips. “She’s not sure she can keep up with our late-night escapades.”

“I’m sure she’ll be there! Come on!”

Daisy didn’t wait for the others before she took off up the stairs. Her footsteps were surprisingly silent, making not a sound as she disappeared from sight. The boys couldn’t help but laugh and closed their ranks to follow after without disturbing anyone else.

-----------------------------------------------------

The group of five took their time creeping through the desolate halls. Their wands lit up with Lumos, tucked discreetly at their sides to cast just enough of a glow for them to see where they were going. Ethren took the lead, wincing and smothering his light as one of the portraits stirred with a snore.

Konn stopped just shy of smacking into the back of him. “Keep moving,” he hissed. A hand pushed to the back of the Gryffindor’s shoulder and impatiently directed him to continue.

It was eerie navigating the castle at night. With the threat of bumping into Filch or some other professor hanging over, no one was keen to be caught out in the open. The only sounds to echo as they made their way past the sleeping portraits were their own footsteps ticking against the solid floor. Only a single strip of rug ran down the middle of the hall.

While most stuck to it, Hal found himself scuffling against wooded floors to shove up a shoulder at Skylar’s side. The other boy towered him. “Did you make your character already?”

“I tried, but it was confusing,” Skylar murmured back.

“Shhh!” Konn’s gaze burned into the both of them in warning. “You’re going to get us caught before we even catch up with the others.”

Up ahead, footsteps could be heard heavier than their own and everyone froze like deer in headlights. Did they scatter? Stand still and hope no one saw them? Make a run for the tower? Ethren and Konn shared a look as Daisy ducked behind everyone for cover. The two shared an agreeing nod as Konn stepped out from the group.

Controlled.

The outline of his shape started to broaden. Light blonde hair darkened several shades before settling to ebony at shoulder length. He dropped the hood of his cloak, the last of his features melding to that of Severus Snape as he flashed a wink back towards his group of friends.

Just in time.

Not seconds later, the footsteps rounded the corner, three small shapes skidding to a stop and slamming into one another like dominoes.

“P-Professor Snape!” Kath stammered out in a near wail. “Oh, we’re so sorry for sneaking out! Please don’t take points from us!”

Before Konn could reason with the stammering girl, Aleksia sent an elbow lightly into her ribcage and all at once the metamorphmagus roared with laughter.

A mixture of confusion and horror washed over the three girls as gazes darted from each other back to the figure that, while certainly looked like Snape, definitely wasn’t. Then Aisling’s eyes widened. “Konn?” She looked past him towards where the other four waited hunkered down silently.

Konn only laughed harder, doubling over and grasping at his sides. “You should have seen your faces!” he gasped.

Then a fist crashed roughly against his shoulder.

“You’re awful!” Kath hissed bitterly, her cheeks stained red with embarrassment.

The groups found themselves quickly merging to one as Ethren stepped forward, trying to hide his own amusement. “Alright, alright. While punching on him is definitely warranted, we need to keep moving. Glad you three could make it.”

“We wouldn’t miss it for the world, Ethren,” Aleksia said.

Hal, however, couldn’t wipe away his own look of horror as he approached Konn who’d already returned to his original self again. His shoulder clapped down on his best friend’s shoulder and he gave a pained grimace. “Please don’t ever laugh as Snape again. It’s unnatural.”

A wicked grin flashed back. “Duly noted.”

With Ethren back in the lead, the Dungeons and Dragon Club continued the trek together. They made it all the way up to the third floor where the Clocktower entrance was with minor hitches. If one considered narrowly scraping by Mrs. Norris as minor. Daisy had been prepared, scattering a line of cat food as a distraction while the rest slid past. From there it’d been a straight shot.

----------------------------------------------------------

By the time everything had been laid out and set up, everyone sat in a circle on the floor of the Clocktower. Ethren, Konn, Hal, Skylar, Daisy, Aisling, Aleksia, and Kath. The eight of them had planned this campaign for weeks, prepping their characters and asking Ethren passing questions in the halls and during meals. Finally, it was their chance to play.

Dice juggled and twirled through the Dungeon Master’s fingers as they were carefully plucked out of a bag of disorganized chaos. Nobody had matching dice, it seemed, as Ethren passed them out one set at a time at random. “Here’s your d-six, Konnor.”

“Hey, no wait! That’s the green and gold one. I’m missing that one,” Aisling insisted.

“It doesn’t really matter, you can swap-”

Konn snatched the bag of dice from Ethren’s hands and greedily looked over the contents within before wrinkling his nose. “Ew. You don’t organize them?”

“Traveling around with a giant case of dice is inconvenient, give them back.”

“What’s the point of so many dice if you never see them paired together?”

Hal chuckled at that, pushing his own dice around. “He’s got a point.”

“They’re my dice! I’ll do what I want with them,” Ethren pouted stubbornly, stealing the dice bag back and turning away from everyone to divvy out the rest so that everyone held a complete set to play with.

Looking up, Ethren’s features washed white as he caught Skylar jamming the triangular three-sided dice up one of his nostrils. Skylar locked their gazes, face devoid of emotion, and plucked up a similar one from Aleksia to plug the second nostril.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

“Playing.”

Skylar turned his head back to Aleksia, tilted his head back, and blew. Both dice shot out, pummeling the poor girl who couldn’t keep a straight face as she playfully shoved him away. “Ew! Skylar! Was that my dice?” she laughed out.

“Maybe.”

Ethren wrinkled his nose in minor disgust, making mental note to wash all returned dice before tossing them into the bag later. “Okay then. Everyone get out your character sheets. We’ll be starting in Undermountain. We’ve all met each other-”

“Undermountain is the dungeon, right?”

His gaze leveled on Kath a moment and he nodded. “Yes. And we’ve all met each other outside of the dungeon. The idea is we’re a group of mercenaries trying to collect a big pay. We’ve just entered inside. So let me make sure I’ve got this right.”

Ethren began to point at each person in the group. “Aisling is the sun elf druid worshipping Sylvanus, Skylar is the human necromancer, Daisy is the fey-touched cleric with the animal domain, Aleksia is the high-elf ranger, Hal is the human barbarian, Kath is the tiefling bard, and Konn is the half-elf rogue.”

“Bloody right I’m the half-elf rogue,” Konn purred. He closed his eyes in focus, dulled ears shifting into small, elven points. “Look, I’m in character and everything. And what of you, oh mighty DM?”

“Naturally, I’m the Duskblade.”

Hal threw an arm around Ethren, a wolfish grin taking up the lower half of his face. He shook him. “Hell yeah, our characters can defend the weak together.”

“I’ll defend myself, thank you,” Aisling says with a wink.

“Oh, I wouldn’t doubt it.”

The Hufflepuff was still grinning as he let go of his friend to poke at Aisling while the Dungeon Master prepared the start of their very first campaign together.

And so it began.

The group started their journey in the midst of Undermountain, fighting their way through an army of undead only ten minutes into the gameplay after Konn had led them into an unlocked, untrapped room with his character in the lead.

Hal expertly dominated the vast majority, rolling several sixteens and eighteens to send four of the zombies back to their graves. Meanwhile, Aleksia struggled to master the art of the bow, her unlucky rolls leaving her arrows a useless volley past each one.

Further in, Ethren was able to test his players’ mettle up against a puzzle and heavily trapped hallway. His eyes were alight, perhaps as happy as he’d been in a while, as he watched the group bicker over how to continue.

“Let’s send a rat forward first,” Skylar suggested.

“Absolutely not! What if it gets hurt?!” Daisy’s cheeks washed red as she leaned forward stubbornly. “Let’s just try and solve the riddle.”

“No. I’ve got a better idea.”

Everyone snapped their gazes up in horror, watching Hal scoop up his twenty-sided dice, and send it crashing across the map Ethren had crudely drawn. It landed face-up on a natural twenty. “I go storming through the middle of the hallway at full speed with my axe ready to smack away anything that flies at me!”

Silence.

Ethren flicked his gaze over the dice before leaning back with a bitter pout and crumpling a piece of paper he had in hand. “Alright. You race through, triggering the trap, and before it can swing down and hit you, you slam your axe against it and it breaks. You’re now at the other end of the hall. Let me draw.”

Eventually, even Kath managed to settle into the gameplay. After crossing paths with a few seasoned adventurers also plundering the depths of the magical maze for treasure, she played them an enchanting tune with her lute. One by one they had fallen beneath her, continuing alongside the party as unofficial groupies.

