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ozai-the-bonsai · 5 years ago

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Seiðr, Ragnarøk - Fjor Jutul

[7/7/2020 Edit: The full fanfic is being posted on Wattpad. Currently I have updated it with Chapter 24]

Foreword:

•We only get a little glimpse of Fjor in this chapter since this is the first one. He’ll be more active in the second one.

•I’ll keep the story on Wattpad, I’ll post the first few chapters here therefore I attached the story link (I am posting the chapter first on Tumblr so do not get confused if you just see the cast on Wattpad).

•The main characters Rosalinde and Sven are German, hence there are/will be some dialogues in German in each chapter with a given translation of course.

Enjoy :3

(Wordcount: 3134)

*1* Home Sweet Home, I Guess?

/2nd of March, Sunday/

"Wach auf, meine Liebe, wir sind fast gekommen." (Wake up, my love, we are almost there.)

Rosalinde Griebel opened her eyes slowly upon hearing her mom calling her from the driver's seat. She had been sleeping on the back seat since their last stop –it had always been easy for her to sleep while travelling with the car, especially when she felt annoyed and grumpy. After rubbing her eyes, she straightened and sat the middle seat with a yawn.

"All those language shifts from German to Norwegian still confuse me," Rosalinde muttered as she leaned forwards to turn the volume of the radio up. Then she sat back "I'm still having mixed dreams."

Her mother, Astrid, nodded as she casted a look at her daughter from the rear-view mirror "I know, sweetheart, it is the same for me, too. But when it's just the two of us, speaking German is like an instinct, you know?"

"Of course, we are German, after all. It is only our fourth year in this country." Rosalinde responded while reading a sign they passed by. Edda Municipality. She rolled her eyes in annoyance "In which we had to move for the second time because of you, Mutter." (-e Mutter = mother)

Her mother took a deep breath; it was as if she was sick of Rosalinde bringing up this very topic all the time "Do you really want to do this in the car? Argue with me for the fifth time today?" she asked, her voice was tired.

"Whatever, I'm still mad at you." Rosalinde spoke angrily as she crossed her arms on her chest and moved to the left seat, leaning the door. In fact, this time it was not her mother's fault –the hospital in Oslo, in which her mother worked as an anaesthesiologist, wanted her to be transferred to the one in Edda due to the doctor shortages. Still, Rosalinde was carrying a grudge against her mother because of forcing her to move to Norway when she was 14 and turning Rosalinde's life upside down. Therefore she was using this second moving as an excuse to remind her mother of that thing she would never forgive her for.

Not once she asked about my opinion, whether I wanted to leave my life in Germany behind. It was always about her, about her life. I never understood how she acted that selfish against her own daughter.

If it were up to me, I would have never moved to Norway –not that I do not like it here, Norway is an amazing country but I deeply loved my life in Germany. I loved every bit of Aachen, I loved my friends and I loved my dreams. And then one morning, the woman whom I call "meine Mutter" shattered all those dreams to pieces.

Rosalinde pushed her ginger hair away from her sight as her icy blue eyes focused on a large factory complex. The buildings were emitting too many gases, upon realising that she grimaced "Are they even allowed to emit all those gases? They seem pretty poisonous to me."

Her mother, who had ginger hair just like her daughter, frowned "I am not quite sure." she responded "But I rather not think about that."

Rosalinde shrugged "Have it your way." she murmured while she took her phone from her pocket. As she made the airplane mode off, a notification from WhatsApp appeared on her home screen.

Sven: Hey, sleepy head, are you up yet?

Rosalinde raised an eyebrow as her gaze drifted to the woman driving the car "Mom, how does Sven know that I have been sleeping?" she asked in a suspicious way.

Her mother chuckled while she took a left. They were starting to get close to the city centre "He called me to check up on you when you were sleeping –seems like your phone was off."

"You know I put it on the airplane mode when I sleep." Rosalinde said and turned back to her phone. Her nails with black nail polish were shining as she wrote the reply.

Rosalinde: Yeah, got my beauty sleep.

Sven: How do you find our new home so far?

Rosalinde: Idk, we shall see.

After five minutes, the car stopped in front of a small, blue coloured, triplex house. It also had a small garden, which was separated by the gardens next door with high bushes. Rosalinde and her mother got off the car and started carrying the boxes to their new house, during which another car stopped right after theirs. The first one to leave the car was a blonde, teenage boy. Rosalinde smiled as she saw Sven on her way back to the car to take the last box along with her luggage.

Sven approached her with a smile similar to Rosalinde's "Hey baby boy, you have arrived right on time." Rosalinde called Sven as she took the last box.

Sven rolled his eyes "What do you want this time, Lin?" he asked. It felt like he was coming across with similar scenarios a lot.

Rosalinde sent him a big, fake smile "It is your turn to carry my luggage."

After dropping the things at Rosalinde's house, the duo went outside to the garden. It was near 5pm and the weather was getting colder "It does not seem so bad, does it?" Sven asked, causing Rosalinde to look at him. His blue eyes were on her.

Rosalinde nodded "Well, for now, yes. The view is beautiful actually." she said, then smiled warmly at him "At least I have you with me here –I do not know what I would do if I had to leave my best friend behind once again."

Sven hugged her tight "I am glad you're with me as well. I would not want it any other way. We are lucky that both our mothers were transferred to the hospital in Edda." he said as he caressed Rosalinde's chest-length, straight, ginger hair. Sven's mother was an orthopaedic surgeon "Plus we left all those toxic people back in Oslo."

Rosalinde took a step back, leaving his arms "Toxic people are everywhere, dummy."

Sven rolled his eyes "Just for once, be a little more optimistic." he murmured "You do not have to be as black as the clothes you wear."

Rosalinde stuck her tongue out at him "I am being realistic; you can go live in your little utopia if you want."

Before Sven could snap back at her, the duo heard Sven's mother calling him "Sven, darling, come help us with unpacking!"

Sven smirked at Rosalinde "See you soon, neighbour." he said as he turned back to leave. The wind was messing his blonde hair.

Rosalinde rolled her eyes while she shouted behind him "Saved by your mother as always!"

"Go help yours already, Lin!"

***

It was past 7pm when Rosalinde and her mother were finally finished with unpacking. Rosalinde was lying on the grey couch in the living room, which was together with kitchen, as she scrolled in Instagram while her mother was searching for something in the kitchen. A few minutes later she called Rosalinde.

"Lin, do you want to hear the bad news?" asked the short, ginger haired woman.

Rosalinde didn't even lift her blue eyes from her phone "We have no food in the house and you want me to go get something, right?"

She heard her mother chuckle "Sometimes you make me think that you can actually read my mind." she said "Can you go to Spar and buy us some pasta?"

Rosalinde locked her phone as she slowly stood up "Nope, it does not work on you and you know that pretty well, Mutter." she said while walking towards the stairs "Any wishes as for the pasta?"

Her mother thought for a second "Penne could be nice. Oh, and buy a bottle of red wine as well."

Rosalinde nodded as she climbed the stairs "Can you take out my bike and unfold it? I'll change into something more appropriate –I can't go shopping with my pyjamas."

Arriving at the second floor, Rosalinde went for the second room in the row. There were four rooms on the second floor: the first one was her mothers, right next to it came Rosalinde's. At the right end of the floor was the so-called "hobby room", which was mainly used by Rosalinde when she practiced with her guitars –she had one acoustic and one electric guitar. On the parallel of Rosalinde's room was the bathroom and right next to it were the stairs leading up to the attic.

Opening the white, wooden door she entered her room. The walls were beige for now, she was going to paint them lilac later that week. In her room the first thing to see was her desk, which was at the corner, leaning the parallel wall. It was white, just like the door. On it were her laptop, a grey table lamp, some notebooks, a pen holder and a little cactus in a blue pot. On the wall, which was on the left side of her desk, three wall-mounted, white shelves could be seen. She had placed the snow globes she collected on the highest shelf, then came her candles on the middle one. The last shelf mostly contained random things that she couldn't find a better place to put.

Right next to the desk, a white bookcase with five shelves stood to its left. Only the upper two shelves were full, for that moment. Between the bookshelf and the bedside table was a window. Then to the right of the window she had her bedside table along with her bed, which was leaning the right wall of her room. The bedside table was light blue and had three drawers. In the first drawer she had her jewellery boxes and her hair pins, in the second one came her underwear and socks. The third one contained her pyjamas. On the bedside table she had a picture of her 14-year-old self, graduating from primary school in Germany. There was one other picture which was taken in Oslo the previous year, in which she was with Sven. Other than that she a clear jar that had an amethyst, a pinch of unused ground coffee and a handful of pine needles inside –which kept the negative energies away.

The quilt cover set of her bed was in a darker shade of purple, in addition she had hanged a dream catcher right above her bed. To the right of her bed was another window. Lastly her wardrobe was right next to the door, to its right. Yawning loudly, Rosalinde headed towards the grey wardrobe and took off her pyjamas, throwing them onto her bed. Then she wore a thick, maroon coloured sweatshirt and black, skinny, ripped jeans. As she took a look at herself at the mirror which was mounted on the outside of the wardrobe's right door, an unpleasant realisation hit her.

Argh, I have school tomorrow. And I am going to be the new girl. Again.

Putting her ID and some money in a small purse, Rosalinde took her phone and went downstairs. Her mother was waiting for Rosalinde at the door as she passed her daughter a black leather jacket. Placing the phone and the purse in the pocket of her jacket, Rosalinde wore her black Harley Davidson boots "Well, I'll be back soon." she told her mother.

"Sei vorsichtig, Liebling, wir sind noch ziemlich fremd in dieser Stadt!" her mother shouted behind Rosalinde as she mounted her bicycle. (Be careful, darling, we are still quite foreign to this town.)

Rosalinde did not bother looking back at her "Ich weiß, Mama!" (I know, mom.)

The ride to the supermarket was quite calming in fact. It took her approximately fifteen minutes and the weather was rather cold but she had always liked cold weather, it always made her feel alive and cleared the traffic of thoughts from her head. The streets were mostly empty, she had seen some cars here and there but it wasn't much. As she arrived at Spar, Rosalinde dismounted her bicycle and locked it to a nearby street lamp.

The supermarket was almost empty as well; the red-head quickly took a package of penne and a bottle of Chianti and headed to the cash desk. The cashier was an old woman with curly, grey hair and sharp blue eyes, which made Rosalinde feel uneasy in an unusual way. Upon seeing the blue eyed red-head, the old woman smiled as if she had known Rosalinde in person.

Not bothering to hide her frown, Rosalinde placed the things on the desk as she took out her purse from her pocket. The woman didn't ask for an ID while Rosalinde placed the pasta and the wine in a plastic bag "That's 237 krones." said the old woman. While Rosalinde was handing her 250 krones, their hands touched each other for a moment. The red-head gasped as the familiar feeling of being drawn into a vision surrounded her.

"You are a good kid." said the old woman to a tall, blonde boy wearing round glasses. As she smiled in an odd way, she raised her right hand –on her little finger she had two golden rings –to caress the boy's forehead. The boy gasped for air, his pupils widened for a moment, then returned to their regular shape. At the same time whispers in a different language could be heard.

"You are the chosen one, boy."

"Tor, God of thunder!"

"Innocent blood shall spill!"

"What was prophesised by the Völva thousands of years ago has come to occur –Ragnarøk!"

As the vision slowly let Rosalinde go, the red-head abruptly pulled her hand back. The old woman was eying her in a mischievous way. Quickly shaking herself, Rosalinde took the plastic bag and put her purse back in her pocket "You can keep the change."

Not daring to take another look at the old woman, the red-head left the supermarket at a trot. When she was outside, she took a deep breath in order to steady her mind and her heart, which was beating like crazy.

What the hell was that? And what is wrong with that woman? Argh, this town is beginning to annoy me already!

Should I tell mom about the vision I had?

No, not yet. First I have to see if I can interpret what I saw.

What brought Rosalinde back to reality was the sound of a whistle. After placing the plastic bag in the basket, which was attached to her bicycle, she turned back to look at the source. There were three boys leaning a black, 4x4 Volvo a few meters behind her. The one standing on the right had fair skin with brown hair and from what Rosalinde could make out, he had an attractive face. Next to him stood a blonde boy with his hair reaching his shoulders, he was slightly shorter than the brown haired one. The third one had dark brown dreadlocks at a level with his chin, he had dark skin.

Rosalinde raised an eyebrow in their direction.

The one with the dreadlocks called at Rosalinde "Hey, darling, are you from around here? 'Cus I ain't seen you before."

The red-head rolled her eyes at them as she showed the boys her middle finger and mounted her bike. She could hear one of them saying "Well, Oscar, seems like you've found a tough one here." while she drove away.

***

It was past 11pm when Rosalinde's mother came to her daughter's room, who was chatting with Sven "Meine Lieben, es wird spät und ihr geht zur Schule morgen. Ihr müsst schlafen." she said. (My dears, it's getting late and you have school tomorrow –you must sleep.)

Rosalinde was sitting on her bed crossed legged whereas Sven was sitting on the purple rug, leaning the bed "Mama, wir sind nicht fünf." the red-head spoke in an annoyed way. Sven chuckled. (Mom, we are not five.)

"Meine Mutter erwartet mich in einer halbe Stunde, Astrid, mach dir keine Sorgen." Sven responded with an understanding voice. The woman with ginger, shoulder-length hair smiled warmly at the teens and closed the door. (My mother expects me in half an hour, Astrid, don't worry.)

Rosalinde fell backwards onto her bed "I don't want to go to school!" she grumbled "The new girl process bores me."

Sven pushed a strand of blonde hair away from his face "I am not fond of it either but since we have no choice, just try to enjoy annoying everyone around you, Lin." the boy spoke "Except me, of course."

Rosalinde chuckled as she straightened, once more sitting on her bed "You know me way too well, Sven." she said while she messed his soft, blonde hair.

Sven pushed away Rosalinde's hand "Hey, hands off my hair." he muttered as they heard a scratching sound coming from behind the door. Sven laughed "Well, this was your call, cat mom.”

Rosalinde stood up reluctantly and headed towards the door. As she opened the white door, a grey Scottish Fold entered the room "You just could not stay downstairs, could you?" Rosalinde said and took her cat into her arms, heading to her bed once again.

"Is Valkyrie happy about moving to Edda?" Sven asked while he patted the cat. Valkyrie started to purr.

Rosalinde shrugged "I have no idea, she had been sleeping the whole day –including the car trip." the red-head responded as she raised the cat into the air to level its face with hers. Then she left a kiss on Valkyrie's nose, which in response jumped from Rosalinde's hold and fell on its four feet onto the floor.

Sven smiled "Somebody does not want to be loved tonight." he said while standing up. He moved to Rosalinde's desk and took his coat from her chair.

"Ah, it's just Valkyrie being grumpy like her owner." Rosalinde murmured, then raised an eyebrow at Sven "Leaving already?"

"I am tired, Lin –I wasn't the one who slept straight for two hours in the car." Sven said after wearing his coat "Meet you at eight?"

Rosalinde nodded as she watched him leave "Gute Nacht, kleines Mäuschen!" she shouted behind Sven. (Good night, little mouse!)

"Ich bin kein Mäuschen, Lin, hör schon auf!" Sven shouted back in response from downstairs. Rosalinde laughed, she had been calling him little mouse since they were sixteen to annoy him whenever she got the chance. The biggest reason behind it was the fact that Sven was afraid of mice. (I am no little mouse, Lin, give up already!)

I am so lucky to have a best friend like him.

•

Well, how was it? Was it worth your time? I am literally dying to hear your feedbacks!!!! I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter (:

Do not forget to give me feedbacks ((:

Take care ^-^

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dispetal · 5 years ago

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every even number :^)

Boy oh boy – here we go! Under cut, ‘cause it gets LONG.

PHYSICAL PRESENCE AND GESTURE.2. How much physical space do they use, active and at rest?

Oh, Ruby usually uses all the space around her. She’s very sporadic and will use up all the space around her because it’s hard for her to stand still (it’s the good good ADHD). At rest she’ll still tend to use up her space in small ways, she has to constantly be moving and doing things with her hands.

4. What is their size and build? How does it influence how they use their body, if it does?

She’s relatively small - 5′2″ - and I headcanon her as a little rounder than the series portrays her as? Like, she’s toned but still has chubby cheeks and chubby upper arms and a little bit of tummy. She’s round. Because she’s not nearly as good at hand to hand combat as, say, Yang, she’s a little softer and a little more weak, especially in her core. ( She’s not entirely dependent on her weapon, but she’s mostly dependent on it! )

6. What are they like in motion–in different environments, and in different activities? What causes the differences between these?

Fast. She’s speedy quick, like, all the time. As mentioned earlier, she has to be moving constantly or doing something to keep her mind stimulated. The only times she really isn’t moving a lot is when she’s over exerted herself, so say, after battles and stuff.

8. Where and when do they seem most and least at ease? Why? How can you tell?

Ooh! This is easy! This comes in two parts. For one: she’s most at ease around the people she loves, normally when relaxing. Like, if she’s playing video games with Yang and Qrow, or if she’s hanging out with RNJR or RWBY just chilling. Alternatively, she’s most at ease when she knows she’s got a battle or fight. When she’s fighting, she’s in her element. Oddly enough, she’s also least at ease when she’s fighting a fight she doesn’t know how to win – or if she’s doing something she doesn’t know how to do. She’s not exactly comfortable in social situations, especially ones that have a lot of sarcasm.

10. What energizes and drains them most?

Motivation and lack of motivation. That good ol Hyperfixation™ feeling. She grapples with executive dysfunction quite often when it’s something she doesn’t particularly care about. ( Classes at Beacon were particularly hard because of this, it wasn’t that she didn’t want to learn, it’s that sometimes her brain wouldn’t let her learn ).

12. How are they bodily expressive? How do they use nonverbal cues such as their posture, stance, eyes, eyebrows, mouths, and hands?

As mentioned before, she’s Everywhere. Her hands are always fiddling with something or playing with the hem of her “combat skirt” and she’s also prone to looking around. Her mind wonders so it takes her a while to really focus in unless it’s something she’s hyperfixated on.

DISPOSITION AND TEMPERAMENT.14. What do they care deeply about? What kind of loyalties, commitments, moral codes, life philosophies, passions, callings, or spirituality and faith do they have? How do these tend to be expressed?

She has a strong sense of morality and she cares deeply about helping the people who can’t be helped. She’s got an almost romanticized view of being a huntress – at least at the beginning – and would do anything to become one and serve justice in a way she sees fit. She grew up with all of the fairy tales and stories told to her by her family and that imbued a sense of almost childlike wonder in her. She is willing to lend a hand and gives second chances because she believes in the inherent good in people and that it can be accessed even if tedious. That, however, also makes her hard to deal with because she’s stubborn. She’s optimistic ( read more about that here ) but that also goes to her detriment as well. As far as passions and callings go, easily – EASILY her biggest passion / calling is being a huntress. Spirituality works a bit different for her, the beliefs that she holds are more in people than incorporeal beings. In this, though, her love of fairy tales can also be considered a belief of some kind or a spirituality / faith at its core. The fairy tales and legends she grew up on had become a sort of faith to her. She revered the heroes in the stories and wanted to lead by their example – ergo, a following.

16. Do they dream? What are those dreams like?

She does dream, but the dreams vary. Lately she’s had more nightmares than real dreams but rarely addresses them, they’re all of her friends dying or the worst possible scenario. When she was a kid she used to have dreams about her mother or her family reuniting or her becoming a huntress as an older girl. Now, her dreams are less dreams and more nightmares, her past and passed friends all in shambling corpses, telling her how little she did to save them – that she could’ve done more. That’s why she wakes early. That’s why she likes being awake. Not because she doesn’t get tired – it’s because she doesn’t want to dream. Not anymore. She’d much prefer to be awake.

18. What kind of person could they become in the future? What are some developmental paths that they could take, (best, worst, most likely?) what would cause them to come to pass, and what consequences might they have? What paths would you especially like to see, and why?

Ooh, interesting question! I think the most likely path is for her to realize the err of her coping mechanisms and get help with the help of her team. Bad end though, is something I’d want to see. Bad end Ruby would probably break ( because of the loss of another party member – more than likely Qrow or anyone from RWBY though at this point it could be ANY one of her friends ) and the silver eyes would end up doing more harm than good. Salem could brainwash her and use her as a minion. There are millions of ways she could get corrupted and I’m interested in exploring them, but I’m also interested in exploring one where she admits to her faults and gets help. I’d like to see Ruby put herself first for once.

CONNECTIONS WITH OTHERS.20. What kind of individual relationships do they have with others, and how do they behave in them? How are they different between intimate relationships like friends, family, and lovers versus more impersonal relationships?

Oh boy, that’d have to be a post for another time, because I could go into every single interaction she has. I’ll keep this one broad though and say she’s pretty easy to get along with and pretty easy to make friends with. She’s always looking for new friends and new opportunities to talk to people. She’s very curious and invested in the people she likes! More intimate relationships will see different sides of her but most see her as the cheery girl she presents as – the girl who wants to help others out. She also forms personal relationships but they’re all based from a very real and pure heart that loves to make friends.

22. How do people respond to them, and why might these responses differ?

There are people who think Ruby’s Too Much All Of The Time because of her bouncy / plucky / optimistic nature. She’s also very loud – it’s hard for her to control her volume and sometimes more difficult to read social cues which can kind of put people off. But, most of the time, they see her as an open, cheery girl who loves people, and sometimes that pisses people off. She’s a good person though, at heart, and that draws people in.

24. How do they present themselves socially? What distinguishes their “persona” from their “true self”, and what causes that difference?

Oof. This is a good one. She presents herself, as mentioned above, as a bubbly, optimistic, loud, fun-loving person. In actuality, she’s very sad. She’s very sad and developed several unhealthy coping mechanisms that from the outside look totally healthy. Whereas Qrow depends on cynicism and alcoholism as his way to deal with grief, Ruby does the opposite. She relies on optimism and hope in an unhealthy way. ( Sidenote: she also eats a lot out of a way to deal with her grief: fun fact ). Not many people – if anyone – have seen the really sad part of her because she’s repressed it so far. What she doesn’t realize is sadness when repressed often leads to anger unprompted. She’s repressed enough at this point to get very, very angry at another, and that’s horrifying to think about.

26. How do they view and feel about relationships, and how might this manifest in how they handle them, if it does?

She’s “open” with relationships. In that she’s totally okay with the other person being open and she’s very warm and welcoming and excitable, but she puts most of if not all of her focus into that other person and how they feel in the relationship. Romantically, she isn’t actively looking for a partner, though she wouldn’t mind one. ( I will say, I doubt that her having a partner at this time is healthy. ) It’s hard for her to read people so the person who has the crush would have to straight up say “hey, let’s date” because otherwise it’s a lost cause. Usually she’s very flattered even if the feelings aren’t returned! Someone having a crush never ruins a friendship for her.

ACTIVITIES AND PREFERENCES.28. What are they likely to do if they have the opportunity, resources, and time to accomplish it? Why?

Anything, if she really wants to. She’s a determined person.

30. What is their preferred level of activity and stimulation? How do they cope if they get either too little or too much?

Ooh! She’s got a lot of activity needed but if it’s unprompted and sudden it can trigger a sensory overload. Large crowds make her uncomfortable for that reason. She can be around people but only really when she’s prepared herself to do so. Even then, it can be hard for her. Stimming helps with that! Her most common stims are spreading her hands out, hands flapping, or playing with something in her hands! Tapping also helps.

32. Do they have any “props” that are a significant part of their life, identity, activities, or self-presentation somehow? What are they, how are they used, and why are they so significant? How would these props’ absence impact them, how would they compensate, and why?

Other than the obvious being crescent rose, her cape is symbolic as hell. I’m gonna get into that in a separate post.

THINKING AND LEARNING.34. How do they understand the world–what kind of worldview and thought processes do they have? Why?

I think I’ve pretty much already answered this one? Check 14 again. ( I will go into her opinion on Faunus rights -- spoiler, she’s completely for them -- later. )

36. How much do they rely on their minds and intellect, versus other approaches like relying on instinct, intuition, faith and spirituality, or emotions? What is their opinion on this?

