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myriadmoons · 1 year

Text

charmed

sirius black x fem!reader (she/her pronouns)

okay here it is! my first ever fic. i’m not sure how i feel about it. i think it peaked at the start, hope you enjoy! thanks for all the kind messages. and thank you @starsval for being so lovely and helping me with everything!! also i’m really sorry i tried to keep the reader as ambiguous as possible but i’m new to writing so it might not be great. hope you enjoy x

word count: 5k (YEAH I GOT CARRIED AWAY)

synopsis: sirius black has never really cared about grades, in fact he’s never really had to. yet after one particular monday morning, his charms grades begin to mysteriously plummet and now he’s decided that a tutor is what he needs. except, only one tutor will do; the pretty ravenclaw that happened to walk past during breakfast.

warnings: very soft/sappy sirius straight away, girl grabs sirius and it’s a bit weird, wizarding slurs?? my first time writing so everyone’s probably really inconsistent and the plot probably doesn’t make sense.

‧₊˚✩彡

there was something about mondays that didn’t sit quite right with you. maybe it was the fact that 24 hours ago, you were asleep, and not up trying to mentally prepare yourself for a full day of mundane learning. maybe ‘mundane’ was cruel. it was a magic school of course. and you were a ravenclaw. but just because it was a magic school and you were a ravenclaw didn’t make it any less draining. a thirst for knowledge and a thirst for learning about the ‘14th Century Wizarding Economic Bubble’ at 9am were completely different things. however, there was one thing that would cheer you up:

breakfast.

yet before you could dare to dream about the mountains of pastries, or the sausages and bacon that stretched as far as the eye can see, or the jams of reds, purples and yellows, or the array of cereals and oats stretched across the old oak table, or the eggs that were fried, scrambled, poached and even deviled, you heard a yell of your name from the other side of the great hall. a tall figure with mousy hair flailed its arms in an attempt to coax you over. remus. remus lupin. one of the ever so famous marauders. what on earth could he want with you this time? instead of succumbing to a spiral of what’s and why’s, you pushed them out of your mind and sauntered over to the deep red and gold table.

“yes, lupin, any reason for demanding my presence oh so early in the day?” you pondered out loud as you reached the lanky brunet.

“well, since you asked so nicely, i was just letting you know that prefect rounds have been swapped, hale and valentine are patrolling instead of us tonight and vice versa.”

“may i ask why?”

“i may or may not have detention today.” the boy replied, a mischievous glint in his warm eyes.

“a detention as a prefect? doesn’t that almost defeat the point? regardless, lupin, fine by me. but i’ll only do it if you promise no impromptu pranks while i’m patrolling. i don’t think i can bear talking to slughorn about how riveting the properties of shrivelfig are again. i’m exhausted recalling it.”

“you helped us? i thought that moony covered for us!” a sudden vehement shout came from the quidditch captain placed in front of remus, dragged from his squabble with the objectively beautiful boy beside him.

“you mean to tell me after i put on the performance of a lifetime i got no credit at all?” you turned your attention to the pair that made up another part of hogwarts’ favourite group.

“sorry, can’t say we’ve ever heard of your sacrifice, have we pads?”

a sudden jab of the elbow pulled sirius out of his stupor as he grasped reality once again. “um no, i can’t say we have.” a pretty pink sheen covered the boy’s unnaturally chiselled cheekbones. remus’ eyes suddenly lit up with a flame they hadn’t before as he studied his friend’s uncharacteristic behaviour.

sirius had been cursed. he was sure of it. it was the only solution for the sudden dizziness that had overcome him, the unexpected flush that he could feel from the top of his glossy locks all the way down to his booted toes. it definitely wasn’t because you were in front of him with your pretty eyes flitting between him and his best friend brother, with your brows in an endearing crease he suddenly wanted to smooth with his thumb, it definitely wasn’t. at all.

“right, if that’s all gentlemen, i best be going, breakfast is calling my name! besides, i’m going to need it if i want to pass the charms test today.” your voice chimed out, a spell to sirius’ ears.

“oh please as if you aren’t the top of our year in charms.” lupin snorted at you, even though his eyes still tracked his awe-struck friend.

“stuff it lupin, you owe me.”

once again, sirius declared in his mind he was ill, as he watched the way you strolled back to the table of rich blue and silver, completely fine, not at all affected by the affection curse that had taken him captive.

one thing rung in his mind as remus’ throaty wheeze rumbled out.

“top of our year in charms.”

‧₊˚✩彡

sirius had a plan. a stupid one. one that probably had almost no chance of working. but a chance at spending time with you was better than none at all. he gazed at the question paper he normally would have finished with ease if time with you wasn’t on the line.

“in order to free something from within a collapsed cave, which of the following charms would be the most effective?

a). disillusionment charm

b). impervius charm

c). gouging charm

d). substantive charm”

quickly sirius circled the second option and repeated the sequence of identifying the actual correct answer, and then choosing the option above it over and over again. “godric, i hope that this works.” he muttered under his breath, debating whether all of this was actually worth the hassle.

then across the room, you peered in his general direction, as the clock lied just up and a bit to the right of his broad shoulders. the previous thought that dared to cross his mind perished as he caught the way the light caressed the bridge of your nose and cascaded down towards your pretty mouth.

definitely worth the hassle.

‧₊˚✩彡

lupin was right.

only a couple days after a test that you had been bricking it for, you sat in front of the very same one, except this time a nice big ‘O’ with a smiley face from professor flitwick had been added to the page. you turned to lupin with a big fat grin on your face as you both held your papers up and took the other’s in. he got one mark less than you. so although he was correct in his assumption, he also got lower marks than you (even if it was just one). your grin turned into a smug smile. lupin mouthed the words “i told you so.”

swiftly followed by a middle finger.

you turned back to your conversation with the gorgeous redhead beside you.

“godric, i hate you sometimes.” she muttered with a side eye.

“sorry? since when?”

“you’re just so smart and some of us actually have to try.”

“lils, you’re literally the brightest witch i know, rowena knows i could never pull of the things you do in defence against the dark arts!” your voice dropped to a whisper, “besides who really gives a shit about charms apart from academic validation?”

��stop being ever so lovely when i’m being mad at your greatness.”

“you know what, i stand corrected. been thinking too much about potter? ‘mad at your greatness’ are you actually kidding me?”

“you did not just go there!” you were sure the girl must have had whiplash with the speed she swung her head around to face you, her pink mouth dropped open.

“i’ve seen the way you’ve been looking at him recently. you can’t fool me.”

“shut up.”

“lily, do me one thing.”

“what?”

“pick your jaw up off the floor next time you see him at breakfast after quidditch practice, you’ll catch flies.”

you narrowly avoided the pale fist that came flying at your shoulder, blissfully unaware of the two lovesick marauders who saw the interaction. one of whom clutched his paper with a bold ‘D’ and a note to “please actually revise next time!” close to his chest, hoping some point in the future that maybe that would be you. although. you would never know that. ever. because he was sirius black.

he had a reputation to uphold.

‧₊˚✩彡

“what do you mean you won’t ask her to help me moony? your poor best friend is failing charms and you won’t do this simple favour for me?”

“it means what it means. do it yourself pads.” remus says, bluntly.

the ebony-haired boy’s face drops further. “but, you know, it might be a bit sort of odd?”

“not like you to care so much about being ‘odd’, especially when a pretty girl is involved, something else going on we should know about pads?” james chimed in, a smirk lifting the corner of his lips.

“no! it’s not like i care, it's just, she’s moony’s friend so surely it would be better coming from him?” sirius forced out. then, he dropped his shoulders and shook the inky locks out of his eyes. “wouldn’t want to scare her, that’s all.” a newfound nonchalance in his tone.

the other boys’ eyes met across the dorm.

“scare her my arse” the taller of the boys mouthed, the other shook his head in amusement.

the messy dorm room remained silent for a few moments, until a deep breath sounded, followed by a string of words pushed out all at once. a string of words that sounded a lot like: “moony please ask her i just think she’d be a great tutor, you know ravenclaw and all, i just want to do well in charms, is that so strange?”

remus made a noise that sounded almost like a howl, even though the full moon had been a week and a half ago.

then, he fell onto the floor, in a fit of giggles.

after choking on his own breath and getting back onto his feet, albeit with an obvious shake due to forcing back manic chuckles, he made eye contact with the blushing boy who had an adorable pout on his face.

he couldn’t stop the next peal of laughter.

“fine! fine. i’ll ask her if she’d be willing to help your sorry arse tonight.” remus got out, finally giving sirius a break after 5 minutes of cackling.

the other boy in the room however, stood, and for once, the loudest boy in every room was the quietest as he just watched. a special type of grin wove its way onto his lips, one of pure euphoria as he realised that he finally had something to update his mother on in terms of sirius orion black and his love life.

‧₊˚✩彡

“i still don’t know why you call me lupin even though we’re practically best friends, you know book club, prefect rounds and all.”

“have you ever realised every time i’m with you it’s because of someone else, lupin?”

“ouch, alright then.”

although it was the middle of winter, your thick jumper did a surprisingly good job at keeping you warm in the dark and dreary fifth floor corridor. you would probably forget about the chilliness if it wasn’t for the whines of the lanky boy beside you.

remus lupin could be so annoying all the time sometimes.

“i still don’t understand why they force us to parol when i can’t feel my fucking toes.”

“for the love of rowena, shut. up. lupin. i would do anything not to hear you whining for a couple minutes!” you shrieked, finally losing it after what felt like hours of complaining.

lupin suddenly stopped walking.

“well, i do actually have one thing in mind.”

‧₊˚✩彡

once again, the great hall was bumbling with witches and wizards as ribbons of sunlight trickled in from the grand window at the end of the room. sirius forced to keep his eyes open, as james prattled on and on and on about how he ‘swore lily evans had looked at him’ two days prior.

sirius couldn’t really give a shit.

as he raised his fork to his lips, ready to wrap them around a rasher of bacon, a soft cough sounded from a couple feet behind him. he ignored it. then, another sounded. he ignored it again.

“hey sirius!” a slightly shrill voice suddenly sounded out. the boy in question closed his eyes and took a deep breath before turning around. he wasn’t pleased with the sight in front of him.

lucinda rowle. at least that’s what he thought her name was.

don’t get me wrong, she was probably a lovely girl, but sirius orion black was a prick sometimes.

when sirius looked up at the pureblood ravenclaw in front of him, he couldn’t help but wish it was another ravenclaw instead. “yes?” he questioned, trying not to be rude, but he just couldn’t care less.

“there’s a new cafê open in hogsmeade…” the girl trailed off, with an arrogant glint in her eye.

“i've been.”

“not with me.”

“i’m good.” sirius responded with a tight smile as he attempted to turn back to his hopefully still warm meal, trying to give the girl a hint subtly, but he was hungry and impatient.

“come on, sirius, it would be fun, besides, surely it’s better than going with anyone else in the year.”

“i’m sure someone else would be thrilled to go with you.”

the girl grabbed sirius’ shoulder harshly in a last ditch attempt. sirius eyes immediately zoned in on the girls hand, and his eyes darkened with a fury that many had heard of.

“look, just fuck off.”

lucinda let out a huff as she finally got the message and strutted off, muttering something about “how mudbloods really must taint a blood-traitor’s mind”, whilst sirius looked at where the girl had touched her with a fierce distaste. nevermind, definitely not a lovely girl. he didn’t understand why people thought it was okay to just grab anyone they pleased.

“don’t get me wrong, i’m all for feminism, but what a cow.” remus stated.

“agreed. i love women in power, but not women like that.” james added on.

sirius shook his head and finally got back to his meal. suddenly he heard a whisper of “pads…” from opposite him, a pair of honey eyes and one of chocolate filled to the brim with the concern met his slate ones. he nodded at them, indicating that they could carry on.

“are you alright? that was a bit, you know, i know you don’t like being touched in general, let alone like that.” remus’ deep timbre inquired.

“i’m fine. promise.”

before either james or remus could ask any other questions, someone else requested sirius’ attention.

“black, is now a good time?” your voice murmured out, yet still still sounding as confident as ever.

sirius felt his heartbeat speed up as soon as he sensed your presence, then he swore it doubled, no wait, tripled, its speed when he realised you were addressing him. to try and seem not completely incompetent, he nodded his head up and down with a bright smile thrown onto his lips.

he saw your mouth moving, but all he could hear was white noise as he stared at the way your mouth wrapped around each sound.

“..so that’s what i’m thinking we go for, since the library isn’t that busy during the week, is tonight a good time to start our first session?”

“sounds great.”

it went silent as sirius watched you walk away, excitement bubbling within him.

“godric, pads in love makes me sick.”

“fuck off as if you’re speaking.”

‧₊˚✩彡

as you rounded another bookshelf, your eyes trailing around searching for a quiet and free spot, you were quite shocked to find black already sitting in a seat, surrounded by a myriad of charms books, parchment and quills. he seemed out of place as he blew a piece of charcoal hair out of his vision, his eyes lazily scanning around the old library. then his eyes caught yours, and you could have sworn that his harsh, angled, face softened slightly.

not wanting to keep the boy waiting, you hurried over, once reaching the table, descending into a seat and removing your deep blue scarf and outer robes.

“hello black, sorry to keep yo-”

“sirius. call me sirius. if you want.”

“hello sirius, as i was saying, sorry to keep you waiting. has it been long?” you questioned.

“no, not at all, don’t worry.”

sirius black had been there for an hour and a half. you hadn’t agreed on a time and he didn’t want to miss you. he was unsure why he was so enamoured with you, but after hearing you had covered for them without question, and that you were friends with mr. ‘i don’t like people’ lupin, he deduced you must be somewhat of a good person.

“glad to hear it, anyway, so is there anything in particular you’re struggling with and would like me to go through with you, or should i just work down the list and see where it takes us?” you inquired, your voice taking a more intimate, gentle tone, wanting to make the boy feel as comfortable as possible.

“um, well, i got less than 5% on the test so i believe going through it all would probably be the best.” he cringed, you probably thought he was stupid, even though he faked it.

“grades don’t define us. besides, how is knowing charms on paper going to help in any real life situation?”

the corners of sirius’ mouth lifted in response and his eyes glittered with something warm.

you’d deny it if anyone asked but honestly, your heart skipped a beat.

the rest of the evening was just as sweet, with you explaining simple charms, what they do and when to use them, and sirius asking questions, just to hear you talk about anything and everything. you both agreed on another tutor session again next thursday evening.

‧₊˚✩彡

sirius was bored. with nothing but james potter’s off key recital of “staying alive” and the sound of water rushing in the bathroom filling the dorm, sirius had nothing to do as he reflected on the evening with you. even though you had probably only offered to tutor him out of the kindness of your heart and hadn’t dared to think about him beyond revision timetables and flashcards he couldn't stop thinking about you.

oh you were so lovely. the way you cared about if he understood what you were saying, and the hint of excitement in your eyes when talking about your favourite poems when you got off topic. wait.

poems.

moony likes poems.

surely he would have a collection of some or something, that boy was always smacking prongs around the head with a book when he was too busy ogling lily to listen.

with a newfound passion for poetry he never had before, he went over to moony’s pile of books in the corner of the room and scoured until he found something to fit the job.

‘sonnets of a sorcerer’.

“perfect.” he muttered aloud, transfiguring the cover to some textbook on defence against the dark arts, now he could read these and find something to talk about you with, hopefully showing you he was more than a pretty face who was bad at charms.