Laughter rose up from the Clocktower, coiling out in cool mist beneath the stars. Nobody kept an eye on the time. Instead, playing by wand light, everyone had their wands pointed towards the gameplay area, illuminating the intricate mapping system.

It was eventually revealed the group had not been chosen at random, but subconsciously summoned by the sleeping dragon that yearned for its freedom and stolen eggs at the center of the maze.

In natural Daisy fashion, she’d instructed everyone on how to handle it without lethal aggression, proclaiming they needed to collect and return all the eggs to their mother if they could find them.

Unfortunately, only one egg was ever recovered. It hatched halfway through Konn’s navigation as the rogue, and much to Ethren’s dismay, Daisy was able to convince the little wyrmling she was its mother. Thus sparking the long debate of whether or not the party should leave the red dragon hatchling behind for their own safety or risk taking it into the final dungeon where its true mother was.

The vote had been split but with several threatening stares from Aisling, Aleksia, and Daisy, Ethren finally declared they’d keep the baby wyrmling for now and would have to suffer the consequences later.

It took the group another hour of exploration before finally coming to large, golden doors. Intricately carved within them were great draconic heads that glared out menacingly.

But there were no doorknobs.

Hal tried pushing. Skylar attempted to hit it with a knock spell. Only Konn was able to approach the door and utter something in a deep draconic tongue. The sounds of gears unwinding and clasping were beautifully mimicked by the Dungeon Master as the band of players nudged their way in.

Sleeping in all its towering glory, the ancient red dragon rested at the center of the room. Bound in chains at the neck and legs. Billows of smoke poured from nostrils with every breath.

“Hold on, hold on,” Konn scowled. “How the hell do we fight that!?”

Ethren looked up from behind his screen and gave an unhelpful shrug. “I don’t know. How do you fight it?”

The Slytherin boy paled. “We can’t!”

“Well duh,” Daisy giggled. “We can wake it and talk to it. Konn and I both have characters that know draconic.”

“Is that what you do, then, Daisy?”

“Yes!”

Ethren couldn’t smother the sinister grin that coiled at his lips as he disappeared behind his Dungeon Master screen, quickly tossing a few dice in preparation before rising once more. “Alright! Tell me what you do.”

Daisy clicked her tongue in thought as Konn’s forehead collided with the ground in a low groan. “Oh hush, you’re just jealous you didn’t think of this first,” the girl chastises. “I approach the dragon carefully and tap it on the nose.” “Okay, and does anyone else want to add anything?” Ethren is trying to smother a laugh.

“...I ready an attack with my waraxe,” Hal sputters.

“I’ll cast shield of faith on all of us.”

“Okay, Aisling, you’ve provided everyone with a plus-three to their ACs. And on that, Daisy, you approach the slumbering dragon, and immediately the little wyrmling leaps from your arms with a cry. The mother’s golden eyes immediately snap open, one easily larger than your head as it locks to you.”

Ethren began to describe the events of the dragon rising up in defense of its wyrmling. The way its roar shattered everyone’s eardrums. The glisten of teeth longer than their forearms. Each character rolled a will save against fear, each one becoming deathly shaken by the superior monster.

“Hal, you’re up, make your readied attack.”

Hal looked ready to piss himself as he scooped up his dice again. “Are you sure I can’t just run, instead?” he teased out.

“I suppose you could.”

The Hufflepuff watched Ethren a moment in consideration and then shook his head with a snort. “Nah, I’ll go down with the ship.” The single dice crashed against the hard flooring of the Clocktower, bouncing once, twice- then landing on a natural one.

“NO!” Konnor blurted, falling back from the group and onto his back in defeat.

Light faded from Ethren’s eyes as he stared down at his own prepared dice rolls and grimaced. “...Well. Hal, you raise your waraxe to the dragon out of sheer panic and on your downward swing, instead of hitting scales, you send it right into the back of my skull. Killing me instantly.”

“Are you kidding?!”

Everyone burst into an uproar of laughter and protest. Skylar curved an arm around Hal’s shoulders, a wide grin plastered over his features. “Well done, Hal. I think we all just died.”

“Oh most definitely,” Ethren agreed, having started to laugh as well. “And its the dragon’s turn. She rears back, straining against her chains as a torrent of flames erupt from her parted maw, spiraling down on all of you. No need to roll reflexes, you’re all immediately cooked.”

“Just like that?” Konn sat up now, brows furrowed in annoyance.

“You weren’t supposed to actually face the dragon.”

“I fucking told them that!” Arms crossed over the Slytherin’s chest and Aisling quickly nudged up against his side.

“Don’t be so sour, Konn, we’ll just have to try again next time.”

“Next time, indeed. We’re all going to need new characters, so go ahead and be thinking about them.” Ethren reached out, beginning to pick up pieces of parchment that outlined their journey through Undermountain. “I want to aim for next week.”

He paused, his cheeks flaring pink. “...Did you guys enjoy it?”

Daisy flung forward, wrapping the Dungeon Master in a hug, and slowly, the others crowded over to join.

“Absolutely.”

#Konnor Rainwater #Ethren Whitecross #Hal Greywind #Skylar Morningstar #Daisy Stoddard-Withers #Aleksia Aries #Aisling Baskerville #Kathryn Alice #hogwarts mystery #hphm #Dungoens & Dragons #D&D

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suncatchr · 4 years

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@ocease this one’s for u

Something is so absurd about this life we live.

Despite how desperate Noah seems to fill silence with speech, our house is always quiet. It lurks around the halls like spirits who cannot be still. There are a million words between us that cannot be said. Memories that chain us down. They can be sensed in every step anyone takes, in every breath of stagnant air. It's almost crushing sometimes. There are days when even Noah will fall silent, almost out of confusion, and that is when it shows through the most. The hollow that opens between us whenever we stand together. It holds us apart.

I try not to care. I feel like I have someplace else to be, all that keeps me here is the shackles of our journey to freedom. But that cannot be true, and it frustrates me to realise that. Because if it were true I would simply leave. I have taken that risk before.

I cannot see their faces in my mind when I try to imagine how they would feel if one day they found me gone. I cycle through every emotion I can name before I settle on the idea that they wouldn't care. That must be the truth. Why else would I decide so every time without fail? It has always been this way. I am a presence in people's lives and nothing more. I may as well be a shadow. Faceless though familiar. Ever-present and inconsequential.

Noah really likes television shows. Whenever I see him, he is usually watching one. Otherwise he is in his room, and Sara is in her room, and the silence is the same as it ever was. But today I leave my room at four in the afternoon and they are both sitting on pillows on the floor. Noah glances up at me and smiles. Sara glances up at me and does not.

"We're watching the baking championship!" Noah reports. "Come see, who do you think will win? I think it's this guy with the mirror glaze."

I sit next to him on the floor. Sara is watching but not watching, as she does with most things on most days. She is troubled in silence and I believe any inclination to share she might have once had has decayed in the absence of danger. There is no threat to her life to get her to say what she has to say. It's a relief, but it doesn't feel like one.

"I could do better than this if they'd give me a chance," Noah says, continuing from something entirely unrelated. "Do you guys think I could win this? I know a pretty solid cake recipe but I've gotta have the box with me."

"The box," I repeat absently. What box?

"Yeah, the box the cake mix comes in. That has the recipe on the back." He smiles. He was making a joke, I assume. I nod. I understand now. He turns his eye back to the show.

I would ask if they've eaten yet, but I know it's likely they haven't. We forget to take care of ourselves in a new way every day. I get up from the floor and head into the kitchen. Noah has a shopping list on the refrigerator decorated with doodles and different coloured inks. I can tell where Sara has been the one to add to it because her handwriting is small, unobtrusive. I open the fridge and take out every bedraggled vegetable we've got. From somewhere further than he should be, Noah continues to tell Sara his opinions on baked goods. Once I hear her answer back. Mindlessly I dice the vegetables and pile them into a pan. Noah starts to say something and stops. The vegetables cook down a bit. I remember after a moment to add olive oil to the pan. I finish the bottle. I have to put it on the list. Noah says nothing, even when I hear the judging begin in his show. I add a few spices to the vegetables and smother them in chicken stock. I add vegetable stock to the list instead. There are a few things missing from this dish that are usually in it. I split it in two bowls and carry them into the living room.

