izzylovesyou2022

[izzylovesyou2022]

Fantasy Guide to Weapons

So I have a post about swords already but I have decided to update it with a look at more weapons that can be wielded in fantasy battles. These weapons below were wielded in different time periods and by different sorts of warriors. Each link shows the damage these weapons could do to armour or the human body. (disclaimer: do not attempt this at home and there mentions and sights of blood and dismemberment.)

Swords

Swords are to fantasy as sand is to a beach. But they aren't always the common cross shape we see. Swords come in all kinds of sizes and all kinds of ability.

Anatomy of a typical blade

Crossguard: This is the part of the sword between the hilt and blade. This protects the hand from slipping and can be used as a weapon in itself.

Hilt: This is the part you hold. Also called a grip. Most gilts would me wrapped with leather for comfort and for better grasp.

Blade: The sharp end, duh

Pommel: This is a weight screwed into the hilt meant to ensure the sword is balanced.

Fuller: This is a hollow running up the sword. It makes the sword lighter.

Edge: The sharpened sides of the blade. Swords can be singular or double edged.

The point: The pointy bit at the top to stick into the enemy. (jon snow logic)

Kinds of swords

Gladius: An Ancient Roman blade used by gladiators and then legionaires. There is no crossguard. It is also called a shortsword. Made for stabbing rather than slashing.

Xiphos: A double-edged, single-handed sword used by Ancient Greeks. The blade is commonly leaf shaped made for slashing.

Rapier: This is a slender blade used by Renaissance warriors. This blade might not be able to hack a head but its light weight makes the blade an asset in speed. The rapier often had a caged-like crossguard to protect the hand from injury.

Katana: The infamous Japanese curved samurai sword. This is single-edged and the blade is hammered thin. Like most Japanese swords it was made for speed and deadly sharp.

Scimitar: A curved blade with a singled edge popular in Central Asia. The scimitar ranged from a thick sword to thin, wielded most effectively on horseback.

Shamshir: The shamshir is a curved Persian/Iranian sword. Shamshīr which means "lion's fang" is a one handed blade often single edged.

Longsword: The go to Medieval and Renaissance weapon commonly used with with two hands. The Longsword was a slender blade, hammer straight and was typically double edged.

Khopesh: The Khopesh is a hooked-shaped African blade wielded by the guards of Egyptian Pharaohs.

Mace/Morning Star

The Mace is probably the second most common weapons seen on the battlefield. The Mace is a thick ball of steel usually spiked resting on top of a haft of wood. The Mace is an easy enough weapon to use (step 1: beat opponent until subdued). The Mace and morning star are fixed upon the halft while the flail is the more mobile one swinging from the half by rope or short chain. You can see it in action right here.

Warhammer

The Warhammer was a weapon wielded by some medieval soldiers made of a haft of wood and an hammer-like head. The actual blade itself could be blunted like hammers we see today or edged like blades, meant for cutting as well as crushing. The back usually featured a hook-like pommel that could also be used as a weapon, able to pierce armour and flesh. The Warhammer was an effective weapon in battle.

Poleaxe

The Poleaxe was the weapon usually wielded by infrantry in the middle ages. It was constructed from a wooden haft with a steel head, usually curved at the front for slashing, set with a spike at the back and top for stabbing. The Poleaxe would be used for charging and for defence. The whole idea behind this many pronged weapon was to puncture, slash from a safe distance. The haft of the weapon could be used to trip and to maim an opponent. You can see it in action here. There were many variations of the Poleaxe namely the bill and the Halberd.

Pikes

The humble Pike is often mixed up with a Halberd and the Poleaxe. It is a long weapon, formed of a metal spike and a long wooden halft. The Pike would be used en masse by infrantry to deflect calvary and protect cannoniers and artillery from attack. Pikes were very effective if one wanted to stopper a full blown calvary charge. Outlaw King has a scene where this can be seen.

Axes

Axes have been used in battle for millenia. The Axe is a weapon that has evolved through out history and over the course of many cultures. Axes were used by soldiers in battles and raids, both as a close-quarters weapon and as a long range weapon. The Axe had numerous forms: throwing axes such as the francisca, short-hafted hand wielded axes and long-hafted Lochaber axes.

[izzylovesyou2022]

The Enchanted Ones (Chapter III)

The sun shone through the stain-glass windows of Dragon Castle, giving the castle a rainbow-like glow, but the mood inside was anything but. Residents of the castle stood in a corner, huddled with fear, as Dante, King of Italy, swung his sword and cut down two of the candles.

“Who dared,” he raged, “who dared to help my nephew and grand-niece escape? WHO DARED?!”

He spun around and yanked on the arm of Queen Allegra’s fifteen-year-old maid, a girl named Poppy. He ignored her attempts to twist away and roughly shook her.

“WAS IT YOU!!”

His bellow forced a sob from Poppy’s throat and she meekly shook her head.

“N-no, sir. I n-never h-helped them,” she squeaked, tugging on the collar of her black dress.

Dante pulled her so close, the smell of wine on his breath overwhelmed her. She gagged and tried again to tug her arm from his tight grip.

“I don’t believe you, little girl,” he growled, leaning down to stare into her terrified eyes, “you know something!”

Poppy whimpered and shook her head again.

“I don’t know anything, Your Highness, I-I truly don’t.”

Dante scowled and pushed her hard onto the floor before taking his sword and pushing it underneath her chin.

“My wife told you to keep silent, didn’t she, little girl?”

When Poppy didn’t respond, Dante roared and hit her in the cheek with the butt-end of the sword. He ignored her cry of pain and yanked her up by the arm.