Emotions, emotions, emotions. She is lead by her heart almost completely. Sometimes she’s prone to thinking things out rationally but most of the time? She’s all heart bapey. She doesn’t mind people thinking logically but sometimes she wonders why people don’t listen to their hearts more, unaware that it can be as harmful as it can be good.

38. Is there anything they wish they could change about their worldview or thought processes? What, and why?

I think if she totally snapped that could all change but it’d take quite a lot of time to get that way.

40. What do they wonder about? What sparks their curiosity and imagination, and why? How is this expressed, if it is?

Everything! She’s a very curious girl and asks a lot of questions! It’s not because she’s completely unaware but more that she’s totally interested in the things around her. It doesn’t take much to spark curiosity and imagination but things like semblances or fighting styles are things that pique her curiosity.

#soultimed #hc.

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thisisatestsff-blog · 5 years ago

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Newsletter #99 September — November, 2012

RECENTLY RECEIVED AND FORTHCOMING SCIENCE FICTION

Already Received

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Locus #619 August 2012

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Abraham, Daniel

Shadow and Betrayal: A Shadow in Summer / A Betrayal in Winter

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Adams, John J. (ed)

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Aurora in Four Voices

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Paradox Resolution

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Bradbury, Ray

Fahrenheit 451

(Reissue; Guy Montag is a fireman, his job to burn that most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden. He never questions this destruction, until he meets a young neighbor who introduces him to a past where people didn't live in fear, and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television. When she suddenly disappears, Montag starts hiding books in his home; when this is discovered, he must run for his life) $11.99

Broderick, Damien

Science Fiction: The 101 Best Novels 1985-2010

(PBO; Nonfiction; discusses each novel and its author(s) in the context of popular literature, as well as providing a plot synopsis and mini review) $14.99

Carey, Mike/Gross, Peter

On to Genesis

(Unwritten #5: PBO; Full color graphic novel. Not for kids. Reprints issues 25-30 of the comic. Tom Taylor's just a daring heist away from the journals that will reveal the truth: was he born of flesh and blood, or written into existence by sheer storytelling magic?) $14.99

Carroll, Jonathan

The Woman Who Married a Cloud

(Collection; 37 fantasy stories, some original to this volume) $45.00

Chen, Haiyan/Li, Fang (ed)

Eight Dragons on the Roof and Other Tales

(Kids; Anthology; 34traditional dragon stories from China) $12.95

Conley, Darby

Survival of the Filthiest

(Get Fuzzy: PBO; Black & white daily strips, color Sunday strips) $12.99

Cox, Greg

The Dark Knight Rises

(PBO; Novelization of the film) $7.99

Cronin, Justin

The Passage

(Passage #1: A security breach at a secret facility unleashes the monstrous product of a military experiment. As civilization breaks down to predators and prey, FBI agent Brad Wolgast flees with 6-year-old Amy, a refugee from the project, whose odyssey will lead her towards the time and place where she must finish what should never have begun) $7.99

Dick, Philip K.

Now Wait for Last Year

(Reissue; Earth is trapped in the crossfire of an unwinnable war between two alien civilizations. Its leader is perpetually on the verge of death. And a new drug that haphazardly sends its users traveling through time has just entered circulation. Caught up in all of it, Dr. Eric Sweetscent has questions. Is Earth on the right side of the war? Is he supposed to heal Earth's leader or keep him sick? And can he change the harrowing future that the drug has shown him?) $13.95

Dick, Philip K.

The Simulacra

(Reissue; On a ravaged Earth, fate and circumstances bring together a disparate group, including a fascist with dreams of a coup, a composer who plays his instrument with his mind, a First Lady who calls all the shots, and the world's last practicing therapist. And they all must contend with an underclass that is beginning to ask a few too many questions, aided by a man called Loony Luke and his very persuasive pet alien) $13.95

Dick, Philip K.

Ubik

(Reissue; Glen Runciter and his teams of anti-psychics protect corporate clients who want privacy and security from psychic spies. When he and his top team are ambushed by a rival, he is gravely injured and placed in a dreamlike state of suspended animation. Soon, the surviving members of the team begin experiencing strange phenomena, such as Runciter's face appearing on coins and the world seeming to move backward in time. As consumables deteriorate and technology gets ever more primitive, the group needs to find out what is causing the shifts, and what a mysterious product called Ubik has to do with it all) $13.95

Duncan, Dave

Wildcatter

(PBO; An independent starship heads to Cacafuego, intent on beating the larger corporations to the exoplanet's resources. Will a yellow warning flag planted in orbit stop them? Or, if their prospectors venture to the surface anyway, will they survive?) $9.95

Egan, Greg

The Clockwork Rocket

(Orthogonal #1: Threatened by strange meteors, a planet sends a spaceship crew on a journey to discover the science their planet urgently needs and bring it back in time to avert disaster. The trip will last many generations for those on board, but will return after just a few planetary years) $14.99

Fies, Brian

Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow?

(Full color graphic novel. Depicts an optimistic and ambitious era fueled by industry, engines, electricity, rockets, middle-class popular culture, and the atom bomb, from the 1939 World's Fair to the last Apollo space mission in 1975) $14.95

Gaiman/Bealer et al (ed)

Neil Gaiman and Philosophy

(PBO; Nonfiction; essays on Gaiman's writing) $19.95

Grant, Maxwell

Prince of Evil / Messenger of Death / Room 1313

(Shadow #60: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Grant, Maxwell

The Triple Trail / Murder Genius

(Shadow #61: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Grant, Maxwell

Cyro / The Man Who Died Twice

(Shadow #62: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Grant, Maxwell

The Devil's Paymaster / The Wasp Returns

(Shadow #63: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Hand, Elizabeth

Glimmering

(PBO; Revised from the 1997 edition. Jack struggles to keep his life afloat and his loved ones safe while battling AIDS. A former lover gifts him with a mysterious elixir rumored to cure AIDS. But soon, the side effects become apparent, and Jack gets mixed up with a bizarre entourage of rock stars, Japanese scientists, corporate executives, AIDS victims, and religious terrorists, all competing to control mankind's fate in the 21st century) $14.95

Hearn, Lafcadio

Kwaidan: Weird Tales from Japan

(Reissue; Collection; 29 traditional tales of ghosts and monsters, collected and translated by Hearn during his 14-year stay in Japan) $15.95

Hodgson, William Hope

Horrors from Haunted Seas

(Collection; 17 stories of nautical mystery and horror, originally published between 1905 and 1923) $16.95

Holt, Tom

The Better Mousetrap

(Insurance is indeed the force that binds the universe together. Frank Carpenter, one of the foremost magical practitioners of our age, felt himself irresistibly drawn to it - until he met Jane, with her annoying habit of falling out of trees and getting killed. Repeatedly. Soon they find themselves face to face with the greatest enigma of our times: When is a door not a door?) $15.95

Hopkinson, Nalo

Report from Planet Midnight

(PBO; Collection; transcript of a speech tackling sexism and racism in publishing, plus 2 short stories, an interview, and a bibliography) $12.00

Kane/O'Regan (ed)

The Mammoth Book of Body Horror

(Anthology; reprints 25 stories) $13.95

King, Stephen

11/22/63

(On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. What if you could change it back? Al reveals that the storeroom of his diner is a portal to 1958, and enlists his friend Jack on a mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination) $19.99

Koch, G.J. (Gini)

Alexander Outland: Space Pirate

(PBO; Alexander and his crew - which includes an engineer of dubious sanity, a deposed planetary governor, and an annoyingly unflappable sexbot - get in trouble with the military, the Mob, mad bombers, and would-be conquerors) $14.99

Lundoff, Catherine

Silver Moon

(Becca Thornton, middle-aged and recently out of the closet, discovers that menopause has turned her into a werewolf. And a number of other women in Wolf's Point have had the same experience. As the newest member of the pack, Becca figures her nights will be spent protecting the town and running through the woods howling at the moon. But there are werewolf hunters in town, and they've got Becca in their sights) $15.00

Maas, Sarah J.

Throne of Glass

(YA; Celaena the assassin must defeat 23 other criminals in a competition at the castle in order to be released from prison. But something evil dwells in the castle. When her competitors start dying, her fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival) $17.99

Mandelo, Brit (ed)

Beyond Binary: Genderqueer and Sexually Fluid Speculative Fiction

(Anthology; reprints 17 stories that question the ways in which gender and sexuality have been rigidly defined) $20.00

Marmell, Ari

The Abomination Vault

(Darksiders: PBO; Based on the videogame. Ages before the events of Darksiders and Darksiders II, Death and War are tasked with stopping a group of renegades intent on locating the Abomination Vault) $15.00

Martin, George R.R. et al

A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Companion Cookbook

(Song of Ice and Fire: Nonfiction; the authors of a popular food blog based on Martin's epic fantasy provide over 100 recipes, plus a guide to dining and entertaining in Seven Kingdoms style) $35.00

Matthews, Hugh

Song of the Serpent

(Pathfinder Tales: PBO; Novel based on the game) $9.99

McMann, Lisa

The Unwanteds

(Kids; In a society that purges 13-year-olds who are creative, identical twins Aaron and Alex are separated, one to attend University while the other, supposedly Eliminated, finds himself in a wondrous place where youths hone their creativity and learn magic) $6.99

Merciel, Liane

Nightglass

(Pathfinder Tales: PBO; Novel based on the game) $9.99

Moorcock, Michael et al

Elric: The Balance Lost Volume 2

(PBO; Full color graphic novel; reprints issues 5-8 of the comic book) $14.99

Payton, T. Aaron

The Constantine Affliction

(London, 1864: A malady that kills some and transforms others into the opposite sex has spread upheaval throughout society. When Pimm, an investigator, and Skye, a journalist, stumble onto a plot that links a criminal overlord with the Queen's new consort, they find the forces of both high and low society arrayed against them) $26.99

Pinkwater, Daniel

Irving and Muktuk: Two Bad Bears

(Bad Bears #1: Kids; Full color picture book; Officer Bunny is the law in Yellowtooth. But can he protect the town's Blueberry Muffin Festival from muffin-loving polar bears Irving and Muktuk?) $6.99

Pinkwater, Daniel

Bad Bears in the Big City

(Bad Bears #2: Kids; Full color picture book; Irving and Muktuk have a new home at the lovely Bayonne, NJ, zoo. But with a muffin factory right next door, can mischief be far behind?) $6.95

Pratt, Tim

City of the Fallen Sky

(Pathfinder Tales: PBO; Novel based on the game) $9.99

Quinn, Seabury

The Devil's Bride

(Jules de Grandin: Reissue; French occult detective Jules de Grandin tackles a case involving black magic, murder and mutilation, rape and torture, and genocidal race war. Plus bonus story 'House of Golden Masks', pitting de Grandin against white slavers) $14.95

Rankin, Robert

The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age

(1897: The British Empire encompasses Mars, and an uneasy peace exists between the peoples of Venus, Jupiter, and Earth. In Whitechapel, a monster is once more committing hideous acts of murder, and it may take nothing less than the Mechanical Messiah Himself to save London, the Empire, and all of the solar system from impending apocalypse) $14.95

Riordan, Rick

The Lost Hero

(Heroes of Olympus #1: Kids; Percy and his friends have rebuilt their beloved Camp Half-Blood, where a new group of demigods must prepare for a chilling prophecy of their own. But to survive the quest they've inherited, they'll need some help) $9.99

Roberts, Adam

By Light Alone

(In a world where people have been genetically engineered so that they can photosynthesize sunlight with their hair, the poor grow their hair, while the rich affect baldness and flaunt their wealth by eating. The young daughter of an affluent family is kidnapped, but the ransom demands are refused. A year later a young woman arrives at the family home claiming to be their daughter. She has changed so much, she has lived on light, can anyone be sure that she has come home?) $14.95

Robeson, Kenneth

Murder on Wheels / The Three Gold Crowns / Death to the Avenger

(Avenger #7: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Robeson, Kenneth

The Pirate's Ghost / The Green Eagle (Bama cover)

(Doc Savage #50: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Robeson, Kenneth

The Derrick Devil / The Spotted Men

(Doc Savage #58: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Robeson, Kenneth

Pirate Isle / The Speaking Stone

(Doc Savage #59: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Robeson, Kenneth

He Could Stop the World / The Laugh of Death

(Doc Savage #60: Pulp reprints) $14.95

Salvatore, R.A.

Charon's Claw

(Forgotten Realms: Neverwinter #3: Drizzt draws his sword once more to aid his friends, assisting the elf Dahlia as she enacts revenge, and helping an old foe break the bonds that have held him hostage for over a century $27.95

Scott, M/Barnett, L

Point of Hopes

(Astreiant #1: Reissue; In the great city of Astreaint, magic is real, stars guide lives, and Nicolas Rathe and his colleagues are attempting to establish a police force. Rathe and Eslingen work together to halt an astrological and alchemical conspiracy against the queen, and rescue scores of kidnapped children) $18.00

Scott, Melissa

Point of Knives

(Astreiant #1.5: Novella. Rathe and Eslingen work together to solve the murders of father-and-son pirates. When pirate treasure proves a threat to the throne, they must make uncomfortable choices) $13.00

Shepard, Lucius

The Dragon Griaule

(Collection; 6 tales, 1 original to this volume) $45.00

Smith, Jeff

The Drift

(RASL #1: PBO; Black & white graphic novel. Not for kids. A dimension-jumping art thief races through space and time searching for his next big score - and trying to escape his past) $13.00

Smith, Jeff

The Fire of St. George

(RASL #2: PBO; Black & white graphic novel. Not for kids. A dimension-jumping art thief races through space and time searching for his next big score - and trying to escape his past) $15.00

Smith, Jeff

Romance at the Speed of Light

(RASL #3: PBO; Black & white graphic novel. Not for kids. A dimension-jumping art thief races through space and time searching for his next big score - and trying to escape his past) $15.00

Stauber, Katy

Spin the Sky

(PBO; After years away at war, Cesar Vaquero returns to Ithaca, an orbital colony that boasts the only cattle in space, to find his wife and son don't recognize him. Penelope swore off men after her husband disappeared, and has been busy running the ranch, raising her son, and fending off suitors. But something about the war-weary man stirs forgotten feelings in her, even as sabotage, rustlers, and a space stampede threaten to tear Ithaca apart) $14.99

Swift, E.J.

Osiris

(Osiris Project #1: Osiris has been cut off from the land since the Great Storm 50 years ago. Adelaide is a jaded socialite. Vikram is a third-generation refugee, who sees his people dying of cold and starvation. As a brutal winter brings the city closer to riot and revolution, these two will try to bridge the gap dividing the city) $26.99

Szathmari, Sandor

Voyage to Kazohinia

(A dystopian classic in Hungary, available in the U.S. for the first time. A shipwrecked surgeon finds himself among the Hins, who live a technologically advanced existence without emotions, desires, arts, money or politics. Unhappy amid the bleak perfection, he asks to be admitted to the closed settlement of the Behins, beings with souls and atavistic human traits) $16.95

Tan, Charles (ed)

Lauriat: A Filipino-Chinese Speculative Fiction Anthology

(14 original stories) $18.00

Tobin, Paul (ed)

White Cloud Worlds

(Full color art book showcasing the work of 27 established and emerging sf and fantasy artists from Aotearoa New Zealand) $29.99

Walton, Evangeline

The Mabinogion Tetralogy: Prince of Annwn / The Children of Llyr / The Song of Rhiannon / The Island of the Mighty (alternate title: The Virgin and the Swine)

(Omnibus reprint; 4 classic fantasies based on Welsh mythology) $24.95

Watson/Whates (ed)

The Mammoth Book of SF Wars

(Anthology; 24 stories (3 original to this volume) of war in the future) $13.95

Whitehead, Colson

Zone One

(After a pandemic devastates the planet, a team of civilian volunteers is tasked with clearing out feral zombies from lower Manhattan. Mark is occupied with the mundane mission of zombie mop-up, the rigors of Post-Apocalyptic Stress Disorder, and the impossible tasks of coming to terms with a fallen world. Then things start to go wrong) $15.00

Williams, Mazarkis

The Emperor's Knife

(Tower & Knife #1: When the Cerani Empire is devastated by a strange plague, long-planned conspiracies boil over into violence, and an invincible evil intelligence known as the Pattern Master appears from the deep desert. Only three people stand in his way: a lost prince, a world-weary assassin, and a young girl from the steppes who saw a path in a pattern once, among the waving grasses - a path that just might save them all) $14.99

Williams, Tad

A Stark and Wormy Knight

(Collection; 11 stories, novellas, and scripts) $40.00

Wilson, N.D.

The Dragon's Tooth

(Ashtown Burials #1: Kids; Cyrus and Antigone Smith join an ancient order of explorers who search for lost cities and powerful artifacts, and act as jallers to unkillable criminals who have terrorized the world for millennia) $7.99

Wingrove, David

Son of Heaven

(Chung Kuo Prequel #1: Dorset, 2085: Chinese airships are in the skies, and Jake finds himself forcibly incorporated into a global city of some 34 billion souls, where a resurgent China is seeking to abolish the past and bring about world peace through rigidly enforced order. But a civil war looms, and Jake will find himself at the heart of the struggle) $12.95

Wrede, Patricia C.

Shadow Magic

(Lyra #1: Reissue; Her kingdom's ancient enemies have kidnapped 20-year-old Princess Alethia, carrying her off through the forest. These are magic woods, home to fabled creatures whose existence she has always doubted. To find her way home, Alethia will have to learn to trust the old tales, which hold the only hope of saving her kingdom; Signed copies) $14.99

Wrede, Patricia C.

Daughter of Witches

(Lyra #2: Reissue; After her parents were executed for practicing magic, Ranira became indentured servant to a brutal innkeeper. While attempting to protect her from her master's cruelty, three guests reveal magical powers. Now she must unleash her own magical powers to save her new friends from certain death; Signed copies) $14.99

Wrede, Patricia C.

The Harp of Imach Thyssel

(Lyra #3: Reissue; Emereck, a minstrel, and Flindaran, a nobleman masquerading as a tramp, have found an abandoned castle, and in it, one of Lyra's most sought-after treasures. Emereck must learn to harness its strength to create and destroy, with the fate of the kingdom hanging in the balance; Signed copies) $22.99

Wrede, Patricia C.

Caught in Crystal

(Lyra #4: Reissue; When a sorceress asks for a room at Kayl's country inn, Kayl is sure the woman has come to take her back to the life she renounced. To save her family and her world, Kayl will have to unlock a side of herself she buried long ago; Signed copies) $24.99

Wrede, Patricia C.

The Raven Ring

(Lyra #5: Reissue; Learning that her mother has died far from home, of wounds sustained in an attack, Eleret sets out to reclaim her mother's belongings - especially a ring etched with a raven. She doesn't know what's special about the ring, but someone was willing to kill for it. To make it home in one piece, she will have to unlock the mysteries of the ring; Signed copies) $23.99

Zeltserman, Dave

Monster: A Novel of Frankenstein

(19th-century Germany: When his beloved is murdered, a young man is accused of the crime. Broken on the wheel and left for dead, he awakens on a lab table, transformed into an abomination. He finds his tormentor, Victor Frankenstein, in league with the Marquis de Sade, creating something much more sinister) $23.95

Expected Early September

Aguirre, Ann

Endgame

(Sirantha Jax #6: PBO; The planet La'heng is occupied by foreign conquerors, but Jax means to liberate it as part of a grass-roots resistance movement) $7.99

Aiken, G.A.

How to Drive a Dragon Crazy

(Dragon Kin #6: PBO; Izzy is trying to fulfill a ridiculous quest for a pushy god; sexy dragon warlord Eibhear the Blue is determined to come along to protect her) $7.99

Allston, Aaron

Conviction

(Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi #7: Abeloth is on the run, but has not given up its plans to destroy the galaxy, even as the Jedi and the Sith abandon all pretense of cooperation and make plans to rout each other) $7.99

Almasi, G.T.

Blades of Winter

(Shadowstorm #1: Rather than risk another war, the four superpowers - the U.S., the Soviet Union, Greater Germany, and the Nationalist Republic of China - have poured their resources into creating superspies known as Levels. Alix is one of the best U.S. Levels. But when a decision explodes - literally - in her face, she uncovers a conspiracy that could upset the balance of power) $9.99

Anderson, K/Peart N

Clockwork Angels

(Companion novel to the newest Rush album; a young man travels across a steampunk world of lost cities, pirates, anarchists, carnivals, and a Watchmaker who imposes precision on daily life) $24.95

Anderson, Kevin J.

Death Warmed Over

(Dan Shamble #1: PBO; A resurrected mummy is suing the museum that put him on display. Two witches, victims of a curse gone wrong, are seeking restitution from a publisher for not using 'spell check' on magical tomes. It's all in a day's work for zombie P.I. Dan Chambeaux. And he's got to figure out a very personal question: Who killed him?) $15.00

Anthony, Piers

Well-Tempered Clavicle

(Xanth #35: Picka Bones and his sister Joy'nt are off in search of adventure with three creatures newly arrived from Mundania - and not the sort of creatures you might expect!) $7.99

Archer, Alex

The Matador Crown

(Rogue Angel #38: PBO; Invited to the Museum of Cadiz to assess some coins, Annja soon finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation that leads her to an illegal - and deadly - collection of Visigoth votive crowns) $6.99

Axler, James

Crimson Waters

(Deathlands #106: PBO; Stranded in a gutted redoubt in the West Indies, Ryan and his friends must escape before they are wiped out by pirates) $6.99

Baggott, Julianna

Pure

(Pressia barely remembers the Detonations, when the world turned to ash, dust, and damaged bodies. Having reached the age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia - to be trained as a soldier, or used as a live target - she is on the run. Those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked are inside the Dome. Partridge - whose father is an important man in the Dome, and whose mother never made it inside their shelter - feels isolated. When he learns that his mother might still be alive, he risks his life to leave the Dome to find her. And when Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again) $9.99

Ballantine, Philippa

Wrayth

(Book of the Order #3: PBO; Sorcha is still unable to move or speak; even her partner Merrick cannot reach her through their shared bond. But when Sorcha is abducted by men seeking her lover Raed, only Merrick can find and rescue her) $7.99

Base, Graeme

Little Elephants

( Kids; Full color picture book; a boy living on a farm in Texas gets a big surprise when he discovers tiny flying elephants under his bed) $16.95

Battersby, Lee

The Corpse-Rat King

(Battlefield looter Marius is mistaken for a dead monarch by one of the dead soldiers, and transported to the Kingdom of the Dead. The dead need a King to remind God where they are. To recover his life, Marius must return to the surface and find them a King. Which he fully intends to do - just as soon as he stops running) $7.99

Bell, Alex

Lex Trent versus the Gods

(Lex Trent #1: Lex Trent's world is inhabited by magicians, crones, and a menagerie of gods and goddesses. And while Lex is seemingly dedicated to his legal studies, he leads a double life as a notorious cat burglar who has been evading capture for years. But Lex's luck is about to run out, because the Goddess of Fortune has selected him to be her player in the highly dangerous Games) $11.95

Beyer, Kristen

The Eternal Tide

(Star Trek Voyager: PBO; The fleet continues its exploration of the Delta Quadrant, investigating the current status of sectors formerly controlled by the Borg) $7.99

Blaylock, James P.

