#and I have more theories on the potion thing contributing to that but
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I was trying to figure out why Callum specifically holding onto the potion and waiting until Claudia saw it and asked for it back before he emptied it out reminded me of a typical Disney villain vibe actually and then it hit me
Like okay sure, you're fighting your enemy, but then he also waited until she saw him for sure, she said something about it, and then he opened it?? Why??? 😭
(If you don't know who the cat is: 1. You're missing out, and 2. It's Yzma, the main villain/antagonist in the Emperor's New Groove, and she has the potion the main character needs to go back to being a human)
Ironically it's a reverse situation not only because one is a protagonist and the other is an antagonist, but one has a potion that changes the other person's body to be less human-like, while the other has a potion that changes the other person's body back to being human.
Both potions help the person who would use them, though. For survival, or for going back to a normal life. (And Claudia's also trying to go "back to normal" in the sense that her goal is to keep her dad alive.)
Anyway this post wasn't supposed to be that serious, but it just baffles me
#tdp#the dragon prince#I'm not saying he's a villain because they're obv not making him be a villain#but the taunting someone with something valuable to them before destroying it in front of them is#hmm#usually not a good thing#I don't think Yzma destroyed it but she was going to drink it herself? or almost dropped it for sure#I haven't seen that movie in ages lmao#anyway regardless of tropes or comparisons I don't understand Callum's logic here#also yes Claudia taunts Rayla in a similar way in S4 but then she specifically does NOT destroy the item#she makes it look like she's destroying the decoy#then when Rayla finds out it was a trick she leaves#with the coins-- still not in the hands Rayla wants them in#but they're undamaged!#in this case Claudia is severely injured#and I have more theories on the potion thing contributing to that but#talking in the tags too much now lmao#this is all beside the point#also yes I'm reposting posts from Twitter onto here lmao#my posts
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YUUSONA OVERVIEW
Ah my girl who is so sleepy tired all of the time. I don't post anything about him because I've been reworking his story like fifty billion times lmao
More information is under the cut! (As well as a copy of the information in the image)
Student Information
Name: Bo
- aka Roro (Ace + Ruggie), Shrimpy (Floyd)
Pronouns: he/him
Age: 17
"Tired, sarcastic, and distant- that's the new prefect of Ramshackle Dorm at a glance. He doesn't seem to do much of anything and attends classes to pass the time. While from another world, he isn't very adamant about getting back to it. He currently acts as NRC's photographer and reporter, albeit not very seriously."
Class: 1-A
Club: None
"Behind his usual demeanor is a very affectionate and easily flustered girl. He absolutely has a soft spot for his friends... which is only exploited sometimes. For food, usually."
Story
Bo does not remember much of his past. While some memories are stronger, most of it is blurry, especially in more recent times. He misses it, although it's hard to have an attachment to something that just isn't there. His strange apathy to his situation and foggy memory have led him to his own theory- that he died, and is currently in some sort of afterlife.
If he remembers anything vividly, he loves to share about his old world, and will continue to ramble until he runs out of memory to go off of. At which point he may or may not start making things up, but no one can actually call him out on it.
Bo is not a very involved person. He prefers to watch things happen rather than contribute to them, so he keeps his head down. He even managed to upkeep the guise of having magic- for a little while, at least, until it ended up putting others in danger.
His role in the grand story is one of an observer who got roped into something bigger. He has friends, grudges, and actions with consequences- but ultimately no great effect on what's happening around him. As such, the main story remains essentially unchanged.
Trivia
Birthday: ???
Dominant hand: Right
Likes: Journaling, bugs, not this mess (thanks Crowley)
Dislikes: Loud noises
Hobbies: Bug collecting
Favorite food: Fried rice
Least favorite food: Tomatoes
- Hormonal issues georg
- ^ Currently experimenting with potions to help with this (with... mixed results)
- Formed a pack bond with Savanaclaw like immediately
- Has random bouts of energy and is sometimes seen running around campus just for fun
- Not officially in a club, but visits most of them to "report" on their activities (he is being incredibly distracting)
- Owns a back brace and knee sleeve, though he often forgets to wear them
- Will get sick if around too many spells
- Sometimes called a zombie for his dead-eyed appearance
- Vaguely aware of Disney canon but he doesn't care enough to think about it
- Bites
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#846: something julia
Late night Julia thoughts after this rb about female characters:
Anyone familiar with Julia and her story know how complex it is and her ability alone is a mix of information theory and ritual magic -- implemented to the best of my ability to worldbuild… in my very own read of НL's plot and lore, yeah. I'm actually grateful the game is a sandbox in that regard; I can bottle and jiggle things as I please.
But.
I am sure many of you are also aware that I am severely downplaying Sebastiаn. Indubitably somewhat important for Julia's character growth, doesn't constitute to it as substantially as in many other fics portraying his and МС's relationship.
Sebastiаn isn't Julia's friend -- he's a self-invited nuisance, accepted out of the sheer pragmatism.
He's a threat -- he spews secrets of other people to get someone indebted with his attention, propositions; basically, he manipulates people into being friends and will lash out when he senses there isn't enough contribution.
But, he's merciful -- and condescending at that, something Julia will not tolerate.
However, her story is based in НL МС's, therefore she has gotten herself into his circle, yet. His arc is also rather detrimental in a sense, that without it Julia would still achieve the understanding of the Dаrk Аrt as a very narrowed field of magical knowledge that barely has any practical application and is as fascinating as it is finesse yet, she had never known magic could be more crude than a troll. Even -- in potion-making, her O-subject; just to case the point: in my read of HP, Dаrk Аrts is magic that 1) is either ritualistic, 2) or involves unethical urges, 3) or meddles with the dead aka generally proposes alteration of the permanent state of being from the entropy viewpoint and that also might qualify as the divine intervention. As you can see, it's complicated, but for the sake of simplicity here: 2.
Sebastiаn and Julia are also irreconcilable; that, to be honest, comes from me. I, too, would oppose the use of Dаrk Аrts. A tool of rare use, ridiculously demanding, creates more troubles than it solves. Julia wouldn't use it for to hammer the nail you need a hammer -- and then things of logarithmical increase.
Why have I said all of this: boi do I have anxiety over the reception of this whole thing. Would it all be about him, it'd be a banger. But it is about Julia, a lesbiаn self-made bitch face with little patience for, uh, of wizarding world she says, "My dear spiteful kind", of muggles, "Whole world of deserve-betters with no hope for tomorrow living a vivid imagination of a child -- globally speaking, I'm not wrong", of herself, "Born too late to break backbones of entire civilisations, yet too early to never face a fierce desire for insidious, glorified death".
Some will hate her for being her but adore a bloody moocher, istg.
^ This line will read to some as "he thinks his Mаry Suе is better than seввy lol" and although it's true, she's my blorbo after all, would it all be about him, it'd be a 🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵 soc savvy.
@thriftstorebabayaga I am petty and breaching containment.
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Okay ngl, the overblots in twst are getting kinda,,,, boring at this point. Like I get it, they're a plot device and explains the characters backstory, but it kinda feels like we're getting them just,, thrown at us for no reason.
According to the overblot entry in the wiki, an overblot happens when a magical user uses too much magic combined with negative emotions. In a good amount of the chapters, the overblots just sorta happen.
Like, in chapter one, Riddle overblots because of his anger at Ace, as well as the collaring of too many students at once. That's understandable. In chapter 3, Azul overblots because he kept on using his unique magic, which is very prone to creating blot, to steal other magic from people without any restraint. That's understandable as well.
But for the rest,,,, it just sorta,,, happens.
For chap. 2, Leona overblots out of no where. Maybe using King's Roar on the entire magift stadium, plus his negative emotions contributed to the overblot? It's not said in the chapter, nor is it a very good reasoning. (I assume) Leona's been training his magic since he was a kid, it wouldn't make very much sense.
Hell, it would have made more sense for Ruggie to overblot. He used his unique magic on an entire stadium worth of people, that should be enough for someone to gather a large amount of blot. The potion Ruggie used wasn't specified/looked into, all we know is that Azul gave it to him, and it can boost your magical abilities greatly. Nothing about reducing blot or anything.
Same thing happens to Vil in chapter 5. He just sorta, snapped after his attempt at poisoning Neige failed and he got outted. He didn't really use any magic. It would have helped if, idk, he used a large spell on the drink he tried to give, not a lot but still, would've helped explain a bit. It was probably just a normal handmade poison. Pomefiore talent and all that. Idk, not a lot of detail.
Chapter 4 is,,, questionable??? at best. Jamil overblot is caused by Azul over throwing his plans as well as his fight with Kalim. His control on the students he hypnotized with his UM probably contributed? Nothing is really said or put into detail, but there's a good chance that helped with the blot accumulation.
Chapter 6??? Uh,,, I can't really say anything??? I haven't been able to play it yet, because I'm busy with school, I'm only into part 14. So when I finish the chapter I'll update this post. But for know you get this.
All in all, the overblot is getting overused at this point. Nothing is really put into detail throughout the chapters, or the game in general, which makes it hard to really get a grasp on the overblots. The lore in twisted wonderland is very very vague,,, and as a lore explorer im kinda salty about it,,, but then again, it's Disney, I don't expect them to explain much, they just throw angst at us at a desperate attempt to keep us hooked. (Which that succeed at like,,, 56% of the time)
I'm nervous/scared for chapter 7, cause Malleus is next in the chain of overblots, and he's baby. I really can't expect Lilia to do the same thing Jamil did 'cause he's an old man who's as ancient af,, but Disney's pulled some sh*t, they'll find a way to throw our theories out the window in one way or another.
So Disney, if you're seeing this, (which I highly doubt but hey, a girl can dream) please explain the lore better,,, I'm on my knees, plus a good chunk of the twst community is with me on this.
#there i said it#you're welcome#disney im begging you#twisted wonderland#twst wonderland#twst wonderland theory#rant#ig??#idk#sunlightocean#disney twisted wonderland
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Day 91: Touch Starved
Harry didn't let people touch him.
At least not outside of the Weasleys, Hermione, and occasionally Luna because she doesn't have any sense of personal boundaries.
It's not that it was intentional, exactly. It's just that he didn't really trust people's motives anymore. He has gotten a bit jaded in the past two years following the war, people never seemed to be genuinely interested in him.
Until Draco Malfoy.
Harry had never done drugs but he imagined that it must feel similar to the way his entire body lit up as Draco when the other man touched him. Even something as simple as the way he slipped his fingers through Harry's while they were walking down the sidewalk.
"Are you even listening to me?" Draco asked, interrupting Harry's musings.
"I want to say yes," Harry replied, leaning his shoulder against Draco's, "And I was, but then-"
"I bored you to death with my talk about potion's theory," Draco sighed.
"No," he answered quickly. "No, I love to hear you talk about things you're excited about, it's just..." he trailed off, not quite sure how to say it.
"Just what?"
"Just," he huffed at himself, "you started holding my hand."
"I started holding your hand," Draco repeated slowly like Harry had said something insane.
(Read more below the cut)
"I can't think when you're touching me," Harry replied defensively as they arrived at Draco's flat.
"Come inside with me," he said, giving his hand a little squeeze.
Harry shook his head, tugging his hand out of Draco's hand.
"Harry," he murmured.
"You think I'm crazy," Harry said.
"I don't," Draco replied.
He narrowed his eyes, "You think it's stupid."
"I think it's adorable," Draco said with a self conscious little laugh. "Come inside?" he asked again.
"Okay," Harry whispered, still feeling a little unsure.
When they got inside, Draco headed into the kitchen, "tea?" he called over his shoulder.
"Yes."
Harry followed him into the kitchen and watched the other man make tea. He used to do it with magic, when they started dating, but Harry had said something one night when they were both a little drunk about how tea never tasted quite right to him when it was made with magic. The other man had made it the muggle way ever since.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Draco asked, as he set a cup of tea in front of Harry.
"Do you?"
"I want to know if it bothers you," Draco said. "You can tell me as much or as little as you want but I just don't want to be doing something casually that you don't enjoy."
He took a sip of his tea, "My therapist says I'm touched starved."
Draco blinked at him.
"I know," he said, shaking his head. "I didn't think it was a real thing either, but it's actually more common than you'd think. There are obviously a lot of other things wrong with me," he told the other man, not quite able to meet his eye, "but she says that it's a contributing factor."
"Can I hold your hand now?" Draco asked softly, "I'd really like to hold your hand."
Harry flipped his hand over and slid it across the table to Draco in silent offering. He really wanted Draco to hold his hand in fact. "I didn't really believe her at first but then once we started dating I started feeling better. And I'm sure it's other things too, it feels nice to be known and cared about, but when you touch me," Harry shook his head and Draco's fingers held his a little tighter, "I don't know how to describe it."
"Can I say something?" Draco asked after a moment.
He looked up and saw that Draco was already watching him, he nodded.
"I know we've only been together a few months but I think I'm in love with you."
Harry's breath caught in his chest.
"When I was little," he continued, "my mother used to say that there's nothing that a good hug couldn't fix. She told me that there's a sort of magic in loving someone that heals from the inside."
Harry nodded, a bit at a loss for words.
"I didn't ever think it was real before."
He brought Draco's hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to his knuckles, "The magic of love has saved me before," Harry said softly. "It makes sense that it would do it again."
Draco squeezed his hand.
"I love you, too, you know," Harry confessed.
He smiled, "I know. You've been healing me, too."
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Day 90: 99 Days | Day 92: Cuddling
#100 drarry drabbles in 100 days#drarry ficlet#drarry drabbles#love#confessions#talking about trauma#healing#fluff#soft
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Every canon Dramione moment
I have compiled here a list of every single time Draco and Hermione interacted in canon, talked about one another, or could have conceivably interacted for all your Hogwarts-era fanfic needs!
If I left anything out, please don’t hesitate to comment or DM me! There are some really obvious ones I left out e.g. the fanfic classics: prefects’ bathroom, Astronomy Tower, Black Lake, Potions lesson...
I haven’t included page numbers because every edition is different and it would be confusing. This list is intended as pinpoint references for you to check out the scene in your own books, which is why they’re not super detailed.
Enjoy!
Philosopher's Stone
Chapter 6: The Journey from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters
Harry and Draco’s altercation on the train—Hermione isn't there at the time but comes along soon after (could have bumped into him in the corridor)
Chapter 7: The Sorting Hat
Sorting Ceremony
Chapter 8: The Potions Master
Hermione trying to answer a question in potions, Draco and the Slytherins laughing at her
Chapter 9: The Midnight Duel
Draco tries to steal Neville's Remembrall at breakfast
flying lesson
Draco inviting Harry to a duel, Hermione overhears
Chapter 10: Hallowe'en
Harry receives his Nimbus Two Thousand and Draco confronts him, overheard by Hermione
Ron says something mean about Hermione after the Wingardium Leviosa lesson, she gets upset and isn't seen in the next class (could have potentially run into Draco while upset?)
Chapter 11: Quidditch
in courtyard during break
Hermione sets fire to Snape's robes during the Quidditch match against Slytherin (could have run into Draco on the way there)
Chapter 12: The Mirror of Erised
altercation with Draco after Potions
Chapter 13: Nicolas Flamel
Draco sitting behind Ron and Hermione during a Quidditch game and provoking Ron, Ron eventually tackles him and a fight breaks out between Ron, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, and Neville
Chapter 14: Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback
Malfoy overhears the Trio talking about Norbert at breakfast
Malfoy took Ron's book, which had a letter to Charlie asking to get rid of Norbert (Hermione could have confronted him to get the book back)
Malfoy caught by Professor McGonagall while the Trio are under the Invisibility Cloak
Chapter 15: The Forbidden Forest
Hermione keeping her head down in class after contributing to Gryffindor losing 150 points (Draco could potentially notice this?)
detention, Hermione worried about Draco and Ron when red sparks are seen
Chapter 17: The Man with Two Faces
Gryffindor wins the House Cup over Slytherin
Hermione comes top of the year (Draco is presumably second)
Chamber of Secrets
Chapter 4: At Flourish and Blotts
brawl between Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley in Flourish and Blotts
Chapter 6: Gilderoy Lockhart
Draco making fun of Harry about signed photographs in the courtyard, Hermione has her nose buried in a book
Chapter 7: Mudbloods and Murmurs
Draco calls Hermione a Mudblood for the first time
Chapter 8: The Deathday Party
finding Mrs Norris and the "enemies of the heir beware" message
Chapter 9: The Writing on the Wall
Hermione sceptical about Malfoy being Slytherin's Heir
Chapter 10: The Rogue Bludger
Hermione researching Polyjuice Potion in the library
Gryffindor vs Slytherin Quidditch match
Hermione wanting to know how Malfoy fixed the bludger
Malfoy being yelled at by Marcus Flint for not catching the Snitch
Chapter 11: The Duelling Club
distraction for Hermione to sneak into Snape's stores and steal ingredients (the distraction is fireworks into Goyle's Swelling Solution, Draco gets hit in the face and his nose swells up)
duelling club (Harry and Malfoy, Hermione and Millicent Bulstrode—which devolves into physical wrestling)
Chapter 12: The Polyjuice Potion
Malfoy talking about Hermione to disguised Harry and Ron
"I hope it's Granger."
Chapter 13: The Very Secret Diary
students trying to catch glimpses of Hermione in the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey puts up a screen
Valentine's Day, dwarves delivering cards
Chapter 14: Cornelius Fudge
Hermione was Petrified near the library
Chapter 15: Aragog
visitors barred from the hospital wing
"Pity it wasn't Granger."
Chapter 16: The Chamber of Secrets
Hermione had a ripped out page in her hand (popular fan theory that Draco ripped it out of a book and snuck it into Hermione’s things)
Chapter 18: Dobby's Reward
Hermione healed and returns to the Great Hall
Prisoner of Azkaban
Chapter 5: The Dementor
Draco and co coming to their train compartment but Lupin is there
Malfoy elbowing past Hermione to make fun of Harry for fainting
Chapter 6: Talons and Tea Leaves
Draco does a swooning impression of Harry in the Great Hall at breakfast, Hermione tells Harry to ignore him
Hermione storming away after an argument with Ron about Divination
Care of Magical Creatures lesson
Buckbeak attacks Malfoy
Hermione nervously asking if he'll be alright
Chapter 7: The Boggart in the Wardrobe
Malfoy returning to Potions, bandaged (LOTS of interaction, go read the scene)
Hermione catching up after using the Time-Turner, her bag splits
Chapter 8: Flight of the Fat Lady
Hermione and Ron going to Hogsmeade without Harry (Malfoy is also going)
Chapter 9: Grim Defeat
Sirius Black attacks the Fat Lady, all students sleep in the Great Hall
Chapter 11: The Firebolt
preparing a defence for Buckbeak with resources from the library
Chapter 12: The Patronus
Hermione avoiding Harry and Ron (spending her time in the library) because they're mad at her for telling McGonagall about the Firebolt
Chapter 13: Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw
Hermione, Ron and Harry fighting after Scabbers disappears
Draco and co pretend to be Dementors at the match to spook Harry, he shoots a Patronus at them (Hermione was at the match, alone)
Chapter 14: Snape's Grudge
Hermione going down to visit Hagrid often, feeling lonely (helping with Buckbeak's case)
Chapter 15: The Quidditch Final
Hermione slaps Draco
thinking about Malfoy and lost track of things, forgot to go to Charms
Hermione storms out of Divination
Gryffindor/Slytherin tensions high, scuffles breaking out in the corridors
Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Final
Chapter 16: Professor Trelawney's Prediction
Draco lost his swagger after the Quidditch Final but regained it to brag about Buckbeak's upcoming execution
Hermione's fear is failure (potential fanfic scene where we learn Draco’s fear?)