“I asked you a question, little girl. Did your mistress tell you to keep silent?”

Poppy’s lips trembled but before she could answer, a commanding, angry voice filled the room.

“Let Poppy go, Dante.”

Dante dropped Poppy like a sack of potatoes and turned. Allegra stormed across the floor towards him, her bun coming undone, and when she reached him, she tugged the sword out of his hand. Fire blazed in her green eyes.

“Do not,” she gritted out, “touch my girl like that EVER again, Dante.”

Dante’s shoulders slumped and he wrapped his hands around her elbows. The smile he gave her did not quite reach his eyes.

“I’m sorry, my dove. I simply wanted....for Enzo and Aria’s safety…to find where they are. The girl was quite close to Enzo.”

“Misty,” Allegra called, and an elf-maid several years older than Dante hurried forward and bowed low.

“Yes, madam?”

Allegra helped Poppy up off the floor and steadied her with an arm around her waist.

“Poppy needn’t do any chores for a while. Please tend to her.”

“Of course, madam,” Misty said, bowing to Allegra before taking Poppy around the shoulders, “come along, dear.”

Once the servants disappeared from the room, Allegra straightened her shoulders and turned back to Dante. Fire burned in his brown eyes but that didn’t scare Allegra.

“Husband,” she gave his sword back to him and crossed her arms, “Enzo and Aria are gone.”

Dante returned his sword to it’s rightful place and stared down his wife.

“What do you mean, gone?”

Allegra strode over to the full-length mirror on the nearest wall and fixed her bun.

“They have fled.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dante’s hand twitch against his sword.

“You…”

Allegra ducked the broken candle-holder thrown her way and turned to face Dante more fully.

“I what, my untrustworthy serpent?”

Dante’s face tightened as he struggled to hold back his anger. He stepped forward and wagged his finger into Allegra’s passive face.

“You helped them escape,” he hissed, his brown eyes appearing more like cold mud than warm chocolate, “you helped them escape!”

Allegra placed her hands behind her back and said nothing.

Dante grabbed her shoulders with shaking hands and shook her.

“Allegra, what is this betrayal,” he whispered, a tear leaking from his eye, “what is this that you’d pick my nephew over me? You know he’s here to destroy me. Why else do you think he has the powers of the sky?”

Allegra placed her hand on Dante’s chest and pushed him enough that he released her shoulders. The look she gave him read as “please don’t take me for a fool.”

“You think he is here to destroy you? Dante, he is a CHILD! A child here to destroy you? Don’t be so silly.”

Dante gestured around the castle and raised his voice.

“Allegra, of course he’s here to destroy me. What child doesn’t want a castle to call his own?”

The Queen of Italy let lose a scathing laugh and poked Dante in the chest.

“You think he wants to destroy you because he wants a castle!? Dante, have you lost your mind? Have you gone stupid?”

A surge of anger rushed over Dante’s chest and weaved into his heart and he slapped Allegra’s hand away.

“Don’t you question me, she-elf! I know my nephew! He wants to destroy me once and for all!”

Allegra couldn’t take anymore. She turned herself away from Dante and walked, straight-backed, out of the room. Arguing with someone who had delusional thoughts wasn’t worth it. She walked down the hall to her chambers, where she found Poppy sitting on her bed, lowing a bag of ice off her cheek.

“How do you feel, my girl?”

Poppy looked up with eyes reddened by tears and stood up so she could bow to her mistress.

“I’m okay, madam. Is there anything you need help with?”

Allegra swooped down to press a kiss to Poppy’s cheek and shook her head.

“No, dear one. Madam wants you to rest today. Unless you want to start packing.”

[izzylovesyou2022]

Describing Eye Colors

I dunno about you guys, but I hate cliches like ‘emerald green’, ‘obsidian’, or ‘sky blue’ when describing eye colors. Here are a couple of places I’d like to share to help prevent cliches in writing descriptive characters:

How To Describe Eyes

Eye Color List

List of Colors (Wikipedia) - Goes into shades of colors in lower links

[izzylovesyou2022]

Guess who had to COMPLETELY FACTORY RESET HER IPOD TOUCH BECAUSE NOTHING ELSE WORKED TO TRY AND FIX THE ERRORS BEING MADE?

#FUCK #I HAD TO EMAIL ALL MY PHOTOS TO MY GMAIL #UGHHHHH #I HATE THIS #@LIFE: WHY?

[izzylovesyou2022]

A Flirting Guide For Writers (And Real World Usage)

I reblogged a post a day or so ago, and the result (which made me sad) was mostly people saying that they feel they cannot flirt (and therefore cannot write it effectively). 

So I thought I’d share my own, admittedly limited, knowledge (under the guise of writing advice) so that you can all write kick-ass romance and show your feelings like the boss-ass-bitches you are! 

The Basics; Eye-Contact, Personal Space, Body Language

The thing about flirting is that most of it is non-verbal, and the world is split between those writers who find this part the easiest, and those who find it the most incomprehensible. 

The problem is that it’s all dependent on a fine, mostly unspoken, line which makes the interaction creepy if crossed. When writing a character who is trying to flirt with someone, or when trying to flirt with someone yourself, you need to keep three main things in mind; personal space, body language, and potential restriction. This is especially important for men. The problem is that this is mostly instinctual, and so it can be hard to write if you haven’t had time to develop the right skills yourself. 

Personal space

When trying to show that your character is flirting you need to make a note of them moving into the other person’s personal space but not too much. Consider this; someone leaning into your space just a little to speak to you versus someone being practically nose to nose with you. One catches your attention, the other is uncomfortable at best and intimidating at worst. The idea is to lean in enough to show interest and create a sense of intimacy, without becoming overbearing or threatening. As a rule, I find that I begin to feel uncomfortable if a man I’m not sure of gets closer than the distance it would take to perform a ballroom Waltz. 