Zeuglodon

(Pursued by kidnappers, three junior members of the Guild of St. George must descend into the depths of the hollow earth to return the Sleeper to his ancestral home. But awakening him might mean the end of the dream, the closing of the passage, and three intrepid explorers marooned in a savage land) $35.00

Bond, Gwenda

Blackwood

(YA; 114 modern-day people have disappeared from Roanoke Island. Miranda, from the island's most infamous family, and Phillips, who hears the voices of the dead, must dodge everyone from federal agents to long-dead alchemists as they work to uncover the secrets of the new Lost Colony) $9.99

Bornikova, Phillipa

This Case Is Gonna Kill Me

(Linnet comes from an affluent human family. When she begins her career at a vampire law firm, she discovers that, in a workplace where some humans will eventually achieve immense power and centuries of extra lifespan, office politics can be vicious beyond belief) $14.99

Brockmann, Suzanne

Born to Darkness

(Determined to end the scourge of a designer drug that can make anyone a superpowered Greater-Than, but exacts a lethal toll, operative Michelle Mackenzie is knocked for a loop when she meets the new test subject: former Navy SEAL Shane Laughlin, her latest one-night stand) $7.99

Brook, Meljean

Riveted

(Iron Seas #3: PBO; Five years ago, Annika unwitting endangered the secret of her Iceclandic community. Now she serves on an airship - and her home is again threatened when David comes aboard, looking to expose her secrets. Disaster leaves them stranded on a glacier, pursued by a madman - with heat rising between them) $16.00

Buehlman, Christopher

Those Across the River

(When Frank Nichols returns to his Georgia hometown to write a history of his family's plantation, he soon learns there is a presence there that demands sacrifice - and has been waiting for Frank's homecoming) $15.00

Buettner, Robert

Undercurrents

(Orphan's Legacy #2: Sent to bring down the local politicos of a politically quarantined giant habitat, Lt. Jazen Parker finds himself inclined to abandon the place to its ways - until he uncovers a plot to throw a 500-hundred-planet alliance into anarchy) $7.99

Carroll, Lee

Black Swan Rising

(Garet James #1: New York City shopkeeper John Dee offers jeweler Garet James a generous sum of money to open a vintage silver box. The symbol of the swan on the box matches a ring Garet's mother gave her, and when she opens the box, otherworldly things start happening) $7.99

Carson, Rae

The Girl of Fire and Thorns

(Elisa #1: YA; Andre Norton Award finalist. Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness. Elisa is the chosen one. She could be everything to those who need her most - if the prophecy is fulfilled, if she finds the power deep within herself, if she doesn't die young. Most of the chosen do) $9.99

Cassidy, Dakota

Accidentally Dead

(Accidentally Paranormal #2: After a patient bites her, dental assistant Nina Blackman ends up with a set of fangs, a taste for blood - and an irresistible attraction to the patient) $7.99

Charlton, Blake

Spellbound

(Nicodemus #2: The demon behind his curse has hatched a plot to force Nicodemus to change language and ultimately use it to destroy all human life. Nico faces challenges from all sides as he struggles to thwart the demon's plan) $7.99

Christopher, Adam

Seven Wonders

(PBO; Tony lives in a city under siege by hooded supervillain The Cowl. When Tony develops superpowers and acts to take down The Cowl, he finds that the local superheroes aren't as grateful as he thought they'd be) $12.99

Ciruelo

The Book of the Dragon

(Reissue; Full color. Reveals the secrets of the dragons, illuminating a culture filled with poetry, magic, and art) $17.95

Cook, Glen

A Path to Coldness of Heart

(Dread Empire #8: King Bragi Ragnorson is the captive of Lord Shih-kaa and the Empress Mist at the heart of the Dread Empire. Bragi's queen and what remains of his army seek to find and free their king, hampered by the loss or desertion of their best warriors. Dane, Duke of Greyfells, seeks to seize the rule of Kavelin. And in the ancient castle Fangdred, the sorcerer Varthlokkur waits, using his arts to spy on the world at large, and observing the puppet strings that control kings and empires alike) $15.99

Correia, Larry

Legion

(Monster Hunter #4: When hunters from around the world gather in Las Vegas for a conference, a creature left over from a WWII weapons experiment wakes up and goes on a rampage across the desert. A wager between rival companies turns into a race to see who can bag the creature first. But there's more to this case than meets the eye: the crew from MHI will have to stop an ancient god from turning Sin City into hell on earth; Signed copies; signing at Uncle Hugo’s Tuesday, September 18, 5-6 pm) $25.00

Crane, Carolyn

Head Rush

(Justine Jones #3: As Midcity cowers under martial law, sleepwalking cannibals, and a mysterious rash of paranormal copycat violence, Justine's search for answers leads her into the most dangerous mind game yet) $16.00

Curran, Kim

Shift

(YA; 16-year-old Scott learns he's a Shifter, with the power to undo any decision he's ever made. Pretty cool, until his world starts to unravel around him, and he realizes that using his power has terrible consequences) $9.99

Daniells, Rowena Cory

Sanctuary

(Outcast #3: With winter storms brewing and raiders drawn by rumors of wealth, tension grows on the overcrowded ships of the mystics. And although Imoshen sent the Sagora Scholars a request for sanctuary, they haven't replied) $8.99

De Grave, Kathleen

The Hour of Lead

(Kansas, 2039: An earthquake that has slowed down time forces two people to confront their pasts in order to repair their broken lives in the present) $14.95

Dick, Philip K.

Upon the Dull Earth

(Collected Stories #3: Collection; 23 stories and novellas written in 1953 and 1954, plus extensive story notes) $40.00

Dick, Philip K.

Solar Lottery (alternate title: World of Chance)

(Reissue; In 2203 anyone can become the ruler of the solar system - it all comes down to the random turns of a giant wheel. But when a new Quizmaster takes over, the old one still keeps some rights, namely the right to hire assassins to attempt to kill the new leader. After the most recent change in leadership, employees of the former ruler scurry to find an assassin who can get past telepathic guards. But when one employee switches sides, troubling facts about the lottery system come to light, and it just might not be possible for anyone to win) $13.95

Dick, Philip K.

We Can Build You

(Reissue; When Louis Rosen's electronic organ company builds a pitch-perfect robotic replica of Abraham Lincoln, they are pulled into the orbit of a shady businessman, who is looking to use Lincoln for his own profit. Meanwhile, Rosen seeks Lincoln's advice as he woos a woman incapable of understanding human emotions - someone who may be even more robotic than Lincoln's replica) $13.95

Dick, Philip K.

The World Jones Made

(Reissue; Floyd Jones has always been able to see exactly one year into his future, a gift and curse that began one year before he was born. As a fortune-teller at a post-apocalyptic carnival, Jones is a powerful force, and may just be able to force society away from its paralyzing Relativism - if he can avoid the radioactively unstable government hitman on his tail) $13.95

Doctorow, C/Stross, C

The Rapture of the Nerds

(At the dusk of the 21st century, Earth has a population of roughly a billion hominids happily living in a preserve at the bottom of a gravity well. Those who weren't happy have emigrated to the densethinker clades that fog the inner solar system. The metaconsciousness of the solar system occasionally spams Earth's networks with plans for cataclysmically disruptive technologies. A sane species would ignore these get-evolved-quick schemes, but there's always someone who will bite. So there's Tech Jury Service: random humans charged with assessing dozens of new inventions and ruling on whether to let them loose. Young Huw, a technophobic, misanthropic Welshman, has been selected for the latest jury) $24.99

Doctorow, Cory

For the Win

(YA; In electronic sweatshops, countless 'gold farmers', trapped by abusive contracts and physical threats, harvest virtual treasure for their employers to sell to First World gamers willing to spend real money to skip straight to higher-level gameplay. A mysterious woman called Big Sister Nor will use her experience, knowledge of history, and connections to real-world organizers to build group of young people into a movement that can challenge the status quo) $10.99

Douglas, Ian

Bloodstar

(Star Corpsman #1: PBO; Navy Corpsman Elliot Carlyle and Bravo Company's Black Wizards are en route to the colony planet of Bloodworld, where the alien Qesh have made violent first contact) $7.99

Egan, Greg

The Eternal Flame

(Orthogonal #2: When a fuel shortage threatens the generation ship's voyage, Tamara the astronomer sees a risky solution in a meteor whose trajectory will bring it within range. Meanwhile, Carlo the biologist searches for a better way to control the ship's population explosion) $26.99

Elliott, Kate

Cold Fire

(Spiritwalker #2: Cat and Bee are caught in an intricate web of subterfuge and politics. Everyone seems to want something from them: the warlord who wants to conquer Europa, the Cold Mages who stand against him, and the dangerous Master of the Wild Hunt) $7.99

Flanagan, John

The Outcasts

(Brotherband #1: Kids; Skandians are known for their size and strength. Not Hal, Stig, and their friends. But that doesn't mean they don't have skills, or courage. And they'll need both to do battle at sea against the Wolves and the Sharks in the ultimate race) $8.99

Flavin, Teresa

The Blackhope Enigma

(Kids; Blackhope Tower is shrouded in intrigue, centering on a labyrinth and painting in the Mariner's Chamber. When 14-year-old Sunni visits the tower and sees her stepbrother Dean disappear, seemingly into the painting itself, she sets out to find him) $6.99

Flint, Eric (ed)

Ring of Fire III

(Ring of Fire: Anthology; 20 original alternate history tales set in the world of

1632

, by Flint, Lackey, and more) $7.99

Friedman, C.S.

Legacy of Kings

(Magister #3: With the Magisters hunting her for killing one of their own, Kamala's only hope of survival lies in the northern Protectorates. There spells are warped by a curse, originally intended to protect the lands of men from the souleaters. But the curse appears to be weakening - and the threat of the souleaters is once more falling across the land) $7.99

Froud, Brian & Wendy

Trolls

(Art book; new and classic work by the Frouds, revealing the world of trolls) $35.00

Gaider, David

The Stolen Throne

(Dragon Age: Prequel to video game

Dragon Age: Origins

) $7.99

Gear, W.M. & Kathleen

The Broken Land

(First North Americans #19: Dangerous sorcerer Atotarho has set in motion a cataclysmic battle that threatens to destroy the Iroquoian world. To stop him, Jigonsaseh, Hiyawento, and Sky Messenger must find a way to unite five warring nations) $7.99

Gibson, William

Distrust That Particular Flavor

(Collection; 25 essays and articles on technology, popular culture, writing, and more) $16.00

Gilman, Laura Anne

The Shattered Vine

(Vineart War #3: As conditions worsen throughout the Lands, Jerzy returns to the Berengia to delve into the magic that has been growing within him, knowing that his god-forbidden knowledge may be the only thing that can save the Lands Vin) $9.99

Golden, Christie

Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War

(World of Warcraft: When a beloved peacekeeper is pressed to the limit by an inconceivable horror, will it change her forever? Break her? Or redefine her role on Azeroth?) $26.00

Goonan, Kathleen Ann

In War Times

(1941: After his brother is killed at Pearl Harbor, Sam promises that he will do anything he can to stop the war, and is selected to study code breaking, electronics, and physics. He is seduced by a mysterious female physicist, and given the plans for a device that will end the war, perhaps even end the human predilection for war. But the device does something less, and more, than that) $15.99

Gorey, Edward

A Halloween Treat

(In a previously unpublished vignette, kids and cats go trick-or-treating, gathering loot that might be tricks - or their very own monsters. Plus a collection of ghastly ghost illustrations) $13.00

Green, Simon R.

Ghost of a Dream

(Ghost Finders #3: PBO; Renovations at the long-abandoned Haybarn Theater have been thrown off schedule by some peculiar incidents. The team figures investigating a haunted theater will be a walk in the park - until they encounter the Phantom of the Haybarn, an ancient evil with the ability to alter reality) $7.99

Greenwood, Ed

Elminster Enraged

(Forgotten Realms: Sage of Shadowdale #2: Inhabiting the body of a fallen dark elf, Elminster begins to rally Cormyr's Wizards of War. Manshoon has plans as well: to conquer Cormyr and be the new Emperor, and hunt down the Sage's clones) $25.95

Grimes, Linda

In a Fix

(Ciel Halligan #1: Aura adaptor Ciel Halligan takes on her clients' appearances and slips into their lives to handle situations they don't want to deal with themselves. Her current job, snagging a marriage proposal for her client during an island vacation, is pretty enjoyable - until her resort bungalow is blown up and her client's date is snatched by modern-day Vikings) $14.99

Grinti, Mike & Rachel

Claws

(Kids; Emma's family lives in a trailer park that's home to down-and-out harpies, hags, trolls - and Jack, a one-eyed, smooth-talking cat. He becomes Emma's friend, and she discovers that she, too, has cat magic - claws. She's going to need them to rescue her sister from the powerful faeries who stole her) $16.99

Harris/Kelner (ed)

An Apple for the Creature

(Anthology; urban fantasy stories of unnatural education, including a new Sookie Stackhouse story) $26.95

Hartley, A.J.

Darwen Arkwright and the Peregrine Pact

(Kids; When he's forced to move from his tiny English town to Atlanta, Georgia, Darwen knows things will be different - but he wasn't expecting to discover that the old mirror in his new closet leads to another world - or that there are creatures there who are after something that only human children possess) $8.99

Hatke, Ben

Legends of Zita the Spacegirl

(Zita #2: PBO; Kids; Full color graphic novel; Zita is determined to make it home to Earth, but her robot doppelganger is wreaking havoc, and Zita is being blamed) $12.99

Herbert, James

The Secret of Crickley Hall

(Would you live in a place where ghostly things keep happening? Where hushed whimpering is heard? Where the presence of evil is all around you? The Caleighs did, but they had their reasons. They should have known better) $9.99

Hinks, Darius

Orion: The Vaults of Winter

(Warhammer: The forest-king Orion awakens from his winter slumber to discover he has been cursed. As the corruption spreads to the woodland realm around him, he must rely upon his loyal subjects to help him unmask a traitor) $11.99

Holkins, J/Krahulik, M

Magical Kids in Danger

(Penny Arcade #8: Full color. Collects the 2007 strips of the popular webcomic starring geeky heroes Gabe and Tycho, plus creator commentary) $14.99

Hughes, Alex

Clean

(Mindspace #1: PBO; Adam used to work for the Telepath's Guild. Now he works for the cops. His ability to get inside the twisted minds of suspects makes him their best interrogator. A serial killer is stalking the city, and Adam needs to solve the case, because he's just had a vision of the future - and he's the next to die) $7.99

Hunter, Erin

The Empty City

(Survivors #1: Kids; The humans are gone, and a new animal is ready to rule the world. Which animals are brave enough to take control when disaster strikes? And what enemies will stand in their way?) $16.99

Jacka, Benedict

Taken

(Alex Verus #3: PBO; Mage apprentices have been vanishing without a trace, and someone on the Council might be involved. Alex has no evidence, no witnesses, and no suspects, but he sees that he doesn't know the half of it - and that he could be the next to disappear) $7.99

Johnson-Shelton, Nils

The Invisible Tower

(Otherworld Chronicles #1: Kids; A mysterious message appears in Artie Kingfisher's favorite video game, leading him to a game store where a centuries-old wizard named Merlin holds the key to his destiny) $6.99

Johnson, Mat

Pym

(A failed academic acquires an old slave narrative manuscript confirming that Edgar Allan Poe's

The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym

is a true story. He sets out for Antarctica to discover the land of black people that Poe describes, but instead he and his fellow adventurers are enslaved by the white ice creatures from the novel. Now this black crew must try to escape slavery all over again) $15.00

Kadrey, Richard

Devil Said Bang

(Sandman Slim #4: While ruling the denizens of darkness does have perks, James Stark isn't exactly thrilled with the course of his career. He has to hold off a host of killers while working on his escape plan. Meanwhile, a serial killer ghost is running wild in LA, and Slim's angelic alter ego is hiding in the lost days of time with a cabal who can rewrite reality) $24.99

Kibuishi, Kazu

Prince of the Elves

(Amulet #5: Kids; Full color graphic novel. The Elf King has forged new amulets which will allow him to invade Cielis and destroy it; Emily and her friends make desperate preparations to defend Cielis) $12.99

Kittredge, Caitlin

Soul Trade

(Black London #5: PBO; Crow-mage Jack Winter and former detective Pete Caldecott face formidable new enemies as they continue their quest to save Black London from destruction) $7.99

Kostic, Conor

Edda

(Epic #3: YA; In the virtual world of Edda, Scanthax the ruler decides he wants to invade another virtual world. This move embroils the universes of Edda, Saga, and Epic in all-out war - with three teenagers determined to try to restore peace) $9.99

Krentz/Castle, Jayne

The Lost Night

(PBO; Psychic Rachel Bonner has found peace and quiet on Rainshadow Island - until Harry Sebastian arrives to investigate strange events in the Preserve. She can sense the heart of darkness within him - and the stirrings of desire within her) $7.99

Lackey, M/Edghill, R

A Host of Furious Fancies: Beyond World's End / Spirits White as Lightning

(Bedlam's Bard #3 / #4: Omnibus reprint; 2 fantasy novels) $13.00

LaValle, Victor

The Devil in Silver

(On his first night in New Hyde Hospital's psych ward, Pepper is visited by a terrifying creature who nearly kills him before being hustled away by the hospital staff. It's no delusion; Pepper rallies three other inmates in a plot to fight back) $27.00

Laws, Robin D.

Blood of the City

(Pathfinder Tales: PBO; Novel based on the game) $9.99

Lee, Sharon/Miller, Steve

Dragon Ship

(Liaden: Theo Waitley #4: Theo has a trade route to run for Clan Korval while she convinces the ghost ship

Bechimo

- and herself - that she wants to commit herself to being the human side of their immensely powerful symbiosis. While her former lover battles a nano-virus that's eating him alive, Theo faces the unexpected challenge of rescuing hundreds of stranded pilots and crewmen from an explosive situation in near orbit around a suddenly hostile planet; Signed copies) $23.00

Lore, Pittacus

The Rise of Nine

(Lorien Legacies #3: YA; The stakes are higher than ever as John, Number Six, and Number Seven desperately try to find the rest of the Lorien Nine before it's too late) $17.99

Maltin, Leonard

Leonard Maltin's 2013 Movie Guide

(PBO; Revised and updated guide with thousands of capsule movie reviews, DVD and video listings, mail-order and online resources for buying and renting DVDs and videos, and more) $9.99

Mandanna, Sangu

The Lost Girl

(YA; Eva was cloned to replace Amarra if she ever died. So when Amarra dies in a car crash, Eva moves to India to replace her. But does she want to live out her years as a copy? Or risk everything to be Eva?) $17.99

Marr, Melissa

Carnival of Souls

(YA; Aya and Kaleb both face bleak futures, unless they can win a competition hosted by the Carnival of Souls, fighting to the death to join the ruling elite) $17.99

Martin/Lowder, J (ed)

Beyond the Wall: Exploring George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire

(Essays by authors and critics looking at Martin's epic fantasy) $14.95

McDonald, Ian

Be My Enemy

(Everness #2: YA; Everett has escaped with the Infundibulum from the clutches of Charlotte Villiers and the Order, but his father is missing, banished to one of the billions of parallel universes. Everett and the airship crew have taken a Heisenberg Jump to a random parallel plane, where Everett is making plans to rescue his family. But Charlotte Villiers is one step ahead of him) $16.95

McGuire, Seanan

Ashes of Honor

(October Daye #6: PBO; While searching for a powerful changeling with the potential to destroy all of Faerie, Tobey is drawn into a web of kidnappings, political intrigue, and attempted assassinations) $7.99

McKinney, Joe

Mutated

(PBO; Fleeing the cities and their flesh-eating zombies, Bob Richardson and his crew find sanctuary at an abandoned farm. But their stronghold may not be enough - the undead are banding together and working as a group) $7.99

McMahon, Gary

Beyond Here Lies Nothing

(Concrete Grove #3: Ben arrives in Concrete Grove to research a infamous paranormal incident from the early 1970s; when strange things begin happening, it's up to him to put the ghosts to rest) $8.99

O'Brien, Caragh M.

Prized

(Birthmarked #2: YA; 16-year-old midwife Gaia flees the Enclave with her baby sister, only to be captured by the people of Sylum, where women rule the men, and a kiss is a crime) $9.99

Oliver, Lauren

Liesl & Po

(Kids; Locked in the attic by her cruel stepmother, Liesl is surprised one evening when a ghost named Po appears. That same evening, an alchemist's apprentice named Will makes an innocent mistake that has tremendous consequences for Liesl and Po, and draws the three of them together on an extraordinary journey) $6.99

Packard, Edward

Through the Black Hole

(U-Ventures: Kids; You're in command of the most advanced spaceship in the galaxy on the wildest mission in history. Choose your own fate as you try to make it through a black hole) $5.99

Palma, Felix J.

The Map of the Sky

(H.G. Wells #2: Socialite Emma Harlow agrees to marry millionaire Montgomery Gilmore, but only if he accepts her challenge to reproduce the invasion featured in Wells'

War of the Worlds

. Interconnected plots tell a tale of time travel and mystery, with appearances by a young Edgar Allan Poe as well as Captain Shackleton and Charles Winslow) $26.00

Passarella, John

Rite of Passage

(Supernatural: A series of accidents and strange occurrences in a New Jersey town attracts the attention of the Winchester brothers) $7.99

Paterson, K & J

The Flint Heart

(Kids; Freely abridged from Eden Phillpotts' 1910 fantasy. A Stone Age man demands a talisman to harden his heart, allowing him to take control of his tribe. The tribe's magic man creates the Flint Heart, but the cruelty of it destroys the tribe. Thousands of years later, the talisman reemerges. Can Charles and his sister Unity find a way to rescue humans, fairies, and animals alike from its dark influence?) $9.99

Paver, Michelle

Gods and Warriors

(Kids; Warriors have kidnapped his sister and tried to kill him; a stranger has given him a bronze dagger. Now young Hylas is on the run, trying to discover why he's being hunted, and to find his sister before the warriors find him) $16.99

Petrucha, Stefan

Dead Mann Running

(Hessius Mann #2: PBO; The living dead PI is drawn into a killer case when a severed arm leaves a mysterious briefcase at his office) $7.99

Phillips, Holly

At the Edge of Waking

(Collection of short fantasy fiction) $15.95

Priest, Christopher

The Islanders

(The Dream Archipelago is a vast network of islands whose very locations seem to twist and shift. Some islands have been sculpted into musical instruments, some are home to lethal creatures, some are playgrounds for the rich. And a war being fought by two distant continents is playing out across the archipelago's waters) $14.95

Reay, Joanne

Romeo Spikes

(Homicide detective Alexis Bianco teams up with the mysterious Lola, who is more weapon than woman, to pursue the Tormenta, demonic predators who convince humans to kill themselves in order to siphon off their victims' unspent lifespans) $25.00

Redwine, C.J.

Defiance

(YA; While other girls train to be ladies, Rachel trains to survive in the wilderness and wield a sword. When her father fails to return from a courier mission, her father's apprentice Logan is assigned to protect her. Together they will escape the tyrant's city to hunt for Rachel's father) $17.99

Reus, Katie

Primal Possession

(Moon Shifter #2: PBO; When a hate group targets humans known to sympathize with paranormal beings, December McIntyre turns to lupine shifter Liam Armstrong for help) $7.99

Rosca, Madeleine

The Clockwork Sky Volume 1

(Graphic novel. 1895: In the London slums, young Sally Peppers and automaton police boy Sky uncover a dark secret that could overturn all of London) $10.99

Scarrow, Alex

Day of the Predator

(TimeRiders #2: YA; When Maddy mistakenly opens a time window, Liam is marooned 65 million years in the past. He must make contact with Maddy and Sal before he's hunted down by dinosaurs - or alters history) $9.99

Sedia, Ekaterina (ed)

Circus: Fantasy Under the Big Top

(PBO; Anthology; stories of circuses traditional, bizarre, and futuristic) $15.95

Shatner, William

Shatner Rules

(A collection of guidelines and fun facts, illustrated with stories from Bill's life and career, showing how to become Shatneresque) $15.00

Silverberg, Robert (ed)

Tales from Super-Science Fiction

(Anthology; reprints 14 stories from the 1950s magazine) $32.00

Singh, Nalini

Archangel's Storm

(Guild Hunter #5: PBO; Angelic spymaster Jason and Princess Mahiya are drawn to each other as they work together to solve the murder of Neha's consort) $7.99

Slonczewski, Joan

The Highest Frontier

(On an Earth altered by global warming, with an invasive alien species threatening the surviving ecosystems, Jennifer Ramos Kennedy, daughter of a rich and influential family, is headed for the college of the future, in orbit) $7.99

Smith, Cordwainer

When the People Fell

(Collection of Instrumentality stories and miscellaneous short stories, providing a sweeping saga of the centuries to come) $7.99

Smith, Sherwood

Blood Spirits

(Kim Murray #2: With the man she loves set to marry a look-alike princess, Kim returns to California to heal her broken heart. But family politics send her to London, where she winds up in a duel with a Dobrenican nobleman, and learns that her great sacrifice, leaving Alex, was a disaster. She returns to Dobrenica, where she finds ghosts, magic, and murder awaiting her) $7.99

Stein, Jeanne C.