Goblet of Fire
Chapter 8: The Quidditch World Cup
Malfoys and Weasleys encounter each other in the top box
Chapter 9: The Dark Mark
Death Eaters at the World Cup, Draco warning Hermione to keep her bushy head down
Chapter 11: Aboard the Hogwarts Express
overhearing Draco tell his friends about his father wanting him to go to Durmstrang
Draco comes to their compartment, hints about the Triwizard Tournament, Hermione tells him to go away
Chapter 13: Mad-Eye Moody
Blast-Ended Skrewts lesson
Draco taunting Ron with a Daily Prophet article about his father
Draco turned into a ferret by Moody
Hermione saying Malfoy could have been hurt
Chapter 15: Beauxbatons and Durmstrang
Hagrid puts down Malfoy during a lesson (something about making a good ferret)
Chapter 16: The Goblet of Fire
Krum decides to sit at the Slytherin table, Malfoy is smug
Chapter 18: The Weighing of the Wands
Malfoy mocking Harry about being the Champion
Potter stinks badges outside Potions, Malfoy offers Hermione one but says "don't touch my hand"
Hermione hit with Densaugeo when Harry and Malfoy duel (her teeth grow)
Chapter 19: The Hungarian Horntail
Hermione enduring taunts from Slytherin girls about being called "stunningly pretty" in Rita Skeeter article
Hermione and Harry (invisible) in Hogsmeade, people keep looking at Hermione, thinking she's talking to herself
Chapter 20: The First Task
Hermione watching from the stands
Chapter 21: The House-Elf Liberation Front
Draco and co hiding in Hagrid's cabin from the Skrewts, Hermione and co outside helping to wrangle them
Hermione going down to the kitchens to see the house-elves
Chapter 22: The Unexpected Task
Neville asked Hermione to the ball during Potions but she said she was going with someone (could have been overheard by Draco)
Chapter 23: The Yule Ball
Draco ridiculing Hermione, disbelieving she's been invited to the ball, she calls him a twitchy little ferret
That scene... Draco can't find an insult to throw at her
Ron and Hermione argument at the Yule Ball, she storms off
Chapter 24: Rita Skeeter's Scoop
Draco showing Harry and co the article on Hagrid
Chapter 26: The Second Task
Hermione and Ron taken for Black Lake task
Chapter 27: Padfoot Returns
Hermione tetchy about being teased for the fact she was Krum's hostage in the second task
Witch Weekly article, Pansy mocking Hermione, Draco part of the group
Hermione smiles and waves sarcastically across the room at them
moved seats by Snape in Potions, Hermione has to sit by Pansy
Chapter 28: The Madness of Mr Crouch
Hermione receives hate mail, including one filled with Bubotuber pus, Slytherin table saw this at breakfast
more hate mail and Howlers
Chapter 31: The Third Task
watching Malfoy talk into his hand through the window
Daily Prophet article about Harry fainting drops, Draco ridicules him across the Great Hall
Hermione realises Skeeter is an Animagus and runs to library to investigate
Hermione in the stands for the task
Chapter 35: Veritaserum
Harry comes out of the maze with a dead Cedric, the whole school is there
Chapter 37: The Beginning
Dumbledore's speech about Cedric's death and Voldemort’s return, Malfoy and co muttering to each other
Hermione caught Skeeter on the hospital wing window sill
Draco overheard and mockingly congratulates her, says some foul things and the Trio all hex him at once
pushing the unconscious Malfoy and co into the train corridor
Order of the Phoenix
Chapter 6: The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black
Draco on the Black family tree tapestry in Grimmauld Place
Chapter 10: Luna Lovegood
Hermione and Ron going to Prefects carriage (Malfoy there)
Malfoy comes to carriage to gloat, Hermione tells him to shut up and get out
Draco being foul to a first-year, Hermione there to witness it
Chapter 12: Professor Umbridge
Potions lesson, Draught of Peace (Harry gets his Vanished and Draco laughs, Hermione's is perfect)
Chapter 13: Detention with Dolores
Bowtruckles lesson, Draco imitating Hermione with her hand up
Draco talking loudly during the lesson about Hagrid, Hermione counselling Harry and Ron to ignore him
Chapter 15: The Hogwarts High Inquisitor
receiving marks back for their moonstone essay in Potions
Umbridge inspecting Care of Magical Creatures, Malfoy telling Umbridge about the Hippogriff attack
Hermione giving Harry Murtlap solution (must have procured it from somewhere, could have potentially run into Draco)
Chapter 16: The Hog's Head
Hermione still writing to Viktor, would have to go up to the Owlery (presumably, Draco writes home to his mother often)
hypothesising that maybe it was Malfoy who tipped off Filch that Harry was ordering Dungbombs, Hermione goes deep into thought
Chapter 17: Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four
Malfoy bragging about the Slytherin Quidditch team being allowed to play and makes a comment about St. Mungo's, Neville attacks him
Chapter 19: The Lion and the Serpent
Slytherin players trying to hex Gryffindor players prior to Quidditch match (Alicia Spinnet attacked in the library)
Draco imitating Ron dropping the Quaffle
Hermione had been close enough to Slytherin to see the 'Weasley is our King' badges
Malfoy composed the 'Weasley is our King' lyrics
Harry and George attack Malfoy after the match
Chapter 21: The Eye of the Snake
Hermione visiting Hagrid's cabin
Thestrals lesson
Umbridge ridiculing Hagrid, Hermione is furious
Malfoy and co taking a jab at Ron, Hermione saying to ignore them
Chapter 22: St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries
Kreacher not answering Sirius' summons, probably already with Narcissa by now, probably telling her about “the Mudblood”
Chapter 23: Christmas on the Closed Ward
Hermione took the Knight Bus to Grimmauld Place (therefore was in the wizarding world, could have potentially run into Draco)
Chapter 24: Occlumency
Fifth-year students studying in the library for O.W.L.s
Chapter 26: Seen and Unforeseen
Malfoy and co in the library muttering after Harry named their fathers as Death Eaters in the Quibbler interview
Trelawney is sacked, the whole school is there
Chapter 27: The Centaur and the Sneak
Umbridge crashes the DA, Draco catches Harry and is sent off to catch others (could potentially catch Hermione)
Chapter 28: Snape's Worst Memory
Draco docks points from Hermione for speaking badly about Umbridge, revealing he's part of the Inquisitorial Squad
Calls her a Mudblood, Ron whips out his wand but Hermione stops him
Chapter 30: Grawp
Inquisitorial Squad stalking the corridors after the Weasley twins' exit
Chapter 31: O.W.L.S
Hermione worried after overhearing Draco bragging about how his father knows Griselda Marchbanks, the examiner
Chapter 32: Out of the Fire
Umbridge catches them in her office trying to contract Sirius
Malfoy leaning against the window sill, Hermione pinioned by Millicent Bulstrode
look of eagerness and greed on Malfoy's face at Hermione’s mention of a secret weapon
Chapter 38: The Second War Begins
Hermione in hospital wing having to drink lots of potions because of Dolohov's curse
Malfoy and co try to attack Harry on the train, DA members turn them into slugs and stuff them in the luggage racking
Half-Blood Prince
Chapter 6: Draco's Detour
altercation in Madam Malkin's, Draco calls Hermione a Mudblood to his mother
"Who blacked your eye, Granger? I want to send them flowers."
see Draco skulking on the street through the window of Fred and George's
spying on Draco in Borgin and Burke's
Hermione goes into the shop after Draco left in order to investigate
Chapter 7: The Slug Club
Hermione not super interested in talking about Draco compared to Harry
disbelieving that Draco is a Death Eater
Hermione and Ron have to go to the prefect carriage
Ron and Hermione saw Malfoy in the Slytherin carriage as they walked past (he gave them the finger)
hypothesising about why Malfoy wasn't in the prefect carriage
Chapter 8: Snape Victorious
Hermione and Ron would have noticed Harry was missing when they got off the train
Dumbledore's speech about Voldemort, Malfoy playing with his fork
Chapter 9: The Half-Blood Prince
Hermione weighing in on Malfoy's overheard boasts about his standing with the Dark Lord
Malfoy sniggering at Snape ridiculing Hermione in DADA (implying Slytherins now share the class with Gryffindors)
Amortentia in Potions, Malfoy and Nott snigger when Hermione tells Slughorn she's Muggle-born
Draco really wants the Felix Felicis
Chapter 11: Hermione's Helping Hand
Prophet article about Malfoy Manor being searched for Dark objects
Chapter 12: Silver and Opals
Hermione rebutting Harry's instant assumption that Malfoy gave Katie Bell the cursed necklace
Chapter 14: Felix Felicis
Malfoy "ill" and can't play the Quidditch match
not going immediately to the Gryffindor celebration party because she got in a tiff with Ron
Lavender and Ron kissing, Hermione runs away to an empty classroom
attacking Ron with the birds, storming off and crying
Chapter 15: The Unbreakable Vow
Hermione refuses to be in the common room while Ron and Lavender are there, spends most of her evenings in the library
Hermione disproving Harry's theory that Draco snuck the necklace in to school
leaving Transfiguration quickly after the bell to go cry, forgetting her things
taking Cormac to the Slug Club Christmas party and then running away from him
Draco lurking in upstairs corridor and being pulled up by Filch for gatecrashing
Chapter 17: A Sluggish Memory
Hermione got back to Hogwarts a few hours before Harry and Ron after Christmas (visiting Hagrid, but could have potentially crossed paths with Draco)
Hermione sceptical about Harry's overheard conversation between Snape and Malfoy
Chapter 18: Birthday Surprises
Hermione moving as far away from Ron as possible in Potions
both Malfoy and Hermione furious about Harry's bezoar stunt
Hermione researching Horcruxes in the restricted section
Malfoy and Crabbe having a whispered argument during Apparition lessons
Harry watching Malfoy on the Map (could lead to some awkward scenarios with 6th Year Dramione lol), but Draco can’t be seen when in the Room of Requirement
Chapter 19: Elf Tails
Hermione rushing to the hospital wing to see Ron
Draco and co (disguised with Polyjuice Potion) skulking around castle
Chapter 20: Lord Voldemort's Request
Hermione repairing the "little girl's" (Goyle) dropped scales
Chapter 21: The Unknowable Room
Hermione achieved Apparition twice in lessons
Kreacher and Dobby giving their Malfoy update
the Trio discover Malfoy's been going to the Room of Requirement
realise that Draco stole Polyjuice Potion and is feeding it to Crabbe and Goyle
Hermione again sceptical about Malfoy having the Dark Mark
the Trio discover Draco visits Moaning Myrtle in the boys' bathroom and cries (although, Myrtle specifically didn’t mention Draco, as it’s a secret)
Chapter 22: After the Burial
Hermione telling Harry to forget about Malfoy
Chapter 24: Sectumsempra
Katie returns to school and says she got the necklace in the ladies loo of the Three Broomsticks (Rosmerta was under the Imperius Curse)
Sectumsempra, Snape appears and heals Draco
everyone in school had heard about the incident from Moaning Myrtle, including Hermione
telling Harry off for using the spell
Chapter 25: The Seer Overheard
Hermione researching the Half-Blood Prince
Trelawney being bowled over by Malfoy, who was celebrating the cabinet being repaired
Harry giving Hermione and co the map, Felix Felicis etc in order to see why Malfoy was celebrating (he's going off with Dumbledore)
Chapter 27: The Lightning-Struck Tower
Dark Mark over Hogwarts, meaning the Death Eaters are in
Draco and Dumbledore in the tower
Draco got the coin idea to communicate with Rosmerta from Hermione, and also overheard her talking in the library about poisons (implying he’s been eavesdropping on her conversations)
Dumbledore offering to protect Draco and his family, Draco’s wand lowers
Chapter 28: Flight of the Prince
Snape and Malfoy running away, through the fighters
Chapter 30: The White Tomb
Harry has a bit of pity for Malfoy, probably shared it with Hermione and Ron
Deathly Hallows
Chapter 9: A Place to Hide
Draco being made to torture other Death Eaters who displease Voldemort, Harry may have told the others
Chapter 15: The Goblin's Revenge
Ron abandons them
Chapter 23: Malfoy Manor
Draco positively identifies Ron and Hermione (somewhat reluctantly) but not Harry
Bellatrix tortures Hermione, Draco was presumably in the room or taking the unconscious men outside like Bellatrix asked
Bellatrix offers Hermione to Greyback
Bellatrix threatening to slit Hermione's throat
probably best to just read the entire chapter
Chapter 30: The Sacking of Severus Snape
Hermione and Ron rush off to the Chamber of Secrets (could have crossed paths with Draco)
Chapter 31: The Battle of Hogwarts
Room of Requirement
Malfoy stops Crabbe from destroying the Room so they can find the diadem before Harry and co
Malfoy pulls Crabbe out of the way of Hermione's stunning spell
Crabbe shoots a Killing Curse at Hermione
the Trio save Malfoy and Goyle with broomsticks (Malfoy with Harry, Goyle with Hermione and Ron)
revealed that Crabbe is dead
Chapter 32: The Elder Wand
Draco pleading with Death Eaters that he's on their side, Harry stuns the Death Eaters, Ron punches Draco in the face
Chapter 33: The Prince's Tale
reprieve from battle, tending to the wounded and the dead in the Great Hall (no mention of where the Malfoys were)
Chapter 34: The Forest Again
Harry goes to the Forbidden Forest (left behind, Hermione and Ron are likely beside themselves)
Chapter 36: The Flaw in the Plan
"dead" Harry brought into the courtyard
Hermione, Ginny, and Luna duelling Bellatrix
Malfoys huddled together in a corner of the Great Hall
Nineteen Years Later
the Trio see Draco on the platform
but... Epilogue? What Epilogue?
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B2:S - Chapter 5
Much of this series will be about the differences and additions in the novel version, and how they contribute to my understanding of story canon. But there will be character appreciation, the odd theory and headcanon, and suchlike as well.
Here be lots of Viren deets, Best Boy Soren deets, some writing/continuity stuff, worldbuilding appreciation and half of a theory, Detective Rayla, Moon Temple geeking, Claudium and dark magic, and more!
Spoilers for Book Two: Sky below.
(I know for darn sure that I wrote up a post for chapter 4, but I can't find it anywhere so I guess Tumblr ate it and I'll have to redo it at some point, but today is not that day)
Viren, my evil dude, my bad guy, coming in clutch with the worldbuilding and backstory again! If you want to know decades of information, you gotta talk to Viren. Or read his scenes, at least. Here, he seems to not sleep much when he has a big problem to analyze his way through. Solutions trump pretty much everything else in this guy's life, and he's had a really hard week with a lot of new and complicated problems. Of course he's getting sleep-deprived trying to find his way through them all.
Harrow put so much trust in Viren when he made him High Mage! He just threw himself extra hard at that Lady Justice blindfold, didn't he? Didn't really want to see what Viren was doing in his magic study, so he left Viren to his devices. And Viren has a lot of devices.
Also, this is fascinating: Viren made the secret passage to his "less official study" in Katolis Castle! And he was inspired to do so by the way his own mentor kept the Puzzle House. What else could a Puzzle House be, except a place with secret passages? Yay! secret headcanon that "the Puzzle House" is just "Katolis Castle" from Kid Viren's perspective tho
So either Viren built all of those passageways, or at least the ones to his dungeon. Which means he has to have, or know where to get, a stash of those glowing blue Moonshadow crystals. Hmmm.
I can't wait to learn more about Kpp'Ar and young Viren, btw. From this description of Viren and all his literal secret ways, it feels like another parallel between Viren and Runaan, with the whole "secretive paths, members only, insider knowledge" type stuff. Only the really cool members of this cult club get to know the secrets, and guess what, kid, you're cool now but you can never tell anyone, okay? Our secret.
Yeahhh, that'll never backfire in any way for either of them.
Kpp'Ar calling puzzles and secrets "man-made magic," though. Yes sir, knowledge is indeed power.
This chapter mentions Runaan by name, from Viren's perspective. Generally that would imply that Viren knows his name, even though assassins do not share their names, and Runaan didn't seem to give his to Viren in the first book. However, there was a scene in book one where the last paragraph switched perspective from Viren to Runaan - a technique that's very common in visual media like movies and shows and gives you that "ohoho they left the room and didn't notice this, but you do!" vibe. Using Runaan's name there in book one, where Viren couldn't see it but readers could, helps them keep track of the assassin's story arc while maintaining Viren's racism.
So in book two, in which Runaan has no onscreen scenes (alas), using his name in a scene that calls back to the events in book one helps us remember what happened in that dungeon cell. It would be a bit muddier to recall the specifics if Viren kept thinking about Runaan as "Elf." So I'm cool with the perspective nudge because it serves a narrative purpose: clarity. But I'm also enjoying the angst of considering that, somehow, Viren learned Runaan's name either during or after the coining spell. Mwa ha ha haaa. (Obligatory "Keep my pretty name outta your mouth" goes here)
Okay, back to Viren's scheming! He took the mirror because it was human-sized in a dragon lair. He knew it didn't really fit there, and that made it interesting, so he stole it. But he realized it was really powerful when Runaan wouldn't tell him squat about it - the assassin's instinct to protect Xadian secrets from human hands meant that Viren was holding a very powerful Xadian secret. And that just made him want it all the more. Ah, Runaan, if only your relationship with lying was, like, the exact opposite of what it is. Nyx could've spun Viren a believable tale in 2 minutes flat.
Also of interest: Viren considers his cursed coins to be a final fate. He expects Runaan to remain in his coin forever. With the Chekhov's coins still extant in the storyline, we can assume that they'll come up again eventually, but Viren has no current plans to do anything with his elf money except carry it around.
It's worth noting that Viren admits that he got impatient when he trapped Runaan in the coin. Runaan's first fate in Katolis was supposed to be death at Soren's hands, but Claudia "saved" him from that. His next fate was to become spell components, but Viren's frustration with his stubbornness "saved" him from that fate, too. So now he's in a coin, where no one can chop him up at all. Yay? No, boo!
We get one last line about Runaan before Viren shifts gears: he makes a point of noting for us that Runaan's shackles are still locked shut. However much of Runaan made it into that coin - body, soul, hair care products - he was magicked there, pulled right out of his restraints.
The creepy black liquid that Viren pours right into his eyes is the last of a powerful potion he got from Kpp'Ar, and its recipe is ancient! Humans used it back in the age of Elarion to see through the illusions of the world. And we get a delightfully creepy bit of description about the preparation of this serum, which makes it abundantly clear that it's a Moon magic-based concoction, harvested from eyeless vipers on a moonless night, with the threat of irrevocable madness ("madness" by whose definition, though) if it's done wrong-
Hang on. Hold up. This is a Plato's Cave reference. OH MY GOD.
No no I'm fine, this is brilliant. Sorry, sorry, I couldn't figure why there was so much description for a potion prep that Viren didn't even have to perform himself. But now I get it. I see the light. HA. I should make a separate post for this, it's amazing.
Anyway, for reference, the humans who used this serum were called the Oracles of Ophidia, and Ophidia is a taxonomy group that includes all modern snakes. Can you say "creepy ancient snake rites"? I can! Woo!
Viren activates the serum with a spell, but apparently he's never done it before. He's not sure if it's supposed to be hot and bubbly, and he worries that it's been tainted by moonlight.
Oh, I do hope so.
The magic potion hurts, a lot. Viren will do just about anything, to himself or anyone, to do what he believes is necessary. He just risked madness and blindness to find out what this mirror does! Viren. Can you just. Take a nap or something. Have a Snickers.
This chapter gives us a fun clue that I don't remember from the show: when Viren's vision clears and he can see, his reflection has white pupils and the room reflected in the mirror has inverted colors. You know where else has inverted colors?
You know who else got white pupils for a hot second?
Okay, now it makes sense! Viren and Lujanne were both seeing into the realm beyond life and death. Him with his moon magic potion, and her with her moon powers on a full moon night at the Moon Nexus. Which is Very Interesting! Is it a direct hint about Aaravos's location, or just a separate cool detail? Orrr, does it look like a direct hint because Aaravos is actually trapped in the world beyond life and death, but it's actually separate and we'll see something about white pupils again later on?
Viren really does have self-esteem issues, we all picked up on it with his rant at his reflection. He throws a fit when he catches himself wondering if he's actually worthless. In the book version of his tantrum, he shoves the mirror and hurls a candelabra instead of flipping a table. He didn't need to shove the mirror to set the fire, but it's in here. Foreshadowing that perhaps, if push comes to shove, Viren will choose himself over Aaravos? Giving Aaravos time to peek through and see that the coast is clear?
Soren, my boyyyyy. He has a rough night at the Moon Nexus because two sides of him are fighting with each other. He struggles to understand Callum's friendship with Rayla, and he also fantasizes about chopping off Rayla's head. One of these is a pretty ordinary thing to do. The other is Soren's internalization of what he needs to do to gain his father's approval. If he brought his dad a chopped off elf head every week, he'd probably feel a lot more confident because Viren would praise him a lot more.