To get an idea of how that looks, hold up your hand at arms length as if pushing someone away or pressing against a wall. Now slowly bend your elbow until the point sits just under your breast or pectoral muscle. 

That’s the maximum personal space invasion I allow from people I don’t know well. In my experience, this is common to many women, though others prefer more space. Likewise, in my experience, men I have met seemed perfectly comfortable with me being closer than even that, but I am small, relatively unthreatening, and we have to allow for the fact that we were in the position of viewing each other as romantic interests. Men may prefer more space from other men, or from individuals that they do not see in a romantic light already. This changes from person to person, and noting your characters preference is a good way to show what kind of person they are.

Eye-Contact 

Another fundamental which relies on instinct subtlety; conventional wisdom says that you should make eye-contact in order to show interest. Actual wisdom will also tell you that too much becomes intense and a little creepy. If your character holds someone’s eye for too long its becomes fixative rather than flirtatious; it becomes staring. Depending on your character and their interest this can either read as obsessive, creepy, or aggressive. 

Flirtatious eye contact can take a few forms; 

1 - the “getting caught” method where a person looks at someone and quickly looks away again. When caught have your character (or yourself) look away quickly and then back, hold eye contact for a few moments and then acknowledge the other person. A smile, wink, or nod will suffice for this. 

2 - the “lash” method where someone, usually a woman, catches their crushes eye, looks down, and then back up from under the lashes. Also very effective when done by men with big eyelashes. 

3 - the “full cheese” method by which someone winks, grins, or wiggles their eyebrows. This is effective when used sparingly. 

If your character also touches the person they are flirting with lightly, this will build tension. The touch should be gentle, but obviously deliberate. Avoid possessive gestures like gripping or pulling, however. 

Body Language

When flirting, the body language of both people is important; your character should watch their crush for signs of interest and/or discomfort. 

Positive signs; leaning in, touching, playing with hair, smiling, licking or biting lips, tilting their head slightly, mirroring. 

Negative signs; leaning away, crossing arms, pursing lips, refusing to make eye-contact, raising their shoulders, crossing their legs away from the other person, frowning, clenching jaw, balling fists. 

This body language can apply to both characters in the scene. 

Advanced Techniques; Verbal Cues, Suggestions, And Other Senses

This is the shit I thrive on, as a writer you will probably feel the same way; I notice the sounds, smells, and textures of another person as well as what they say (in fact, when you read my work you’ll notice that the smell of any romantic lead is noted upon more than once). 

Verbal Cues

This is the thing that most people focus upon when it comes to discussions or attempts at flirtation. The verbal sparring that comes with flirting is what really gets our stomachs churning and our hearts pulsing… but why are some people so naturally good at it, while others are… less so? 

And why does some of the most vapid and run-of-the-mill stuff seem to work between the right people? 

Well, the sad news for your unlovely characters is that physical attraction makes us more likely to respond to even the most poorly constructed of verbal flirtation. Then again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder so even the least pretty of characters could find themselves flirting up a storm with the right person. 

Verbal cues include; 

- Gentle teasing 

- Compliments

- Inside jokes

- Using someone’s name (yes, really)

- Asking questions and responding in a thoughtful way

- Sexual innuendo (when used tastefully and sparingly)

Suggestion

This is the easiest to miss or overshoot because it’s a combination of everything else we’ve already covered. For example, your character saying to a friend, 

“I’m just going to hop into the shower, talk soon.” 

Is not a suggestive statement. Now imagine your character flirting with someone on the phone before sighing and saying, 

“I’m going to take a shower… I’ll speak to you soon, ok?”

The difference is subtle but important; the second suggests that they don’t want to stop talking to the other person, that they definitely want to speak to them again as soon as possible, and subtly encourages the other person to consider them in the shower. You see? 

Easy to miss, easy to fudge. Suggestion is hard to pull off, and hard to write, but think of it this way - suggestion;

1) Encourages the other person to think of you/your character in an intimate way

2) Implies enjoyment in and desire for their presence

3) Is open-ended and encourages reciprocation

The Other Senses

This is not so much flirting, but the act of making your character/yourself as appealing as possible to another. Personal hygiene, a good fashion sense, and good manners are a part of this.

But - 

When writing about this you should not discuss it directly unless your character is making a conscious choice. Instead, focus on the character that yours is focussed upon. 

- How do they smell?

- What are the textures of their clothes?

- What manners do they affect?

- Does their voice have a texture?

- Do they touch your character a lot? 

- Do they note upon your characters smell or noticeably try to take in their smell? 

- Do they react noticeably to your character’s voice or mannerisms?

This is just a basic guide, of course, but if you get this down you’re in a good position to build romantic tension in every walk of life!

If you found this post useful and you want to help keep me writing, you can support me through Kofi!

[izzylovesyou2022]

Hey y'all! So my book, Echoes Of Eternity, is available on Apple Books, Rakuten Kobo, !ndigo, and Anges & Robertson. This is eBook form only. My paperback version will be published in a few days.

This link ^-^ will take you to any of the sites for the eBook. It's one link for all four sites.