They both say thanks upon receiving their bowls. I retreat back to the kitchen to clean up the mess I left behind. I know neither of them will finish theirs. There is a variety of reasons, depending on the day, but rarely do we finish any food. Rarely do we do anything properly.

I retreat back to my own room and close the door. I've had what I can take. There is something tiring in this house that cannot be chased away.

Sara is up when I get up. She is putting her jacket on. She glances at me.

"I'm going for a run," she says. Her voice has an eerie quiet to it. "Do you wanna come with?"

I have nothing better to do. "Sure. Wait for me."

I change into something suitable for wearing out of the house and rejoin her in the foyer. I can't tell about what, but she is always thinking about something. She has an expression that clearly means she is lost in thought, glazed over, focused on nothing. I wonder if worrying is the right thing to do. We put on our shoes and head out the door.

Almost always, there is silence between us. I believe we have secrets that keep words down. I believe we both live in fear that whatever little trust we've garnered will break if someone says the wrong thing, and we don't yet know what that thing is. We take this path together often. Noah does not run in the mornings but I do, because I must be occupied in the morning, and Sara does, presumably to clear her head. We run two blocks and then turn down a quiet street where trees grow into the sidewalk. We take this path a while longer. It is peaceful here.

Sara stops, suddenly, and I stop behind her. I look for something that could pose a threat, but the street is empty. She is staring at the sidewalk.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," she mutters. There is a snail shell at her feet. She bends down and plucks the creature from the sidewalk, placing it onto a leaf that juts from a hedge. She blinks at it before she wordlessly moves on.

When I met her, I wouldn't have considered her capable of gentleness. There was a hollow distrust about her, a need that overtook much of the girl I saw. But she isn't the person that that place brought out of her. I follow her down the sun-dappled path, watching the ground for anything else. But there's nothing. The quiet between us isn't tense, nor is it amiable. It's just there. Always there.

I can't sleep.

This is hardly the first time this has happened. It's four o'clock and I can't be bothered to pretend sleep will come. I leave my room as quietly as I can. I wonder what I should do, but the house is too stupid empty for there to be a choice. Glazed by the darkness, I take the broom and pass it around the living room, the foyer, the kitchen. I wash the counters and the last few dishes in the sink. I dry everything and put it away, but something still feels off-kilter. It is usually day when I do this.

I turn, perhaps to wash the windows, and Noah is standing in the kitchen doorway. "Hey," he says sheepishly.

"Did I wake you?" I ask. The look he gives me is bordering on vapid as he tries to think of an answer that isn't a yes but isn't a lie.

"Nah," he says eventually. His voice is purposefully quiet. "Whatcha doing?"

"Cleaning." Obviously.

He glances into the living room and then around the kitchen. Then he smiles wide. "Wanna make s'mores on the stove?" Before I can ask what on earth makes him think I want to do so, he continues. "I read somewhere that we can do that. I bought marshmallows a while ago to try."

I doubt there's any getting him to leave the idea behind. "Okay."

Springing a little as he walks, he goes about collecting things I didn't even know we had. I don't buy chocolate, but apparently Noah did at some point. The graham crackers I do remember him buying, and the marshmallows I remember him making a fuss about. I actually remember the words "s'mores" and "stove" from that day.

He skewers a marshmallow onto a fork and hands it to me. Bewildered, I take it. He does the same thing again and keeps it for himself. "I don't know how hot to make it. What do you think?"

We have a gas stove. It's an open flame. "Put it on five."

He must get sick of trying. He must. There is nothing more frustrating than putting effort into something that will never change. I don't think I will ever change. I don't think Sara will either. And the longer Noah tries, the more it seems that nor will he. What's the point, I wonder, in trying to pretend that this is a home when it is just a refuge from yet another tribulation? Does he not understand that? Or does he just not care?

"Do you think we'll be allowed to light a fire in the backyard?" he asks.

"No." I realise that he is holding the marshmallow over the flame and I should probably do the same. "Why?"

"I wanna try going camping in the yard," he chirps. "It'll be like making a blanket fort, just outside. And then we can sing campfire songs and, I don't know, make real s'mores and try making hot dogs over the fire. You can make a fire, right?"

"Not for arson." Why is he asking me to burn down our backyard?

He smiles. He's always smiling. "We can dig a fire pit, to be safe. I'll learn how."

"I don't doubt that."

He steps back and picks a graham cracker from the box. He sets about meticulously assembling it with the marshmallow and more chocolate than I think is necessary. Then he looks up proudly. "Ta-da! Just like normal. Pretty good, if I do say so myself."

I hold out my own fork; the marshmallow has gone discoloured and the kitchen has filled with this sickly sweet stench. I turn off the stove. Noah takes my fork and makes another s'more, one less piece of chocolate this time. I assume that's for me. I don't want it.

"You can have both."

His eyes light up with excitement. He hops up onto the counter and takes one in each hand. "This is the best night of my life." I'm sure he's faking. He could have just made another if he wanted two. I fight the urge to wash the dishes we just created. Noah seems fully indulged in the s'more in his left hand. When he sees me scrutinising him, he grins. "You sure you don't want yours?"

Maybe it's just been a long time since I last ate, but I let him hand it to me. It tastes like burnt sugar and sandy chocolate.

"If you admit you like it, I'll never bug you again."

"I don't like it."

"Ah," he says, leaning against the cabinets. "You've made the wrong choice. You've condemned yourself to a life of my pestering."

I know I have. I eat the rest of the snack he made.

There's a lot that we will never forget. Where we came from, for one, before we met. The home I left feels like a dream now more than a memory; Noah and Sara feel realer to me than my own parents. Perhaps because we escaped peril together. Perhaps because they never left my side.

I don't know much about their lives before this. I think I know enough, just as they know enough about me and mine. This is better, is all I know. It isn't home, not to any of us. But we all know something that makes it a better place to stay than any of the worlds we left. Each other. We know each other better than anyone else could anymore. It's sad. But it's true.

When I open my bedroom door, there is a light grey haze covering the hall that stings my eyes. The stove vent is on and I wonder what on earth Noah's gotten into now and if I should worry about calling 911. The smoke isn't flame-dark but it isn't all steam-thin, either. I wave the acrid air away in exchange for a clean trail and wonder what I'm going to have to clean up now.

Noah is standing at the stove and Sara at the counter. She is quietly cleaning around the sink while Noah fans the smoke detector with a tea towel, our only one. Three plates lie on the counter, piled with rice and meat and only those two, since I used the last of the vegetables. Noah whips around and, though for a hot second he looks shocked, he smiles.

"We made dinner!" he says brightly. Sara turns like she didn't know I came in.

"We didn't know what to make so we just cooked what we had," she explains. I feel dizzy. It's usually me in charge of the cooking, if not all of us together in a haphazard overcrowded jumble. Sara hands me a plate. Noah hands her one and takes his own.

"I found a website with a bunch of movies listed so we don't have to look for a good place to watch them," he prattles, leading us back into the living room to sit on the floor. "We've gotta pick something from the list to watch but there's a bunch of stuff I want to see so you guys have to help me decide."

He opens the laptop and the page is already open. "Efficiency," he chirps. He also deliberates over the film on his own. Sara offers a shake of her head here and there, and I don't care what he puts on. He keeps making points for and against certain movies, and his food gets cold on the floor as he does. I realise I've been waiting to eat until he chooses.

He settles on the Lion King. We've seen this movie before. Noah talks all the way through it. The living room slowly grows dark around us, and Noah puts on the sequel. The air in here feels clear. I lean back on my hands. Sara rests her chin on her wrists. Noah shifts altogether to lay on his stomach.

"There's a lot of sequels we haven't seen. Should we marathon them all? Wake up early and eat popcorn all day and watch all the bad sequels."

"Which ones?" Sara asks.

"All of them! Disney first, but anything with a two on the end works for me."

"What if we haven't seen the first one?"

"That might just make it better."

Noah agrees, mostly with himself, that after our grocery run on Saturday when we pick up "a whole bunch of popcorn and probably some ice cream too if I can get Koda to quit being no fun," we'll use Sunday to watch movies of distinctly worse quality than the already terrible ones we normally do. Then he closes the laptop and, sweeping a glance across us, heads off to bed. Sara carries his plate and hers to the sink and places them down gently. Then she offers me an amiable blink and heads off to her room.

I carry my own plate to the kitchen. Sometimes the fog in this house isn't so heavy. Sometimes the way we act isn't quite so broken and strange, though it never quite changes. I wonder what it will take to make this natural. Maybe nothing will ever work.