Okay, okay, omg, is it just me, or does the "Moonshadow Madness" story, as it's told in the book, seem like Soren just doesn't know what a monsterfucker is? He thinks an elf bite puts humans under a spell. But vampires are sexy, and some people want them to do more to them than just bite them. A passionate kiss under the moonlight could look very bitey, especially if one of the participants has horns and you're already culturally trained to hate them. No yeah, I'm already headcanoning an actual human-elf kiss that got misunderstood by an observer long ago.
it's Lujanne isn't it, we all know, because what is a love spell but a sweet soft illusion, I mean how else does she get supplies for her Caldera, I ask you, and also Corvus was totally sent to investigate once and he told Soren at camp what he saw
And then back to magefam angst: Soren pretending that his sister's nose-tapping is stupid, even though he actually thinks it's cool, just because their dad thinks it's stupid. Viren, istg. Let your kids like harmless things. It's so cute that Soren taps his nose back at her, though! Like they have their own sibling code. I hope we get to see the nose tap again, especially now that they've chosen different sides. It could mean so much, that they're not too far apart yet.
Rayla knows what buttery pancakes smell like. I love this. Do Moonshadow elves have butter and pancakes, does Rayla eat a stack of eight giant pancakes in the morning? Orrrr it is just illusion food? I don't care, let Rayla have pancakes! Everyone loves pancakes. Pancakes will save the world. this message brought to you by the fact that I can't eat pancakes rn, send help
I love that Rayla is both sus of the pancakes and hungry, and that combines into a very motivated "I will get to the bottom of this" attitude. She kind of goes into Poirot Mode when she inserts herself into Soren and Ellis's conversation about Ava, explaining about the wolf's illusion leg and segueing into her claim that the pancakes taste sus. Claudia confirms she used dark magic, and Rayla is furious. It's different than the show's version in that it puts Rayla in detective mode, as the only Moonshadow elf in the scene, and boy does she take that role seriously. Also, she doesn't actually swallow the dark magic pancake bite. It ends up on the ground just like Lujanne's grubs from that earlier meal. These poor kids are so nutrient-starved. You guys gotta eat!!
Rayla's determination and prejudices and the fact that she super knows Harrow is dead all dovetail to make her try repeatedly to persuade Callum that Soren and Claudia are Not To Be Trusted. It's nice that the book keeps taking the time to point out that Rayla is Well Intentioned But Flawed, just like Callum and pretty much every other character in the show. No one is Right All The Time, no one Knows More Than Everyone Else.
Callum loving the sound of Claudia's unique voice is so wholesome. When you like someone, it only makes sense that you like all the things about them that they can't change - like the sound of Claudia's voice. Her choices with dark magic, not so much!
Claudia seems to have the same concerns Soren does about Callum's relationship with Rayla, but she comes out and asks him. The inherent possession implied in "your elf" is interesting, though. Elves are not people to Claudia. They're enemies who can be disassembled for the magic inside them. So maybe more like robots than living beings, if she knew what a robot was. Maybe she heard Soren's "Moonshadow Madness" story and realized he totally missed the kissing implications - but she didn't, and now she's genuinely worried that Rayla could kiss Callum under a full moon and enchant him to do her will. Good thing it's only a half moon, then!
Okay, Callum nervously making a puppet hand and then not knowing what to do with his hands and freaking out about itching and moving and pointy elbows is such a ND mood. The sudden stress of knowing that someone else is noticing your existence and maybe you're Not Existing Right, amirite? Ugh, poor Callum.
The Moon Temple! Omg it's so pretty in the description! Made to be beautiful and useful, full of knowledge but also allowing light and life inside (butterflies and vines). Lujanne, when can I move in, please? Also, it's all the more angsty because Lujanne is the only one who gets to see this beautiful place, but it has lots of chairs and shelves and tables, and it was meant to be used by lots of people. :(((
Claudia knows some of the runes on the walls. She isn't in a hurry to copy the rest of them down or anything, either. Her spellwriting is very precise, and she's a skilled mage. Her father would have made sure she was aware of the dangers of drawing sloppy runes, as much as he made her aware of the dangers of doing dark magic wrong. And the whole point of dark magic is that it's easier to learn than primal magic. Claudia supports her dad and their shared knowledge and life path. She's not gonna go nuts over an elf library she can't translate.
Side note: Between Claudia knowing some Moon runes and Viren building a secret passageway and a dungeon and lighting it with the same blue crystals that Lujanne and Ethari use for light--and Claudia exclaiming that she loves ruins--I wonder once more if there are really Moonshadow ruins somewhere in Katolis, which Viren has found and looted. Father-daughter relic hunting trip, maybe while Soren is away at camp? Omgsh that would be so wild!
Callum out here having a Viren moment with his "I feel powerless unless I've got magic that lets me help" vibes. God. I love their complicated mirroring. One of the hard differences between them is that Callum is very sure dark magic is bad because you have to kill stuff and take its power to cast spells, and he doesn't want to be a person who kills and takes like that. The line he walks to be nice to Claudia on their tour of the Cursed Caldera because he likes her, while telling her that he doesn't want to do her magic, like, ever, is so fine that it might as well be a shifting shadow on the ground. It's a very fitting conversation to be having during the half moon, with its tricks and little white lies.
Callum being out of the castle and his comfort zone, having to deal with the fact that the Claudia he loves is not quite the Claudia who's chasing him down across the kingdom, but of the two of them, he's the only one with a problem with this.
They say that if you really want to get to know someone, you should spend time with them outside their comfort zone - in heavy traffic, with a small baby, taking care of a new pet, trying a new skill, following unfamiliar directions, etc. While the castle is familiar territory for them both, Callum's never really found his comfort zone yet, while Claudia is pretty comfortable with her growing skill set. The creepy part starts to kick in when Callum begins to realize that Claudia's comfort zone encompasses a whole bunch of stuff that seems like it should make her uncomfortable... but it doesn't. But that'll be for a future chapter!
#book two: sky spoilers#book two: sky#b2:s#tdp spoilers#viren#harrow#rayla#runaan#callum#claudia#soren#lujanne#moonshadow elves#aaravos
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Magical Tears and Green Bile?
Looking back at Episode 3, I noticed that the specific shade of green that Willow’s eyes turn when she does circle-less magic, seems to be different from the type of green that her spell circles are;
This COULD be an animation error, and/or I’m overthinking this. But it’s interesting when you consider the theory that strong emotions can lead to circle-less magic, due to the bile sac’s connection to the heart. Keep in mind that we only ever see Willow pull off this circle-less magic, where her eyes glow that specific green, whenever she’s highly emotional, stressed-out, and/or aggressive.
What’s interesting is that the specific shade for Willow’s glowing eyes also seems to match the essence that Belos drains from that poor Palisman, too;
And we know Palismans have their own source of magic. We know that witches create palismans, so someone like Eda would definitely know where their magic comes from- And so she would’ve known about alternate means of magic, back when Luz asked her about it in the beginning of The Intruder. All of this points towards Palismans having their own source of magical bile… And if so, then this particular Palisman’s bile has that distinct shade of green.
Combined with the idea that Willow’s more emotional magic manifests as a similar green- And it’s possible that we have a canon, on-screen, universal depiction of Magic Bile! Specifically as a green substance… And whenever Willow is highly aggressive, her heart beats faster, tapping into her natural bile reserves; And from this more pure, unrefined source, her eyes manifest the traditional Bile green, instead of the specific color unique to her circles.
Because we know that circle colors seem to vary among individuals, and probably don’t allude to magical skill- The Lead Demon Hunter’s circles are green, but he doesn’t handle Willow’s plants all too well and seems to be more of a Beast Keeper than anything else. Boscha’s spell circles are also pink, yet she’s in the Potions Track… And if spell circles DID allude to an innate affinity towards a particular type of magic, I feel like the Coven System would’ve seized upon this fact to permanently decide someone’s magical track as soon as they can manifest circles.
We see toddlers who don’t align with any magical tracks, presumably because they’re too young and developing to display any particular affinity; And we see Amity and Willow as about that age, being able to cast spell circles. We know toddlers can cast spell circles, yet they aren’t immediately placed into a magic track- Which furthers the idea that circle colors don’t indicate anything about one’s skill. It’s probably just a biological trait, like different eye or hair colors.
So the idea is that all magic comes from the traditionally-green bile… But in the process of converting it into a spell circle, that magic manifests as a color specific to the individual, and as a reflection of their specific genetics. However, if an individual draws upon emotions to cast circle-less magic, directly tapping into their unaltered bile reserves- Then the glow of that bile is shown in their eyes, having not been processed the traditional way through a witch’s limbs, avoiding that typical pathway. Possibly it’s in the eyes because the brain influences emotions, after all- And eyes are linked to the brain, after all. Regardless, the bile-magic is released in a different manner than spell-circles, apparently just from the body as a whole rather than the hand/foot.
This may be a result of more emotional hearts pumping blood, and thus bile more intensely- And this could lead to magical bile circulating through the whole body instead of the limbs, if the heart’s pumping becomes intense enough. Spread equally and in larger quantities due to emotions, an individual can cast spells without making a circle, just by emanating it from their body- And their eyes glow that distinct bile green, displaying how raw it is. Actually, I have to wonder if a witch’s eyes act as a vital pathway to their bile sac, hence why Willow’s eyes grow the color of bile when her heart beats faster.
Perhaps this’d explain why Belos specifically pours that Palisman’s bile into his eyes- It’s so the bile can reach the sac attached to his heart, and thus be spread out evenly through his body. AKA, Belos didn’t have any problems with his eyes, at least not specifically/exclusively. They say the Eyes are a window to the Soul, the Soul is related to emotions, emotions are connected to both the brain and heart, the former of which is directly connected to one’s eyes. This is just putting into my head, the raw image of a witch who’s so raw and emotional, their magic manifesting so powerfully, that they literally cry magic bile.
And that’s reminding me of what Eda said about human fantasies and myths being inspired by the Boiling Isles. And how a common fantasy trope is magical tears bringing stuff to life… Are witches actually capable of magical-bile tears, under particularly intense emotions? Is this trait the source of the ‘Magical Tears’ trope, which Luz herself brings up in Sense and Insensitivity? That’d be wild… And now I’m imagining members of the Healing Coven, who specifically cast spells that intensify their emotions, so they can literally cry magical tears when it comes to particularly serious injuries. I imagine this’d be incredibly draining, of course, as it directly extracts the bile itself in a tangible, liquid form- Maybe it could even have adverse effects on the bile sac!
At the very least, this’d make for some interesting angst… Though I imagine one would have to willingly tap into their magical reserves when crying, or else you’ve got a magical mess every time they feel emotional. Willow’s usage of circle-less magic when we first meet her seems unintentional, but we can’t say for sure- And if it was, then maybe it’s just another symptom of how potent her own natural power is. For all we know, frequently experiencing these raw emotions through her life, and the effect it had on her heart and bile sac, is what contributed to Willow’s own raw power? Now I’m just imagining an episode where Willow’s magic weakens, and she realizes it’s because she’s no longer in as much emotional turmoil, and the kind of confused feelings that could come from that…
And it’s REALLY making me look at the Blight kids under a new lens. If Amity’s magical prowess, early in life, came from her parents’ abuse. If Odalia and Alador legit fedinto this abuse because of this idea, especially if they felt like they needed to step in and actively improve their ‘weaker’ child, since Amity apparently isn’t as talented as Emira and Edric. And for all we know, Ed and Em’s talent is a manifestation of their own trauma from their parents- A trauma they hide better than their little sister as Illusionists, but a real and genuine pain.
For all we know Ed and Em frequently experience panic attacks or something of that nature… And who’s to say Amity certainly doesn’t either? Then this just leads me to imagining Willow accidentally causing damage at home during an outburst, but her fathers reassure her it’s okay… Whilst Odalia and Alador just get angrier at their kids for the chaos, which just makes things worse. I wouldn’t put it past them to specifically traumatize their kids to bring out their ‘potential’, and how this could connect into the Blight ideas of needing to be ‘strong’, in both the magical and emotionally stoic sense. Strong and stoic enough to handle this constant turmoil for the sake of weaponizing it… Ugh. It’d REALLY mess someone up, and everything we’ve seen so far indicates that Amity, Emira, and Edric are pretty messed-up as is. The Twins are probably better at hiding it, but that doesn’t change what’s there- It’s equivalent to sweeping something underneath a rug.
Of course, maybe I’m just wrong and magic bile can come in different colors, and Willow and that poor Palisman just so happen to align. But it makes you think, doesn’t it- Especially the idea that even if bile isn’t that particular green, it can still manifest and well up in one’s eyes if they’re emotional enough.
#the owl house#owl house#the owl house willow#willow park#the owl house belos#emperor belos#palismans#magic bile#speculation#theory#angst
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Hey could you explain How the teachers teach their students And exactly what they do
Hey anon, thank you for asking!
Most of the subjects at Alfea are taught inside of the classrooms and the School auditorium with the exception of Flight and an occasional outside class.
Majority of classes can be split into two parts - theoretical and practical. Example: Potionology is split between what can be described as theoretical magical chemistry and full on brewing substances in which one wrong ingredient could end with not so nice results for the whole class.
Magical subjects
CONVERGENCE is a study of combining magic of two or more members of a Wing, which is referred to as Cóineasú. It is considered one of the most difficult types of magic to learn and to teach, due to it being heavily dependent on each participant in it. It is properly taught from second year up, though many students already are capable of doing Cóineasú Beag, small convergence.
Most exercises tend to consist of Fairies working in pairs or trios (commonly depending on how many members a Wing has). Tasks to complete range from figuring out how to correctly combine their powers to for example solve a simple magic puzzle to being sent into the Simulation room to fight against some sort of enemy, using Cóineasú only.
A lot of students find enjoyment in getting to work with their Wing, as it furthers their overall bond and is rather interesting.
The finals are taken in the Simulation room, where the whole Wing is to summon a Cóineasú. The mark depends on how well the members are harmonized, how each of them contributes to the Convergence and the strength behind the summoned combined magic.
MAGICAL SELF-DEFENSE is a class solely focused on deflecting magic and conjuring magic to defend the Fairy. This class is also quite specified, thanks to it depending on what magic said student is capable of manifesting and, if it is not in permanently solid form, if they are capable of solidifying it. It is taught from the first year up.
This class is practiced only through magic as there would be no real use in taking a test about what steps need to be taken to properly create a magical shield or armor.
Many students tend to believe this class will be incredibly boring but most will get disproven already after the first class, especially if given the chance to ‘attack’ a teacher they don’t have the best relationship with.
Depending on the school year the students will have a stand off against some sort of powerful spell casted by the teacher. If they manage to stand their ground and block it, they succeed.
FLIGHT, being exactly what it sounds like, is a class where students learn how to properly use their wings. This class is taken outside only due to there not really being a space large enough in the school to hold at least 30 flying people. It is also taught since the first year.
Students are taught maneuvers and stunts in the air, how to not waste their energy during a flight, how to fly while still concentrating on something else and overall strengthening their wings and flight speed.
This class is, surprisingly enough, considered one of the most dangerous, thanks to the transformation time running out, especially amongst students who only have Breithix. Thankfully no major injuries had been sustained in a long time. Flight class is also known to be probably the most popular amongst the majority of students.
Testing in this class is done via a flight from one point to another in one go. The location and difficulty differs based on how long a Fairy's transformation lasts and what transformation the student has achieved.
MAGICAL OFFENSE is a class where students are taught offensive magic. This class, very similarly to the Magical self-defense, is heavily dependent on what powers the students have at their disposal. It is traditionally the first class any Fairy experiences at Alfea.
The students are taught how to use their magic swiftly and precisely. And while magics that students use in this class are very dangerous, they are discouraged from using them against enemies who can be dealt with otherwise.
A whole lot of students will find this class to be of interest as they learn more about their powers and master skills which they were not naturally born with and perfect skills which they already have.
Final test in this class is taken as a Wing via a real challenge in form of defeating a creature of darkness, which is fought in a specialized facility deep within the Gloomy Wood Forest. The species of the creature depends on the school year. The whole teaching staff is present, alongside the guards of the facility, throughout the whole ordeal.
METAMORPHOSIS is a class where students learn how to change some things and how to slightly alter their own appearance, alongside with short lived teleportation. It is the only class which fully utilizes Fae simple magic, which every Fairy has. It is taught from the first year up.
Students will learn things like changing the color of their hair or changing the color of a book. One of the other exercises is breathing life into a normally lifeless object and manipulating it for a short period of time, such as making a chair walk from one corner of the room to another.
While this class is difficult and demands a lot of attention, many students will find the class to be quite interesting and rather fun.
At the end of the school year students' final mark is determined by manipulating a certain object for a certain amount of time, which depends on the school year.
POTIONOLOGY is a class where students learn how to go through with potion creation, attitude making and other magical mixtures. Or just brewing a simple tea. The lessons take place in a specialized class. It is taught from the first year up.
Students get to know how to create potions ranging from simple energy boosters to potions which if used ‘correctly’ could result in very unpleasant results, ranging from a very uncomfortable rash to falling into a comma. Potionology utilizes both practice and theory.
Many students tend to find the practice of brewing potions enjoyable. That is if they didn’t have one explode in their face. Then not so much.
Final test is via brewing some sort of elaborate potion, which is very sensible to every single ingredient.
Magicless subjects (‘normal’ subjects)
ASTROLOGY is a class where students are taught how to navigate thanks to the celestial bodies and how to gain insight from them about things. It is taught from the first year up.
Astrology teaches both practically and technically, through tests and observations. It is the only class which is not taken regularly and while it’s mandatory class is, there is also an irregular class which can consist of the students getting up in the middle of the night to look at what is going on in the night sky.
HERBOLOGY is a class in which the students are taught about, and how to properly use one's advantage without utilizing magic, herbs and all sorts of magical plant matter. It is taught from the first year up.
Students get to interact with many plant species which can be either helpful or dangerous to them, how to utilize them and overall information about them. Students commonly utilize their knowledge of Potionology in this class and vise versa.
PHYSICAL SELF-DEFENSE is a class where students are taught how to defend themselves against an attacker without utilizing their magic. It is taught from the second year up.
Students learn a mix of martial arts in this class, which have the sole purpose of defending the Fairies. And while the doctrine is by far not as extensive as at Red Fountain or Cloud Tower for that matter, it is very useful nonetheless. There are understandably not written any tests from this subject.
MAGIPHILOSOPHY is a class where students learn about the philosophy of magic, the right and wrong ways to use it. Morality of curses and things akin to them. It is taught from the first year up.
Students are most of the time given a certain topic, which the Wings are then supposed to research either through books or technology at their disposal. After the research is done, students are given space to give out their opinions on the subject. This often leads to discourse.
ETIQUETTE is a class where Fairies are taught the Fae and overall proper manners. It is taught from the first year up.
Students get to learn skills which are also very much important for diplomacy and negotiation. While students do not receive any marks from this subject, most students are well behaved in the regards of Fae etiquette.
HISTORY OF MAGIC is a class where students are taught about the history of magic, transformations and people’s interaction with magic. It is taught from the first year up.
Students get to learn about everything from the first interactions with magic to how every state interacted with magic over the millenia to how magic is treated today.
REALMWIDE HISTORY is a class where students are taught about overall history from all corners of the world. It is taught from the first year up.
This class attempts to cover every single part of the world’s vast history. Which is everything from the times even before there were Elves to individual culture studies.
MAGIC IN NATURE is a class where students are taught about creatures who are literally out of this world. It is taught from the first year up.
In this class students are taught about creatures such as Pixies, Selkies and others. This class does not teach about creatures such as dragons, as they are considered to be natural creatures.
.
These classes generally have written tests most of the time and their popularity highly differ almost each year.
Anyway anyhow I hope this is comprehensible and you find this to be of interest. And thank you again for asking!
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His Butler, and the Problem with Magic (Ch1)
Fandom: Black Butler | Kuroshitsuji x Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Crossover
Fic Synopsis: Life at Hogwarts isn’t all bad…usually. But when Valentine’s Day rolls around, and Lockhart throws an extravagant ball, the number of couples at school the next day skyrockets, and Sebastian finds himself a new object of devotion…Can Ciel save his butler from the spell on his own?
Character Focus: Ciel (Sebastian, Undertaker, Harry, Grell)
Notes: This is a fic I wrote for @elegantkittycat for a Valentines day secret-santa-style event I made a few years ago!
Yes, I’m aware there are typos in this chapter. I intend to fix them at some point.
If you’d be willing to comment and/or reblog, it would mean more to me than you know!! They really really help motivate me to keep writing.