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[izzylovesyou2022]

REBLOG THIS IF I CAN PUT A LITTLE OF MY WIP IN YOUR INBOX/MESSAGES

#icymi #writerblr #tumblr writers #writerscafe #writers #writers on tumblr #writerscorner #writerscommunity #writersconnection #wip #tumblr asks #ask me anything #ask game #tag games #ask tag

[izzylovesyou2022]

Kroger, I'm happy that my boyfriend's making a lot of money from you, but CAN YOU GIVE HIM A BREAK AND STOP ASKING HIM TO STAY LATE AND HAVE SOMEONE ELSE DO IT INSTEAD?

#christ #having him stay all those hours #LET HIM LIVE

[izzylovesyou2022]

The Enchanted Ones: Chapter II

Even barely awake, I could still make my way down the stairs to the kitchen. I guess that’s the advantage of knowing your home inside and out. Plus, I’m an elf, meaning my senses are heightened.

I stumbled into the kitchen and through my half-opened eyes, saw Father and Kieran talking. Oh, I guess I should introduce Kieran. Kieran is my older half-brother on my mom’s side. Father and I being elves never bothered him. It’s won him points with the people he works with.

I made my way over the coffee machine and smiled when I saw it was already made. I poured myself a glass and took a sip. Ah, the much needed caffeine.

“Don’t drink all of it,” Kieran threw over his shoulder, “our honored guest might like some.”

I grunted and pushed myself onto one of the kitchen barstools.

“I have no intention of drinking all of it,” I mumbled, “there will be plenty for the Prince.”

Prince Enzo. Our new housemate for I don’t know how long. I remembered Father talking to others about plans to keep him here. Something about “being a refuge from Italy.”

Father frowned at me from across the bar. I didn’t look at him. I knew his eyes were searching me.

“Did you not sleep last night, daughter?”

I looked at him as I drained the last of my coffee and twirled the mug between my fingers.

“Slept fine, Father. I’m just barely awake.”

That got a laugh out of both of them. I didn’t stop my smile, even if it was aimed at the floor instead of them. Sleeping was the one thing that came easy for me.

The sound of running footsteps and then a high-pitched squeal caught our attention and all three of us turned to see Enzo holding a giggling Aria in his arms. Her giggles made my smile widen. I haven’t seen a toddler as adorable as her in ages.

Enzo inclined his head to each of us and walked over the kitchen table, which sat at the opposite end of the bar.

“There’s a box of Lucky Charms in the pantry, my friend,” Father said, grabbing a bowl and spoon from the cabinet.

Kieran eyed Enzo with great interest as he grabbed the box of the aforementioned cereal from the pantry and set it on the table.

“What’s the usual breakfast in Italy?”

Enzo handed Aria her spoon and rolled back his shoulders. By the wistful look in his blue eyes, I knew he was missing home.

“It depends. Sometimes it’s just a simple bread and butter, or what you call toast here. Sometimes it’s a big affair, with at least three different meats, eggs, and cheese on bread. And of course, no breakfast would be complete without a cup of coffee.”

Kieran whistled in appreciation and I laughed and pushed him in the side.

“You’re an idiot, do you know that?”

Kieran only smirked and shrugged his shoulders before sitting down next to Enzo.

“Well, I’m also your brother,” he said.

I watched Enzo muffle his laugh into his arm and resisted the urge to throw my spoon at him. The best I could do was snort and look at the beautiful weather outside. The waves crashing against the sand and the sun making the water sparkle under it’s light. How lucky we were to live next to the ocean. Where I could see this beautiful scenery every single day.

Just as if he was reading my mind, Enzo cast his glance in my direction and leaned forward on the chair. His eyes were gleaming just as bright as the ocean.

“Aoife, you’re a lucky elf-maid. You get a beautiful castle with so much room and you get to live by the ocean. Aria and I are so lucky to be here.”

I smiled as Aria tossed her spoon onto the table and arched an eyebrow.

“Yes, I know. We’re incredibly lucky to live in this wonderful place. But didn’t you have a castle too?”

Enzo picked up the spoon that Aria threw and heaved out a sigh. I could see how heavily leaving Italy weighed on him.

“A beautiful castle,” he agreed, staring out at the water, “but it’s not by an ocean. My castle back home has a lot of flower gardens and a lot of places to ride horses. We have horse-drawn carriages as well as cars.”

My eyebrows arched even higher.

“I thought those things were left behind years ago. I mean…” my voice faltered under Enzo’s tilted-head-stare, “people used those in the 1800s.”

Father chuckled and ruffled up my hair.

“Italy has a different culture, Aoife.”

I absentmindedly tapped my fingers on the glass in front of me and filled it with water. Father and Kieran didn’t spare it a glance, but Enzo looked at me questioningly.

“I told you yesterday, my good sir,” I joked, handing him the glass, “I can make things fill with water. Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m doing it.”

Enzo took a sip of water and let out such a loud gasp that all of us stared at him in shock and concern.

“This is some of the cleanest and best-tasting water I’ve ever had! Oh, how delightful!”

Heat rose to my cheeks as I choked out a “thank you.” There was no reason for Enzo’s words to cause my heart to skip a few beats. People complemented me all the time on my water skills.

A few hours later, I sat on the beach with Enzo and Aria. Father had left to go shopping and Kieran had left to go to work. The ocean gently lapped over our feet and I smiled at Aria’s loud squeals and giggles. I hadn’t seen a toddler—elf or human—as happy and giggly as Aria in quite a few years. I could sense she’d bring a lot of joy and laughter to the castle.

“How old were you when you realized you had powers?”

My eyes tore away from Aria to look at Enzo. He had his chin resting on his hands and his fingers played with the lightning-shaped ring he wore.

I dug my fingers into the sand and sucked my lower lip between my teeth.