I wash my plate and reach for the ones Sara put away. I find, when I lift one up, that all of our plates from tonight are empty.

#spent a lot of today waiting around so here u go! :)#im so sorry if anything is ooc fdhjskfdsl #my writing #long post #the stormcaster #the time seer #the soul seeker

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theonyxpath · 7 years

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As our Changeling: The Lost 2nd Edition Kickstarter finishes up the Spring season, and we prepare to turn the KS site into the Summer motifs of our last seasonal change, I’ve gotta say that everyone’s response to the new edition has been fantastic, and we’re thrilled at the continuing momentum and the interest during this Spring week. Thanks to everyone who backed, and looking forward to the thoughts of those holding off until they see the last chapters coming tomorrow!

Is it weird to talk about Spring while we are in December holidays mode?

Nah, I don’t think so, we’re roleplayers after all, and used to imagining one thing while something else is going on. Plus, we have our holiday presents to look forward to! For my Christmas presents, the one I’m really looking forward to is the DVDs of the new Twin Peaks season. Certainly a precursor to the “dark secrets under the surface” settings we’ve all been enjoying for years, and I have danced around to avoid spoilers for what seems like a year now!

Feel free to share the present you’re most looking forward to in the comments!

(He says, opening himself up to “Wraith20!” and “Scion2!” responses…)

Aaron Riley art for C20 Ready Made Characters

Thanks everybody, for letting me use this space last week to wax nostalgic. This week, I’d like to go over our game book creation process (which is very close to any project’s process, but specifically for game books) because we get questions about this all the time, and I hope we can link to this for when folks need to know. Satyr Phil Brucato did a run-down of this in his M20 Art of Mage book we recently released, and it is pretty darn accurate:

Satyr Phil sez: Lots of fans have asked about the process behind these books, and so – to give a context to the work an illustrator does – I’ve included an overview of the process we go through when crafting a book for Mage.

As a general rule, the stages involved in creating, say, a roleplaying game sourcebook, are as follows:

• Brainstorming, during which the line developer (essentially a project manager for the series in question) decides what the book should cover, determines the themes and approach involved, hashes out the contents of the book, and figures out how large, detailed, and extensive the project will be when it gets published. (RichT here: Satyr also has a group of folks he calls his “brain-trust” that he bounces ideas off of. Not every developer has a formal group like that, but many solicit input during this phase from colleagues and friends).

• Outlining, wherein the developer drafts up an outline for the text. The author(s) use(s) this outline as a blueprint for the book, its chapters and contents, and so forth. If the book has multiple authors, the outline assigns sections and chapters to the writing crew, giving them rough instructions to follow while they’re writing it.

• Writing, the stage at which the author(s) produce(s) the written text. Generally, this stage involves two drafts: the first one, that lays the foundation for the final work, and the second, which polishes it to a professional sheen.

(RichT here: As you’ll note below in our weekly project progress report, we break this phase into First Drafts, Redlines, and Second Drafts, as the writers are sending in drafts and the developer(s) are giving them back notes on what needs to change. Those notes are the Redlines, as they were originally written in red ink on the paper text pages).

• Development, during which the developer puts the personal touch on the text. In my case, this usually involves a large amount of additional writing and rewriting, as well as conferences with my brain-trust in order to catch and improve elements that I might have missed. Every line developer, however, handles this stage according to their personal style and desires. Mine just happens to involve a lot of writing and revision!

• Editing, when the developer hands off the polished text to an editor for proofreading. Although the developer and brain-trust have, ideally, proofed the text before this point, the editor brings a fresh set of eyes to the project. Usually, that editor will spot mistakes the developer and other collaborators did not catch.

• Art direction, which generally occurs as the text goes into editing. The developer hands the art notes off to the art director, who then chooses a group of artists who’ll be working from those notes in order to illustrate the book. Based on those notes, the availability of freelance illustrators, and the suitability of the freelance artists in the art director’s stable of talent, the art director – who, in the Onyx Path era, is generally Michael Chaney – hires a group of illustrators for the project, gets them the art notes and a prodigiously underlined copy of the pre-edit manuscript (underlined to indicate potential illustrations that will suit the text), gives them a deadline, and waits for the artwork to come in so the book can be laid out once the editing and illustration stages have been completed.

• Illustration, during which time those artists create their work and send it in. As mentioned earlier, those artists used to send their work in via a postal-delivery service; since the late 1990s, thanks to the innovation of high-speed internet services, those illustrations have been delivered digitally. (RichT here: Much like with the writing, illustration occurs in multiple phases; typically rough sketches, tight sketches and/or color sketches, and finished art. The art director, as well as some folks with special appropriate knowledge like the Creative Director or developer, review these phases and get comments back to the illustrators.)

• Layout, which occurs after the text has been edited and the illustrations have been sent in and approved. A graphic designer takes the files, lays them out in a publishable book format, (RichT here: and designs logos, page design elements, parchments, etc…) and sends them back to the line developer for…

• Proofing / corrections – a stage that can involve between two and six drafts of the work. The line developer takes the layout file, prints it out, and goes over it looking for things to correct. Once the corrections are finished, the developer sends the corrections back to the graphic designer, who (one hopes) inputs those corrections and sends back a corrected draft. This process ends when most (though not, inevitably, all) of the flaws are found and corrected.

• Indexing occurs once the book has been laid out. The indexer – who might be a contractor hired specifically for that task – creates a list of terms to index, then goes through the entire text, finds the appropriate terms, and inputs them into a file that will be laid out, upon completion, by the graphic designer. Given the massive amount of time and labor involved in creating a high-quality index, this stage gets used for only the biggest and most important projects. For context, the index for Mage 20th Anniversary Edition demanded almost three weeks of high-intensity labor.

• Approval, during which the owners of the IP (intellectual property) go through the project and approve it for press, require changes, or withhold approval completely. When you’re working with a licensed IP, as Onyx Path Publishing does with the World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness books, (RichT here: And Exalted!) there can be several steps in an approval process: concept, text, and layout approval. This isn’t a stage you need to go through if you own the intellectual-property rights, or work for the company that does; it’s inevitable, though, when you do not.

• Once the appropriate stages are complete, the book goes to press. Even then, there’s a final proof stage, during which the printer sends an advance copy to the publisher in order to (hopefully) catch any new or lingering mistakes. During the Mage 20 press-proof stage, we found a formatting glitch that would have screwed up the color balance in the book. Once this stage has finally been passed as well, the printer rolls press and the files become a finished book.

Jeff Laubenstein art for C20 Freeholds

Finally, just a note about the DragonMeet meet-up that Eddy Webb, Dave Brookshaw, and Matthew Dawkins were able to do at the convention in London over last weekend. I’ve only heard scattered reports from them, but it sounds like there was a lot of good shop-talk about development best practices, upcoming projects like Deviant and They Came From Beneath the Sea!, and other projects we can’t go into now.

With our Onyx Path creators spread out around the world, it is really hard to get that sort of sharing of experiences that really help creators formalize their work habits effectively, and expand their ideas, even with internet chat rooms and such. I expect to hear more from the guys about what they were able to go into, but if you’re interested in some of it, here’s a link to a Darker Days Podcast breakfast interview that the three of them participated in: http://ift.tt/2idYB8s Deviant, Contagion Chronicle, Mage 2nd, Pugmire, They Came From…, and even some V5 talk occurred, set to the delightful background music of their breakfast establishment.

Because, of course: Many Worlds. One Path.

BLURBS!

KICKSTARTER:

A week and a half-ish left of our KS campaign!

Our story so far: We funded in about a day, and have already blown through 14 Stretch Goals! The goals include three novellas: Autumn, Winter, and Spring, an art budget increase, a CtL2 Jumpstart, a new virtual CtL2 dice set added to the Onyx Path Dice App, three new sections for the Kith and Kin book that we’re calling the Book of Kiths, the first sections for the CtL2 Companion: Entitlements and Freeholds, and we added another 2 PDFs to our CtL 1st Edition PDF reward. With many more Stretch Goal rewards to come!

We’ve also revealed excerpts with notes from the developers, and three-quarters of the book text has been shown to backers so far.

Come along as the seasons change and we reveal the final chapters of the core book text to backers!

Next, our Trinity Continuum Kickstarter will start in early January!