Haunted

(Anna Strong #8: PBO; Vampire and bounty hunter Anna Strong and her friend Culebra end up in Mexico, dealing with cartel infighting, a few old vendettas, and missing girls) $7.99

Stirling, S.M.

The Tears of the Sun

(Change #8: Rudi McKenzie - now Artos, the High King of Montival - must stand against the forces of the Church Universal and Triumphant, knowing he may lose his life in the final battle) $9.99

Stirling, S.M.

Lord of Mountains

(Change #9: To end the war, Artos must journey to the Lake at the Heart of the Mountains and take part in a coronation that will unite the realms into a single kingdom, granting him an army large enough to defeat his enemies once and for all) $27.95

Strahan, Jonathan (ed)

Under My Hat: Tales from the Cauldron

(YA; Anthology; original stories celebrating the witch) $16.99

Swallow, James

Fear to Tread

(Warhammer 40,000: Horus Heresy #21: Horus sends the Blood Angels to the Signus system, where an army of Khornate daemons waits for them. The Warmaster's plan is to use the flaw in the Blood Angels' gene-seed to turn them to the worship of the Blood God) $9.99

Thomas, Shelley Moore

The Seven Tales of Trinket

(Kids; Guided by a tattered map, accompanied by Thomas the Pig Boy, and inspired by her heritage, 11-year-old Trinket searches for the stories she needs to become a bard like her father, who disappeared years ago) $16.99

Thorpe, Gav

Path of the Outcast

(Warhammer 40,000: Eldar #3: While Aradryan lives as a Ranger, Alaitoc is attacked by the Sons of Orar Space Marines, and must do what he can to help save the craftworld) $8.99

Tinker, Major (ed)

The Steampunk Gazette

(From the founder of the Victorian Steampunk Society, a lavishly illustrated history of steampunk, from its 1980s origins to today. Sections on fashion, gadgets, home decor, art, literature, media, and social events) $24.99

Trent, Tiffany

The Unnaturalists

(YA; When his Tinker family is captured to be refinery slaves, Syrus Reed finds that his fate may be bound up with that of Vespa Nyx - and with the Unnatural creatures she catalogues in her father's New London museum) $16.99

Varley, John

Slow Apocalypse

(Screenwriter Dave Marshall thought the scenario sounded implausible when he heard it from a government consultant on his last film: a scientist releases a virus that feeds on petroleum into an Iraqi oil field, but it spreads to infect the entire international fuel supply. Now it's become a terrifying reality) $25.95

Weber, David

A Beautiful Friendship

(Stephanie Harrington #1: YA; On the pioneer planet Sphinx, young Stephanie Harrington discovers an intelligent alien species, treecats, and forms the first telepathic bond with one. But a lot of powerful people are determined to make sure that Sphinx remains entirely in human hands - even if it means the extermination of another thinking species) $9.99

Wendig, Chuck

Mockingbird

(Miriam #2: PBO; Miriam is trying to live a normal life, keeping her ability - to see when and how someone is going to die - in check. Which feels like keeping a tornado trapped in a tiny bottle. And then comes one really bad day) $7.99

Williams, Tad

The Dirty Streets of Heaven

(Bobby Dollar #1: Bobby is a rough-and-tumble angel who's always done his part in the long cold war between Heaven and Hell. But now he's stepped into the middle of something that's got both sides nervous - an unprecedented number of missing souls) $25.95

Wooding, Chris

Havoc

(Malice #2: Kids; Having escaped from Malice, Seth isn't sure if he should try to destroy the evil comic book from his own world, or go back for an artifact that might help. Meanwhile, Kady is still trapped in Malice, trying to find a rebel group of kids who want to fight cruel overlord Tall Jake) $9.99

Zeltserman, Dave

A Killer's Essence

(When a serial killer terrorizes New York City, jaded detective Stan Green finds just a single witness, a neurologically disabled recluse who sees through the souls of others as demonic hallucinations) $15.00

Expected Mid-September

Andrews, Scott K.

School's Out Forever

(Afterblight Chronicles: 15-year-old Lee and his boarding school's Matron must try to protect their charges from cannibalistic gangs, religious fanatics, a bullying prefect, and the surviving might of the U.S. Army) $12.99

Bachmann, Stefan

The Peculiar

(Kids; Bartholomew is a changeling, child of a faery father and a human mother, who lives in the faery slums of Bath. When he witnesses the kidnapping of another changeling, he finds himself at the center of a web of intrigue) $16.99

Balaban, Bob

The Creature from the Seventh Grade: Boy or Beast

(Kids; Charlie has suddenly morphed into a giant mutant sea creature. Now his best friends are treating him like a science project, the cool kids are recruiting him for their clique, and, for some reason, his parents are acting like everything is perfectly normal) $15.99

Barnhill, Kelly

The Mostly True Story of Jack

(Kids; When Jack is sent to Hazelwood, Iowa, to live with his crazy aunt and uncle, he expects a summer of boredom. But the people of Hazelwood have been waiting for him for a long time. He makes friends. The town bully beats him up. And the richest man in town begins to plot Jack's imminent demise. It's up to Jack to figure out why - but to do that, he'll have to believe that magic is real, and has something to do with him) $6.99

Bray, Libba

The Diviners

(YA; 1920s: Evie is shipped off to NYC to live with her Uncle Will, curator of the Museum of American Folklore, Superstition and the Occult. They find themselves in the thick of an investigation of occult-based murders. And Evie has a secret - a mysterious power that could help catch the killer, if he doesn't catch her first) $19.99

Brower, S/Heller, S

Breathless Homicidal Slime Mutants: The Art of the Paperback

(Reissue; A celebration of the art and design of the mass-market paperback, from the late 19th century to today) $7.98

Burroughs/Maxwell

Jane: The Woman Who Loved Tarzan

(PBO; Authorized by the Burroughs estate. The Tarzan story told from Jane's viewpoint; $25.99 hc also available) $14.99

Carlson, Amanda

Full Blooded

(Jessica McClain #1: PBO; Jessica has become a werewolf. It wasn't supposed to happen: female werewolves don't exist. When a killer comes looking for her, her Pack finds themselves caught in the middle of a war. It's up to Jessica to find out why everyone wants her dead) $12.99

Chabon, Michael

Telegraph Avenue

(2004: Archy and Nat rule a kingdom of used vinyl located in the borderlands of Berkeley and Oakland. Their wives, Gwen and Aviva, are two semi-legendary midwives who have welcomed more than a thousand newly minted citizens into the community. When a former NFL quarterback announces plans to build his latest megastore on a nearby stretch of Telegraph Avenue, Nat and Archy fear it means certain doom for their vulnerable little enterprise. Meanwhile, Aviva and Gwen also find themselves caught up in a battle for their professional existence; Signed copies expected) $27.99

Cornwall, Emma

Incarnation

(In a steampunk London, Lucy Weston confronts Bram Stoker to find out why he lied about her in his novel

Dracula

. Then, with Stoker's reluctant help, she sets out to track down the fiend who turned her into a vampire) $15.00

Davis, Jim

Garfield Gets in a Pickle

(Garfield #54: PBO; Full color comic strips) $14.00

Durst, Sarah Beth

Vessel

(YA; Liyana has trained her entire life to be the vessel of a goddess, but the goddess never comes. Abandoned by her tribe, Liyana expects to die in the desert, until a boy arrives. Korbyn is a trickster god inside his vessel, who tells Liyana that five other gods are missing. They set off in search of the other vessels, for the tribes cannot survive without the magic of their gods. The closer she grows to Korbyn, the less Liyana wants to disappear to make way for her goddess. But she must die for her tribe to live, unless a trickster god can help her to trick fate - or a human girl can muster some magic of her own) $16.99

Edward, John

Fallen Masters

(A final confrontation between good and evil unfolds on both the Earthly plane and the Other Side) $25.99

Erikson, Steven

The Forge of Darkness

(Malazan: Kharkarnas #1: In Kurald Galain, the commoners want Vatha Urusander, their great hero, to take Mother Dark's hand in marriage, but her consort Lord Draconus is opposed. As the impending clash disrupts the realm of Darkness, an ancient power emerges from the long dead seas. Caught in the middle of it all are the First Sons of Darkness, Anomander, Andarist, and Silchas Ruin) $27.99

Griffin, Kate

Stray Souls

(Sharon Li has just discovered she's a shaman, and not a moment too soon. London's soul has gone missing. To solve the mystery and rescue the dying city, she'll need help from the support group she's just set up for people with magical issues) $14.99

Johnson, Kij

At the Mouth of the River of Bees

(Collection; 16 works of sf and fantasy from an award-winning author; Signed copies expected) $16.00

Jones, Stephen (ed)

A Book of Horrors

(Anthology; original stories of horror and dark fantasy from top writers) $15.99

Jordan, Hillary

When She Woke

(In the not too distant future, the line between church and state has been eradicated, and convicted felons are no longer imprisoned but chromed - their skin color genetically altered to match the class of their crimes - and then released back into the population to survive as best they can. Hannah is a Red; her crime is abortion) $14.95

Kenyon, S/Love, D

The Curse

(Belador #3: PBO; When Svart Trolls invade Atlanta, Evalle tries to stop the bloody troll-led gang wars; she unwittingly exposes a secret that endangers all she holds dear and complicates her tumultuous love life with Storm) $7.99

King, A.S.

Everybody Sees the Ants

(YA; Andre Norton Award finalist. Lucky has a secret that helps him wade through his dysfunctional life. In his dreams, he escapes to the war-torn jungles of Laos, where he can be a hero. It's dangerous and wild - a place where his life just might be worth living. But how long can Lucky hide in his dreams before reality forces its way in?) $9.99

Knaak, Richard A.

Shade

(Legends of the Dragonrealm: Shade the spellcaster struggles to find an end to the curse he brought upon himself millennia ago) $16.00

Kristoff, Jay

Stormdancer

(Lotus War #1: After disaster befalls her mission to capture a griffin for the Shogun, Yukiko finds herself stranded in the wilderness with a crippled griffin. They will face intrigue, betrayal, and murder as they try to save their homeland) $24.99

Le Guin, Ursula K.

Finding My Elegy

(Collection of some of her best early poetry plus a group of poems written over the last four years) $22.00

Leslie, Mark (ed)

Tesseracts 16: Parnassus Unbound

(Anthology; short works of speculative fiction about art, music, literature, and culture) $15.95

Marillier, Juliet

Shadowfell

(YA; Possessing a powerful ability to communicate with the fairy-like Good Folk, 16-year-old Neryn sets out for Shadowfell, a home and training ground for a rebel group determined to overthrow the evil King Keldec) $16.99

McElligott/Tuxbury

Benjamin Franklinstein Meets the Fright Brothers

(Victor Godwin #2: Kids; When giant bat planes and mysterious attacks bring mayhem to Philadelphia, Victor knows only the Wright Brothers could pilot such creations - but the red-eyed brothers don't seem quite like themselves. Can Victor and his friends stop them from taking over the city?) $7.99

McOmber, Adam

The White Forest

(Jane has a gift that allows her to see the souls of manmade objects. When her friend Nathan becomes interested in a cult - led by a mystic who encourages his followers to explore dream manipulation - and then disappears, the famed Inspector Vidocq arrives in London to untangle events. But when a sinister truth emerges, Jane realizes she must use her talent to find Nathan before it's too late) $25.00

Shirley, John

Retribution

(Resident Evil: PBO; Novelization of the film) $7.99

Starmer, Aaron

The Only Ones

(Kids; Martin arrives at the village of Xibalba. Like the other children who've journeyed there, he faces an awful truth. When families and friends all disappeared one afternoon, he and these other children were forgotten. Inspired by the prophesies of a mysterious boy who talks to animals, Martin believes he can reunite them with their loved ones - but believing and knowing are two different things) $7.99

Tanner, Lian

City of Lies

(Keepers #2: Kids; When his sister is stolen, Toadspit and his friend Goldie follow the child-stealers to a neighboring city. Along the way, Toadspit is captured. When Goldie discovers some secrets that the child-stealers will kill to protect, she'll need all her skills as a thief and a liar to survive and save her friends) $6.99

Tolkien, J.R.R.

The Art of

The Hobbit

(The author's complete artwork for the book) $40.00

Weber, David

Midst Toil and Tribulation

(Safehold #6: A vicar of the Church of God Awaiting has engineered a rebellion against the Lord Protector of Siddermark, bringing civil war to the nation at harvest time) $27.99

Weeks, Brent

The Blinding Knife

(Lightbringer #2: Gavin had thought he had five years left, now he has less than one. Magic is running wild and threatens to destroy the Satrapies. The old gods are being reborn, and their army of color wights is unstoppable. The only salvation may be the brother whose freedom and life Gavin stole) $25.99

Ziegler, Rob

Seed

(After economic, political, and environmental collapse, the US is now controlled by Satori, a corporation that is also a living, intelligent city. Satori bioengineers the climate-resistant seed that feeds the nation, as well as the post-human genetic Designers, Advocates, and Laborers. When a Designer goes rogue, the government hopes to regain power by using her to break Satori's stranglehold on seed production) $15.99

Expected Early October

Anderson, Kevin J.

The Martian War

(PBO; What if the Martian invasion was not entirely the product of H.G.'s imagination? What if he witnessed something that spurred him to write

The War of the Worlds

as a warning?) $12.95

Anderson, Taylor

Firestorm

(Destroyermen #6: Even as the Allies and the Empire of New Britain Isles stand united against the Grik and the Japanese, the Holy Dominion - a warped, power-hungry mix of human cultures - threatens destruction with a devastating weapon neither Allies nor Empire can withstand) $7.99

Archer, Jill

Dark Light of Day

(Noon Onyx #1: PBO; Noon is capable of wielding the destructive power of demons. But because she's human, the demons consider her an abomination- and a threat to their rule over Earth) $7.99

Bein, Steve

Daughter of the Sword

(Fated Blades #1: Tokyo cop Mariko Oshiro investigates the attempted theft of an old samurai sword, forged by a swordsmith whose blades may have magical qualities. She is only the latest in a long line of warriors to confront this power, and it threatens to turn against her even as she learns to wield the sword) $16.00

Benford, Gregory et al

The Wonderful Future That Never Was

(Between 1903 and 1969,

Popular Mechanics

magazine included hundreds of predictions about the future. This book recaps some of those ideas, illustrated with the original futurist art. Benford supplies modern perspective on why some of the predictions were made. Full color throughout) $17.95

Briggs, Patricia

Cry Wolf Vol. 1

(Alpha & Omega GN #1: Full color graphic novel; adaptation of the novel) $24.95

Brown, Eric

Helix Wars

(For 200 years, peace has reigned on the Helix. But when shuttle pilot Jeff Ellis crash-lands on Phandra, he interrupts an invasion by the neighboring Sporelli - who scheme to exterminate Ellis before he can return to New Earth and inform the peacekeepers) $8.99

Buehlman, Christopher

Between Two Fires

(1348: After an orphan tells him that the Black Plague is only part of a greater cataclysm, Thomas, a disgraced knight, finds himself in a macabre battleground of angels and demons, sinners and saints, in a struggle for nothing less than the soul of man) $25.95

Burroughs/Griffin

Tarzan Centennial

(Lavishly illustrated official history of the Tarzan phenomenon) $39.95

Caine, Rachel

Black Dawn

(Morganville Vampires #12: YA; Unless Claire and her friends figure out how to cure Amelie - who has been infected by the master draug's bite - and defeat the draug, Morganville will become little more than a ghost town) $9.99

Campbell, Jack

Tarnished Knight

(Lost Stars #1: Betrayed by the brutal Syndicate government, Artur Drakon and Gwen Iceni launch a battle for control of the Midway star system) $26.95

Carey, Jacqueline

Dark Currents

(Agent of Hel #1: Fathered by an incubus, Daisy lives in a Midwestern resort town that is home to eccentric locals, wealthy summer residents, assorted paranormals, and eldritch folk presided over by reclusive Norse goddess Hel. When a boy drowns and signs point to eldritch involvement, Daisy investigates with the help of a sexy werewolf cop) $26.95

Chan, Kylie

Earth to Hell

(Journey to Wudang #1: On Earth, Simon Wong, the Demon King's son, is no longer around to trouble Emma and Simone, but his associates have taken over Simon's underworld activities. The otherworldly stones are being targeted and are in danger of being completely destroyed. It seems that the Demon King is the only one Emma can turn to for help) $7.99

Chance, Karen

Fury's Kiss

(Midnight's Daughter #3: PBO; Dory and Louis-Cesare will have to face off with zombie vampires, fallen angels, and a mad scientist to get to the bottom of a deadly smuggling ring) $7.99

Clarke, Cassandra Rose

The Assassin's Curse

(YA; When Ananna runs away from her arranged marriage, her cutthroat parents hire Naji the assassin to murder her. When she inadvertently saves his life, she activates his curse: whenever her life is in danger, he must protect her. This development pleases neither of them - but to lift the curse, they will have to complete three impossible tasks) $9.99

Cobley, Michael

Seeds of Earth

(Humanity's Fire #1: The planet Darien hosts a thriving human settlement. But hidden on Darien's forest moon are secrets that go back to an apocalyptic battle between ancient races. Darien is about to become the focus of an intergalactic power struggle, and the true stakes are beyond human comprehension) $7.99

Connolly, Tina

Ironskin

(Jane, who wears an iron mask to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek, answers a carefully worded ad for a governess, certain that the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help. She finds herself fascinated by the girl's artist father: a parade of ugly women enter his studio, and come out as beautiful as the fey) $24.99

Crossan, Sarah

Breathe

(YA; In a world where air is restricted, three teens find out exactly what they're willing to do for the freedom to breathe) $17.99

Cummings, Sean

Poltergeeks

(YA; To save her witch mother's life, 15-year-old Julie and her uber-geek friend Marcus must find out who is responsible for increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over their town) $9.99

Doctorow, Cory

Pirate Cinema

(YA; In dystopian near-future Britain, artists and activists are trying to fight a new bill that will criminalize harmless internet creativity, making felons of millions of British citizens. Parliament is in thrall to a few wealthy media conglomerates, but the powers-that-be haven't reckoned on the power of a gripping movie to change people's minds) $19.99

Drake, D/Lambshead, J

Into the Hinterlands

(Sent to clear the power-hungry Terrans from a star sector where they're encroaching, greenhorn commander Allen Allenson must also overcome the machinations of the alien Riders) $7.99

Drake, David

Night & Demons

(PBO; Collection of horrific, weird, and fantastic tales) $13.00

Dunn, Christian (ed)

Shadows of Treachery

(Warhammer 40,000: Horus Heresy #22: PBO; Anthology) $8.99

Dunn, Christian (ed)

Treacheries of the Space Marines

(Warhammer 40,000: PBO; Anthology) $8.99

Emson, Thomas

Skarlet

(Vampire Trinity #1: When a new drug starts turning users into vampires, Iraqi War veteran Jake Lawton finds himself doing battle with immortals and their human cohorts. And beneath the London streets lurks a bigger evil, waiting to be resurrected to reign over a city of human slaves) $14.99

Evans, Chris

Ashes of a Black Frost

(Iron Elves #3: As the human-dominated Calahrian Empire struggles to maintain its hold on power in the face of armed rebellion, the Iron Elves' perilous quest to defeat the power-hungry elf witch, the Shadow Monarch, takes on greater urgency) $9.99

Evenson, B.K.

Catalyst

(Dead Space: Novel based on the video game) $14.99

Feehan, Christine

Dark Predator

(Carpathian #19: When he leaves his life as master executioner behind, Zacarias wonders who he really is. The answer awaits him back home in Peru, where he will face old enemies and a bloody family legacy - and find his lifemate) $7.99

Fforde, Jasper

The Last Dragonslayer

(YA; 15-year-old Jennifer runs Kazam, an employment agency for magicians, but it's hard to stay in business when magic is drying up. Now visions are predicting the death of the world's last dragon at the hands of an unnamed Dragonslayer. If the visions are true, everything will change for Jennifer and Kazam - because something known as Big Magic is coming) $16.99

Fforde, Jasper

The Woman Who Died a Lot

(Thursday Next #7: After an assassination attempt, Thursday returns to Swindon to recuperate. But there are problems at home: Friday's career struggles in the Chronoguard; Tuesday's trouble perfecting the Anti-Smote shield in time to prevent an angry Deity from wiping Swindon off the face of the earth; and the issue of Thursday's third child Jenny, who exists only as a confusing and disturbing memory. With Goliath attempting to replace Thursday with synthetic Thursdays, and a call from Bookworld to hunt down Pagerunners who have jumped into the Realworld, Thursday's convalescence is going to be anything but restful) $26.95

Fisher, Catherine

Darkwater

(YA; Desperate to regain the power and wealth her family had lost, Sarah made a bargain with Azrael, Lord of Darkwater Hall, who gave her 100 years and the means to her objective - in exchange for her soul. A century later, will she be able to stop young Tom from making the same ruinous bargain?) $16.99

Flint, Eric

1635: Papal Stakes

(Ring of Fire: Trapped in a mire of papal assassins, power politics, murder, and mayhem, Pope Urban VII and uptimers Frank Stone and Ambassador Sharon Nichols and their downtimer spouses need help fast. Special rescue crews converge on Rome, and an uptime airplane is on its way to spirit the Pope to safety. When everything goes wrong, it's once again up to the rough and ready Grantville natives to set things right) $25.00

Gear, W.M. & Kathleen

A Searing Wind

(Contact: The Battle for America #3: After learning of de Soto's plans to target the Chicaza, Black Shell is determined to set the perfect trap to preserve his people's pride, traditions, and winter stockpiles of food and supplies) $9.99

Giallongo, Zack

Broxo

(Kids; Full color graphic novel. Can Broxo - the only survivor of a barbarian tribe - and Princess Zora defeat the man-eating walking dead that drag themselves out of a fetid lake?) $16.99

Gibson, William

Zero History

(Campbell Memorial Award finalist. A Department of Defense contract for combat wear turns out to be the gateway drug for arms dealers so shadowy that even global marketing magnate Hubertus Bigend, whose subtlety and power in the private sector would be hard to overstate, finds himself outmaneuvered and adrift in a seriously dangerous world) $9.99

Gilman, Charles

Professor Gargoyle

(Lovecraft Middle School #1: Kids; At his brand new, high-tech school, 11-year old Robert finds some anomalies: rats in the lockers; a student gone missing; a library corridor full of worm-eaten antique books; and a science professor who seems to be undergoing a strange transformation) $13.99

Gladstone, Max

Three Parts Dead

(A god has died, and it's up to Tara, a first-year associate at a necromantic firm, to bring Him back to life before His city falls apart) $24.99

Gropp, Richard E.

Bad Glass

(PBO; The military moves in to quash rumors of unexplained phenomena in Spokane and figure out what's going on. But after weeks of news leaking out of the quarantine, it becomes clear they have no idea. A young photographer sneaks into the city, hoping to make a name for himself documenting the unimaginable - if he doesn't go insane first) $15.00

Hamilton, Kiki

The Faerie Ring

(YA; 1871: Pickpocket Tiki steals a ring that could lead to all-out war. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and binds the rulers of England and Faerie to peace. A group of faerie rebels hopes to break the treaty with dark magic - and Tiki's blood) $9.99

Harris, Charlaine

The Sookie Stackhouse Companion

(Southern Vampire: Agatha Award finalist. Tour Bon Temps, Louisiana, prowl around the werewolf and werepanther communities, visit Tara's dress shop, and belly up to the bar at Merlotte's in this guide to Sookie's family, friends, enemies, lovers, and adventures. Includes an original Sookie novella, recipes, and more) $18.00

Harrison, Kim

A Perfect Blood

(Rachel Morgan #10: Ritually murdered corpses are appearing across Cincinnati, terrifying amalgams of human and other. Pulled in by the FIB to help investigate, Rachel Morgan soon realizes that someone is determined to make demons. But it can't be done without Rachel's blood) $7.99

Hayes, Erica

Revelation

(Seven Signs #1: PBO; Dr. Morgan Sterling doesn't believe in angels, but Luniel is one of the fallen, bound to fight evil to earn redemption. Together they must stop a zombie plague ravaging Manhattan's slums) $7.99

Heinlein, Robert A.

