#raksha writes stuff

[sloanescasebook]

Thoughts on 41-Taken in Vein

So, after posting it a few days ago, I thought I'd talk about my more recent chapter of CoSL...

And what a pain in the ass it was.

I mean, not really. I enjoyed writing it. The problem was I kept re-writing it.

Dracula and vampires were always a big thing for me, since I was a kid. My dad actually read me Dracula when I was like 7, I was a big fan of The Little Vampire and an old cartoon called the Ketchup Vampires. I even played a vampire at a theater camp production. So I had a lot of nostalgia for this topic.

I also have since read a lot more vampire novels--classics like Carmilla and newer stuff too. (I will say I tried Twilight when it came out at my high school...but I didn't really gel with it, I say politely). I'm a horror movie nerd so there's that too. So though the election, holidays, etc took a lot out of me, I was trying my best to get it out there.

I just had too many ideas.

I conceived this plot a long time ago, probably two years now, as a quick idea blurb in my idea's file. Originally, the main couple was going to be two girls--Lisa and Meena, who were both medical professionals. The story was still about a stalker but it would be Meena's former fiancee as she came from and Indian family that tried to arrange a marriage that she walked out on for Lisa. Like before, they'd both be a kind of blood drinking vampiric wesen--Lisa being a more straightforward bat-like vampire and Meena a Raksha, a blood drinking Indian creature.

But I realized I wanted a male gay couple. Mim and Jean play a big part, I've made allusions to Sloane's past girlfriend (who will be making an appearance one day soon...i hope), Gallan and her crush on Zima, and Dierdre and Victoria were a thing once. By contrast, I didn't have a lot of M/M couples. Kind of a surprise given my fanfiction start was chiefly Yaoi back on FF. Net...

Anyway, just making them guys wasn't doing it for me. So I played around and I made Misha and...Lucas. Yeah, Vaughn's name was originally Lucas, still to play on "MIna and Lucy". John or Joanna was going to be the ex turned stalker. But it still wasn't working.

Around this time, Microsoft Word pissed me off. I'd used it for years, figuring I was at least using it enough to make the price valid. Then they put AI in it. Not as an option, as an "included feature". Seeing "copilot" and it's tab annoyed me enough, but it also started asking EVERY NEW PARAGRAPH if i wanted to have Copilot work on it. I honestly did feel insulted. Then to add injury to my insult, I get a notice a week before my subscription (don't even get me started, I don't know why I put up with it all these years aside from fear of change) renewed they were going to HIKE MY SUB PRICE UP BECAUSE "OH, WE HAVE AI NOW SO IT'S WORTH MORE." For a feature I did not want and did not ask for and would rather never write again than use. Fuck you Microsoft. Even better, since my sub was through Best Buy (fuck them too) I tried to cancel online and it wouldn't let me log in. This felt planned. Unlucky for them, I'm angry enough to go 45 minutes to the nearest bestbuy and cancel it in person 2 days before the renewal. I was apparently refunded 22 cents. I've switched over to LIbre office and despite a learning curve and a bit of frustration with having a lot of perfectly normal words it doesn't know apparently, it's good.

So, I went back to writing. I brought in some Carmilla inspirations. Berta originally was going to be a bitchy, unprofessional nurse that had a crush on Lucas and was causing trouble for Misha, as a red herring who ends up dead. I liked that, especially her death scene, but it wasn't working for me.I kept playing around with who the stalker wanted, Misha or Lucas, and who the suspect was going to be. I started really messing up my timeline and events...So I started using Millinote to try and keep track of things. I was really starting to feel like this pic of Charlie Day

Finally, I think draft...6? Not full chapters mind you, usually about halfway on all of them before I started over or cut and pasted stuff around because something wasn't working or i got a new idea. Probably most of them are at least 25K...Finally, I made Roberta a vampire obsessed weird news girl because her last name, Swale, was the character in Dracula who tried to warn people something was wrong when the ship, The Demeter, docked with the crew gone. And ended up dead because of it. That actually started making a lot of other things fall into place--Misha's friends being killed, his past, why he's so paranoid, etc. I renamed Lucas "Vaughn" because it felt more contemporary while also having a very vampiric feel to it, and used Lussier for Misha's colleague's last name because it was like "Lucy".

I really liked the end result. I do wish I got to keep a bit of the drama at the hospital, but considering i was OVER A03's WORD LIMIT when i first tried to publish, I had to trim even more. Mostly I tried to streamline areas. I cut Sloane and Dierdre talking and moved it to the next chapter (:3) and I cut a few smaller parts...Including one part of Nick showing why people might find vampire romance novels enticing.

I've cut or put off other scenes before...I'm considering doing a "missing moments" doc with them and bits we didn't see but I inferred. If there's anything that's got you curious let me know. I could even make it...spicy. (I haven't done NSFW in so long though, omg...)

[cillyscribbles]

2, 4, 10, 19, 24 for raksha

thanks heaps for writing in 😊😊😊 my girl!!

2. what sort of music would they like? have you thought about what genres or bands do they lean towards? do they have a favorite song? man, i honestly think raksha would be fond of shit like ballads & love songs lmao. anything that's conventionally beautiful, moving or soulful. it doesn't align with her personality very well, but it would allow her to be a huge snob about "real music" and stuff LOL. (secretly listens to eurodance.)

4. how crafty/resourceful are they? crafty IS one of her three words, so, very! just because she's dedicated to being stupid about never asking anyone for anything doesn't mean she's pulling all her confidence out of her ass, hahah. a lot of it is indeed just coming from the fact she's very accustomed to standing up for herself and defending what she thinks and wants! she's a decent planner, and once she's decided she wants to do or get something, she's generally very straightforward about getting there.

10. if they wear jewelry, what kind? do they prefer silver or gold? do they have a favorite gem? no jewellery - raksha's a stray! but i imagine she'd quite like it, if something came along that wasn't a collar. she doesn't want to belong to anyone, and she'd loathe to let any human collar her. but if she could wear anything else, i think she'd be very fond of gold - it matches her eyes!

19. are they quick to anger? what sets them off? she is admittedly very irritable! but not particularly explosive with it, at least not at first. she goes through cold anger before hot anger, and one of the easiest ways to get her there is to try to humiliate her or insult her capabilities. smaller things like kittens getting on her nerves generally won't get an angry reaction - mostly because she can just always pick them up, put them down somewhere in front of an ant hill or something, and leave. teach independence young, LOL.

24. do they have any creative hobbies? (art, writing, music, etc) i don't think she's had much time for it! would probably think of most of them as a waste of time, too. alas, not for her is the appreciation of a sunset... but i think she might quite enjoy singing and dancing, and she might even be some good at them too. if only she were a jellicle cat!

[mediterraneanmenace]

Writing my Baldur's Gate 3 prequel since I need to introduce Azarel (real name being Raksha) to the readers and yeah I hope you guys like:

Enemies to lovers (and later on, lovers to enemies but one-sided 👀)

The internal conflict of a Paladin who finds herself married to a literal devil (and attracted, too)

An androgynous protagonist

Romance/angst and *perhaps* some spicy stuff??

Said devil being victim of his human half's "weakness": feelings. Going full down bad mode. Azarel knows which buttons to push. :^)

Azarel deciding to make the most out of her situation. :D

Significant height differences / literal theatre kids competing on who's more dramatic than the other

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

EDIT: You guys can have a little tease, as gift.

[swynlake-rp]

GO FOR THE GOLD!!! #TEAMSWYNLAKE!

OTMS

MUN: L Milo broke his curse, the Phillies are #1 in the league, and Lauren is killing it! We’ve loved to see all the big moves L is making lately! CHARACTER: EILONWY! We would just like to point out that this is the second year in a row Eilonwy received MULTIPLE nominations for June Character OTM! Yes, that’s right, the Summer Solstice arc is always that good. We’re so happy we get another year with the sunshine queen! THREAD: MY HEART IS A HAUNTED HOUSE THREADS! Members are riveted by this complex plot and all the moving pieces. Hauntings! Heartbreak! Sentient houses! This plot really has it all. Special shoutout to the Hauntley break-in thread where Gem fights the house— epic stuff! TASK: GEM’S QUEER AWAKENING! Props to C for creating an in-universe book! This was so creative and we love when people build out the world of SwynRP like this!

BOARD UPDATES 

None!

TASKS

POSTCARDS FROM YOU!: Make (or find) a graphic that represents a postcard your character has sent! Write the letter that they’re sending. This is totally open to turn into a multimedia thread, or a self-para moment. Like we always say, the rules are but guidelines! The minimum you need is a postcard and the words your character writes <3  GO FOR THE GOLD!: The Olympics kicks off this month! Write a self-para of your character doing a sport. Check out the list of Olympic sports for inspo! (600 words)

EVENTS

JULY 3 - 10: FAIRY FLOTILLA! Ahem! After a few hiccups… the Flotilla is here to usher in midsummer! Watch the talented fairies lead performances out on the lake! Canonically on July 6. 

JULY 10-17: SHANG’S HOUSEWARMING PARTY - Shang is celebrating his new home ownership by hosting a party! Everyone over 18 is welcome! Come on over and eat, drink, swim or dance the night away.

JULY 17 - 24: LANTERN FESTIVAL! A Swynlake tradition! Gather around the lake to send lanterns off into the evening sky with wishes written inside. Canonically on July 20. 

JULY 24 - JULY 31: CASINO NIGHT AT THE COURT OF MIRACLES! Come out to the Court of Miracles for a themed casino night! Want to get involved? Reach out to Jasper (Gigi) or Jessica (Lins) if your character wants to perform or be a dealer! Canonically on July 28. 

JULY 24 - 31: BOARD MEETING! A lot has happened this past month! Come out to Town Hall and talk to the Board! Canonically on July 25. 

BIRTHDAYS

Characters:

Fawn Tumbleclaw – July 5

Luisa Madrigal – July 6

Amity Blight – July 7

Angelo "Ronno" Spiridakos – July 12

Raksha Bhediya – July 13

Isaac Morey – July 21

Julieta Madrigal – July 23

Pepa Madrigal – July 23

Bruno Madrigal – July 23

Errol Woolf – July 25

Hercules Kouros – July 26

Benjamin Drakken – July 27

Luz Noceda – July 28

William "Bullseye" Stoddard – July 29

Tinker Bell – July 30

Al McWiggin – July 31

[tanukirou]

Oh My My! - a JotaKak fanfic

Originally posted on AO3, if you want to stop by and maybe give me a constructive comment I’d be super happy! 

https://archiveofourown.org/users/rakshapophis

Kakyoin desperately needs a haircut and only the best hairdresser will do. Luckily, he finds just the right man for the job.

Red strands of hair fell limp over his right eye, earning a defeated sigh from Kakyoin.

He had spent the past forty minutes in front of the bathroom mirror attempting to style his hair in its usual shape. But to no avail. The lenght had increased over the last months, completely ruining the flawless form and movement he desired. Not that his hair looked ugly, per se, it just fell flat, lacked any texture it previously had. It was quite bothersome.

At first he thought it could have something to do with some hair product he was using. A mousse, a pomade or even one of his specialty shampoos. Maybe it had expired or the formula had changed? He checked all the labels, checked the lot numbers and even consulted reviewers online to check if that was the case, but nothing came up. Everything was the same as usual. He had to admit, it was the haircut.

Staring over at his reflection, he ran a hand through the vivid strands. It felt soft as always, yet the shape was all wrong. The sight was almost unbearable for someone as conscious about his appearance as he was. The red locks he cherished so much were too long, almost reaching shoulder lenght. The layered look it sported had turned almost blunt with growth, making it look like a sad bob that got on Kakyoin’s nerves. Even his fringe did not escape from such terrible fate. It kept falling limply over his eye, no hair product in the world could fix the wavy lock in place, and oh if he hadn’t tried everything already. Even the slightly wavy texture of his gorgeous hair felt out of place with all of these flaws.

Kakyoin slammed the mousse container over the bathroom countertop. There was no way he could stand walking around looking like an unkempt hipster wannabe for much longer.

He had to get a haircut, soon.

After settling on putting his hair up in a half ponytail for the day, Kakyoin strided out of the bathroom confidently, taking a turn and walking into his bedroom. His eyes glanced over quickly at his bedside table, where his phone laid charging since the night before.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he picked up and unlocked his phone swiftly, looking through his contact list in search of an important number. As soon as the bright screen showed the desired contact, he tapped his finger over it without hesitation, bringing the device to his ear. It probably took less than thirty seconds for the call to get picked up, yet the dial tone did nothing to ease his impatience while he waited.

The tone ceased to be, and in its place, a very familiar voice greeted him.

“Bonjour, mon chér! Fancy hearing from you so early in the morning!” The man on the other side of the line spoke, his french accent ever so recognizable.

“Jean, I’m in desperate need of your help.”

“Oh? Noriaki Kakyoin needs my help? Who would’ve thought this day would come!” He laughed, and even though Kakyoin couldn’t see him, he could swear he was smirking.

“In any other occasion I would hang up on you, but I really am stuck in a complicated situation at the moment.” Kakyoin muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose. He really lacked the patience to deal with Polnareff’s antics this early in the morning, but he would have to put up with it for now. His good looks depended on it.

“Christ, Kak, you make it sound like you’re getting arrested for murder… wait, please tell me that’s not it, is it?”