Chapter 1:
The great hall, quite frankly, looked like Valentine’s day threw up on it. Those lurid pink flowers from lunch still lined the walls, but now bright streamers glided across the ceiling, big, shiny hearts fluttered in the air, reflecting mood lighting, and bubble hearts popped out of bouquets of roses, (each flower cut into hearts). The ceiling itself not only continued to drop confetti, but was blighted by puffy clouds that read the same banalities you could find in every Sweethearts box; Be Mine, and True Love, and XOXO. (The clouds may have actually read that outside too, but Ciel didn’t want to check.) The burly cupids from earlier in the week lumbered about the room, continuing to pelt people with off-key music, and cards that only the most hopeless and idiotic of romantics would provide, filled with the same empty statements the clouds read—(every once and a while a howler burst forth, and the actual band would come to a shrieking halt at “YOU’RE REALLY CUTE”).
Lockhart had insisted a Valentine’s day ball was in order—(a lurid end to a lurid day)—and remarked with a toss of his perfect hair and blinding smile that it would be ‘just the thing’ to brighten everyone’s moods.
The fact that Lizzie had been the first (of many, mind you) to offer her decorative expertise and assistance may or may not have contributed to the overall… valentines-day-puked-and-so-will-I vibe of the room.
Currently, said mission to lift the general spirit was failing; aside from the few school lovebirds, (who were already widely despised and avoided, without school-sanctioned and overly sugary displays of affection) most people took this as the perfect opportunity for your daily dose of sulking at the sidelines, and contemplating if magic was quite worth this amount of suffering. Not least of all Ciel, who was currently propped against the wall behind the food table. (Lizzie had pried him away from his brooding earlier to dance, but now he happily returned to the indent he’d made in the wall). He had made many attempts throughout the evening to sneak a piece of chocolate cake, but Sebastian always magically appeared to slap his hands away whenever he got too close.
Most people would have stayed in their dorms, given the chance. Lockhart, however, had sent everyone cards with his kissy face on them, telling them flirtatiously not to dawdle, and his commands got more sugary, and insistent, (not to mention awkward) the longer they stayed indoors, and floated over their heads until they dragged their butts to the ball. This was particularly affective at making sure everyone was there, because the girls melted for his voice, and the boys wanted to shut him up as soon as possible.
“Isn’t this wonderful, Ciel!” A certain Indian prince put his arm around the earl’s neck and noogied him.
“Wha—No!” Ciel struggled like a fish out of water. Upon release he wiped his hands on his dress robes (the robes Sebastian had thrown together for the event—his ‘thrown together,’ of course, looked like others ‘spent-months-laboring-over-this’)—as if he didn’t want to catch Soma’s contagious happiness. “And I’d thank you to not touch me so casually!”
“I’m sorry Ciel, it’s just seeing all this love in the air makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside!” he spun around, “Doesn’t it do the same for you?”
“That’s called acid reflux.”
Soma pouted.
“Ciieel!” Lizzie’s hug was a torpedo. She snared his hands and spun him around, “Come dance with me!”
“Ack…I just danced with you ten minutes ago! How many times do I have to dance with you before you’re satisfied?!”
“Don’t you want your fiancé to be happy?” Her green eyes, (which were already big), became the puppy dog eyes of a little girl who wants an expensive toy.
“Don’t you?” he grumbled.
“I’ll dance with you, Elizabeth!” Soma came to the rescue. “It would be an honor to dance with such a lovely young lady!”
She blushed—“Oh please! It would be more than an honor to dance with a Prince!”—and curtsied, shooting Ciel an icy look, before joining the dance.
The young earl folded his arms over his chest and rolled his eyes.
As if that wasn’t enough sappiness for a lifetime, cloying words floated to his ears:
“Oh Professor Michaelis~!”
Ciel’s brow twitched.
“Come now Lavender, that wouldn’t be fair, would it?”
“Ahh, he’s so noble!” came a not-so-whispered consensus.
Ciel jerked his head to see the group of girls crowding around his butler, like birds to sunflower seeds in the park.
Rather than sharing his annoyance, and refusing their advances, Sebastian shimmered with flattery and flirtation. A few of them offered him boxes of chocolates and other sweets, which he took with flowery compliments, but surely had no intention of eating—it didn’t take a love expert to know they were all laced with love potions. (Or maybe he could eat them anyways; the jury was still out if love potions had any affect on the demon…some magical methods worked on him and others didn’t).
Ciel’s hands clenched into fists at his sides, “Don’t you have better things to do?!” he shouted over the throng.
Sebastian chuckled. “Mr. Phantomhive, don’t you know it’s rude to question a teacher?”
Ciel growled.
“These lovely ladies took time out of their day to offer me gifts,” the butler’s calm voice carried across the room. “It would be rude to refuse them.”
There was a syrupy sigh from the group.
“Ugh,” Ciel gave the opposite kind of sigh, and turned away before he gave into the urge to murder.
A familiar laugh at his side made him turn.
“What’s so funny?” he asked the Undertaker.
“Oh nothing much,” Undertaker forwent his usual dog biscuits for a piece of cake, “I just find your sour mood rather humorous.”
“You know me, I’m always in a sour mood.”
“Can’t argue with that,” he said, his mouth full of cake, “but,” he swallowed, “it seems the atmosphere of love and joy has put you in a particularly foul state of mind,” he pointed a black nail at him.
“I just don’t find romance being thrown in my face to make for a very fun evening, that’s all. One of Lizzie’s cutsey rampages is enough for me…but this?” he shuddered.
“Well, some would say it’s sweet. That it makes them feel happy and romantic.”
“When I rise to power, those people will be sterilized.”*
He laughed. “Always the life of the party, you are.”
“What? Are you one of those people?”
“I wouldn’t say so. But seeing you in such a state is worth all the romance any day.”
“Glad I could be of service,” he grunted.
Undertaker set down his plate and twirled in front of him, then leaned forward and spoke behind his hand, “What do you say we make this party…a party?” he reached into one of his drapey sleeves and pulled out a vial, teasing it in front of his face.
A quizzical look from Ciel made Undertaker whistle in the direction of the nearby punchbowl.
Ciel sighed and rubbed his temple. “Spiking the punch…really? Isn’t that a little too cliché, even for you?”
“I prefer the term ‘failsafes.’ Even you have to admit, the atmosphere could use a little...” he glanced around the room, “spiking. Besides,” he leaned in close and whispered, “this isn’t alcohol, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“…What is it then?” Ciel moaned, eyeing the ex-reaper.
He stood back up to his full height. “I’m not one to spoil the punchline before I tell the joke.”
The young earl sighed, “You really think we should deprive people of their misery? I’m not one to interrupt some good, old-fashioned sulking.”
“The general idea is that those who are miserable would like to…not be.”
“They also say that misery loves company. Misery and I, for instance, have quite the close relationship.”
As if called by them saying ‘misery’ too many times, Lockhart’s pretty face showed up.
Ciel coughed to cover his distaste.
“Ah Undertaker! Good to see you here! Everyone’s loving the party aren’t they?”—He gestured to the glowering room—“It’s so wonderful to see all these young people in love!” he gave a throaty chuckle.
“Well, I wouldn’t say everyone.” Undertaker had a way with honesty.
“What makes you say that? Did someone tell you they weren’t enjoying it? We can’t have that!”
“It’s not so much anyone specific, but—”
“…What’s that you have?” his eyes fell on the vial that Undertaker had barely tried to conceal. Despite Ciel’s theory that Lockhart was dumber than a bag of rocks (even if the rocks were magic), it didn’t take long for the truth to dawn on him, “Spiking the punch are we?” He held up an accusatory finger, “Naughty naughty. I would have expected this from one of the students, but shouldn’t a man of your stature know better?”
“What stature?” Ciel snorted.
“What’s that, Dear Boy?” Lockhart leaned forward.
Undertaker put his hand on Ciel’s head, covering his vision with his sleeve. “The young Er—student was just about to say that a man of my stature is not one to shy away from a little fun.” he put his other hand on Ciel’s shoulder, his grip a little too tight.
“I hardly think it’s ‘a little fun.’ We don’t want any students getting hurt, nor do we the party ruined, now do we? All it takes is one slip of the foot and someone ends up in the hospital.” He held out his hand, expecting him to hand over the vial.
“On second thought, do it,” Ciel whispered out of the corner of his mouth. “I’ll be the kid who winds up in the hospital. Anything to get me out of this hellish party.”
“What are we up to?” Dumbledore joined the conversation. It appeared as though Lizzie had got to even the headmaster, as he had bows in his beard and hair, though he didn’t seem to mind much.
“I regret to inform you that our dear Undertaker has intents to spike the punch.” Lockhart said like he was a student tattling.
“Ah,” the headmaster said casually, popping a heart candy in his mouth and burping out a heart, “(Pardon me). Well you can’t blame him for trying to bring a little…sprucing up, to the room, can you?” he lifted his hands and smiled genially.
“Are you saying that my party is not of the highest caliber?”
“Oh we aren’t denying that you have an air for the grandiose, Gilderoy,” he began cutting the cake with his wand; “Mr. Phantomhive, would you like some cake?”
Ciel glanced at Sebastian, who was currently preoccupied, and tried not to smirk. “I’d love some, thanks.”
Dumbledore cut him a huge slice, handing it to him gracefully, as if he were dropping a tiny lemon sherbet into his palm instead of a mountain of chocolate. Ciel inclined his head in gratitude, (and made sure to eat a big bite when Sebastian was looking, and the incense on his face was worth it—he, of course, couldn’t do anything butler-like with the headmaster and another teacher standing there).
“Don’t beat around the bush Albus!” Lockhart cut back in, “What is it you’re trying to say?”
“No one denies your party-throwing skills, dear Professor Lockhart.” He stood, placing his hands behind his back, “But your em…” he cleared his throat, “other skills can sometimes be rather lacking…”
“I’m shocked, and hurt, Dumbledore.” He put his hand over his heart. “Shocked and hurt. I’ll have you know that I won ‘best party-thrower’ in three”—he held up three shaky fingers—“countries! I think that should more than make up for any spoiled brats who can’t see fun even if it’s standing in front of their face!”
“Was he talking about me?” Ciel murmured to Undertaker, without a hint of hurt in his voice, “I feel like he was talking about me.”
“And what countries were those?”
As they argued, Dumbledore inclined his head towards the punch bowl.
It was Ciel’s turn to be shocked. Everyone knew their headmaster was rather eccentric, but he didn’t take him to be so reckless. He’d expect this from Undertaker… but Dumbledore? He thought he had at least a little ‘responsible-grown-up’ in him (even though Undertaker was definitely a lost cause).
Ciel turned to stop the ex-reaper, but now a dotted outline remained where Undertaker previously had been, and a second later he saw a long-nailed hand appear above the punch bowl.
Ciel facepalmed.
Any desire he had to drink said punch, as well as be at this party at all, had gone into the negatives.
But, eh, at least he had cake now. So maybe it wasn’t all bad.
“Young Master!” Sebastian snatched the plate from his hand, “How many times have I told you—!”
“Oh, so now you can walk away from the girls?” Ciel spun to his butler, whose arms were full of assorted treats. (Ciel, of course, knew he’d probably have walked away sooner if it weren’t for Lockhart and Dumbledore).
He tapped his foot on the ground (which somehow didn’t imbalance the tower of sweets), “I won’t allow it. You’ll get a tummyache.”
“I’m not a child!”
Sebastian raised an eyebrow at his whining. “That may be…but regardless, you have a delicate composition.” He leaned over and set Ciel’s unfinished plate in the ‘dirty’ pile. “Sweets of this size will certainly impair your gastrointestinal health.”
Ciel looked from side to side, hoping no one was listening, feeling his face grow hot. “Delicate!”
“Would you prefer a different term? Fragile? Frail?”
“I’m not a vase!”
“Tender?”
“I’m not a steak!”
Sebastian looked over his professor-glasses at him as if to say Do you think you’re talking to someone else?
Ciel groaned, giving his butler the victory.
Sebastian set his armful of gifts in a pile along the wall. Clapping his hands clean and wiping his brow.
“What, are you tired?” he mocked, knowing full well the demon couldn’t get tired. “Is having a bunch of high-school-girls fawn over you exhausting?”
“Well, now that you mention it…” Sebastian joked back, feigning thought.
He rolled his eyes. “Come on, let’s get out of—”
A mischievous idea curled itself around his brain.
“You must be thirsty,” he said in a mockingly-concerned voice, trying to lean sideways on the table by the punch (but he almost fell over, and had to catch himself).
Sebastian raised an eyebrow. “Well, I don’t really require hydration like you humans do.”
Ciel gave him a look as if to say No, go ahead, I won’t mind. You really do look exhausted.
“But I suppose it couldn’t hurt….If you insist.”
“Oh I do.” He smirked as he watched Sebastian pour himself a cup.
More likely than not it wouldn’t have any affect on the demon, but, presented with the potential, he wasn’t going to deny himself a few hours to imagine what it might be like if it did.
“Why are you looking at me like that, Young Master?” he asked before raising the cup to his lips.
“Oh…I’m just enjoying the party.”
That didn’t clear things up. Sebastian’s brow furrowed, but, after taking a sip, he didn’t have time to ask because—
“The party has arri-ved~!” a certain familiar voice sang.
Ciel was starting to wonder if this was God finally deciding to punish him. Both master and butler felt like they were going to be violently ill, and simultaneously had a thought something akin to that’s my cue to leave! Before they could even make the first step, however—
“Ahh Sebas-chan!”
They winced, turning slowly to see Grell waving a princess wave at the butler over the crowd, while Ronald followed suit, nodding and blowing kisses towards the girls.
“All this love in the air,” Grell materialized beside them (they jumped a little), and crossed his hands over his heart, staring blinkily into the ceiling, “Kinda gets you thinking, doesn’t it.” He sidled up beside the demon.
“If you mean thinking about ending your life, indeed, it does.” Sebastian showed him no mercy.
“Playing hard to get, are we? Ah! How saucy!” he slapped his shoulder playfully,
Sebastian sighed, folding his arms over his chest, trying to ignore the nagging presence.
“Ciel! Ciel! Are you going to introduce me to your friends?!” Lizzie and Soma arrived at his side, as if hopeless romantics were coming out of the woodwork.
“They’re most certainly not my friends.” He cleared his throat.
“What’s that supposed to mean, Old Chap?” Ronald asked, “We may not be close, but I thought all those times we tried to kill each other meant something.”
Lizzie stared at Ronald, inching slowly away.
“Oh that’s just…a joke we have,” Ciel defended weakly.
“Oh…” Lizzie looked away, then recovered quickly, “Well, anyhow, you didn’t tell me Prince Soma was such a lovely dancer!”
“How was I supposed to know?” he grunted, “I’ve never danced with him!”
“Don’t be so rude, Ciel!” Soma defended her, “Please, you were like a—what are those dancers called? That’s right, a ballerina! —You were like ballerina, Miss Lizzie.”
“Don’t be so modest! Ciel, should take a page out of your book!”
“What page?” Ciel demanded, “The one on being a spoiled brat?”
“Sounds like someone’s already read that one,” She punched his shoulder. Her attitude changed in a second again, “I’m so thirsty!” She reached for the punch ladle.
“Wait—NO!” Ciel grabbed her wrist.
She blinked. “What are you doing?”
“I—uh” his face was a thermometer slowly going into the red, “I just umm…You don’t want to drink that.”
“I don’t?”
“No…yeah…it uh, tastes like uhh… cat pee,” he started to pull her away.
“How would you know what cat pee tastes like?” Ronald’s butted in.
“Maybe a cat peed in my mouth one time, you don’t know my life!”
“I’m having a hard time believing a nobleman such as yourself—”
“I just don’t think she should drink it, that’s all! Is that so inconceivable?!”
“Sorry! Sorry! Sheesh,” he shook his head, “you Nobles are pieces of work!”
Ciel rolled his eyes, turning back to Lizzie. “Why don’t you go back to your dorm?”
“But… I don’t want to go back to my dorm.” Lizzie pouted, “I’m having fun! …Or at least I was,” she murmured.
“…Look I’m sorry. I’ll-I’ll dance another number with you, okay?”
As they walked out onto the floor, he watched the other students drink the unassuming punch over his shoulder.
*****
At the risk of sounding even more cliché; the day started like any other. Ciel got up before the other boys in his dorm to a chilly February morning, and started his routine—an aspect of which was speaking to Sebastian about today’s mission and objectives before classes began. Their current mission had to do with the Chamber of Secrets—such as figuring out where it was, if it existed at all—and the heir, who they were, and how to dispose of, or join them, accordingly. At this point, they had little to no leads. With his day robes on, and homework and books in hand, he slipped out into the hall.
He’d soon wish he stayed in bed.
Once the common room door closed, his day-from-hell would begin.
For a magic school, not much happened day-to-day. Well, that wasn’t true, Harry Potter added some…pizzazz. But it was still a school, and once you get used to the magic…normal-school-things happen.
Today was one of those days which reminded him that this was not a normal school.
Sure it was the day after Valentines Day, but did those Huffpuffs have to kiss in the hallways?
And guess what? You there, standing in the hall, blocking everyone’s way? Yeah, you. There is a perfectly nice wall behind you, just waiting to be leaned against (ignore the judgmental painting in the background).
And why did anyone who wasn’t in the throws of *shudders* youthful passion have this glazed look in their eyes, like they’d eaten pot brownies for breakfast?
Most of the time, the few students who were awake at this hour chatted and giggled, inflicting the general populace with the daily gossip, at which, sure, he would still roll his eyes and groan, but it was at least better than kissing and clogging up the hallway (as well as each other’s mouths).
He was relieved to finally reach Sebastian in the The Defense Against the Dark arts classroom.
This was one thing that was no surprise, as he shared the teaching position of the class with Lockhart—(no easy task, as they were both divas who didn’t enjoy sharing spotlight, and one was totally incompetent, and the other was as overqualified a professional chef at a kids easy-bake bake off. But their even-keeled headmaster had to give them each equal time teaching. At the beginning of the year, after it was decided which classes would get which teacher, some students begged the heads of houses to reconsider putting them in Sebastian’s class. Sebastian, amicable and excessive as ever, decided to host extra classes after school to satisfy the disappointed students).
“Alright, shall we pick up where we left off?” Ciel marched towards Sebastian, throwing his books on the nearest desk.
However, unlike his usual, attentive I-solved-all-our-problems-overnight-here’s-the-solution self, the butler stared out the window…he didn’t even pay his master immediate attention.
Said master tapped his foot impatiently on the ground and snapped, “Oy, Sebastian!”
“Mm?” the demon faced him, slowly.
Again, there was that glazed look. Like he had been in a donut factory.
“Young Master, I… didn’t hear you come in.” His eyes darted around the room.
“You bloody well didn’t,” he continued to tap his foot, muttering, “Demon hearing my ass.”
When Sebastian didn’t use said demon hearing to reprimand him for swearing, he knew something was wrong. He stopped being aggravated for a second and looked a little closer.
There was a smudge on his glasses. His hair was sticking up in front of his forehead, and there was some cat hair on his robes (probably from a clowder he kept in his room).
He was…imperfect. His appearance, while still practically impeccable by human standards was sloppy by Sebastian’s. His attention, divided.
And that was reason to worry.
Ciel leaned over the desk and snapped in his face. “You can ogle photos on your own time!”
Sebastian looked at him, but every time he focused on him, as if magnetized, his eyes reeled back to a photograph on the desk.
“Do you think…do you think he could like me?” Sebastian said in a strangely uncertain voice that didn’t sound at all like him.
“Huh?”
He had never known Sebastian to be uncertain of, or fascinated by, anything, and, more importantly, he had zero regard for whether or not people liked him. He also never pried his concentrations from the missions, especially not for something so trivial and/or emotional as photos.
Ciel walked around the desk to get a good look at it. He thought it might be Lockhart, as the room was crawling with his glimmering face. Instead, in a shattered case—(Ciel thought he might hurl)—the demon fixated on a picture of Grell.
The young earl vaguely remembered Grell giving it to him—mentioning passionately something about it being a way for him to be with him at all times, with hearts in his eyes. At the time, Sebastian had rolled his eyes, said, ‘is there a version of this when I can see you at no times?’ and tossed it into the drawer with enough disregard that the glass had shattered, and (now this is just speculation) hoped to never look at it again.
For what unholy (or holy, by demon standards…no, it definitely wasn’t holy) reason would Sebastian return to it now? And what’s worse, how could a picture of Grell possibly distract him from the task his master had placed before him?
Was it possible that all those pictures, cards, the cheesy lines, and sappy gestures, all the maudlin advances, had finally made it through to Sebastian?
Hell no. He’d watch the world burn before that happened.
Hang on a minute, let’s check.
Nope, still snow on the ground.