ON SALE NOW:

As we try and find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is now live! Our dev team has been doing updates since we launched based on the excellent use-case comments by our community, and this thing is both rolling and rocking! Right now, they’re working on implementing multi-dice and die previews in the store, after adding in a lot of requested upgrades and tweaks, which is going along nicely but is a ton of work. Here are the links for the Apple and Android versions:

http://ift.tt/2zjnD0c

http://ift.tt/2hhT5Fk

Three different screenshots, above.

(The Solar Anima special Dice)

ON AMAZON AND BARNES & NOBLE:

We’re delighted to announce the opening of our ebook stores on Amazon and Barnes & Noble! You can now read our fiction from the comfort and convenience of your Kindle (from Amazon) and Nook (from Barnes & Noble). Our initial selection includes these fiction anthologies:

Vampire: The Masquerade: The Endless Ages Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Rites of Renown: When Will You Rage II (Kindle, Nook)

Mage: The Ascension: Truth Beyond Paradox (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: The God-Machine Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Mummy: The Curse: Curse of the Blue Nile (Kindle, Nook)

Beast: The Primordial: The Primordial Feast Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

And here are six more fiction books:

Vampire: The Masquerade: Of Predators and Prey: The Hunters Hunted II Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: The Poison Tree (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Songs of the Sun and Moon: Tales of the Changing Breeds (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Requiem: The Strix Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Forsaken: The Idigam Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Mage: The Awakening: The Fallen World Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Andand six more more:

Vampire: The Masquerade: The Beast Within Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: W20 Cookbook (Kindle, Nook)

Exalted: Tales from the Age of Sorrows (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: Tales of the Dark Eras (Kindle, Nook)

Promethean: The Created: The Firestorm Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Demon: The Descent: Demon: Interface (Kindle, Nook)

And even more books are now on Amazon and the Nook store!:

Scarred Lands: Death in the Walled Warren (Kindle, Nook)

V20 Dark Ages: Cainite Conspiracies (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: Strangeness in the Proportion (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Requiem: Silent Knife (Kindle, Nook)

Mummy: The Curse: Dawn of Heresies (Kindle, Nook)

OUR SALES PARTNERS:

We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire out into stores, as well as to individuals through their online store. You can pick up the traditionally printed main book, the Screen, and the official Pugmire dice through our friends there!

http://ift.tt/2w0aaEW

Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Here’s the link to the press release we put out about how Onyx Path is now selling through Indie Press Revolution: http://ift.tt/1ZlTT6z

You can now order wave 2 of our Deluxe and Prestige print overrun books, including Deluxe Mage 20th Anniversary, and Deluxe V20 Dark Ages! And Screens…so many Screens!

And you can now order Pugmire: the book, the screen, and the dice! http://ift.tt/1pOsnTb

DRIVETHRURPG.COM:

The world of Pugmire comes alive in this full cast audio drama experience “Thank You, Darcy Cat” available Wednesday on DTRPG.com!

The police dogs have called Alistair Afghan to discuss the crimes of his valet, Darcy Cat. But this misunderstanding leads to the discovery of a deadly secret deep in the heart of Pugmire society. Will Alistair and Darcy be able to save Pugmire from this threat?

Created by Audioblivious Productions in conjunction with Pugsteady. Check out Audioblivious at http://ift.tt/2jPsQ61!

We unveil Vampire: The Requiem 2e‘s Half-Damned as an Advance PDF on DTRPG.com!

http://ift.tt/2imeGt5

I love her, she’s family, but I don’t love what she is.

– Antonio Ramírez, dhampir

This book includes:

• An exploration of what it means to be one of the Half-Damned, dhampir, revenants or ghouls.

• Mechanics for creating Half-Damned characters.

• Information for creating and running chronicles using the various Half-Damned character types, both with vampires and alone.

• Information on Half-Damned antagonists for vampire chronicles.

Legacy of Lies, the V20 Dark Ages Jumpstart, goes undead in PDF and physical book PoD versions on DTRPG:

http://ift.tt/2k981ql

TWO PRINCES. BITTER RIVALS. AND A COTERIE CAUGHT BETWEEN THEM.

Marcus Verus, the vampiric Prince of Chester, secretly prepares to go into torpor. Should his plans be made public, the Prince knows the wolves — both real and imagined — would launch an attack, threatening all within his domain.

That’s where you come in.

Legacy of Lies includes:

Basic rules for players and Storytellers

Introduction to the Vampire: The Masquerade Dark Ages setting

Introductory adventure

Characters for players and Storytellers

Appearing on DriveThruRPG is the Advance PDF for Arms of the Chosen for Exalted 3rd Edition! http://ift.tt/2A0ga4f

Take up the panoply of legendary heroes and lost ages, and awaken the world-shaking might of their Evocations. Before the dawn of time, the Exalted wielded god-metal blades to cast down the makers of the universe. In an ancient epoch of forgotten glories, Creation’s greatest artificers forged unimaginable wonders and miracle-machines.

Now, in the Age of Sorrows, kingdoms go to war over potent artifacts, scavenger princes risk everything to uncover relics of the past, and the Exalted forge great arms and armor on the anvil of legend. These treasures are yours to master.

Discover the mystical power of the five magical materials and the secrets of creating your own Evocations. Wield weapons of fabled might and don the armor of mythic heroes, making their puissance your own. Claim Creation’s wonders: the miraculous tools of the Chosen, living automatons, flying machines, hearthstones, and more. And unleash the mighty warstriders, titanic god-engines of conquest and devastation, to once more shake Creation with their footfalls.

What dark secrets do the eldest vampires hold? Find out in Thousand Years of Night for Vampire: The Requiem! PDF and physical book PoD versions available on DriveThruRPG.com. http://ift.tt/2sV8lZR

You may think that with a multitude of people coming, going, dying and running away, we’d be tired, done, or ready to give up. Instead, I find myself restless, looking for the next thing. There’s always a next thing, and I for one am not yet ready to die.

– Elder Kincaid, Daeva Crone

This book includes:

• Detailed instructions on creating elder vampires, including how to base chronicles around them

• A look into the lives of elders, how they spend their nights, who they work with, and why including their roles in both their clans and covenants

• New Devotions, Merits, and Rituals for elder vampires

• The kinds of creatures that pose a threat to elder vampires, including Inamorata, Lamia, Sons of Phobos, a new elder conspiracy, and more!

Is a life of running and hiding a life worth living? We say yes. There’s always something between the running and the hiding, and those moments of grace make it all worthwhile.

The Huntsmen Chronicle Anthology is a perfect companion piece to Changeling: The Lost, 2nd Edition. These stories spin tales of the Lost, of those abducted and enslaved by fairies. Those who escaped, but whose captors will stop at nothing to find them. These fairies summon forth the Huntsmen, primordial hunters who understand nothing but pursuit and capture. The Huntsmen are unstoppable monsters, and the Lost can only look to each other for respite, rare comfort, and rarer trust.

The Hedge has parted and you can get the Advance PDF of The Huntsmen Chronicle Fiction Anthology for Changeling: The Lost 2nd Edition at DTRPG.com! http://ift.tt/2z4uZnU

A Land Where Legends Walk

Drawing enthusiastically on Greek mythology, the revised and re-imagined Scarred Lands nonetheless retains its place as a modern fantasy RPG setting. This is a world shaped by gods and monsters, and only the greatest of heroes can expect to be counted among them. The most populous continent of Scarn, Ghelspad, plays host to vast unexplored regions, hides unsolved riddles from ancient cultures, and taunts adventures with the promise of undiscovered riches hidden among the ruins of older civilizations.

Yet the myths of the Scarred Lands are relatively recent events. The effects of the Titanswar still ripple through the world, and the heroines and villains of many of these stories are part of living memory, if not still living.

The Award-Winning Fantasy Setting Returns

Scarred Lands has been a favorite fantasy setting since the release of the Creature Collection for the d20 System in 2000. In subsequent years, over 40 titles were published for Scarred Lands, making it one of the most fully supported fantasy RPG settings ever and the premiere product line of Sword & Sorcery Studios.

Available in both 5th Edition and Pathfinder compatible versions! PDF and PoD formats available NOW!

http://ift.tt/2fEO9YJ

http://ift.tt/2fELqyx

Heroes, Villains, and Others in Between!

This tome is a revision of the original book by the same title, originally published for use with 3rd edition rules for the world’s most popular roleplaying game. In this revised edition of The Wise & the Wicked, all the same characters have returned (and we’ve added some new ones, too!), for use with the Scarred Lands Player’s Guide.