Starman Jones

(Reissue; Classic sf novel) $7.99

Hendee, Barb

Ghosts of Memories

(Vampire Memories #5: PBO; Not all vampires want to live by the Four Laws. Now Eleisha must confront the deadliest predator she has ever faced, or lose everything she has fought to protect) $7.99

Hidalgo, Pablo

Star Wars: The Essential Reader's Companion

(Looks at all published Star Wars fiction, providing a synopsis of each story, behind the scenes facts and anecdotes, and a chronological listing of titles placing each in context. Illustrated with over a hundred full-color paintings) $28.00

Holm, Chris F.

The Wrong Goodbye

(Collector #2: PBO; Because of his efforts to avert the Apocalypse, Sam has been given a second chance, provided he can stick to the straight and narrow. Which is all well and good, until the soul he's sent to collect goes missing) $7.99

Hunter, Faith

Death's Rival

(Jane Yellowrock #5: PBO; To uncover the identity of the vamp who is trying to steal Leo's territory, Jane will have to venture into the underbelly of New Orleans vamp society) $7.99

Jerome, Celia

Sand Witches in the Hamptons

(Willow Tate #5: PBO; As if Willow didn't have enough problems coping with Otherworld visitors, now she has a stalker, her doom-seer father has a secret, and Paumanok Harbor has Otherworld sand stealers) $7.99

Jones, Darynda

Death and the Girl Next Door

(PBO; YA; Why is Cameron, her high school's designated loner, standing outside Lorelei's house every night? What does tough, sexy newcomer Jared know about her parents, who disappeared years ago? And what will any of them do when Death comes knocking for real?) $9.99

Jones, Diana Wynne

Reflections

(Collection of essays, speeches, and biographical pieces written and/or chosen by Jones) $24.99

Jones, Stephen (ed)

The Mammoth Book of Zombie Apocalypse! Fight Back

(Mosaic novel; interconnected eyewitness narratives - text messages, emails, blog entries, letters, diaries, and transcripts - telling of the fight against the New Zombie Order) $13.95

Joyce, William

The Sandman: The Story of Sanderson Mansnoozie

(Guardians of Childhood #2: Kids; Full color picture book. When the moon is less than full, who will keep the children safe at night? The Man in the Moon thinks sleepy sweet-dreamer Sandy is the perfect choice to help thwart Pitch, the Nightmare King) $17.99

Joyce, William

Toothiana: Queen of the Tooth Fairy Armies

(Guardians of Childhood Novel #3: Kids; Toothiana can spin herself into a multitude of selves, depending on nightly teeth-placed-under-pillows rates. And she is tiny, but very fierce - the villainous Pitch has no idea what he's up against) $14.99

Karpyshyn, Drew

Revan

(Star Wars: Old Republic #3: Novel based on the online game) $7.99

Kessler, Liz

Emily Windsnap Boxed Set: The Tail of Emily Windsnap / Emily Windsnap and the Monster from the Deep / Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist / Emily Windsnap and the Siren's Secret

(Reissue; Kids; Four fantasy novels; the adventures of a teenage girl with a human mother and a merman father) $23.96

Ketter, Greg (ed)

Shelf Life: Fantastic Stories Celebrating Bookstores

(Anthology; 16 sf, fantasy, and horror stories, each with a bookstore at its core) $15.95

Kiesbye, Stefan

Your House Is on Fire, Your Children All Gone

(Four young friends come of age in Hemmersmoor, a place shrouded with fear - and talk of revenants. Their innocent games soon bring them face-to-face with the village's darkest secrets) $15.00

L'Engle, Madeleine

A Wrinkle in Time graphic novel

(Kids; Adaptation of the classic sf novel) $19.99

Lackey, Mercedes

Changes

(Valdemar: Collegium #3: Magpie pursues his quest for his parent's identity, while being trained as an undercover agent for Valdemar. Bardic Trainee Lena has to face her uncaring father, a famous Bard. And Healing Trainee Bear struggles with his parents, who are pressuring him to quit the Collegium because he lacks the magical Healing Gift) $7.99

Lackey, Mercedes

Redoubt

(Valdemar: Collegium #4: A mysterious new enemy has taken an interest in Herald trainee spy Mags, but why? The answers can only be found in the most unexpected corners of Mags' past. Assuming he can stay alive long enough to find them) $25.95

Lamberson, Gregory

Tortured Spirits

(Jake Helman #4: PBO; Jake's ongoing quest to save his best friend Edgar Hopkins takes him to New Orleans, Miami, and the jungles of Pavot Island, where undead slaves harvest narcotics for a ferocious dictator) $14.95

Launet, Francois

Unspeakable Vault (of Doom)

(Collection of webcomics providing a humorous look at the Cthulhu mythos through the daily lives of the Great Old Ones) $19.95

Lazellari, Edward

Awakenings

(Cal MacDonnell and Seth Raincrest have nothing in common - except they both suffer from retrograde amnesia. It's as if they just appeared out of thin air thirteen years ago. Now their forgotten past has caught up with them) $7.99

Lin, Grace

Starry River of the Sky

(Kids; Rendi has run away from home and is now working at the inn in the remote Village of Clear Sky. The moon is missing there, but only Rendi seems to notice. He also notices the village's peculiar inhabitants and their problems. A mysterious lady arrives at the Inn with the gift of storytelling, and slowly transforms the villagers and Rendi himself. As the days pass, Rendi begins to realize that perhaps it is his own story that holds the answers to all his questions) $17.99

Lovecraft/Lockwood

The Lovecraft Anthology Volume 2

(Full color graphic novel; adaptations of Lovecraft stories) $19.95

Lovegrove, James

Red Eye

(Redlaw #2: PBO; In the U.S. to investigate a series of vicious attacks on vampire immigrants, Redlaw uncovers a conspiracy that could give journalist Tina Checkley the career break she's been looking for. It could also spell death for Redlaw) $8.99

Ma, Roger

The Vampire Combat Manual

(PBO; A humorous guide to fighting the bloodthirsty undead) $15.00

MacAlister/Harper/Sims

The Undead in My Bed

(PBO; Anthology; 3 vampire romance novellas) $7.99

Maguire, Gregory

Out of Oz

(Wicked Years #4: The Emerald City plans to invade Munchkinland, Glinda is under house arrest, the Cowardly Lion is on the run from the law, and look who's knocking at the door: Dorothy. Amid the chaos, Elphaba's granddaughter Rain comes of age, and will now take up her broom in an Oz racked by war) $15.99

Mallory, H.P.

Something Witchy This Way Comes

(Jolie Wilkins #5: PBO; Jolie must protect her Underworld realm from the Lurkers, half-humans bent on conquering the undead. At least she has her boyfriend, warlock Rand Balfour, by her side. But why can't she forget dangerously alluring vampire Sinjin Sinclair?) $7.99

Mallory, Michael

The Science Fiction Universe and Beyond: Syfy Channel Book of Sci-Fi

(A look at sf in films and television, from the Saturday matinee serials to modern times) $40.00

Mariconda, Barbara

The Voyage of Lucy P. Simmons

(Kids; An enchanted flute that warns of danger, a mist that unlocks a drawer of family secrets, a bookcase that expands to conceal her: since her parents drowned at sea, magic has been helping Lucy keep her house out of the hands of her greedy uncle) $16.99

Massey, Brandon (ed)

Voices from the Other Side

(Anthology; 20 horror and suspense stories by African-American writers) $6.99

McCormack, Una

Brinksmanship

(Star Trek: Typhon Pact: PBO; The independent Venette Convention becomes the flashpoint for a tense military standoff between the United Federation of Planets and the Typhon Pact) $7.99

McDevitt, Jack

Firebird

(Alex Benedict #6: Nebula Award finalist. Decades ago, renowned physicist Chris Robin, known for his theories about alternate universes, vanished. Alex and Chase discover that Robin had several interstellar yachts flown far outside the planetary system, where they too vanished. Now they're planning to follow Robin's trail into the unknown) $7.99

McGhoul/Kilbane

The Brain Eater's Bible

(A field manual and manifesto for the reanimated dead) $16.99

McIntosh, Will

Hitchers

(PBO; Contrary his grandfather's dying wish, Finn has resurrected the old man's newspaper comic, and it's more popular than ever. Then Finn realizes he has a hitcher within his skin: his grandfather, who isn't happy about the changes Finn has made) $14.99

McKillip, Patricia A.

Wonders of the Invisible World

(PBO; Collection of short fantasy fiction) $14.95

Meloy, Colin

Wildwood

(Wildwood Chronicles #1: Kids; After her brother is abducted, Prue and her friend Curtis head into the Impassable Wilderness to find him. There they find warring creatures, peaceable mystics, and powerful figures with dark intentions, and their rescue mission turns into a struggle for the freedom of Wildwood) $8.99

Meloy, Colin

Under Wildwood

(Wildwood Chronicles #2: Kids; A growing threat draws Prue back into Wildwood, where she and Curtis face their greatest challenge yet. To save themselves and the lives of their friends, and bring unity to a divided country, they must go under Wildwood) $17.99

Meluch, R.M.

The Ninth Circle

(USS Merrimack #5: On the distant world of Zoe, an expedition finds DNA-based life - and alien invaders. And it seems that the Ninth Circle and the Palatine Empire have also found Zoe. Glenn Hamilton calls on the

USS Merrimack

for help) $7.99

Modesitt Jr., L.E.

Scholar

(Imager #4: Begins a new story arc set hundreds of years earlier. Quaeryt is a scholar, concealing the fact that he's an imager. To escape the intrigues of the capital city, he convinces his ruler to send him on a reconnaissance mission. On the journey, he must face pirates, storms, poisonings, and attempted murder, as well as discovering that he is not quite who he thought he was) $7.99

Morgan, Richard K.

The Cold Commands

(Land Fit for Heroes #2: Aging warrior Ringil Eskiath is growing more comfortable with his return to the hero's life. But the stakes against him are being raised - a major threat is gathering on the horizon, one that Ringil cannot defeat by himself) $16.00

Mosley, Walter

Merge / Disciple

(Crosstown to Oblivion #2: Two novellas: a lottery winner notices something in his apartment that seems ordinary but reveals itself to be from a very different world; a data entry clerk realizes he has become a pawn in a battle that threatens the prime life force on Earth) $24.99

Niven, L/Barnes, S

The Moon Maze Game

(Dream Park #4: 2085: The first lunar live-action role-playing game turns ugly when a dozen gamers are kidnapped. But the gamers are brilliant, unpredictable, resourceful, and addicted to problem-solving - they're going to play this new scenario to win) $7.99

Oliver, Lauren

The Spindlers

(Kids; One morning, 12-year-old Liza realizes that spindlers have stolen her younger brother's soul. Armed with little more than her wits, and with a huge talking rat for a guide, she sets out to rescue him) $16.99

Pivarcsi, Istvan

Just a Bite

(Nonfiction; a Transylvanian historian peels away the effects of pop culture to set the record straight about the history and evolution of vampire folklore) $16.95

Pratchett, T/Cabell, C

Terry Pratchett: The Spirit of Fantasy

(A detailed biography of the beloved writer, including his battle with Alzheimers, over forty years of irreverent artistic achievements, and a note about cats) $14.95

Pratchett, Terry

Dodger

(YA; In an alternate London ruled by a young queen Victoria, Dodger is an enterprising lad, smart and lucky. Everyone likes him, which is good, because his life is about to get seriously complicated. When he sees a girl leap from a carriage in an attempt to escape her captors, will he stand by and let her be caught again? Of course not. He's not about to let anything happen to the unknown girl - not even if her fate affects some of the most powerful people in England)

1 note · View note

lloth · 6 years ago

Note

sooooo can you tell 10 random facts about Noa?

anything for u, blue! ♥

gonna put it under the cut tho

it might not be perfect, BUT!!!

10 fun facts about Noa!

He lost his left hand due to mishandling a remote explosive. (In his defense, he was under a lot of pressure and got careless. He deems his life is less important than the lives of innocent civilians. He’d sacrifice it if it meant saving others.) He now wears a prosthetic in its place.

Because of the Collapse, he remained in a bunker for six years of his life with his parents and sibling, Riley. When it was deemed ‘safe’ to leave the said bunker, he left with Riley. If my math is okay He would have been 14 at the time.

He learned how to hunt wildlife with Riley acting as his trainer. He would be… encouraged to take the life a deer or to act - to kill - in self-defense (when necessary.) Noa, not wanting to disappoint his sibling, would follow her words, taking them to heart. He’d also learn to keep quiet, speak only when spoken to (an order he’d often disobey.)

"I know your sin.” Riley eyed Noa with a devious smile. She spoke like a person possessed. Or like she recalled some old soul’s beliefs. “It drives you. Every thought, every action.”Noa’s sin is Wrath. It builds from his drive to hunt, to not be perceived as ‘weak’ or ‘pathetic’, and his anger towards being ‘abandoned’ by his sibling. His self-blame and self-doubt are also key factors. He can control it, he swears...

He enjoys exploring the new world! Curious about the world before the bombs fell, though. He, in his eyes, was too young to fully grasp the gravity of the Collapse. However, despite the outcome, he maintains an optimistic outlook. “There’s always a light at the end of the tunnel.”

Originally joined Rush’s group as a specialist. Noa was resourceful, able to craft a weapon out of anything he could get his hands on. Give him copper wire, titanium, circuit boards, and various components and he’ll create a masterpiece. He accepted the position, believing it gave him a purpose to serve others. (Would be given the title of Captain of Security later on.)

He’s got a reserved personality. He isn't shy. He just likes listening to others, chiming in when necessary. Breaks out of his shell when the moment calls for it.

More for Plan B than Plan A. Stealth was never his strongest tactic. At least he tries. Preferred method of taking out Highwaymen is with his knife. Fuels his Wrathful desires. And he just likes his knife. Never leaves without it.

Will sleep anywhere. Whether he can be found on top a roof, in the garage, on the helipad outside of Prosperity, out in a field... You name it! Please bring him back to bed or someplace safe.

Will crank up the volume of the Highwaymen radio while driving.

Bonus fact: i ship him with rush c’:

#i finally got to answering this im so so sorry this took forever!!!#ocposting #oc;; noa finch #noa finch #all of this is subject to change BUT IN THE MEANTIME it's noa canon #100% choosing those words on purpose (referring to riley)#vaughn-the-bandit-king

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kammieceleek · 6 years ago

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20 Warriors Questions!

1. How did you get into Warriors?

Well, if I’m being honest, my sister started reading them first. She checked the first book out of our school library and convinced me to read it. I think I was in fifth or sixth grade at the time. Yeah, it was fifth grade, because I was in sixth grade when The Last Hope came out. More specifically, it was the summer after sixth grade. So, yeah, you can thank my sister, @pipatyp, for introducing me to the series.

2. Favorite arc?

Ooh, boy. That’s tough one, especially since I’m not a hundred percent caught up. I haven’t finished Dawn of the Clans yet, but that’s due to my two-year absence from reading the series. I have a lot of catching up to do. Anyway, as far as favorite arc goes, I’m going to have to say my personal favorite is either Power of Three or The New Prophecy. I love Power of Three because I love it when there’s a sibling dynamic between major characters, especially if those characters all have their own internal conflicts. The New Prophecy has a similar situation, but it also sets up some stuff that pays off in later books along with having my boy Firestar being a shotgun dad for five chapters in Midnight.

3. Favorite book (excluding Super Editions, Manga, and Novellas)?

Agh! Like I said, I’m not caught up right now, so that makes this a hard question to answer. I guess I’d have to say my favorite book is probably... well, Twilight. I can’t help it; despite my utter hatred of the title (I blame edgy teen vampire romance), it’s a pretty solid entry into The New Prophecy arc. Leafpool and Crowfeather’s whirlwind romance is actually pretty believable, while Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw’s arguing is by far the most realistic thing about these books.

4. Favorite Super Edition, Novella, or Manga?

This is another one that’s tough to answer. I haven’t read all the Super Editions or novellas yet, but I’ve read every volume of manga the series has produced thus far. In this category, I’d have to say my favorite is probably either Goosefeather’s Curse, Crookedstar’s Promise, or The Rise of Scourge. Whoa, hey! I got one of each. Cool! Anyway, I love Goosefeather’s Curse because Goosefeather is one of my favorite characters in the series, and it’s kind of a dive into who he is before he gets bees in his brain and becomes the laughingstock of ThunderClan. Crookedstar’s Promise was the first Super Edition I read after Bluestar’s Prophecy, shortly after I finished The Prophecies Begin. It was also the first book to get me emotionally invested in the series. Yes, I cried. Deal with it. As for The Rise of Scourge, I’ve always been a fan of villains with backstories to back them up, and this solidified Scourge in my mind as the perfect villain for Firestar to face. They have similar backgrounds, but not as similar as a lot of people seem to think. This is also the only book to even hint at the blood connection between them, so there’s that.

5. Favorite Clan?

Okay, this one’s actually easy. My favorite is RiverClan, plain and simple. Despite the fact that they appear to the Clan least able to keep their genes in their own Clan (Appledusk, Oakheart, and Silverstream, just to name a few), they are also the only ones that can swim. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a cat swim, but it’s adorable. And I’m not saying the others can’t swim, they just won’t. RiverClan rules the water. Also, they eat fish, which makes their coats healthier than the other clans. Cool.

6. Favorite character?

Ooh, boy. Here’s a stunningly broad category that’s difficult to answer. There are so many characters in this series that it’s honestly hard to pick favorites. Personally, mine is either Squirrelflight, Sandstorm, or the ball of sass and salt known as Ivypool. Squirrelflight (at least in The New Prophecy) was a ball of energy and cunning remarks, which made her all the more fun to read about. It honestly sucks we never got to hear any of the arc from her perspective, but we can guess a lot of her thoughts based on her actions. Sandstorm is incredibly patient and a damn good mom. She stands by her daughters after their lives basically get torn to shreds because of Hollyleaf and she’s also the one who reassures Firestar that Cloudtail would make a good warrior. As for Ivypool, her struggles living in the shadow of her sibling are pretty relatable, and you just want to see her succeed. She’s also a five-star badass once she turns on the Dark Forest, so there’s that.

7. Least favorite character?

Hands-down, it’s either Darkstripe, Sleekwhisker, or... Spottedleaf. And I can hear the anger now, but let me point some things out. Darkstripe is an annoying little fanboy with a tom-crush the size of Texas on Tigerstar. Nobody really likes Darkstripe in this fandom, though. Sleekwhisker is a goddamn bitch as well as a matricidal murderer (she did help drown her own mother). As for Spottedleaf, I can’t say that she’s a good character. Her only role in most of the books she appears in is to act as a guide for Firestar or Leafpool, or in Firestar’s case, a massive roadblock in his relationship with Sandstorm. She has little to no actual personality beyond ‘medicine cat and Firestar’s first love’ and, despite Spottedleaf’s Heart, I can’t say that I like her backstory. As somebody who’s going into the field of education, it made me very uncomfortable and I worry for any younger kids who maybe pick up this book.

8. Most Aesthetically Pleasing Cat?

Ivypool. I like silver and white cats. I think they’re really pretty. Also, I have this image in my head of Ivypool being this pretty teenage girl who’s super skinny and looks really weak, but then she slams a fully-grown Hawkfrost into the mud with little effort. Yeah, I don’t care how the cats look.

9. Favorite leader?

Leafstar. Weird choice, I know, but she’s had to deal with things no other leader has really dealt with: the invading rats, her clan having a number of kittypets as part-time warriors due to low numbers, being pregnant and still trying to lead her Clan, and helping to rebuild the Clan from the ground up. Not to mention, she’s still leader when SkyClan moves to the lake territories. She’s one badass Miss Mama Cat.

10. Favorite villain?

Mapleshade. Like I said, I love backstories for villains, and Mapleshade’s is even more compelling and tragic than that of Scourge. She really got screwed over by first Ravenwing, then all of ThunderClan, then Frecklewish, and the list just goes on and on. And, the funny thing is, when you think about it, she never would’ve become a villain if Ravenwing had kept his damn medicine cat mouth shut. Maybe then he wouldn’t have ended up murdered at the Moonstone and his body wouldn’t have been eaten by a hawk.

11. Favorite Medicine cat?

Either Goosefeather or Jayfeather. They’re both fun characters who have a certain amount of bones to pick with StarClan for screwing them over. In Goosefeather’s case, it’s because of his powers and the fact that he went kind of crazy towards the end of his life. Jayfeather is just mad for them making him blind and forcing him to be a medicine cat. The boy wanted to be a warrior, so let him be a warrior! Then again, the love of his life has been dead for over eight decades, so... yeah.

12. Overrated character?

I’d have to say probably... *sighs* Crowfeather. Despite me loving his whirlwind romance with Leafpool, he gets a little too much love from the fandom. And no, I have not read Crowfeather’s Trial yet. Like I said, I’m behind. Anyway, he’s not really a good father to Breezepelt, which is painfully obvious in the way that they interact. He was going to abandon his Clan for the sake of breaking two codes with Leafpool. And, on top of that, he barely acknowledges the fact that he fathered Hollyleaf, Lionblaze, and Jayfeather. He’s not a bad character, but he doesn’t deserve all the love he gets from the fans.

13. Underrated character?

Briarlight. This girl survived a freaking tree falling on her and breaking her spine, which paralyzed her from the waist down, and she still maintains a happy attitude. Despite the fact that Jayfeather doesn’t make her a full medicine cat (she can’t exactly collect herbs or go to the Moonpool, can she?), she’s more than happy to assist the medicine cats that ThunderClan has by soaking dried-up herbs, handling patients who come in the early morning, and just generally improving the usually sour mood that’s in the medicine cat den.

14. Favorite minor character?

Hm. This one’s kind of tough. I’d have to say Purdy. He was never an official warrior of ThunderClan, but he was a big help when it came to lightening the mood in the elders’ den. Purdy always had a story to tell or some sort of wisdom to pass on, not to mention the fact that he told those stories whether you wanted to hear them or not. Kit, medicine cat, warrior, apprentice, leader, deputy--he didn’t care. All you had to do was listen and he’d go on until you actively told him to stop. And he’s funny.

15. Favorite pairing?

Firestar and Sandstorm, hands down. I know a lot of people don’t like it because Firestar still had a thing for Spottedleaf, but to me, a good pairing is all about balance. Shipping two people with the same personality doesn’t work. It’s why you so often see an optimist getting shipped with a pessimist. Anyway, they balance each other out because Firestar is an idealist and Sandstorm is a realist. Not only that, but they’re supportive of each other, and they stick by each other through thick and thin. They became mates in The Darkest Hour and remain mates once they’re in StarClan. The only regret they have about their relationship is the fact that they didn’t have more kits! That’s a good and healthily-built relationship to me.

16. Least favorite pairing?

Tigerheart and Dovewing. It’s not because they’re from different Clans, either. I don’t feel like there’s really balance in their relationship. They always seem to be arguing about something, and if they’re not doing that, they’re avoiding each other because their relationship is ‘against the warrior code’. Yeah, we all know that one part of the code has been broken so many times it might as well not exist anymore. Their personalities, if you ask me, are a little too similar for this relationship to work.

17. Favorite friendship?

Sorreltail and Leafpool, surprisingly enough. It stood the test of time and Leafpool’s biggest secret being spilled, forcing her to give up her position as a medicine cat. Sorreltail keeps thinking of Leafpool as the friend she knew back before everything went paws-up, and that line of thinking is on display in The Forgotten Warrior when she specifically cries out for Leafpool’s help while kitting. I have no doubt that they’ll be reunited in StarClan and hunt side-by-side.

18. Favorite moment?

I think my favorite moment so far in the entire series is when Yellowfang is first teaching Cinderpelt about herbs, and she snaps at Fireheart for upsetting her assistant. It kind of reveals that Yellowfang thinks of Cinderpelt as a replacement for her two daughters who never really got a chance to live in the world that killed them. And most likely, it was the daughter who died because Brokenkit poked her with his paw and it was too much for her body. Seriously, that’s tragically funny.