Okay, more plausibly, did he lose his mind?
Let’s tone it down a little; Maybe this was a—albeit not funny—joke?
“What are you on about?”
The demon picked up the picture. “Grell.” He rushed towards Ciel, putting the picture in front of his eyes—“Get that out of my face!”—“Do you think he’d ever want to be with someone like me?”
The earl began to laugh, a fake, loud laugh, then abruptly stopped.
“Very funny, Sebastian, you like Grell. Can we get back to work now?”
Sebastian grabbed a book off his table and Ciel had to duck to keep it from hitting his head.
“What are you on?!”
“I may be cleverly witty when the situation calls for it, but I am not joking, Young Master! And I’d thank you to treat my beloved one with respect!”
Ciel blanched, his eyes glued open, swallowing the bile that rose in his throat. “You mean this,” he pointed to the situation at hand, the words soft and enunciated, a nervous laugh behind them, “This isn’t a joke?”
“No!” he cradled the picture, “I think Grell’s the most lovely person I ever met.”
He waited for the butler to burst into laughter.
…and he kept waiting.
He knew more than anyone, neither master nor butler pulled stunts of this caliber.
Ciel grabbed one of the scrolls on the wall and wacked his butler over the head with it.
“Quit playing around! We don’t have time for children’s games!”
“I don’t understand, Young Master,” he rubbed his head (as if that could possibly hurt the demon). “You aren’t insulting Master Grell, are you?”
“No, I’m insulting you, you twat!”
He swiped the picture from him (hurt flared in the butler’s eyes). “You see how the glass is shattered here?”
He placed his hand over his heart. “Who would do a thing like that to such a perfect face?”
“You, you bloody idiot! Don’t you remember?” he smacked his head with the paper again, making it crease, “When Grell gave you that you tossed it into the drawer and said you ‘wanted to see him at no times.’”
“Me?” he snatched the picture back, holding it tight to his chest. “No, I would never!” he said like Grell was the purest little ray of sunshine, and Ciel said he’d kicked a puppy yesterday.
“No, what you would never, is return said…” he cleared his throat and didn’t finish the sentence.
“I don’t understand, Young Master. Here I am, bearing my heart. Why must you squash it?”
His eye twitched. “To remind you you don’t have a heart!”
“I—”
“Shut up! Just shut up!” he slammed his hands on the desk, “There’s no way this can be real!” he slumped onto the desk and ran his hand through his hair, looking more deranged than the one who was actually delirious, “Why, in all that is—How—Why would you ever—?!”
“Be careful, Young Master, don’t let that anger fester; it’s bad for your health.”
And it dawned on him.
He slammed his palm into his forehead.
The punch at the party—it was so obvious. Undertaker had even told him it didn’t contain alcohol.
“Young Master, are you saying our love is not real? Are you insulting master Grell?” his voice became a sickening tone.
Ciel now fully understood the situation: Sebastian, having been given a love-potion—(turns out they did work on him…or, even if they didn’t, maybe Undertaker made some extra-potent, mutant variety that did)—and Grell being the first person he saw (or heard) after taking it, fully believed Grell to be his one-true-love.
And as he watched a shadow (much bigger than the demon’s human shape) spread across the floor, he realized he believed it enough to attack anyone who stood against said love. Even his master.
The young earl knocked into desks as he scrambled way, his outward attitude towards the situation performing a 180:
“Uh, no no! No, no, no! I believe you!” he grabbed his bag, “There’s nothing weird or horrifying about you being in love with Grell at all. I just was a little…mmmm surprised!” his voice went up an octave. He shoved a desk into the space between them, “That’s all?! I’ll…I’ll just be going, now! You uh…you go back to…what you were doing!” he gave him a thumbs up (something he’d never done in his life) as dashed out the door.
After getting some ways down the hall, he doubled over, breath sharp and fast, piercing his side, his thoughts whirring around.
He’d wanted to mess with Sebastian, but he, first of all, hadn’t thought it would work, and second of all, hadn’t meant to mess with him this much—especially not in a way that affected him. This wasn’t fun or funny, this was just…gross. And now he had to fix it, when, had he left the situation alone and not given Sebastian the punch in the first place, he’d have his demon butler to help him, and the predicament would probably be solved in less than a day.
Now when he saw the students making out, or walking around dazed, he understood the full ramifications of Undertaker’s little stunt.
Speaking of which…
He heightened his pace until he was rushing through the halls, speeding past dreamy eyes, and cuddly couples.
Everyone, everyone had been at that party. Not only had the whole school been at that party, the punch was one of the few things available for the sweaty and thirsty dancers to drink. Even the sulking folks, who didn't intend to dance, surely wouldn't have had a problem grabbing a snack or two, and, well, a cup of punch to go with it. Now instead of one night of suffering in a lovebird’s playground, the whole school could be set to pop music. And, like the villain in a fairy tale, it was his job to break apart the happy couples.
And his first order of business was to find the mastermind who put them together.
Undertaker performed many of the odd jobs around, and often made it a job to make things odd (but Ciel of course knew that his primary function was probably to make dead bodies disappear discreetly). He and Peeves were overly chummy, and their pranks could sometimes be unbearable…but neither had ever attempted something of this magnitude before.
He was close to Filch’s corridor—
When the bell rang.
In the pandemonium he had forgotten today was still a normal school day.
“Sebast—” he began, hoping for an easy way not to be late, but remembered that his butler was …otherwise occupied. He grit his teeth, clenched his fists, and hurtled towards the transfiguration classroom.
*****
“Mister Phantomhive!” snapped a clipped voice as he swung open the door, gasping for breath. “I thank you not to be late! And while you’re at it, not to disrupt my class while in session!”
“Sorry—” he clutched at his side, “Professor— McGonagall.”
“Usually,” she ran her fingers along her wand, stretching out the word, “I would give you detention. However, as it seems you are not the only one…out of sorts this morning” she drummed her fingers on the podium, giving Ciel a moment to look around the room—There were always a few latecomers, especially during first period, but the number of empty chairs rivaled the number of students present—“I will let you off with a warning.”
“Thank you,” he coughed—“Professor.”—And slumped at his desk like an old sock.
Thankfully not everyone had been affected by the spiked punch. Certain kids in class had that far-off look in their eyes, and a few even kissed in class (they were definitely sent to detention, though, of course, nothing much mattered to them but their newfound love). There were also teachers who had starry looks, and instead of giving them genuine lessons, muttered trite words about love, like a broken radio that only plays emo songs. There were, however, others who acted just as confused, annoyed and shell-shocked as Ciel at the current predicament. Clearly they had either found something else to drink at the party, simply not drank anything, or escaped the festivities somehow.
McGonagall was clearly among the unaffected, and while he was grateful for a little normalcy, he might have traded her for someone a little more lenient, and liked to see how her disposition changed while under the affects of love.
Throughout the day, he told the few students who were still awake and alive to the world that someone had spiked the punch with a love potion the previous night. This seemed to give them relief that they weren’t going crazy, still, none of them had any idea what to do about it. Love potions weren’t exactly considered an important course in potions class, especially not with a teacher like Snape—(in fact, a certain Ravenclaw had asked how to make a love potion in class on Valentine’s Day, and later Ciel saw that Ravenclaw mysteriously lost ten points). Some worried for their friends, while others eyes lit with an impish glint at the realization that—as long as they didn’t insult their ‘true love’— they could do anything to mess with their friends.
He had to give Undertaker at least a little credit: that day was one of the most memorable in his entire time at Hogwarts:
During transfiguration, on multiple separate occasions, students, instead of transfiguring their hamsters into dominoes, transfigured them into rings, and flowers used to profess their love, or even propose to Professor McGonagall herself. She only looked down her nose, and demanded where this talent had been the entire semester, and wracked up a body count of detention-bound students.
In Herbology, while not nearly as exciting as others, Professor Sprout went on and on about how amazing Neville was—(whenever he passed him in the hallway that day Neville looked as red as plants they tended to...He probably hadn’t had much of anyone else to talk to at the party).
If Divination wasn’t enough already, Trelawney made them look into their futures and see their potential for romance (…it was hard to tell if she was under the spell or not), and it was both worth noting, and a source of personal pride that she looked into Ciel’s and saw lots and lots of hate.
And best of all, during potions, which was his last class of the day, Snape looked like he was ready to kill someone…and got close when Lockhart burst in and proclaimed that he simply couldn’t take it anymore, that they were made for each other. (Out of all the the crazy, embarrassing things that happened that day, this was the one Ciel guessed would be the most difficult for either of them to live down).
Hilarious confessions aside, Ciel was relieved to find that the potions master was at least trying to counteract the curse himself, by having them make antidotes and anti-love potions, and drink them (allegedly, lots of students refused to drink them in earlier classes, so he had to forgo their Latin name and call them “Happy Sunshine Potions,” which was quite possibly the best string of words he’d ever heard Snape say, and the unaffected students looked like chipmunks holding in their laughter in when hearing it). Although this was another teacher Ciel would have liked to see under the affects, he was guessing the net worth of breaking the curse would be far greater.
However, as far as he could tell, currently, Snape’s attempts to douse the proverbial fire were ineffective. (Yet another reason to think Undertaker’s love potion was some mutant version).
At each break he had, Ciel attempted to find Undertaker—(Except at lunch, when everyone was screaming that Draco was running around, and in increasingly boisterous and/or risqué methods, trying to declare his love for Ron Weasley. While Harry and Ron were also running around, either avoiding him at all costs, or messing with him. It was, first of all, difficult to get around the crowd, and, second of all, not something to miss.)—But Undertaker had an ongoing disappearing act that had nothing to do with magic. The one thing Ciel knew, was that the old coot couldn’t have left; he’d want to see every glorious minute of the chaos he wrought, so Ciel wasn’t giving up on finding him.
After school, hungry, tired, and desperate (especially after a run-in with Peeves, through which he earned the ex-reaper’s location, but also a cluster of lipstick marks on his face) he finally found Undertaker back in the Divination Classroom (of course he just had to pick one of the tallest, most tiring towers to climb). The room was cold, and Trelawney was nowhere in sight.
The pretty, setting sky over the frosty roof outside didn’t provide an iota of solace.
Ciel rolled up his sleeves, his anger a newfound immunity to the cold, and, with fingers curled into fists, marched up to him.
“You.”
The Undertaker, resting against the windowsill, turned to the seething boy, grinned, and spoke as if this was no more than an ordinary meeting.
“My, Young Earl, looks like you’ve been getting busy.”
“Wh—?!” he remembered the marks on his face and rubbed them off on his sleeve as Undertaker cackled.
“You seem awfully upset about something,” Undertaker continued, “Don’t want to let it fester—as your butler would say.”
“You spiked the punch with a love potion.” The boy growled.
“Did I?” he put a finger on his chin as if thinking, “I can’t seem to recall.”
Ciel’s brow twitched. “You bloody well know you did, I watched you. Now tell me how to undo it.”
“How do undo it, you say? And why would we want to do a thing like that?”
“I am in no mood for your games.”
Undertaker shrugged. “‘Fraid I can’t help you then. You know the rules; no payment, no information.”
“The whole school is a joke! That’s your payment!”
He contemplated it. “Sure you wouldn’t like to give an old man a good chuckle?”
“I’m certain.”
He sighed. “I suppose you got me there. To tell you the truth, I hadn’t quite got to the whole undoing it part.” He twirled his hand in the air like the ringmaster in this show.
Ciel blinked, emotion flickering as he spluttered, “How can…? But you—? I—? What?!”
He laughed, and the Undertaker’s nonchalance and disregard made anger jumpstart his tongue.
“You made it, didn’t you?” he kept his voice low, and his hand on the wand in his pocket, marching forward, “You can at least tell me how you made it. Then maybe I can unmake it.”
Undertaker tapped his chin, as if knocking around the marbles in his skull, “Don’t much feel like it.”
“You don’t feel like it?! Listen here—!”
He no sooner pulled out his wand than it was in Undertaker’s hand. He hadn’t even noticed Undertaker draw his own wand.
Undertaker ruffled his hair as he walked by, dropping the boy’s wand back into his pocket, “Part of the fun is figuring it out for yourself, Young Earl. Didn’t anyone ever teach you that?”
He headed down the stairs, leaving Ciel standing alone, angry breaths steaming up the chilly classroom.
*****
When Ciel trudged back to his dorm, all the energy he had used to run around that day had given up the ghost. He barely noticed the smooching and starstruck kids in the hallways anymore, and didn’t have the energy to send even a derisive snort their way.
Sebastian was supposed to be the one running around trying to find answers. These menial tasks were beneath him. Hard work, and running around, looking for answers, was no suit for a fourteen-year-old boy to wear. Oh, Ciel would devise a particularly difficult and useless task for his butler to accomplish once he—or someone—finally broke the curse.
Caught up in thoughts of needless revenge, he ran into someone in the hallway, sending both their books to the floor.
“Sorry!” The boy called.
As they both crouched down to pick up their fallen items, Ciel looked up to see unruly black hair, crooked glasses, and lightning-struck forehead.
“Harry Potter.”
“Yeah…?”
“Sorry, I don’t believe we’ve formally met. I’m Ciel Phantomhive.” He held out his hand.
“Nice to meet you,” Harry smiled, taking his hand.
“Likewise—er, sorry about your books.”
"It's alright. I seem to have some bad luck with that lately! At least ink didn't spill all over everything this time."
"That happened?"
"Yeah...It happened yesterday actually."
"Oh, that sounds awful."
"Nothing a little magic couldn't fix," he shrugged.
They both returned to their task.
“It looks like you haven’t been…love-ified,” Harry noted.
“You seem to have your wits about you as well.”
“Lucky us…Draco wasn’t so lucky though,” he laughed. “I heard someone spiked the punch at Lockhart’s Valentine’s day ball.”
“I heard that too.”
“A perfect end to the night, huh?”
“Hehe…yeah…”
Ciel turned to the next book, about to hand it to Harry.
Here’s the thing, about dark magic.
It has this sort of…pull. The more you use it, the more sway it has on you.
A pure soul looks at a dark object and feels uneasy, but doesn’t know why.
Someone who has participated in the dark before, let it creep in and corrode the soul, is attuned to the darkness. Like a resonant frequency, a humming in the back of their mind, putting them on the same wavelength, (and if they listen too long, they might shatter). They may not always know what it is, or does, and sometimes they wont recognize why something has this aura, but they will know that an object is not just that, in as much as darkness is not just the absence of the light.
Ciel Phantomhive was no ordinary student. While he may have learned from the teachers at Hogwarts, the reason he was here was at the request of the Queen, not for learning, and his most informative teacher, was Sebastian. Before they arrived at Hogwarts, Sebastian, going above and beyond as always, made sure he knew more spells than half the students in his year. More importantly, however, fear of the dark had long left them both. Knowing dark magic, they surmised, would put them ahead of their enemies (not to mention their friends...well, if you could call them friends), and could be a powerful trump card were the situation to call for it.
When Ciel looked at this diary everything slowed. Like in a movie, when you can hear your heartbeat, and the camera zooms in. From the moment he saw it he knew it would be both silly and dangerous to think it was merely a diary. One may pour their soul into the words dear diary, but the Something that lurked beneath it’s pages was far more than the heartfelt and trivial adages of teenage boys and girls. There was something living in those pages.
He knew it was alive. Unlike other dark artifacts, which gave off a hint, a whisper of more-than-I-seem, this was more than a whiff of untapped potential, or forbidden mystery; the resonant darkness, rather than a faint, inanimate hum, was a Horror singing old-fashioned lullabies to himself in the darkest corners of the pages.
Ciel was tired. Tired of running around, tired of searching for a cure, tired of doing all the work himself. He wanted an easy way out. That’s how he’d always been. People who like to take the long way ‘round don’t make contracts with demons.
So, in a moment of weakness…
…or a moment of strength
He slipped the diary into his own bag.
*****
That night, despite being interested enough in the book to steal it, he hadn’t had any energy to begin figuring out what that darkness was, meant, or could do. Nor did he have any energy to spend on figuring out the antidote to the plague himself. In fact, he had had so little regard for either, that he ignored the dumb looks of his roommates, slipped the diary into the chest at the foot of his bed, flopped facedown on top of his covers (screaming into his pillows for good measure), and went to sleep.
The next morning wasn’t much better. He woke up with a splitting headache, the love-zombies were still up to their shenanigans—(he half hoped it would end in the morning)—and when he tentatively checked on Sebastian, the demon had traveled further down the Grell-obsessed rabbit hole than before.
When Ciel entered the teacher’s lounge (it had taken a moment to find him) the smell of flowers smacked him full in the face. Unlike some of the teachers present, Ciel was unimpressed, and quite honestly queasy, to see that he had moved on from admiring the picture of his affection, to creating his own; or rather than a picture, a bust made of flowers of none other than his…erm lady-love, Grell.
Just like Sebastian, he was attentive to detail; only the freshest of flowers for his beloved, and each component of Grell’s complexion was a different flower: the coat was made of red Amaryllis’, the vest, brown orchids, the shirt, white hydrangeas, the face was pale dahlias, the eyes were green carnations, and the hair was, of course, roses. He wondered if Sebastian went far to find all of them, though knowing him he probably ran to the finest flower shop in Paris at 1:00AM that morning for them and was back before anyone could wonder where he’d gone.
Yes, quite far gone. But not far enough to forget the ‘offense’ Ciel had caused to his new master the day before.
Or perhaps Ciel had caused him new offense by blurting out “What the devil is this?!” upon seeing his labor-of-love.
If it was good idea in general for the public not to talk to the young earl, today, it was an inescapable rule: if people didn’t give him a wide berth, they learned quickly he was not in the mood for human (or reaper, or demon) interaction.
Wasting his time before class on pointless attempts to slap the delusion out of his butler was idiotic. So he headed to the library to actually try and make some progress, and picked up a book on love potions—(Madam Pince was too busy writing love poems to scold kids like him for going into the restricted section. Knowing this was a rare opportunity, he grabbed several more books he’d had his eyes on while he was there.)—with the intent to read up on counter curses every spare minute he got, not excluding during certain classes overtaken by horny teachers.
More students were missing from classes today, and those who weren’t were either more randy than before, or losing patience and brain cells every second they were around those afflicted. The teachers who were still in possession of their faculties—namely McGonagall, Snape, Vector, and Flitwick, (Madam Pomfrey was too, but she wasn’t present)—made an announcement at lunch, in front of their dreamy-eyed headmaster, that they were trying their best to find a solution to the problem presently.
While it was comforting to hear they weren’t sitting on their asses, and it would save him a hell of a lot of trouble if they did solve it, he didn’t expect they’d figure it out anytime soon. If Snape couldn’t figure it out on his own, he wasn’t sure they would have much luck, even together. Even if he had had faith in them, he wouldn’t have stopped his own research. He and Sebastian always did it their way, this was personality, not practice—(he’d learned from a young age he couldn’t rely on anyone else)—and a setback, even one that kept his butler from his work, wasn’t going to stop him.
It was during a disappointing lunch that he saw a flash of red in the doorway to the great hall. At first he thought nothing of it—it was probably a banner some kid made to impress their one-true-love, or a bunch of heart-shaped balloons, or a leftover decoration—it didn’t matter, he was going to try his best to eat, and read, in peace.
Until the ‘banner’ came inside to steal his food.
When he finally realized who it was, he practically screamed;
“Grell!”
“That’s my name darling, don’t to wear it out,” he blew a kiss, sitting up on the table.
“Love potions, huh?” in his horror, Ciel hadn’t even noticed Ronald had stolen the book (as well as a sandwich).
“Ooh!” Grell called, leaning in closer, raising his eyebrows. “Is somebody looking to trick some poor soul into loving him?”
“No! No, in fact I’m trying to un-romance someone, thank you very much.” He stood.
“That shouldn’t be too hard…for you.”
Ciel rolled his eyes.
“So, not that crushing the dreams of others isn’t in your repertoire, why do you want to do that?”
“It may be difficult for you to understand, but some of us don’t look for romance in every guy they meet,” he stole the book back from Ronald (who was starting to to look too interested for the young earl’s comfort.)
“Now that’s just rude,” Grell folded his arms over his chest and put his chin in his hand. “But, I’ll choose to ignore your impotence,” he turned, becoming more animated, “because you’re in charge of my Sebas-chan. Speaking of love,” he said the word like it was fine caramel, “where is my precious Sebas-chan?” he looked around, casting his eyes towards the blank spaces at staff table.
“He’s—”
Before the sentence could fall on his tongue, the words snagged on the mental image of Grell and Sebastian canoodling like schoolboys.