Champions of Gods and Titans

The Wise & the Wicked introduces a rogue’s gallery of the Scarred Lands’ movers and shakers, characters who carry out the will of the gods or the fallen titans. These non-player characters can be friends, enemies, or simply convenient resources for the player characters in your game.

Inside, find villains such as King Virduk of Calastia, the Black Dragon, along with his wife, the beautiful (and black-hearted) Queen Geleeda; the Grand Vizier to King Virduk, the wicked warrior-mage Anteas; and the sinister general of Virduk’s northern armies, Archduke Traviak the Steel-Fisted. At the other end of the spectrum, meet the gracious Lady Ariniel, the Swan Knight, champion of Madriel; Kimer the Shatterer, bearer of the Earth Sword of Scarn and tenacious foe of the titanspawn of the north; and King Thain the Just, the Aleking, ruler of Burok Torn. And many others beside!

Here you’ll find a fascinating compendium of characters from the Scarred Lands, but easily transported into campaigns set elsewhere. In addition, find multiple appendices full of new magic items and artifacts, class archetypes and prestige classes, new feats, new creatures and races, and more.

Available in Pathfinder and 5th Edition versions! PDF and PoD formats available NOW!

http://ift.tt/2zdVHXS

http://ift.tt/2zeEpd8

CONVENTIONS!

Planning ahead for 2018, we’re heading back to Midwinter Game Convention in Milwaukee, January 11-14, where we’re going to be bringing a big crew of many of your favorite Onyx Path designers and we’ll be running demos and making some special announcements at the show! http://midwintergamingconvention.com

And now, the new project status updates!

DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM ROLLICKING ROSE (projects in bold have changed status since last week):

First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)

M20 Gods and Monsters (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

C20 Novel (Jackie Cassada) (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades)

Redlines

Hunter: the Vigil 2e core (Hunter: the Vigil 2nd Edition)

They Came From Beneath the Sea! Rulebook (TCFBtS!)

Second Draft

WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)

Tales of Good Dogs – Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)

Exalted 3rd Novel by Matt Forbeck (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Monarchies of Mau (Monarchies of Mau)

Development

Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)

SL Ring of Spiragos (Pathfinder – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

Ring of Spiragos (5e – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

Scion: Origin (Scion 2nd Edition)

Scion: Hero (Scion 2nd Edition)

Trinity Continuum Core Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)

Trinity Continuum: Aeon Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)

GtS Geist 2e core (Geist: the Sin-Eaters Second Edition)

Night Horrors: The Tormented (Promethean: The Created 2nd Edition)

WW Manuscript Approval:

Editing:

Ex Novel 2 (Aaron Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Pan’s Guide for New Pioneers (Pugmire)

Kithbook Boggans (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

The Realm (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Post-Editing Development:

Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition, featuring the Huntsmen Chronicle (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)

Dragon-Blooded (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Indexing:

ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:

In Art Direction

Cavaliers of Mars – New art getting assigned.

Ex3 Monthly Stuff

Scion Origins

Ring of Spiragos

Changeling: the Lost 2

Trinity Continuum – It’s a goin’.

Pugmire – Vinsen’s Tomb

Ex3 Dragon Blooded

Pugmire – Pan’s Explorer’s Guide (or whatever) – Sending notes for this over to Laubenstein, Syme, Loboyko, and Alida this week as soon as I finish going through them.

Marketing Stuff

In Layout

Pugmire/Scarred Lands Community Content – working on the logo.

Book of Freeholds – To Mark

DtD Enemy Action – Re-uploading some files to Josh

Pugmire Fetch Quest – Working on sample designs for more playtesting.

Proofing

Wraith 20 – Final layout proof to WW.

W20 Changing Ways – First proof.

Beast PG

At Press

Beckett Screen – Shipped to shipper.

Scarred Land PGs & Wise and the Wicked PF & 5e – To fulfillment shipper. PDF and PoD physical book versions on sale at DTRPG.

Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition) – Deluxe Edition cover and Screen in the works. Waiting for Deluxe cover and the Screen proofs.

Prince’s Gambit – Print and Play version updated. Getting specs from printer.

M20 Cookbook – PoD proofs ordered.

CtL Huntsmen Chronicle Anthology – Layout waiting for errata.

V20 Beckett’s Jyhad Diary– Working on PoD files.

C20 Ready Made Characters – Ended Backer PDF errata gathering.

Ex 3 Arms of the Chosen – Ended Advance PDF errata gathering

Pugmire Artisan Cards – PoD proofs ordered.

Pugmire Shepherd Cards – PoD proofs ordered.

Pentex Indoctrination Manual – PDF out to backers last week, errata gathering.

TODAY’S REASON TO CELEBRATE: Wow, December already! The butt-end of the year with the sparkly lights and elves and stuff. It’s a crazy time of the year, everybody is stressed and just nuts, and that’s worth a bit of cheer, at least!

#Onyx Path Publishing

1 note · View note

riyuyami · 7 years

Text

officialgrandpa replied to your post “*psst* Give me ideas of tiny Atemu in the modern era… he is a cute...”

also probably has to get babysat by grandpa?? but he has a billion puzzles & games & stories to share so theyre entertained !

I’m writing this!

“Grandpa, are you sure you’ll be okay watching him?” Yugi asked, straightening out his tie. He had a meeting at Kaiba Corp (that he didn’t know was happening until Mokuba texted him), and he had no one to really watch Atemu since he couldn’t take him to work, and everyone else was busy.

But Grandpa volunteered to watch the little boy for him for a few hours, but Yugi felt bad! Grandpa was working today as well...!

“Oh pish poish, Yugi! He’s not that much trouble, we’ll be fine, it’s only for a few hours!”

Yugi bit his lip, but nodded. “Alright, Grandpa.” He looked over at the living room, where Atemu sat, watching something on TV as he hugged onto a plush toy Marshmallon. “Alright, Other Me, you be good for Grandpa, don’t give him trouble, and don’t... I dunno, play shadow games with customers.”

“It was one time, and he stole somethin’.” Atemu scoffed, pouting at Yugi, who just walked over to ruffle his hair. “Hey!”

“Alright, whatever you say. See you guys in a bit!” Yugi smiled, heading for the door.

Once yugi left, Grandpa looked up from the newspaper he was reading at the kitchen table, looking at the former pharaoh, now turned child, smiling at him. “Let’s go get some breakfast, then you can help me open the shop, okay?”

“Can we go to the donut place?” Atemu asked, perking up.

“Sure!”

“I’m surprise I can still hold up a kid like this at my old age.” Grandpa chuckled a little as he held Atemu on his shoulders, a box of donuts in his hands, as the little king happily sipped from a strawberry milk box.

“Oh come on, Grandpa! You’re, like, the strongest guy I know! Aside from Jounouchi.”

“You’re just being nice.” Grandpa smiled, setting the box down in front of the shop door when they came up to it, having to bend down a bit to let Atemu slide off. He grunted, standing up right. “Yep, Im old.”

Atemu laughed, gently patting his back as Grandpa got the door unlocked and opened. He opened the shop while Atemu sat at a table in the store, eating a donut. “Grandpa, can we play a game here?”

“What sort of game?”

“I dunno! You got a bajillion! Oh! Do you got one I haven’t played yet?”

The older man thought, hmmm... he had to work, but he supposed he could humor the new addition to their family and play a few games with him as he waited for customers. “Okay, how about we play... oooh! I’ve got a good one!” He reached up behind the counter, to the shelf where he kept the old, rare games he had collected over the years.

“So then, just when I thought I had gotten the best of him, freaking Mahado just up and gets me with a freezing spell! You can’t run away from a master magician when you break something of his.”

“Hehehe, I would imagine so! Did you replace his ink well?”

“Well, of course! Had to get him that nice ink t- hey Aibou!”

Yugi had walked into the game shop, four hours after he had left for the meeting, finding Atemu and Grandpa sitting at the play table they had in the shop for kids. The two of them were sitting there with a game mat on the table, and a few figurines. Looks like they were playing Monster World, that explains why they’re wearing make-shift wizard hats made out of paper.

“Hey you two, what are you up to?” Yugi smiled, walking over to them.

“Heh, Atemu and I have been playing games and such, it’s been a rather slow day so far here.” Grandpa smiled. “We’ve also been swapping stories! I told him about that trip I took with Arthur to the Amazon rain forest and I got bit on the butt by a piranha.”

