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444names · 7 months

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Names generated from German forenames, forced to end with "S"

Achias Acolaus Acquelaus Adelsans Ademircus Aderies Adiethias Adisebas Adrans Alfreas Alians Alias Aliedagnes Alies Alippaus Allaugus Allmardies Altoberius Altolfgars Altrias Alves Amarcus Amarius Amars Amellaus Andagmas Andries Anicas Ankas Annas Annes Anuelaus Arcus Arias Aries Aristias Audis Augus Aulaulries Aulrius Axellaus Aximelmans...

Barannes Barbas Barcus Barius Belliebas Bernedris Bernes Bians Bodonas Brius Carbas Carsus Chans Chelias Chellaukas Chermas Chrias Chrichries Chridolaus Chrius Claugus Claulaus Claus Colbeas Colgelmars Colis Coltris Dagnes Dalias Dalis Dalvias Davias Diebas Diedians Diedias Diestias Dikas Dikathors Dinersus Dolas Dolaus Dolgankas Dusans Edredemas Eines Ekkeharsus Elaus Elgarolaus Elies Elines Ellas Ellaulrius Ellaus Elmanas Emarius Emars Emichars Emilies Emillaus Eminas Emircolaus Emircus Emirinas Emirius Emmas Erbas Erbastias Erinharis Ermars Ermas Ermilies Erminas Ertrius Esebas Estias Estorsus Everis Eviamonas Ewalters Felas Felmas Fermas Flois Flors Flouis Fradolas Frannes Fraus Freas Fredies Freinedis Freinias Frenias Fretelies Friankas Friannas Frias Fricolaus Friedris Fries Frinallas Frius Gabias Gabrudias Garias Gebas Gebhannes Gebhans Gellaus Gelouelas Georeneris Georias Georius Gerbas Geries Gerius Germars Germas Gernholaus Gersus Gertraus Gertrius Gerylvinas Gildans Gilminans Gisberans Gislaus Gisterbas Gistians Gistias Gottlias Gottolas Gottscas Greas Gredias Gredriebas Grians Grius Handris Hankas Hannelaus Hannes Hantharcus Harbas Harcus Harias Haricors Harmars Harsus Heiderias Heilbers Heilheidis Heinas Heinesebas Helars Helas Helaus Helfgans Helgarcus Helgaries Helgernes Helikas Helkerhars Hellas Hellaukas Helmarbas Helmarsus Henanas Henians Henias Henicas Herbas Heriedis Heries Herius Hermars Hermas Herstias Hertalias Hertris Hiannes Hildarbas Hilhelgars Hilias Hilies Hilis Hillas Hilois Holaugus Homellis Hundemmans Ilhelaus Ilheris Imerbeas Imicolies Iminas Imircus Imonias Imors Irademas Ircollaus Ircus Irias Irmircus Isamars Isans Isbetchans Isebas Istermas Istinhors Jacharolas Jerbas Jerhars Jeridolas Jernolaus Joacolas Johandrias Johans Joharcus Joharielas Joharis Johartrias Josebas Julaus Julias Julristias Juppaus Jörgannes Jürgans Karbarikas Karcus Karius Karmarcus Karsus Kersus Klarndreas Klars Klaugus Klaursus Kolters Konas Kurius Kurstias Kursus Laugus Laukas Laurs Liamonraus Lians Liebas Liegars Linnerinas Linrius Loisabrius Loislas Loricors Lorius Lortrias Lottobinas Louellaus Louis Ludemircus Luttlias Lydianas Lydies Magoberius Malines Mallaus Maltelgans Manias Mannas Mannes Maraus Marbas Maries Marinas Maris Marlheinas Marlorsus Marolis Marollas Maromas Marsus Maximircus Medinias Meliedies Micas Mictobeas Milhelaurs Milias Miliseves Millaus Minans Mingreas Minolaukas Miralbeas Mirankas Miraus Mircus Mirians Miris Mirkolas Mirmas Mirmircus Moreas Mories Morius Morsus Niankas Nians Nicors Niebas Niegfrius Nikarikas Ninalines Olastias Olauguis Olaugus Olaus Olfrias Olias Oltelaus Oreas Orias Oscas Ottfraus Ottoreas Patholaus Paukas Petchries Philhers Philmarbas Rachriebas Radies Rainas Ralies Ranas Rarndrines Raurstians Riebarcus Rikatrias Risberwies Robeas Robias Rogebas Rolas Rolaugus Rolaulaus Rolaus Romarbas Romas Sabrudians Sanuelmas Sebas Sevians Sheliebas Shellaus Siebas Stomans Sulaus Tinias Tobeas Tobiankas Tolas Tolaus Tolias Tomars Tomas Udegfreas Ulaurs Ulaus Ulias Ulricas Ulrius Ursus Uttolbeas Uwenthmas Vinas Vinhelmas Volas Volaus Volgabias Walies Walippaus Walis Wallas Werians Wiebas Wiedies Wilbeas Wilois Wilouelaus Wilydis Winedrias Wines Wingeorius Wolaus Wolfrius Wollmans Xelias Yvenjans Yvers

#444 names #444names

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waitformereprise · 4 years

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book!ursus, going on his third rant of the evening about how greedy the random kids he found are:

book!gwynplaine, just trying to eat his first meal in god knows how long:

#anna speaks #this whole chapter had me SCREAMING #like theyre kids whys ursus acting like this akdkfkmhhhngngnfn #tmwl liveblogging

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johannstutt413 · 3 years

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(requested by wealmostaneckbeard) Tachanka becomes the USSGG’s surrogate dad

Tachanka had had a family at home - at least, he had an ex and a couple of kids, and they’d made it work better than quite a few of the homes his coworkers had come from or kept - so the idea of being a father figure wasn’t new to him. What had been new to him, shortly after arriving at Rhodes Island HQ on special request from the Doctor herself (which was...well, a story in its own right), was a small group of Ursus girls that brought out the Papa Bear in him like nothing else.

“I’m not asking for a miracle,” the petite woman in a long coat explained, looking up at him from behind a mask, “but I think you could do them a lot of good.”

“...They were in Chernobog.” It wasn’t a question. The weight in his words nearly matched that of his own helm.