‧₊˚✩彡

over the next week, you didn’t notice anything unusual, apart from more interactions with the famous marauders. not that it was completely strange. but previously, you had only spoken to lupin due to being prefects together and the small book club he also attended with you and lily periodically.

however, after you tutored sirius black, you were subjected to the occasional shared smile in the corridor with black; or his first name, sirius, which he insisted you call him by, as well as that james potter would grin and wiggle his eyebrows at you whenever he’d see you.

not sure what that was about. not sure you wanted to know what it was about if you were honest.

anyway, you made your way back to the library you were in just a week before. however this time, sirius was beside you as he insisted to meet outside your common room. he was surprisingly sweet.

“so, how have you been, over the past week?” sirius said, making small talk. you were glad, because honestly, last week, he seemed sort of nervous? you chalked it down to the fact someone he never spoke to before now had to tutor him because he was failing. however, now, he seemed a lot more comfortable.

“i’ve been good, how about you sirius?”

“honestly, great.” an amused glimmer in his eye, as if he knew something you didn’t. “i also discovered that the library has a surprisingly large poetry section after i decided to visit it once in my lifetime.” he added on.

the grin that overtook your face made the whole thing worth it. “ i know right! i don’t want to know how long i’ve spent in the library looking for poetry, let alone reading it. there’s something about the way people use words to express themselves and paint their experiences and let others read them. words can’t explain it.”

the smile on sirius’ face was sweeter than honey. you suddenly realised how far away from the path of charms you had strayed.

“apologies, i don't want to take more of your time, just tell me to stop before i go off a ramble.”

“nah, why would i, if i enjoy them so much?” sirius said, voice smooth, silky and low. it made you feel ways you hadn’t exactly encountered before.

for the rest of the session, you were overcome by a flush. there was something enigmatic about sirius black, and you could feel him dragging you further and further in.

near the end of session, you noticed an unnatural mark underneath sirius’ right eye, you weren’t sure what drove you to do it, perhaps that was simply the power of sirius black’s presence, but you dampened your finger and brought it to his. as you realised what you were doing, your started apologising profusely and drew away from him.

until sirius, with his callused hands, brought yours back to his face, with a gentleness you were astonished he possessed, and said “don’t worry, i don’t mind.”

you still felt dizzy when you met up with remus lupin for prefect rounds.

‧₊˚✩彡

“pads why the fuck do you have a love confession written on your arm? i know you want more tattoos but at least make them half decent.” james shrieked as he tracked the dark ink that jumped out against the paleness of sirius’ skin. although sirius had already got a couple tattoos strewn across his collarbones and chest (one of a constellation dedicated to his brother and an array of other symbols for his found family), the hastily scribbled nonsense of age old sonnets stood out like a sore thumb on the elder boy’s forearms.

sirius was too busy recalling the smell of your perfume and the softness of your actions to listen to james dramatic ramblings and questions.

‧₊˚✩彡

“also remus, i can’t believe you didn’t tell me that sirius also had an interest in poetry? he could’ve joined us and lily at our book club? i’m sure she wouldn’t have minded, as long as ‘it isn’t potter’ or so she says.”

“what the fuck.”

“alright, nevermind, didn’t realise sirius attending book club was so offensive.” you replied with a roll to your eyes.

“no it’s not that, but what the fuck do you mean pads likes poetry? i’ve known him for six years and i have refused chocolate more times than he’s read a poem. are you sure you’re not talking about baby black, like got the wrong brother or something?.” originally, you thought remus must be taking the piss but the sudden harshness of his welsh accent made you think differently.

i mean sirius was known for being a prankster, but what on earth would he get from asking you about sonnets for rowena’s sake. besides, he seemed to know almost as much as you.

what on earth was going on?

‧₊˚✩彡

there was one thing that sirius black forgot as he deposited the test on flitwick’s desk a few days before.

he was in fact quite good at charms. and as he sat in front of his ‘O’ paper, he didn’t know what to do. how on earth was he going to get you to tutor him and go over the essay when he got practically full marks?

and adding to his conundrum, he was sure you were avoiding him ever since the last tutoring session which happened the day before the sudden surprise charms test, maybe he had overdone it with the poetry? you seemed fine during your rambles of appreciation, yet maybe he read the signs wrong.

on the table a few rows over, you were also in the midst of a conundrum as you thought about the boy behind you.

“i was going to ask how the charms test went; but after looking at that face i don't think i want to ask what you got…” the girl next to you inquires after taking in her own test and packing up her parchment, books and quill.

“lily, i’m fucked, i think i like sirius black, like i don’t, i only want him if he says it first to me so it’s not real but how the fuck do i deal with this? have i taken advantage? is it wrong having a thing for the guy you tutor? you know like power imbalance? i can’t tutor him anymore! i can’t get, oh rowena, tutorzoned! tutorzoned lily, tutorzoned! ” the words tumbled out of your mouth, gathering speed as you couldn’t help but pour your heart out to the girl next to you.

“babe, slow down, what on earth are you talking about? before i even dare to ask about the confession, i don’t think he’ll need you to tutor him anymore, when i walked past i could’ve sworn i saw an ‘O’.”

“lils, that’s impossible.”

“alright, i know he isn’t the brightest lad but still he sti-”

“no i mean i hadn’t taught him half of the content on that paper, and he was adamant he didn’t know it, like i feel so bad, there was a whole essay question on lumos charms and he only knows the one from first year because i haven’t taught him the content yet! but how did he still get an ‘O’ without knowing any of them?”

“what? i saw him use lumos solem the other evening when he was with potter and we don’t learn that until next year?”

“wait, what?”

‧₊˚✩彡

“sirius! how was the charms test? i apologise, i didn’t realise we would have one so soon, i would’ve gone through more of the content. however, i’ve heard you still managed to do quite well?” your voice took him by surprise as his eyes widened, his face suddenly very reminiscent of his ‘other’ form.

“umm, what can i say, i got lucky with my guesses?” he stuttered out, a scarlet flushing his cheeks.

“oh yes, ever so lucky indeed. though not as much so as performing a seventh year charm even though you don’t know the name of it and many others we have actually learnt. colour me impressed.”

sirius couldn’t even register the sniggers from james and sly comments from remus as they realised sirius’ plot had been foiled. however, if he was confessing, he refused to do it within a stuffy charms room with everyone watching. the blushing boy rose up from his seat and nodded towards the doorway, stupid charms paper in hand.

‧₊˚✩彡

“explain. now.”

“well, basically, don’t kill me, when that morning, you came to talk to moony, about prefect duties, i just thought you were really, really pretty, and the fact you covered for us, i knew i wanted to get to know you more, but i didn’t know how without seeming creepy, you know? like i wasn’t about to confess my love for you through a serenade like prongs so i thought of the next best thing. and then. well then after the first tutoring session i was like ‘godric i’m screwed she’s lovely’ but i didn’t know how to talk to you, but i remembered you liked poetry. and moony does so i rummaged through his things - not in a violating way - and memorised some poems and things, but i forgot them so i had to write them on my arm and prongs found out, and then you started ignoring me and now we’re here and i think you hate me. please don’t i don’t know what i’m doing but maybe we could give this a go? i thought we worked quite well together and i really, really hope this isn't all in my head.” sirius orion black, who was described as ‘heartless’,’cold’ and ‘cruel’ laid himself bare in front of you.

you looked between the charms paper and sirius, who looked like he was trying to consume himself as he waited for the onslaught. what he didn’t expect was a fountain of giggles to erupt from your mouth, forcing you to lean onto the wall so you didn’t topple over.

eventually, your laugh slowly petered out and you allowed yourself to take in the sweet boy with such a harsh exterior. the sweet boy who sabotaged himself to speak to you. the sweet boy who subjected himself to embarrassment just to find something to talk about with you. the sweet boy who-

“can i please kiss you?” the words escaped before you could stop them.

his eyes flitted between yours, you felt as if you were peering into his soul for a way to stay there with him forever, and he nodded. you forced yourself up on your toes and he didn’t hesitate as he grasped your chin and tilted it upwards, letting his lips meet your own.

sirius realised something about the first time you met in that moment, as he was pressing his smile into yours, hoping to intertwine himself with you for the rest of time, he hadn’t been cursed.

no, he had been charmed.

‧₊˚✩彡

#sirius black x reader #sirius black x you #sirius black x y/n #sirius black oneshot #sirius black fic #marauders x reader #marauders fic #marauders oneshot

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wheretheharekissesthefox · 6 months

Text

Everybody digs a swingin' cat

After one of her performances, Tav gets propositioned by a wizard and when she denies, he turns her into an auburn cat. Now, Tav has to make her way home on all fours and get her friends to break the curse somehow.

Notes:

Karlach's and Wyll's faith is based on this fic.

To avoid confusion: In one of my other fanfics, Halsin and Tav had named the owlbear cup Naïlo, which means 'night breeze' in the Elven language.)

My thing with names and their meanings again:

Cletus: Greek, illustrious, called forth, invoked

Meticulus: malapropism of meticulous

The tavern party was in full swing. People were dancing around like crazy, individuals twirling in their partner's arms, beer flowing plentifully, and the drunken singing was well out of tune. Tav stood on top of the bar, playing her lute and singing a raunchy song.

"They're being an awful flirt,

looking up the lady's skirt.

Enjoying the view regally,

without a spark of decency.

Offering a dance, making her sway,

hoping for a tumble in the hay.

Don't you worry, hun,

all I want is a bit of fun.

Don't you worry, child,

all I want is to be a little wild.

Honey, cut me some slack,

tomorrow mornin' I'll be back."

Tav twirled around, striking a dramatic pose and got showered in applause - and some coins. She bowed deeply, winked at a tiefling, blew a kiss to a maid, and collected the gold. The tavern keeper offered her a drink for her efforts, but she declined politely, thus, she was handed a fresh bread roll instead. Tav sat down at the bar and happily munched on the free food.

"Can you sing some more?" one of the drunkards asked, hiccupping.

"Yeah, please, little lady," chimed his friend in. "You sound like an angel."

Tav laughed and nodded.

"Alright. Just for you, gentlemen."

She turned around on her chair and started to strum her lute again.

"Everybody wants to be a cat.

Drinking milk and taking naps,

that's where it's at, chaps.

That's why we wish for a life like that.

Everybody wants to be a cat.

Sunbathing on the roof

and that's the proof

why we want a life like that.

Everybody wants to be a cat.

Regularly catching mice

is the only paid price

to live a life like that."

The men howled with laughter and drunkenly handed her some more coins. Grinning, the bard stuck them in her pockets. She was in an excellent mood. She'd missed travelling around Faerûn and entertaining people for a living. It had been way too quiet and calm in Gale's home and in Waterdeep. Now, she was basking in the boisterous chaos around her. Again. Like in the old days. Tav was in her element, humming energetically while swinging her lute onto her back. She went back to devouring the bread and drank a tankard of water to help her strained voice. Suddenly, a man in expensive clothes and with slicked back, black hair leaned against the counter next to her.

"Hello, darling, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine, thanks," Tav replied.

"Your performance was exquisite and I'd like to invite you for dinner."

"That's nice, but I have to decline."

"Why? Is your partner waiting for you?"

"That's none of your business, mister."

The man looked at her, angrily.

"Am I not even allowed to ask a simple question without being treated rudely? I'm Cletus Meticulus, the greatest wizard of the Sword Coast and I deserve respect!"

Tav raised an eyebrow.

"Mhm."

Wizards were always so full of themselves, yikes.

"Oi! Leave the little lady alone!" shouted the drunk guy who had ask for another song. "Fuck off and bother someone else!"

Cletus was enraged, stammering unfinished sentences.

"Get out of my tavern, mate," sighed the tavern keeper. "No need to make a scene for nothin'."

"I mustn't be treated this way by peasants!" the wizard yelled, stepping away from the bar. "How dare you people treat a renowned scholar of the Arts this way!"

The entire tavern groaned and shouted insults at the wizards.

"You!" Cletus pointed at Tav furiously. "You humiliated me, you slut! You'll pay for this! Spreading your legs for everyone but me like a cat in heat!"

And with hasty arm movements and shouting, he hit Tav with a magic spell. She exploded in yellow light with a loud bang, blinding the rest of the people momentarily. When the light was gone, the wizard had disappeared. The tavern goers blinked in disbelief.

"The lil' lady's gone!" yelled the drunkard panicky, pointing at the heap of clothing and the lute on the floor.

An auburn cat wiggled its way free from underneath the clothes, meowing pathetically.

"What the fuck?" slurred the drunkard.

"Ah, shite!" groaned the tavern keeper.

Astarion popped his back with a groan and rubbed his tired eyes. He'd read for six hours straight in hopes of finding a solution to Karlach's problem. Of course, he, again, had found nothing and had only ended up with a blurred vision.

"The letters dance before my eyes. I need a break," he complained.

"Mhm," mumbled Gale who was still nose-deep in his tome.

Astarion walked over to pet Scratch and Naïlo. Suddenly, the animals turned their heads simultaneously and ran off.

"What the Hells?" grumbled the vampire spawn and followed them.

The dog and the owlbear stood at the front door.

"Do you guys need to pee?"

Just as Astarion wanted to shout for Gale to go for a walk with them, he heard the scratching noises on the wooden door. Furrowing his brows, the vampire spawn carefully opened it, mindful of the sunlight. Before the door was even halfway open, a cat dashed inside.

"Hey! No, no, no, get out!"

Astarion tried to catch the stray cat, but it hissed at him and weaselled its way into the living room.

"Gale!" yelled the vampire spawn annoyed, sprinting towards him.

"A cat! Oh, and what a lovely specimen you are."

Astarion rolled his eyes when he entered the room and saw the wizard with the strange cat in his arms. The latter was purring loudly and rubbing its head against Gale's chin. The wizard almost melted into a puddle.

"What a beautiful girl you are," he cooed while giving the cat a belly rub. "And so well-behaved."

"Uhm, hello? I'm sorry to disturb your bonding experience, but that's a stray," Astarion said with his lips pursed. "It doesn't belong here. Let's throw it out."

"No." Gale looked offended, holding the cat closer to his chest. "She's such a cutie and she's probably scared and hungry. We can't kick her out."

Astarion crossed his arms.

"What will Tara say when she's back, hm?"

"Well... we'll deal with it when she arrives," Gale muttered sheepishly, making the vampire spawn groan.

"What about Scratch and Naïlo? They don't like the stray."

As if to spite him, the mentioned animals scuttled over to Gale with a waging tail and a happy chirp. Astarion glowered.

"You traitors," he whispered.

"Don't fight. Be nice to our little guest, will you?" Gale said and put the cat down reluctantly.

The home intruder meowed multiple times as if talking to the pets, and then got a nose boop from both Scratch and Naïlo. Astarion was utterly confused and positively enraged.

"Is everyone in this house plotting against me?"

The auburn cat looked at him, dashed over and jumped into his arms. The vampire spawn grumbled disgruntled.

"You're a pesky little beast. You remind me of someone."

"We should give her a name," Gale announced excitedly, eyes full of joy.

Astarion hummed and scratched the cat's chin. It purred at him with closed eyes. A smile spread over the vampire spawn's face.

"How about Nag? Or Home Intruder?"

Gale looked more offended than the cat.

"Absolutely not! This beautiful individual deserves a wonderful name, like Scarlett or Ruby."

"What about Fleabag?"

"Astarion!"

"What?" The vampire spawn snickered. "I'm sure it doesn't mind."

"It's a she."

"If you say so."

Just to test the limits of Gale's - and the cat's - patience, Astarion lifted the animal up under its forelegs until its entire body was fully stretched out so that he could take a look between its legs.

"It is a girl. Bravo, Gale, I didn't know you’re so familiar with animals' genitals."

The addressed pinched the bridge of his nose with a deep sigh and Astarion grinned. The cat stayed silent and still, just waiting for the next move. The vampire spawn cradled her against his chest, muttering: "You're a weird one, kitty. Don't you have any claws?"