“I was about four. Father had left a glass on the table and I had been playing with it. When he came back five minutes later, it was filled with water. I was too short to reach the sink and Kieran was away at our mom’s, so he must’ve sensed that I had refilled it. I was about ten or eleven when I discovered that I could control the water. You know: the waves and the hurricanes and such. I’ll be completely honest; it takes a lot to push to me to the point that I will cause a hurricane.”

I’d only known Enzo for about a day, and yet here I was, spilling out my secrets to him. Well, I knew why: elves with powers, especially when they’re young like we are, needed other people to rely on. What better people to do that than people who understand the struggle of having powers?

I nodded at Aria and scooted closer to the pair of them.

“Does she have powers?”

Enzo caught Aria as she stumbled over a small pile of sand and shook his head. “Not that I’ve seen. But you know, some elves discover their powers later…like me. I only discovered I had sky powers like a year or so ago.”  

#modern fantasy #fantasy writers #fantasy #the enchanted ones #writerblr #writers #fiction #tumblr writers #writers community #writerscafe #writers on tumblr #spilled writing #my writing #writerscorner #writerscommunity #writers connection #chapter 2 #romance writer #romance writing

[izzylovesyou2022]

The Enchanted Ones (Chapter 1)

The stairs had never felt so unsteady nor had my breathing felt quite as stifled as they did at this moment. It didn’t help that the only light I could see was the Queen of Italy, my Aunt Allegra’s flashlight and even that was dimmed. I paused, my feet on two separate stairs, to readjust Aria in my arms. A small whine escaped from her lips and I gently hushed her before reclaiming my pace. My elf ears remained alert for any noise of alarm or anger or any of the negative feelings from way above me, but I didn’t need to worry. Aunt Allegra and I soon reached the bottom of the steps and she quickly flung open the castle door.

Goosebumps formed up my arms as the cool night air blasted me full force in the face, but I ignored it and kept following Aunt Allegra. She must have used some sort of secret silencing charm on her shoes, because even on the cobblestone we treaded on, her feet made no sound. The only sounds heard were the occasional neighing of one of the castle horses and my heavy breathing.

I nearly slammed into Aunt Allegra when she came to a sudden stop in front of the horse-drawn carriage in front of us. Living in modern Italy, we didn’t see a lot of horse-drawn carriages anymore, unless we were at plays or events put on by townsmen, but since our escape needed to be quiet and painless, we made the decision to use the less noisy horse and carriage mode of transportation.

Aunt Allegra turned to me and in the bright light of the moon and her flashlight, I could see pain and tears in her green eyes. She hadn’t been in my life for very long, only about six months, but she’d become my biggest protector against my uncle, King Dante. I could see her lips thinning, like I always do when I’m trying not to cry. She straightened and stared into my eyes.

“My child, you have been brave. You must take care of you and Aria. I will be fine.”

I used a finger to gesture for my driver and he raced towards me.

“Yes, your highness?”

I carefully placed Aria into his arms and gave a hard swallow as he cradled her to his chest. Aria was the main reason for my escape.  

“Please make her comfortable in the carriage. I will be there in a moment.”

He ducked his head in a bow and hurried off with Aria.

The smell of the roses my mother had once so carefully planted in her garden rushed and weaved through the air, only making my throat tighten. To the left of that garden, under the safety of an oak tree, lay her grave, her final resting place where she could finally be at peace.

“Your mother will understand, child,” Aunt Allegra whispered, gentleness covering every word, “you are not abandoning her.”

I swiped at my eyes and mentally scolded myself. 1,700 (or seventeen in human years) was too old to be crying, and yet, any mention of Mother was enough to send me to tears. The next thing I felt were Aunt Allegra’s arms wrapped around me and her soothing hum tickling my ears.

“I will never forget this,” I croaked, my throat feeling suddenly dry from the air and the thoughts roaming around my head, “and I will come back for you.”

Aunt Allegra straightened to her full height and pierced me with her green eyes. An elf-maid whose beauty just barely competed with my mother’s.

“Go now, Enzo.”

I swallowed my pride and tears and walked to the carriage. I climbed inside and forced myself not to look back. The driver slapped the reigns against the horse’s back and the carriage sped away. Only once we were on the road and speeding away from the castle did I breath normally again.

The clip-clop of the horse’s hooves soothed my spirit and I turned to my sleeping daughter, Aria. I wanted to cry out of thankfulness that she didn’t know what was going on. The most I’d told her was that we’d be going on an adventure to another country. Obviously, that excited her.

I kept one hand close to hers in case she suddenly woke up and glanced up at the night sky. The stars shone in their places, little pieces of fairy dust, as Mother called them. Mother studied the stars and taught me how to fall in love and stay in love with them. “The stars are our one constant, Enzo,” she’d once told me, “a way of guiding us when we most need it. Always follow the stars. You never know where they will lead.”

The carriage came to a sudden halt near a field. I didn’t see the moon, but my ears caught the sound of a plane engine. As part of the royal family, I had my own private plane. Well, more like my Uncle’s plane, but Aunt Allegra had arranged everything with the pilot. This plane would be taking me and Aria to America.

I scooped up my still-sleeping daughter into my lap and waited until my driver opened the carriage door. While I got out, my elf-guards and the pilot scrambled to get our luggage—4 large suitcases—onto the plane.

I got out of the carriage and handed Aria to the nearest guard. I watched for a moment as he hurried away, and then turned my attention to my driver.

“My friend,” I whispered, laying a hand on his shoulder, “you have been amazing. I owe so much to you. You and my aunt planned this out perfectly. I know she already paid you, but to give you my thanks, here is an additional 17 euros.”

I dropped the money in his hand. I saw him swallowing back the tears and the lump in his throat as he inclined his head at me.