She nodded. “More than that, they were in a middle school where...Ever read ‘Lord of the Flies’ when you were studying English?”

“Yes.” He cocked his head. “Not Columbian?”

“Let’s not get into that right now; suffice to say, you’re not the only one from Earth.”

The ‘mercenary’ relented; he had a feeling they’d have more chances to talk later. “Later, then. How old are they?”

“They were attending middle school at the time of the incident-” Tachanka’s fist clenched, “-but it’s been some time since we got them out of there. 15, 16 or so?”

“Fifteen? And you send them on missions?” What kind of irresponsible-

The Doctor reached into a desk drawer behind her, pulled out a folder, and handed it to him. “Look at these.”

“I don’t see how-” Looking at the pictures in said folder, however, the four-war veteran had other concerns. “So much blood...Too young to be forced to see it. I didn’t know.”

“You already know them, don’t you?” She didn’t need to see his face to notice the change in attitude.

He looked her dead in the eye. “We did shots together last night. They drink even younger than I did.”

“That’s Ursus for you - those bear ears aren’t just for show.” She sighed. “They also are practically immune to alcohol, which I think is a bit more than even a grizzly back home could do. You’ll help them out, though?”

“I don’t know if I can help them, Doctor. What I will be is there for them. I go to them now. Keep the folder.”

That’d been the plan, but it was good to know he agreed with it. “Thanks. How’s your Ursine?”

“Я уже давно говорил по-урсийски, Доктор [I’ve spoken Ursine for a long time, Doctor],” he replied in his mother tongue. “Спасибо [Thanks].”

“Для чего? [Thanks for what?]” She replied, almost casually.

Tachanka didn’t turn back around as he replied, “For a chance to make this right.”

----------

It wasn’t hard to find Istina’s room, thanks to the handheld RI had given him to navigate around the base, but the mercenary didn’t go there directly from the Doctor’s office. There were customs to observe, after all.

“General, can you get that?” Rada called from the kitchen. “I have to watch these pierogies like a hawk right now!”

“Da, da, I’ve got it.” Sonya got up from the couch, which left a void between Anna and Rosalind they filled of their own accord, in order to do that.

There was Tachanka, helmet on his head even now, with a brown bag of vodka bottles in his hand. “How’s it going, сестренка [lil sis]?”

“Rada!” Zima called back to the kitchen. [Going forward, everything’s in Russian/Ursine] “Got enough stuff for one more at the table?”

“Sure!”

Sonya smiled back at her guest. “Doing great. Wanna come in?”

“I didn’t come here to stand in the door.” He rustled her hair with his free hand and stepped inside, beelining for the kitchen table to set down the alcohol. “Pierogies tonight, Radachka?”

“Oh, Tachanka! Good thing there’s plenty here! Yep, more than enough for you to have seconds!” She stepped away from the stove for a moment...in time to watch him take off his helmet.

Unlike Ash, he didn’t have anything to hide the lack of animal ears on his head, but that didn’t matter. She needed to see his smile. “Glad to hear it. I brought enough vodka to match.”

“Thanks.” Gummy was momentarily stunned, as if she’d hit herself with her third strike. Thankfully, she recovered as her boiling water was just about to boil over. “Ah!”

“Heh. Careful with that pot, lil sis.” The Sapiens looked back over at Zima, who’d similarly watched him remove his face-shield.

Unfortunately, she didn’t have an easy excuse to stop staring. “And I thought you were squishing your ears in that helmet of yours, bratan [brother].”

“What the Doctor doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” The mercenary took his helmet to a coat rack by the door and set it on a high spot. “Alright, Razz, Annechka, I know you heard me come in.”

“There’s a fight on, Big T, give us a break!” Leto leaned her head over the back of the couch, a bright smile on her face quickly turning to a gasp looking at him.

Istina followed suit, managing to keep her reaction to herself for the most part. “We still have some time before Rada finishes dinner, if you want to join us.”

“No thanks, lil sis.” The smile faded slightly, seeing the red spatter on the screen. “Combat is a life-and-death matter. Now wrestling, that’s different.”

“Oh, then we’ll turn on UFC, then! Hey, Anna, where’d you put the-” The halberdier began glancing around for the all-powerful device-

The TV turned off as the advisor hit the power button on the remote in her hand. “It’s not a good match, Razz. We have cards if you’d like to play, Tachanka.”

“Call me Aleksandr, Annechka. Cards would be perfect.” He looked around the open-format dorm, looking for where they kept their drinking glasses but finding them in Natalya’s arms as she rounded a corner. “Good evening, Tasha.”

“Good evening, Sasha. To what do we owe the honor of your presence?” Despite using formal pronouns, Rosa could easily say her relationship with the mercenary was one of her most casual. She wasn’t even that surprised at seeing him without his helmet on, after the other night.

The Sapiens shrugged. “Just wanted to visit.”

“Mmm. Anna, do you know where we put the cards? No, I’ll get them, I just can’t remember which drawer they’re in...”

Gummy had been closer to finishing dinner than the group expected, but that simply meant they could eat and drink along with their card game and the full gang ready to play. Even his Soviet veteran status wasn’t enough to let Tachanka keep up with the girls on the drinking front, but he held his own at cards to make up for it. At some point, Leto pulled out a gift from her friend Beehunter - a flask of mead, which the girls passed around - and the night steadily dissolved as they forgot they were playing cards.

“So if you’re not an Ursus, or from Ursus, how come you speak the language?” Razz asked, having long forgotten it was her turn to play a card in the center. “You’ve got an accent, but it’s better than the Doctor’s at least.”

“Ursine and Russian are basically the same, lil sis, and I’ve spoken Russian my entire life.” The mercenary threw a card in the pile, not as a play but simply to get it out of his hand.

Sonya, somber even somewhat intoxicated, followed up with, “How long have you been a soldier?”

“Thirty years. I’m not an active soldier now, though; I’m an Operator.” Not in the Rhodes sense, but there was convenient overlap in the terms. “The motherland is safe, even without me there protecting her, and going home isn’t possible yet.”

“Because of the Watchtower thing?” Rada added.

He nodded. “Yes. Whatever happened means me and my team can’t go home, so we’ll make the most of our time here. This world...This world needs us.”