The addressed meowed and rubbed her head against him with a purr.

"She's truly well-behaved," Gale agreed. "Maybe, she belongs to someone."

At that, the cat hissed.

"Or not," Astarion said. He hoisted the cat up and looked into her green-brown eyes, frowning. "Do you understand us?"

She meowed.

"Say yes."

She meowed again.

"Say no."

She hissed.

"Huh." Astarion looked at Gale. "Do you still have some of that potion left that lets us talk to animals?"

"Uhm, I don't think so. Why?"

"Something's strange about this cat and I want to ask her about it."

"Mrp?"

"Yes, I'm talking about you, Fleabag."

"Please, don't call her that. It's disrespectful."

"Eh, she doesn't mind. – You don't mind, right, Fleabag?"

The cat hissed.

"See? She doesn't like it," remarked Gale.

"A hiss means no," replied Astarion. "Don't you know that yet? Keep up, Gale."

The wizard sighed again and said: "I'll go looking for the potion."

He left the room while Astarion sat down and placed the cat before him. "So... I have questions."

"Meow."

"Alright. If you can understand me, that means you're much more intelligent than a regular cat?"

"Meow."

"Does that mean you're magically modified?"

"Hiss."

"Hm... are you... perhaps... cursed?"

"Meow!"

"Oh, shit, really?"

"Meow, meow!"

"Do we know you?"

"Meow!"

"Oh, that's not good," Astarion muttered, concerned. "Who are you? - That was a stupid question, apologies."

Astarion sighed deeply, but the cat tapped her paw against his knee and jumped up. She turned around, meowing at him, before dashing off. Astarion followed her curiously. The cat led him to the master bedroom and jumped up onto Tav's chest of drawers.

"What are you doing up there? The pets are not allowed in the bedroom and we won't make an exception because you're –" The vampire spawn gasped, his eyes widening in realisation and horror. "Tav?! Oh, Gods, is this you, darling?"

"Meooow!"

"Oh, fuck, oh, Gods... Gale! Gale!"

Astarion ran to the wizard's study. The latter popped his head out of a cabinet, visibly confused.

"What? Why are you shouting?"

"Tav! It's Tav!" the vampire spawn yelled in a panic, wildly pointing at the cat that had followed him.

"What?"

"Tav was cursed, it's her!"

"Meow!"

"Interesting..."

"No! Not interesting! Terrible!"

"I'm aware, Astarion, I'm aware. – Tav, come here."

The cat dashed over to the wizard who asked: "How did this happen?"

Growling, the cat glared at him.

"Ah, yes, apologies. The potion."

Gale took a swing from the bottle before handing it to the vampire spawn who took a big gulp hastily. The wizard turned towards the cat again.

"Tav?"

"Yes, it's me," sighed the auburn cat.

"I think I'm losing my mind," muttered Astarion and had to sit down. "What did you get yourself into, darling?"

"After one of my performances, a guy harassed me and when I declined his offer to eat dinner, he turned me into a cat."

"Hurt?" asked Naïlo, gently nudging her with his massive beak.

"No, it just feels weird."

"You smell sad, friend," said Scratch and whined unhappily.

"I'm alright, don't worry," Tav answered and rubbed her head against Scratch’s chest to calm him down. "Can you lift the curse, Gale?"

"Well... technically..."

"'Technically'? What do you mean 'technically'? You're the godsdamn Wizard of Waterdeep! What are you babbling about?" raged Astarion.

Gale looked sheepish as he explained: "It truly seems like a curse and not simply a polymorph spell, thus, it's more complicated to break it."

"Help?" asked Naïlo, looking excited.

"I don't know if you can help, but thank you for offering," answered Gale. "First, we need to figure out what type of curse it is."

"And how can we do that?" Astarion wanted to know.

"I need to study the structure of the Weave with which the spell was conjured. This way, I can find the anchor of it and unravel it like a ball of yarn."

"Play?" Naïlo chirped, jumping happily.

"I meant it metaphorically."

When Gale realised that the owlbear had no idea what that meant, he explained: "It's not a real ball of yarn, but an item used to symbolise something that can't be put into words."

"Words are hard," Naïlo nodded.

Astarion and Gale snickered.

"Yes, they are," agreed the wizard, petting the owlbear's head. "Now, let me work my magic."

He held his hands above Tav's head and closed his eyes to focus. Everyone stood very still. After a moment, Gale opened his eyes again.

"Uh-oh."

"You're not supposed to say 'uh-oh'."

"Apologies, Astarion, but my findings are not favourable. The curse can only be broken with the right trigger and the problem is –" Gale gritted his teeth angrily. "– I can't figure out what the trigger is."

Groaning loudly, the vampire spawn buried his face in his hands.

"Are you kidding me? Great, that's just great."

"I'm working on it," hissed the wizard, personally offended by Astarion's comment.

"I'm sure you'll figure this out," Tav told him, more confidently than she felt. "I trust you."

Gale smiled a bit.

"Thank you, dear."

"But what if you can't change back?" asked Scratch and whined with his tail between his legs. "I don't want you to smell sad anymore."

"Normal soon," hooted Naïlo.

"Hopefully," Astarion muttered. "It'll be devastating if our lover's stuck in the body of a cat."

Tav sighed, sinking her claws into the carpet.

"I'll find a cure," Gale promised and set back to work.

Eventually, the wizard fell asleep from exhaustion. Astarion draped a blanket over him before feeding Scratch, Naïlo, and Tav dinner. Then, he went on his nightly stroll to appease his hunger. The dog, the owlbear, and the cat scuttled back to Gale's study to keep him company. Tav curled into a ball at the wizard's chest and dozed off. When she awoke, elegant fingers were stroking her back and the smell of saltwater was in the air.

"Mrp?" she asked concerned.

"Apologies," sniffed Gale. "I'm just - I'll find a way to break the curse and if it’s the last thing I do. I'll do anything, I promise."

"Meow."

Tav scooted forwards to press her head under his chin and the wizard hid his face in her fluffy fur and kept crying.

"I'm so sorry I failed you so far."

"Meow!"

"I did. I really did."

The addressed purred and rubbed her head against his chin. Gale scooped her up into her arms, leaning his forehead against the top of her head.

"I love you so much," he whispered and kissed her nose.

With a loud 'poof', Gale suddenly held Tav in human form in his arms, and then dropped her into his lap because she was too heavy. The bard smiled at him.

"Hello, love. Thank you for saving me."

She kissed him passionately and the wizard's mind was still in overdrive. When they finally broke apart to breathe, he said: "We found the trigger, a classic. It's true love's kiss."

"Aww, how romantic," Tav giggled and gave him another peck.

"Seems like I missed something," Astarion remarked as he walked into the room.

"I'm back!" beamed the bard.

"I can see that, darling." The vampire spawn kneeled down to kiss her hungrily. "Thank the Gods, you're no longer a cat."

"Actually, it wasn't the Gods who saved me but Gale. The curse was broken by true love's kiss."

At that, Astarion doubled over and laughed until he was wheezing. Meanwhile, Gale just blushed furiously. Grinning, Tav wrapped her arms around him and murmured: "I love you too."

Scratch and Naïlo bounced around happily and Tav petted them until they had their fill.

"It's good to be back in my own body," she sighed and stretched out on the carpet. "Now, I have to go back to the tavern and get my stuff that the tavern owner so graciously put into storage for me. Life's not easy as a cat. It took me five days to walk here. But it inspired me to write more songs about animals."

The men chuckled and lay down next to her.

"I put an anti-thief spell on your luggage, but I never thought I've to put a spell on you to keep you safe," Gale muttered. "I won't let you leave the house without a protection spell ever again."

Tav snickered.

"Oh, my courageous saviour."

She kissed Gale and Astarion some more, now, that she could finally do it again, and held them close in her arms. The only other thing she craved, was strumming her lute again and making good use of humans' very practical fingers. That would have been a downside if Tav would have had to spent the rest of her life as a cat. She could have had still sung though – yowling at the moon.

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #fanfic #astarion #astarion ancunin #gale #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #tav #scratch #owlbear cup #naïlo #crack treated seriously

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bangtanloverboys · 10 months

Text

life support // knj

summary - namjoon likes to think he’s the embodiment of the perfect example of a theurgists: positive and enthusiastic. however when his professor asks him to help tutor one of her secondary students, only then is that pushed to the limit

pairing - tutor!namjoon x neurodivergent!reader

genre - fluff; wizard 101 au

word count - 4.0k

warnings - dip’s made up lore, namjoon says one mean thing, thoughts of fraternization

guide - theurgy = life magic, divination = storm magic; marlybonian = british dog people; pigswick = another wizarding academy;

author’s note - last names for reasons. and this was a bit personal for me as i do have adhd and i struggled a lot with theoretical teachings. this is based off my own personal experience with school and having adhd, not everyone’s is the same

the seven schools of ravenwood

Best in class. That is how Namjoon has always been described ever since he was a novice theurgist. It came easy to him, with a glance at a textbook he could perform the spell in an instant. Life magic was simply in his blood. So when Professor Wu asked him to tutor some of her less than stellar students, he wasn’t surprised. It took a while for each of the other students to catch on, but one by one, he helped them understand the material and soon enough, they raised their grades. Namjoon’s track record was stunning, there wasn’t any student he couldn’t help.

That was until he met you.

Normally Professor Wu only offered tutoring for her novice primary school students; young theurgists that either did not grow up where magic was practiced or simply fell behind a few lessons and needed a bit of help to get back on their feet. Never before had he had to tutor a secondary school theurgist. But he was willing to step up to the challenge.

Pushing open the heavy oak doors of the Life School, he was greeted with the familiar sight of Professor Wu standing at the top of the platform. Standing right at the bottom of the stairs before her, was you, dressed in purple and gold. A diviner, Namjoon thought to himself. Life magic sat in between Storm and Fire, so one normally would expect a student of those primary schools would easily understand and excel at theurgy. He wondered what could be the problem.

“Ah, Namjoon!” She smiled as he approached you both. “Y/N, this will be your tutor; Namjoon Jadeshield. Namjoon, this is Y/N Raindreamer,” she introduced.

“Pleasure,” he greeted, holding out his hand for you to shake. You don’t shake his hand, only giving him a tight lipped smile. “Okay. . .” he dropped his hand. “What exactly are you struggling with so that I can help?”

You opened your mouth to speak, but Professor Wu cut you off. “Everything, really. They’re supposed to start their initiate program, but unfortunately they must repeat their apprenticeship.”

Namjoon tried to hold back his shock. Failing the apprenticeship class? You’d have to repeat the whole two year process, probably never catch back up to your primary school level. “Okay. So how often shall we hold tutoring sessions?” He glanced between you and Professor Wu.

“Ideally every day after class,” the professor answered.

Your head snapped in the direction of her. “No!” Turning to Namjoon, you began to plead with him. “Monday, Tuesday, Thursday. I need Wednesday and Friday free. I have-“

“You know very well that any or all after school activities are suspended until your grades rise, Raindreamer,” Professor Wu tisked.

But you didn’t acknowledge her, only keeping your eyes trained on Namjoon. “I’m sorry, but Professor Wu is right. Until you have sufficient grades to prove it, no after school activities.”

As the words left his mouth, Namjoon watched in slow motion as your face fell. Like the world had crashed around you. Quickly, your face steeled and a frown was etched onto your features. “Fine.”

“Alright,” Namjoon nodded, wanting this meeting to be over and done with. “We’ll start tomorrow. Meet me outside the Commons Library? Sound good with you?”

“Yeah, fine. Whatever,” you huffed as you shouldered your book bag and left the school building, leaving Namjoon and Professor Wu alone.

“I swear, with a name like Raindreamer, it’s no wonder they have grades like this,” she sighed. “But thank you again, Namjoon. I know you’ll be a great help.”

“I’ll do my best.”

The following day, Namjoon waited for you just outside the Commons Library. He was there a full 10 minutes before you finally arrived. He opened his mouth to berate you for being late but words failed to come out at the sight of you; fresh scrapes and bandages covering any exposed skin.

“What?” You raised a brow at him.

“Are you- what happened?”

You looked down at the bandages before shrugging. “Fell.”

Whilst that didn’t feel like the full reason, Namjoon didn’t push any further, simply wanting to get the tutoring session along. You trailed behind him as he climbed up the final steps to the library, pushing open the doors. Namjoon waved hello to Harold, the old Marleybonian that served as the librarian, as he scribbled away in his ledger.

“This way,” Namjoon said to you as he walked down the theurgy wing. Other life students, dressed in robes of greens and browns, were seated at the tables that were strategically placed alongside the tall bookshelves. He made his way over to his usual table, it sat right between the initiate and journeyman textbooks. Granted those might be a bit out of your range, but perhaps it could serve as a bit of motivation to help you move forward.

Placing his book bag down, he looked at you, straggling along still. A bit further than he would’ve liked, but you were soon catching up. Your eyes were trained on the books as they flew across the shelves, rearranging and reorganizing themselves. There was a small smile etched into your face as you watched the books and scrolls float about, reminding Namjoon of a child on Christmas. Clearing his throat to gain your attention, he watched as that smile faded away, back into a look of displeasure. You picked up the pace, taking the seat beside him.

“Professor Wu didn’t give me any specifics as to what you need help with. So are there any particular parts that you need help with?” Namjoon asked as you pulled out your scrolls and text books.

“Everything, I guess. It just. . . doesn’t make sense. I can’t figure out how to get from Point A to Point B,” you explained.

“So conceptualizing it?”

You blinked at him. “I- uh, I guess that is one way to put it.”

“Okay, that gives us a starting point then.” He smiled at you. “So let’s go to basics. See if that can help.”

“Alright,” you muttered, learning forward as he began writing.

“So theurgy is a bit different than the other schools, when using magic we don’t summon or coerce the creatures into appearing. We breathe life into them through the Song of Creation. Are you familiar with that?” When he turned to look at you, you were staring blankly at the paper. He waited a few moments for you to respond, but you didn’t. Namjoon snapped his fingers twice, you jerked back to attention.

“Sorry, I- uh. . . what did you say?”

It was then when Namjoon realized how you were able to fail your apprenticeship so miserably and how you earned your last name.

You could not focus at all.

Every time Namjoon was going over spell casting and or creation, he would turn to you to check to see if you were following, only for you to have a blank look on your face or your eyes to be trained on the floating books again. Every time he would have to snap his fingers to regain your attention. On some occasions, he saw you scribbling away into a notebook. At first he thought you were actually taking notes, but anytime he tried to take a look at it, you shut the book in his face.

By the end of the second hour, when your session was coming to a close, you had finally managed to understand one spell. It was just a shield spell, so it wasn’t too complicated, but not enough for Namjoon to be satisfied with your progress.

As the two of you left the library, you were about to make a break for the right, no doubt returning to your dorm room in Ravenwood, but he quickly grabbed onto your wrist.

“What?”

“I want you to read over the History of Life Magic, chapters one through four. Just the basics, that should help at least a tiny bit.”

“You’re giving me homework?”

He blinked at you, caught off guard by the question. He’s always asked the students he tutored to reread certain materials, and they did so without question. “It’s not really homework, just helps to go over the material again,” he sputtered out in response. “I want to see you succeed and catch up in your secondary school. And reading helps.”

“Yeah, sure,” you huffed with a roll of your eyes, then walked down the pathway through the Commons.

Over the next two weeks, the two of you had fallen into a routine; every few days you’d be late by no more than 10 minutes to each session (how he had no idea, considering the initiate divination class would get out around your scheduled time) with fresh bandages, he’d try his damndest to help you understand the material, and then you’d part ways, heading off towards the right. And it was agonizing for Namjoon. You read at a snail's pace, mixing up the pixie and fairy spells, scrambling words and wand motions together. It wasn’t by lack of effort either, Namjoon could see you were trying, genuinely, but no matter how much reading he assigned you, nothing seemed to stick. You got one spell for every ten he went over with you. He simply could not believe how you managed to even get enrolled into Ravenwood in the first place.