“NO!”
That caught their attention.
“I mean uh—” he coughed, “No…He’s uhh…I…”
He could barely think with these images making him sick to his stomach. He set down what was left of the lunch he was no longer hungry for, trying to shove his brain into the mode where it could formulate a cunning plan.
“Well? Spit it out, boy! We haven’t got all day! Some of us have plans. I, for one, have a hair appointment this afternoon,” he fluffed his crimson locks.
“You know what?” Ciel chose a more confrontational approach. “I don’t have to tell you where Sebastian is.”
“You don’t have to, darling, you should want to.”
“No. You know what? I don’t want to. And you know why I don’t want to?”
“I have a feeling you’re going to tell me.”
He had to think of something fast. Something clever. A good excuse.
“Why don’t you ever want to spend time with me?” he slammed the book on the table.
So much for that.
“Huh?” Grell, Ronald—(and Ciel’s own brain)—responded upon hearing the words.
“Yeah. You heard me.” It wasn’t the best plan—hell, it wasn’t even a good plan—but Ciel was committed at this point, and came up with a plot fiercely in his mind, “That’s right. It’s always ‘Sebastian this’, ‘Sebastian that’, but what about me?!”
“What about you, brat? You’ve never shown any interest in me. What happened to ‘we’re definitely not friends?’” he mocked his voice.
“….That’s what I say to my true friends.” They definitely weren’t convinced, so he added, “I’m only nice to my fake friends.” (Ronald lifted his head like a dog being told he was a good boy all along).
“Regardless if you’re telling the truth—which, I don’t believe you are—what makes you think I’ll give you the key to my heart now, after you threw away your chances? That’s no way to treat a lady!”
“I…I never had the chance to,” he looked away and hugged himself, trying to look pitiful, “what with you fawning over Sebas…chan,”—it made him sick to speak the nickname, but not as sick as he would feel if they found each other— “you never even pay me any mind.”
“What’s there to pay mind to?”
Ciel bit his tongue, and tried not to let that get to him, reminding himself everything could and would be far worse.
“Hey, hey!” Ronald stepped in the middle, noticing the rising tension of the scene, “There’s a simple solution after all; why don’t you and Mr. Sutcliff go for a walk today? That’s not too much to ask, right?” he turned to Grell, “You’ll still have time to see Sebas-chan before your appointment.”
“I suppose,” Grell bit his nails, ruining his manicure—which he quickly realized, and petted them as if to say ‘forgive me!’ “But I’d better get some quality time with my Sebas-chan!”
“Does that sound alright with you, Mr. Phantomhive?”
The thought of spending any amount of quality time with the reaper was repugnant. But not more repugnant than certain other thoughts and predictions his brain was happy to provide.
“Yes, that sounds just fine.”
“Then let’s get this overwith,” Grell stepped dramatically off the table, twirling his high-heeled shoes in the air.
Ciel’s thoughts exactly.
But there was something he had to do first.
“Erm, Ronald, would you mind doing something for me while we’re on our walk?”
Grell put his hands on his hips, suspicion and curiosity in his eyes.
“Uhh sure—I mean, that depends on what it is”
He pulled Ronald aside, towards the wall, out of earshot of the red-haired reaper.
“I just need to buy some time,” he whispered, “Will you please get Sebastian out of the teacher’s lounge for me.”
“Um…” he glanced between the two of them. “I suppose I could. May I ask why?”
“No you may not.” When Ronald seemed less than happy with this response, he added, “I can pay you back. Money, sandwiches…whatever you want.”
“Well, when you put it like that,” he grinned.
“Alright, Grell,” he cleared his throat, “it appears as though you and I will be going for a nice walk together.”
“‘Nice’ would be pushing it.” Grell muttered.
Ciel couldn’t agree more.
*****
The scene reminded him too much of a Thomas Kinkade painting; the snow covered trees and grounds, the faint chirping of birds, the pitter of small animals in the snow, the patter of kids playing, as well as more than a few romantic escapades displayed for all the world to see—like everything else in this sugarcoated nightmare, it was so sweet and was sickening. Ciel spent great lengths trying to avoid the mystic hellscape that was ‘outside,’ and whenever he found himself forced into its grasp, he remembered why.
Well, he supposed it wouldn’t have been so bad…if it weren’t for the blithering idiot beside him.
“Yeesh… love really is in the air around Valentine’s day.” Grell commented in the direction of the kids kissing by the frozen river.
“Oh? I thought romance was…your thing.”
“When I’m involved! Not these ragamuffins slobbering all over each other,” he shuddered.
They spent a while in awkward silence, before Grell spoke, “So, what do I have to do to get you off my back, Brat?”
“Ohh just spend a little quality time with me,” Ciel sang, putting his hands behind his back and stepping in front of Grell like a mischievous schoolboy. “That isn’t too much to ask, is it?”
Grell looked away. “I better be Carlos’ last customer today; my hair’s going to be a mess by the end of this.”
Ciel laughed fakely.
“So…” Ciel tried to think of something to talk about, “tell me about Carlos. Is he…cute?”
“Oh come on!” Grell stomped in front of him, “You can’t possibly mean any of this! You’ve never shown any amount of interest in me. I may be prone to fantasy, but I’m no fool!” he crossed his arms and looked away, then his green eyes trailed to him suspiciously, “What are you plotting?”
“Plotting?” Ciel laughed again, “Why so sinister?”
“Oh things are always sinister when Sebas-chan is involved,” he said ‘sinister’ like a radio announcer telling you that sinister is what you want, “usually it sends tingles down my spine! But this is just…” he looked down at the earl, his lip curling in distaste, “freaky.”
Ciel tried to ignore the fact that they were on the same brainwave today.
But he could see that he wasn’t going to fool him for long if he didn’t do something.
“Well…” Instead of formulating a suitable answer, he subtly pulled his wand from his robe pocket sliding it behind his back, and cast a little nonverbal spell that sent a snowball hurtling at the back of Grell’s head.
“Hey!” Grell spun around to two kids playing on the bank. “Which one of you imbeciles did that?! Haven’t I suffered enough?” he held up a split end of his hair.
The kids glanced at each other, confused.
“Now Carlos will have to give me the extra treatment to cover this!” he took a strand of hair and petted it.
Ciel smirked.
Messing with the reaper seemed both more effective, and more enjoyable, than chatting, so whenever a risky topic came up, he had a little extra fun avoiding the subject (goodness knows he needed it)—until enough time had passed that, if Ronald had done his job, Sebastian would be out of the teachers’ lounge, and they headed back into the school.
“Sebastian’s right around the corner.”
“He better be, Brat, after the hell-walk you took me on.” Ciel tried not to laugh when he looked at Grell—the sticks in his frazzled hair, the smeared mascara and lipstick, the muddy clothes (he had eventually stopped trying to protect or fix his appearance).
Ciel gave the fake laugh again, opening the door.
Despite requests and expectations, Sebastian was right around the corner.
There the demon remained (apparently he had been there all day) with a finished bust of the reaper sparkling beside him, not to mention a few more, smaller art pieces of the Redhead in different poses of increasing erotica.
Ciel felt all the anger that had been briefly soothed by messing with Grell re-entering his body with ferocity.
Why hadn’t Ronald removed him from this place like he asked? All he asked for was one simple thing, and he couldn’t even do that. Well, maybe it was his own fault he had put his trust in someone so incompetent as Ronald. Whoever’s fault it was, this encounter, and the memory of it, might just stain his brain forever, and someone was surely going to pay for it.
He turned towards Grell (the real one). Both his eyes and mouth were open wide, focused on the statue of himself, leering down at him with a flirtatious grin.
When the butler emerged from behind it, and saw Grell, he too froze, but in the quiet, reverent way the hot dude does when they see their love in romantic movies.
Ciel wanted to grab one, or both, of them and wrench them away from each other—exorcise the romantic spirits out of them (it’s an odd day when you want to exorcise a demon out of a demon), and maybe wring their necks—but he knew that would be met with more than a little resistance, (and using the Imperius curse in the teacher’s lounge would be more than a little conspicuous), and there was something rather mesmerizing about the scene; like a horror movie you can’t bring yourself to look away from.
Sebastian closed his eyes, giving a small smile before rushing to grab a rather large bouquet (likely made of the leftover flowers) and bowed, presenting them to Grell.
“For you, my darling Mr. Sutcliff.”
Ciel covered his eyes with his hand.
“For…me?” Grell’s words were distant and confused.
Rather than taking them with honors—Ciel saw between his fingers—however, he took a step back.
Sebastian held them higher. “Only you.”
Grell glanced between master and butler, and his hands shook as he took them (then his arms sagged with the weight).
Ciel shut his eyes tight, waiting for hell.
Soon the scene would turn into the amorous novel Grell always dreamed of, and that would be it. They’d find love in each other…or what passed for love when it comes to love potions. Should Ciel leave now and spare his mind the eternal horror? Or should he wait and just make absolutely sure that’s what would happen? Maybe there was some sick part of him that was even curious what would happen.
His patience, however, was rewarded;
“Get away from me you freak!” Grell threw the flowers across the room, and rushed to hide behind Ciel. “What the hell have you done with my precious Sebas-chan?!”
This time it was Ciel’s mouth and eyes that dropped open, staring, dumbstruck, like a bird that had hit a window.
Grell had flirted with Sebastian from the moment he met him (to be fair, he did this with pretty much every attractive guy he came across, still…). There were times when master and butler could use this infatuation to their advantage, but most of the time it was just a gigantic nuisance. Luckily, Sebastian shared Ciel’s distaste for the reaper’s advances, and never returned them. Since it had seemed impossible, before today, Ciel hadn’t had much time to imagine what Grell would do if the butler returned his affection. Not one of the sickening scenarios his mind had provided today had Grell rejecting Sebastian. Grell had always appeared superficial enough that Ciel guessed he wouldn’t care how or why Sebastian returned his feelings, just that he did. The fact that he could tell this was not Sebastian’s normal self made Ciel think slightly higher of the reaper.
But only slightly.
Maybe it should have made sense; it was the flirtation; the game, that Grell enjoyed, more than true romance, and heart. He had said so himself—he was just as disgusted by the teen romances in the courtyard as Ciel. (Though, to be fair, most adults generally found teen romance to be gross).
He couldn’t help but feel a growing pride and satisfaction that he would not have to witness any romance, or worse. That the roles of disgust had now reversed, and Grell could walk a mile in their shoes. Not that he thought Grell would become a better, less annoying person after this.
“I…don’t understand,” Sebastian’s eyes were full of welling hurt. He stood, staring at the discarded bouquet (which had all but exploded on the wall), “I’ve done everything for you…” he gestured around the room, “I thought this is what you wanted.” He looked at Grell like a puppy who had been thrown from a warm and loving upper-class home, out into the streets of London. He pulled out the picture he had barely stopped staring at since the other day, “Remember?” he held it up, “You said you would always be with me.”
Grell seemed torn, almost like Sebastian’s puppy-like disappointment drew his pity, but he backed away further, (still holding on to Ciel, almost making him fall backwards).
“What is this?!” he pointed, “Some kind of sick prank?! I want my sexy, coy Sebas-chan, back! Not this coddling fool!”
Ciel had to bite his lip to keep from grinning. This was too rich.
Sebastian looked at the ground, sadness, anger, rejection flaring in his eyes. Ciel would have liked to stay and enjoy Grell’s blubbering a little more, but he could see a demon-sized tantrum coming a mile away.
He didn’t make it a practice to touch pests like Grell, but in this case, he didn’t have much choice; he grabbed Grell and pulled him out the door, dragging him down the hall.
“What the hell is going on?!” Grell ripped his hand from the boy’s grasp and blocked his way, “Who was that idiot?!”
Ciel could barely breathe from laughing.
Grell blinked at him, then anger flared in his eyes again. Before he could catch his breath, Grell grabbed the boy’s shoulders and shook him, “What have you done with my Sebas-chan, you little Punk?!”
This made him regain composure quickly. He brushed his hands away and explained, “You remember the Valentine’s ball Lockhart threw?”
“Of course. My Sebas-chan was looking particularly dashing that night,” he blinked dreamily, then his expression changed as he remembered he had just seen Sebastian, and he was not so dashing today as previously advertised. “What did you do to him?!”
“I didn’t do anything!” he half-lied, “Undertaker was the one who spiked the punch with a love potion.”
“Undertaker’s the cause of this?! He took my Sebas-chan from me?! Oh that sexy bastard hasn’t seen the last of me!” he started to march past the earl.
Ciel blocked Grell’s way. “I already talked to him. He didn’t have the antidote.”
“Well maybe he just needs a little roughing up!” he rolled up his sleeves and tried again to go around him.
“You really think a man who takes pleasure in ruining other people’s lives will help us fix this?” he said to his back.
Grell stopped, turned around, “Well you would know wouldn’t you?!” He looked away, biting his lip. “You put him back then!” he shoved his chest.
“Why do you think I was reading that book about love potions?!”
That quieted his rage slightly.
In that moment, a certain student walked by, though not one of Hogwarts. He was surrounded by a gaggle of girls, and didn’t even see them.
Levicorpus! Ciel cast, and the girls’ gasped as Ronald was hoisted into the air by his ankle, his clothes hanging off him (showing off his stomach, and a bit of his underwear—the girls’ blushed and giggled).
“Whoa, whoa! What’s this—?! Oh…” the young reaper blinked upon seeing Ciel, recalling the task the earl had given him, and he rubbed the back of his head giving a mock-sheepish smile, “Hehe.”
Ciel tapped his foot impatiently on the floor. “Would you care to offer an explanation?”
Now that he knew Grell had no intentions or returning Sebastian’s artificial affection, the fact that Ronald hadn’t accomplished the task wasn’t nearly as big of a deal, but it could have easily been catastrophic, the anger was still there—someone had to pay, after all—and letting those who disobeyed him off, without even a decent scolding, was a bad precedent.
“I’m sorry, Earl, but these girls…they just kept coming up to me! There must be something in the air today!” he held out his hands as if to say you really think I was going to turn them away?
Ciel rubbed his temple, muttering, “Nope it was in the punch.” He sighed, taking a step forward like a predator. “I’m going to let you off this time, but believe me, I won’t be making that mistake again.”
“Come on, it was an honest mistake!”
“And an honest—”
“Mister Phantomhive!” a deep voice rang out across the hallway.
Ciel winced.
“…Professor Snape.”
His footsteps were a judgment toll.
“Care to release Mister…?” he looked at Ronald quizzically, realizing he didn’t recognize him.
“Knox,” the reaper offered.
“Knox.”
“Yes, Sir.” Ciel murmured.
Liberacorpus he cast, nonverbally, and the reaper spun in the air until he was set upright again.
Strictly speaking, they weren’t allowed to do magic outside class, and the curse on the school evidently hadn’t made the potions master forgo any of the traditional rules.
“I’d like to know who you two are, and what you’re doing at Hogwarts.” Ciel felt a little smug thinking of the potential trouble they could get into….until Snape turned “As for you, Mr. Phantomhive…”
“Yes, Professor?” he said politely, as if his politeness could suddenly change his heart and get him a less-harsh punishment.
“Detention.”
“…Yes, Professor.”
Ciel glanced at Grell, who had crossed his arms and whose look said it’s-what-you-deserve.
“Well!” Grell broke the tension. “We can certainly explain who we are and what we are doing here…at a later date. As of now, I have an increasingly important appointment to get to—Good Professor, I’m so sorry you had to see me like this, I promise wont look this bad when when we next meet!” he bowed low, “Come along, Ronald!”
“Yes, Mr. Sutcliff!” He blew a kiss towards the girls.
“This isn’t over” Grell whispered in Ciel’s ear as he skipped by.
“Nothing ever is with you, is it?” he muttered.
“What’s that?” Snape raised an eyebrow.
“Nothing, just excited for my detention!”
Snape raised an eyebrow, perhaps wondering if Ciel was under the spell after all.
*****
Ciel didn’t even go to class that afternoon, as it was double Defense Against the Dark Arts. Once again he returned to his dorm, and flopped onto his bed. He had only made it halfway through the day this time, and he was already drained. After some time resting (though his mind raced too much to actually take a nap), he finished skimming through the book on love potions. In the end, the only help it gave was a comprehensive list of the usual ingredients in love potions.
As he was putting the book away a diary fell out of the trunk at the foot of his bed. In the fatigue of the evening, and the tumult of the day, he had forgotten about his run-in with Harry yesterday.
He picked it up; the same simple, dusty, empty notebook as before—the simple, dusty notebook that was seething with dark magic. When he opened it to the first page he saw the smudged name T. M. Riddle. He hadn’t thought it was Harry’s in the first place, but was still displeased that the name didn’t sound familiar to him. He wondered if he was a student who dabbled in dark magic. Still, the power it held seemed more than what a mere student could conjure…
Ciel had never been one for feelings and the kind of sentimentality a diary implied, but it couldn’t hurt to try it out. There wasn’t much else to do but write in it. Evidently it wasn’t just a diary.
Setting it down on his desk, he flipped it open to the first blank page, got out his quill, dipped it in the ink, and began to write:
“February 16th
“Two days ago, Undertaker spiked the punch at Lockhart’s god-awful Valentine’s ball with a love potion.
“Now Hogwarts is infested with a swarm of insolent, love-struck zombies, because Undertaker is a—”
As he wrote, the words, instead of staying in place like words should, they were swallowed by the paper. As the earl stared, the ink resurfaced like a serpent beneath water, a reply forming from secondhand ink.
“My, that does sound awful.”
The words disappeared as soon as they came, then reappeared…
“Perhaps I could be of assistance.”
#black butler#kuroshitsuji#harry potter#ciel phantomhive#black butler crossover#kuroshitsuji fanfiction#sebastian michaelis#grell sutcliff#undertaker#Albus Dumbledore#crossover#harry potter crossover#kuroshitsuji crossover#black butler fanfiction#black butler fic#black butler fanfic#kuroshitsuji fic#kuroshitsuji fanfic#harry potter fic#harry potter fanfic#harry potter fanfiction#tom riddle#chamber of secrets#severus snape#ronald knox#undertaker black butler
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Harry Potter OC Ask Game: Verity Calvert
No one asked me to do this, but HP has been on my mind lately (when I really should be finishing another chapter I’ve procrastinated on for ages), and I figured this was a chance to think through and organize ideas for my OC. So, here we go!
-Rhuben
PS: This is the OC, btw I’ve given myself too many faceclaim choices for. Kathryn Prescott I chose first, specifically because she’s underused, but I’ve also more recently been looking at Natalia Dyer (but feel like a LOT of people use her), Alexis Bledel, or Emily Rudd.
Any opinions would be great.
What is their blood status (pureblood, muggleborn, etc)? What are their thoughts on the concept of blood status?
She would tell you her blood status is Pure-Blood. Blood status was never something she really thought about so much as she’s aware of how her parents keep telling her that it’s important for her to align herself with Pure-Blood families. Being Ministry workers (and overall a well known family - they have a lot of money), they have, just like Madeline’s teacher at Beauxbatons, always informed her about the importance of a good wizarding image and/or being a respectable member of Wizard Society. Funny thing is; she doesn’t realize she’s actually half-blood.
What is their wand wood and core?
Her wand is Beech Wood with a Dragon Heartstring core
Do they bring a pet to Hogwarts with them?
Yes, she brings her Great Hearned Owl, Nyx
What Hogwarts house were they sorted into? Why did the hat put them in that house over the others? Was it a quick sorting or a hatstall? Are they happy with their sorting? What Hogwarts house would they least fit into?
After transferring from Beauxbatons in her third year (despite the fact that most people have no idea where Beauxbatons is exactly, Madeline’s parents feel she’d be safer at Hogwarts under Dumbledore), she’s sorted into Gryffindor.
The decision was quick, but it confuses her as she’s always made top marks, and she believes she should be in Ravenclaw.
She’s not entirely happy with her sorting, and feels like that’s the one she least fits into, as she feels that she doesn’t show brave or courageous qualities as she’s always gone along with whatever her parents and teachers have told her to do. This also contributed to her success with her education as her act of rebellion at her home, whenever her parents would have Ministry co-workers over, was to hide out in the library and read.
What subject is their favorite at Hogwarts? Which is their least favorite? Is their favorite the same as their best subject?
Her favorite subject is Charms, least favorite is Astronomy. Her best subject is Potions. The theory behind magic is something Madeline excels at, but the wandwork behind spells and such, she has a harder time with.
What electives do they chose in third year?