“We certainly do,” Natalya whispered, setting her head on his shoulder. “Anna, what time is it?”

“Time to find the clock...There it is. Twenty-three forty...something.”

The heiress yawned. “As good a time to go to bed as any.”

“I agree.” Tachanka stood up and then plucked Rosa from her chair. “I’ll clean up.”

“Ya don’t hafta do that, Big T,” Leto said as the group followed the mercenary and cradled Sniper.

He walked through the open door to Natalya’s room and tucked her in bed. “It’s not about what I have to do, Razz. Peaceful night to you, Tasha.”

“Likewise, Sasha.” She pulled a stuffed Originum Slug plush to her chest as the procession left to continue down the line. “Peaceful night, indeed...”

Rosalind climbed into bed herself, but she waited for the Sapiens to toss the wad of sheets on it onto her to ambush him with a hug. Anna and Rada settled into the chef’s room, nightlight on and cuddling to keep the nightmares at bay, which left Sonya and Tachanka to themselves as they opened the door to her room.

“Peaceful night to you, Sonya,” the mercenary said, intending to depart once she was in bed, but a hand reaching for his stopped him.’

“Do the nightmares stop?” She asked, for a moment not the General she’d had to become, but the girl who’d simply wanted to live. “After thirty years, is it easier?”

Tachanka settled into a squat by her head, taking her hand as he did. “I can’t promise that. What made it easier for me was being with the people I care about. You have good friends, sestrenka.”

“Yeah...but I...” The words caught in Zima’s throat.

“Do you want me to stay?” Her eyes lit up, but she simply nodded. “Alright, make some room.”

An hour later, the mercenary opened one eye as the door creaked open; four sets of Ursine ears and eyes peaked through the crack. He wordlessly beckoned with his free hand, the other gently holding Sonya to his chest, and the cuddle pile arranged itself.

Finally, a good night’s sleep for the USSGG.

#arknights #arknights fic #tachanka (arknights)#zima (arknights)#rosa (arknights)#leto (arknights)#istina (arknights)#gummy (arknights)#probably not quite as subtle as wealmostaneckbeard had in mind?#but like...it's Tachanka and the USSGG.#every moment of fluffy-hearted tenderness they can get they've more than earned #and i can't imagine a golden-hearted softie like him being anything less than a proper patriarch for these girls

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graysonclarke96 · 2 years

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Marvel: Young Avengers Protocol to Origins of Grayson Clarke.

Character to Actor:

The Clarke Family:

Grayson Clarke- Chris Wood

Zoey Clarke- Lily Collins

Sally Clarke- Kim Rhodes

Thomas Clarke- Christopher Cousins

The Stacy Family:

Gwen Stacy- Madison Iseman

Simon Stacy- Jacob Tremblay

Phillip and Howard Stacy- Freddie Highmore

Helen Stacy- Susanna Thompson

George Stacy- Mark Harmon

Jill Stacy- Emma Watson

Arthur Stacy- Sean Bean

Paul Stacy- Paul Walker

Miles Warren- Dave Annable

The Parker Family:

Ben Parker- Tom Cavanaugh

Richard Parker- Daniel Gillies

Mary Parker- Rachel Leigh Cook

The Morales Family:

Miles Morales- Jordan Fisher

Rio Morales- Danielle Nicolet

Jefferson Davis- Russell Richardson

Aaron Davis- Donald Glover

Young Avengers:

Rayshaun Lucas- Trevor Jackson

Kate Bishop- Hailee Steinfeld

Daisy Johnson- Shan Dodd

Bobbi Morse- Olivia Holt

The Fantastic Four:

Reed Richards- John Krasinksi

Susan Storm- Hilarie Burton

Johnny Storm- Zach Roerig

Ben Grimm- Conan Stevens

Defenders:

Luke Cage- Michael Jai White

Jessica Jones- Jessica De Gouw

Matt Murdock- Colin Donnell

Danny Rand- Josh Segarra

Marc Spector- Stephen Amell

Elektra Natchios- Julia Voth

X-Men:

Charles Xavier- Patrick Stewart

Logan- Hugh Jackman

Hank McCoy- Ewan McGregor

Ororo Munroe- Sonequa Martin-Green

Scott Summers- Sam Claflin

Jean Grey- Jane Levy

Kurt Wagner- Thomas Doherty

Bobby Drake- Brandon Flynn

Emma Frost- Josephine Langford

Piotr Rasputin- Daniel Cudmore

Warren Worthington- Alex Pettyfer

Alex Summers- Lucas Till

Sean Cassidy- Cameron Monaghan

Kitty Pryde- Danielle Rose Russell

Anna Marie- Elizabeth Gillies

Elizabeth Braddock- Michelle Keegan

Danielle Moonstar- Blu Hunt

Megan Gwynn- Natalie Dormer

Roberto De Costa- Froy Gutierrez

Illyana Rasputin- Anya Taylor-Joy

Tyrone Johnson- Roshon Fegan

Tandy Bowen- Virginia Gardner

Rahne Sinclair- Rose Leslie

Sam Guthrie- Charlie Heaton

(Various other students)

Brotherhood of Mutants:

Eric Lehnsherr- Dacre Montgomery

Raven Darkholme- Pauley Perrette

Cain Marko- Nathan Jones

Victor Creed- Liev Schrieber

Todd Tolenksy- Aramis Knight

Fred Dukes- William Berry

Dominic Petrakis- Toby Kebbell

Karl Lykos- Luke Evans

Jeanne-Marie Beaubier- Kaya Scodelario

Arkady Rossovich- Dolph Lundgren

Laynia Krylova- Tracy Spiridakos

(Various other Mutants)

Villains:

Otto Octavius- Mark Sheppard

Sergei Kravinoff- Manu Bennett

Flint Marko- Dominic Purcell

Max Dillon- Aaron Paul

Curt Connors- Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Morgan Le Fay- Katie McGrath