When he expressed his frustrations towards Professor Wu when it was time for a follow up, she finally told him that you were a new student, only coming in within the past 6 months, after being kicked out of Pigswick for poor performance. He was shocked at the information, but it made sense. You were a troubled student and needed a firm hand. So he went to work, putting together another lesson plan that was more strict to try and see if that would help you at all.

It didn’t.

Barely a full session in, he watched as you failed to recite the proper incantations to summon a leprechaun, something you nearly had the day previous.

“What isn’t clicking for you?” He found himself asking you at the end of the session.

“I’m sorry?”

“I mean, why can’t you do this? This is basic theurgy, and you’re a storm student! This should come easy to you, right? So why are you struggling so much?” He felt like he was at the end of his rope. If he couldn’t teach you, then what hopes could he ever have about being a professor?

“I mean, it just. . . doesn’t. It’s hard to explain. . .”

“Well if you don’t figure it out, you’re gonna get kicked out from another school,” Namjoon muttered under his breath.

“What?”

He froze. He cringed to himself as he turned around to look at you, regretting even thinking the words. Once he laid eyes on you, he saw that same broken look he saw when Professor Wu said you couldn’t continue with your afterschool activities, only worse. Your shoulders sagged, and Namjoon swore he could’ve heard your heart break, shattered by him. Then your face hardened as you tightened your grip on your bookbag.

“Then I guess there’s no reason for us to really continue these sessions, considering I’m just gonna get kicked out anyways.” Then you turned on your heel and stormed off.

“Y/N, wait- I’m sorry!”

He wanted to follow after you, but he couldn’t find it in him to. He watched as you disappeared into the crowded Commons area, wishing he never even opened his mouth.

The following day after class, Namjoon made his way over towards the Storm School. You deserved an apology, Namjoon knew that. What he said was mean, and something he never should’ve said as your tutor. It was just his luck that his mastery class ended at the same time the Storm initiate class ended, giving him the perfect opportunity to find you and apologize. He eyed through the students as they made their way past him, on their own way towards their next class or any after school club. But he could not find out. He knew he had the right year, you were supposed to go into the initiate class this year, you were the proper age for it. Where were you?

Perhaps you stayed inside to talk to the professor, he thought to himself as he approached the heavy oak doors. Thunder boomed overhead from the gathering storm cloud that resided inside the classroom. It had been years since he’d ever stepped foot in the school of storm, the first and only time being from when he was trying to find a secondary school, all those years before he finally landed on balance.

Namjoon glanced around the room, trying to catch a glimpse of you but you weren’t in the room. Only Professor Balestrom resided in the classroom, standing on top of his desk as he gathered papers.

Taking a deep breath, he entered the school, clearing his throat to gain the frog professor’s attention. He turned on his flipper as the sound of Namjoon and bounced up to his full height of three feet.

“Ah! How can I be of service to you?”

“Hi, I’m tutoring one of your students. Y/N Raindreamer? They would be in your initiate class.”

A frown etched itself onto Professor Balestrom’s face. “Raindreamer is my student yes, but they’re not in my initiate class.”

“What?”

“Raindreamer advanced into the adept class about 3 months ago! They’re a brilliant student, one of the best diviners I’ve seen in a while,” he explained.

The information shook Namjoon to his core. You were an advanced student? But how could that be, considering your grades in theurgy? It didn’t make any sense. “I-I didn’t know that.”

“First time in my class, they struggled though. Came in on a reading day, which is everyone’s least favorite part of the curriculum. But as soon as we got to spell casting, they nearly blew the roof off this place!” The professor continued, leaping up in the air for dramatic effect. “They weren’t even here a week before I took them to the headmaster and demanded they advance to the journeyman course, only that was also too easy! They’re getting a real challenge in adept, I’ll tell you that.”

Namjoon couldn’t believe his ears. Here he was, thinking you were a walking failure, doomed to be kicked out of a second school. Only to learn that you were nearly two years advanced in your studies! “Oh. . . well, do you know where they might be? I do need to talk to them.”

Professor Balestrom looked at the clock on the wall. “Should be in the arena by now.”

“The arena?”

“Yes. The arena! They’re a duelist, did you not know that?”

Only then did it dawn on him that he never did ask what you wanted to do so badly that you wanted to schedule your tutoring sessions around it. Then he remembered what days you were late on, the fresh bandages you always had on. . . You were still dueling. Under the school’s nose too.

“Thank you, Professor Balestrom. I appreciate it.”

“Of course, of course!” The frog man called out to Namjoon as he all but ran out the door. As fast as he could, he made his way through the tunnels to the Commons and then to Unicorn Way. He pushed open the doors of the arena, the snapping of puppets and growls of different summoned monsters filled his ears as he approached Diego, the dueling master.

“A newcomer? Are you interested in learning the art of the duel?” The unicorn asked, raising a brow at him.

Namjoon shook his head no. “Sorry, I’m actually looking for someone. Y/N Raindreamer?”

“Ah, yes! They’ve been short on their dueling practice lately, but they’re in the next dueling chamber over. Come, I shall show you.” Diego led Namjoon down a hall towards an empty arena, where sure enough you were, dueling against a puppet.

He was blown away with the sight before him. You waved your wand with practiced ease and the creatures you summoned did your bidding with little to no struggle at all. It wasn’t at all how you were when he was tutoring you. How could you manage to do so good in one class that you advance two classes, but struggle to advance in your secondary?

“Pretty good, eh? Came in from Pigswick, good school and all but they don’t actually teach magic there. It’s all theoretical. But as soon as Raindreamer was enrolled here, and with a little help from your’s truly, they advanced in no time!” Diego explained as he and Namjoon watched you battle the puppet. “They come in here as often as they can, practicing all the spells they learn in class. See the scrolls?” He pointed off to the side of the dueling sigil where sure enough, were piles of spell books and scrolls, mainly of storm magic, judging from the purple lining. But Namjoon could see some greens in there.

You weren’t just practicing.

You were studying.

Raising your wand again, this time the life symbol appeared. Up until the last wave of your wand, it was perfect. You had twisted your wrist in the wrong direction, causing the spell to fizzle completely. You let out a curse as you stepped away from the sigil, the puppet standing still. You pulled open the life scroll, reading over it again, no doubt trying to find your mistake.

“You’re supposed to twist your wrist towards the right, not the left!” Namjoon called out to you. Your head snapped up in his direction, mouth open to probably yell at him. But you didn’t say anything, your eyes focusing on Diego behind him.

“He’s right, you were perfect up until that last move,” Diego confirmed as he trotted down the stairs towards you, Namjoon following after. “He was looking for you, I hope you do not mind I brought him here.”

“It’s alright, thank you, Diego.” You gave the unicorn a slight smile, who nodded before stepping away, giving the two of you some privacy. Once your attention was fully towards Namjoon, your lips pressed into a thin line. “What is it, Namjoon?”

“I wanted to apologize, what I said was out of line. As your tutor, it should’ve been my priority to build you up, not to tear you down.”

You regarded him cautiously. “Doesn’t change the fact that what you said really hurt. I did try, but studying like that just. . . it doesn’t work for me. Sitting there and telling me how to cast spells, I have to see and do it to fully understand. Do you get that?”

“Yes, I can see that now.” Namjoon stepped toward the pile of scrolls and books that you had at the side of the arena. Picking up the one that was open, he flipped through it. There were a bunch of notes and scribbles in the margins, he recognized the chicken scratch as yours but what you wrote were what he would go over and teach you in your tutoring sessions. “This is why you wanted those days off, so you could practice your spellwork and could try to actually grasp what you were learning?”

Slowly, you nodded. “I will admit, I did continue dueling, but without the proper amount of dedication to practice and study, it just. . . I couldn’t do it.”

“Then we’ll hold our tutoring sessions here.”

You looked at him in shock. “What?”

“If this is what helps you learn, then this is what we’ll do to help you,” Namjoon started, “I’ll tell Professor Wu about the change and reserve an arena with Diego. We can meet here instead of the library, does that sound good to you?”

“I- yeah! That’s- that’s perfect, thank you!” You said, beaming widely at him. It was the first time you actually smiled at him, and he was going to deny the little flutter he felt in his chest.

“Okay, so I’ll see you here tomorrow?”

“Yeah, tomorrow!”

Just as he said, Namjoon talked with Moolinda about having you study via dueling.

“I don’t know, Jadeshield. . . they’re failing, and the rules are no extracurriculars unless a student is of a passing grade.”

“I know, but this is how they learn! I didn’t understand it at first, and that’s my fault. But they’re actually really smart! Did you know they’re two classes advanced in divination?” Namjoon countered.

Professor Wu was taken back by that knowledge, judging by the way her eyes narrowed down and focused on him.

“Please, just give them a chance.”

She was quiet, before placing her hooves together and nodding. “Very well. You may hold your tutoring lessons in the arena.”

Namjoon was so ecstatic, he would have jumped for joy. But there was one more thing that he had to ask. . .

Due to his meeting with the professor, Namjoon was running late to meet you at the Arena. He saw you were sitting on the grass outside the building, looking down at that book you would scribble in during your tutoring sessions, flipping through the pages.

“Hey!” He caught your attention as he approached you. “I have great news!”

Looking up from your book, you furrowed your brows together. “What?”

“I talked to Professor Wu and she gave the green light for us to do dueling tutoring sessions and she agreed!”

You jumped to your feet. “Really?!”

“Yes, and she agreed to something even better.”

“Spit it out then! Don’t leave me here in all this suspense!”

“If you test well enough on the next exam that’s in a few weeks, you can join the initiate program!” It took a lot of convincing on his part, and staking his whole career as a tutor on the line, but he was wrong to ever doubt you in the first place. He knew you could do it.

“You-oh my stars! Thank you!” Dropping your book, you threw yourself onto Namjoon, wrapping your arms around his neck and squeezing him tightly.

He stilled at the sudden contact, feeling heat rush to his cheeks. “You’re- you’re welcome,” he said, patting your back gently. He’d never been thanked in such a way before, usually a quick handshake or a smile. Never a hug.

As quick as you hugged him, you released your hold on him, smiling brightly at him. “Come on! Exam may be a few weeks away, but I wanna be sure I have everything right so I can ace this test!” You said, before racing inside the arena.

Namjoon stood back for a second, still feeling the heat on his cheeks. He took a step forward to join you, only to accidentally step on your book that you’d dropped. Kneeling down, he picked it up. Curiosity gaining the best of him, he took a peek inside. It was doodles and drawings of different creatures and spells, with little notes dotted along the sides. Still flipping through the book, he began walking towards the arena, but he stopped as he turned to a page that took him by surprise. It was a drawing of him, incompleted, but was very obviously Namjoon. He felt the heat on his face return, crawling up his ears too. Reading along the sides of the page, were your own personal anecdotes about him. Calling him all sorts of names, but also things he had said; Stuff from his lessons. You had remembered, you were trying. He just couldn’t see it.

“Ahem.”

Namjoon’s eyes broke away from the sketchbook, meeting Diego’s gaze. The unicorn said nothing, only winking at him as he tossed his head in the direction of the arena doors.

Breaking eye contact, Namjoon pushed open the doors, hoping you wouldn’t see the embarrassment on his cheeks. He spotted you almost immediately, talking with some other students he could only presume were your friends. Taking notice of him, you smiled at him again, and he swore he could see a twinkle in your eye-

No. No. No.

You had an exam to study for and he was your tutor. He couldn’t fraternize with you like that. However, he wouldn’t be for long if you ace that exam. . .

“Raindreamer, let’s go!”

#btsghostie #namjoon x reader #kim namjoon x reader #bts x reader #namjoon x gender neutral reader #kim namjoon x gender neutral reader #bts x gender neutral reader #bts wizard au #wizard101 au #neurodivergent reader #namjoon x adhd reader #wizard namjoon

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bearmemesreviews · 26 days

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Skylanders Review: Double Trouble

So um Yeah, we've covered 1/4 of the original thirty-two Skylanders, now we gotta' talk about Double Trouble.

[Image: Double Trouble is a um, "Shaman" character. His face is actually a tiki mask, with a rectangular shape that extends his forehead to a higher position. His mask has canine-like teeth surrounded by a rectangular, carved in lips, alongside a carved unibrow. There are also five additional quadrilateral markings above his unibrow that almost resemble SpongeBob's eyelashes. You can see his lime green eyes through the mask. There are several feathers decorating the sides of the mask, alongside a grass-skirt with a leather...fanny pack maybe? Its latch is tied around a cartoonish bone, and you cannot see any legs under his skirt so that's a cool detail I guess. Anything not covered up by his "traditional" garments reveals that he has blue skin, with humanoid features. He wields a staff topped with a crystal, with metallic fixtures surrounding it, and with more feathers decorating it.]

So um, remember the Witch Doctor and Shaman monsters from the OG Scooby-Doo series? Kids franchises really loved those wooden masks!

Okay these masks are really cool, and they are a great representation of cultures - especially with how humans all have the same idea of using artificial faces to intimidate others or put on performances.

But like, this is...not good right? I can't really say the devs who designed this guy deserve a 1000 years of misfortune for not being all that culturally sensitive, but look at him.

Better yet, look at the fact that most of his in-game dialogue is just different iterations of Ooga Booga. No seriously.

I am not comfortable with this, like his species is apparently "Tiki Man"??? I feel like if you want something Tiki inspired that has no connection to the culture actually connected to that imagery, you could at least make up a new name for it? Video Games are a half-visual media, so the connection would be easy to make through design alone. Here it feels kinda lazy just to call something "Tiki [Blank]", like calling the stars and stripes a "Flag pattern" in a world where America doesn't even exist.

The Tiki stuff is just aesthetics by the way, there is no other cultural influence because it's very clear he's mostly based on African Shaman stereotypes.

His backstory is basically the same as the Zebra from My Little Pony, and his name comes from the fact that he ate a special plant that gave him the ability to create clones with his already expert magic. The first positive I can give this character is that I enjoy him getting along with his clones despite the fact that they're all tiny bombs mechanically.

It gets even weirder because one of his beta figure designs is just a normal elf-eared wizard with no Tiki elements. Perhaps it was deemed too similar to Eon, but with a few redesigns it could've worked. Even taking Chompy Wizard into account.

Motto: "Boom Shock-a-locka!" I did not like writing this review. 1/5.

One. He gets one. The Bone Chompy of Death.

Did I mention that I will not do a full creature design review of the original Scooby-Doo! Where are You roster of monsters for reasons this review makes apparent.

#bmoreviews #skylanders #bmoreviewsskylanders #skylanders spyro's adventure #double trouble #cw discussions of racism

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gracexthoughts · 1 month

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Of Violent Delights Intro

“These violent delights have violent ends

And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,

Which as they kiss consume.” -William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

Euphemia Potter, the older sister of Harry Potter and heir to the Potter name and fortune, enters her 5th year of Hogwarts ready to take on the challenges of O.W.L.s, Quidditch games, and the never ending task of trying to keep her little brother out of trouble. However, one challenge she did not expect is having to perform prefect duties with none other than Mattheo Riddle, the only son and heir of Lord Voldemort. While struggling against forces known and unknown, the heirs of two of the most infamous wizarding families in history come to find they have more in common than either would care to admit.

Euphemia Lily Potter; 17, 5th year, Gryffindor Princess, The Girl Who Lived

Born 30 January 1978 to James and Lily Potter

“You have no idea what you are asking of me! To turn my back on everything my parents died for, on my brother, my friends, all you for?”