“Do not worry about us, good Prince. Take care of yourself and the little one.” 

I gave him one final squeeze of his shoulder before hurrying across the field and scampering up the steps of the plane.

Soon, we were off, leaving my childhood home and everything I’d ever known before. Sadness and excitement mixed to form a pit in my stomach and I forced myself to look away from the window. I just stared at the back of my pilot’s seat and tried to breathe through my nose. I looked over my shoulder at the four suitcases neatly stacked and relaxed my shoulders. Everything Aria and I needed was in those cases. Thank goodness for quick planning.

“Dada?”

My eyes flickered over to Aria, who was rubbing hard at her eyes with her tiny fists and kicking her legs back and forth. I gently placed her in my lap and tucked her messy black hair behind her ears.

“Have a good nap?”

I’d hope she’d sleep through the night, but not all my prayers could be answered. I looked at her little elf-ears and wondered what sort of powers, if any, she’d grow up to have. I’d recently discovered that I had sky powers, which basically meant I could bring down lightning and cause massive storms to distract enemies. I hoped I wouldn’t have to use those powers in the near future, my sword did just fine, but with me being on the run, I knew I’d have to sooner or later. I was thankful that I’d learned relatively quick how to control my powers, because causing my pilot to fly in a storm wouldn’t look good to anyone.

Aria pushed herself up in my lap to look out the window and stuck out her lower lip when she realized it was nighttime.

“Where sun?”

I chuckled and scooted a little closer to the window with Aria. I pointed at the moon doing it’s job giving light to the pilot and the world below and then pointed at the stars, each one twinkling in it’s rightful place.

“The sun is sleeping, Aria, but see? The moon and the stars are doing their jobs. They are awake. They help protect the nighttime.”

Aria’s dark blue eyes looked at me in wonder and then glanced back out the window. Her hands wrapped tightly around the little dragon blanket she’d gotten for her birthday.

“Stars running,” she said.

I looked out the window and saw a star rushing across the heavens, leaving a trail of silver in it’s wake. My eyes stung as I realized that was Mother sending me a message. Shooting stars had always been Mother’s favorite, and my gut feeling announced to me that she was guiding our course.

“It’s a shooting star, Aria,” I whispered as she rubbed her eyes again and crawled back into my lap, “the luckiest stars of all.”

Soon enough, Aria traveled to dreamland and I placed her back on the plane seat, smiling as her hands tightened around her little dragon blanket. I stroked her hair and leaned back in my seat. I should feel tired but I truly wasn’t. I wasn’t sure if it was excitement or fear that kept me awake.

“Both,” I answered, “I’m feeling both.”

I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, my stomach went into my throat, and I jerked awake to realize my pilot was descending. My eyes flickered over the rising sun, turning the sky orange and red, mixing together to create a moment in time. I glanced at Aria, who sat playing with her blanket, and reached over to place her in my lap.

“We’re descending, Aria. We’ve arrived.”

Aria tucked her head back against my chest and pointed at the flashing lights of the airport below. Private planes usually don’t land at airports but because we were in a different country, we had too. I wasn’t bothered by it though: different countries had different customs.

Once our feet were on the ground and all of our baggage unloaded, a silver car sped up to us. Two people hopped out and I realized with a start that they were both elves. I recognized the older elf as actor Ronan Canavan. I’d watched his movies many times and always thought of him as some sort of hero. Hurrying behind Ronan was an elf-maid who looked to be about my age. Her blue hair hung over her shoulder in a fishtail braid and in the morning light, she glowed.

“Prince Enzo,” Ronan intoned, bowing low to me as the elf-maid did the same, “we welcome you and the little one to America.” He nodded and smiled at Aria as he spoke.

“Thank you,” I said, placing one hand over my heart and then slowly holding out my arm. Mother had taught me that little gesture as a sign of gratitude.

Ronan repeated my gesture and then turned to the elf standing near him.

“This is my daughter, Aoife.”

Aoife considered me and I swore her eyes stared into my soul.

“Prince Enzo.”

 “Aoife, it’s nice to meet you.”

She held out her hand and, for a moment, I thought about doing the Italian greeting of touching my nose to her hand, but didn’t and instead shook it. I shifted Aria up onto my hip and watched as Ronan grabbed two of our suitcases. My mouth opened to protest, but Aoife laid her hand on my arm and shook her head.

 “Nay, Prince Enzo. You have a child in your arms. Let my Father do what must be done.”

I quickly snapped my mouth shut and turned to properly face her. Elves with a blue glow on their skin were a rarity in Europe. I wondered if they were common in America. Both Ronan and Aoife had the blue glow. I decided not to ask.  

“Do you have powers?”

The heat rose in my cheeks at the stupidity of that question, but Aoife only laughed and nodded.

“Yes, Prince, I have powers. Water powers.”

Well, that was interesting. I’d met a lot of elves but Aoife was the first one I’d come across who had water powers.

“Like, water bending?”

Another laugh, this one quiet and tinkling.

“Yes and no. I can make shapes with the water but I control the weather of the water. Meaning I can create hurricanes, floods, and even giant waves. Those are just the ‘bad’ parts of my powers. I can filter dirty water clean with just the snap of a hand or even fill an empty glass just by touching it if I focus hard enough, just to name a few good ones.”

My eyebrows shot all the way up. I couldn’t believe that I’d met someone who has these powers. It’s the coolest thing.

All those words stuck in my throat, however, as I followed her to the car and hopped inside. To my surprise, I find a car seat for Aria in the back. I shoot Aoife a sideways glance.