Martin Li- Stephen Oyoung

Lana Baumgartner- Emily Wickersham

Victor Von Doom- Viggo Mortensen

Carl Creel- Brian Patrick Wade

Wendigo King

Aleksei Sytsevich- Andrey Ivchenko

Tony Masters- Jason Statham

Edward Whelan- Julian Bleach

Zebediah Killgrave- David Tennant

Benjamin Pointdexter- Edgar Ramirez

Melissa Gold- Maika Monroe

Morrie Bench- Ben Foster

Thundra- Rebecca Quin

Sinthea Schmidt- Phoebe Tonkin

Other Characters:

Tim Elwood- Drew Roy

Grace Elwood- Lauren Roy

Ava Ayala- Tristan Mays

Felicia Hardy- Marie Avgeropoulos

Morgan Tyler- Hartley Sawyer

Flash Thompson- Michael Provost

Elena Gold- Nicola Peltz

Riri Williams- Candice Patton

Kamala Khan- Iman Vellani

Dante Pertuz- Jake T. Austin

MJ Watson- Sophie Skelton

Harry Osborn- Liam Hall

Norman Osborn- James Redford

Mendel Stromm- David Dayan Fisher

Cletus Kasady- Jackie Earle Haley

Eddie Brock- Alan Ritchson

J. Jonah Jameson- J.K. Simmons

Jean De Wolfe- Sandra Bullock

Jennifer Walters- Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Yuri Watanabe- Tara Platt

Richard Rider- Liam McIntyre

Sam Alexander- Dylan O'Brien

Eileen Harsaw- Camilla Belle

Mikhail Uriokovitch Ursus- Olivier Richters

Rachel Van Helsing- Katheryn Winnick

Jacob Russoff- Kristofer Hivju

Eric Brooks- Duane Henry

Robbie Reyes- Tyler Posey

Kari Lyngley- Katherine McNamara

Jared Lyngley- Ross Lynch

Bruce Banner- Eric Bana (Re-cast)

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ursinevindicta · 3 years

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Honestly I think the only Ursus’s survivor that Alena doesn’t have an opinion on is Anna. She likes Lada but doesn’t want to be around her due to Zima being around her, and she doesn’t want to be around Zima for obvious reasons, and with Natalya she has the whole ‘just glad to see she is alive’ thing going on. There is a lot going on in terms of her feelings for them-

#Out of class || OOC

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godzillaslayer101 · 4 years

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A Faustian Bargain

Faust I

The Peterhelm Theatre was quaint. That was the best word for it. There were around a hundred seats in the theater, some clearly meant for the enjoyment of nobility or high-ranking parents given the fine leather the chairs were fashioned with. The stage itself wasn't even that large, only able to hold up to twenty people.

It was never meant to hold the collective student body of Chernobog, and it couldn't. It hadn't stopped Mephisto from squeezing as many people as he could for his first presentation, and it hadn't prevented him from doing it for the second time. Luckily his friend hadn't asked for any oil, but Faust was unable to relax. A sentiment shared with every other student sitting in the seats and the Reunion members standing guard at the doors and on the second floor.

A floodlight turned on and a single person was revealed on the stage.

"I'd like to thank you all for coming once again." Mephisto started, smiling as his green eyes raked across the room. He put his palm on his chest. "As a lover of democracy, it brings warmth to my heart that you all were able to so quickly elect a representative to bring your interests to me."

Because you threatened to flay them alive if they didn't, Mephisto. Faust thought but kept his silence from where he was hidden to Mephisto's left. His men had reported multiple incidents where the meeting room had nearly come to blows only for one of Mephisto's Possessed to pass by. It's thundering footsteps and pained howls enough to cow the children into submission.

Faust was taken from his thoughts as Mephisto snapped his fingers. "Ursine ladies and gentlemen, give it up for your Student Council, President Natalya Andreyevna Rostova."

Another stage light was turned on, revealing what had to be a seventeen-year-old Ursus Girl. She was dressed in a White Peterheim School uniform; she bowed to the student body. The only sign of fear was her trembling fingers.

"I said, clap!" Mephisto shouted, saccharine voice becoming venomous.

Thunderous applause broke out as each student tried to outdo the other. Faust still kept an eye on the students whose clapping was more restrained. The ones who could think were always the most dangerous.

Natalya, to her credit, kept her fake smile and bowed. The clapping came to a sudden halt as Mephisto thumped the stage with his staff and inclined his head towards the new Student President.

"Everyone, thank you for electing me as your student council president. I know these are trying times." She began with one of the biggest understatements Faust had ever heard. "But it is my belief that the Ursus student spirit is resilient and through cooperation with the Reunion Movement that we will come out of this...whirlwind of events stronger than ever. However, to do so any troubles you feel with our new teachers must be brought to me." She finished bowing once again and ceding the floor back to Eno.

Mephisto bobbed his head twice towards the poor girl, clearly pleased at her mediocre acting skills, and took back control. "Thank you for your kind words, Ms. Rostova." He began to inspect his fingernails, displaying the black veins on his hands to the whole student body. "However, there is a problem."

Natalya's smile was frozen in place, and Faust could feel the tension in the room rocket back up. He raised his crossbow up just in case.

"You don't have any cabinet members."

What?

Mephisto shrugged, "It's important to elect a leader, but no one man or woman is an island, but given recent events, I understand and forgive your mistake. In fact, To ease your burden a little. I've already chosen most of your cabinet. Come on out, girls."

Faust watched as four girls walked from the back of the stage to the front. He'd assumed Mephisto wanted to make examples of them, but clearly, he had been mistaken. Two of them had been roughed up while the blue-haired one and yellow-haired one were practically curling in on themselves at the situation they had found themselves in.

"I'd like to introduce your new Student Body General Zima and Student Body Lieutenant Leto," Mephisto said. He gestured to a brown-haired girl with red highlights in her hair and a girl wearing a uniform with yellow highlights. The Former glared at Mephisto, both her eyes bruised, and Faust resigned himself to killing her. The latter waved with her one good hand, the other kept in a makeshift cast.

Mephisto began to walk around the four girls. "These two already have quite the reputation and will be dedicated to ensuring Ms. Rostova's instructions will keep order. In fact, they'll be in charge of the fight clubs which I've heard are all the rage these days. And I do so hope they do a good job. Because if they don't, my big friends will have to take matters into their own hands, and while I'm sure they'll try their Originium ridden hearts out, they aren't the most delicate."

The whole student body couldn't nod fast enough.