19. Most tragic death?

I’m going to have to go with a rather shocking answer and say the drowning of Mapleshade’s kits. This is a moment that sets a lot of the series in motion, since it was the aftermath of her kits’ deaths that sends Mapleshade down a dark path. After she dies and swears revenge on the descendants of those who wronged her, she gets into the minds of many of the most ‘evil’ cats we see in the series: Tigerstar, Brokenstar, and Thistleclaw, just to name a few. She also messes with the minds of good cats, like Crookedstar, making them feel like everything is their fault. I have no doubt she’s the true villain of the series, but all the death and destruction that is brought to the clans from within--so much of it can be linked back to Mapleshade and her toxic teachings in the Dark Forest. And her toxic teachings can be linked back to the deaths of her kits. Patchkit, Petalkit, and Larchkit drowning was the event that set off a chain reaction that killed so many Clan cats, and it’s tragedy stemming from tragedy.

20. Favorite battle/fight scene?

And, after four days of filling out these questions, reading A Vision of Shadows, and thinking through my answers, I have reached the final question. I’m not a person who typically enjoys battle scenes, but I’d have to say my favorite is the SkyClan battle against the rats in Firestar’s Quest. It’s intriguing for a number of reasons, the least of which being that there’s a rat who understands and speaks cat! The rats are an unusual enemy because they’re essentially a hivemind--the only one that’s been fought so far in the series. Hivemind fights are fascinating because once you take out the big brain, the rest scatter. That’s exactly what we see! As soon as Firestar takes out the lead rat, the Clan has won the battle and secured SkyClan’s place in the gorge. And thanks to that, we eventually get Violetshine and Twigbranch (we are never letting Bramblestar live that name down, I swear to God).

So, that’s my 20 Warriors Questions. Now I challenge my sister, @pipatyp, to answer the twenty. I look forward to seeing her answers!

#20 warriors questions #my answers #Warrior Cats #Ivypool #Mapleshade #Personal opinion #oh no an opinion

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codylabs · 6 years ago

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Chapter 19: The Worst of Times

Links: P 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

An honest-to-goodness alien spaceship came careening out of the sky, directly toward the town. At the last possible second, it pulled up and curved away, close enough that the people on the streets could feel the pull of its gravity drive. Then it swerved unstably side to side through the sky, as its pilot attempted to get bearings. Soon it seemed to pick a direction, and so tilted on one end and raced off toward the hills, slicing off a couple treetops as it went. When it passed over the Mystery Shack, it took a sudden drop in altitude, hovered into something resembling a standstill, bumped once into the side of the building, and settled to the ground upside-down.

Its engines wined tiredly as it rolled itself back right-side-up, and finally came to a rest right between Soos’ truck and the Stans’ RV, like just another car in the parking lot.

The airlock momentarily opened and two sore but triumphant teenagers blinked in the light.

“Ugh…” Dipper dropped the alien instruction manual and rubbed his arms with a groan. “Ow…”

“Bro…” Wendy staggered slightly and shook her head, her inner ear still spinning from the flight’s antics. She gripped her fingers around the upper rim of the airlock, and hoisted herself out before extending a hand down to Dipper. “That was… Bleh…”

“Yeah… Bleh…” Dipper took her hand, and let himself be lifted up.

“Let’s… Uh…” Wendy set him down beside her and gave him a friendly slap on the back. “Yeah… Let’s not… Not do that again.”

They both dropped down off the vehicle’s rim, limped over to the Mystery Shack porch, and plopped themselves down on the sofa, where they could massage and stretch their sore bodies in relative peace.

After about 5 minutes of sitting there groaning, Wendy reached an arm way over in the direction of the cooler, and came back with a pair of ice cream sandwiches. One she tossed to Dipper, the other she unwrapped herself. The cool milky goodness reminded them how hot they were, and they began to unbuckle and loosen their armor. Wendy took a moment to admire all the scratches and dents she’d accumulated on her shoulder pads, and Dipper took a moment to subtly readjust his pants for reasons we won’t go into. Finally he spoke up again. “Yeah… And if we do do that again… I’ll drive.”

“What? No…” She smirked sharply at him. “That was fun, man… I mean… I mean, that wasn’t bad, was it?”

A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. “…You drive spaceships about as well as you drive cars.”

“Yeah, well…” She struggled for a retort. “Well… You read Alien-ese about as well as you read Spanish. ‘That’s the reactor ignition’ you said. ‘push that button’ you said. ‘try those switches over there’ you said… But was it any of those?”

“No… No, we made it out by dumb luck…”

“Yeah…”

“Ugh… Sorry.”

She blinked. “Yeah… Hey, you know what, I’m sorry too. I totally forgot all about the rotation controls there during takeoff. And I guess I am a pretty bad pilot all-in-all…”

“Ahh… It’s fine… It’s just barf. It washes out…”

“Ha ha… Ooooh.” She took another bite of ice cream. “That’s gross dude.”

“Breaking news! Dipper is gross!” A new voice suddenly joined the conversation, its owner leaping out of the door to land in a smug summersault before them. With a big metal smile and a voice like a TV announcer, she held her own ice cream sandwich like a microphone. She was talking again by the time the screen door banged shut behind her. “Stay tuned next time for these and other shocking revelations, such as: grass is green!”

“Ugh! Mabel!” Dipper frowned.

“What is UP, Dippingsauce?!? Say, when did you guys get back?”

“Like… Just now?” Wendy shrugged.

“Mabel!” Dipper hissed at a volume he thought was quiet. “Go. A. Way. You were ruining the… Ermmmph…?” He nodded toward Wendy in a way he thought was discreet.

“Oh, what?” Mabel laughed. “Did I ruin the moment? I thought you were talking about how gross you were! Well excuse ME for mussing up the moment, you adorable lovebirds!”

“I…! Guh! Mabel! Go away!”

“Maybe I will, but I'll never be faaaar... Ooooh-weeEEEEE-Oooooh...!” She made a mysterious alien noise.

“Say…” Wendy interrupted, eager as anyone to steer the girl toward alternative conversation topics. “What have you been doing all day, dude?”

“Oh, ME?” Mabel smiled. “Well, I… I! I have been thinking and braining and computing, and I think I’ve finally found a way for you guys to solve your little adventure. A big, grand, happy solution! A way that doesn’t involve killing all the alien robots. I way where people are still safe, but also nothing has to be extinct!”

“Oh yeah?” Dipper glanced at her, intrigued. “And what would this big, grand, happy solution be?”

“Nuh-UH! I can’t tell you! It’s a super secrety secret that only Soos and Robbie are allowed to—SWEET MOTER OF CINNAMON IS THAT A UFO?!?”

“Uh…” Dipper glanced over his shoulder. “That? No, of course not.” He shook his head and took another bite of ice cream. “’UFO’ stands for ‘Unidentified Flying Object.’ Whereas that machine is perfectly identified. It is a nuclear-powered sub-light cargo shuttle manufactured on Trilazzxx Beta, as exploratory equipment for Colonial Vessel 4.16’\. An extraterrestrial spacecraft. Not a UFO.”

“OH MY GEEEEEEEE…! Soos, get out here! Dipper and Wendy got us a UFO!”

Soos appeared at the door with a heaping mouthful of grass. “DUDE!” He gasped some down his windpipe, and spent the next several seconds coughing it back up as he ran after Mabel toward the vehicle. “Dude it’s a spaceship! Duuuuude!”

“Duuuuuuude!”

“Duuuuuuuuude!”

“DUUUUUUUUUUUDE!”

Mabel and Soos clambered up the side and disappeared down the airlock.

“…And we’re sure that thing is harmless, right?” Dipper blinked.

“At this point? Yes. And I also took the keys.” Wendy reached into her pocket and pulled out something like a cross between a sonic screwdriver and a feather duster. “I think these are the keys, at least…”

“Ha ha… Good move…”

“Yeah…”

They were silent for a few minutes more.

Dipper took a deep breath.

Wendy took a deep breath.

“So…” He began.

“So…” She began at the exact same time. This seemed to cause some form of mutual interruption, and caused them to both stop talking.

“Go ahead.”

“No, you go ahead.”

“Okay…” She continued. “So…” She let the word hang in the air for a minute, unsure of how to follow up on it. “So… We started a conversation earlier that we never got to finish.”

“Oh…” Dipper stammered. “Oh yeah. Uh… We did, huh? Yeah…”

“About how this adventure might very well be our last. About how if we’re not careful, we might never hang out again. About how I’ll miss you and you’ll miss me and neither of us really want that to happen and, like, what should we do about that…?”

“Uh… Uh… Yeah…”

“Hmm.” Wendy grunted.

And then they fell silent again.

Finally Dipper opened his mouth. Then he closed it, cleared his throat, and tried again. “Wendy, uh… I was wondering if tomorrow… Uh… If… Uh…”

“What?”

“Uh…” A spell of dizzy itchiness seized him about that time, and it got just a little too much to bear. “Uh…”

“What?” She repeated.

“Umm… Never mind.”

“No no no no!” She insisted. “You started a conversation earlier, and now you better finish it. And you just started a sentence just now, so you darn better finish that too. If you really do have something you want to say, you darn better man up and speak up, or who knows; one of us could die in the meantime. You never know when you'll never have another chance, so take it now.”

“UH!” He squirmed nervously. “No, it’s not… Never mind. I changed my mind.”

“Changed your mind…? Really?”

“Uh…” Dipper took a breath, set his jaw, and finally said. “Okay.” Then he looked her in the eye and, with a truly monumental effort of courage, said it. “Wendy… Do you want to go on a date with me tomorrow?”

Her mouth slowly spread into a little smile as she leaned back and took another bite of her ice cream sandwich. Then she said. “I do.”

Then…!

Then… That was…

That was it… Wasn’t it?

That night Wendy came home tired, happy, and strangely optimistic… Everything seemed pretty good. Pretty chill.

Everything wasn't pretty good.

When she crawled into bed, turned out the lights and drifted off to sleep, something was wrong… It wasn't a happy sleep. A darkness seemed to encroach upon her mind, and forced upon it a new vision; a new vision, filled with darkness.

Within this evil nightmare, the day seemed to run the same way that she remembered. Just the way it was supposed to… Yes, everything was exactly the same… Until…

Until everything went wrong.

The ship exploded. Little bits and pieces flew from its port-side wing, as it tumbled for the ground. The controls fought back against her, the ground came much too fast, she missed the yard entirely, and crashed in the forest.

The ship tumbled end over end, breaking into pieces, littering the landscape with debris. Fires started. Radiation cooked the area at the atomic level. Ford evacuated people for their own protection. When he found Wendy, he had her strip to her underwear before he blasted her with the hose, trying his best to decontaminate her scarred skin.

But Ford had been irradiated himself; an even higher dosage than she. He was sick within hours, and nobody had seen much of him since. They say he’d retreated to the solitude of his lab, where he spent the hours and days doing who-knows-what.

Soos had to move his family out of the Shack. And as they sat together in a lonely motel room, he realized that there was so much heartbreak and brokenness and chaos roaming about that he couldn’t fix it. Even the greatest handyman in the world couldn’t fix it. He knew it, and the knowledge tore him up inside.

Melody had her hands full enough just trying to keep the hotel room in shape.

Abuelita found herself without her recliner for the first time in decades. The futon was a pretty big step down.

Stan found himself as a caretaker of sorts. He kept them fed and sheltered, much as he was able, kept them together and stable to the greatest of his ability. The same man who had brought them all together as Mr. Mystery now brought them together as their Grunkle. And what a Grunkle he was; but even he couldn’t reach Mabel.

Mabel.

As for her, there were no words for what she felt. It seemed that something inside her had suddenly snapped, and she’d retreated into her shell. Nothing seemed to be able to pierce through.

And Dipper…

Dipper was dead!

Wendy awoke with a sudden gasp, and found herself sitting up in bed, the sheets hot and sticky against her skin, her eyes glued on the moon out the window, her breath coming ragged and heavy.

What a nightmare that had been! It was so vivid! Almost as vivid as reality! When she tried to remember it, it didn’t elusively fade like dreams usually do; she could recall it so clearly… The image of Dipper’s bloody, broken body still hovered before her eyes, the broken lives and dreams, the sickness, the pain. She could see it almost as clearly… As… Reality…

But… Wait… Reality…?

Reality was the happy landing… The ice cream… The smiles… The awkward little invitation…

Right?

What was…?

What…

Which was the dream?!?

Wendy’s eyes slowly strayed around her room, searching in dread for the clues which would tell her.

She saw the 4 journals lying open on her desk; three red with the symbol of a hand, and one blue with the symbol of the tree.

She saw the pitcher lying next to her bed, so she had a place to barf if she again felt sick in the night.

She felt the light cotton shirt across her chest, the only thing she could wear that didn’t hurt so bad when it rubbed on her radiation burns.

She saw the little container on her nightstand, with some long, cumbersome scientific label: the pills Ford had given her to flush the latent Uranium from her body.

She saw her calendar, with its extra marks telling her she’d been bedridden 4 days now.

She saw the ‘get well soon’ cards her friends had made, lying in a messy little stack.

She saw last night’s dinner sitting where dad had left it on the foot of her bed; stone cold and untouched…

And on the windowsill directly in front of her, she saw a shattered, oil-stained axe; the axe Dipper had used to defend her to his dying breath.

Wendy’s mind, now fully awake, began to put the grim picture together: the happy ending was the dream. Instead of the nightmare, it was the good day that faded quickly from her consciousness, leaving nothing to recall it by except a vague, groundlessly hopeful feeling. The nightmare had taken its place in her memory.

And now, Wendy was struck with a sudden and powerful feeling of Deja-Vu: she’d been having the same dream for the past 4 nights. Each time, she vaguely recalled the relief, the peace, the life and love… Everything always seemed pretty chill… Then each time, she fell asleep. And the dream within a dream was a nightmare, and when she woke from both she beheld that the nightmare was true. Somehow, inexplicably, it had always been true…

Reality was the nightmare…

Bill would have been tickled pink.

Wendy would suffer no more sleep tonight. Instead she eased herself out of bed, dragging the quilt behind her for warmth. Then she flipped on the lamp above her desk, and watched the weathered pages of the journals appear before her in the yellowish light. Her butt landed on the chair, and her eyes landed on the pages, and there both stayed as the small hours ticked by.

This wasn’t right. She told herself. It wasn’t this way, and it won’t be this way. I don’t know how it could ever be fixed, but there IS a way, and I WILL find it. As she turned another page, she repeated this promise to herself a second time, and she believed it. She knew it.

Wherever you are, Dipper… Listen to me, and don’t you give up hope. Things look bad right now but somehow, somewhere, sometime, I’m coming for you. I will save you.

You had honor and grit beyond your years, Dipper. You were the one who taught me determination. You were the one who taught me heroism. Whatever it is I need to do, I learned it from you. If it had been me dead out there, you would have done the same and more for me, with neither hesitation nor doubt. And you wouldn’t have let depression or despair or a little Acute Radiation Syndrome stand in your way.

Listen to me Dipper, and hold fast.

I won’t be long.

I promise you life.

“Learn to think dark thoughts, my girl.”

These were the words Robbie had given Mabel 4 days ago, when he’d scorned her spirit and left her. These words had been given to her 23 minutes before Dipper died.

She shouldn’t logically have known of his demise on such short notice. She’d been in the van at the time, on the way to the motel, complaining and talking and joking with Soos and Melody… Then… She’d suddenly and inexplicably felt a piece of her soul shatter to pieces. Maybe it was just the minutes ticking by when nobody spoke or called. Maybe she’d suddenly put it all together: how the only place a dirty UFO could have come from is on-planet. How the only people who were currently investigating aliens (and thus the only ones who would ever find such a craft and try to land it in their yard) were Dipper and Wendy. Maybe Robbie’s words had set off a chain reaction of unreasonable, escalating paranoia.

It was probably the work of some kind of latent twin ESP.

It didn’t matter how she’d known.

She just had.

And thus did the civil war begin.

It was the spark that set the two sides of Mabel’s soul afire in hatred against the other. They donned their armor, they took up weapons, and they charged headlong into war on the surface of her mind.

The light half of her brain cried foul at the claims of the darkness; it said that Dipper wasn’t dead at all. “It’s all right!” The light half said. “What do you mean he’s dead? Of course he’s all right! He’s always been all right! He’s always been there for you, you’ve always been there for him, and nothing in the universe can stand between! That’s the way it’s always been, and that’s the way it will always be! Your love for him conquers all! And even if he is dead; so what? Together, you’ve conquered things more powerful than death before, and you will conquer them again! You’ve battled across space and time, you’ve grappling-hooked your way through demons and robots! So long as the name ‘Pines’ still dances in the sunny fields of Gravity Falls, your hope and your love will endure! Stand up and laugh at cruel fate, Mabel! The others need your strength!”

“Of course he’s dead.” The dark side retorted. “He went off alone with Wendy; he spent more and more time with her, less and less time with you, because he wanted to leave you behind! He thought you were too sweet and young and foolish for his duty, and he was right… He left you because he knew you couldn’t handle the grown-up world! The real world… It is dark and twisted and dangerous, filled with evil men, just like Robbie told you! Dipper left you for this world, and his foray into its clutches destroyed him. He should have stayed with you, growing young and stupid by your side, but he didn’t… And now what will you do, you glittery, girly little fart? You will sit down and you will cry, because bringing him back means following him into that grim world, and you are too cowardly for the task!”

Yes, it was true: only half of the mind was occupied by Mabel’s old self… The other half was something terrible and ugly and foreign… Some part of herself she’d either never noticed or always tried to repress. Where did this other half come from? How did it get into my brain? Why are you here? Why won’t you leave me alone? Help, somebody help! It’s hurting me!

No matter how the fires raged on that battleground, the darkness would not be subdued.

But that whole evening, the light side would not be subdued either. It had been holding aloft that one and singular hope: the hope and that this was all just a weird onset of paranoia. But… But what kind of person was paranoid enough to instantly become certain of a dark truth she couldn’t have known? Even Dipper hadn’t been that bad. Nobody was that paranoid, certainly not sweet, optimistic little Mabel… Certainly not sweet, optimistic, innocent, supportive, carefree, cheery, bubbly, joyous, happy little Mabel… Certainly not I…

Dipper was dead; she knew it but she didn’t know it, and that was the misery she had lived until 7:28 that night. And that was when Melody, the most adult-like adult present, got a call from Ford. She’d listened to the news with a steely frown for some 10 minutes, whispering questions just outside Soos and Mabel’s hearing.

Then she nodded, said something to Soos, and handed the phone to Mabel.

Mabel turned away before she could see Soos’ reaction, then pressed the earpiece to her head, and, in a barely steady voice, demanded of the man on the other end. “He’s dead? He’s dead, isn’t he? Dipper’s dead?”

Ford hadn’t dared to hesitate; she’d waited long enough. “Yes.” He’d said.

She vaguely remembered dropping the phone, then curling up in someplace cold and dark, pulling her head and limbs into her sweater, and crying. Deep inside the impenetrable inner sanctum of Sweatertown, the darkness gained ground. “I was right.” It said. “You are foolish, you are stupid, you are weak, and I was right. Now you are all alone, and there is nobody to help you. Your brother is gone, your uncles are just uncles, your friends are just friends, your Soos is just a Soos, and none of them know you anymore. The Shooting Star burned so bright and beautiful in its time, but a shooting star is just a falling star, and its shine is merely its vaporization. The atmosphere has torn it apart, and now a cracked, rough, beaten, cold shell comes plummeting for the ground; an impact that will surely dash it to pieces… Poor, poor Shooting Star… At last… At long, long last, it’s time for you to become something new…”

Thusly did the sweet, optimistic, innocent, supportive, carefree, cheery, bubbly, joyous, happy little Mabel slowly rot.

Robbie’s words echoed over the blackened, besieged walls of Sweatertown.

“Learn to think dark thoughts, my girl…”

Such thoughts had begun to ooze.

Dan tucked in his shirt and buckled his suspenders, as he glanced tiredly at the clock. He had to leave for work in 15 minutes… He supposed that was long enough to try once more to talk.

So he scooped a couple eggs and some sausage off the stove and onto a plate, and carried them over to his daughter’s sealed door. With one massive fist he knocked once, and waited a minute for the response that never came.

She didn’t want to talk. She never wanted to talk.

So he opened it anyway, and took a timid step within.

She was sitting at her desk, wrapped tightly in a quilt and little else, as seemed to be habit these past few days. Before her, arranged on the table like some kind of ritual, were all those old confounded books… What was she doing?

Whatever it was, she didn’t think it warranted showing to him.

Her back was turned, and there it stayed. Her gaze was forward, and there it stayed, as she flipped page after page, slowly and methodically, scanning from book to book to book to book. Occasionally she scribbled a note or a question or an answer here or there. Sometimes she checked a little chart she’d scribbled on the wall, that seemed to be some kind of code. Sometimes she fact-checked the blue one with the red ones, or the red ones with each other.

Always she was looking. Looking for what? Dan couldn’t guess. Why the sudden interest in books, when she’d never liked them even a little? Dan hadn’t a clue. What strange books were these, that could promise answers among matters of life and death? Dan hesitated to speculate. What did she believe stood to gain by pouring over scribbles all through the late and early hours? It didn’t make much sense to him. But somehow, such folly seemed infinitely important to her. Indeed, by the intensity of her studies, it seems she believed in it… WHY? He wondered again. WHAT IS THERE TO BELIEVE? WHAT IS SHE THINKING? IS SHE HOPING? HOPING FOR WHAT? AND HOW? HOW DOES HOPE FOLLOW FROM A SITUATION LIKE THIS…?

Well… He figured she probably knew a lot more about this than he did. Whatever she was thinking, he hoped to God that she was right.

He set her breakfast down on her bed, to replace her untouched dinner.

But before he left, he decided to try once more.

“…WENDY?”

No response, although her shoulders may have tensed just slightly.

“LOOK, I… I KNOW YOU DON’T WANT TO TALK, BUT… BUT. HMM. YEAH… UH… YOU KNOW, WHEN YOUR MOM DIED--”

“Was it your fault?” Dan saw his own daughter spin on him, wild and aggressive, lashing out like a cornered animal. And for the first time, Dan clearly saw that terrible, ungodly look in her eye. It was a look that shocked Dan, even frightened him into taking a step back, because he recognized it well. He hadn’t seen that look in a long time, and he’d hoped to never see it again. That was the look he saw in the mirror, when he met times of true desperation with all he had left: his anger and his willpower. When her mom died. When her brother had hit his head on a hiking trip. When the sky was red and everyone was gone. This was a look of great import.

“I don’t talk.” Wendy growled. “Because I know what you’re going to say, and I’m not gonna listen. You’re gonna ask me why the dickens I was trying to fly an alien spaceship in the first place. Why I didn’t land it properly, or why I showed enough weakness to need protection from some wimpy kid. You’re gonna tell me none of this had happened if I’d have just gotten a job like a good little girl! If I’d have just forgotten the whole thing! You’re gonna tell me I shouldn’t have tried to do this, and now ‘HEY LOOK SOMEBODY’S DEAD! HEY LOOK, NOW YOU’VE GOT ARS AND YOU SHOULDN’T BE OUT OF BED TILL YOUR BONE MARROW HEALS!’ WELL I KNOW IT, DAD! I darn well know I messed up, but I’ll have you know that we had our own good reasons for going out there, for fighting the fight we did, for flying that ship… We believed—No—We knew that we had to! But this wasn’t the way it was supposed to be! We would have lived…! And… And I don’t need another lecture from you telling me how to live my life… Just… Please, just leave…”

Dan stood there for a minute, shocked to silence.

“And…” Wendy announced. “Frankly dad, today’s the day. I don’t think I’ll find any more answers in these books, so I ain’t gonna stay sitting on my butt for one hour longer. You’re gonna leave for work in… What, 11 minutes? Soon as you do, there’s nothing to stop me. I’m gonna get up and I’m gonna head to town. Firstly to collect some equipment I lost in the crash. Secondly to get some questions answered. Third to buy a new bike, because the robot ate my old one. Forthly to visit the Pines, and tell them the half of the story they haven’t heard yet. Fifthly to just clear my head… I know Ford said to stay in bed, stay in my room, until I’m stronger; well screw him. I’m going, because this is more important. And… And that’s the way it is, so there…”

Her gaze passed off of him, as she turned back to her books.

Dan frowned for a good long time, his brain working to process all of this. He started off angry. Then he got confused. Then he stopped being confused, and he knew what he needed to do.

He could be late for work just once.