“No you absolute moron, I didn’t murder anyone! I need help finding a hairdresser!” If his brows could furrow any further, they would probably merge onto one another.

“Oooooooh, you could’ve said so from the beginning! That’ll be easy as pie since I work at a hair salon, you know?”

“Why do you think I called you, genius?”

“No need to be snarky, dude…” He could practically hear the pout in Polnareff’s voice. “Anyways, I know quite a few great professionals, what exactly are you looking for in a hairdresser?”

“Precision. I need my hair to look as close to perfection as I can get it to be, so nothing but the best will suffice.” The redhead spoke with confidence, knowing exactly what he wanted out of the ordeal.

“Precision, huh? I think I know just the guy you want!”

“Fantastic! Now, if you could help me make an appointment with said guy…”

“Yeah, I was just gonna tell you about that…” Polnareff spoke almost sheepishly. “…the thing is, I’m almost sure his agenda is full.”

“Oh, it’s ok. It doesn’t have to be today, I can try to get an appointment for another day this week.”

“No, you don’t understand. I think his agenda is full for the next three months.”

Kakyoin froze at polnareff’s words. The call was completely silent for a moment, apart from the light static coming from the phone. He must have been joking. He had to wait three months for an appointment? Who the hell was this guy and just how amazing was he that he had no time on his schedule for the next three months?

“Uh, Kak? Everything ok?”

“What do you mean his agenda is full for the next three months?! What kind of miracle hairdresser is this?!”

“Dude, you have no idea! The guy is an absolute madman! I’ve been working at the same place as him for four months and i still can’t believe how amazing the dude is!” Polnareff exclaimed over the phone, voice filled with enthusiasm. Apparently, the man had to be exceptional for the frenchman to praise him so highly, knowing how much pride he took in his own hairstyling abilities.

“Define amazing, Jean.”

“I mean, his fingers move so fast, I can barely see what he’s doing sometimes! He works so damn fast but he also looks super elegant doing it, you know? And his haircuts always look exactly like what the client asks for, no matter what! It’s almost unbelievable how good he is!”

Well, now Kakyoin’s curiosity was most definitely piqued.

“After such high praise coming from you, I can only assume this guy is a genius.” Kakyoin noted with amusement, pushing a few lose strands of hair behind his ear.

“Trust me when I say he’s the best we have. Kind of a bummer he’s always busy, huh?”

“Indeed, I was hoping to get an appointment this week…” He mused, toying with part of his fringe that he left out of the ponytail.

Silence took over the call again, only a few seconds passing before Polnareff spoke up again with newfound enthusiasm.

“Dude, I could try to get you an appointment with him within the next two weeks. The dude’s kinda intimidating, so it’s not gonna be easy to convince him. I’ll try my best though, what do you say?”

Kakyoin found himself smiling for the first time that morning. Polnareff could be annoying and even a pain in the ass, but he was a genuinely good friend, and Kakyoin admired how loyal the french was to those he was close to.

“Have I ever told you how much I love you, Jean?”

“Aw, mercí beaucoup Kak, but I’m not really into guys. You’re still a handsome man though and I appreciate the sentiment.”

And as soon as the smile came, it faded.

“You completely ruined the moment. My respect for you? Gone.”

Polnareff laughed on the other end of the line. “Don’t be like that Kakyoin! I love you too dude! Don’t leave me-“

With the tap of a finger, the call was over, cutting Polnareff in the middle of his sentence. Kakyoin’s love for his friend only went so far until he got irritated.

A sigh escaped his lips in relief. Even if he could not get an appointment for the day, he could still count on his friend to find one in the next two weeks. And that was good enough.

After a brief glance at his phone’s clock, he deemed it was time to start heading to college, but not before making himself a cup of tea prior to leaving the apartment.

Just as Kakyoin left the building his last class of the day took place in, a message entered his phone.

Jean Pierre Polnareff: Luck is on your side, Cherry Boy! Your appointment is tomorrow at 17:45 with Jotaro Kujo, you know my workplace already.

Kakyoin was cheering on the inside, glad that his friend could be such a prestative person. However, he’d never let him know about that.

He quickly typed back a snarky answer, playing around with the frenchman.

Noriaki Kakyoin: I thought his agenda was full? ┐(‘～` )┌

The answer came mere seconds after.

Jean Pierre Polnareff: Well, let’s just say your good friend here is such a charming man that Jotaro couldn’t resist making a little exception on his schedule.

A smile came across his lips just like hours earlier, as he made his way across the campus towards his favorite café. What began as a bad morning, turned into quite the pleasant afternoon, the sky a nice shade of light blue and the spring sun shining brightly over town.

“Noriaki Kakyoin? Thank you for waiting, Jotaro will be with you in a moment.”

A soft voice called from his right, snapping him out of his thoughts. A blond woman stood beside where he sat, looking strangely stoic for someone with pristine make up and dressed completely in baby pink.

“Thank you, miss.” Kakyoin nodded, smiling politely at her.

The lady smiled softly at him before turning around and heading back to her station.

It felt like ages since he had last been to a beauty parlor, not to mention a fancy one like the one Polnareff worked at. Everything looked so modern and sleek, painted monochrome and decorated with streamlined furniture. He felt oddly out of place with his vividly colored hair and green cardigan, seeing how most other costumers looked as if they were ready for a red carpet photoshoot.

He wondered if this Jotaro guy looked just as fancy and pretentious as everyone else.

“You’re Noriaki Kakyoin, right?”

He almost jumped out of his skin as a deep voice called him from his right. Christ, what was with people speaking out of nowhere and scaring the ever living shit out of him today? As elegantly as possible, he got up and straightened up his clothes, turning around to face the source of the voice.

He did not expect to find a tall guy dressed in black standing there nonchalantly.

Alright, scratch that, a really tall guy with a perfectly sculpted figure and piercing blue eyes looking right at him.

Kakyoin couldn’t help but stare a bit. The man towered over him even as he stood, and Kakyoin was not a short person. He had to be over 6’4, Kakyoin thought, as he analyzed the figure before him in awe. The man’s height was not the only impressive thing about him, as one could not skip over how well defined his muscles were. Even with the black shirt on, one could tell the guy had rippling abs and hard pecs. His hair was jet black, kept in a pristine undercut and perfectly tousled. And his face, goodness, it looked like it had been sculpted by one of the renaissance era. Now that he thought of it, the man in his entirety looked like a renaissance sculpture. Perfectly symmetrical, manly features, high cheekbones and full lips that looked oh so delectable. Not to mention those gorgeous sea blue eyes that seemed to look right through him.

God, the guy was hot.

“Is everything ok?”

Oh goodness, he had spaced out while staring at the hot dude. Not one of his proudest moments, Kakyoin admited.

“Oh, yes, everything’s ok. I’m Kakyoin, yes.” He pretty much blurted out, feeling the heat rise up on his face. He probably looked like a damn fool.

“Good. I’m Jotaro Kujo, I’ll be taking care of you today.” The man, Jotaro, extended his hand as an invitation.

Kakyoin was screaming internally.

The hot guy was the hairdresser he had an appointment with.

The hot man was Jotaro Kujo.

Holy shit.

That could only end so well for him, taking notice on how he reacted seeing the man for the first time. Either he would make an absolute fool out of himself and never be able to show up at the parlor ever again, or he would try to ignore the fact that the modern rendition of Adonis would be running his hands through his hair for the next twenty minutes.

Kakyoin would try his best to avoid the first option.

“Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kujo. I’ve heard great things about your work.” He managed to regain his composure, nodding politely as he took Jotaro’s hand, exchanging a handshake with the man without looking nervous.

The man shook his head. “Just Jotaro is fine. And I’m glad you chose my services. Now, would you please follow me? We can discuss what you want after I wash your hair.”

Oh boy.

“Of course.” Kakyoin smiled, following Jotaro as he guided him towards the washing station.

They came to a halt at one of the vacant washing sinks, where Jotaro gestured for Kakyoin to take a seat at. Kakyoin gladly obliged, making himself as comfortable as possible in the otherwise not so comfortable seat. He had never liked the washing sinks much, they always made his neck feel stiff afterwards. He suddenly felt the warm touch of Jotaro’s hands at the base of his neck, sending a light shiver down his spine. He had placed a small towel around his shoulders. Of course, that’s to be expected.

What he had not expected was to feel Jotaro’s hands touching at his scalp this early on. Not even to wash his hair yet, just the plain sensation of his hands.

“Your hair color is natural, huh?” Jotaro noted, fingers running through the red locks. “Unusual to see naturally vibrant colors like this.”

They had barely begun and Kakyoin already felt like fainting.

“Yes, it has looked like this since I was born.” He spoke out, hoping his face was not as vividly colored as his hair was.

“It’s a nice color, suits you well.”

Oh boy.

“Your hair is very healthy, so we just have to wash it before cutting.” He finally moved his hands off Kakyoin’s scalp, moving away to get the shampoo. “You seem to take great care of your hair, that’s good.”

“I try to, I like looking my best.” Kakyoin declared with pride, as his self care routine was to be envied by anyone. His hair always got special treatment, after all.

Jotaro hummed in affirmation behind him, adjusting the temperature of the water prior to taking it to Kakyoin’s head. A mere moment later, the warm water coming from the shower head hit his scalp, along with the touch of Jotaro’s hand once again. The contact felt soothing, strong fingers massaging lightly at his scalp made his skin feel tingly in the most perfect way.

“Is the temperature fine like this?” Jotaro asked, massaging close to Kakyoin’s nape.

“It’s perfect.” He muttered, a soft smile on his lips as he took in the sensations created by the hairdresser’s touch.

Another pleased hum escaped Jotaro as he turned off the shower head, pouring a small ammount of shampoo on his palm before lathering up the roots of Kakyoin’s hair. His fingers moved with expertise, applying more pressure onto his scalp compared to earlier. Strong hands like Jotaro’s could easily bruise skin if enough pressure got applied, yet his touch was gentle, his fingertips rubbing at all the right spots. The warm, tinlgy sensation from earlier returned even more intensely, eliciting a pleased hum from Kakyoin. He felt pure bliss at the moment.

Sooner than Kakyoin had hoped, Jotaro removed his hands from his scalp once again, grabbing the shower head to rinse off the shampoo. The warm water came into contact with his head, along with the feather light touches of Jotaro’s hand to aid on the removal of any soapy residue.

The sound of the shower head turning off left Kakyoin slightly disappointed, as he craved much more of the fantastic sensation that Jotaro’s hands brought while massaging his scalp. With his hair washed and rinsed, Kakyoin was ready to get it cut. Jotaro brought a small towel to Kakyoin’s head, drying off the excess wetness of his hair before moving from the washing station.

“All done, now follow me to my station.” Jotaro nodded towards a more secluded room further away from the washing station.

Kakyoin nodded, following the hairdresser over to where magic seemed to take place.

The room was simple compared to the rest of the building. It was painted a dark grey, a few pictures of marine life in white frames scattered around the walls, creating an interesting contrast. In the center of the northernmost wall stood a big mirror, along with a cart full of hairstyling supplies and white styling chair.

“Take a seat, let’s talk about what you want.” Jotaro guided him towards the mirror, swinging the chair around so he could sit down.

Kakyoin happily obliged, settling down comfortably on the white leather seat.

“I was hoping to give it some movement and shape, no drastic changes.” He explained as Jotaro secured the styling cape over him. “The lenght has been bothering me lately, so shortening it would also be ideal. Specially the fringe.”

Jotaro hummed in approval, bringing a comb to Kakyoin’s wet hair. “Got it.”

The hairdresser grabbed a pair of scissors from the supply cart, studying Kakyoin’s head for what seemed like a mere second before beginning his work.

And boy, what a sight it was to see Jotaro work.

For the next ten minutes or so, Kakyoin could only observe in awe through the mirror’s reflection as Jotaro brought the scissors to his head, working as fast as a hurricane, yet smooth as silk. His blue eyes darted around, following every swift movement of his fingers over the redhead’s locks with expertise. The incessant sound of the blades cutting around was almost deafening, little strands of red hair fell around him over to the floor, seeming as light as feathers. It was surreal, to see such a strong person handle his hair with such gentleness. Every angle at which he cut seemed calculated with absolute precision.

Time passed by in a blur, and before he knew, the sound of the scissors snipping at hair ceased to be, only to be replaced by the loud blow of a hairdryer. The warm breeze gusted over his scalp and ears, the temperature just hot enough to be pleasant without burning at his skin. Jotaro’s hand ruffled the shorter strands on the back of his head, smoothing over the gradually longer ones framing his face, his touch just as warm as the breeze created by the hairdryer.

Once more, the sound ceased to be, this time replaced by silence. The hairdresser brought a comb to Kakyoin’s red locks, styling it to the desired shape with the aid of his free hand. His fingers pushed a few loose strands behind the redhead’s ear, letting out an approving hum.

“Done.” He declared, removing the styling cape from Kakyoin.

Oh.

Wow.

Kakyoin was rendered speechless by his reflected image.

He could barely believe how amazing his hair looked. That morning, he had stared at a sad excuse for a hairstyle in the mirror, but now, he felt like he was looking at the cover of a hair styling magazine.