Care of Magical Creatures and Arithmancy (she chooses to study Alchemy when she gets to her sixth year). She also has been known to spend her free time in the Hospital Wing with Madame Pomfrey, learning all about about the world of magical medicine.
Do they earn more house points or do they lose more?
Both. She earns them through her answering corrections correctly in class and following he rules, but also, as she finds her voice, loses them as she learns to speak up for herself
How do they do on their OWLs? On their NEWTs?
Verity does very well on her OWLS and NEWTs. She always viewed getting good marks as a sign of being well-taught and ready to enter the magical world as a respected member of magical society.
Thoughts on Quidditch? Do they play? And if so what position do they play?
Verity enjoys Quidditch. She’s a reserve member of the Gryffindor team playing Chaser.
What Wizarding treat (bertie botts, chocolate frogs, etc.) is their favorite?
By far, it’s a tie between Sugar Quills and Butterbeer
What is their Patronus? What happy memory do the use to conjure it?
Her patronus is a Dove. Her happy memory when she first successfully conjures it was the day he wand chose her.
What is their Boggart? What happens to it when they cast Riddikulus?
One of Verity’s biggest fears is drowning. Whether that’s actually in the literal sense or metaphorical; for example if she feels like she’s fallen too far behind with her homework and more and more keeps being piled on top of it.
At first, her boggart would be an image of herself drowning, but in air. Essentially she’d watch herself choke to death.
When she casts riddikulus, it turns into a mime. (Which I understand is scary for some people)
What does Amortentia smell like to them?
Lavender, Fresh Bread/Crepes/Pastries, Mountain Air
What spell is their favorite? Which do they use the most?
Her favorite spell is Stupefy. She uses Protego and Impedimenta often. Bombarda is possibly considered her signature spell.
If they needed it, what form would the Room of Requirement take for them?
A place to escape is the shortest answer: over the years, she just wanted to get away from her home and her parents. In her house, that area was the library. Hogwarts has one of those. The Room of Requirement would fill that sort of need for her when everything got to be too much. If at all possible, the room would take on the look of the mountains, much like how one of the first floor classrooms was transformed into a forest for Firenze.
If they trained as an Animagus what form would they take?
Probably some sort of stealthy animal; and her special marking would be a patch in the shape of a bow (because Madeline wears a lot of bows).
What do they do/want to do after Hogwarts?
Growing up, she wanted to be a Healer or a MediWizard; she likes animals and enjoys taking care of not only them, but people. Partly to overcome her feeling that she wasn’t really taken care of growing up, more groomed to look a certain way. It helped during the growing threat of Voldemort’s return, and when searching for Horcruxes with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Later in life, she also gained some notoriety for creating a “field guide” of sorts to help people learn how to create antidotes and the like when away from supplies such as cauldrons.
She would probably go into Magical Law, or, if it’s a thing, Archiving. She’s gone so long in her life with the world forgetting about her, (later on being dubbed, The Girl Who Disappeared), she doesn’t want anyone else to go through it.
Which Unforgivable Curse would they be most likely to use? What would be the reason for it?
Crucio; she has a lot of deep-seated anger in herself. She would never want anyone to die, but to feel even a tiny bit of the pain she’s felt, is something that’s crossed her mind a time or two. Prolonged torture as a whole, however, isn’t something she can wrap her head around.
Which Unforgivable Curse would they hate to have used on them the most?
Impero; because she’s already lived a long life of everyone else telling her what to do, or how to look. She no longer wishes to be under anyone’s control but herself.
Which Deathly Hallow (wand, stone, or cloak) would they want? Why?
The Resurrection Stone; it’d be nice for her to get advice from some of her friends/family that passed on. Or just to get general reassurance.
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Alethia, 1, 2, 7, 8, 11
1.) Where is your character from, and how did they wind up in their starting city (if they’re not from there)?
Alethia is of Ala Mhigan ancestry - her father, Apostolos Eclaircir, was a scholar, healer, and spy for the rebellion in King Theodoric’s court; her mother, Myrrhine, was a monk of the Fist of Rhalgr. They kept their relationship secret in the midst of Theodoric’s reign of terror, planning a celebratory wedding once the Mad King was finally ousted. Instead, the Temple of the Fist was ransacked just a month after Thia’s birth, and Apostolos was left with his grief and his baby girl.
Apostolos fled the court immediately, dodging a few assassins on his way to openly join the rebellion as a healer during the civil war. But when Garlemald invaded he left the fight, prioritizing getting his daughter as far away from the empire’s clutches as possible. He helped guide a band of refugees across the border into Gridania to plead for sanctuary, but they were rejected by the Elementals. Though Apostolos himself was offered a place within the conjurer’s guild, he was already wracked with guilt for leaving the rebellion behind, and could not stomach serving the forest that had rejected his countrymen.
Their search for sanctuary brought them all the way to the high walls of Ul'dah… and no further. Though his skills would have been quite marketable inside the city walls, Apostolos refused to abandon those who had survived the journey this far only to be turned away at the gates. Thia grew up in Stonesthrow, amidst the ramshackle shanties and tumbling dust. Already quiet, distant, and prone to long bouts of dissociation, Alethia became more and more laconic as her Ala Mhigan accent earned her jeers and mockery. Her greatest joys were in her father’s lessons - magic, history, geography, arithmetic, astronomy. The world viewed through his eyes seemed so much brighter than the dirt, blood, and coin of the roads that led to Ul'dah.
She spent most of her childhood attempting to be as invisible and unobtrusive as possible, but eventually her father’s lessons and her endless, volatile well of aether grabbed the attention of the Thaumaturge’s Guild. When she received an offer of sponsorship, her father strongly encouraged her to take the room, board, and access to more books than she had ever seen in her life. She made few friends there, and her long silences only lengthened, but the well of knowledge and the new outlet for her flares of aether more than made up for the mockery and isolation.
Apostolos died during an altercation with some Brass Blades shortly before Alethia finished her studies at the Arrzaneth Ossuary. The judge ruled that her father--a teetotal, spartan-living community healer and peacekeeper--had drunkenly assaulted the officers. The fact that his belongings were ransacked and any valuable potions or tinctures had gone missing was apparently of no consequence.
Thia left without a word, without ever officially graduating, and submitted her application to the Adventurer’s Guild. She wanted to help, as he had. An unmoored, unwanted, unknown creature of sand and dust.
2.) What major allegiances does your character have? Are they with the Scions through and through, or do they have different or additional priorities?
Thia is confused by any organization that offers her a membership, assuming they have low standards, bad taste, or odd priorities. She initially assumed the Scions were very elaborate pranksters. However, they were the first people to offer her answers about the fluctuations of her aether, the nature of the Echo, and the wider threats facing Ul'dah, Eorzea, and beyond. She quickly became quite fond of them in her own quiet way, though her lack of Sharlayan training and formal education made her feel she had little to contribute other than fireworks at first.
Aside from the Scions, Alethia had very few other organizational allegiances prior to the events at Baelsar’s Wall. Ul'dah was the most familiar, which mostly made its sins sharper in her mind. If she is loyal to anyone there, it is General Aldynn, not the Flames or the Sultanate (and certainly not the Monetarists and their Brass Blades).
Thia’s relationship with the Ala Mhigan Resistance is strained, confusing, and bittersweet. To many in Little Ala Mhigo and Rhalgr’s Reach, she represents the pampered, mewling cowards who abandoned the homeland to beg for scraps from the Sultana’s table. Still others--complete strangers--offer her stories of both her parents; some heroic, some mundane, but all sharp knives between her ribs. To honor the mother she never knew and the father ravaged by guilt, she threw everything she had into the liberation of their homeland.
7.) Does your character have thoughts of settling down some day? Is it in the region they came from, or somewhere they visited in their travels? Or are they a forever wanderer?
Thia’s wanderlust and desire to go where she is most useful are really just smokescreens for her all-encompassing sense that she does not belong anywhere. This has only gotten more pronounced as various city states clamor for her presence and assistance where they previously closed the door on Ala Mhigans. Life in Ul'dah is honestly more jarring, now, from her vantage point among the Scions. Her treatment there is so far removed from her young life as a refugee that she finds it by turns disorienting, amusing, and infuriating.
Gyr Abania is both familiar and alien, the fairytale land of her father’s bedtime stories and the ruined remnants of a home that will not claim her. Everything smells faintly of the spices that always perfumed her father’s alchemy; the textile patterns match the faded threads of his most treasured, weathered clothing; the music thrums and the rebels dance to the same tunes that broke out around the fires of Stonesthrow… but above all of it, a relentless voice echoes in Thia’s mind: “I will suckle on the souls of the hopeless and liberate the homeland they no longer deserve.”
No matter where she goes, Thia is eventually overwhelmed by feelings of, “I am not of this place; my name is foreign on their lips; I am unwanted here; I am a trespasser.” Displacement is baked into her understanding of herself.
8.) What is your character’s favorite place— to visit, or to stay in?
Despite its bittersweetness, Thia loves the Temple of the Fist, and will scale the walls of the Reach at all hours to walk the halls where her mother lived, trained, loved, and died. She would not admit it, but part of her hopes to some day receive an Echo vision of the brave and unflinching woman she cannot remember.
She is also fascinated by the Sunken City of Skalla, and has made several more exploratory expeditions there to study, catalog, and contain threats to resistance members seeking to redistribute the Mad King’s trove.
More recently, she became very fond of the Bookman’s Shelves and the Bureau of the Architect - one for its association with a certain person, and the other for how it clarified many things she never understood about herself.
11.) What’s your character’s family like (found, blood, or both)? Are they still in contact?
Thia has no surviving blood relatives, but she does have very close family friends who may as well be aunts and a cousin. Aledis was a sworn sister to Myrrhine in the Fists of Rhalgr, and remained close with Apostolos in the fallout of Ala Mhigo’s downfall. Her daughter, Valle, is the closest thing Thia has to a sibling. Thia is very protective of her, and content to sit and listen in warm silence as Valle enumerates new theories for an entire rainbow of new carbuncle varieties.
#ffxiv ask prompts#Alethia Eclaircir#there is Reward Art for people who read all the way through this ridiculously long response#ffxiv flailing#my art#sad ala mhigan is half my brand#catpella
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It's gonna be interesting to see Lucis's reaction to the existence of the second Prince.
OH IS IT EVER.
-Meltdown just about covers it, but not quite. Like- not only is this a second prince, but he’s OLDER than Noctis by a good seven years. Ignoring the media for just a sec (though OH BOY THE MEDIA) the MOOGLENET (or whatever the FFXV version of the internet is) is gonna have a collective heart attack. Some people are gonna be joining on the media boat of questioning Regis for having a son out of wedlock (and if he still has Nox’s mother in hiding somewhere as a mistress) but others are going to be harping on Nox himself. Like- the theories get WILD. How did Regis’s agents not find him until he was 15+? How strong is his magic? Why does he wear long sleeves in every (rare) photo or video and why are his photos and videos so rare? Where was his mother from? Was she even Lucian?
-Top theories on those are that either his mother/mother’s family HID him from Regis’s agents or he was living in another country until recently (considering the only other “countries” right now are all under Niflheim’s thumb, this immediately spawns the theories that he’s a double agent for the Empire or he was tortured by them and escaped, which would explain the long sleeves). Other theories for the long sleeves is he’s hiding tattoos that would shame the royal family (he already has long hair and strange taste in earrings after all). Maybe Regis is hiding him from the public eye because he’s ashamed of his illegitimate child, or maybe there’s something wrong with him (people who go with the “tortured and escaped the Empire theory assume he has mental issues on top of scars). A really popular theory for his mother was that she was from Niflheim, possibly a Nif agent there to get the royal bloodline in Nif hands, until someone dug up a picture of him hanging out with the glaives and someone else (probably a Galahdian tbh) did a breakdown on how the single braid visible in all of Nox’s photos is a Galahdian braid, which immediately makes the theory that his mom was Galadhian way more popular (there’s also a niche theory that he’s the kid of Queen Sylva and Regis and that Slyva had been hiding him in Tenebrae until recently, but few people subscribe to that one).
-And let’s not forget the DRAMA the mooglenet is waiting breathlessly for the moment his existence is known. I mean- think about it. Much older illegitimate prince with possible scars, mental issues or enemy agent mom suddenly gets found and taken into the Citadel and named the second prince? A lessor inheritor even though he’s older than the Crown Prince by seven-ish years? If this was a drama show, then Regis would end up assassinated by the long-lost son he foolishly took in and Noctis would either die or disappear mysteriously and Nox would suddenly be the only LC left to take up the throne (and possibly turn it over to the Empire if you’re one of the theorists on the “was born and raised in Niflheim and is their double agent” boat). Like- you KNOW that is how the plot would go, and so does all of the mooglenet, who await the descent of their kingdom into Game of Thrones intrigue and murder with baited breath and much frantic typing.
-But those are mostly Insomnian mooglenet users. No, the ones who live out in the wilder areas, the small towns and the outposts where Hunters often come through have a different kind of meltdown that mostly comprises of “hgdgfd that guy who saved me from monsters/daemons/nifs was WHO????” or “That’s my regular non-regular. He and his weirdo Uncle stop by my ramen stand whenever they’re in and bicker over the best toppings. ACTUAL ROYALTY likes my ramen WHAT IN THE WORLD-” or, arguably the funniest one, “HGFGFHGFD THE DRIFTER I REGULARLY HIRE TO DO RANDOM CHORES IS THE PRINCE. OF. LUCIS?? THE KIDDO WHO DRESSES LIKE A HOBO AND TAGS ALONG WITH AN EVEN MORE HOBO UNCLE IS ROYALTY???? I SENT ROYALTY TO COLLECT MY BEAN CROPS??????”
-Basically while all of Insomnia is wary and confused by Nox’s existence, the rest of Lucis is collectively losing their minds because, you know, Nox has helped out his people where he can, which means he has ABSOLUTELY done all those random side-quests where you harvest somebody’s crop or look for a lost shipment or go out and fight HORRIBLE MONSTERS so bring back some of their parts that you need for your dinky little weapon’s shop. Like- everybody thought they were the only ones who got helped out by this random drifter kid, but then THIS happens and the mooglenet explodes with stories from ALL OVER FLIPPING LUCIS of this kid dropping everything to like- help a researching find certain colored frogs or something in exchange for trinkets and petty gil and shop discounts and the occasional potion.
-While Insomnia is busy prepping their Game of Thrones style fanfic and the tabloids are speculating on the mental (in)stability and bloodline of the “brooding illegitimate prince, no doubt embittered over his early life and eyeing the little brother keeping him from the throne”, the rest of Lucis are basically melting into puddles of shock, confusion, and adoration for the royalty that would drop everything to help out random citizens. Care packages start showing up from all corners of Lucis to thank their prince, and after they’re cleared by security, Nox opens them all. And writes thank you cards. Personalized thank you cards that often reference some individual event or factoid of the person/people it comes from (thing’s like, “I hope your ankle is doing better”, or “tell your wife thank you for the knitted socks, they’re very warm and she didn’t have to make them for me, I know wool is expensive in your area”, or “sorry I won’t be around to deliver your next batch of spiracorn tails, my father doesn’t want me going on Hunts right now for whatever reason”) and this proof that he REMEMBERS and STILL CARES just makes them love him more.
-Also there’s this music-based drabble thing I’m working on that happens JUST as the mooglenet/media is starting to calm down and THAT sets everything off again with even more screaming and confusion and Insomnians going “I’M SORRY WHAT????” while the rural Lucians just go “ahh. Ah yes that explains it. That’s our little Drifter.”
-Regis is torn between being Responsible About Security and wanting the Hilarity Factor of letting Nox have a social media account. Like- his son hates public appearances of any kind and he respects that (barring the few mandatory noble balls), but Regis can just imagine the utter chaos Nox would unleash if anyone ever let him have a Twitter account and it’s .... tempting. The nobles haven’t been this off balance in years and for all some (a lot) of the tabloids and media commentators are annoying in their harping and gossip, the collective brain-melt Nox keeps triggering in the collective public/nobles/Council/media is HYSTERICAL.
-Nyx, snickering, announces one day that Nox has fanfiction about him. Like- A LOT of it. He is reigns over a thriving chunk of the Real Person fandom, almost all of which is massively OOC and either filled with political intrigue and assassinations (and sordid badly written romance) or just straight up AUs (vampire/werewolf/supernatural Nox is a stunningly popular AU as is the Usuper Dystopia AU). Nox is morbidly curious but refuses to actually read any of it for fear of losing his mind (she doesn’t tell him about the very fierce Shipping Wars that have broken out, or the fact that most of those Shipping Wars are over various popular celebrities Nox has never met, Noble Daughters he’s met and despised, and Aranea Highwind, who is on the list solely because she’s a famous female Nif officer and the Nif!Nox theory is very popular).
-There would be a segment of that fandom dedicated to works from the common folk who’ve actually met him, but for that part of the population it’s more popular to share various stories about how they met the then-unknown prince for real and how he either helped them or was adorably awkward over something (there is a magazine anthology of those stories, released monthly and very popular out in Lucis proper, Cindy has a subscription that Cid refuses to admit he reads).
-The fandom/theorists even stretch into Altissia and Niflheim. If ANYONE asked, Loqi would refuse to admit, on pain of DEATH, that he is the author of That One Fic everyone knows about/favs/follows/fanarts that features a Nox/Aranea ship, the now ex-Chancellor as Nox’s maternal uncle, and a SCARY in-depth knowledge/breakdown of both Niflheim and Lucian politics (in the context of Nox and Aranea navigating them, surprisingly this is the one Super Popular Nox-Nea fic that DOES NOT feature a Double Agent!Nox).
-The only reason Ardyn does not contribute to the rumors/fanfics/theories is because he doesn’t Understand How the Mooglenet Works™. He has, however, gleefully listened to some of the glaives read Loqi’s That One Super Popular Nif-Written Fic and smirked to himself over how it is so OBVIOUS who the author is, and pleased that Loqi the author is actually tasteful in his courtship subplot and shipping habits.
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After a good night of sleep, a reread and access to a readmore, here are some thoughts on the mol update:
-I’m glad the fight didn’t stay too long on the angel and demons, while it’s interesting to see what kind of forms demons can have, it’s just too late in the story to get invested on a whole bunch of new creatures or the danger they pose.
-Zorian almost being petty on Xvim admiring the angels’ barrier, some things never change :’)
-I like that for a moment, Zorian isn’t sure he will be able to use his ‘secret plan’. We know he will, of course; this is not the kind of story where the protagonist ultimately fail. Also Domagoj mentioned on his patreon/wordpress he considered doing a sequel centered on Zorian and Zach, which kinda imply those two survive. But it would feel too... convenient if everything went smoothly. Of course there are going to be moments were he is not sure at all his plan will work.
-Oganj being able to pass through the divine barrier is what really sold me on how impressively dangerous of a threat he is. It’s one thing to be a menace able to make a whole continent shake, but angels felt like a cut above that.
- “After a few seconds, he noticed that everyone except Zach was staring at him strangely.” I thought this would be the set-up for another ‘Zorian forgot what an average mind mage can do’, instead it turns into a moment of reminiscence on how the people we all came to know and love died in the loop. Which is excellent heartcrushing. Well played.
-Zorian’s actions being described as only being ‘a drop in the bucket’ felt a bit... surprising? I expected him to be more of an influence. It makes sense, of course, but after being used to stories where the protagonist become overpowered, it feel unexpected. Not in a bad way through.
-Can I just say that I love that we still have small moments of Zorian thinking his original self would be horrified and that he’s numb of all those atrocities he let happen to spare his mana? Too often stories brush off the mental impact those kind of fights can have on someone. I hope the epilogue will touch on this a bit more.
-An army of pigeons (and cats) to the rescue. Oh man that was hilarious. As always it makes sense because their existence was talked about multiple times, but still. How can you not laugh at the idea of cultists going their way in an intense moment to be stopped by pigeons. It also makes for a small contribution from Raynie and Haslush, which is great. Secondary characters having a role in the finale is great.
-If it weren’t for them surely being made with souls, potion monsters feels like something Zorian would invest in researching once the situation have settled. It feels like something not mana-intensive, and with a bit of mind magic to control them it would be devastating.
-Silverlake trying to get a rise out of Zorian by asking about his sexuality shows she is quite good at finding the touchy points of people, but it does makes me wonder if something happened within the loop for her to think this could potentially work. But also, she formulate the whole choice as merely a personal, selfish one (trying to save one person he is invested in instead of all the potential ones he could have helped with sabotaging the invasion from the inside), which is... quite Silverlake-y. She can’t fathom someone choosing something outside of their own interests.