“UH…” He finally said, as he turned for the door. “I WON’T HAVE YA WALKIN’ ALL THE WAY TA TOWN IN YER HEALTH. GET YER STUFF TOGETHER, EAT YER BREAKFAST, AND I’LL MEET YA IN THE TRUCK… AND FER THE LOVE OF ALL THAT’S HOLY, PUT ON SOME PANTS! YOU’LL CATCH YER DEATH OF COLD…”

10 minutes later, she locked the front door behind her, and turned for the truck. She’d dressed herself approximately as she usually did: jeans, boots, jacket. But this time, that faded cap with the pine tree seemed more prominent on her head. And she was carrying more than an axe today; the blue journal was tucked in her unbuttoned jacket.

She was dressed for this business. But she wasn’t feeling it. The eggs and meat tumbled in her empty stomach like they didn’t belong. The chill morning air bit harshly though the inside of her stuffy nose. And her knees, of all things, hurt from so many days of sitting. In every inch of her body there lurked these subtle hardships of sickness. They made her feel thin, weak, even small. As if everything in creation, right down to her very flesh, was conspiring to oppress her. As if, in so many subtle ways, fate had made her less than everybody else.

This must be how Dipper feels every day. She realized.

“READY?” Her dad nodded from the cab of his truck.

She took one more deep breath.

Grit.

“Yep.” She nodded.

“KAY.”

Then she looked over and met her dad’s eye.

Honor.

“…I’m sorry I yelled at you.” She told him. “That was outta turn.”

“’SOKAY.”

“…You’re really not mad at me?”

“…THERE’S A LOTTA THINGS I DON’T UNDERSTAND.” He grunted. “BUT AS FER WHAT YER FEELING… THAT I DO GET. AND EVEN I KNOW BETTER THAN TA STAND IN THE WAY OF A CORDUROY WEARIN’ THAT FACE. NOW… WHERE IS IT YA NEED TA GO?”

She stepped up into the passenger seat, and pulled the door shut behind her. “Uh… McGucket’s handling the salvage from the crash, right? Weren’t you driving the tow truck for the cleanup?”

“YEAH. EVERYTHING WE DIDN’T BURY I TOOK TO HIS PLACE.”

“McGucket Manor then.”

“Hey, make it fast up there, Pumpkin.” Grunkle Stan lowered her gently off his shoulders, and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. His rough, cranky old voice was the gentlest he could make it today. “Don’t wanna be around here longer than we have to… Ha ha… Radiation, and, uh… Heh heh… Y’know. All that… Just get your stuff and come right back down.”

In numb compliance, she walked slowly up the familiar creaking stairs, through the room lit red by the triangular window, and finally into the cramped attic space where all her stuff was…

And all his stuff too… She tried not to look at it.

She stopped by a small metal box that was sitting on her bed. And she stared at it for what felt like minutes, while the mighty battle of light vs. dark raged harder than ever in her soul.

Juan was in that box.

The adorable, innocent little robot that Wendy had found in the woods at the start of all this… Mabel had been the one to keep him fed and charged and happy; who had played with him, and kept him safe from the family who would have meant him harm… Somebody mysterious had even saved him from their hands, and then entrusted him to Mabel, knowing that she still loved and cared for the cub…

Hesitantly, Mabel popped the latches on the box, and looked inside.

Juan was still in there.

He’d been in there 4 days now. No electricity. No room to move. No light. No warmth. No mommy. No love.

Very slowly and weakly he looked up at her. His red eyes were glowing almost too dim to make out, and the most he could do with his legs was wiggle them side to side, as if lacking the power output to even stand up. She could tell that he was nearly dead.

“Oh…!” She choked dryly over her words, and her sight got blurry. “Oh, I’m so sorry Juan…” She reached down with her bare hands, and curled them around his tiny chest. He was even thinner and lighter than she remembered, and his legs were covered in what felt like metal shavings. (Robot poop? Gross…)

He didn’t activate his saws, even when her bare hand accidentally touched them. Maybe he didn’t fear her or hate her anymore; or maybe he was just that helpless.

She rushed over to the wall outlet, sat down next to it, and held his head right up to the socket. Soon as the creature recognized what was happening, it extended its hooks and worked them into the plug. Its entire body seemed to shudder for a moment and then relax. His legs wrapped themselves comfortably around her wrist, and the claws gently plucked at her sweater. His tail wiggled in the cutest way possible, and his entire body seemed relieved, even sleepy as he nursed.

Oh, Juan…

Such a sweet thing…

…

It’s all his fault.

If you hadn’t wandered into that bear trap… Your mom wouldn’t have left you for dead. And then Wendy wouldn’t have found you and taken you home. And then your mom wouldn’t have come back looking for you, and hurt Dan… And then Dipper and Wendy wouldn’t have gone on an adventure to find where you came from… And… And then Wendy wouldn’t have flown that spaceship, Dipper wouldn’t have dueled your mom… Your mom wouldn’t have died, and… AND… AND!

AND DIPPER WOULD STILL BE ALIVE!

Very slowly, Mabel watched her hand reach up to settle on the top of Juan’s head. I’m just going to pet him… It’s all right. I’m just petting you Juan… Don’t be afraid. You need to be… Petted…

But she didn’t pet him. As if it had a mind of its own, Mabel’s hand curled its fingers around the sides of Juan’s head. And her other hand reached around to hold his torso steady.

No…

No, I can’t do this. It’s not… It’s not really his fault. He’s just a baby… He… He… He doesn’t deserve it! What am I thinking?!? He’s innocent! I love him! He’s…

He’s guilty.

I hate him.

Mabel’s fingers tightened. In an instant, her wrists flexed, her arms straightened, and she grunted with effort.

With all her strength, she spun Juan’s head around on his body. And she held it at that terrible angle for a second, flexing with all her strength, waiting for some quiet ‘click’ which would indicate his tiny spine had cracked.

But his neck was made of titanium; it didn’t break.

Suddenly, Mabel froze, and realized what she’d just done.

She dropped Juan on the floor with a gasp, and stood up suddenly, staggering back about 5 steps. Juan shook his sore neck and glanced up at her in an accusing way.

Mabel kept retreating until her back touched the wall. That really happened. She realized. She’d just tried to murder an innocent creature. She, Mabel Pines, had really, truly, with all of her might, tried to end the life of an innocent, adorable baby animal, and all for no reason besides anger…

She broke down into uncontrollable tears, jerked the door open, and rushed headlong down the stairs. Stanley noticed her coming, and, guessing wrongly at the source of her distress, reached up a hand to try and stop her. “Hey, woah, woah, it’s okay, Sweety! C’mere, it’s—”

She blubbered something unintelligible that even she didn’t catch, barreled her way past her Grunkle’s embrace, and sprinted for the back door.

Gone, gone, gone…

Dipper was gone… And now Mabel must be gone too… Yes, something must have taken up residence in my brain, because I would surely never have done that… Surely not I…

The battle in her brain raged on, just as ferociously as ever.

And the light side was getting truly desperate. Has the darkness really won? It asked.

The dark side snickered at the protests of the light. I guess we’ll have to see… It taunted.

Beneath the battle in the brain, Mabel’s legs ran and kept running, while the tears streamed down her face. Grunkle Stan may have been running after her, or he may not… It didn’t really matter; she had faster legs than him anyway.

She ran and she ran.

I tried to kill him! The light side of her brain sobbed. Dipper was the only one I could ever trust, and now I can’t even trust myself!

Geez, this is getting sad! The dark side of her brain cringed. You weren’t even strong enough to break that kid’s neck! Dipper wouldhave couldhave done it better… Whatever you think you’re doing, you definitely need help.

Where are you, Dipper?!? Her light side cried out. What can I even do? Where are you to tease me when I’m silly? Where are you to pick me up when I’m stupid? Where are you to put a bandaid on my soul and give me an awkward sibling hug? Dipper… I need you so BAD…

She ran and she ran until she found herself standing all alone, in a small field of yellow grass. All around the field stooped a scraggly grove of Birch Trees, their trunks banded in sheaths of white bark as smooth as eyelids…

Mabel took a deep breath and wiped her tears, as she sank down into the grass.

Dipper… The light side of her brain pleaded. I would do anything in the universe to get you back…

Oh yeah? The dark side asked. …Did you just say ‘anything’, Shooting Star?

She opened her eyes.

And she saw a small stone statue.

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#The Forest Of Daggers #wendip #wendy x dipper #gravity falls #scifi #wendy corduroy #dipper pines #shapeshifter #see you next summer #fanfiction #fanart #alien #robot #ghost #wendipweek

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creideamhgradochas · 6 years ago

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Thanks to the lovely @whostheblondegirlwriting for taking the time to answer these! Get to know more about lovely E, go give her a follow and then show her some love!

These questions are from this list. You should check it out, there’s 50 questions all together and they’d be great to ask your favorite fic writer!

*Disclaimer from E, herself: If you’re looking for some sage-like writery advice...keep lookin’. You won’t find it here. This whole fic writing endeavor is an adventure in “[shrugs] We’ll see what happens”. Behold! An odyssey of half-assed, one line inspo. Marvel at the absolute appalling lack of plotting and vision. Tremble at the underwhelming realization that “Huh. I could do better than that”. In short, at least you don’t pay money for this, right?

1) How old were you when you first starting writing fan-fiction?

I have no idea, honestly. I signed up for AO3 to actually share it though in September 2015 when I was 36. So we’ll go with that.

2) Do you prefer writing OC’s or reader inserts? Explain your answer.

I think I have done more reader inserts than OC, counting all the tumblr oneshots. But you can actually create something substantial with an OC. An OC makes you work. I prefer them.

3) What is your favorite genre to write for?

I don’t know if I’ve done enough variety to have a fav, honestly.

4) If you had to delete one of your stories and never speak of it again, which would it be and why?

I wouldn’t. They’re all mine and I’m proud of each of them, no matter how popular (or maybe I should say, unpopular) they are/were.

5) When is your preferred time to write?

Whenever I have the time! I’m not picky, because time is very hard to come by with my job anymore and the fact that my husband doesn’t know I write. Morning, noon, or night for me. It can be hard to sneak it in and still get everything else done.

6) Where do you take your inspiration from?

I don’t have a good answer for this and I’m laughing to myself thinking I should have one. Lol An idea comes up and I write it. That’s it. Shameful, I know.

7) In your Back to One series, what’s your favorite scene that you wrote?

Oh, damn. Uhhh...I think I liked Sebastian fumbling through his confession to Lily in Montauk. But I also probably had the most fun with the “champagne incident” because it was for my tumblr-lifemate, @ceebeetumbles.

8) Have you ever amended a story due to criticisms you’ve received after posting it?

Nope. It is what it is. You can’t please everyone and I don’t try. As long as I like it, it’s good enough. It’s not like anyone’s paying me for this, anyway. Lol

9) Who is your favorite character to write for? Why?

Hmm. Right now, I’d have to say Jack Rollins, because he preoccupies so much of my writing lately. Besides his own fic, he’s also featuring in an AU for Echo that’s in draft. Considering he had two lines in Winter Soldier, I’m very proud of the interest and love my Jack gets.

10) Who is your least favorite character to write for? Why?

Chris Evans, for right now. Only because he has been less than inspirational for some time due to his relative inactivity and, uh, [ahem] some personal choices he made. But I’m optimistic he’ll come back.

11) How did you come up with the title for the Back to One series?

The main character, Lily, goes through some personal and professional ups and downs as an actress. The phrase “back to one” is a direction for actors to go back to their first mark, so I thought it was fitting, as Lily would hopefully get things right, find her best self again, and have a fresh start as she meets different situations and opportunities in her story.

12) How did you come up with the idea for the Back to One series?

I thought I’d write a Sebastian Stan fic and figured a good match for him (and someone to help drive the story) would be an actress. But then I considered an OC like Lily could have more angles to write and it became really an OC fic that features Sebastian Stan. Oops.

13) Do you have any abandoned WIP’s? What made you abandon them?

I haven’t ever abandoned a fic. I refuse to give up on A Touch Up and do write a line or two here and there, just nowhere near the volume I need to publish a full chapter like I used to. It ended up on the shelf because Chris Evans got so boring after Civil War premiered and the fic is literally built on what he was doing in his everyday life. I also have a personal distaste for Jenny Slate and I guess you could say his decision to date her made me doubt the version of him I’d created in ATU, which is a problem when your fic is paired so purposefully around the assumptions I/we all had made by that time about him.

14) Are there any stories that you’ve written that you’d really love to do a sequel to?

I’m doing it. Echo was my pet project and, though it has my smallest following for a WIP, I had enough demand/interest for the story to be told from another character’s perspective that Jack Rollins and the STRIKE Series were born. There’ll be some unexpected things along the way in that series that I hope those fans/readers enjoy.

15) Are there any stories that you wished you’d ended differently?

No. I’ve only ended a couple fics (Echo and Kindness). Everything else is still a WIP or open ended series that publishes oneshots every once in awhile. The rest of my work is basically oneshots.

16) Tell me about another writer(s) who you admire? What is it about them that you admire?

Don’t laugh at me when I say I admire anyone who puts their work out there, even if it’s just a paragraph long imagine only on tumblr. It takes a lot of nerve, no matter what level your work is at or how big the scope. I’ve seen some good, bad, and ugly fic floating around, but I see value in it all and love seeing experience/determination help the writer evolve.

We ain’t all Hemingways or Shakespeares. And that’s okay. Some of the best writers don’t have thousands of followers and get hundreds of notes (but deserve them). And some of the behemoths out there aren’t necessarily turning out mind blowing fic, either. It’s a crapshoot and fandom can be fickle (if not downright confusing af).

17) Do you have a story that you look back on and cringe when you reread it?

Not at all. If it posts, I’m happy with it.

18) Do you prefer listening to music when you’re writing or do you need silence?

Either is fine. I probably write more in quiet, though, because my husband works 3rd shift, so I’m mindful not to disturb him.

19) Have you ever cried whilst writing a story?

No. Closest I could say to giving me my own feels was when I wrote The Death of Brock Rumlow (when it existed as part of the original Echo plot).

20) Which part of your Back to One series was the hardest to write?

I’m happy to say I don’t think there’s been a hard part to write for Back To One, or any of my fics. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it!

21) Do you make a general outline for your stories or do you just go with the flow?

Nope. No outlines or plans. I pretty much just sit down and write. If inspiration doesn’t hit, I’ll switch to a different WIP. If I have an idea for a line or scene I might make a note for later (maybe just a few words to point me in the right direction/remind me, or a line or two of dialogue), but once I get to it, I usually just write it out at once.

22) What is something you wished you’d known before you started posting fan-fiction?

How little time I’d have down the road for it. Maybe I wouldn’t have run such long WIPs/fics at a time. It feels like it’s been 100 years since I had time to open requests and I had to abandon a weekly posting schedule for 3 WIPs earlier this year because I just don’t have the time to manage the volume I used to anymore.

23) Do you have a story that you feel doesn’t get as much love as you’d like?

OMG yes! Echo and its companion fic, Jack Rollins (and I’ll probably say the same for the au/the STRIKE series). At this point, I can confidently say the following for Echo didn’t carry over to Jack Rollins, but I knew both were niche fics in the beginning anyway. I’m grateful for the attention Echo got, but it was such a labor of love, I’d have liked to see it do better. I may only have several regular readers for Jack Rollins commenting or reblogging, but those few readers and myself are the ones I wrote it for, and that I’ll keep posting it for until it’s finished, regardless of how tiny the readership because I love it.

24) In contrast to 23 is there a story which gets lots of love which you kinda eye roll at?

Not in an “oh, geez. Not that again” way. More like a “oh, stop. I can’t believe you guys like it that much” kind of humbled eye roll.

25) Are any of your characters based on real people?

Obviously the celebrities like Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan, technically yeah. I have no doubt that some of my own ticks, experiences, etc have made it into a character or plot, or things from people I know or have come across. Things you don’t necessarily draw lines between on purpose but maybe catch on to later, sure.

26) What’s the biggest compliment you’ve gotten?

Any of the comments or messages from people who say they cried, laughed out loud in public, got way too giddy, or held their breath because of something I wrote. They make me so happy, just to see someone got so lost or involved in a moment means I did a good job. Having someone say they reread a fic (or are reading for the X time) is a hell of a compliment, too.

27) What’s the harshest criticism you’ve gotten?

It was about A touch Up and how I had given the reader insert character, or implied, too much description (ex. noting that POC don’t blush as often as this girl did, when I wrote it as that feeling in the cheeks anyone can experience to convey her nervousness/embarrassment/etc at those points in the story so people maybe shared that sense as they read, not that she frequently ran around with a noticeable flush) and that, although I may not have said it outright, things like that apparently had made her so that she was obviously white. That ruined it for the commenter, despite there not actually being that much said about appearance in the story.

28) Do you share your story ideas with anyone else or do you keep them close to your chest?

Rarely. @ceebeetumbles gets a snippet of a chapter thrown at her once in a very blue moon, if I want to be sure something isn’t too cliché or generally awful. Lol But there’s a chance she’s reading along with the fic, so I may not send the whole chapter. I don’t plot per se or collaborate with anyone though.

29) Do people know you write fan-fiction?

Just the lovely people who’ve visited me on Tumblr or AO3.

30) What’s you favorite minor character you’ve written?

It’s a toss up between Frank Grillo’s appearance in A Touch Up and Jack Rollins or Eric Mickelson in Echo. I’m also a little fond of Drew Madison in Back To One.

31) What spurs you on during the writing process?

That I told you I’d post an update to a WIP, promised a drabble, or set a deadline that a request would be done by. So, really just my self-imposed “schedule”.

32) What’s your favorite trope to write?

I don’t really have one.

33) Can you remember the first fic you read? What was it about?

Nnnope. Lol

34) If you could write only angst, fluff or smut for the rest of your writing life, which would it be and why?

It’s a toss up between angst and fluff. They both come pretty easily. Honestly, smut is exhausting to write and I do so little of it because I don’t want it to be repetitive. Fluff is always fun. But, man...the possibilities with angst are pretty limitless, so maybe I’d lean a little more that way.

#milestone celebration #ask the author #whostheblondegirlwriting

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jack-of-heartstrings · 3 years ago

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Hm. I strongly agree with some parts of this and strongly disagree with others, sometimes within the same point heh. So may as well just kind of go down the list, eh?

Marinette is obsessed with Adrien, and it is not romantic love. Marinette's behavior and obsessive thoughts are not healthy for anyone. However, she's not actively toxic to anyone but herself, and her stalker tendencies are not as alarming as people accuse them of being. A little alarming, definitely not great. But in the context of how exaggerated everything in this world is (even ignoring magic stuff), most of her behaviors are "only" similar levels of exaggeration from realistic and generally harmless things awkward crushing teenagers do irl. She's not being malicious, she's just dumb.

(That said, they have become cute friends, which is healthy when Marinette lets it be on her side. Marinette is on some level aware that they're just friends, too, having mentioned it several times. In fact, it's literally always been other people encouraging her not to give up that pushes her back on the obsession train when she tries to walk away.)

Eh... I don't have strong opinions about Marinette "deserving" a Miraculous, but in all fairness, she didn't ask for this, was pressured to become Ladybug, and was forced to become the Guardian. She's messed up a lot, but she's aware of her failings and doing her best. The idea that she's the Best Ladybug Ever is definitely ridiculous, but I think it's more important for her to do her best to learn and grow than for her to have been 100% "deserving" from the start?

I strongly agree Marinette and Alya's friendship is overplayed, but strongly disagree it's ever been toxic, let alone "the definition of toxic". (Open to seeing your claimed evidence, though. I could be forgetting, I suppose.) They're 13-14 depending on the season, and they've known each other less than a year. They mess up, they hurt each other, but they do care about each other and actively work to make their friendship stronger. They're not even close to the kind of truly unshakable friendship the show tries to say they have, but they're still good overall.

Adrien is so very depressed xtutdyifyifi plz get my son some therapy.

Plagg is not only better than Tikki but the best Kwami in general tbh. xD LIKE he's most fun as a character, but he ALSO has shown the most canon control of his power in the present day, and considering he's destruction incarnate and how badly he's messed up things through history, he does NOT get nearly enough credit for having developed that kind of control. Like that speaks volumes of him.

Tikki's advice is sometimes pretty shitty, and motivational speeches definitely aren't always what people need. They can help sometimes at least, though (even if definitely moreso in moderation), and she means well... Still, I very much do wish the show would acknowledge her as "well-meaning optimist, but not always wise or realistic" rather than playing her as the ultimate conscience.

Honestly though who does deserve Luka? I cannot put into words how much this boy means to me tustuzguxx... ;w; But while we can argue if Marinette "deserves" him, the fact remains that he cares about her, and she's overall proven good for him, minus hero conflict stuff. Not to mention, if you actually want to see Marinette become a better more rounded person vs just disliking her as she is now, there is no character in this show more realistically likely to help her grow and change for the better than Luka, so that's a plus.

("But she's still obsessing over Adrien--" people love to cry, ignoring both that Marinette goes out of her way not to talk about her feelings for Adrien to him unless Luka brings them up (and sometimes not even then), and that in order for her Adrien obsession to be bad for him he would first have to care and he has made it clear a thousand times that he doesn't. ;w; I know jealousy is a very common experience but it is not universal and Luka has repeatedly told us he's not jealous. Literally anything that would make her happy makes him happy and I love him for that.)

Chloé deserved redemption and STILL DOES. I am 1000% convinced as of her directly calling herself "evil" in "Gabriel Agreste" that she is basically Megamind and has convinced herself that if she's "destined" to only ever be "a bad guy" she's gonna be the baddest of all. ;-; So yes someone please give this baby the kind of tough-but-still-supportive love she needs.

(I'm not sure keeping the Bee would have been the best route to redemption, like it could have worked but it could have gone both ways. But Bee or not, she still deserves it and I still pray...)

Zoé is cute and has plenty of personality, yall are just mad she got the Bee. That said, in all fairness, the writers definitely would have done better to let us see more of her first, bc narratively I can definitely see why people have a bad knee-jerk reaction to how she was brought in. Personally, I am very much praying she's not meant to be "lol Chloé but nice" and instead an eventual part of Chloé's redemption. But I might need to get another pair of clown shoes, who knows, heh.

Oh... oh no hon, Vesperia being "cocky" was... 100% an act, she's an actress, that is... a defining character trait lol. She was doing that TO piss Chloé off, as a tactical diversion. x3; Like maybe I'm wrong and if she winds up always like that I'll take it back but that was my take heh.

There are definitely too many heroes yeah. Like this isn't... entiiiirely a problem, imo. We've got over 3 full seasons left so there's time to let them have nice moments and parts in the story, and it provides fun content for fans to play with. But still also worrisome that they won't use the potential well...

Unsure if by "transformation" you mean the animation sequence where they transform or the end result costume. x3 Totally subjective regardless so not really important, but I'd be remiss to ever miss an opportunity to say Purple Tigress is beautiful lol.

;-; YOU TAKE IT BACK Pigella is so cute. (Okay like... you're probably right actually lol, it's hard to imagine what other situations would need that power, but,,, but like... The shounen anime / My Little Pony / etc fan in me still literally cries every time love and friendship themselves turn out to be the greatest power of all utdtudyfoidfgi. -sobs-)

....when... has Ladybug ever been jealous of Chat? She's had vaguely negative reactions to him flirting with other girls, but literally only when they're in the middle of dealing with an akuma; she was happy for him in Heart Hunter when he claimed to have a girlfriend and it wasn't a potential distraction to the task at hand.

When has she ever explicitly flirted? They have affectionate banter but she makes it repeatedly explicitly clear she doesn't like him like that. People are allowed to fake-"flirt" or say things others might take as "seeming flirty" as long as they aren't genuinely leading anyone on. It's a normal thing friends do sometimes.

She's never used his love for her advantage and has only asked for his blind trust a very very few times, like when her first concern was concocting her identity cover story in "Kwamibuster". If anything, she has actively asked him NOT to trust so blindly several times, too, like in "Lies". (Feel free to point out if I'm forgetting things though, ofc.)

I'm neutral on Oblivio personally, like I enjoyed it but it didn't stand out. On the other hand, I don't... know if I'd ever argue that Chat Blanc is the "best" episode, but it is my personal favorite whoops... xD; If it's worth anything though, it's not for the Love Square cuteness in the flashbacks, it's bc I heckin love me one creepy as hell sad and broken cat boy, but I digress lol.