“And I was just telling him about when I was messin’ with Mahado’s stuff and I Broke his writing set.” Atemu chuckled, picking up the dice. “Wanna play?”

“I’d love to, but I stopped by to get some stuff for work, gotta head back, Kaiba needs my help with something or whatever.” Yugi sighed, but smiled still. “Grandpa, do you think you can continue babysitting?”

“Of course! I’ve got plans on telling him about my trip to Turkey and when I Fell into a dig site.”

“Oooh, tell that to me when I finish my move!” Atemu grinned, shaking the dice in his hand.

Yugi looked at them, hmm... okay, maybe he can have Grandpa watch Atemu more often, especially if he’s gonna keep him entertained with old man stories and games.

#officialgrandpa #yugioh #atemu #atem #sugoroku mutou #yugi mutou #john's drabbles

23 notes · View notes

theironreaches · 7 years

Text

Pre-gen Characters

A friend who is going to be DMing for the first time with a group of new players asked me about where to find/how to make pre-generated characters for those players. I started writing this up for him, and then figured I would share it here as well. There are a few things that are great to get out of the way for the players and a few things that are good to let the players choose. I also dislike the order that the PHB suggests for character creation, preferring to have players select a class first, then their race instead. Class has a much larger influence on a character over the course of the game and players often have an idea of what they want their character to be able to do more than what race they might want to play.

Archetypes

It's best to cover the basic archetypes of fantasy and a balanced party with your pre-gens. The rogue, the warrior, the mage, the cleric. If you want you can widen out your archetypes (below are a few examples).

It's best to not have new players worry that much about their characters ability score spreads. Use the standard spread (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) and assign them as you see fit to the different archetypes. In my examples I’ve listed a suggested ability score spread (Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha) next to each archetype as well as skill selection and basic equipment. Feel free to switch out equipment of similar value.

Warriors

The Hunter. (13, 15, 14, 10, 12, 8) The Hunter is a wilderness warrior. They could be a scout, a woodsman, a bandit. They knew how to survive, move swiftly and stealthily, and strike from a distance. Ranger, outlander background, archery fighting style. Skills: athletics, survival, perception, stealth, nature, musical instrument, 1 language. Basic Equipment: Longbow and a quiver with 20 arrows, studded leather, 2 hand axes or longsword, explorer’s pack, A staff, a hunting trap, a trophy from an animal you killed, a set of traveler’s clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

The Soldier. (15, 13, 14, 10, 12, 8) The Soldier is a trained warrior. They could be a mercenary, a knight, a city guard, this archetype fits them all to some extent. They are skilled, all-around combatants. Fighter, soldier background, great weapon fighting style or protection fighting style. Skills: Athletics, intimidation, vehicles (land), gaming set (dice), insight, animal handling Equipment: chainmail, longsword and shield or greatsword, light crossbow and 20 bolts, explorer’s pack, An insignia of rank, a trophy taken from a fallen enemy (a dagger, broken blade, or piece of a banner), a set of bone dice or deck of cards, a set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

The Barbarian. (15, 13, 14, 8, 12, 10) The Barbarian is a primal warrior. They could be a brawler, a tribal warrior, a shock trooper. They embrace the fury of battle and eschew the formality of the soldier. Barbarian, outlander background. Skills: intimidation, perception, athletics, survival, musical instrument, 1 language Equipment: greataxe, four javelins, 2 hand axes, explorer’s pack, a staff, a hunting trap, a trophy from an animal you killed, a set of traveler’s clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

Rogues

The Thief. (10, 15, 12, 14, 13, 8) They could be a cutpurse, a dungeon delver, or an assassin. They are versatile, know how to get themselves out of a pinch, and deal with traps and locks. Rogue, criminal background. Skills: deception, stealth, thieves' tools, gaming set, perception, investigation, sleight of hand, acrobatics, athletics The Thief is a classic rogue. Equipment: Leather armor, 2 daggers, thieves’ tools, burglar’s pack, shortsword, light crossbow and 20 bolts, crowbar, a set of dark common clothes including a hood, and a belt pouch containing 15 gp

The Scoundrel. (8, 14, 10, 12, 13, 15) The Scoundrel is a silver-tongued rogue. They could be a spy, a smuggler, or a shady member of high society. Their weapons are words and deceit, they are skilled at convincing others. Rogue, charlatan background. Skills: deception, sleight of hand, disguise kit, forgery kit, persuasion, insight, investigation, stealth, thieves' tools Equipment: Studded leather armor, 2 daggers, thieves’ tools, explorer’s pack, rapier, 4 darts, disguise kit, set of fine clothes, tools of a con, a belt pouch containing 15 gp

Mage

The Scholar. (8, 12, 13, 15, 14, 10) The Scholar is a seeker of knowledge. They could be a quiet hermit, a bookish adept, or an ambitious apprentice. They are masters of arcane knowledge and history. Wizard, sage background. Skills: Arcana, History, Investigation, Religion, two languages. Equipment: quarterstaff, component pouch, scholar’s pack, spellbook, A bottle of black ink, a quill, a small knife, a letter from a dead colleague posing a question you have not yet been able to answer, a set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

The Warcaster. (12, 13, 14, 10, 8, 15) The Warcaster is a magical warrior. They could be an arcane soldier, an elemental sorcerer, or an aspect of a magical deity. Sorcerer, soldier background. Skills: Arcana, Athletics, Intimidation, Persuasion, vehicles (land), gaming set Equipment: light crossbow and 20 bolts, arcane focus, explorer’s pack, 2 daggers, An insignia of rank, a trophy taken from a fallen enemy (a dagger, broken blade, or piece of a banner), a set of bone dice or deck of cards, a set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

Cleric

The Healer. (10, 8, 13, 12, 15, 14) The Healer is a typical cleric. They could be a village healer, a field medic, or a begrudging hermit. They channel the positive divine, are exceptional healers, and are powerful against undead. Cleric Life domain, hermit background. Skills: Insight, History, Medicine, Religion, herbalism kit, 1 language Equipment: mace, leather armor, light crossbow and 20 bolts, shield, holy symbol, priests pack, a scroll case stuffed full of notes from your prayers, a winter blanket, a set of common clothes, an herbalism kit, and 5 gp

The War Priest. (13, 10, 14, 8, 15, 12) The War Priest is a fighting cleric. They can be holy warriors, champions of their gods, or divine soldiers. They are great allies healing and boosting their companions while smiting their enemies. Cleric War domain, soldier background. Skills: Athletics, Intimidation, Religion, Persuasion, vehicle (land), gaming set Equipment: warhammer, chain mail, shield, holy symbol, light crossbow and 20 bolts, explorers pack, An insignia of rank, a trophy taken from a fallen enemy (a dagger, broken blade, or piece of a banner), a set of bone dice or deck of cards, a set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp

Race and Gender

It's best to let players choose their archetype separately from their race and gender. This allows them to have a bit more personalization while keeping the more difficult decisions to a minimum (skill and ability selection). The players handbook has a great chart at the beginning showing the basic ability score modifiers by race on page 12.

Optional Rules

Another important thing for beginner players (and DMs) is to skip optional rules. They add complexity to the game that isn’t necessary to have a good time. The two big ones I would skip for first time players are multi-classing and feats.

#dungeons and dragons #dungeon masters #dm resources #d&d 5e #D&D #dm advice

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starsrshiney · 4 years

Text

Universe 1.1.1 Part 9- Weird Questions

Chax -> Anniey

SunMinerals: Hey, can you do me a favor?

HealthPotions: Depends on the favor.

SunMinerals: Nothing too bad. I just want to play a question and answer game in the main chat.

SunMinerals: But the second I suggest something I’ll get shot down.

HealthPotions: What questions?

SunMinerals: {link-100 questions no one ever asked}

HealthPotions: Most of these are fine, some are suspect, but all of them are distinctly Earthly rather ran Soconian

SunMinerals: I’ll let you know when I find a Socon with an internet.

HealthPotions: Kay

HealthPotions: How were you planning on running this anyway?

SunMinerals: {Link- custom dice roller}

SunMinerals: Roll the 13 sided for one of us, the 100 sided for a random question.

HealthPotions: Okay, yeah I’ll run this. Gimme a few minutes.

General Chat

IvyHearts: Okay everyone

IvyHearts: I already talked to Stars about this, but he wanted to give you all a say as well.

IvyHearts: We need to submit a team bonding activity for the month, so either we do one of the standard ones or we can play a question and answer game here on the chat now.