Mattheo Marvelo Riddle; 18, 5th year, Slytherin Casanova, Heir of The Dark Lord

Born to 29 August 1978 to Medusa and Tom Riddle

"Yeah, well at least I don't pretend to be better than I am. Running around pretending you are a good person is worse than just accepting you aren't one."

mostly canon compliant, slow(ish) burn, forced proximity, enemies to lovers

#harry potter #harry potter fandom #harry potter fanfiction #hogwarts #hogwarts oc #hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry #matteo riddle #hp fanfic #wizarding world #hogwarts houses #matheo riddle #of violent delights

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multi-lefaiye · 4 months

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NO I love your ship names! I also love that you included platonic ships (my ask game. it is going somewhere <3) anyway please tell me about it's a wizard thing and strange new worlds!!!

~ @void-botanist

THANK YOUUU I'M SO GLAD YOU LIKE THEM.... also YEAH i do love to write romances and focus on romance, but i hate to exclude platonic relationships at their expense. i just love character dynamics in general tbh,

thank u for this ask game <3

ALSO YES YES!!! those dynamics mean so much to me, so i'm so excited to get to explain :3

it's a wizard thing.

it's a wizard thing is my silly ship name for gale & eden, which is very queerplatonic and, in many ways, blurs the line between romantic and platonic. they're not dating, that's very clear, but they're deeply devoted to each other and care about each other so so much.

a lot of their bond stems from this like... devotion that's very casual on the surface but kind of batshit when you look closer. like. gale will gladly and honestly say that he views eden as being basically equivalent to a god, if not better. to gale, the only god worth following is one that stands by him and encourages him to be his own person--exactly who eden is.

and on eden's side, gale simultaneously triggers and soothes a very specific anxiety he has regarding his magic. eden thinks he's hot shit and acts like it, but also he feels like other spellcasters look down on him for not being able to perform magic in the way they do. and, sure, at first gale feeds into that, even if he doesn't always mean to. but with time, gale comes to understand how much this *hurts* eden, deep down, and tries to be more understanding.

and as they grow closer, gale starts casually affirming eden's worth, both as a mage and in general. he starts saying that eden is a wizard too, even if not in a technical sense. he's a wizard when it counts.

which brings me to the ship name. this comes from me thinking that, if you ask gale directly what his relationship with eden is, he'll just. shrug. and say "it's a wizard thing." it is not a wizard thing, and it's not clear what he means by that.

whatever those two fruity wizards are doing, it's definitely gay.

strange new worlds.

SO this friendship dynamic with eden and lae'zel is in large part inspired by some headcanons i read about lae'zel being autistic coded. that unlocked something in my brain about her, and now i think a lot about her and eden being autistic4autistic besties.

i think that, especially at first, lae'zel thinks that eden is very naive and far too trusting. however, she starts to admire that about him, especially once she sees that he *is* very capable both in combat and as a leader. but more than that, she realizes that she appreciates the fact that he never judges her or looks down on her, especially when she doesn't understand something about faerun.

lae'zel is in a world that's almost completely unfamiliar to her, and there's a lot that doesn't make sense. she asks questions, and eden always answers, completely non-judgmental. he seems just eager to share information in general, and while he's not the *only* one helping her feel more secure and comfortable in this new world... he definitely helps.

and, soon, she starts returning the favor, answering any questions he might have about *her* home. at first, she treats it very much as a mutual or transactional thing. he gives her information, she gives him some. it's a bond built on trust and helping each other understand, and with time that trust becomes closer and firmer. eden encourages lae'zel to be curious, to ask questions, to *learn*. and all while not reacting with shock or disgust at any answers she gives him.

just!!! idk. i think on some level lae'zel and eden look at each other and go "i want to study you" and they became besties through that.

#talk to the bunnykitty #void!!#bg3 #ask game #strange new worlds #it's a wizard thing #ALSO ANOTHER NOTE FOR LAE'ZEL AND EDEN #EDEN IS ALSO VERY UNFAMILIAR WITH A LOT OF THINGS #but that's less bc he's in a new world and more bc he was dead for a bit #so. he's adjusting.#and they're both finding their footing in a world that feels alien to them

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grapesodatozier · 1 year

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"hey boss sorry I’m late I was zoned out in the shower thinking about what dnd 5e class each of the losers would be" -me this morning

lol anyway here’s what I came up with!! would love to hear others’ thoughts on this!! my personal character interpretations are very book heavy with cherry-picked movie influences and a respectable scoop of fanon interpretations I like lol so I think there’s a lot of options here and I think it would be so fun to hear other people’s interpretations of this!!

bill: oath of vengeance paladin whose god is maturin. his favorite spell is compelled duel. no further elaboration needed.

mike: farm boy mike made me consider druid or ranger, but I think his motivations are very strong around maintaining derry’s history, and he’s incredibly dedicated to that, so I think knowledge domain cleric makes most sense to me (his god is also maturin, bike maturin acolyte boyfriends so real <3 )

ben: book ben is soooo fighter. that man threw back an insane amount of alcohol, went back to derry no question, stomped on some alien eggs, and took decades to confess to a cute, corny little 3 line love poem, then respectfully swept his childhood love off her feet. that’s just so fighter to me. like there is nothing more Fighter than starting your story alone in a tavern venting vaguely about your past heroic exploits to the bartender. fighter for sure with some significant levels in artificer for his architecture career

stan: wizardddddd he literally escapes pennywise with the powers of his bird watching guidebook!!!! literally got magic powers from a book in canon!!!!! also he's very happy being an accountant and i feel like math and desk jobs feel very wizard to me lol. also it would be so interesting to explore his feelings about being able to shape reality when he's so attached to maintaining reality. but. he literally changed reality with his book like!!!! so much to think about here.

bev: i kinda want bev to be a rogue, but i think that's just what she initially tries to be. she wants to fly under the radar so bad but she never can. honestly i think she's a barbarian!! it's what she deserves!!! 2017 babygirl kills her dad by bashing him over the head with a toilet cover!!! that's some barbarian shit she has so much anger and rage that she deserves to let out!!!!! also her premonitions about It coming back? danger sense. decades in advance danger sense lmao

eddie: listen. i considered rogue. killing your childhood bully with a broken perrier bottle is some rogue shit. i also considered monk, bc our boy loves to go fast!! but i think the most fitting class for him is ranger. his "super power" is always knowing where to go and where he is. he uses it in the sewers, he uses it to drive around new york city better than anyone else. knowing your terrain that effortlessly is some ranger shit. also he's happiest just chilling on a grassy hill or hanging out in the barrens!! nature baby boy!! also rangers can be a dex class so it still works for him wanting to run and run and run

richie: okay i spent way too much time thinking about richie's bc he's my favorite <3 lol so this is gonna be long. listen we all have biases okay. anyways he's obviously a bard like hello he can change his voice and convince people he's someone else. basically literally casts silvery barbs in book canon. constantly performing. described as having "exhausting charm." support class 100%, while everyone leans on bill he's the one bill leans on. favorite spell is disguise self bc he wants so badly to be someone else. but i don't think he's just a bard. i think he pretends to be just a bard, but such a big part of richie's character is being afraid of things inside himself that he'd like to ignore but can't control. It shows him a werewolf with his name on it which yeah I'm very pro bisexual interpretation of that but more generally is just about feeling like he's got smth uncontrollable and scary that he doesn't understand within him. all of which screams wild magic sorcerer!! so i think he's a wild magic sorcerer who learns bard stuff so he can pretend he's only a bard bc he's scared of his natural magic

okay ty for reading please feel free to share your thoughts if you have them <3

#this may or may not be reddie week prep #the losers club #it stephen king

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cookie-run-kingdom-story · 1 year

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The Heat of the Concert!

Opening

RM Cookie: Look at all these Cookies! Jin Cookie: It’s a miracle to have met you! Jimin Cookie: I’ve missed you! SUGA Cookie: Make some noise! j-hope Cookie: You couldn’t wish for a better venue! Jung Kook Cookie: I’ll sing my heart out! V Cookie: Shall we? All Members: See ya in Cookie Run: Kingdom!

GingerBrave: Whoah! Have you heard?! The BTS Cookies are gonna play a show right here, in the Cookie Kingdom! GingerBrave: They are so popular these days! I bet it’s gonna be a fantastic show! I’ll go for sure! Wizard Cookie: GingerBrave! Ticket booking is about to start! Are you ready? There’re so many fans they will get sold out in a moment! GingerBrave: Of course, of course! The sales will open soon, at midnight! GingerBrave: Oooh, I’m so excited! Hope I’ll be able to get nice seats!

GingerBrave: IT’S TIME! My very own ticket to the BTS Cookies’ concert, I’m coming! GingerBrave: Almost there! The page has loaded, I see the promo images! GingerBrave: The “TICKETS OPEN” button will appear any second now! GingerBrave: Oooh, the BTS Cookies are extremely popular! The fans are gonna grab the good seats… GingerBrave: Five seconds left…! I must be brave! GingerBrave: 4, 3, 2, 1…!

GingerBrave: Alright, we’re in! Now let’s pick the seats!

GingerBrave: Oh no! Already taken! GingerBrave: There’re not too many seats left! Phew! Relax! You can do it! GingerBrave: CRUMBS! NO!

GingerBrave: Okay, there’s one! GingerBrave: What?! There’re almost no seats left! GingerBrave: ONLY ONE SEAT LEFT! GingerBrave: QUICK, CLICK!

GingerBrave: PHEW…! I-I did it! THAT WAS ROUGH! GingerBrave: But… It’s the farthest seat ever! Wizard Cookie: I also booked myself a ticket! Wizard Cookie: I must admit, it wasn’t easy at all! Enough to call it a real war! Wizard Cookie: Anyway, GingerBrave! Now we can go to the concert together! Isn’t it cool?! GingerBrave: That’s awesome! But are we the only Cookies who will go? Strawberry Cookie: I… I also managed to get a ticket! GingerBrave: Whoah, Strawberry Cookie! I didn’t know you liked the BTS Cookies too! Strawberry Cookie: Yeah… I actually bought all the albums… And more… Strawberry Cookie: Photo cards… Toys… Tees… Bags… You name it! Wizard Cookie: …No kidding! GingerBrave: So, the three of us can go together now! Maybe we’ll even meet other Cookies at the stadium! GingerBrave: Ooooh, I can’t wait! Tell me, how much time is left till the concert?!

Wizard Cookie: How curious! This Purple Whale Trailer wasn’t here before. Before we got the tickets! GingerBrave: You’re right! What is it? Strawberry Cookie: No way… Are the BTS Cookies already here…?! GingerBrave: Let’s go find out!

Wizard Cookie: I never though* I’d see the Purple Whale Trailer in our kingdom! Now it really feels like the concert is just around the corner!

*actual text

GingerBrave: It’s gonna be the best concert ever, I’m sure! After all, it’s their first concert in these lands…! GingerBrave: OOOH! I got an idea! Maybe we could do something to make it the most unforgettable concert ever! Wizard Cookie: Hmm… Well, we could clean up and plant some flowers around? GingerBrave: That’s a decent idea!

GingerBrave: Whoah! With all these flowers, the kingdom looks so pretty! Wizard Cookie: And it also smells nice! Strawberry Cookie: I’m sure the BTS Cookies will enjoy the sight of blooming flowers… Strawberry Cookie: But… maybe we could add some more decorations…? GingerBrave: That’s perfect! Then why don’t we…

GingerBrave: …Place more streetlights to illuminate the town! Strawberry Cookie: Our kingdom is so pretty…! GingerBrave: It was beautiful before but now it’s… SUPER BEAUTIFUL! Wizard Cookie: The concert stage will fit right into this scenery! Oh, I can’t wait…! Strawberry Cookie: What else can we do…?

Tea Knight Cookie: What’s going on? GingerBrave: Tea Knight Cookie! Did you hear?! The BTS Cookies are gonna be performing in the Cookie Kingdom! Tea Knight Cookie: BTS? Bullet… Time… Speed…? I’m not sure if I’m familiar with that concept… GingerBrave: Ha ha, we’re having a concert! A bunch of Cookies will be visiting the concert. We’re wondering what we can do to help out! Tea Knight Cookie: Hmm. You could always expand the territory. Surely all those Cookies could benefit from more space. GingerBrave: That’s a great idea! If we have more space, everyone will have more room to themselves! GingerBrave: Let’s start expanding!

Wizard Cookie: Wow, look at all this space! Strawberry Cookie: I think we’re all prepared to greet all these crowds of fan Cookies!

Avocado Cookie: Looks like everyone’s busy! Whatcha doin’? GingerBrave: Avocado Cookie! We’re getting ready for the BTS Cookie Concert! GingerBrave: Are you coming as well? Avocado Cookie: If I could-vocado, I would-vocado! But someone has to stay and protect the Smithy! Avocado Cookie: But hey… Do you kids have what it takes to enjoy the concert? HUH?! Avocado Cookie: You need muscles! LIKE MINE! Don’t you think? Wizard Cookie: Err… I don’t think that’s… a plausible goal… Avocado Cookie: Ha ha! You could still use some buffin-up! Why don’t you help out the Smithy? You know, for training? Avocado Cookie: If you keep hammering, you’re bound to get stronger! Wa ha ha!

Wizard Cookie: Wow. My arms…! I feel like my dough has actually grown… tougher. Strawberry Cookie: Muscles…? Already…? GingerBrave: Working at the Smithy was totally worth it! GingerBrave: I’m so ready to have fun at the concert!

Custard Cookie III: Ughhhhh! Does a king EVER get to REST!? GingerBrave: What’s going on? Custard Cookie III: Cake Monsters! They’re popping up everywhere these days! Custard Cookie III: And as king, it is my royal duty to protect my subjects! Wizard Cookie: That’s right… Cake Monsters have been sighted snooping around the kingdom… Wizard Cookie: Wait, what if they attack the kingdom during the concert?! We can’t let that happen! Strawberry Cookie: We can’t have that kind of danger lurking around the BTS Cookies…! GingerBrave: Then let’s survey the nearby woods and make sure they stay away!

GingerBrave: That should teach them a lesson! GingerBrave: We’re all set to enjoy the concert now! GingerBrave: I can’t wait! Wizard Cookie: GingerBrave… Just what do you think a concert is? Wizard Cookie: You have to stand in line in a giant concert hall, just to get in. Wizard Cookie: Meaning, you need snacks! Specifically, sweets! Wizard Cookie: We should bring some Jellies GingerBrave: Great idea! Let’s go make some Jellybeans!

GingerBrave: We’ve trained our dough AND secured the land! NOW we’re ready! Wizard Cookie: You sound like a gym Cookie, but yes, you are right. Strawberry Cookie: Don’t be too sure… Strawberry Cookie: It looks like there are more Cake Monsters appearing… GingerBrave: Where did they come from?! I’ll take care of them! GingerBrave: We might need to travel a bit though!

GingerBrave: Huff… huff… That should do it! Strawberry Cookie: There’s more Cake Monsters over there… Wizard Cookie: Hmm. But defeating that bunch should be more than enough. GingerBrave: Alright! Keep up the good work, everyone!

Strawberry Cookie: We’re all set now…! Wizard Cookie: Wow, and the BTS Cookie concert is right ahead too! We were so busy preparing for the concert, we didn’t even keep track of time… GingerBrave: All we have left to do is enjoy the concert! GingerBrave: Let’s go!