Mephisto came to a stop behind the yellow-haired girl. She practically leapt out of her skin when Mephisto's hand landed on her shoulder. "Well, don't be shy. I'd like the new Student Council Head Chef to introduce herself."

"Hello everybody" The girl meekly began.

"Louder," Mephisto ordered.

"Hello everyone, my name is Lada. I'm a long time member of the Ursus Youth Scout, and I'm going to be in charge of making sure everybody remains well-fed here," The girl shouted, with the fakest cheerful voice. Everybody saw her trembling.

"I'm sure you'll give it your all." Mephisto's piercing green eyes flicked to his side, and Faust flashed a signal to his men.

Two bodies with bags over their heads fell from the ceiling before snapping taut as the ropes around their necks caused them to swing from side to side.

Faust heard a few boys and girls panic, but the sounds of Crossbows being cocked and the growls of Possessed made them quiet down quickly. Faust's nose flared as he picked up the smell of urine. It was the newly appointed head chef.

Mephisto's smile was all teeth as he began to speak. "These two cooks were a disgrace to your school and tried to steal food from you. Since it was their first offense, they had the pleasure of dying quickly. Any other repeat offenders won't have such a luxury. And I'm sure little Lada over here is going to try her best to ensure you all stay fed.

"I will, I promise, I promise." The girl screamed tears in her eyes.

"Good" Mephisto muttered, rolling his eyes before he moved over to the last girl in line. She was the youngest and had a hair full of blue hair. She clutched a large book to her chest. Faust's traitorous eyes briefly replaced her with a young, innocent boy with kind green eyes, and he shook his head to banish the illusion.

"Now young Anna has a vital job. In fact, I've hadn't even told her what it is."

She was insurance. Zima had frozen in place, the murderous rage in her eyes being replaced by fear as soon as Mephisto walked over to the blue haired girl.

Mephisto leaned forward like he was eager to share a secret. "She's going to be my personal assistant. School administration is such a hard job, and my talents make me more medically inclined." He turned to the newly appointed student council. "Ms. Rostova, you stay up here. All you other good girls can take your seats at the front."

Once they were seated, he clapped his hands, the sound breaking the sudden quiet that had fallen over the room. "I know that this student council is unorthodox, but it's simply a fact we live in unorthodox times."

Most of the positions were clearly made up, and Reunion was ransacking the city. Yes, Mephisto, that does count as unorthodox. Faust thought but once again kept to himself.

The theatre shook as two Possessed brought forward a chalkboard of all things. It was covered with sections of time "It might surprise you to know this, but one of our dear leaders in Reunion cares deeply about the educational welfare of the Ursus student body."

Patriot definitely hadn't had this in mind when Mephisto had gotten control of making sure the students were isolated. Faust was sure of that, but it could be worse. He glanced at just the two dead bodies still swinging from the rafters. So much worse.

Mephisto gestured with his staff against the chalkboard. "I'll leave it to Ms. Rostova to elaborate."

"Everyone, there will be three meals a day. All students will be scheduled into blocks that they will stay with. Lessons in Math, Arts, and Science will still be taught by the remaining faculty. However, a large portion of the day will be dedicated to physical exercise taught by Mr. Faust."

They what? Fausts couldn't stop his mouth from falling open. The girl was looking around the room, her confusion minimal to his. What was Mephisto doing?

Mephisto sighed before walking over to where Faust was hidden under the illusion and clapped him on the shoulder.

"You'll have to forgive my friend. He's very shy." His best friend said smiling warmly at Faust.

Faust dropped the illusion. He lowered his chin so that his face was hidden by his black sweater and raised his crossbow slightly. His friend elbowed his side, and Faust glared at him before sighing. "I will ensure all of you will be in the best physical shape possible."

"Wonderful, Mr. Faust; I'm thankful we are in your care," Rostova said. And Faust resisted the urge to spit at her blatant flattery.

Mephisto took the praise in stride, rewarding the girl with a smile that lacked his usual malice. "Yes, Faust is...Faust is my best friend. I would have died many times over if it weren't for his wisdom and protection. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that he's the most important in the world to me...Other than big sis Talulah of course." He tacked on shocking Faust.

"And it's because of that, that if I hear one word of any of you skipping his classes. I'll skip stripping you of your meals and go straight for flaying you alive or making you my Possessed."

Mephisto's green eyes landed on Rostova, whose skin was almost as pale as her hair. "Am I clear?"

"Yes, Dean Mephisto."

"Ha," Mephisto barked in laughter. "I'll leave it to the council to inform the rest of the student body of our policies going forward. Faust and I are going to set up your new lesson plans."

He turned on his heel and left. Faust hands flew through signals that ordered his men to keep him updated on the theatre situation and followed his friend out of the room.

They walked through the schools winding hallways passing by classrooms packed with students before arriving at an office. The placard read "Nurse's office" his friend held open the door for Faust to enter, locked the door behind him, shut the blinds, hopped on the bed, and patted a spot for Faust to sit by him.

The second Faust joined Mephisto, the white-haired Ancient sagged onto Faust's shoulder. He froze at the sudden contact. Mephisto had always been fond of doing this when they were younger, but ever since their discussion about Talulah, these moments had become fewer and fewer.

"Go ahead, ask your questions."

"How am I supposed to teach a bunch of kids?"

"Just teach them what the Flag Waver taught us."

Faust stared at his friend. "You want me to teach a bunch of children, guerilla tactics." Faust was proud of the way he kept his tone neutral. It was a bad idea- no a terrible idea, but Mephisto hadn't been this open or restrained in weeks. In fact?

"What happened, Eno" Sasha asked his best friend.

Eno stiffened, "What do you mean?"

"You're hardly sleeping, and when you do, you wake up screaming. And...I didn't think this was how you were going to run this lockdown."

"You thought I was going to burn their food and leave them to fend for themselves. Let them experience an ounce of our childhood."

Fausts silence was answer enough.

"It's tempting," Eno admitted. "But we need the students."

Faust ran his fingers through Eno's hair. "Why?"

"Sasha, Talulah's different." Faust froze. The words were so quiet, but they thundered in Fausts' ears all the same. "I'm a monster and a coward. But I think I'm ready to choose."