Like he had asked, there was no drastic changes to his signature style, and even so, it felt completely new. His fringe was shorter than he had expected, yet it framed his pale face perfectly. The hair was slightly longer on the front, gradually getting shorter as it neared the back of his head. The layered look gave it shape and movement, just as he had desired.

It was beyond perfect.

“Final thoughts?”

Jotaro’s voice snapped him out of his trance, urging him to find the right words to thank the hairdresser for such a marvelous job.

“…wow.” He sighed, smiling widely at his own reflection. “It looks absolutely fantastic, I could kiss you right now.”

Oh.

Why the hell did he say that?

Kakyoin felt his face warm up, completely embarrassed by his own choice of words. He dared not look at his own reflection again, fearing his face looked just as red as his hair. Way to go, Kakyoin.

A low chuckle escaped Jotaro’s lips, surprising the still flustered redhead.

“I get that a lot. I’m happy you like it.” He smiled (oh god he smiled), placing a hand on Kakyoin’s shoulder.

His touch felt incredibily warm, even through the layers of Kakyoin’s clothes.

“Your reputation is well earned, Jotaro. This is expert work, how long have you been doing this?” He mused, running his own hands through his hair, appreciating the hairdresser’s handiwork.

“Six months.”

Kakyoin froze.

“…what?” He muttered, shocked at the revelation.

Surely, he must have been joking. There is no way someone could be so competent at such job after only six months. He looked for any signs that Jotaro was just pranking him.

He found none.

“Wait, you’re serious?” Kakyoin asked incredulous, eyes wide in surprise.

Jotaro nodded.

“I’ve started doing this six months ago. It was just a part time job at first, but people came to like my work, so I do this for a living now.”

Unbelievable.

“Part time job? Isn’t that a teenager thing?” Kakyoin furrowed his brows, curious about the situation at hand.

Jotaro smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. “How old do you think I am?”

“…you look to be around twenty six.”

His smirk widened. “I’m nineteen.”

What the actual fuck.

“You’re kidding me.”

“Nope.”

“We’re not the same age, I refuse to believe that!” Kakyoin laughed, shaking his head in denial.

The two men shared a laugh for a brief moment, amused by the little exchange that led to this. It was strange, how at ease Kakyoin felt around Jotaro, even without ever meeting the man prior to this encounter. It just felt natural. Maybe they were close in a past life? Who knows.

Having been seated for too long, Kakyoin rose from the styling chair, smoothing his hands over his cardigan.

“Well, I must say this has been quite the amusing experience.”

“I can say the same.” Jotaro smiled.

Christ almighty, that smile made him weak in the knees.

His visit to the hair salon was shorter than expected, but much more pleasant too. Yes, definitely much more pleasant than expected. Kakyoin took a mental note to thank Polnareff properly later as he followed Jotaro to the reception counter. Jotaro murmured something to the receptionist, earning an incredulous look from the lady, but it was soon replaced by an understanding smile as the hairdresser stared her down. Sometimes a simple look speaks more than words do, and that appeared to be the case with Jotaro most of the time. The brief interaction between him and the receptionist seemed to illustrate it well.

Kakyoin approached the counter, fishing out his wallet from within his bag.

“How much for the services?”

The lady slid a small bill towards him on the counter. The price was…lower than he had expected?

“…is this really the right price?”

“Mr. Kujo asked me to apply a discount of 25% on the regular price.”

How endearing.

“How nice of him.” Kakyoin noted, glancing over at Jotaro who suddenly took interest in some pamphlets that lay on the counter. A strangely adorable sight.

The redhead picked the right ammount of money from his wallet, placing it on the counter in front of the receptionist. She muttered a small ‘thank you’ as she put it away.

Having already paid for Jotaro’s wonderful services, he turned to face said man, bowing ever so slightly in a respectful gesture.

“Thank you for the amazing job, you’re a very talented professional.”

The cordial thanks appeared to have caught Jotaro off guard, as the tall man stood there with an incredulous look before taking action once again. Giving off a chuckle, he reached out to take Kakyoin’s hand into his own in a brief handshake.

“Always a pleasure to make my clients happy.”

Even if brief, it was a tender little moment. As they parted from their handshake, Jotaro signaled for him to wait for a second, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small card, handing it to Kakyoin.

“Here’s my contact, if you ever need my services again.”

The card was simple, stating Jotaro’s name and profession along with his phone number. A small, black star adorned the right corner of the paper rectangle.

Kakyoin nodded, offering a polite smile.

“You better believe I’ll be needing your services again in a near future.” He chuckled, waving goodbye to Jotaro as he stepped out of the building, the card held tightly in his left hand.

As he crossed the street, he was already planning his next trip to the hair salon.

[randommagicpotato]

Rewrite of the previous imagine because it sucked and 80% of it is outdated and the writing a bit boring tbh

(tried to write 2nd person POV so bear with me on this one I have no experience whatsoever in 2nd person POVs)

You were walking down the empty road to your home when you first met that mysterious doll. A friend of yours had made a mess and you helped them clean up till the late night. You felt annoyed having to stay up past the school time just to clean up the mess that could be avoided.

"But what can I do?" You asked yourself. "The past is the past. Still annoyed at them though."

You were walking alongside a river to your home when you heard something that appears to have fallen into the river.

You expected some clumsy wild animal when you checked. But instead, a doll, with a size of a 12 year old, who seemed to be broken. You are tempted to leave it alone. But when you looked at it on the face, you are shocked to see that it's eyes were still moving and was looking at you with a pitiful face.

"No. It's just a trick of light. I'm just too tired."

But that proved you wrong when it started to talk in a weak, broken voice.

"......a.....m...e..."

It was butchered. Yet somehow you understood. It is asking for help. You felt bad leaving it there to break down. And so you took a deep and started to carry the doll and the few broken parts.

A relative of yours have taught some stuff about mechanics and stuff, you should be able to help it. Right?

.

.

.

You've arrived at your home and went straight to your room to put the doll seated on the floor.

"can you hear me?" You asked.

The doll only looks at you with it's dead eyes and said nothing

It's really broken down huh.

"then, don't mind if I check some place of yours."

"...."

"...neck..." It spoke in the same broken tone.

"the neck?" You checked the neck part and surprise, surprise! There is a small compartment there which when you open it, leads to a round thing no bigger than your palm.

A strange little thing to see. Was this perhaps the puppet core? But you've never seen such design and this doll, or perhaps a puppet suited it better, was something that you never saw before either! You take note that you have to ask it when you managed to fix them.

The design is unique and a bit unsettling to look at. The triquetra symbol and a eye-like shape on the middle of it made you shiver a little.

You looked around the core and it seemed fine, but you can never be so sure.

You then looked at the puppet and started to look at the broken parts. It's not fatal, and you can still fix it.

And so you did.

Took you 2 weeks to fix the broken parts and polishing the material of the puppet.

"It's not made of wood... And it's not made of plastic materials... Perhaps it did indeed came from another world. The eyes may seem 'dead' or 'broken' but there's nothing wrong with it. Design of the pattern is creative though." You stood up and stretched a little.

"Well then, time to look at the core once more."

You looked at the core and started to observe, tapping certain places and shake it.

Nothing seemed to be out of place.

Time to try it out.

You inserted the core to the back of the neck and waited.

....

....

....

....

You gave up.

"there's nothing I can do. There's literally nothing wrong that I can see. Aaaaaaahhh! 2 weeks all for nothing!"

When you're about to leave the room for a fresh air, you were shocked by the fact the puppet was awake, with a confused expression on it's face.

"...who....are you..?" It spoke. The voice is working properly! You did it! Relieve spread in your body as you started to converse with the puppet

"my name is Yuu. I'm the one who fixed you."

"...you...?" Realizing your mistake, you immediately corrected yourself

"ah! Um, no, not the 'you' Yuu. Y-U-U."

"..that is.. a confusing name." It seemed to understand basic language, so now you don't have to teach it language like a baby now

"uh.. that is true.."

"...may I call you Raksha?" The puppet asked

"Raksha?"

"Protector. You were the one who.. saved me.. fixed me.."

Now that flatters you.

"sure. Raksha it is." You accepted that name. It sounds cool and you liked it enough.

But then a realization dawned on you. What's the puppet's name?

"now that you know my name, isn't it my turn to know your name?"

...

...

...

"uh.. do you even know your name?"

"...no?" Oh dear. This will be hard.

"do you remember where you came from?"

"not this place apparently." Decent humour. Nice.

"not even who created you?"

"..no?"

"...alright, can you like- can you try to remember some stuff? Surely you can do that right?"

"...it's... Not exactly my true name... But I have heard... I remembered people calling me 'Herscherr'. So perhaps... You can call me that."

"Her..hersh.. I'll.. call you Herry if that's okay?"

"..yes. that is fine."

"and now, what is your pronouns?"

"pronouns?"

"he/him, she/her, or they/them." Hopefully it knows about this.

"...he/him.. or they/them.." it seems to know. Great.

"he/they. Well, nice meeting you, Herry. I hope we get along from here on out."

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

I cannot write AAAAAAAAAAA

[authorkoushik]

Happy world book day: Importance of Scriptural Evidence in Hinduism

In  Indian philosophy, there are six types of Pramana among which three types are considered major ones and accepted by most of the schools of Indian philosophy  

 Pramana means that which yields knowledge (prama Karanam pramanam)

Pratyaksha is the first means of knowledge – pratyaksha means that which is seen with ones very own eyes, or in a broader sense, one’s perceptual evidence. Though this is the first in the list of means of knowledge, this is considered to be very limited. Because one’s own life is limited and also their personal experiences and perceptions, sometimes they can also be faulty.

Anumana is the second means of knowledge in the order  anumana means inference, logical guess or assumption. A classical example for anumana is if smoke is visible, then there may be fire which is burning.  Prakyaksha and anumana work hand in hand most of the times to arrive conclusions.

Upamāṇa pramana (comparison and analogy) is the next in the list of pramanas, for comparison and analogy also. The scriptural material plays a vital role.

Arthapatti (postulation, presumption) in next the list of pramanas, generally considered the weakest of the pramanas by most of the schools

Anupalabdi ( non-perception, negative/cognitive proof.) such as understanding that something is absent or something is not present

The last in the order is shabda pramana, (word or testimony) or textual evidence, in my opinion this is one of the greatest pramana, (means of knowledge) to understand or learn something, we depend largely on textual evidence, because it is the collected record of experiences, perceptions and inference of great ones, the experts, the real intellectuals and the wise.

Vedas (shruti) is the first and foremost and ultimate shabda pramana in hindu philosophy, smrutis, purana, itihasa, and other sacred scriptures also fall under this category.

 The Vedanta, Sankhya and yoga schools accept pratyaksha. Anumana, and shabda as the main and reliable pramanas among which shabda pramana is of foremost importance

 By this we can conclude that the testimonial evidence of word or textual evidence, of past or present reliable experts is the most proper and wide means of knowledge.

To acquire detailed knowledge on any matter, books are thus the best source, reading is the best practice.

 To learn and acquire knowledge on various topics of Hinduism please read, read more…

 To read the translations and commentaries of sacred scriptures of Hinduism  in simple English you can get my books from Amazon and other online book stores.

 List of all books published by me till now

  1.    Kali Santarana Upanishad: An Upanishad from Black Yajurveda which teaches the secret of the holy name of Rama and Krishna

2.    Durga Saptashloki: The Seven Verses from Devi Mahathmyam

3.    Durga Chandrakala Stuti: A Hymn on Durga by Appayya Deekshita: Text with Commentary

4.    Rudrashtakam: A Hymn from Ramacharitamanas by Goswami Tulasidas

5.    Kalabhairavashtakam: Eight Verses on Kalabhairava By Shankara Bhagavadpaada

6.    Sarasvati Ashtottara Shatanama Stotra: Hundred and Eight Names of Sarasvati

7.    Pragyavivardana Stotra - A Hymn from Rudrayamalam: Wisdom Giving Names of Kartikeya Translation Transliteration and Commentary

8.    Shiva Panchakshara Nakshatra Mala: A Hymn on Shiva with 27 Stanzas by Adi Shankara Bhagavadpaada

9.    Shadpadee Stotra: A Hymn on Vishnu by Adi Shankaracharya

10.    Ardhanarishvara Stotra: A Hymn on Unified Form of Shiva and Shakti by Shankara Bhagavadpaada

11.    Surya Dvadashanama Stotra

12.    Shiva Panchakshara Stotra

13.    Hundred and Eight Names of Bhairava

14.    Margabandhu Stotra: A Hymn on Margasahaya Shiva By Appayya Deekshita

15.    Ganesha Pancharatnam: A hymn on Ganesha by Shankara Bhagavadpada

16.    Ganesha Sahasranama - Thousand Names of Ganesha: Translated Based on Bhaskara Raya Makhin’s Khadyota Bhashya

17.    The Names of Sun God - a Hymn from Mahabharata: Suryashtottara Shatanama Stotra Transliteration, Translation and Commentary