GingerBrave: Wow, so this is the Cookie Bowl Stadium…! It’s HUGE! GingerBrave: You can see the whole audience from here! Look at all these Cookies… Every seat is filled! Wizard Cookie: Of course! The BTS Cookies are super popular! Wizard Cookie: You’ve heard about the Cookie Pop Chart, right? It’s the industry standard ranking for all recorded music in the Cookie kingdom! Strawberry Cookie: Err… Yeah! I’ve heard of that! Parfait Cookie’s new single is among the top hits…! Wizard Cookie: Yes, that’s the one! CAKE POPs and Shining Glitter Cookie are also mentioned quite often! Wizard Cookie: The BTS Cookies have been ranking No.1 for weeks now! GingerBrave: Wow, they’re really amazing, aren’t they…! I mean, I knew they were amazing, but not this amazing! GingerBrave: I really can’t wait to see them! Strawberry Cookie: I feel like I’m gonna burst with joy…! To think that I’d be seeing the BTS Cookies in the Cookie Kingdom…!

GingerBrave: Oh!!! The show is about to begin! The lights turned off…!

All Members: Two, three! All Members: Hello, we are the BTS Cookies! SUGA Cookie: Hello, hello! Thank you for welcoming us! Being here is like a dream come true! Jimin Cookie: It’s our first concert in the Cookie Kingdom! j-hope Cookie: What do you think, Jung Kook Cookie? Jung Kook Cookie: I feel GREAT! V Cookie: I was so excited I couldn’t sleep! Jin Cookie: Are you all ready to cheer us?! Ha ha! We’ll do our very best! RM Cookie: It doesn’t matter whether you’re sweet or spicy! Let’s have some fun!

Jin Cookie: This is our first concert in the Cookie Kingdom! What song should we start with? Jimin Cookie: Naturally… it should be THAT song! SUGA Cookie: Do you mean that one really explosive song that a lot of Cookies really liked? j-hope Cookie: Ooh, sounds like everyone wants to hear that song! RM Cookie: Then let’s get started! V Cookie: We’re gonna light up the stage with… Jung Kook Cookie: DYNAMITE!

RM Cookie: Wow, that was so much fun! V Cookie: I think that’s the biggest cheer we’ve heard performing Dynamite. Jung Kook Cookie: Let’s go light up the stage again!

Wizard Cookie: Huh? What’s happening? GingerBrave: I can’t see a thing! Strawberry Cookie: Maybe it’s some kind of technical trouble?

???: HA HA HA HA!!! Thank you for coming tonight! ???: We’ll be taking over from now on! MAKE SOME NOISE Y’ALL! GingerBrave: What? What’s going on?

T.N.T: HA HA HA! Scared? If not… YOU BETTER BE! GingerBrave: What? Where are the BTS Cookies?! T.N.T: The stage is ours now! FEEL THE CRIMSON WRATH AND BURNING SPIRIT OF US FOUR! T.N.T: Let me introduce ourselves! T.N.T: We’re the four baddies rising up from the flames! Bad and Dark! B.A.D 4!

T.N.T: The name’s T.N.T! You’re looking at B.A.D 4’S main vocalist and explosive leader!

HellHound: Call me HellHound, for I am the gatekeeper to HELL! I’m in charge of B.A.D 4’s choreography… that will change you FOREVER!

ZZ Skull: My name is… ZZ Skull: (Do I have to do the whole introduction thing? I don’t even like this name!) T.N.T: (Just do it! The Producer picked that name for you!) ZZ Skull: Tsk! M-my name is ZZ Skull…! Make sure you pronounce the Z! ZZ Skull: I am the lead vocalist who fills the songs of B.A.D 4 with power!

MUSHY P.: Yaaay! Nice to meet you all! MUSHY P.: My name is MUSHY P.! My specialty is super fast rap! MUSHY P.: Hope you like our performance! GingerBrave: This isn’t your stage! Where are the BTS Cookies?! T.N.T: Ha ha ha! Like I said… this stage is ours now! T.N.T: We’ve been trying to take over Earthbread by force… But there’s no style in that! T.N.T: Music is the universal language here! T.N.T: We’re gonna take over the BTS Cookies’ stage and THEN! Take over the world! Strawberry Cookie: Oh no…! Wizard Cookie: We can’t let them ruin the BTS Cookies’ first concert in our kingdom! GingerBrave: We need to help the BTS Cookies come back! GingerBrave: We need to help them!

Light up your Army Bomb to make a way for the BTS Cookies to come back on stage!

RM Cookie: Phew! We’re finally back! j-hope Cookie: Wow, the darkness was kinda scary. Jimin Cookie: But there was a light guiding our path! And here we are! Jung Kook Cookie: It’s all thanks to the ARMYs who showed us the way! V Cookie: Thank you, ARMY! Strawberry Cookie: V Cookie just waved at me! Wizard Cookie: No, he waved at me! Jin Cookie: Is B.A.D 4 gonna keep interrupting our concert? Is that like… okay? SUGA Cookie: Nope, pretty sure that’s illegal. SUGA Cookie: They could get arrested or fined for that. Obstruction of business… or something like that. ZZ Skull: Tsk! The BTS Cookies came back way too soon! RM Cookie: There are Cookies that didn’t it* make it back yet!

*actual text

RM Cookie: We need to help them come back! T.N.T: WA HA HA! Did you think we would let you take back the stage from us so easily? T.N.T: This… calls for one thing! T.N.T: BTS COOKIES! We challenge you to a duel… on stage! T.N.T: Whoever takes over this giant stage wins! HellHound: That’s fair. Only those who are worthy will be allowed to perform. Jung Kook Cookie: We’re not losing, that’s for sure. RM Cookie: Give it all you got!

ZZ Skull: Pshh, there’s no way we lose! ZZ Skull: T.N.T!!! You were foolish enough to sprain your hand, huh? HUH? T.N.T: I… I did sprain my hand! A little! We… we’ll show ‘em the true power of B.A.D 4 next time! T.N.T: We didn’t lose just yet! Let’s show ‘em all what we’ve got! Those BTS Cookies…!

Snow Sugar Cookie: It’s so dark all of sudden… Snow Sugar Cookie: I’m scared…! Where are my friends? Cherry Cookie: Don’t worry about it! Are you scared of the dark? Lemme light it up a bit, he he! Cherry Cookie: Nothing a cherry bomb can’t do! HA HA HA! Snow Sugar Cookie: Cherry Cookie! You can’t just set off bombs here…! j-hope Cookie: Everyone, over here! I see Cookies! Snow Sugar Cookie: Oh! It’s the BTS Cookies! I’m Snow Sugar Cookie. Cherry Cookie is here with me as well! Jimin Cookie: Let’s get you back to your seats! Jimin Cookie: We’ll show you the way! Jin Cookie: See those bright lights leading up the stage? Jin Cookie: Just follow the lights by ARMY! j-hope Cookie: Watch your step! Snow Sugar Cookie: I’m getting the warm fuzzies…! Snow Sugar Cookie: Thanks, everyone! RM Cookie: Let’s look for more missing Cookies! SUGA Cookie: You guys look that way. We’ll search this way. Jin Cookie: Wait, I think I see someone- er… some Cookie over there! Jung Kook Cookie: They look round… Jimin Cookie: And crunchy. GingerBrave: Hiya! I’m GingerBrave! V Cookie: GingerBrave? Like gingerbread? Wizard Cookie: Er, you see… He’s really brave. Wizard Cookie: In fact, that’s why he’s here looking for the missing Cookies from the audience and you, the BTS Cookies! GingerBrave: Yeah! I can’t let those baddies ruin your concert! We wanna help! j-hope Cookie: Wow, you really are brave! Appreciate the help! Jimin Cookie: Wait, there’s another Cookie here! Sorry, I couldn’t see you there in the red light… Are you okay there? You’re turning… red! Strawberry Cookie: I… I… I’m a huge fan of BTS Cookies…! Strawberry Cookie: It’s… It’s like a dream come true see* you Cookies up close! Sorry, I must be blushing like strawberries!

*actual text

Jin Cookie: Ha ha, nice to meet you, Strawberry Cookie! Let’s look for the missing Cookies together! Jung Kook Cookie: Thanks for your help! We’ll do our best to complete the stage! GingerBrave: Alright! Let’s do this!

T.N.T: The first is… a RAP BATTLE! T.N.T: Rap is more than just rhymes. You need a killer beat and know how to command rhythm! A true rapper can give a song just the edge it needs! ZZ Skull: Get ready to witness our radical rapper’s skills! ZZ Skull: Go, MUSHY P.! MUSHY P.: Wooow, it’s so nice to meet you all! T.N.T: Now! Which one of you boys will face us!? V Cookie: Rap? I got this! Jimin Cookie: V Cookie is ready to go! V Cookie: …Hmm. Nevermind. Since it is a competition, I think the rappers should take this one. Jung Kook Cookie: How about RM Cookie? SUGA Cookie: Ooh, this is gonna be interesting. j-hope Cookie: Whoever wins is the best rapping Cookie! Jin Cookie: Go RM Cookie! You can do it! RM Cookie: Huh? Me? RM Cookie: This is… unexpected. But sure, I’ll take you on!

MUSHY P.: Wah… My mouth hurts from all that rapping… MUSHY P.: These Cookies… They’re too good!

Manager Scarlet: Tsk tsk tsk… Did you not train for this? ZZ Skull: Gasp…! She’s here…! T.N.T: That’s… Pomegranate Cookie, the ice-cold manager, colder than a frozen batch of dough! Manager Scarlet: Did you not say that you would take over the world by stealing the BTS Cookies’ stage with your performance? Manager Scarlet: To lose the very first competition… tsk. How disappointing. Not a promising start, to be frank. Manager Scarlet: I shall let this one pass… But I won't accept failure the next round. GingerBrave: A walk in the park for the BTS Cookies! Strawberry Cookie: It was a perfect rap in every way…!

Jung Kook Cookie: This is new! I’m sweating… powder? SUGA Cookie: The sweet and delicious kind, right? Jin Cookie: Is it because we’ve become Cookies?! RM Cookie: You’re right! This is flour and sugar powder! Makes sense, since we’re… Cookies! RM Cookie: Wait a minute, Cookies… Cookies! Do you know what goes well with Cookies? Jimin Cookie: Oh! That thing j-jope Cookie ate at the end of the music video? j-hope Cookie: Yes! That thing that’s yellow and smooth! V Cookie: The next song is: BUTTER! RM Cookie: Everyone! Follow the beat and go with the flow!

SUGA Cookie: That was so fun! j-hope Cookie: Thanks for all the cheering!

ZZ Skull: Argh, we were so close! ZZ Skull: No matter, because our vocalists will crumble you! Our wicked harmonizing will put you down on your kneess! Jin Cookie: Jung Kook Cookie! It’s your turn! Our golden maknae! Jung Kook Cookie: Wait, just me?! Jung Kook Cookie: We have four vocalists! Jimin Cookie: Then we should all go. We’re a team! We’re all in this together! V Cookie: B.A.D 4… Are you… nervous? T.N.T: W-what?! Nervous? US?! PFFFT!! Let’s see if you can take this, BTS Cookies! T.N.T: Hear our fiery, flaming sound from the depths of hell!

T.N.T: HIGHER! Show them what you got, ZZ Skull! ZZ Skull: I’ll show you!!! YeeeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEEEE…!!! *cough* GingerBrave: Ugh, my ears hurt! Strawberry Cookie: I didn’t know sound could be so destructive… Wizard Cookie: WHAT? I CAN’T HEAR ANYTHING!! ZZ Skull: Ugh, I think I almost pulled a muscle there. HellHound: It seems ZZ Skull isn’t in his best condition. MUSHY P.: You’re right! He can usually go much higher. ZZ Skull: That’s because of our crazy schedule! I didn’t have time to rest my throat! Manager Scarlet: Didn’t I tell you that taking care of yourselves is also part of being a pro? Manager Scarlet: I expected better from you, T.N.T. I’ve told you numerous times that it is your duty as leader to make sure all the members are in perfect condition. What a disappointment. T.N.T: I-it’s just that… We all got nervous and didn’t get enough sleep! That’s all! Manager Scarlet: Don’t make me repeat myself. Every celebrity knows how to take care of themselves. That’s basic knowledge. Manager Scarlet: How can you take over the world when you’re this careless?! T.N.T: Argh…! She has a point! HellHound: It’s no wonder why Manager Scarlet is our office’s best road manager. She can even make the wild T.N.T quiet. MUSHY P.: Our manager is so cool!

Almond Cookie: Hmm… How suspicious. Lights don’t just turn off by themselves… I suspect there’s someone… or something behind this. Latte Cookie: Cream Puff Cookie! Are you alright? Cream Puff Cookie: Yes, I’m fine! I… am a bit surprised, though. Cream Puff Cookie: Oh, I’m so sorry you two got involved in this mess! It’s all because of me… Latte Cookie: No worries! I wanted to watch the concert as well! And Almond Cookie is here because it MIGHT be dangerous… Almond Cookie: And I was right. I knew something was gonna happen… Almond Cookie: We can’t stay here. It’s impossible to see anything. Follow me.

GingerBrave: I think there are Cookies over there! V Cookie: You’re right! I see Cookies over there. Cream Puff Cookie: Are you all trapped here as well? V Cookie: No, we’re here to save you all. Cream Puff Cookie: The BTS Cookies! And GingerBrave! What are you all doing here? V Cookie: GingerBrave is helping us find the missing guests. He really is one brave Cookie! SUGA Cookie: Do you know where your seats are? Check your tickets. Let’s get going, then. SUGA Cookie: Just follow the lights created by ARMY. Not too hard, right? Latte Cookie: How kind! Now, shall we all get going? Almond Cookie: Looks like this case has solved itself! Cream Puff Cookie: Thank you, everyone!

ZZ Skull: Don’t you think it’s time to see who’s the most handsome? ZZ Skull: Ahem! You’re looking at Earthbread’s second most handsome! Let’s see who’s the best looking! T.N.T: Hold on there! I’M the best looking of this team! T.N.T: Don’t you know they call me the dangerously* delicious cake of them all?!

*actual text

Strawberry Cookie: NO!!! GingerBrave: BOO! You’re no match to the BTS Cookies! ZZ Skull: HA HA! Like I said! My turn! Wizard Cookie: Not a chance! ZZ Skull: W-wait, why is everyone booing?! ZZ Skull: What, are you all scared you’re gonna lose?! Hey… wait a second… HEY!!!

HellHound: Looks like T.N.T and ZZ Skull can’t compete this round. HellHound: I will take it from here. MUSHY P.: Oooh!!! It’s HellHound, the unstoppable dancer! His performances leave everyone speechless! RM Cookie: Wait, so you have only one dancer? Because, you know… we have three. HellHound: Hmph. you clearly do not realize the extent of my potential. HellHound: HellHound is the gatekeeper of hell. He always has his faithful Cakeberus with him. And Cakeberus… has three heads. Jin Cookie: What? Cakeberus? HellHound: It means that there are three Cake Hounds dancing with me. Cake Hound 1: Arf! (Leave it to me!) Cake Hound 2: Woof! (I’ll show you the best teamwork!) Cake Hound 3: Woof woof! (We practiced hard for this!) j-hope Cookie: Oh? When it comes to practice, we’ve done quite a lot as well! j-hope Cookie: Alright, let’s dance it out! MUSHY P.: I’ll cheer you with my shroomie dance!

HellHound: I have no regrets… HellHound: My Cake Hounds and I did our best… ZZ Skull: T.N.T! This is all your fault! You should’ve trained us harder! T.N.T: Don’t blame me for something HellHound failed to do! ZZ Skull: You’re the leader! It’s YOUR job to lead the team! T.N.T: Grr… NO! This is all HellHound’s fault! HellHound: Do you have any idea how hard the Cake Hounds practiced? They were sweating buckets of whipped cream every night. T.N.T: (This won’t do…!! I need to come up with SOMETHING! I’M the leader!!) T.N.T: GRRR! BTS COOKIES! I challenge you to a unit duel! T.N.T: Let’s see how strong you are in smaller groups! T.N.T: If you’re all so GREAT, face us on the stage! j-hope Cookie: Hmmm? Units? This should be interesting. Jung Kook Cookie: Bring it on!