Sasha continued to stare down at Eno, unwilling to even breathe. Was he dreaming? Was this happening?

Eno looked up at Sasha, and Sasha couldn't even breathe at the fear within those eyes.

"Sasha, would you leave Reunion with me?"

It was treasonous, stupid, and a thousand visions flashed through Sasha's mind of them dying horribly.

But...But they had promised each other to suffer through life at each other's side, and for the first time in a long while, it didn't hurt to follow that promise.

#Arknights #mephisto (arknights)#faust (arknights)#frostnova (arknights)#patriot (arknights)#crownslayer (arknights)#arknights zima #istina (arknights)#rosa (arknights)#gummy (arknights)

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shuttershocky · 4 years

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Speaking of children of ursus, one of Gummy's habits it's keeping a distance from heights, even if there are barriers. Since all of her habits seem to be caused directly by her time in the school lockdown, it makes me wonder if she actually saw Vika's fall...

I wouldn’t be surprised if she was in one of the lower floors and saw Vika drop only to find Anna at the top.

#Anonymous

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tortuerex · 3 years

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My honest, humble, and not-objective-at-all opinion about THE CLONE WARS : STORIES OF LIGHT AND DARK

THE CLONE WARS : STORIES OF LIGHT AND DARK by various authors, published in 2020 (canon)

To be really honest, this book wasn't supposed to be the next on my « to-do » list. I'm currently reading Lords of the Sith and enjoying it, and was willing to make my next review about it, but the last two weeks has been a rough time and I couldn't manage to read a single page.

So instead of making you wait longer, I'll use the Clone Wars book as a filler, because I think I can be quick on this one (I think ? Let's see how many pages I'm going to write then).

In case you're not aware, Stories and Light and Dark (let's just call it SLD) is a short stories collection about the Clone Wars, each different story being about a set of Clone Wars episodes you already know about, but from a different point of view, focusing on one character being the narrator.

If you haven't seen the Clone Wars TV show yet, this book will probably be very confusing most of the time, because clearly what's at stakes isn't the story itself but what's going on in the head of a certain character. You'll probably end up thinking « yea that was cool I learnt about what was thinking Kenobi at this point but I haven't had any idea what was going on. »

Since every story is independant and was written by a different author, I can't give you a summary of the whole book. I'll give my opinion on the book at the end of the ticket but I'll take a bit of time to say what I thought about each story first.

Get your seatbelt on because we're going to start the SLD rollercoaster now :)

SHARING THE SAME FACE by Jason Fey

Not bad but no overly interesting. The whole point is to tell us how Yoda feel about the Clones, but to be honest we don't learn really much more in the story than in the episode.

I liked how Yoda compare the Clones to children and how different from each others he make them feel, reassuring them that they are all different and they all matter for him. That was nice.

Not much more to say about it.

DOOKU CAPTURED by Lou Anders

Probably the most goofy story of the book, based of some of the goofiest episodes on the show. It's telling us from Dooku's point of view the story of how he was captured by Hondo Ohnaka and had to team up with Obi-Wan and Anakin to escape.

It was really funny to read but also really awkward (faithful to the show...), and in my head I was constantly thinking « there's no way he's going to tell all of this stuff to his master without being slowy burned by his own shame ». At the end of the story, when Dooku changes his mind and decides to delete his holorecording and never tells his master about this whole story, I was like « yas boy I would have done the same, just keep it to yourself ».

That's the kind of story that put a smile on your face but leaves you with a bit of « wtf did i just read »

HOSTAGE CRISIS by Preeti Chhibber

This story suffers from what will a major problem in others stories : telling us something we already know without sounding redundant. It's the whole «Cade Bane and his crew taking the Senate hostage » but from Anakin's pow, and... the show was already mostly on Anakin.

It wasn't bad, not gonna lie, I liked reading how Anakin was feeling about Padmé, their relationship and her job. But it was only the first pages of the story. Once the hostage-taking has begun, it's just about describing us Anakin trying to save the day (and I've seen the show, I know how it goes) and not much about how Anakin feels. Yet it could have been interesting, Anakin being under the urge of saving his wife, the stress and the anger against Bane... but I didn't feel any of that. Just a Jedi doing Jedi stuff and being the hero at the end of the day.

To me, this story is a missed opportunity to show us how the Dark Side of the Force is strong in this one.

PURSUIT OF PEACE by Anna Ursu

Before reading this story I wasn't sure about how I felt about this whole book. This was the first one allowing me to make my mind and to think I was glad I bought it.

Unpopular opinion (depending on how you feel, of course) : I'm not a fan of Padmé. I liked her in The Phantom Menace, because she's a young, fierce, and powerful girl trying to make her way as the queen of Naboo. In Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, I feel like she has been switched from « young powerful woman » to « Anakin's love interest in need of being saved ». I know that's not completely true and I know she can still make her way with a lasergun, but like a lot of female characters in stories, once she is completing her role as a love-interest, there's not much left for her except waiting for her husband at home and making children.

That being said, that's not her fault if her character was poorly written in the AotC and RotS. I feel like The Clone Wars is trying to correct it and make her a stronger character, even leading some episodes of the show.

And because this review is already longer that the other ones, I'll try to make the rest of it short : I can say I loved this story. It's about Padmé meeting her separatist friend Mina Bonteri with Ahsoka, and how she tries to stop the war.

We see how strong and determined she is, how aware she is of the mask she has to wear in public as a senator, how far she's ready to go to stop the slaughter. How hard it is to be a female senator wanting peace.

I liked that, like the matching episodes, this story isn't all black and white with bad separatists and good republicans. I liked having a glimpse at Star Wars politic too (not-so-unpopular opinion : I'm not a fan of politics either).

Over all the rest, I loved that this story made me appreciate Padmé more that before.

Big thumb up.

THE SHADOW OF UMBARA by Yoon Ha Lee

As you could guess, this is the Umbara quadrilogy episodes, and it's from Rex's pow. And my biggest disappointment of the book. I loved The Umbara quadrilogy, even though I feel like it could have been a trilogy instead because sometimes it's a bit repetitive, but I loved it.