[Unrelated to the update, but I did wonder some times how common would sapphic relationships be in a witch coven, what’s with them putting men aside. Surely a witch who decided to get a male partner solely for procreation, then abandoning him to go and raise her daughter with another witch must have happened at some point? If Silverlake was aware of such things happening then it would be more likely she would come up with such a question to bait Zorian]
-Holy heck, Silverlake and Red Robe being full of primordial essence. It feels so obvious, but it did procure a rush of “how the heck are they going to stop them all from releasing the primordial now”. Same when Silverlake’s regeneration abilities were shown. What a fearsome adversary.
-At last, the grey hunter! It had to come up at some point, and what better prey than the one that trained it against traps. But old Silverlake appearing? It was something I would not be sure would happen. Oh, what a joyful moment, having her own selfishness and paranoia come to bite her back :’D
-The soulseizer chrysanthemum was something I saw some people predict, and it made all too much sense for it to be used. Good luck to Quatach-Ichl to find another live one to train himself to resist against it.
-Speaking of Quatach-Ichl. He might not have the crown anymore, but he have connexions, lot of power, and he is used to long-term thinking. Now that they’re back on linear time, Zorian and Zach are going to have a very troublesome enemy to think about.
-Oganj the powerful dragon mage getting both the imperial crown and orb, while we have no idea if he survives the angel going after him. He is totally not going to be a problem later on the road. (Well, best case scenario, our favorite lich will try to get his crown back and they end up fighting each other. Worst case scenario, however, is an unlikely alliance between the two. How, man, I’m glad the story is ending because I would not have been able to wait on how that would come back).
-Aaand here is the town wide web area of sigils coming up. Most people had guessed it would be used against Zach, some people did thought it would be used on Jornak, but not on both at the same time.
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-Gosh, the Zach’s pov chapter. It’s all I wanted from such a chapter at least a canon chapter. It... did feel a little off-putting at first because I felt like... overall voice?... of it would have a different... I dunno, something more... Zach? Not that I had any expectations on how it should have gone- I wasn’t even sure we would get his point of view in the first place.
-Him slowly giving up on ever getting out before Zorian came up in the equation, gosh that’s the kind of content I craved. I wouldn’t mind a whole chapter of this. And ah, him finding Zorian a bit scary is pretty great *stare in the distance at this fic idea that refuse to write itself*
-I hadn’t thought on how, if Zach hadn’t been through that many loops, the two would definitely had more conflicts on the way to do things. An interesting thing to think about.
-Zach isn’t just a dumb brute and I do like that this end up being Red Robe’s fatal mistake. It’s easy to fall back into this error while writing, so I appreciate that Domagoj did play on it; it’s hard writing a character being impulsive and failing to think through on a lot of things, without them coming up as completely stupid, and still making it look consistent as a whole.
-Zach is ‘just a little bit jealous’ of Zorian beating Quatach-Ichl, while Zorian himself wanted earlier to be petty and defensive of his own abilities compared to a angel barrier. Those guys, I swear.
-The diagnosis spell Zach used necessitate contact. Interesting, when a lot of divination magic shown in the story haven’t required it, or even any chant for that matter. Is it for dramatic purpose, or is it specific to divination related to healing? Or is it just ‘the closer the subject of the divination is the better the result, so of course physical contact is going to give the best answer’?
-”And Zach... felt happy. He felt disgust with himself for it, but he really did. [...] He was free, and all it cost him was the life of his best friend.” This. This is the kind of angst I live for. What a perfect conclusion to this chapter.
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-I half-expected a Zach’s pov chapter, but a Jornak one? Now that’s unexpected, but it answers questions I did not know how to formulate- I always wanted more details on how they ended up becoming more friendly, or how Jornak did manage to get into the loop. (I... actually still want more details even after reading the chapter, but I feel like it’s one of those case where the author would rather leave it at that and let the readers make their own suppositions).
-This chapter also is good for characterisation purpose- Jornak truly believes in what he’s doing, but also show a fair amount of how his life was pretty bad and how he feels the whole world is unfair towards him- which doesn’t make him likeable, but interesting as a character.
-The grey hunter have its belly full of primordial energy after slurping Silverlake, which totally won’t be a problem later on. At least this one the cultists will have a tough time finding it for sacrifice purpose. (Though I do wonder, if the primordial essence itself is linked to the contract? It was only the souls of Silverlake and Jornak, wasn’t it? It would be way too convenient if the primordial essence disappeared after the month is over)
-Zorian making him relieve the supposed after fight over and over till he gets all his secrets. What an horrifying moment. I love it.
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-I’m pretty sure I read the theory somewhere the soulseizer chrysanthemum would be used for bypassing mind-blank? It’s been a while since I read discussions on previous chapters. I like the explanation on the whole mind-soul-body link. It’s pretty much like cutting your computer from internet to avoid piracy, but forgetting to put an higher password on said computer when you leave your desk unattended.
-It’s reassuring to know the manifold resonance spell can only be used a few times on the same person. One thought I had on post-story problem is, would Zorian’s ability to bypass mind blank forever put a gap in his relationship with Zach, as the latter is probably still very touchy about anything to do with his memories even after his contract ended? What about anyone who learns of it? Having it being limited on uses solves (at least partially) that problem.
-Kiri’s doll is mentioned, which I totally forgot but would be sad if it did not reappear! And ah, of course, the famous trick of replacing the mini-golem with another while pretending it was just a repair. Since Kirielle is probably going to study magic (if she doesn’t go the witch path instead), I wonder if she will end up specialising in golem-making.
-If the grey hunter goes into the Dungeon and makes it its territory, is there a risk the monsters there get chased to the upper layers? Would the araneas be enough against them? Would they get into the city? What an hilariously horrible conclusion. “Oh yeah we saved the city of the invasion, but with all the monsters coming up it’s impossible to repair it, we have no choice but to abandon it”. Unlikely even if creatures did appear, as it’s just the biggest mana hole of the continent, but it’s fun to think about.
-Not only did Zorian maintained two illusionary worlds, he did so while having an hivemind, and after a long and hard fight in which he also had to redirect an enormous amount of mana into an angel summoning cube. That, plus connecting with various people all over whenever Zach tried to verify their minds. No wonder he is tired.
-It’s probably not a good idea to stay in town, and I’m not sure where that secluded and secure space is, but I bet that’s not where Zorian will wake up next chapter. Not sure in which condition are Ismaya’s house or the Noveda’s estate, but it’s probably safer out of town... Cirin, maybe. Have Zorian wake up in his bedroom and have a small heart attack thinking the loop started again.
-...I hope out of the Damien-Xvim-Alanic trio, one of them at least take the time to wait for Zach’s wake up, or leave something for him to explain the situation. Through all the contingencies Jornak prepared are way more important, so it could be possible to overlook that. Can you imagine how Zach will feel suddenly waking up in a strange room, with your best friend your mourned being unconscious but alive, and a weird pile of goo on the side. Is this an illusion. Was your previous memory an illusion. How can you be sure.
-...What’s with the orb being out of Koth now, and the Taramatula estate having gained portals to move between continents, will Daimen visits his family more now? That’s great news! ...I guess. For Fortov at least, who is sorely needing some training. If he’s still alive. Who knows. Maybe the epilogue will tell us.
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That Time We Don’t Wanna Think About
Caerwyn groaned staring down at her book as she tried to fathom the sentence she had just read over for the third time. Sunlight streamed brightly through the windows of the Gryffindor common room, a gentle breeze blowing as it brought the beautiful scents of late spring with it. It was warm out, a day when they really should have been outside enjoying the weather, but alas, were stuck indoors due to one thing that every fifth year was worried about. O.W.Ls. The final tests for the year were serious business, especially as they determined what you would be allowed to take the next year for the kind of career you wanted in the future. If you didn’t pass up to proper standards, then you couldn’t take the class, even if it was one you needed for your future plans. Caerwyn, having no idea what the hell she wanted to do with herself once she was finished with school, simply wanted to do well enough to take at least the basics of what she’d been learning since first year. That would be good enough to give her a wide range of possibilities anyway.
The past several weeks had actually been quite arduous for the tiny Gryffindor. The combination of O.W.Ls looming, having found out more information about her parents than she’d ever imagined, learning about potions that could potentially help her ailment that wasn’t an illness, but a curse, and then, on top of all of that, she was going to have to be going home which meant she wouldn’t be able to see her friends or Louis for a while. The very idea of being separated from her boyfriend was painful to think about. At the wedding, Caerwyn had spent the remainder of the evening straddling Louis’s lap, eventually falling asleep against his chest as he’d stroked her hair and back, keeping her calm and safe after the onslaught of overwhelming information from Ifor. Caerwyn didn’t remember much else from that night aside from Louis trying to wake her a bit, and when she’d groaned and refused, he had lifted her upwards instead. The redhead had carried her along, legs wrapped around him as he took her home, back to his grandmother’s house, and tucked her into bed without bothering to undress her except for her boots. He had been there when she’d woken in the morning and had to sneak out so as not to be noticed by his parents.
“I fucking hate this.” The gremlin sighed, letting her head fall back against the arm of the couch. Her legs were stretched out, placed in Louis’s lap as they sat across from Rose and Albus. They had chosen to study here today as both Rose and Caerwyn were in Gryffindor, so it made the most sense. Other fifth years had gathered in different parts of the room, whispering in groups as they studied together or singularly. Anyone who spoke too loudly was quickly shushed, which, as it was Gryffindor, happened more frequently than not. Outbursts were common, slammed books or kicked chairs making the occasional appearance. Caerwyn was not the first to utter the phrase that day, nor would she be the last. Even those who did well in their classes were looking overwhelmed with the sheer amount of things they were reviewing for the tests that would help determine a path for the rest of their lives. They all had study guides from the professors and went over plenty of things in class, but it was highly encouraged to keep studying in whatever free time they might have as well. It was important to pass, to succeed and do their best. “When am I ever fucking going to need to know who the fifth asshole member of the tiny dicked Wizenmagot was in 1857 and the important dumbass contributions he made to the fucking laws of wizarding society?”
Caerwyn slammed her book shut and tossed it to the floor before reaching over to the coffee table to take up a different one. She hated History of Magic with a vengeance, having never enjoyed it in the least. It was the most boring subject to ever exist as far as she was concerned, at least, the way it was taught here. An old ghost of a professor who didn’t seem to realize he’d died would simply spend an hour every class lecturing them in a droning voice that made most of them fall asleep before assigning them some kind of asinine homework to do. Caerwyn had spent far too much of her life bullshitting essays for that particular class, but she would still try her best on the test, because, well, she had some pride within her somewhere. Even if she did think it was stupid.
“I wish there was some fucking easier way to do this shit.” The Welshling propped her Transfiguration book in her lap now. It was a subject she liked a lot better at least, even if she wasn’t the best at it. She tended to excel when it came to Charms and anything else that was more hands on, but Transfiguration required a lot more brainwork as well. It wasn’t was easy as waving your wand and pronouncing things correctly until you got it right. No, Transfiguration came with a whole slew of theory behind it as well as the fact that it could potentially be very harmful if you did it wrong. It also didn’t help that studying was difficult for Caerwyn at the moment in general.
After the wedding, the tiny Gryffindor’s mind had been full of so many new things to think about. There was the obvious emotional strain of having learned about her birth parents, something she had only shared with Louis so far. She was tempted to talk to Rose about it as well, but simply hadn’t found the right time to bring it up. Soon though, maybe when they were done with their O.W.Ls. She didn’t want her best mate to have anything extra to worry about at the moment. On top of that, Caerwyn was also dealing with the fact that she had dealt with Louis’s Veela cousins at the wedding. They had been cold-hearted bitches, just as Louis had described, making her extremely uncomfortable in her own skin, which, well, Caerwyn did enough of that on her own, thank you very much. Finally, the Charm. Louis had promised Caerwyn it was something he would never use on her. She had seen it in action when Gabrielle had used it on Ifor and just the memory of it still gave her shivers. Caerwyn trusted Louis, but… Well, the Charm came with silver eyes. And Louis’s eyes went silver around her quite a lot. Was it just a coincidence? Caerwyn didn’t think she’d ever felt herself lose control around him, like she had to do what he asked of her… all except for that one time when she’d first met him. It was this that put doubt in Caerwyn’s mind more than anything. That, and the teasing words of his cousins that came in nightmares about it when she slept.
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Shipping Calculus! Live Updates from C2E58
In which we learn that shopping episodes are not necessarily shipping episodes. A lean week, but one that allows time for feelings to percolate, perhaps? Masterpost here
+1000 to Yasha/Caffeine as Caduceus’ experiments with brews finally pay off and pull Yasha from her somnambulatory state and into alertness. She is so impressed by the power of his tea that she goes looking for tea leaves in all of the shops. We don’t want to lose her again to a sleep attack, after all.
-2 to Fjord/Caleb. Positives: Caleb defending Fjord from his murder cat, pointing out the “very special manacles” in his bag and that alone when Fjord asks him about items—manacles which, might I add, Fjord has been avidly collecting throughout the campaign—and which effectively shuts down Fjord asking Caleb anything else for the next forever. Asking Fjord to please do the introductions to the miners, supportive intimidating pissing. Negatives: Fjord all “lawl what if we just left Caleb to wander the city alone wouldn’t that be funny” no you absolute asshole.
+1 to Jester/Caleb with a +1 carryover wink from the day previous. A perfect balance of point gains and losses from this point on, with Caleb immediately giving Jester a truly obscene amount of money for diamonds (but it’s for the group, he says, preventing point gains), losing points by giving away all of Jester’s precious pets to keep Yeza happy, but making up for it by gracing her with a purring Frumpkin to adore in their absence, and accidentally mumbling something that sounded a little like “yeah” when Jester asked to keep Frumpkin forever. Jester must know the cat comes with the wizard, though—if she’s going to keep Frumpkin, Caleb will have to be part of that package.
+12 to Jester/Fjord which may have been more, were it not for Jester merely earning what we in the lab call A Point For Trying as she put her foot in her mouth not once, not twice, but somewhere around fifteen different times during the truly horrific conversation at the blacksmith’s, funneling all the rest of her points from the first half of the episode into +20 to Jester/Fjoot in Mouth. However, the pair make up some excellent ground with jellyfish references, switcheroos in riding placement on Yarnball, picking the same infiltration team, much mention of Fjord’s handsomeness and smartness, and “Captain” and “Lieutenant” roleplay which makes Jester the most highly ranked so far of Fjord’s beloved “you work for me” roleplays (it always starts out high…) Nearly earned points with Jester interrogating Yarnball on her tracking ability in response to Fjord’s question, but she was cockblocked by Caduceus Clay and his ability to actually speak with animals, earning the firbolg fond looks from Fjord and +10 to Caduceus/Cat Shaped Creatures
+8 to Caduceus/Fjord. The current theory circulating in the lab is that Caduceus Clay and Jester Lavorre share similar taste in near everything—jewels, armor, tattoos, dresses, and, tragically, men. Which means they must vie for the same romantic interests for perpetuity. Here we have a Caduceus who manages not to put his foot in his mouth (Jester looks to him for help! A bad sign for her), who very effectively talks up how Fjord saved his life on multiple occasions, and marvels at the “layers” he’s discovering Fjord has. Like an onion. Cooking with onions is great, onions are delicious. Therefore Fjord is…..? Anyway, Caduceus also very keenly and insistently “Captain”ing at the man throughout the episode, happily deferring as he makes excellent suggestions on how to proceed with the Giant-Killing-Job, and effusively complimenting Fjord alongside Jester on his intimidation prowess. But no amount of subtlety or cockblocking is going to keep up with the Sheer Baldfaced Panache of Jester’s flirting style—at least not for the moment. Fjord, for his part, contributing a point by steering Caduceus away from random pottery shops and towards a blacksmith like the exasperated husband he is.
+6 to Caduceus/Caleb as Mr. Impatient Wizard Man smears his beard with magic bean paste while Caduceus frantically looks through his bag for something resembling lather. “Never mind, that’s beautiful,” Caduceus says, seeing this. Caduceus wanting to know if he thinks Caleb actually needs a shave, because like the rest of us he is probably attached to a certain level of Caleb Scruff. Keeping a Cure Wounds at the ready for when Yasha inevitably stabs Caleb in the face, but Bleeding Impatient Wizard Man slips away from him before he can use it! Caduceus’ inordinate faith in how of course Intelligent Wizard Man Caleb knows absolutely everything about this magic darkness, and Caleb as always having to poke holes in others’ excessively high opinions of him.
+50 to Caduceus/Every Single (Male?) NPC as Caduceus carries on the kind of conversation you’d have with a date with Wursh the blacksmith, who admiringly speaks of how Caduceus is a “crazy motherfucker” while Caduceus speaks admiringly of how “even his advice has abs.” Both of them going on in a sickening way on how much of an “absolute pleasure” it is to spend time together, how glad they are of each other’s “company” in the blasting heat. Gag. Caduceus also, upon gaining the assistance of a “ballsy” mine worker, being “into it.” Of course you are, Caduceus. Of course you are.
+2 to Fjord/Elvis Impersonation for pelvis thrusting in public.
+10 to Caleb/Cat Shaped Creatures as Caleb is incredibly disappointed he can’t cram the moorbounders into his already cramped Tiny Hut. His affectionate “Who’s a good apex predator” to his blood soaked murder kitty. Also, while the others who bonded to the moorbounders learned only the commands “Halt” and “Jump,” resident cat person Caleb Widogast flaunts his superior connection to catkind by successfully employing a third command: “Piss.” Also +10 to Caleb/Pissing in the Wind
+2 to Beauregard/Lesbian Amnesia as she is incapable of recalling the word “shaft” in any context. Fjord helpfully fills her in, with some instructive hand motions that will also slip completely out of her memory within ten seconds.
+8 to Beau/Jester as upon Jester’s sincere request, Beau successfully puts a dick in a book at the library! “Would Jester be proud of me?” Beau asks eagerly, as Caleb rolls his eyes at her hopelessness. Beau grinning and entering the stratosphere at the prospect of spending a day clothes shopping with Jester, an activity which by definition involves the putting on (and taking off) of a lot of clothing with a very attractive blue gal. Beau calling on Jester to bring out the heart to the foreman, which didn’t intimidate him most likely because the whole time Jester and Beau were making gooey eyes at it reminiscing about mutilating corpses together.
+1 to Beau/Professor Waccoh as Beau is pleased as punch to show off her youth and muscles and tendency to bite. Failing to hit the mark with a “my fair lady” and stumbling worse with a “professor woman of deep knowledge” flirt, but managing to wring an “I like you!” out of the woman nonetheless.
-5 to Caleb/Books He was so excited to read the books, and he did not get to read the books! Caleb then immediately throws himself 50000% into helping a known weapons developer in her quest to more effectively spill Empire Blood, because no amount of moral handwringing can outweigh his bone deep need to Get A Library Card
-2 to Caleb/Item Hoarding as he resists, barely and with Great Effort, his Spoiled Only Child greediness to just take and keep all the items Waccoh offered as payment. Beau tries to point out that taking item payments and rewarding the group are not Mutually Exclusive, but this does not compute.
+42 to Nott/Yeza as post-reunion the pair perform surprisingly well even while under the Shipping Law of Rising Sexpectations. Pet names, screamed “I LOVE YOU”s, saving your wife from getting fleeced/stealing from assholes rude to your husband, showing the world how #Kinky you are, suggestive eyebrows at fake sex potions that Yeza is definitely going to find a way to brew into Real Sex Potions by the time the crew get back. Points lost for leaving Yeza alone, under effective house arrest in a hotel room as Nott gallivants off to her one true love, Killing Things.
-10 to Yasha/Reading the Room as Caleb tries and fails to gracefully duck out of another greatsword shave because Yasha is too adorably insistent that it’s no trouble really, he doesn’t have to worry about inconveniencing her, she really wants to do this for him. Paying an insane amount of money for a used straight razor for Caleb with no awareness, giving that same shopkeeper the impression that she came to the shop looking for extremely racy alchemical concoctions—if what the duergar had on the counter was “too tame” for her, what kind of amazing sexual adventurer could she be?
-10,000 to Sam Riegel/His Presidential Campaign I don’t know if he can recover from what happened to him this week. I don’t know if it’s possible.
#critical role#cr spoilers#lavorregard#beaujester#fjorester#clayleb#widojest#widofjord#fjorclay#shipping calculus#long post
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