18.    The Heart of Sun God: A Hymn from Valmiki Ramayana: Adithya Hrudaya Stotra - Its Transliteration and Translation

19.    Achyutashtakam: A Hymn on Lord Vishnu by Adi Shankaracharya

20.    Narayana Kavacham: From Srimad Bhagavata Purana

21.    Tales of Hanuman: Tales from the Eternal Life of Hanuman: 2

22.    Tales of Hanuman: Tales from the Eternal Life of Hanuman: 1

23.    Hanuman Chalisa Explained

24.    Shiva Manasa Pooja: Mental Worship Of Shiva

25.    Shiva Shadakshara Stotra: A Hymn on Shiva's Six Syllable Mantra

26.    Rama Raksha Stotra: A Shield Of Rama's Names

27.    Names of Shiva: Commentary on 108 Names of Shiva From Shiva Rahasya Khanda Based on Shiva Tatva Rahasya Of Neelakanta Deekshita

28.    Parts of the Body Sanskrit - English: Bilingual Early Learning & Easy Teaching Picture Dictionary: Very useful to understand the meaning of body parts when reciting kavacha stotras & doing anga pooja

29.    Shiva Namavali Ashtakam : An Octet of Shiva's Names by Shankara Bhagavadpaada

30.    The Name of Durga: Durga Nama Anushthana

31.    Heramba Upanishad

32.    Hanumad Bhujanga Stotra: A Hymn on Hanuman in Bhujanga Metre

33.    Durga Saptashloki: The Seven Verses from Devi Mahathmyam(tamil)

34.    Surya Dvadashanama Stotra (tamil)

35.    Durga nama japa vidhi (tamil)

36.    Who Should Start a Membership Business: The Stuff You Need to Know to Run a Winning Membership Business

37.    All That You Need to Know About Tumblr Blogs

38.    All That You Need to Know When Buying Domains

39.    19 PLUS TIPS FOR USING GMAIL TO THE FULLEST: GMAIL AUTOMATION AND USING THIRD PARTY TOOLS

41.    Canva Tips and Tricks Beyond The Limits

42.    Productivity Hacks for Entrepreneurs

43. Parts of the Body Sanskrit – Hindi - English: Triilingual Early Learning & Easy Teaching Picture Dictionary: Very useful to understand the meaning of body parts when reciting kavacha stotras & doing anga pooja

44. Partes Del Cuerpo Sánscrito - español: Diccionario de imágenes bilingüe de aprendizaje temprano y enseñanza fácil: Muy útil para comprender el significado ... cuerpo al recitar kavacha (parts of body sanskrit - spanish)

45. Rama Nama Note with Rama Nama Lekhana Vidhi: Rama-Nama Journal for Writing the Rama Name 100,000 Times Plain Design

46. Nrusimha Dvadashanama Stotram : Twelve Names of Narasimha

47. Lakshmi Ashtottara Shatanama Stotra - Hundred and Eight Names of Lakshmi: A Commentary Based on Lakshmi Tantra and Sri Sukta 

48. Les Parties du corps Sanskrit - Français: Dictionnaire bilingue illustré pour un apprentissage précoce et un enseignement facile (parts of body sanskrit French Edition)

 Grab your copies now from any of the below links

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B07DYT5M9M

 https://www.amazon.in/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B07DYT5M9M

 Happy world book day and Happy reading

[ljf613]

14, 15, 24 for end of year ask

14) a fic you didn’t expect to write 

Well..... anything from ATLA, really. My plan for fanfic this year was mostly to focus on my MLB fics, and maybe write some TDP stuff, but I don’t think I’ve written anything for either of those fandoms since June. 

But my most surprising fic was probably The Waterfall Effect-- that one’s actually a fanfic of another fanfic, which is something I never thought I’d write. But then I read this really long, amazingly well-written fic, and I couldn’t stop thinking about the way that writer wrote a certain (very) minor plot thread (more of a two second conversation, really) that I desperately wanted follow up for, and next thing I knew I was writing my own sequel fic. I ended up writing a nearly 9k word long fic in twenty-four hours, which is a) the most I’ve ever written in such a short period of time, b) my longest fic to date, and, c) the longest completed story I have ever written, fanfic or original work. 

15) something you learned this year 

That is a very good question. I learned lots of things this year, but if we’re sticking with fanfic/fandom related topics-- this year I learnt that just because I don’t agree with a particular ship, or have any interest in writing it, does not mean that there aren’t plenty of well-written fics-- that happen to include that ship-- worth reading. 

I also learnt that it’s okay to have multiple ships for the same character, or say, “I don’t like this ship except for in this one very specific circumstance.” 

24) favorite fic you read this year 

You really are coming at me with the hard ones, aren’t you Soozen? I have such a hard time picking my favorite anything, let alone in a topic I spend so much time immersed in. Let’s go with top four? (In four different fandoms, in no particular order.) 

Avatar: The Last Airbender -  the sun don’t shine underground of the salt and ashes series from @ultranos​ and @raksha-the-demon​. I’m obsessed with ultranos’s take on Azula, and how much thought, care, and worldbuilding was put into this story-- and Raksha’s oneshots tie in very well. 

Miraculous Ladybug -  Last Wishes by @kasienda​. This fic actually came out last year, and I’m pretty sure I did read it when it first came out, but I was reading so much MLB fanfic at the time that I didn’t take the time to savor this one the way it was meant be appreciated. I rediscovered it while I was going through my history, read it slowly and carefully, and I just felt my heart break as I did. It’s such a tragically beautiful story. (On a related note, Kasienda is actually one of my betas, and I actually didn’t notice that her name was literally right there at the top of the fic until after I finished it. So then of course I had to go back to her and be like, “Your writing is too amazing, I’m not sure I’m qualified to even speak to you, let alone get your input on my little old stories.” If you’re reading this, Kasienda, you’re the actual best, thank you so much for all your advice!) 

Magi: Labyrinth of Magic -  What Comes Around by Vathara. This is the fic I mentioned earlier, the one that inspired The Waterfall Effect. It’s an older fic, but it’s one of the few long, completed, well-written fics in this fandom, and it was good enough to inspire me to want to write my own sequel.

Harry Potter -  Hermione Granger and the Intended Vessels by Shawna Canon. This is a much older fic, and is for a ship I have never liked and would never have considered reading-- except that I’d been reading some of Shawna’s other fics and knew she had a talent for writing believable and intriguing stories out of the strangest of premises. 

THIS is the the fic that got me to the aforementioned conclusion that I can enjoy stories that aren’t for ships I generally prefer. Without it, I wouldn’t have read half of the amazing, well-written stories I did this year. (And even after all that, I still don’t like this ship. It’s that “except in this one very specific circumstance” ship I mentioned earlier.)

[blahblahblippyblah]

The Magic of Dust

Also follow on Ao3

The story of the Marauders as they go through all 7 years at Hogwarts. However this take place in a universe where your soul manifests as a daemon. Which is a magical animal that is apart of you and cannot be separated from you.

For those who did not read His Dark Materials, daemons can transform between different animal representations when you are young, but will eventually find a final form when you grow up.

Daemons usually express what you are feeling deep down and are extensions of the people they are tied to.

******************

Sirius

“MOOOOOTHEEERRRRRR SIRIUS IS DOING IT AGAIN!”

Sirius heard his brother Regulus yell as he ran down the stairs towards the day room to fetch mother. Tattle tale he thought to himself.

“Hurry up before she comes, at least if you’re at the bottom you can deny it” Puddles his daemon said slithering from his arm to the banister. Puddles was currently a King Snake and his red band stood out in great contrast to the dusty green and dark black wood that made up the dingy dark stairwell of the Nobel and Most Ancient house of Black.

“Ok” Sirius said and he swung his leg up over the handrail and took a deep breath. He looked down the 5 stories of twisting staircases, It looked higher when he was perched on the edge. He steadied himself and then pushed off sliding down in circles as the staircase twisted magically to keep him from turning too sharp and flying off at one of the landings. Puddles slithered down the banister after him laughing as he went. He managed to pick up more sped then he anticipated and by the time he got to the last floor he couldn’t stop himself.

“SLOW DOWN!” Puddles yelled turning into a small fish crow to fly down after him faster.

Too late Sirius thought before he flew of the end and rolled into the hallway scraping his back across the carpet. Sirius then collapsed sprawled out on the floor. Man, that was a rush, totally worth the bruise. Puddles landed ontop of his chest and instantly turned into a fluffy back dog tail wagging furiously.

“That was awesome. Why don’t we do that to come downstairs everyday?” Puddles said.

Sirius was about to reply exactly why they didn’t when he heard the unmistakable sound of clacking heels heading towards them. The person who was the exact reason he didn’t do it every morning. Sirius jumped up quickly trying to look nonchalant and bent down to pick up Puddles who on que turned back into a King Snake and slithered up his sleeve just in time for Regulus and his mother to turn the corner.

“Hello Mother. I was… ummm… Just headed upstairs to change for supper” Sirius said trying to control his breathing so it wouldn’t sound like he was panting.

“Where is Pudicitiam?” His mother demanded. Pudicitiam was the name his parents had given his daemon when he first appeared when Sirius was 4 and a half. Pudicitiam meant ‘Pure’, something his parents had chosen because of a the Black family motto ‘Toujours Pur’. Sirius hated the name and the motto. He didn’t fall for the nonsense that pureblood were superior like he was constantly told. He also didn’t appreciate the Black family tradition of parents naming both their children and their daemons. As far as he knew that tradition was pure Black.

Walburga regarded him up and down. She was a tall thin women with a thick dark dress that stretched to the floor with long sleeves and a turtleneck that went all the way up to her chin. Her dark hair was pulled back tight into a high bun. Her presence was haunting and intimidating. It was also exasperated by the King Cobra daemon that slithered up beside her and hissed at him in displeasure. Sirius held out his arm and Puddles slithered out slowly keeping cautious eyes on Insignus, his mother’s Cobra. Having not caught him in the act she didn’t seem to have much to yell at him about.

Snakes were commonly the daemons of pure blood families. That tradition was common across Europe. Sirius was told ever since his daemon appeared that snake daemons signified superiority, intelligence and power. The greatest wizards of all time, Salazar Slytherin, Merlin, Grindelwald, The Minister for Magic, and anyone who was of any importance all had snake daemons. Stories even said Salazar Slytherins’ daemon was a Basilisk the most powerful snake of all. So from a very young age his parents made sure his daemon stayed as a snake, because a Black heir with anything but a snake for a daemon would be disgraceful.

Unfortunately Puddles hated staying as a snake, and whenever he was alone Puddle would usually transform into a small shaggy black dog. A few times when he got upset or angry Puddles would change without notice and his mother would get angry and usually punish him, especially is company was around.

“Very well, go wash up and put on some nicer clothes. Uncle Cygnus and the girls are coming for dinner to celebrate you going off to school tomorrow.”

And with that dismissal Sirius quickly as he could without running scurried up the stairs.

He didn’t notice until he got to the second landing that Regulus was following him into his room.

Sirius let him in, closed the door then turned on him.

“Why do you always have to run to mother?”

“You could have hurt yourself” Regulus said crossing his arms in anger. Sirius saw Nobella Regulus’ Smooth greens snake daemon poke his head out of Regulus’ collar tongue out sensing the air. She then whispered something in his ear and Regulus made a scrunched face.

“I’m sorry, I’m just upset you are leaving tomorrow, and I’m going to be all alone” Regulus said with a bit of a whine.

Sirius rolled his eyes.

“You won’t be alone. I’ll write to you everyday. And then next year you’ll be coming with me.”

Regulus looked at his feet but stayed quiet as if he had no retort.

“Come on, you can wear my favorite velvet robes to dinner. I’ll ever tie your tie” Sirius said reaching out to pull Regulus to his closet to try and cheer him up. As much as Regulus annoyed him he couldn’t stand to see his baby brother upset.

He would miss Regulus but he was too excited to go to Hogwarts to saying much else. He instead spent the rest of the night playing pranks on Bella and Cissy to keep Regulus smiling. Hopefully that would make up for it.

James

“James stop bouncing like that”

James’ mother scolded him as he stared up in awe at the glistening maroon train in front of him spilling steam onto the platform. Students and parents were running around greeting one another, pulling trunks onto the train and hugging their parent’s goodbye. Beside him Bahaadur was impatiently stepping in spot like he couldn’t wait to get on the train. James reached down and patted his back to calm him. His golden fur was soft to the touch. Today Bahaadur was a lion, and although he didn’t have a mane James thought he looked impressive non the less. He was proud of his daemon, when he was close and excited it made him feel 10 times more confident.

His mom knelt down in front of him. “Did you pack your extra jumper?”

“Yes”

“Your extra trainers?”

“Yes”

“Your extra set of quills and ink?”

“ummmmm… maybe” James said with an innocent smile.

His mom tutted at him.

“Don’t worry we’ll send them along in the mail” She said pulling him into a hug.

James blushed feeling embarrassed but hugged her back. She smelled of spices and freshly made bread. Beside him Sahaanubhooti (or Hooti for short) his moms swan daemon place her head on Bahaadur’s back in a farewell. When they finally broke apart his father came up and clapped him on the shoulder.

“You make us proud son.” Then he bent down and hugged him too. Raksha his tiger daemon then took his turn nuzzling into Bahaadur in his own farewell. When he stood up he said “The house is going to be so quiet with you gone.”

His mother laughed at that. “The elves will be bored with all the idle time.”

The train whistle blew, and the crowd stated forward.

“Oh you better hurry or you’ll miss the train” His father said guiding him forward.

James got onto the train and his father levitated his trunk in after him.

“Make sure to write at least once a week” His mother called waving.