This story is nothing more that the description of the TV show. I'd love to say « no more no less » but it won't be true, since in the show we can see the sacrifice of Hardcase. The only bit you'll get is « Rex wanted to mourn Hardcase properly, but there was no time. » That's all, case closed, move along.

Oh, and when Clones realise they were shooting each others and were fooled by Krell ? « Rex clenched his hand as Waxer took his last breath. » Not a SINGLE word about how he FEELS.

The episodes was more effective in showing us Rex's dilemma with facial expressions than this story is with words.

So this story would be better called « No more than the Umbara quadrilogy, only less ».

It made me really angry because so more could have been said. I still wonder how this story passed the quality test to make it to the final book.

BANE'S STORY by Tom Angleberger

Or, as I like to call it, « Bane's story, by Bane, with Bane as the hero »

This was sooo fun and good to read. Bane is one of my favorite Clone Wars characters and I really felt like Bane was the one telling me the story. A breath of fresh air after the Umbara failure.

It's about these episodes when Obi-Wan disguise himself as Hardeen, a bounty hunter, to foil Dooku's plan to capture Palpatine, but all from Bane's pow. And he's so sassy about it.

I could hear Bane talking directly to me, with his words and his personality. Some of my favorite sentences of the book are in this story.

When they get chased by Anakin and Ahsoka and he tells us « I always heard Jedi were supposed to be in control of their feelings, but the two crazies on our tail sure weren't in control. » and « She had two lightsabers and was swinging them around to much I thought she was going to cut off her own horns. »

Or when he met Dooku : « I hope he wasn't expecting me to kneel like Eval. That's one thing I won't do. Another is call some old man my lord just because he's got a long beard and a big house. »

And a last one that made me laugh so hard, when they're about to abduct Palpatine during his speech on Naboo : « If you ask me, listening to that old bag of wrinkles run his mount ain't no festival. If we could kidnap him before he started, the Naboolians or whatever they're called would probably give us a medal ».

That's what I wanted from this book. Episodes I already knew about but told from a new perspective. And it was such a pleasure.

THE LOST NIGHTSISTER by Zoraida Córdova

Another bet won for SLD. It's about Ventress joining the Boba crew to earn some money, by protecting a certain box on a certain train (you know what I'm talking about if you saw the Clone Wars).

Maybe not as insightful as Bane's Story (definitively not as fun, but clearly it wasn't the point), but really intersting too. It takes us into Ventress's mind after the Dathomir massacre and the despair is palpable. And while the show leaves us uncertain about why Ventress is saving Pluma, the story is very clear about it and gives us some introspection about Ventress, her sisters, her family.

It could have been a little further, but still it was really good to read. I honestly don't have much to say about it, not my favorite but I genuinely liked it.

DARK VENGEANCE by Rebecca Roanhorse

or The true story of Darth Maul and his revenge against the Jedi known as Obi-Wan Kenobi

(just to be clear, this subtitle isn't by me, it really is in the book :D )

I hated to admit it, but it was a liiiitle bit of a disappointment too, but that's just because I expected so much from it (in case that's not clear by now, Maul is my absolute favorite and I got his face tattooed on my leg okay?).

I'll focused first of what I loved from that story. Maul talking directly to the reader, as if he was talking to a child. That gives a strong feeling of power from him, good characterisation. He apologizes when his description are too bloody, justifies his slaughter of innocents, really talking like he was relating what was going on in his mind, sometimes interrupting or correcting himself. That was good. Like Bane's story, I felt like the character was adressing to me directly.

So, why the mitigated opinion, why the disappointment, you'll ask ? Maybe because the story was uneven. Sometimes I really was into Maul's mind, but sometimes it was just plain descriptions of the episodes I already saw. I may be hard on this one. I liked Maul's reactions to Kenobi teasing, how he want to crush him and make him swallow back his words.

I liked the fact that Maul sincerely, deeply, thinks the Jedi are liars and hypocrites.

I didn't really like the fact that sometimes Maul was sounding just like he was complaining. Like, you know, in Clone Wars, when someone is like « Hey Maul, how are you today ? » and he's like « MY PATH HAS BEEN SO DARK ».

… well, after all I guess it's faithful to the show :o

Don't believe everything I wrote before. This story was good, it's about Maul. Go read it.

ALMOST A JEDI by Sarah Beth Durst

About how a bunch of kids and Ahsoka escape pirates, then Grievous.

Another usually unpopular opinion : I don't like kids in stories or TV shows (nor in real life). I always feel like kids are supposed to be the comic relieves, or the cute factor, making you say « aaaw look how adorable and naive and dumb that little kid is » and I'm always rolling my eyes and thinking « get your shit together kiddo, that's an adult story and you're ruining it ». (I might be a little excessive on this one, I'm not always doing it).

In the quadrilogy about the young apprentices and Ahsoka, most of the kids were going on my nerves, and I'm glad I didn't felt this way about Alsmot a Jedi. I'm so glad Katooni was chosen to be the narrative instead of Petro.

Overall it was a good story. Katooni's insecurities were touching, her admiration for Ahsoka was too. Like in this passage, « I wanted to scream. But I didn't, because Ahsoka wasn't screaming ». She's so afraid, so petrified to be unworthy. I really cared for her. And her relationship with Hondo is great too. (And Hondo is great, what did you expect?)

That was cool and refreshing to read.

KENOBI'S SHADOW by Greg Van Eekhout

This. This is my favorite story from the whole book. It was so dark, so growling with sadness and anger and pain.

I don't think I can describe how it was to read it. That is how I wanted to feel. I wanted to know how Obi-Wan felt when Maul murdered Satine before his eyes. Now I know and I want to hide in a hole and not mess with that Jedi, ever.

Obi-Wan is usually used as a fun character in Clone Wars, with his deadpan sens of humour. It was heartbreaking to see him in the Mandalorian episodes, and reading it... well it was heartbreaking but frightening too.

An absolut must-read. Believe me. I was shocked.

BUG by E. Anne Convery

Bug is a original story, not an adaptation of a Clone Wars episode, thus it can't be treated like the other stories.

Real real quick plot summary ? Bug is about a little girl called, well... Bug, living with her parents, running an inn on a planetoid, near an abandoned military relay tower. One day a witch from Dathomir comes to the inn and wants to use the tower in hope of finding tracks of her disappeared daughter.