IvyHearts: Give me a thumbs up react on this post if you want to do the q&a game here.

[7 people reacted with ‘thumbs up’]

TeamCoach: How is this going to work?

IvyHearts: I have a list of odd questions and a couple of virtual dice. I’ll roll to see who gets what question.

TeamCoach: Okay, that seems fair.

[Briar has reacted with ‘thumbs up’ to Give me a thumbs up react on this post if you want to do the q&a game here.]

IvyHearts: Since I haven’t reacted, that’s 9/13 who are good with this.

IvyHearts: I’m guessing @HammerOfChallenge doesn’t care either way and @FrostLizard would prefer to do neither of them, but this is still a job we have so tough luck.

IvyHearts: Same to @LuxuryLightning and @GoodTwin

IvyHearts: I’ll just start rolling now.

IvyHearts: And hey, at least we start with the person who’s always an open book. @SexyRecon do you have any magazine subscriptions?

SexyRecon: No actual subscriptions, but I do pick up a couple of prank based mags when I see them on shelves.

HammerOfChallenge: That’s tamer than I expected.

SexyRecon: And a few AlChemistry based ones when they start boasting about new sunblock formulas.

ChemLab: D-don’t bother with that. I have discounted subsc-scriptions to all AlChemistry based magazines. I’ll leave the sunblock ones in th-the lab.

SexyRecon: Ooh, nice.

IvyHearts: Look at that, bonding already! Albeit between folks who share the lab.

IvyHearts: Anyways! @TeamCoach this one is obvious but tea or coffee?

TeamCoach: Tea.

GoggledBlade: You really should have re-rolled that one.

IvyHearts: That was a re-roll, the first one had something to do with Earth celebrities we don’t know.

TeamCoach: Ah

GoggledBlade: Ah

IvyHearts: I’ll modify this question. @GoggledBlade as a kid what did you dress up as for costume parties?

GoggledBlade: My folks had me dress up as historical Taroshan swordsmen when I went to those. Keep me connected to the culture and such.

StarTippedArrows: Were you even taking kendo or fencing when you did that?

GoggledBlade: Not formally, but mom did keep my and my sibs up with her family’s style before we could take actual classes.

IvyHearts: Let’s keep this ball rolling! @FrostLizard are you afraid of heights.

FrostLizard: No.

IvyHearts: I suppose that’s the best I’ll get. @GunsNSkulls did you ever get cosmetic surgery?

GunsNSkulls: Do wisdom teeth count?

IvyHearts: No.

GunsNSkulls: Then no

GoggledBlade: You needed to get your wisdom teeth out?

SexyRecon: If you’re going to say what I think you’re going to say, don’t.

StarTippedArrows: Taki, did your wisdom teeth grow in without incident?

GoggledBlade: Did no one else’s?

RufflesInFlight: Its pretty uncommon. My wisdom teeth never got out of my gums, so the dentists are keeping tabs on them.

ChemLab: Same here.

DancingButterfly: I only grew two- bottom left and top right.

StarTippedArrows: I know genetics is a wonky science but how did that happen

DancingButterfly: No idea, my mom and siblings had all four of theirs.

IvyHearts: Warning- this is one of the weirder questions. @RufflesInFlight did you ever poop in the woods?

HammerOfChallenge: Lachlan’s dirt, that is not enough of a warning.

RufflesInFlight: Between being part of a jack of all trades miniguild and a temple exploring archeologist? I’m sure quite a few of us have.

RufflesInFlight: But not me. I could always fly to a more suitable spot.

IvyHearts: Lucky you.

IvyHearts: Oh, I finally rolled myself. ‘Have I ever won a contest?’

IvyHearts: I haven’t. I entered a few during my school times, but its hard to win in contests here in Emplien without a bit of bribery, even if you’re part of the number 3 family.

ChemLab: That’s why I only d-did mail in contests for AlChemistry stuff while I was in sch-school.

GunsNSkulls: Oh Jin, I just now thought about how school woulda been for ya Von. How’d you do?

ChemLab: For the m-most part no one bothered me too much because they’d then h-have to deal with Anniey.

IvyHearts: Damn right. Also, after I graduated, I took us both to Asmeau to get our mage certifications.

ChemLab: So by the t-time I came back I was a certified mage, and the teachers were fond of me for being able to actually understand all their teaching.

ChemLab: Which meant despite the u-uptick of hostility everything was still fine at school.

IvyHearts: People were hostile to you after I left?

StarTippedArrows: I want names, particularly family names.

RufflesInFlight: I’ll take the full names.

IvyHearts: After they get those names, I want territory locations

FrostLizard: Give me all that information

ChemLab: C-calm down. All of you.

ChemLab: I still graduated as a mage and with the equivalent of two years of ec-extra education. One year of badly behaved peers was n-not even a bump on the road, relatively speaking.

SexyRecon: Wait, you graduated on time with the equivalent of two years?

SexyRecon: That beats my record where I took an extra year of education and graduated with the equivalent of two.

HammerOfChallenge: Didn’t we graduate at the same year? I took two years of extra blacksmithing education.

SexyRecon: I was officially part of the 919/921 class because I was born so late in the year, but graduated in 920.

GoggledBlade: Whoo class of 920! Even though I only did one year of my optional education instead of two.

IvyHearts: Okay lets not get into our graduating classes, lets move on with the game!

IvyHearts: @LuxuryLightning what is your least favorite show?

LuxuryLightning: There was this one show I saw just before I graduated. The main character was basically me with red hair.

LuxuryLightning: She had it all at the beginning of the movie, and ended up losing it all and ended up completely humiliated!

LuxuryLightning: I felt for her, truly. I hated everything about the show besides her.

IvyHearts: I’m gonna start pruning results now, try and get each of us to answer once.

SexyRecon: You’re taking a while

IvyHearts: I’m getting a lot of repeat results, including to the questions somehow.

IvyHearts: FINALLY! @HammerOfChallege do you sing in the shower?

HammerOfChallenge: No, I don’t

GoggledBlade: Liar

TeamCoach: Liar

GoodTwin: Liar

HammerOfChallenge: I’m not lying.

GoggledBlade: Mahn, dude, you sing every time we finish our PT

TeamCoach: It’s a mumble-singing, but its definitely not a hum.

HammerOfChallenge: . . . do I?

HammerOfChallenge: It’s not on purpose.

GoodTwin: I sang along with you once and you didn’t realize?

GoggledBlade: My ears still feel blessed from that shower

IvyHearts: Isn’t Aaron our second best singer, below Von?

TeamCoach: I think Mahn actually gives Aaron a run for his money.

IvyHearts: Huh.

IvyHearts: Anyways, @GoodTwin favorite type of fruit pie?

GoodTwin: My dad makes really good pear tarts, does that count?

LuxuryLightning: He really does, I’ve yet to find any pie or tart that compares.

StarTippedArrows: That sounds intriguing.

IvyHearts: It does. @ChemLab what kind of records do you have?

ChemLab: Just the o-ones you gave me as a gift. I listen to t-tapes more often.

SexyRecon: The Otturi language tapes right? The ones you sing along with when you’re in your element in the lab?

ChemLab: Yes.

IvyHearts: @DancingButterfly to our resident pink expert, do you think ok for guys to wear pink?

DancingButterfly: I mean, why can’t they?

SexyRecon: Anniey did say earlier this list references Earth things, and this is one of their gender roles/ restrictions/ whatever. Pink for girls and blue for boys.

DancingButterfly: Pink is just light red though?

RufflesInFlight: Girls get part of the red spectrum and boys get the whole of blue?

StarTippedArrows: Why are the Earths the way they are?

GoggledBlade: Is pink the opposite of blue somehow?

LuxuryLightning: They’re not even opposites on the color wheel, if that’s what they were trying to do. Blue’s opposite is orange, and pink being a part of red means its opposite would be in the greens!

IvyHearts: As fun as bashing Earth culture is, that’s probably not company approved bonding.

IvyHearts: @StarTippedArrows final question, do you count your steps as you walk?

StarTippedArrows: No, not really? I usually measure my runs by what landmarks I pass or make it to.

StarTippedArrows: Or if I have to use a gym treadmill, by time.

FrostLizard: Are we done now?

IvyHearts: Yeah, mom should accept this as a team bonding activity.

FrostLizard: Good

FrostLizard has logged out

#writing #socon universe 1.1.1 #team stars groupchat semi-au

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