“And stay out of trouble.” His father called.

And with that the train pulled out of the station. And the last view James had of his parents was them waving to him on the steamy platform.

Now by himself in the busy train hallway James was feeling a little worried. He had never been apart from his parents for more than 24 hours and now he was on his own. Bahaadur was now in his young stag form and his legs wobbled a little, which to James showed he too was worried. Bahaadur leaned against his leg either to comfort him or to comfort himself. Either way James appreciated the gesture.

James looked down at Bahaadur and Bahaadur looked up at him and together they said “ Maybe we should find some first years to share a trolley with?”

Sirius

After Creature the Black family house elf came back from bringing his trunk on board Sirius ran onto the train as fast as he could. He heard his mom calling after him but Sirius was so close to freedom that he couldn’t hold himself back. The only thing he heard was his mother shouting that he should write home before the end of the week and to remember not to consort with halfbloods. He also heard his father say something along the lines of coming home for Christmas, but both things he promptly ignored. He took off down the train corridor away from the carriage he knew Creature left his stuff, the same carriage his cousins would soon be coming to sit in. Sirius didn’t want to be around when they got on or he might get stuck with them the whole train ride. He made it through 2 carriages before the train started moving, by the third it was full steam ahead and the crowd who were waving out the windows started to disperse. When he got to the 3 carriage he was full running through the halls dodging people. Puddles was running beside him now in his black dog form which he changed into once they were out of sight of any Black family members, jumping over trunks and weaving between legs to keep up with Sirius.

He was almost to the door to the last train car when he accidently lost his footing a bit and slammed into someone, sending them both tumbling.

“BLOODY HELL!” The person shouted as he collided with him.

“Shit, Sorry mate” Sirius said quickly getting back up and offering the stranger his hand to help him up.

The guy looked his age. He had dark brown skin and spiky messy black hair and round glasses on. The guy looked both confused and irritated but took his hand none the less and Sirius helped him up.

“Sorry” He said again. “I was just trying to get away from my cousins.”

“No problem” The boy said. “You a first year?”

“Ya, you?”

“Ya. I’m James, James Potter, and this is Bahaadur” He said gesturing to the young stag standing beside him.

Puddles walked up to Bahaadur and sniffed at him, apparently, he liked what he smelled because he lowered his front and began wagging his tail like he wanted to play. Puddle never took to anyone’s daemon so quick before, so Sirius took that as a good sign. Plus, he knew the name Potter. His mother said the Potters were blood traitors, but Sirius knew enough about the intensive pureblood family tree he was forced to memorize to know the Potters were still pure blooded. So technically he was still obeying his mother’s orders.

“I’m Sirius, Sirius Black.” Sirius said offering his hand out for a shake. “And this is ummm….”

Sirius was about to say Puddles, but knew that would sound stupid and thus make him look stupid. But he wasn’t about to call Puddles Pudicitiam either, since then he would look super stupid as well as a prat. Quickly he tried to think of a name.

“Uhh. This is Fidèlami”

“Cool. Umm if you’re a Black why is your daemon a dog?”

“Oh ummmmm” Sirius rubbed the back of his head. “I’m not really fond of snakes. Mother hates when ummm Fidèlami looks like this, but she isn’t here so…” Sirius trailed off unsure what to say.

“No problem. I hate snaked too” James said scrunching his nose. “Anyway let’s find a car no point hanging around in the hallway”

Sirius followed James back into the very last cart and they searched for an empty car. They were all full except the very last one which had 4 people inside with two spare seats left. The four people inside looked about their age so James and him decided to go in.

Remus

Remus was so nervous he could barely hear to train whistle blow from the platform. He only got on just in time when his mom let him go from a big long hug and his father quickly ran him to the train to get one just in time. Once alone Remus went straight to the very back compartment. He was hoping he could stay solitary so as to not run into anyone. He had never been around any wizards, or muggle, let alone anyone his age. His parents kept him at home not only to keep him safe and secret, but also for the safety of others.

Remus understood why they did it. He was dangerous. Remus was a werewolf, and if anyone found out he would be in big trouble. Not only could he hurt someone if he got loose on a full moon, but the ministry would also take him away from his family to love under more ‘secure’ conditions. Remus didn’t know what these conditions were, but he really didn’t want to find out. The only thing worse than being taken away to a more ‘secure’ place would be if he accidentally hurt someone during the full moon. Then he would be ‘put down’, at least that’s what the ministry called it. So, Remus made the decision to take his father’s advice and stay away from others, and not get too close to anyone. If someone figured out what he was they would tell someone, then he would be in a lot of trouble, and Professor Dumbledore would get into trouble as well.

Remus never thought he would be able to attend Hogwarts. And if it wasn’t for Dumbledore he wouldn’t. He remembered when Dumbledore came to his house to give him his letter. His parents were so scared, they were especially scared when they found out Dumbledore knew what he was. But it turned out Dumbledore didn’t care. He offered Remus a place in his school for magic and reassure both him and his parents Remus would be safe. He would have a safe place to transform, a hospital to spend his days in after transforming and a matron to help heal him. It seemed too good to be true, yet here he was on his way to school. Remus really didn’t want to mess this up.

He sat by himself with Ileuad with daemon in his lap, gently petting her as he read his copy of Hogwarts: A History. She was currently in her Cotton Tail Rabbit form, which she stayed in most of the time. Having her close and warm against him helped calm his nerves. Ileuad was usually a quiet daemon, but today she was eerily quiet. Remus though this probably had to do with the fact they were both very scared for what lied ahead. So to calm his nerves he pulled out a book and began to read occasionally reading out cool facts to her. She simply nodded and nuzzled in closer to his chest.

Unfortunately shortly after he settled in 3 people had joined the compartment. A small Red head with bright green eyes and a mourning dove daemon on her shoulder. A think long nosed kid with dark greasy hair and tattered robes just like Remus’ with a small brown bat daemon clinging to his collar, and a bring blonde chubby boy with pink cheeks and blue eyes with a. chubby racoon daemon. They quickly introduced themselves as Lily, Severus, and Peter, and their daemons, Curant, Potio, and Aspecta, before Remus smiled and went back to his reading. However, he noticed Ileuad secretly listening to their conversation seemingly curious as Remus continued reading.

'This is fine. They mind their business ill mind mine and it’ll be perfectly ok.' Remus thought.

He just got to a chapter on the founders when the compartment door slammed open. The boy named Peter jumped at the loud crash, but Severus and Lily continued on with their heated conversation. Remus glanced over his book and the two boys took their seats and introduced themselves to Peter. The boy beside him was named James and his deer daemon was named Bahaadur. James had Messy black hair, that he kept making more messy by running his hand through it, and a mischievous smile that looked like he was ready to set something to explode. The by who sat down beside Peter also had Black hair, but his was longer and well groomed, pulled back with a black silk ribbon. His eyes were also grey not brown like James’. His name was Sirius Black, and his furry black dog daemon was named Fidèlami or Fid for short apparently They both wore expensive looking robes that weren’t Hogwarts issued meaning they were both probably from rich wizarding families. Peter eagerly started talking with them. Remus went back to his book.

He finished the chapter on the brief history of the founders and started a chapter on the magical architecture of Hogwarts.

'The grand staircase of Hogwarts contains 52 sets of moving staircases which provide access to the 13 floors of the castle. 54 sets on Wednesdays, and 50 during lunar eclipses. It is unknown who initially charmed the staircases to move of their own free will, however many historical documents rumoured is was the founder Rowena Ravenclaw who initially magicked them to life. There is currently no way to determine the pattern in which the staircases may move'. Remus read.

He was however distracted when the boy beside him suddenly seemed to shout at the greasy big nosed boy .

“Why would you want to be in Slytherin. Who wants to be a dirty great snake”

The greasy hair boy turned slowly to face James, his face was blank but his eyes seemed to fill with hate.

Ileuda discreetly nudged him to look at James who’s daemon was now the form of a lion who was posed aggressively on the set next to him staring at Severus and his daemon who’s daemon had changed into a snake now slowly circling his upper arm hissing as Snape replied back in a cold tone.

“Let me guess. You think you’ll be a Gryfindor.”

“I don’t think I know. Only brave and daring people get into Gryfindor”

“Not to mention stupid and foolhardy” Severus said with a sneer.

James stood up so quickly Remus almost dropped his book to wrap his arms around Ileuda. But Sirius stood up too and put his hand on James’s chest.

“He’s not worth it. Plus if yu hit him your fist would just get covered in grease” Sirius said pushing James back a little. But Remus noticed that although Sirius’ voice was talking James down his Daemon’s hair was standing on end and he was growling and baring his teeth at Severus.

“Leave Severus alone you prats” The girl named Lily said standing up.

“Oooooh getting your girlfriend to defend you Snivellous” Sirius taunted.

Lilt ignored this and grabbed Severus’ hand. “Come on, let’s find another compartment. Maybe one with better smelling people in it” And she pulled Severus out of the compartment after her.

Once gone both James and Sirius sat back down. James huffed out seemingly irritated and Sirius laughed a bit like a mad man. Soon the car fell silent again.

After a few second Peter broke the silence.

“So we know what house James want to get into. What about you Sirius?”

[the-lost-lights]

Beast Wars: More than Meets the Eye AU Special: Megatron Origins

A little world-building stuff for Beast Wars: More than Meets the Eye I’ve made during a little chat with yes-i-write-fanfiction.

Premise: since I wasn’t unsure of which Megatron use for this AU, I decided to use 3 different Megatrons (technically one of them isn’t a Megatron but his original toy was a Megatron toy so he technically counts) and then I spent 2 days to make a decent backstory to everyone of them. By the way, I took some ideas from another AU of mine that one day will post for making the backstory of the last one and part of the second.

1)RiD2001 Megatron: the one closer to the IDW phase 2 version. Originally a low level factory worker called Gigatron of the Predacon faction, he found a book written by the infamous pro-decepticon sustainer Raksha that talked about Megatron and how he wanted to make a better society by deposing the “evil” Autobots. He was so inspired that he founded a group called the “Predacon Rights Movement” and began to manifest in a pacific way, with good success. Soon, the group began famous and grow quickly, causing the Maximal Council to become worried. So they decided to make the mistake of repressing them with violence, disperding the manifestations with violence and arresting the bots who participated at them. He then decided to train the members of the Predacon Rights Movement in order to make sure that they could defend themselves and, as a sign of rebellion against the Maximal, freed the prisoners of Garrus-1, many of which were members of his group. This caused most of the Predacons, and even some Maximals, to side with Megatron, starting the Maximal-Predacon War. The Predacons, less skilled at fighting and poorly armed, were losing fast, until the Battle of Kaon: the Wrecker leader Big Convoy and Megatron fought for the fate of the city and the Predacons rebels. The battle finished with Megatron winning and forcing the Wreckers to escape with heavy losses, but this victory was a pyrrhic one: many Predacons died, the city was destroyed and Megatron fell in coma due to the injuries, beginning the fall of the Predacons. Some millennia later, during the Blendtrons attack of Cybertron, a group of Predacons and Maximal sent by Terrorsaur found the place where he was hidden and, thanks to some experimental technology, he was resurrected, although he became mostly white. Confused by the long coma, not informed of what happened after the Battle of Kaon but still determined to defend his planet, he fought against the menace and helped Lio Prime to obtain victory. Then he discovered what happened to his movement after his coma and was arrested for having started the war that ravaged Cybertron and the universe. Even if he begged to be killed for what his action caused, Lio Prime decided to give him another chance letting him board the Lost Light as a crew member. Now going by his old name Gigatron, he reluctantly helps Cheetor in his quest for the Knights of Cybertron. He knows that almost everyone hates him for being the responsible of the war, and he tried to kill himself more than once, but his loyal follower Inferno still defends him and tries to help him to cope with his depression.