“Father bought it yesterday,” she explained, “it’s a magical car seat. It fits exactly to the size of the child. Try it out.”

I placed Aria in the seat and stared, transfixed, as it buckled her exactly how I always do. I didn’t think my eyes could widen much more. Why didn’t we have these back in Italy?

My face must’ve looked funny, because a snort and a giggle zoomed around the car as it pulled away from the airport.

“A lot of elves and even humans use car seats like this,” Ronan said from the front seat, catching my eye in the rearview mirror, “there are non-magical ones, of course, but the magical ones are considered safer. There was a lot of trial and error to get the magical ones right. Kids your little one’s age are lucky. When I was a kid, there were no magical car seats. Whoever invented them must have been a parent.”

“How do they work?”

Aoife pulled one leg close to her body and pulled a finger-file from her pocket.

“Well, you know, with non-magical ones, you have to play with the straps to fit it perfectly on your child. With the magical ones, it senses the height, weight, and gender of your child, and conforms the straps to fit your child just so. It does the work for you.” 

I didn’t think I could say another word. Everything that had gone on in the past...I don’t know. My brain can’t understand time anymore. The adrenaline faded from my system.

To calm myself, I rested my head on the window and watched the world go by. Tall buildings shone in the still-early morning. There wasn’t a lot of traffic for us to run into, but I could see owners hurrying to the doors of their businesses and people rushing into their offices. The orange and red of the sunrise faded and all I could see was blue skies and a few puffy white clouds.

After a while, I realized we were driving away from the city. Tall buildings turned into small houses and farm land. Flowers of every color grew along the road side.

“How far is your house from here?”

I rested my elbow up against the window as I spoke, studying Aoife. Her fingers were plaiting small braids into Aria’s hair.

She didn’t even look at me, but the corners of her mouth twitched upward.

“If we were driving at a normal speed, it’d take us about ten hours. But, Father and one of his friends did some magic on the car that allows it to go at high speed, but it doesn’t look that way to humans. I think we’ll be there quite shortly.”

Can someone really surprise you two times in less than two hours? The answer was yes. First with the magic car seat and now with this magic on the car. Was I really that cut off from the world or was Italy more old school than I remember?

“Besides,” she continued, her brown-hazel eyes finally meeting mine as her fingers continued to work on Aria’s hair, “it’s not really a house. I mean, it’s my home but it’s not like one of the houses you see out there.”

Before I could ask her what she meant, a strong smell floated through the window. Sea-salt. The ocean.  

I almost gave myself a whiplash turning my head to see the clear blue of the ocean crashing against the ivory sand of the beach. I hadn’t been to the ocean for so long, I’d nearly forgotten what it looked like. What threw me back even more, however, was coming up over the hill and seeing the huge castle. In the sunlight, the pure white bricks nearly blinded me. I turned to stare at Aoife.

“Are…are you a….are you a princess?”

“No, my friend. This castle was built by my grandfather for my grandmother. She’d always dreamed of living in a castle, so he had this built for her.”

Love makes you do some wonderful things

The large gated fence around the castle creaked open and we drove right through. The castle spiraled far above me. I counted two guard towers and studied the battlements. I didn’t see a drawbridge, but on the far left end, I saw two chapels. This castle was about the same size as the one I lived in back home. I liked this castle, however, because it was on the beach and miles and miles of space.

“Plenty of space for you, little one,” Aoife muttered to Aria, who giggled and grabbed at her fingers.

I’d forgotten that Ronan was in the car, so when his deep voice spoke, I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“You will be safe here, Enzo. Your Aunt Allegra picked me because of this place.”

#fantasy #modern fantasy #the enchanted ones #writerblr #writers #fantasy writers #fiction #writers community #tumblr writers #new writers on tumblr #spilled writing #writing community #my writing #writerscafe #writerscorner #writerscommunity #writers connection #chapter 1 #romance #romance writer #romance writing

[izzylovesyou2022]

every once in a while, someone asks me, "where's the best place to buy your books?" -- specifically, they want to know which platform takes the lowest cut, so the largest percentage of the cover price goes to me.

this is a very cool, kind thing to ask, and i appreciate it every time. but if you really want to make sure an indie author you like makes money, here's the two biggest things you can do for their book:

rate/review. leave a star rating on whichever storefront you bought the book from. write a quick review on goodreads or the storygraph.

signal boost. post about the book on social media. recommend it to friends who like the same stuff.

these two things, either alone or together, put the book in front of more eyeballs. that translates to more sales, which translates to more eyeballs, which translates to more sales.

this is a big help even on platforms that pay smaller royalties--35% of 10 sales is still more money than 95% of 1 sale.

[izzylovesyou2022]

thanks love!

hi love! i don't know if you saw my post on my other blog, fanizzy-1, but i will be sending asks/messages and following you on here. haven't decided if i will keep my other blog or not since tumblr wants to play games with me. So hi!

Hello, dear =D

I didn't see it, but that is delightful. Glad you'll still be around.

Sorry Tumblr is a butt.

[izzylovesyou2022]

Greetings, writerblr!

most of you probably know me better from my @fanizzy-2 blog

Unfortunatly, i do not know how much longer that blog will be up, because tumblr hasn't been working. i can't message or ask questions until the problem is fixed, so i will be messaging/asking/following from here. this seems to be the only tumblr blog of mine that is working.