V Cookie: And the next song is…! …What’s the next song? Jin Cookie: I bet ARMY will really like this one! RM Cookie: You know, when it’s obvious that you’ve made your point clear. What do you do? j-hope Cookie: MIC DROP!!! Jimin Cookie: Let’s give it our best! Jung Kook Cookie: I’m ready! SUGA Cookie: Let’s go!

RM Cookie: Wow, we definitely showed them everything we got! Jimin Cookie: Is everyone having fun?! Jin Cookie: We still have a lot of songs left! I hope you all enjoy!

T.N.T: Presenting B.A.D 4’s most ambitious unit…! T.N.T: ZZ Skull and HellHound! We have the vocals AND the moves! ZZ Skull: He he he… Just the two of us means more screen time for me! I’ll show those BTS Cookies what I’m made of! HellHound: And I have just the perfect dance song… HellHound: Our performance is like no other…! The rhythm, the passion in every move and beat! Prepare to be overwhelmed by our greatness! Cake Hound 1: Woof! (Go team!) Cake Hound 2: Woof woof (Go B.A.D 4!!!) GingerBrave: Like the BTS Cookies would lose to them! C’mon everyone! Wizard Cookie: GO BTS COOKIES! Strawberry Cookie: WE ONLY NEED THE BTS COOKIES!!! BTS COOKIES FOREVER!!! ZZ Skull: Let’s start, HellHound! HellHound: I’m ready. RM Cookie: Is everyone good to go? Dance or singing, we’re all set! Jin Cookie: Of course! Just think of all those hours we practiced! SUGA Cookie: There were days I thought our choreography was just too much some times… Jung Kook Cookie: C’mon, let’s go! This looks fun!

ZZ Skull: Tsk… We lost again?! Then… ZZ Skull: Get out of my way! I’M gonna have the final shot! The spotlight belongs to ME! HellHound: I will not accept this. I’ve studied various poses for this! HellHound: And I promised the Cake Hounds they’ll be in it too. MUSHY P.: I wanna be the ending fairy! Happy… mushroom dance! La-la-la! j-hope Cookie: You should all be proud of yourselves! That was a pretty great performance! j-hope Cookie: Especially HellHound’s moves… that groove! It was as if he embodied the movement of flames themselves! Jimin Cookie: That’s right! I liked your dance moves! Super quick yet stylish. HellHound: I was inspired by the flames of the Oven. HellHound: The BTS Cookies recognized my performance… I will take that. I am satisfied. Wizard Cookie: Do we even need to see the results for this one? The BTS Cookies obviously won. Strawberry Cookie: Yes…! The BTS Cookies are the best…! Absolute best…! T.N.T: GAH! It’s not over yet!! T.N.T: Because you haven’t seen anything like us before! MUSHY P.! Get ready! It’s our turn!

Onion Cookie: It’s… dark! I-I’m scared…! WAH! Herb Cookie: Where did all the other Cookies go? Herb Cookie: I only see the Cake Monsters… Onion Cookie: *sniffle* A g-ghost might appear! *sniffle* Onion Cookie: Let us out of here…! Pancake Cookie: Hmm… What should we do?! Pancake Cookie: Oh! I know! I can fly! Like this! Woosh! Pancake Cookie: I can fly while holding on you* guys! Hang tight!

*actual text

Pancake Cookie: One, two, OOF!! Pancake Cookie: …Let’s try that one more time! OOOOF! Pancake Cookie: Guh… I can’t fly… Herb Cookie: I’m afraid carrying the both of us is too much, Pancake Cookie. Onion Cookie: WAH! I want to get out of here!!

GingerBrave: I see Cookies over there! Jung Kook Cookie: GingerBrave, you’re amazing! Jung Kook Cookie: You don’t care whether it’s dangerous or not- you just go and save those Cookies no matter what! GingerBrave: Oh no! It looks like the Cookies are all scattered in the dark…! GingerBrave: But I want all of us to be there and enjoy your concert! Together! RM Cookie: That’s right, GingerBrave! RM Cookie: Each of us is brave and special, but we’re stronger together! Pancake Cookie: Wow, are those the BTS Cookies? Are they here to save us?! Jung Kook Cookie: Let’s get out of here! Pancake Cookie: But I couldn’t move everyone… How are we going to escape? RM Cookie: Don’t worry about it! RM Cookie: We’re pretty strong! RM Cookie: We can carry you Cookies in one arm! Jung Kook Cookie: Just follow the ARMYs’ lights, and you’ll be fine! Jung Kook Cookie: Let’s go!

T.N.T: The song MUSHY P. and I will be performing is… MUSHY P.: What could it be! What could it be? T.N.T: MY song! I wrote it myself! T.N.T: The anguish and conflict within…! Who am I? What AM I?! T.N.T: What must I become? What is worth… doing? T.N.T: What… is my name? SUGA Cookie: Did they already start? T.N.T: No! NO NO! I was explaining the backstory of the song! V Cookie: You know, we’ve had the whole identity crisis thing too. Jin Cookie: That’s right. You’d be surprised! T.N.T: Hmph! We’ll see about that! T.N.T: MUSHY P.! Are you ready to rap it out? MUSHY P.: Gimme a sec! I need some waterrr… MUSHY P.: *Gulp*... *glug glug glug…* MUSHY P.: Yee haw. MUSHY P.: I’m ready! MUSHY P.: By the way… promise me you’ll eat my mushrooms if we win! Jin Cookie: What should we do if we win? Jung Kook Cookie: Skip dance practice? j-hope Cookie: Hey, come on! No! Jimin Cookie: Let’s get started, shall we?

T.N.T: *Sniffle…* I… I may have gotten too invested in the song. T.N.T: I can’t… help… tears…! T.N.T: Didn’t MUSHY P. miss his cue? Like more than once? MUSHY P.: Um… T.N.T? MUSHY P.: You kinda made it hard for me to follow… You were too into the song… and didn’t really listen to me…! T.N.T: But these lyrics are a piece of art! How can one stop themselves from getting emotionally invested?! T.N.T: It’s about a brute with a majestic mane, struggling between good and bad, searching for his true name…! HellHound: But you went ahead and didn’t consider MUSHY P. at all. You are a team. You need to work together. That was unprofessional. HellHound: Perhaps we should accept that we have lost… T.N.T: NO! Do you not see how amazing this song is?! Manager Scarlet: Defeated in every round? This cannot be. Manager Scarlet: I… The Producer will know about this absolute disgrace. T.N.T: What? You wouldn’t…!!! Manager Scarlet: I will. A report on everything… directly to “her.” T.N.T: NOOOO!!!

RM Cookie: The next song we’ve prepared is… Jimin Cookie: Ooh, this song wants to make you dance! V Cookie: And you don’t need anything to dance. RM Cookie: That’s right. You don’t need any permission or anything to worry about. Jin Cookie: Let’s have fun because nothing can stop us! SUGA Cookie: Because when we fall, we know how to land! Jung Kook Cookie: Let’s go! PERMISSION TO DANCE!

Jin Cookie: Thanks everyone! V Cookie: You really are the best fans ever! Earthbread’s sweetest! SUGA Cookie: I think I’ll always treasure tonight’s performance, here at the Cookie Bowl Stadium.

GingerBrave: It looks like a lot of the audience were able to find their way back! GingerBrave: Let’s go help the other Cookies who haven’t come back yet! Wizard Cookie: Yes, for the perfect finale to an even more perfect concert! Strawberry Cookie: Let’s all do it together…!

Jin Cookie: What do you think? Our concert is going pretty well, huh? Jimin Cookie: Definitely one of the most exciting concerts we’ve had! V Cookie: It was all thanks to ARMY and the other Cookies. j-hope Cookie: Let’s keep this up! Jin Cookie: Now, RM Cookie, any words of encouragement? RM Cookie: Right. Everyone! RM Cookie: Let’s keep it sweet until the end! RM Cookie: …Something like that? SUGA Cookie: Yeah, sound about right. RM Cookie: Alright! Let’s do our best and make this our finest performance! Manager Scarlet: Ah, I’ve finally reached the Producer. Manager Scarlet: I’ll connect to the stadium’s screen. T.N.T: Wait, what?! Are you serious?!

Producer D.K.E.C: Thank you, Manager Scarlet. I have been watching this pathetic show all along. B.A.D 4: P-Producer! V Cookie: Who are you? Producer D.K.E.C: I am D.K.E.C. I am the president of Darkness Entertainment. Producer D.K.E.C: We haven’t been around for too long, but our special charm and skills have attracted many fans across the globe. Producer D.K.E.C: My plan was to create a group as good as the BTS Cookies and take over the world with music loved by everyone regardless of language or ingredients… Producer D.K.E.C: But it seems that these… fools require more training. Producer D.K.E.C: Manager Scarlet. Change of plans. Return to the headquaters* with B.A.D 4 immediately.

*actual text

Manager Scarlet: As you decree. MUSHY P.: Noooooo… I like the stage! HellHound: I quit. I strongly disagree with how they’re treating the Cakes. ZZ Skull: Me too! I’m gonna find a new label. One that’ll treat me better, recognize the star I am! T.N.T: E-everyone! D-don’t go! T.N.T: We’re still competing against the BTS Cookies! What happened to becoming the best group and conquering the world?! ZZ Skull: Hmph! I don’t care anymore! I care about ME! I wanna be famous and popular! ME! HellHound: I do not approve of this rigorous routine for my Cake Hounds. HellHound: Cake Hounds should be treasured! Cherished with absolute adoration! T.N.T: Guh… But…! T.N.T: But all that practice…! All those hours I’ve spent, dancing and singing! For what?! All to end like this? j-hope Cookie: Hey, hey, give yourself some credit there! j-hope Cookie: You did lose to us, but you’re all amazing performers! Jin Cookie: Yeah! See, every morning I’ll look at myself in the mirror and marvel how handsome I am. Jin Cookie: You need this kind of confidence if you want to control the stage! T.N.T: But we lost! And kept on losing! How can I stay confident in this situation?! Jung Kook Cookie: You gotta believe in yourself and sing from the bottom of your heart. Jung Kook Cookie: Because if you put your heart into it, the fans will listen. They always do! SUGA Cookie: You can’t inspire someone if you don’t mean it. T.N.T: Sing… from the bottom of my heart? RM Cookie: Why don’t you try performing as a group this time? RM Cookie: Forget about the Producer or your manager! Forget about world domination and all that fancy stuff! RM Cookie: Sing what you want to say!

ZZ Skull: Gettin’ this power wasn’t a breeze… Wrote a diary with my own tears… Misery and DISGRACE! HellHound: Ya ain’t never seen a Cookie like me! Am I Cake Monster or Cookie! Naw! MUSHY P.: Have some shroomies, have some shroomies! Why won’t y’all try some shroomies… T.N.T: Stop pointin’ your fingers and dumpin’ the hate… I’m bad to the core, evil’s my fate! T.N.T: I’m BORN TO BE BAD, VILLAIN 4 LIFE!

Wizard Cookie: … Wizard Cookie: That’s actually pretty good. Strawberry Cookie: Yeah… I felt like they really meant everything. GingerBrave: I wonder what the BTS Cookies think of it? j-hope Cookie: Wow… WOW! That was pretty great! Jin Cookie: Yeah! It was powerful yet fun! Jung Kook Cookie: See? You’re all great! Jimin Cookie: I think I may have gotten a bit TOO into it… V Cookie: I like it. I wanna listen to it on repeat. T.N.T: H-huh?! Why are you all cheering?! SUGA Cookie: It was an excellent song. RM Cookie: And you’re a great team, too! T.N.T: Y-you… think so? To be honest, we’ve worked together, but never really were in sync. ZZ Skull: It felt like we were singing TOGETHER! ZZ Skull: BTS Cookies! Do you always sing together like this?! Jin Cookie: Ha ha, you know, us seven are pretty drastically different, too. Jimin Cookie: We obviously look different. Jung Kook Cookie: And taste different. V Cookie: We also have different interests. SUGA Cookie: But we all have the same goal. SUGA Cookie: We want our voices to reach more fans all over the world.

RM Cookie: Sometimes, things can feel overwhelming. And you might even forget who you are along the way. RM Cookie: But thanks to everyone here… We can always find our way back. RM Cookie: Thanks to you, I am RM Cookie! Thanks to you, we are the BTS Cookies! RM Cookie: It’s all thanks to you, ARMYs. You’re the reason why we’re here, and the reason we’ve come so far. RM Cookie: Love yourselves just as you are! And if our words and music can help, that’s even better! RM Cookie: I hope that you’ll always remember this night and be together, just like you are today! ZZ Skull: I see…! T.N.T: So you need to love yourself… to really mean what you sing…!

SUGA Cookie: It’s already the last song of the concert! Jimin Cookie: I can’t believe we’re on our last song… V Cookie: Everyone, look around! V Cookie: The stadium is filled with purple lights! j-hope Cookie: ARMY? ARMY Cookies…? All these lights… are here for us…! Jung Kook Cookie: They look like starlight shining brightly! Jin Cookie: As if… the stadium is a little universe! RM Cookie: We are all here, with our dreams and Star Jellies! Together, performing as one! RM Cookie: It was truly the crunchiest and sweetest concert we’ve ever had. RM Cookie: Let us light up the world today and treasure this light forever! Jin Cookie: Are you ready to hear our last song? Jin Cookie: It’s… MIKROKOSMOS!

Jimin Cookie: Look at all the Army Bombs! They’re like a wave of glittering lights. Jung Kook Cookie: It’s just all so touching…! But I’m not gonna cry. Nope! j-hope Cookie: Thank you everyone! I’ll never forget this moment!

j-hope Cookie: And with that, we’re done with our concert in the Cookie Kingdom! Jimin Cookie: B.A.D 4’s appearance was… unexpected, but I feel like we’ve become good pals. Jung Kook Cookie: It was all very exciting and fun! Jin Cookie: I kinda want to go back and perform in the Cookie Bowl Stadium again.

SUGA Cookie: Wait a minute! There are other Cookies who deserve a round of applause as well. RM Cookie: Yeah! GingerBrave! V Cookie: And Wizard Cookie and Strawberry Cookie too. RM Cookie: Thanks to you, this whole experience was a blast. And thanks for reminding us what being brave truly is! RM Cookie: It was inspiring to see you all running together to help others enjoy the show! RM Cookie: Dear GingerBrave, Wizard Cookie, Strawberry Cookie, and all other awesome Cookies out there! RM Cookie: Never stop running! RM Cookie: Because we’re not gonna stop either. We BTS Cookies will keep running as well! RM Cookie: I’m afraid it’s time for farewells and goodbyes! Jin Cookie: I’m never gonna forget this! Ever! j-hope Cookie: We’ll always keep trying, striving to get better! V Cookie: I can’t wait to see you all in your kingdoms! Jimin Cookie: See you then! Promise! Jung Kook Cookie: Because as long as you’re there, we’ll always be singing! SUGA Cookie: We’ll be back as stronger, brighter BTS Cookies! RM Cookie: Stay safe until then! Promise!

Strawberry Cookie: The concert is really over now, isn’t it… Wizard Cookie: That was… amazing. GingerBrave: Wait, Wizard Cookie, why are you hiding your face in your hat? GingerBrave: Are you… crying?! Wizard Cookie: N-no!! I just got emotional! That’s all! ZZ Skull: What’s wrong with crying?! If you want to cry, cry! The BTS Cookies told you to be true to yourself! T.N.T: From now on… B.A.D 4 are officially fans of the BTS Cookies! Don’t get surprised when you see us waving our Army Bombs! GingerBrave: This was my first time experiencing a concert like this, but WOW! That was so cool! The songs were great and the dance moves were so cool! GingerBrave: And I was really moved by their words too…! GingerBrave: Thank you so much for such a wonderful time, BTS Cookies! I hope to see you on the stage again! GingerBrave: Until then, I’ll never stop running!