2)BW Megatron: once known as Gnashteeth. A mix of Beast Wars Uprising Megatron, the main Beast Wars Megatron and IDW Shockwave. Megatron the 2nd is violent, aggressive, lacks empathy and considers all his soldiers as expendables. Deep down however, he’s just a scared and abused mech who was stuck to a low job as a worker in an energon plant and when tried to change his life selling some of it in the black market he was beaten by the criminal leader Cryotek and his goons, who then told him that he will always be a nobody. This caused everything to go wrong for him and the whole universe. He started to hate everyone and decided that, in order to become someone, he needed to sacrifice everyone else. So he started to manipulate various bots, becoming in a short time not only the ruler of the cybertronian underworld, killing the leaders of the various mobs and taking control of them (including the one of Cryotek), but also the principal financer of the Predacon Rights Movement. When Megatron went into coma, he took the leadership and the name of the previous leader, becoming Megatron the 2nd. He then forced the Predacons to commit more and more acts of violence with the objective of ruling Cybertron. His tyrannical rule and the internal fractures of his faction caused him to lose progressively the control of the Predacons, until a Starscream-possessed Terrorsaur managed to defeat him and take the leadership of the group, exiling him on an uninhabited planet with the company of a diagnostic drone. Unfortunately, the planet wasn’t uninhabited as everyone believed, but instead was home of Destructons, Transformers-like machines that hated all the living beings and were planning on unleashing an artificial virus on the galaxy. Megatron was exposed to one of these viruses, the Vehicon Virus, that should have turned him into a zombie-like creature that mindlessly obeyed their order, but managed to maintain his mind and escape, decided to use the virus to finally rule all the universe. He first infected all the remaining bots on Cybertron and then sent them to some planets, beginning the Vehicon Apocalypse. As his Vehicon Empire expanded and became stronger, he slowly started to lose his mind due to the effects of the virus and his isolation (being the only sentient being on a planet of drones isn’t a good thing for a broken and unstable mind), and this got worse when the Oracle started assisting his enemies in order to bring him down. He made some generals for his army but they either betrayed him of died fighting Galvatron, who decided to kill him and take control of his army in order to destroy the galaxy. Megatron managed to win against Galvatron, but this caused his empire to fall: without a commander, the army of Galvatron collapsed and the Maximal and most of the Predacons united their forces in order to defeat the Vehicons. Desperate, he merged his body mutated with the virus with a copy of Fortress Maximus body and personally tried to destroy the enemy army. The war finished when Optimus Primal dropped himself inside the core of Cybertron with him, reformatting the planet into a techno-organic paradise and eliminating all the Vehicons. while he was falling, the Oracle showed at him his entire life, forcing him to realize the gravity of his actions. And for the first time of his life, he regretted what he did. Because of this, the Oracle offered at him the chance of starting again, albeit with no memory of his past and thus the risk of making the same mistakes. He accepted and, after his death, his spark was saved and he was reborn as the hot headed T-Wrecks, living with his mentor, the renegade Fuzor Noble Savage, and the enigmatic Optimus Minor. He now lives a happy life, but he has occasionally visions of an event called the “Omega Point”...

3)BW2 Megastorm: younger brother of Galvatron, he was the second in command of the unfortunate expedition that ended with everyone getting infected by the Angolmois and becoming Heralds of Unicron. He tried to usurp the leadership of the Heralds from his brother, but not only he failed, his brother destroyed his spark, downloaded his consciousness inside the starship Dinosaur and forced Megastorm to obey him until the day he would die. Some time later Galvatron died, and he, freed from the control of his brother, escaped to the planet Methuselah, where he convinced a scientist called Primacron to give him a body. The scientist instead turned the ship into his new body, with many smaller drones that were linked to him and he could use to do everything his new, giant body couldn’t do. Not exactly happy of this, but at the same time able again to interact with the world around him, he renamed himself Megatron and reunited many of the rebel Predacons that didn’t accept the peace with the Maximals. Even if now he hasn’t done nothing of too big, he managed to ally himself with two of the most mysterious and dangerous forces of the universe: the organic-haters Destructons and the mysterious Heralds of Shockaract. Now he will be finally able to satisfy his ambition of conquest and finally become superior to his brother. He is IDW Galvatron with a side of IDW Starscream.

[cillyscribbles]

3, 15, 21, 28 for raksha >:)

hello dear little cat >:D thanks for writing in !! love my girl...

3. weapon of choice? any particular reason they chose their weapon? oooh i'd imagine raksha uses her claws more than she bites. mostly because stuff gets bloody fast and she dislikes cleaning the fur around her muzzle, it's very tedious... she's not squeamish by any means, but she dislikes picking hairs from her mouth after a fight hahah. i think the more certain she is that she can handle her opponent, the more likely she is to just resort to smacking the shit out of them with claws out LOL.

15. how big or small is their family? who did they live with growing up? do they live with anyone now? i think she was a loner generally! she didn't feel very attached to macavity's clique so i'd imagine she joined it in her teenage cat years at the earliest. maybe she had siblings, but they probably separated quite early, and she was just looking for the easy walk in life, but she could take care of herself! now after leaving macavity & co. she lives tucked away with her three kittens. it's not going great, although she doesn't want to admit it! she's never been singlehandedly responsible for anyone other than herself, so these three fragile babies are a very nerve-wracking experience for her. but she's just too proud to accept help even when it's offered! honestly now that i think about it; i'd love it if she was related to cassandra in some way, mostly because i love that wee quirk of idle hissing (?) rebecca parker does for her in 98. maybe raksha can be a triplet herself, with cassandra and exotica... (; °∀°)

21. their favorite place to be? someplace with easy pickings... hahah it really depends. i think sometimes her best place is curled together with her kittens watching them nod off one by one, but sometimes it's atop the tallest roof she can find, where there's no one but her and the moon. she runs out of me-time fuel very fast, alas.

28. how do they show that they care about someone? how do they express that they don't like someone? raksha is extremely loyal to her felinity for this one lol. very direct. if she doesn't like you, you'll know; she just won't acknowledge your existence, or if she must, she won't give you any more time of day than strictly necessary. if she has to interact with someone she doesn't like, she hisses, glares and scoffs... unless the person holds some sort of power over her, like macavity, or she wants something from them, like munkustrap. still, both of them are very well aware she doesn't like them. 😔✊️ now when she does like you, it's not immediately obvious, but compared to how she acts when she she's got a grudge, it's not that hard to tell. you might catch her secretly looking at you and smiling, or she'll hang around you and do her own thing, might even turn her back. she's not very chatty, but she might offer a gesture of Physical Affection (!!!) every once in a while. kitty cat!

[the-coolest-mallard]

Write your RPer Resolutions for 2018! (What are some goals for yourself as a writer? Improve descriptions? Plot with more members? Etc.)

1. Be part of a big plot that causes an event. I want one of my characters to be involved/cause it or idk. I really want that.

2. I want to go through a whole arch for my characters. That would be super satisfying to go through that process.

3. Plot with more people. I feel like I stick with a few members and I want to expand that in some way. It would probably lead to some interesting things.

4. Have a short fling type ship. I feel like I always want to go for something permanent and lengthy and never try other things that develop my characters. But how about a dramatic short thing that goes down in flames.

Write at least one resolution, or “goal,” that you have as an RPer for your character(s) 

1. Goal for Celia: I want her to accidentally turn someone she cares about to stone and see the consequences of it. Is that a goal or a plot arch? Haha idk. My goal might be for her to be comfortable enough with someone to consider something beyond just a friendship. She’s really far away from that.

2. Goal for Vinny: have him cause a town drama somehow. He literally blows shit up. I want to cause some some sort of panic. I also do want to see his character grow a bit. He’s very rooted in his grumpy sort of persona and not liking most people thing. So my goal would be to have him open up to a few more people maybe.

3. Goal for Louie: I want him to get into a huge amount of trouble. That’s what teens do right? I want him and some friends to do something monumentally stupid. I’d also love for him to be manipulated by someone evil. Or I don’t know just get into some ridiculous trouble with people like Andy or Mitte. Let’s cause some mayhem.

4. Goal for Jasmine: Have her run for the board next elections. Also have her real name revealed before that. I mean that’d be ideal really. But have the whole plot happen and even better: have someone come to Agrabah with Jasmine. I really really want to explore Agrabah. Agrabah is really my main goal to go into with her.

Write at least one resolution IN CHARACTER for your characters. What do THEY want to accomplish or change in the New Year?

1. Celia: to get rid of her curse. That’s what she wants to accomplish. desperately.

2. Vinny: to create his business and work with animals and not really deal with people.

3. Louie: get a fake ID and start a job at the Court to get mad MONEY. His long term goal is to become filthy rich of course.

4. Jasmine: wants to do well in her classes and continue to remain unknown as a royal.

List one or more characters you have never interacted with that you would like to do so

man I have so many characters I’d love to interact with. I’ll just go down the list with everyone’s babes.

Phoebus: I think he’s one of the few mk characters I haven’t interacted with, and I think he’d be interesting. Plus I get the feeling a couple of my characters could have brushes with the law so...idk. 

Merida: I honestly don’t think I’ve actually interacted with Merida? Which is kind of a shame because she’s super interesting. I know it’s weird to say but I feel like she and Louie might agree with each other on things. Maybe? He’s not exactly super pro magic cause he’s kind of a jerk. idk. so that’d be interesting. Of course she’s also going through some serious shit so I guess that would change things too. Idk but Merida.

Cruella: I’ve tech interacted with all of Avarick’s characters I think, but I really want Louie to meet Cruella ngl.

Jake: hmm what would be interesting there. Jake and Vinny? I don’t know. I don’t know much about Jake yet I have to think about that but I’d love to write with him.

Jiminy: please give Celia some therapy. She could probably use it the most though she seems the most put together. Isn’t that wild? Idk. Her or Vinny they could both use some therapy sessions. 

Mateo: you know what would be funny? Sicking Louie on him and having him be the ultimate Elena defender just: “How DARE you do that to THE PRINCESS OF AVALOR!!!” it’d be so fucking funny you know? Why don’t we do this?

Percy: I’ve pitched this so Celia should meet him. I think it’d be super interesting.

Lena: Though I hate that her name is my name lmao I think she and Louie should maybe meet?

Ken: I’ve never met Ken and it is a true tragedy. I know I say Louie to a lot of things but Louie is in the closet and doesn’t even know it. Cause he’s dumb. I’d love for him and Ken to have a chat.

Deb: I think of Chloe’s characters I’ve never interacted with Deb? I’m not sure who I’d throw at her but I’d like to succeed and interact with all of chloes wonders.

Lumiere: hello new person. I love Lumiere! I’d love to throw Celia or Jasmine at him, see what happens really and what sort of direction you take him in.

Woody: for real I need to meet the sheriff somehow. Someway. Let it happen. Arrest one of my kids. Or just be their friend. That works too. Oo or maybe Celia and Woody after she’s been used as a vamp snack. 

Amelia: big fan of the character. I think she and Vinny could make really great friends potentially. 

Duchess: I think technically I’ve met all of jaby’s, but I’m not sure if I’ve really written with Duchess? Duchess and Louie? Louie loves fashion so that’d be fun. He’s poor of course so he’d have a crazy envy of her but yeah. 

Raksha: I have never officially interacted with Raksha I think and that is a tragedy. I’d love for her and Celia to chat or even Raksha and Jasmine. Or I don’t know. I’d love to just have the ladies hang.

Gregory: god I see him from a distance and I admire him. What a wonderful sunshine-y character. I’m not sure yet who I’d throw at him but I’d love to brainstorm something fun. Ooo actually maybe Jasmine. Jasmine and Eeyore take on politicians or something. That could be super fun.

Jessie: Big fan of the character. I’d love to interact with her. Dunno with who but I’ll brainstorm that one.

Reese: He seems like a real sweetheart. I’d love for him to be friends with Celia or something.

Marisa: I think otherwise I’ve interacted with all of Mckala’s in some way probably. But damnnn. Give me your other mermaid. Maybe wiiiiith Celia? Idk that could be interesting.

Frederick: WOW YES! First of all I love his fc. Just personal love. Second, can he meet Celia and be her friend? Or more importantly can Louie meet him and discover his sexuality stuff? God idk but I’d love to meet him.

Lymantria: Never met her I don’t think and I’d love to change that! Uhhh perhaps let Jasmine and Lymantria meet?

Megara: One of my fave characters from Hercules gd. Please let’s write her and idk Jasmine? Jasmine loves powerful women and so do I.

Simon: I think I said in a voice thing but he seems like an interesting dude. I’d like to meet him somehow.

Shere: Idk have we had Shere interact with one of mine? I don’t think so. Not yet. Let’s do that. Oo let Louie ride a tiger. Yeah? xP

Ralph: man I love Ralph as a character. I think he and Celia could make some good friends. idk. I’d just like to meet Ralph in general tbh.

Sofia: Sofia and Jasmine. And someday perhaps Sofia and Elena and Jasmine and Isabel for a Princess Squad gathering? Idk I just like the idea of uniting the royals.

Elsa: I still maintain Elsa and Vinny would be an entertaining thread.

Shock: I have yet to meet her but she could be yet another bad influence on Louie if we wanted her to be. Or 

Dewey: in other news, we need to have the brothers interact lmao I suck.

Plotting Exercise! Pick one of the resolutions/goals in #2 and plan a rough guideline to how you could accomplish it. Here’s an example. EXAMPLE OF A MOCK PLOT: MILO FINDS A MERLIN’S OBJECT

Para One: Louie goes to Andy for a fake ID

Para Two: Louie uses that to work at the Court and ends up meeting someone sketch like Desoto or idk Shock or someone.

Para Three: Desoto convinces Louie to be a drug handler guy on the side of working at the court.

Para Four: Donald finds some of the drugs stashed in Louie’s room while cleaning it. Cue explosion/fight and punishment

Para Five: Despite disappointment, Louie sneaks the hell out and continues to try to make more money and goes back to Desoto/whoever the drug dealer guy is.

[the-cryptographer]

I should not have dropped eight thousand words of a new WIP.

I mean, it was the one unposted WIP fic I allowed myself to work on at all, and for a microfandom, so it’s not like I had no idea what I was doing. It’s just a lot on my mind and on my plate, and I’m just kind of meh about the parts of the chapter I rushed to finish. I felt myself struggling through parts of the Trish conversation, and I completely BS-ed a section - one that should have been longer - in a very poor attempt to preserve the original pacing and scene changes that I drafted two years ago. But after sitting on the thing for so long, I figured it was just better to go ahead just bc... I want this fic to exist.