It was good.

Ok that's the end of that review, thanks for reading and nah I'm kidding.

Why was Bug good ? First of all, because it was the only original story of the book. And even though some of them were really really good, it didn't bring the curiosity of discovering something new. You lack suspens and surprises. Bug brings them back. I wanted to learn so much more about this young girl and the witch ! And Falta's story was hypnotizing. Litteraly. Hooray for learning more about Dathomir, about their culture, their history and the relation between the witches's clans. (Not hooray for learning that loving for the sake of love and not power is unthinkable for Talzin. I wouldn't have wanted her as a mother if you see what I mean.)

I hope so much that we'll see more of Bug and Falta in the future. This was too interesting to be left apart as a one-short story.

So, if I had to FINALLY resume my opinion on The Clone Wars : Stories of Light and Dark ?

PRO :

- getting involved inside the mind of characters in situations I already knew about

- some really fun, dark and/or insightful stories

CON :

- an overall mixed feeling about the books because some stories are not up to the rest.

- you'll have to get through some passages that are just formal descriptions of what happened in the TV show

TO CONCLUDE :

This took way more time than I expected and I should definitively not have called that review « a filler ».

As I aleady said, SLD is an rollercoaster. You'll get stunned and you'll get disappointed, and go through all the emotions between.

Was the book worth the money ? Well, the hardcover is pretty and some illustrations are cool, but the quality is irregular.

If you're short on time or money, I'll suggest you find a way to read only the stories that are really interesting you, based on any review you'll find on the internet.

Cheers to everyone reading me, thanks so much for all the notes, follow and reblog. It means a lot. Take care of you and your relatives during these hard times.

Tagging @maulpunk <3

#starwars #star wars books #theclonewars #storiesoflightanddark

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lightresist · 5 years

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LAS 91214 | Anna Ursus / Black Swan

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hope-the-myope · 4 years

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Character Name Tips

One thing I love doing (instead of actually writing) is creating characters. But with all these concepts, how am I supposed to keep them straight? How do I remember which one had the tooth gap and the angelic laugh and which one had the sideburns and tragic past? Why, I gotta name them, of course!

Sometimes naming a character can be the most daunting thing about the design process, and a safe bet is letting a random name generator or a website like BehindtheName.com handle the hard work for you. But if you're getting bored of the same lists over and over or you just can't find a name with the perfect ring to it, here's some other ideas to try:

Use Google translate to translate (obviously) a word that symbolizes your character—like peace, hope, mind, forest—or a word that is an iconic image for your character—like tooth or sideburns in the previous examples. Flip through some languages until you find just the right sound and yoink that boy right out of Google translate for a new name! And for any of these options, feel free to adjust the products to your liking. It’s your story.

Is your character a professional? An aspiring artist maybe? Take inspiration from real people! If your character is the champion of playground fights, maybe her name is Ally, after Muhammad Ali. (Wikipedia is your friend here.)

Spirit Animals – Can you think of an animal that embodies your character perfectly? Of course you can! (and if you think you can't, you're the boss, babey—just make it up!) Check out that animal’s scientific name for inspiration. For example—if you have a character as grumpy as a bear, you might take inspiration from the bear genus Ursus and name her Ursula.

Dictionary.com time, y'all! Or rather—Thesaurus.com. Remember those words from #1? The ones that embody your character like peace or tooth? Plug those bad babes into a thesaurus for some more obscure synonyms. Did I say peace and tooth? I meant my new characters Amy (amity) and Ivory (I ripped this one straight from the entry).

Switch-a-roo – Are you sick of all these normal boring names? Do you think naming your character Anna would be too bland for your intergalactic adventure story? Try replacing one letter—or all of them, if you’re feeling feral—and read it aloud. If it's too hard to pronounce, pick a different letter until you get the sound right. Change Anna to Afna, or Anna to Anja, or Anna to Efri, if you do decide to replace all the letters.

Research—it’s a little scary, but if you want to include a bit of diversity or historical background in your story, using real names is the way to go! Check out common Czech names, Tanzanian names, Chinese names, whatever you need for your story, and run with it. But don't run too fast—make sure you understand the naming rules. For example, in Czech, last names will pick up an ending based on the gender of your character, and in Russian (at least historically; I don't know much about Russian), the surname is the father's first name with a gender-based ending. I always try searching for my character's full name online first to see if any real person has it. If it exists, it probably follows the rules.

Take names from graves. Be respectful about it, of course. I usually catch names by passing cemeteries in a car or bus, but the names of real people, once again, are always a good place to start to find believable names.

Street signs – like the previous option, look in your surroundings for name inspiration. Street names, town names, names written on the side of a mailbox or the front a building—all could be your next Huckleberry Finn.

Voldemort—this one takes a while but could be a fun activity. Choose a sentence or word that really embodies your character. It could be relevant to your story's plot, or it could be your favorite line from a movie. Write that bad boy with pencil and paper and cut out each letter individually. Scramble them up, and see what cool anagram names you can come up with. In the US, at least, first and last names are on average 6 letters each, so even with the allotment of a middle name, you should be picking some pretty short sentences.

Lastly, sometimes it's just about the vibe. Before my characters get a real name, they get an archetypal stand-in name. The main character trying to disguise his angel wings around his friends is “Boyman,” the boy genius somehow struggling to pass his math class is “Matthewmatics,” and the antagonist that can simply be described as just ‘another one’ is “Khaled.” (I started this story a few years back; DJ Khaled was still popular then.) And after I get them fleshed out and ready to write about, I refine their names. Now I have the angel Banonjael, the student Matt (what a surprise), and the demon Kogaroth (I also took some inspiration from Wiki's Demon Names page). I kept the intital letter, and sometimes more, but the names are more fitting and less archetypal. These characters only get their names after a long period of getting to know them and understanding their vibe. So maybe instead of pushing a Brady or an Ivory or an Efri onto your characters so soon, give them some time, and just stick with “Boyman” for now.

#writeblr #writing #writing tips #characters #fiction #fiction writing #writers #author #writing advice #writer resources #writing resources #creative writing #how to write #write #writing tools #character design #character prompts #character names #my post

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