I'm so sorry for the trouble

#writerscafe #my writing #writerblr #writerscorner #writers community #writing community #writers on tumblr #new writers on tumblr #tumblr writers #writing society

[izzylovesyou2022]

REBLOG THIS IF I CAN PUT A LITTLE OF MY WIP IN YOUR INBOX/MESSAGES

#hockey #nhl #writers #nhl imagines #nhl fanfiction #writerblr #spilled writing #writerscafe #my writing #my oc #my ocs #my characters #wip #my wip #tag games #asks games #message me #dm me #dm games #message games #writerscorner #writing community #fantasy #fantasy writers #sports romance #hockey romance #romance #romance writers #new wip

[izzylovesyou2022]

if you’re writing an Irish character from Dublin city

- they’re not a farmer. Farmers tend to live in more rural counties, especially in the west of Ireland.

- a Dublin accent isn’t the Irish brogue that always appears in American movies. Listen to an interview with Brendan Gleeson or Colin Farrel. They’re Dublin accents.

- Dublin is not just one city. There are 24 areas, all just called Dublin One, Dublin Two, and so on. One and Two are the North and South of the city center. From then on, it’s mainly residential. Dublin Four has its own socio-economic identity, seen as very ‘posh’. The accent from here is also distinguishable from other accents in Dublin. 

- public transportation has various forms; buses, the Dart, the Luas, and commuters. Buses go all over. The Dart is the localized train that runs from North to South. The Luas is more specialized regarding destination. Commuters go out of Dublin to other cities, mainly Galway, Newry, Rosslare Europort, and Sligo. 

- there are three main train stations with Dublin city; Connolly (biggest one), Pearse (nicest one), and Heuston. 

- there’s one airport with two terminals, just called Dublin airport. there’s no train line out there. everyone is mad about this.

- taxis are incredibly expensive, so no one really gets them. Leap cards are our version of metro cards.

- there is no subway! unlike America, Ireland doesn’t have a subway system anywhere (yet)

- unlike a lot of American cities, Dublin does not have a grid layout. It was not planned, it grew. Therefore if you were not raised there, good luck finding your way around. There’s hundreds of shortcuts but only natives would really know them well (like cutting through Trinity College to get to Pearse Station instead of walking all the way around).

- there’s three main colleges; Trinity College, University College Dublin (UCD) and Dublin City University (DCU). Trinity is the most central. UCD is a pain in the ass to get to. 

- the nicest park to go to is Stephen’s Green. the biggest park is Phoenix Park. it’s the largest enclosed park in Europe, is twice the size of Central Park, and is bigger than all of London’s parks put together. this is where Dublin Zoo is, and concerts are usually held in the park over summer. 

- no Dublin natives go to Temple Bar. It’s ridiculously overpriced and always overflowing with tourists. Must Avoid on Saint Patrick’s Day (which is shortened to Paddy’s Day, not Patty’s Day).

- the legal drinking age is 18. most people start around 16. buying cigarettes is only allowed at 18, but smoking them isn’t really illegal below this. it’s just really, really bad. And as an Irish person, I have to admit we do drink a lot. We drink for anything; weddings, funerals, anniversaries of any kind, drinking will be involved. 

- we do not call every bar a pub. only certain bars are pubs. they must have friendly, chatty, old bartenders, a slightly run-down air, a darker-than-necessary interior, and old framed photos of Guinness ads or ads for cigarettes from donkey’s years ago to be considered a pub. “let’s go to the pub” = casual drinks. “let’s go out!” = let’s get absolutely hammered.

- if an Irish person asks you “how are you?”, you reply. If an Irish person says “how’s it going?” you do not have to reply. this is just a very casual way of saying ‘hello’. no one says top o’ the morning to ya. NO ONE.

- complaining about the weather is Irish culture. doesn’t matter what weather. it’s rainy. it’s too hot. it’s too cold. it’s too windy. doesn’t matter. but in the end, we’ll always miss the rain. 

idek if people write irish characters a lot, but jesus, seeing American directors and/or actors absolutely butcher Irish accents/backgrounds is unbearable (see: Helena Bonham Carter in Ocean’s 8, or Gerard Butler in P.S. I Love You. Unforgivable.) if you’re just having fun writing, then go ahead, but if you want to have a realisitic irish person in your story, hopefully this’ll help! :)

[izzylovesyou2022]

VENT! VENT! VENT! VENT! VENT!

tw: sexual assault/rape

I don't know how many Red Wings/hockey fans are following me, but I need to vent this.

AS A RED WINGS FAN, I FEEL DISGUSTED THAT WE'VE TRADED FOR PATRICK KANE.

I don't question that he's a great scorer/playmaker/puck handler. i don't question that he could help the team defensively. i don't question that he could (on the ice, at least), be a mentor/role model for younger players.

Even so, I'm disgusted at getting him because of the things he's done. Punching a cab driver over 25c and raping(?) a girl and also intimidating her into not pressing charges or going to trial.

I've been a fan of Detroit since middle school and I am now 27. I do not remember a time when we've had a player who was in the news/talked about on social media for those serious charges. yes, of course, we've had players who have done drugs or been drinkers (Bob Probert, for example, I've read his book), but Detroit has always tried to keep a clean image.

That Steve Yzerman, a man very much trusted and loved in Detroit, would make a trade like this breaks my heart.

#tw: rape #tw: sexual assault #tw: patrick kane #detroit red wings #steve yzerman #hockey trades #trades #sports #personal vent #vent #nhl

[izzylovesyou2022]

Absolutely LOVE those work days when all management does is criticize you 🙄🙄

Every five seconds, it's *nag-criticize-nag* then we go to "I'm going to forget your name even though i say your name 2,000 times a day" THEN it's "i'll scold you for doing this thing but when your co-worker does it two minutes later, I won't say a word to him."

#i love my job but fucking hell #lighten up a little #rant #vent #work #jobs #management