It’s really weird for me, because it’s not even a fic that’s entirely mine - it was something brainstormed in response to someone’s yuletide prompt from 2015. I’m not sure I would have conceptualised the concept as I did without that prompt. I have some major reservations about the ship, for one, particularly the Gig/Levin side of the triang. Gig’s mass exploitation and the control he leveraged over Raksha in the backstory is kind of fucked up in a way I can’t really excuse as the backstory for a relationship, regardless of how terrible a person Raksha is. But even though I’m finding myself edging over to the abandoned fandom corner of Levin/Revya OTP, I kind of want Gig there for this anyhow. He’s great to write dialogue for, for one. He’s observant in ways the other two aren’t. And there’s something in his relationships with each of the others... The kind of codependence he has with Revya - they way they hide their identities behind one another, and draw together in solidarity so easily. And that Gig and Raksha, for all that ugly, ugly, history, were really the only two to make it out alive and together and in an understanding of what had happened - all those attempts to grab power and control - was all utterly futile. So even though I have issues with Gig being there, and I’m not entirely sure it’s something I would have happened upon myself, I kind of realised that there isn’t really a story without him. How would Revya and Levin even begin a conversation if it was just them? They get so easily tongue-tied. And it’s also just kind of hard for me to imagine Revya... not wanting Gig to be a part of this. ...And also bisexuality and polyamory and genderfuck are life, lol. Like, I’ll write and enjoy het ships, but this is really what I’m here for - let’s not lie to ourselves.

Other issues I have with it...

Chapter two will be better in this regard, but the first chapter relies too much on incidental meetings. I don’t think they’re impossible to believe, and I think on a meta level they can be justified considering the amount of narrative mileage that’s milked out of them - the first setting up the plot, and the second being the centerpiece of comedic schadenfreude. But I’d prefer to have a more substantial reason for characters running into one another on an in-universe level.

The mental health stuff is all over the place. It was another thing requested by the yuletide prompt. I got the idea for depressive, bipolar, and psychosis trifecta with Revya, Levin, and Gig respectively. But, while I’m kind of attached to bipolar Levin in particular, I realised I don’t really have the background or personal experience to write much more than depression with any certainty. It’s kind of integrated into the plot at this point, so there will definitely be moments of lapsed health, but I kind of feel it’s going to be both disappointingly vague and disappointingly left hanging.

The prompter also specified they didn’t care much for Tricia or Danette. And, yeah, I don’t /not/ get that. I’m not too fond of Danette myself. It’s just hard for me to make Revya not attached to her. The same way i won’t write Red not liking Pikachu. Or Yuugi not liking Atem. So that, but also it’s hard for me to leave this kind of fandom mindset where... I really /want/ to like female characters. Even when I don’t. Despite all the incredibly shoddy writing surrounding female characters, and despite the fact that I don’t think it’s really a fan’s responsibility to make allowances for that, I’m still kind of super... meh... about the way female characters get treated in fandom. I live irl around enough women that are 500x more critical of other ladies than any of the men in their lives. And it’s just... really hard for me to not read that kind of misogyny into fandom attitudes. Especially considering how viscous and charged and controlling I’ve seen fandom get about what female fans are allowed to do. So I kind of inevitably want to write stories where the female characters are given weight and importance in their relationships with each other, and the resultant product of this impulse combined with trying to follow the letter of the prompt was something very ??? where Tricia and Danette are kind of left out of the story while still being rather over-present in it. I kind of wonder at this point what niches they would have filled in the story if I hadn’t tried to limit them. But it kind of is what it is at this point, and I have trouble wanting to fix what isn’t broken, even if it could potentially be better maybe(?)

So, in spite of all my many reservations, I... care about this thing. The kind of grim comedy and exuberance to Soul Nomad struck a chord with the grim comedic fatality of my teenage self, and every once in a while I’m kind of overcome with how much I love the cow siblings. They are just a mess of abuse and biological weapons engineering and deception. I kind of realise dancing around the soul nomad tags... how much I disproportionately love Levin, lol. And how much I need content about him and Euphoria that goes into their identity struggles, and having been trafficked, and the kind of ugliness and control that sits between them. Content that largely doesn’t exist.

And I also like the kind of aftermath to what is a quest that gathered a number of different party members - all of different political allegiance - and set them to a common goal. The idea that they’re all still friends that enjoy each other on a personal level, but still all have their own agendas and priorities that clash, is one of those things that intrigues me. And that Revya and Gig and Levin can kind of move through that landscape (mostly) unaffiliated and detached from it. Outside observers.

Anyhow, these are all the things I’m kind of thinking about. and I just wanted to ramble for a bit.

[surroundedbypearls]

Revisit and Ramble: The Night World Series

Recently I started revisiting some books I loved when I was a teenager to see what I thought of them now, for nostalgia and for fun. I’ve been writing since I was ~13 but my skills and style have evolved since I read a lot of these books, and so has my way of reading since I’ve started reading as a writer. So I decided to make these ramble/review posts because why not? Whee~

The first revisit is to the 9 (where’s Book 10, Lisa??) books of the Night World series. It seems like a lot to cover in one post since there’s 9 books, but they’re quite short and simple stories so we’ll squeeze them in.

See me ramble below the cut! It’s a mess. I’m sorry.

This was written in the 90s so I’m not going to get mad at it over representation but it’s amusing how straight and white everything is. There is the occasional POC as a minor character but no queer characters and it was so noticeable this time. (at least she’s not pulling a JK and pretending to have diversity though)

The only protagonist who might not be white is Raksha Keller (Witchlight), but I only headcanon her as brown because of her name, and she probably was just written white with a stolen Hindi name. Not on my watch

Speaking of Keller, she’s probably one of my favourite NW protagonists. Generally the main characters are okay even if some of them are a bit samey. Keller and Rashel (The Chosen) are my favourites. Rashel is that bitch.

I’m disappointed at the lack of werewolves/shapeshifters as main characters, but it turns out LJ addressed this in the NW guide so that was cool of her to acknowledge. (and yes I do own that)

I like her worldbuilding. The vampires are interesting and I like how she intertwines the Night World and human world together. And I love the witches.

The “soulmates” thing is conflicting for me because I think it’s an interesting world/plot element, but it also leads to insta-love that just doesn’t work for me in some of the stories. Like I believe they could fall in love eventually but not that quick. Some work better than others.

Thea and Eric from Enchantress are the best couple because they actually share interests and have chemistry outside of any soulmate principle driving them together. A couple of the other ones are good but I just think these two are the winners.

I’m not sure if Quinn’s redemption arc in The Chosen works because on the one hand, I get it but on the other hand...no. Kill him. He’s a bastard. Yknow? I’m just not sure.

That said, The Chosen is probably one of the better stories. There’s a lot of intrigue and good tension and I like the characters. 

Ash is a better example of a reformed bad guy because he’s at his worst during over characters’ POVs. In Book 2 (Daughters of Darkness), as he grows and you get his POV, you never really know how serious he was about being a villain in Book 1. He says he was just joking, but was he? Who knows? I like him. He also comes up the most re. anthology cameos, which is funny. He gets to grow in other people’s stories as well as his own.

Ash and Mary Lynette (Daughters of Darkness) are one of the relationships where the soulmate thing is entertaining and kind of works, and they’re both likeable if a bit annoying (but intentionally annoying not YA annoying, which is different I think).

Dark Angel was one I didn’t really like back in the day, but I enjoyed it more this time. Gillian’s initial character is still bland but the story itself is interesting outside of the cliché high school stuff.

Idk how to explain it but Delos in Black Dawn is somehow both boring and interesting at the same time. Him and Maggie’s chemistry is believable but their relationship is soo insta-love. Sylvia is interesting as an antagonist, and I like her ending.

I don’t have much to say about Soulmate except that it’s good, I like the concept and the relationship (though the thought of blonde white Hannah being reincarnated in ancient Egypt is hilarious), and I love Paul the psychologist.

All LJ Smith’s protagonists have super long hair and it’s obviously her projecting (LJ Smith has/had hair long enough to sit on for most of her life). I’m not judging, I have left-handed characters for the same reason, it’s just funny when you recognise it.

I just realised I never mentioned Secret Vampire or Huntress. They’re both fine. I find the side characters in Huntress more interesting than the main ones right up until the last couple of chapters. Philip is the best character in Secret Vampire (besides Ash). James is wildly boring. All in all SV is probably my least favourite story since I don’t really have anything to say about it. It’s a good introduction to the world I guess?

If anyone else has read this series and has some thoughts I’d love to hear them! Let’s ramble together 😁

Actual book reviews where I make sense Message me

[perfectisme-georgette]

Writing Task: BDRP Resolutions Exercise

Trigger Warnings: None

Extra Warnings: Actually.... it isn’t too long for once hahaha

Write your RPer Resolutions for 2018! (What are some goals for yourself as a writer? Improve descriptions? Plot with more members? Etc.)

I actually have a couple!!!!

I’d like to balance out my attention between all of my babbess. This I know is going to be tricky for me because like I have eight characters xD, but I want for all of them to be given equal attention. I can easily give a lot of attention to like Minnie and Isa because they are very loud muses in my head, but then Georgette is also a STRONG muse of mine and I know I don’t give her the due attention she deserves, so I would like to really balance it all out. Give each baby the same amount of loving. xD

Secondly, dive in a little deeper with each of my children. I have like plans for many of them and some I’m still figuring out, but I want to actually pull through with the ideas I have for them!!! Plus do more freaking one-shots that will help me accomplish my plans for them!!!

Which, brings me to this goal, to stop being a freaking shy-scared shit!!! I am SUPER shy about messaging ANYONE and I’ll have this GREAT plot idea but will let it slip away because I’m scared to share it. :((( I’m hoping this year I can really break from that!!!

I mentioned this goal once in one of my other resolution tasks, and I’m going to mention it again. I want to write a smut so pure, and gushy, and lovey-dovey, and GROSSSS that it will hurt to type!!!!!! Someone help me accomplish this goal!!!!!

Write at least one resolution, or “goal,” that you have as an RPer for your character(s)

SALLY:

Use her magic more!!!!! Look, she is a Psychic/Seer what have you she can basically see ANYTHING!!!!!! You need to figure out a secret for your character??? Sally can see it!!! You want to take your chances and figure out how an outcome will play in the future??? Sally can see that too!!!! She can see the past, present, future she can see it ALL!!! USE HER!!!! But I also want her to control her empathic abilities because those are really hindering her. It’s basically turning her back to her old Sally, which is such a major regression for my baby from how far she has come. :((( She is also a MEDIUM!!! This is pretty new for her, but I want to be able to do more with it because I really love stuff like that!!! And since she’s new to it like she can be used for granted!!!! I wouldn’t even minddd!!! xD

RAKSHA:

HEAL. It is always a goal of mine for her and it has yet to be completed because now she ended up with a baby that landed her with PPD. That being said I want for her to be able to connect with her daughter and be okay with the idea of getting help if need be. Give me all of the pack interactions too please and thank you. :DDD Also, I want her to be more open towards her husband. Like woman TALK TO THE MAN HE IS YOUR HUSBAND!!!! HE’S THE ONE THAT CAN SEE YOU CRY AND WILL BE THERE THROUGH YOUR GRIEF!!!!

ELLIE:

My poor precious sick baby!! I would love for her to give chemotherapy another fighting chance. She is so completely set on the fact that she’s going to die soon that she won’t even try to see any other alternative. :(( I do want to play on her cancer a little more as well, maybe even have her be a long-term patient at Swynlake General Hospital. At the same time, I want to touch on the anthropology side of her some more too because she is a down right nerd!!!!!

DASH:

MEND. Bring him back to my beautiful, care-free, shit-head, pure  and sweet, fun-loving boy!!!!! We also have to figure out what he’s going to school for once he enters the University. He’s very talented with his guitar both acoustic and electric and I want to touch on that some more, especially now since like he’s been using music as a big escape for him.

MINNIE:

Umm….. wow things are actually pretty good for Minnie at the moment haha. I should make it a goal to screw that up. xDD Let me not be mean. I would love though to like expand her relationships with those who wore born and raised here in Swynlake. I’m sure she must have gong to school with like half of them all!!!! Gimme connectioonsss.

VIOLET:

My goal for this little babe is very similar to Sally’s in that I want her to touch on her magic some more!!! More so because she doesn’t like her magic much at all, but I want her to get to like it. I’d like to get her to open up some more too!!! Vi is very reserved and closed off person, I want her to groowww.

GEORGETTE:

UgHhHhHhhhh she’s my most complicated onneee. I want for her to freaking get THERAPY!!! She’s swirling down very badlyyy and therapy would do her some good. She really needs to speak about her trauma to help her get past through it. I also want to touch the part of her that she’s like becoming because of all that has happened to her. She wants to get away from her old life. Maybe I’ll even make her work, learn how to cook, and all that jazz!! haha

ISABEL:

My goal for this lil munchkin of mine is simply to let her find out who she is haha. Her whole life has basically just been running! She doesn’t know what a teenage life is suppose to be like, hell she doesn’t even know her sexuality!! I want her to make mistakes, fall, get back up, rebel, fall in love, fall out of love, just do everything a normal teen should be allowed to do!

Write at least one resolution IN CHARACTER for your characters. What do THEY want to accomplish or change in the New Year?

Sally: “Umm.. uhh c-control my er empathic abilities… and learn how to build well guards against everyone else’s emotions…”

Raksha: Doesn’t really care about resolutions… but I’m sure it would be along the lines of being able to connect with her daughter.