RM Cookie: …It really is over. RM Cookie: We didn’t make any mistakes today, did we? Everyone in the audience looked happy. V Cookie: Yes, they were all smiling. They looked happy. Jung Kook Cookie: That was so much fun! I really enjoyed singing and dancing in front of the Cookies! Jin Cookie: I feel like I can still hear the applause! SUGA Cookie: I know the hall is empty now… But I want to sing one more song for the Cookies. j-hope Cookie: Because our performance isn’t over, and the time of our lives has yet to come. C’mon, let’s sing our song! Jimin Cookie: Right, the Cookie Kingdom concert may be over, but all endings are simply new beginnings! RM Cookie: Then let’s sing our true final song! Jung Kook Cookie: I hope everyone stays happy until we meet again!

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witchesoz · 1 year

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What we know of Oz: The second extravaganza

If you remember what I said a long, long, LONG time ago, the first Oz book was adapted into a stage musical (an “extravaganza” as they were called back then) by Baum in collaboration with other big names of the time, and it was a MASSIVE success, so much that the MGM movie actually borrowed a lot of elements from it. It was the success of this extravaganza that made Baum write the sequel to “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”: “The Marvelous Land of Oz”. The book’s more adult tone, love for puns and jokes, and great focus on the Scarecrow and the Tin Man (the stars and most beloved actors of the Wizard extravaganza) were all intended so that the book would be easier to adapt as a musical. When you think about it, the big reveal of Tip as being Ozma is also actually something Baum wrote with in mind the idea of a stage play: indeed, at the time, young male roles and boy characters were often played by young ladies, and as a result this kind of “gender reveal” where a male turns out to be a woman was very common and very easy to do in those kind of theatric performances. (So yeah, to all of you who hoped Baum was defending transgender rights, he was actually trying to make money out of a future musical. Sorry for your hopes.)

But Baum had a tiny bit of problem… He had already started to write a musical that would follow the first one, a stage adaptation of the second novel titled “The Marvelous Land of Oz: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman”. Hell he started writing it in 1903, so before “The Marvelous Land” (the book) got even published. As you can see he really designed it all to feature the two iconic character of the play. But turned out that the star actors, Fred Stone and David Montgomery, refused to play in it, because the “Wizard of Oz” extravaganza was still playing and they refused to abandon the show for a potential sequel.

As a result, Baum had to rewrite his intended story by removing the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman… so he had no Dorothy, no Cowardly Lion, no Scarecrow, no Tin Woodman… who was going to be the main feature? * looks over to Tip/Ozma* IT’S GOING TO BE THE WOGGLE-BUG of course!

Indeed this secondary character with no relevance to the plot of the actual book, here just for laughs, has become the star of the extravaganza. And thus in 1905 “The Woggle-Bug” was released, the second Oz extravaganza and an adaptation of “The Marvelous Land of Oz”. So what was different?

# When Jack Pumpkinhead comes to life there is a dance where “Harvest Sprites” appear in the pumpkin field surrounding Mombi’s hut and bow down to Jack as if he was their king.

# After Jack is brought to life and Tip leads him away from Mombi’s hut (no mention of petrification potion or Tip fleeing Mombi), we cut to the school of Professor Knowitt (who you might remember from the Woggle-Bug’s story, where he was called Knowittall), where the students are actually here children (in the book itself it was unclear if the school taught to children or older pupils). As with the original story, the Professor magnifies the Woggle-Bug on a screen with a magic magnifying glass, only for the bug to get off the screen and bow down to everyone. The Professor tries to put him back in the screen, to not effect. As in the book, the Woggle-Bug is very fond of puns, making tons of them, but the thinness of his so-called education is much more prominent here due to constantly mistaking or mispronouncing words (for example he calls “patois”, aka regional language, “patties”, like a beef patty).

# Surprise, Mombi appears right in the middle of this scene! As it turns out, the school of professor Knowitt is the school where Tip studies (big departure from the book, where Tip lived with Mombi and never went to school). Mombi is searching for him, as he actually fled her house with Jack, and the Woggle-Bug, eager to be of assistance, puts himself of service to her – he mistakes the story of Tip and Jack running as the one of lovers fleeing their parents to live their love freely. (There is also a little joke about how, if the Powder of Life can bring to life anything it touches, it should be used on the Democratic Party). The Professor actually fights a bit with Mombi because he refuses to let the creature go, claiming it as his property and discovery, but the Woggle-Bug scares the Professor away by saying that if he is held too long at school, his parents will come “bite him”. Again, jokes and jokes and puns.

# The plot of Jinjur’s army also crosses over here, because five peasant women (noticed for their lack of grammar and typical “hillbilly talk”) arrive searching for General Jinjur – who soon arrives, and everyone (including the Professor, Mombi and the rest) bow down to her, as if she had some sort of regional power. The Professor and the Woggle-Bug try to dissuade them from going to war, but the “army of gallant milkmaids and scullery ladies” is determined for war. Mombi refuses to be enlisted in the army (though Jinjur proposes it), but does make the deal of helping her with magic in exchange of capturing Tip and his Powder ; and the Professor also agrees to assist the army. The five peasant girls also want to join the ranks of Jinjur’s fight against the men, but Jinjur is a bit… let’s say she doesn’t knows too much what to do of those five peasant-ladies and is a bit awkward around them, so she precisely names them the “Awkward Squad”.

# About the Awkward Squad, their “captain” and most prominent member is a girl named Prissy, and she is at the center of a very bizarre humoristic subplot about the Woggle-Bug: the Bug falls in love… with Prissy’s dress. A beautiful checked dress that he loves and wants for himself, constantly trying to snatch away from the girl.

# Another major change: Jinjur isn’t a little girl anymore, oh no. In this play Jinjur is an adult woman (or at least a young woman), and she mentions that she used to attend this very country school house – with Professor Knowitt! Apparently they are of the same age, and there was a strange love triangle where Jinjur was courted by a certain “Tommy Bangs” (that called her “Sweet Matilda”), while Knowitt himself in his youth at the school tried to seduce Jinjur (in fact it is implied he obeys and follow her due to this old infatuation).

# The City of Emeralds has been changed here to “The City of Jewels” (though it is still in the Land of Oz). Interestingly, Tip visibly knows that he used to be Ozma, princess of the City, but was enchanted by Mombi. Tip even has very clear memories of her time as a princess (contrary to the book, where Ozma was enchanted as a baby, this Ozma was visibly enchanted as a young girl). In fact, Tip recalls that as Ozma he had many lovers despite her mother’s “watchful eye”, and one of them almost won his/her heart.

# The Scarecrow has been replaced by the Regent of the City of Jewels, Sir Richard Spud, alongside his faithful sidekick “Lord Stunt”. As with the Scarecrow, the Regent is tired of the complicated and sophisticated life of a king: he wishes to return to simplicity and honesty, and when he learns about Tip he is so joyful to find back the real ruler that he promises to hunt down for Mombi, to have her return Ozma to her true form.

# The subplot of the dress continues as Mombi suddenly appears wearing Prissy’s dress (for… unknown reasons) and the Woggle-Bug, desperate to obtain it, tries to seduce Mombi, to the point they even exchange blowing kisses. Mombi comments that never has anyone fallen in love with her before, and after slipping a few innuendos and “naughty jokes” she resolves herself not to answer the Bug’s seduction, because if she ever got married the “hobgoblins” would stop obeying her (aka, she would lose a part of her magical power).

# Mombi and the Bug, who are in the City of Jewels, meet all the other characters, and the Regent threatens Mombi with a public execution if she does not restore Ozma (and Mombi thinks the Regent is a fool for trying to give up his job, visibly not understanding why someone would not want to be king). Hopefully for the Witch the Army of Revolt marches on the City, with their banner “Give us Victory, or Give us Fudge!”. The Regent tries to talk the girls out of the war, to no avail, and so there is a battle and…

… You remember how in the novel the victory of the Army of Revolt was mostly humoristic? Yeah? In this musical… THE ARMY BURNS DOWN THE CITY OF JEWELS! BURN BABY BURN! And they take as prisonners the Regent, the Woggle-Bug (who decided to abandon the army and thus was deemed a traitor), Tip and Jack.

Note however that they don’t destroy the city, since the rest of the play takes place in the royal palace, like in the book.

# We get to see the spoiled and ridiculous behavior of the Army of Revolt once their conquered the City and it is a bit different than in the book: here they spend their days chewing gum, playing games (which always end up with them fighting for real since they are sore losers and cheaters), they choose whatever house they like in the city to be their own (and if they forget which one they chose, in the case of Prissy, they just get another one randomly), and they also bathe in champagne. As in the book, all the men are forced to do cleaning duties and taking care of babies.

# The Regent, who has been enslaved by the Army, has attracted the eye of Jinjur, who wants to marry him – but the Regent, whose main wish is to live a peaceful retirement in the countryside, refuses to marry Jinjur… unless she becomes a milkmaid. Jinjur of course is not going to do so, so she decides to just lock him up in a room until he agrees to marry her.

# The tensions between Mombi and Jinjur explode as soon as after the victory: Mombi wants Tip and Jack, she claims that Jinjur’s victory was due to her, and she even calls Jinjur her “slave”. Jinjur of course rebels, but Mombi threatens to turn Tip back into Ozma and make Jinjur lose her throne – so Jinjur plays on Mombi’s great vanity (calling her “beautiful” and all sorts of lovely names) to convince her to actually destroy Tip, Jack, and the Woggle-Bug too. Mombi refuses to kill Tip at first, but Jinjur ultimately convinces her to do so. Though her “convincing” isn’t maybe so great – when later Mombi sees Jack, she promises not to destroy him if he becomes her servant and obeys her every orders. Mombi also promises Jinjur to cook for her a love-potion they will give to the Regent.

# When Jinjur brings in her prisoners, we finally have back the “petrification” episode of the book: to prevent Tip from ever becoming back Ozma, she will turn him into a marble statue ; she also says she plans to kill Jack to make a pumpkin pie out of him the whole Army of Revolt will eat. As for the Bug… WARNING RACISM ARRIVES, but for the Bug Mombi calls “Aunt Dinah” (a mammy character, on top of that played by a man) and asks her (as she is the cook of the army) to prepare the Bug on toasts, “Newberg style”. Fun fact – the dress subplot continues! Because this time, it is Aunt Dinah who wears the checkered dress (how come the same dress is worn by three different people? I DON’T KNOW) and so the Woggle-Bug tries to seduce her ; but the Aunt, thinking he is a lobster, rejects him (because she is… lobster-phobe apparently).

# This fun subplot also mixes with another subplot: Professor Knowitt and Prissy (the captain of the Awkard Squad) fell in love, and want to marry. One of their lovey-dovey scenes is interrupted by the Woggle-Bug, who is lamenting the fact he is heartbroken and will never be able to be with the love of his life – and he tells them his story. Prissy wants the Professor to squash the Bug, but he refuses. The Professor proposes to save the Bug’s life from the cook’s kitchen by shrinking him back, but the Bug refuses. Ultimately Prissy, to have the Bug leave them alone, suggests that he cuts a piece of the dress and wears it close to his heart, so that like that he might be with his “beloved” at all times.

# Here we have the Gump episode – that Tip, Jack and the Bug build to escape. Mombi sees that and tries to order those around her to hunt them down, but neither Jinjur nor Prissy nor the Professor follow her orders. So she decides to take matters in her own hands… she does incantations around a cauldron, she invokes a bunch of other witches for a dance, and there is also another dance of black cats this time. This whole thing casts a spell, which at first breaks a storm upon the group, then creates a field of gigantic chrysanthemums with the faces of the Army of Revolt, a field that moves to block the way wherever the heroes go (a clear re-invention of the sunflower field episode from the book). And, strangely, this time it is the Woggle-Bug that saves the day by… revealing that his father was a wizard and invoking a flood to wash the flowers away.

… Yeah.

This play is bonkers I tell you. Completely crazy.

# Now, there is no Glinda here in this play. Rather we have another witch of Baum’s works, “Maetta the Sorceress”. (Maetta is a Glinda equivalent Baum wrote for his book “The Magical Monarchy of Mo”, and he already used Maetta as a replacement for Glinda in some versions of the first extravaganza). Interestingly, Maetta’s palace seems to have electricity to light it up? Maetta welcomes the travelers (her talismans warned her beforehand that strangers were about to arrive). After hearing all of that she has her favorite page, a boy named Athos, send a group of fairies to summon here Jinjur, Mombi, Prissy and Knowitt. There, Maetta plays “the Wizard of Oz”, as in she asks everyone what they want: Tip wants to become Ozma again, Jack wants his head not to rot, and the Woggle-Bug wants the dress he is in love with. Suddenly the Regent barges in the palace: he escaped the City of Jewels by riding on the Sawhorse (which then tried to kill him when he offended it, it is a long story).

Mombi is punished by Maetta by being cast in a dungeon, and she is dragged away as she throws insults at everyone. Jinjur appears before Maetta dressed as a simple milkmaid, because this is what Maetta condemns her to be as she dismantles her armies. The Regent, seeing Jinjur as a milkmaid, falls in love with her, and the two former rulers agree to get married. Interestingly, here it is Maetta herself that turns back Tip into Ozma by singing a magic song while he rests on her lap – and Ozma proceeds to name Jack Pumpkinhead her Prime Minister (yeah, nominates the idiot who can’t understand simple things as a Prime Minister… it makes sense). Prissy is also here, wearing the famous dress, but also a coat covered in military medals (it was a running joke that Jinjur gave medals to her girls for nothing and everything). Maetta takes away those medals and orders Prissy to return to being a simple milkmaid, and when the Professor and Prissy reveal they are about to get married, Maetta sets them free because apparently they are a punishment enough for each other.

But before Prissy leaves the “romantic dress” subplot is solved by… the Bug tried to rip the dress away, the annoyed girl ripping the skirt herself and throwing it at the Bug’s face, and then the bug wearing the skirt as a vast under his coat.

Oh yes, and to solve Jack’s wish, a servant of Maetta puts a big tin can over his head and labels it “Canned Pumpkin”. So it can’t rot. Get it?

- - - - -

And here is "The Woggle-Bug", the 1905 play following "The Wizard of Oz" extravaganza. This play, contrary to the first musical, was a disaster. Critics did not like it, audiences did not like it... a disaster. A failure. It basically killed all dreams and projects of future Oz plays. Mind you, Baum did another musical adaptation of his Oz work on stage... but it was also a failure. More on that later. On top of the already convoluted and crazy plot (oh yeah I forgot another element of the "Woggle-Bug is actually a wizard" subplot is that at one point he conjures up Sawhorses for all the main characters in the play to dance with... yeah) ; critics of the time mentionned that the play felt too "simple", as in it was truly a children story, in the sense adult audiences would not (and did not) enjoy it. It was too childish. Plus the special effects weren't apparently really great? Notably at one point there is a literal "rain of cats and dogs", and one critic remembered this moment as looking like animal corpses were thrown down... So yeah, big failure. BUT the whole subplot of the Woggle-Bug falling in love with a dress has stayed pretty well known in the Baum "fandom", and is now often mentionned in modern Oz adaptations as an inside joke or clever reference ("the incident with the dress" as Oz fans call it).

#what we know of oz #extravaganza #l. frank baum #the marvelous land of oz #the woggle-bug #the wogglebug

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