Ellie: “Explore!! Go out some more!!! Graduate with my new major!!! See the hospital ten times less!! Umm…. hopefully not die this year?”

Dash: “Figure out what the fuck my major is going to be when I go to college. Graduate. Get this magic of mine under fucking control!”

Minnie: “Laugh more and simply go out more because I tend to live in the hospital. Be a good girl-friend!”

Violet: Another one who doesn’t believe in New Year’s Resolution because she thinks all people are the same and no one will change so why the fuck bother??

Georgette: “Sleep.” Preferably without the need of alcohol please and thank you.

Isabel: “Live life to the best that I can!!! But also make sure not to upset Elena while I do it. Oh! Get good grades in school and get to read all the books that I want to read!! Maybe invent something brand new that could help out many people!!!”

List one or more characters you have never interacted with that you would like to do so

Omg!!!!!! I would interact with anyone and EVERYONE!!!!! Legit!!!! Everyone here are excellent and wonderful writers!!!! All your babes are awesomee!!!! If I haven’t interacted with a babe here let me know because I will definitely do so!!! I mean I can type a list of everyone I haven’t interacted with, but like I might be here all night because it’s a lot and that’s really sad. :((( I should add it as another goal!!!! Get to interact with EVERYONEE!!

Plotting Exercise! Pick one of the resolutions/goals in #2 and plan a rough guideline to how you could accomplish it. Here’s an example.

I’ll go with Georgette here since I’m posting this on her’s too.

Para 1: Georgette gets caught being very drunk in Pixie’s or where ever else and gets confronted about it. (Could be anyone from her past really who knew how the original Georgette was/ anyone who knows about what happened to her: Perdy, Dodger, Tito)

therefore

Para 2: Once back home, Georgette breaks down mentally she either drinks a lot more, or breaks a mirror and needs medical attention because of either or that she did. (Tibbs, Rama, Sweet, any of the medical peeps)

therefore

Para 3: One of those medical peeps places a social work order after finding out her blood alcohol level and tells her she needs to seek help. That’d be a fun talk. (Again, the hospital peeeppss)

therefore

Para 4: Georgette becomes forced to see a therapist as part of the condition placed by social work and seeks one out in Swynlake!!! (James Cricket, or like anyone else who’s a therapist)

[commandertheory]

Amonkhet Commander Set Review

For each new set, I write an article discussing the new legendary creatures and the nonlegendary cards that I think will be relevant in Commander. This review is obviously a bit late, as I was taking a hiatus from the blog when Amonkhet got released, but the review might benefit from having a few months to play with the set and get a more accurate impression of the cards.

The Commanders of Amonkhet

The token generation is pretty inefficient compared to some other white commanders, and although double strike will help her get to 21 commander damage, the limitation on her ability to attack keeps her from reaching her potential as a Voltron commander.

Seems like a strong commander for monoblue control. He allows you to hold up counterspells and cash in your unused mana for cards right before you untap, while also potentially serving as a late-game threat once you’ve got a full grip of answers.

The relatively low power and the weak effect of her activated ability makes me think that the payoff for building around her is not worth the effort. That being said, she’s easily one of the best commanders for breaking symmetry on The Abyss, Magus of the Abyss, and Spreading Plague.

Like Bontu, the rewards aren’t really worth the trouble of activating Hazoret or bringing her online. The life totals in Commander are way too high to waste time dealing damage 2 at a time (Purphoros notwithstanding).

His activated ability is not much of a reason to run this guy as a commander, and the Voltron potential implied by his power-to-cost ratio is, of course, diminished by his requirement that you commit to playing other creatures instead of focusing on dealing 21.

I try to keep an eye out for potential themes in need of a commander, but BG -1/-1 counters wasn’t really on my radar. Hapatra ended up being a pleasant surprise, as it turns out there was enough tech available for her that she added a new archetype to the Commander metagame.

Most effective tribal commanders are ones that take a tribe with a lot of borderline playable creatures and give them just enough of a boost to create a viable deck. The problem with Neheb is that most Minotaurs are not on the borderline; they are unplayable. +2/+0 and first strike is not going to be enough to make Cursed Minotaur and Gnarled Scarhide playable in a 40-life multiplayer format with tons of board wipes.

However, Neheb might do some good work as a discard outlet for madness/reanimator strategies and as a way to repeatedly trigger things like Geth’s Grimoire or Waste Not. Here’s a rough list.

Double strike and haste make for a strong Voltron Commander, so throw together some ramp to get her down early and some decent auras/equipment (Hero’s Blade, Grafted Exoskeleton, and any saboteur equipment will probably be good in this deck) and call it a day.

He can’t use his ability to help deal commander damage (even when he’s embalmed), so you’re stuck trying to eliminate multiple opponents with giant tokens (or ones with brutal saboteur abilities) sliding past their blockers. Overall, the plan seems kinda weak, but there are a few cute things you can do to make the unblockability more relevant.

The Maindeck Cards

In this set review, I’ll be using two five-point rating scales to evaluate the nonlegendary cards, one that measures how many decks a card is playable in (we’ll call that “spread”), and one that measures how powerful it is in those decks (���power”). Here’s a brief rundown of what each rank on the two scales means:

Spread

1: This card is effective in one or two decks, but no more (ex: The Gitrog Monster). 2: This card is effective in one deck archetype (ex: self-mill decks). 3: A lot of decks will be able to use this card effectively (ex: decks with graveyard interactions). 4: This card is effective in most decks in this color. 5: Every deck in this color is able to use this card effectively.

Power

1: This card is always going to be on the chopping block. 2: This card is unlikely to consistently perform well. 3: This card provides good utility but is not a powerhouse. 4: This card is good enough to push you ahead of your opponents. 5: This card has a huge impact on the game.

Spread: 1

Power: 3

Banishing Light is good because it’s cheap and hard to get rid of. Angel of Sanctions trade those two advantages for the ability to deal three in the air and return once after it gets killed, which I think is a pretty raw deal. It also compares really unfavorably with Admonition Angel.

However, embalm does work well with populate, so Trostani ought to get more value out of it than most commanders.

Spread: 2

Power: 3

If your deck has a heavy token theme or your Commander makes tokens, this should be an easy inclusion.

Spread: 3

Power: 3

This card is great in token decks, hate bear decks, decks with lots of mana dorks, and Doran builds. 3+ power kills most of the threats in the format while protecting your little dudes. Plus, even if your (nontoken) weenies get killed later, the second half of this card regrows them for you. Great value.

Spread: 1

Power: 1

Maybe in some Ad Nauseam combo deck as the third copy of Angel’s Grace (with Phyrexian Unlife being the second)? He doesn’t do much since he’s pretty easy to remove later on in the game when people are actually winning.

Spread: 1

Power: 3

It’s obviously most effective in Kemba and Raksha. You might be tempted to run it in a token list or a blink deck, but I think in those situations it fares poorly compared to other options at the same price point.

Spread: 2

Power: 1

These types of effects often create combo potential, but the combination of an end step return and a limited scope of targets handicaps the Vizier to the point of unplayability.

Spread: 1

Power: 1

Assists with Persist combos and generates infinite mana in combination with Devoted Druid. Unfortunately, it doesn’t accomplish anything by itself, which makes it less appealing than other combo pieces in the same colors that are effective in isolation.

Spread: 2

Power: 3

It acquires counters too slowly to be of much use outside of decks with extremely low average CMCs, and only getting one free spell per turn is likewise pretty limiting. However, decks with lots of cheap counterspells that frequently cast them on their opponents’ turns ought to be able to milk much more mana out of this card than the other decks in the format. In Baral, Azami, etc, this could easily end up producing a great deal of mana if you can manage to get two or more counters on it.

Spread: 4

Power: 2

Commit can keep just about anything from killing you and is basically an Utter End when you’re responding to a shuffle effect. I’m not sure how often you’ll pull the trigger on Memory, but having the option to refill your hand is sweet.

Spread: 1

Power; 3

There aren’t a whole lot of Blue decks that discard often enough to make Drake Haven worthwhile, but Baral control might be one of them.

Spread: 4

Power: 4

The strongest X mana draw spell in monoblue ever printed. I would play this in any deck already running Blue Sun’s Zenith and Stroke of Genius.

Spread: 1

Power: 2

Sift is far too weak for most Commander decks, but this could do good work in Brago decks that were already blinking Oath of Jace.

Spread: 2

Power: 3

In decks that have enough self discard this card is comparable to Elesh Norn. It even cycles which makes it easy to reanimate and smooths out draws. Plus, if you’re playing it in a green deck, you can find it with Survival of the Fittest, cast it, and then use Survival to cycle through a bunch of creatures and pile counters on your opponents’ stuff.

Spread: 4

Power: 1

Very expensive, only hoses one person, and 5 life per turn cycle is not the fastest clock.

Spread: 2

Power: 2

She's a Zombify with a couple of tokens attached. That’s probably good enough for a Zombie tribal deck but I don’t think she’s good enough for decks that aren’t interested in Zombie synergies since cheaper reanimation exists.

Spread: 2

Power: 2

Lumping these together because both of them are limited to Zombie tribal decks. I think both cards are a little on the weak side, but it’s not like Zombies were a strong tribe to begin with, so they ought to fit in just fine.

Spread: 1

Power: 3

Hapatra can use it to generate more bodies to power her sac outlets or swing with, while The Scorpion God can keep stinging scarabs to farm cards.

Spread: 5

Power: 2

If you want this effect, Hero’s Downfall is just a much better card, since being able to interact with your opponents on their turn is way more relevant to most games than a smidgen of graveyard hate and a 2/2.

Spread: 4

Power: 3

This is a decent card that suffers from an abundance of strong competitors. It’s probably the fourth-best mono-Red artifact destruction spell (after Fiery Confluence, Vandalblast, and Shattering Spree), but that might be too low on the totem pole to make it into most decks.

Spread: 2

Power: 2

Joins the long list of cards that infinite combo with Kiki-Jiki. Also goes infinite with other copy effects and is serviceable in aggro decks, as well.

Spread: 1

Power: 1

It’s flashy, but it’s mostly worse than Final Fortune, and it’s not like anybody was playing that card.

Spread: 2

Power: 2

Repeatable red removal, even if every other turn.

Spread: 1

Power: 3

The only deck I can think of that would be interested in both the haste and the sacrificing would be Marchesa, the Black Rose.

Spread: 1

Power: 3

It’s a little reductive to call this a Cleaver Riot, but that’s the easiest point of comparison for evaluating this effect. I think most Red decks will pass on this card, but Heartless Hidetsugu needs damage doublers so he can eliminate any player foolish enough to let their life total settle on an even number. 

Spread: 5

Power: 3

Really good in metagames with lots of mana dorks and utility creatures. Plus, cycling means that it’ll never be a dead card. High ceiling + high floor = probably worth running.

Spread: 3

Power: 2

It mostly seems worse than Elvish Piper (and it’s not like Elvish Piper is that great), since it requires you to risk it in combat, it only works every other turn, and you can’t surprise anyone by dropping fatties in during combat/at end of turn. It's probably also worse than Frontier Siege in terms of total mana generation.

Spread: 2

Power: 2

There are plenty of Green decks that are dependent on mana dorks, and a decent number with token themes, but I still wouldn’t expect this to regularly ramp out more than two lands until you get to the late game (at which point the ramp is not very impactful).

Spread: 4

Power: 3

Comparable to Reclamation Sage. Manglehorn is stronger in metas where fast artifact mana is prevalent since it greatly slows down development in exchange for flexibility and a superior creature type. It’s pretty reasonable to run both. Also relevant is how it shuts off Winter Orb the turn it comes in, removing the surprise factor.

Spread: 2

Power: 3

I think this card could have legs in Enchantress builds. Enchantress builds tend to be Pillowfort-y and have a lot of mana lying around, so paying 8 mana to shut out flyers isn’t far outside of what those decks were already doing. Plus, Enchantress decks tend to be low on win conditions, which a steady stream of 5/5s ought to ameliorate.

Spread: 3

Power: 3

Only good in creature-heavy decks, and especially strong in Animar and Momir Vig. Unlike Oracle of Mul Daya, you might not get immediate value out of him in the early game since the creatures will cost mana that you might not have and it’s harder to chain together multiple creatures. Solid in Monogreen since the creature density tends to be higher and ramp spells shuffle the deck for a redraw.

Spread: 4

Power: 1

Doesn’t protect itself, and it’s not guaranteed to get you card advantage unless you go through the trouble of setting it up. The ultimate is also pretty weak in this format.

Spread: 1

Power: 2

There aren’t a whole lot of Red/White Voltron commanders that don’t already have double strike, but I think Zurgo will be eyeing this as a means of shortening his clock.

Spread: 4

Power: 2

Every new cycle of duals with basic land types makes fetches that much better, and obviously cycling makes these lands more useful in the late game than most other mana fixers. I’d consider these a staple part of a Commander manabase, although I’d be wary about running them in decks that desperately need all their lands to come into play untapped (decks with really tight curves and/or decks that need to get a lot done in the first few turns of the game, for example).

Wrapping Up

Let me know if you think I’ve misjudged any of these cards or if you’ve discovered any other cool uses for cards from Amonkhet that I didn’t think of. Thanks for reading!