Ladybug's Lucky Charm outfit is definitely superior by a LOT, yeah.

Chat and Ladybug really should be more equal, yeah.

Chat def deserves more powers, yeah... though we have hope...? Even if it is kinda hard to imagine what other applications he could find for Destruction without getting either really abstract and/or really silly... (See: Homestuck logic, "You're the Thief of Void, so you can 'steal nothing', which means 'stealing' the property of non-existence from conceptual thoughts, which means creating something from nothing." Like... I'm following your logic but I'm still mad that I am lmao.)

8') YEEAAHHH, or... more or less anyway... "Adrien" isn't entirely an act, nor is Chat entirely his "true self". The boy really IS kind, gentle, a little awkward, naive... things that are still present as Chat but tend to be overshadowed by his bravado. Meanwhile, he does overcompensate some traits he's not allowed to show otherwise as Chat, too. Ex: he's brave, but less brave in reality than he acts at times as Chat, etc. EVEN STILL, I'd probably guess it around a 20-Adrien/80-Chat split, and that's.... noooot really a great look for the ship, so. Overall yeah. Marinette loves a persona.

He really should have a say yeah...

I'm not too fussed by the end pictures thing but being better split or more equal would be nice yeah...

Lmao I mean you're not wrong but sshhhh everyone knows adults are boring. (I say, with one of the only two Miraculous Discords I'm in being a dedicated GabeNath server, bc I'm very invested in the only important adults we get, but again sssshhhhhhhh. X'3) Genuinely though? I honestly HOPE since we've already established that, barring some timeline-altering bs, they're still heroes fighting a different Hawk Moth in the future, MAYBE we'll get a time skip? :'3 I can dream...

Lol yeah like... Adrien's admiration for Ladybug is more genuine than Marinette's for Adrien by a mile, but it's still idolization, optimistically with a side of friendship, but not romantic love... :'3

I mean you're totally right about Reflekdoll, but like... it wasn't even close to the worst thing she's done, and I say that as someone who generally loves and supports her? xD; Like if I'm hungry and steal a friend's lunch, it's shitty, even if the hunger was "a reason" kinda, but it's not... an unforgivable sin lol. That's about the level I see taking the ring at, heh. Which doesn't excuse it, just feels a bit of an odd choice to end on, but I digress.

---

Adding an unpopular opinion of my own:

Adrien is just as flawed as Marinette, and while the vast majority of his unhealthy traits and behaviors definitely stem in part or in full from his abuse, it doesn't nullify what damage he can do at times, unintentional or not. It means he deserves sympathy and patience, but not that he can't be expected to work on improving.

Both the protagonists are flawed kids with good intentions but unhealthy coping mechanisms and a blind eye to how they can sometimes affect others, and both of them have a lot of growing up to do. This is not a bad thing; from a storytelling perspective it's very good. But we do need to acknowledge it, and I do get tired of seeing fans endlessly shit on Marinette only to gush over and coddle Adrien. They're both dumb but still good kids.

my unpopular miraculous opinions

• Marinette is toxic. She's a stalker, she's obsessed with Adrien and it's unhealthy. It's not love. It's obsession.

• Marinette doesn't deserve a miraculous. Nor does she deserve to be the guardian. She's not responsible enough.

• Marinette and Alya's friendship isn't as good as some people claim it is. I can show so many occassions where their friendship was the definition of toxic.

• Adrien is depressed.

• Plagg is much better than Tikki.

• Tikki's advice are shitty. They don't help. People don't need motivational speeches all the time.

• Marinette doesn't deserve Luka.

• Chloe deserves a redemption arc. At least, she deserved it before season 4. Now, not necessarily. But she deserved one before. She should've kept the bee miraculous, and that should've help her redeem herself.

• Zoe was only brought it to replace Chloe. So far, she has no personality.

• Vesperia is overrated. The first time she transformed, she was way too cocky. Isn't she supposed to be better than Chloe? And she just started insulting Chloe the moment she transformed. Bruh.

• There way too many heroes brought it, and this way all of their individual potential is wasted. (King Monkey, Pigella, Purple Tigress, Polimouse)

• Pegasus and Cat Noir have the best transformation.

• Pigella's power is ridiculous. It's not useful at all.

• Ladybug's behaviour is toxic, especially toward Cat Noir. She knows he loves her, and yes, she has the right to say no. But she doesn't have the right to be jealous. She doesn't have the right to flirt. She doesn't have the right is use his love for her advantage. She doesn't have the right to expect him to trust blindly in her.

• Luka should be a permanent miraculous holder.

• Cat Blanc and Oblivio are not the best episodes.

• Ladybug's Lucky Charm outfit should be the standard.

• Ladybug shouldn't be the commander and Cat Noir her second in command. Ladybug and Cat Noir are supposed to be equals.

• On the same thought, Cat Noir should have more powers. Ladybug can: a) create things (lucky charm) b) purifiy the akuma c) purify the amok d) create anti-akuma charms e) since she is the guardian, she can give out any miraculous any time; she has access to all the miraculous f) repair/heal the damage the akuma/amok caused. And the only thing Cat Noir can do is destroy (cataclysm). It is not fair. They're supposed to be equals.

• Marinette is not in love with Adrien. She is in love with the picture perfect boy on magazine covers - the boy Gabriel Agreste wants Adrien to be. Adrien hates that boy. Adrien's true self is Cat Noir. Marinette's in love with the side of Adrien that he despises.

• Cat Noir should have a word in who gets a miraculous and who doesn't.

• The ending pictures shouldn't be focused on Ladybug/Marinette all the time. Cat Noir/Adrien should have his own pictures. Or, even better, both of them should be on the pictures, equally all the time.

• These kids shouldn't have the weight of the world on their shoulders. They're 14. Adults should fight this battle, not them.

• Cat Noir/Adrien is not in love with Ladybug. He's in love with the mask.

• Marinette didn't have the right to take Plagg and the ring in Reflekdoll.

#I'm entirely aware referencing Homestuck invalidates all my opinions but oh well xD #defense and critique both #analysis

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getoffthesoapbox · 7 years ago

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[VKM Spec] Investigating VKM 14

We’re starting the year off on much more solid footing than we began last year--with VKM 13.5 and now VKM 14, the story seems to be headed in a better direction than before. I, for one, am relieved to see this, and hope this trend continues for the remainder of the story. We only take small steps forward this chapter, but the good news is, as far as I can tell, we don’t take any steps backward either.

The irony hasn’t escaped me that not three days after I complained about Hino’s storytelling tanking, she put out what is arguably the best action/suspense chapter she’s written since the end of the Rido arc. Either someone put a bug in her ear, or we’re headed in a direction that she’s actually excited about writing. Whichever it is, this is a distinct improvement to the lackluster writing and artwork we’re accustomed to, and it’s a welcome change. The old girl’s still got it in her. Let’s see if she can keep it up.

That being said, let’s get to it. Scanlations can be found in the usual places.

Obligatory disclaimer for the sensitives: This post is “zeki criticism” and “anti ky”. Please blacklist those tags accordingly.

Marking Time

The first thing that struck me when I saw the opening page of this chapter was the teaser line. I couldn’t figure out what it was about the line that gripped me, other than the obvious: it’s clearly a reference to the significant amount of time Zero’s been waiting for Yuuki to say something to him. But when I was flipping through volume 19 the other day, I realized what it was that had caught my attention--this teaser line in VKM 14 is a direct reference to Zero’s request from the original epilogue of Night 93, a request that apparently narratively is still unanswered from Yuuki.

So this teaser line is a callback to that chapter, and it also tells us several things:

Zero is still waiting for Yuuki’s reply to his request from Night 93.

VKM 9′s confession was not the answer to that request.

We are not going to be ignoring the events that took place at the end of the original series in order to move Zero and Yuuki’s story forward.

We will likely be revisiting the original series to sort out why Yuuki still hasn’t given Zero an answer after all this time.

While it’s disheartening to recall how long Zero’s been waiting for a response to his request in Night 93, at the same time I’m quite heartened by the fact that he (and Hino and her editor) does not consider his request properly responded to by Yuuki. This is a huge relief to me as someone who was not happy with Yuuki’s manner of confessing to Zero in VKM 9. One of the weights from my shoulders as far as this story is concerned has been lifted with this reference, at least for now. I’m now hopefully optimistic that we’re not finished with the revelations on Yuuki’s side about her past and her past choices, and I’m also more hopeful that we might actually get a legitimate confession from her about her true feelings for Zero in the future.

So as far as I’m concerned, this little teaser line was a great way to start the chapter. If this was all the chapter contained, I’d be happy enough, but lucky for me this is only the beginning of the goodies.

The Usual Suspects

This chapter really expanded the possibilities for the suspects behind the Vampire King bombings, but it also threw some of my theories right out the window, which is rather interesting. There’s a lot to unpack on this side of the plot, so buckle your seat belts and get ready for the ride.

We begin the chapter with a secret meeting in the underground area between Maria and Kaien. @jadedmemories mentioned to me that if we take the title page as a canon “scene”, it’s quite possible Zero was listening in on what Maria and Kaien were discussing, as in, potentially he doesn’t trust either of them. It’s an interesting possibility, and one worth keeping in mind as future chapters unfold, I think. For now there’s not much to be done with the information.

It’ll probably be easiest if I separate this section by suspect and work through what we know and don’t know of each one. I made a funny list of suspects here for anyone who wants a more thorough review of each one, but for now I’m only going to discuss the most likely suspects and the ones that are relevant to this chapter in particular. First, we’ll start with some general observations:

The Vampire King’s True Purpose

Before this chapter came out, I was hesitant to make any guesses as to what the Vampire King mastermind was aiming for. But with three bombing incidents under our collective belts, a few potential purposes are starting to rise above the others.

With only the first two incidents, I was torn as to who the target of the Vampire King’s ultimate “message” was--I thought it could be Zero, Yuuki, Zero and Yuuki together, or the general efforts of Yuuki/Zero/Aidou/Takuma/Kaien to make the world more accepting of vampires.

With this third incident, I believe the target of the Vampire King’s message is either Yuuki or Zero specifically and individually. The rest is smoke and mirrors to give the group legitimacy and to act as a screen for the true purpose. I’ll break down the two options for now and explain which one I’m leaning toward currently, but we can’t make any positive conclusions until we get more information:

Target A: Yuuki - Yuuki being the ultimate target for the Vampire King’s mastermind is on the surface the most sensible conclusion. The name “Vampire King” itself is a direct reference to Kaname that would strike her heart more than any other’s. The first attack happened to Yuuki’s friends, the second attack happened to her pseudo-partner, the third attack both threatened something she holds dear (children’s safety) and also stole her pseudo-partner from her (Zero’s kidnapping). If she’s the target, the Vampire King likely a.) wants to use Zero’s safety as leverage to stop her from doing something (likely the cure research, since she’s in charge of Aidou) or b.) wants to separate her from Zero for some reason or c.) wants to harass her and cause her pain out of a misguided attempt to “get even” for Kaname’s past actions, since she’s connected to him.

Target B: Zero - Although I think the Yuuki option has potential, ultimately my gut is telling me Zero is the true target of all of this insanity. And by target I mean he’s both the person to capture (literal target) and the person to whom the message of the group is meant to be delivered. The group’s name “Vampire King” will still reach Zero just as much as it would reach Yuuki--Yuuki, in this variant, is the “bait” to get Zero involved, rather than vice versa. So the first attack happens to Yuuki’s friends, which gets Yuuki involved, which gets Zero involved. But the second attack is deliberately for Zero, and the vampire who commits the action has an insult specifically for Zero, despite Zero not even knowing the guy. The third incident, in this scenario, is actually a decoy and a set up--whoever the Vampire King mastermind is, they know Zero will be in charge of the investigation, so they pick a target he’s sensitive to (children) and set up landmine explosives in an obvious location where he’s sure to be the first to try to help anyone who gets caught up in it. They may or may not plant info with Kain to get Kain to bring Yuuki (though right now I think Yuuki’s presence was a mistake and unintended by the Vampire King mastermind), and then while Zero’s distracted “saving” whoever gets caught up in the mines, he either dies or gets kidnapped (the true objective). If this is true, then the kidnapping is actually to get Zero before the Vampire King mastermind to allow the mastermind the opportunity to talk to him without a certain nosy pureblood’s interference. Likely, if Zero is the true target, the Vampire King mastermind is going to use Zero’s desire to save people as leverage to get Zero to do something for him/her: either a.) stop Aidou’s research, b.) separate Zero from Yuuki, or c.) help Aidou’s research to get Kaname back sooner, depending on the ultimate goal. They’d get Zero to help them by blackmailing him, using a threat against future targets as bait. Then they’d likely release Zero so that he can return to Yuuk on his own, but with the blackmail hanging over his head. For an example of how fun this type of plotline is, see Sherlock BBC’s The Great Game episode.

The reason I’m currently leaning toward Zero as the ultimate target of the mastermind is simply because Yuuki’s for the most part a fairly passive character and because of how long it’s been since the forge was created. If the mastermind was after Yuuki because of some grudge over Kaname, well, it’s been 50-70 years depending on how old Yori was when she died. That’s a long time to hold a grudge against someone who’s just related to the person in question. It’d be far better to just plan an attack against the forge itself, if the forge was the problem. As for other reasons to go after Yuuki’s loved ones, there really aren’t any other than maybe a bored Pureblood wanting to start a war and stop the coexistence efforts. Even if that’s true, this particular style of Vampire King activity doesn’t seem particularly effective toward that end. Especially when it’s highlighting the vampires as the problem, rather than simply being a declaration against Yuuki herself or her comrades.

If Zero is the person the mastermind is after, we have a lot more room to play. Zero has more enemies than Yuuki, and more people with animus toward him for his role as a Hunter and as Yuuki’s pseudo-partner. Zero also has unresolved pot threads about his special status as the only hunter twin to ever be born a twin, not to mention Takuma’s secret in reference to the Shizuka incident. On top of that, it’s been made very clear that his relationship with Yuuki is not approved of in most quarters, and the hunters (who would go after Yuuki, rather than Zero) for the most part seem accepting of his situation, thus they’re unlikely to be part of the problem. Zero also is potentially a cure component, which may be a factor, and he’s part of the reason the hunters aren’t killing vampires anymore (so if this is an action by the anti-vampire faction, Zero might be a prime target as an agent of improving the lot of criminal vampires and thus seen as an enemy to their agenda).

Again, at this time this is only speculation at best; we simply don’t have enough information to make any firm conclusions either way. I’m honestly not sure anymore how smart Hino is, so perhaps the most obvious conclusion is the best in this situation.

Kidnapped!

Zero’s kidnapping this chapter brings up a few questions:

Was the purpose of the bombing threat a decoy to lure Zero out and to kidnap him?

Is Zero’s kidnapping part of the Vampire King’s plot or is it from a second party?

Was Zero the intended target or was he captured by accident?

If Zero was the intended target, why? If he was captured by accident, who was the real target?

Did Zero orchestrate his own kidnapping for a reason?

It may seem kind of silly to bring up the idea that Zero might have had himself kidnapped but given how peacefully he departs from Yuuki’s side, it’s quite possible. There’s no sign of a struggle, and although he does look over his shoulder before he disappears, his expression isn’t anxious or shocked. Whatever he sees isn’t unexpected.

I’m not sure how likely this is, however, but if his kidnapping was a genuine kidnapping that leaves even more questions. Why was he not shocked to see the person kidnapping him? Why didn’t he struggle? How did the kidnapper surprise him and knock him out without a struggle or even a word of warning to Yuuki? How did Yuuki not notice another person was there?

There are a couple options I can think of. One is that the person who approached Zero was one he expected to be there (limiting our options to Maria, Goggles Guy, or Mimi), who perhaps covered his mouth with something like a chloroform-soaked cloth to knock him out. The other is that a person didn’t approach him--a pureblood blood creature did, such as Sara’s spiders or Kaname’s bats. If it’s the latter, he could be easily whisked away the way Kaname did for Yuuki in Night 60 or the way Touma did with his bats in Night 59 and 60. This would imply a pureblood is working with the Vampire King, though they may not be the mastermind. We know Yuuki has a hard time sensing the pureblood creatures, as it took her a few minutes to figure out the fake Kaname back in Night 76; it would be entirely possible for a pureblood to whisk Zero away quickly using these creatures rather than their physical selves.

All of this brings up some very interesting questions, which unfortunately we’ll have to wait two months (or perhaps more) to get answers.

Suspect A: Kaien

In my review of VKM 13, I mentioned Kaien as a potential suspect. After VKM 14, I’m leaning toward him being a red herring, as much as this pains my Kaien-detesting heart. =P

On the surface, he’s still a great candidate for mastermind of the whole operation. Here’re the points in his favor:

He meets Maria in secret and spills a “secret” to her.

He has time to plant the bombs.

Although he’s not at the scene of the crime, that could be because a.) he already planted the bombs, b.) the Zero kidnapping isn’t part of the Vampire King activities, or c.) he planted the bombs and his associates kidnap Zero, leaving him free to attack other towns.

At the mayor candidate rally, he talks about his ideals and runs off with a suspicious bag in his hand. (Thanks, @jadedmemories for pointing that out to me.)

That being said, here are the reasons I feel he’s a red herring now:

Yuuki got caught up in the mess, which I don’t feel he would have intended, and surely he’d know that this particular style of target would get her attention.

The target was a bunch of kids, which isn’t his style--although he has no problem putting teenagers in danger, he still looked after and cared for Yuuki and Zero as children and likely wouldn’t threaten kids.

Although we don’t find out Kaien’s secret, we do find out that he asked Maria to reach out to the Academy alumni, which (while perhaps a decoy) implies whatever he’s working toward is ultimately altruistic or at worst benign in nature and something he thinks other people will support.

Hino made a point in VKM 11 of showing Kaien has some regrets about how he handled his life, and she reiterated this in VKM 6 when he was talking with Yori’s dad.

His motives for committing these attacks (especially now that human children have been involved) seem fairly weak and counterproductive to his other stated goals.

All in all, while it’s still certainly possible that Kaien could be the ultimate mastermind or part of the Vampire King group, in the end I think he’s probably a red herring whose activities will end up helping Yuuki and/or Zero in the end. He does have access to a pureblood, Isaya, who could have helped him kidnap Zero, but there are also other purebloods who could do the same thing with potentially more motive.

Suspect B: Maria

Hino conveniently decided to bring Maria back after all this time in VKM 14. I don’t think she was brought back just to resurrect Yuuki’s limp jealousy over a man she’s been pushing away romantically for over 50 years. Depending on whether or not Maria has a role to play in the Vampire King group, the reason for her return will change.

It is possible she’s part of the Vampire King group, and we’re meant to suspect her. If she is a part of the group, however, I don’t believe she’s the mastermind. Before we get to that, let’s start with why she might be a potential suspect:

She randomly decides to help patrol the tunnels despite this being out of character for her, which Zero (being the most intuitive character of the cast) immediately points out.

She has a secret meeting with Kaien where she’s framed suspiciously.

When she talks about people being on the move thanks to the academy in the first scene with Kaien, Hino puts her speech bubble over the crime scene from later in the chapter. The framing is rather ominous.

She’s working with a human we’ve never met before, who has some ambiguous connections to the former academy.

We know nothing of her whereabouts during the last few years since Night 93. We only know at some point there was a scene where she sadly watched Zero walking away, which was during the original Night 92 epilogue and where she had her original hairstyle. When that scene was and what it was about, we still don’t know.

Hino makes rather a big deal out of her wish to protect “what” she loves like Ichiru. This might imply that, if she is involved with the Vampire King, she is doing it out of misguided altruism.

She’s clearly still interested in Zero romantically, even if she’s not actively pursuing him.

She and her human partner were patrolling the area near where the landmines were, yet neither of them noticed the landmines.

Her human partner has a suspicious line about suspicious things “lying around” right before Yuuki and Mimi step on the landmines.

It’s quite possible that the reason Zero isn’t shocked or startled by whoever approaches him from behind is because it’s Maria herself, who he expects to be in the area. He likely wouldn’t struggle against her initially if she was the one who kidnapped him.

I think it’s certainly possible Maria might be involved with the Vampire King, but it’s also possible that she’s not and her partner is, and that it’s a huge coincidence that she happened to be there at the time. If the latter, then her role will likely be to cause some small trouble for Yuuki and make Yuuki question some things about herself, as Maria’s role has been since arc 2.

If Maria is involved in this whole business, she’s certainly not the mastermind. She doesn’t have nearly the motive or connections to mastermind this. While she does care for Zero and has certainly worked with shady figures in the past (Shizuka), she usually is on the side of right or good--though she was Yuuki’s rival for Zero, she still helped her against Kaname and Sara. The only way I can see her being involved in this is if the mastermind has convinced her that Yuuki is bad for Zero and needs to be separated from him (hearkening back to her wish to protect the things she loves like Ichiru). Maria doesn’t love the kids at the kindergarten, and as far as we know she only cares about two things: Ichiru (who is inside Zero) and Zero. This makes it likely that the thing she wants to protect is Zero. If that’s true, then it’s quite possible she’s involved in his kidnapping.

However, it’s also possible that she (like Kaien) is merely a red herring. If she is just a red herring, then her open and honest confession of her goals and feelings is actually in the story to serve as a foil to Yuuki, who lies about hers. Maria’s open and honest affection stands in contrast to Yuuki’s inability to be truthful about her own feelings, something she’s struggled with for the entire story. Even if Maria isn’t involved in the Vampire King organization, she still serves a vital purpose in both making Yuuki reassess herself in the canon itself and also stands as an ideal to contrast Yuuki for the reader.

Suspect C: Goggles Guy

Maria’s human companion, who I have dubbed Goggles Guy in lieu of a proper name, has a few points in his favor as being partnered to the Vampire King group, but if he is partnered with them, that opens up a whole different can of worms as to why a human would be partnered with Level C and potentially noble/pureblood vampires to sow chaos and drag the vampires through the mud. His involvement with the Vampire King group muddies the waters of potential motives, but he’s suspicious enough that I can’t write him off simply because he makes things difficult.

Points in his favor as a potential member of the Vampire King group:

We’ve never seen him before, yet he knows enough about the tunnel threat to volunteer for the vigilante group.

Although his story about his grandmother may be true, we know nothing about the remainder of his background. He could potentially be from a hunter family and be bearing some kind of grudge.

Hino has him speak a suspiciously prescient line about suspicious objects being set up and returning to an “original objective.” On the surface, this line is innocent, but as a foreshadowing technique it may implicate him as the very one who set the landmines.

This is intuitive on my part, but Hino drew his goggles to be deliberately provoking--whenever a character’s eyes are hidden, that’s usually a sign to pay attention. There was no reason to remove his goggles when we first meet him and then put them back on his face right as he speaks his most suspicious line.

If the above points are true, he is, just like Maria, probably a pawn being used in the Vampire King mastermind’s ultimate plan. This guy just doesn’t seem to have enough going for him to be a mastermind in his own right, and certainly not one who could organize kamikaze Level Cs/Ds to bomb themselves.

But as with Maria and Kaien, Goggles Guy may also ultimately be a red herring. Points against him:

His motive for joining the vigilante corps seems legitimate and sincere; Hino doesn’t use any paneling or screentone tricks to make his story feel suspicious.

Even if he’s an angry member of the anti-vampire faction, it seems strange that he’d join an organization that utilizes vampires and looks down on humans (if we assume that the second suicide bomber was an accurate representation of the people involved with this group).

He’s a human, and should have more trouble kidnapping Zero than a vampire might.

His motives seem weak, despite how suspicious he looks.

We know nothing of this guy, which narratively renders him fairly innocuous, much like the evil purebloods in volume 19. Hopefully Hino isn’t going to repeat that mistake again.

Of the characters presented this chapter, Goggles Guy is the most likely to be involved in some way, though I doubt he’s anything more than a pawn ultimately.

Suspect D: Mimi

The last suspect really highlighted by this chapter is Mimi. I’ll cover the other options in the last sub-section together. Mimi’s only appeared in two chapters so far--VKM 6, where she annoyed Yuuki at the vampire lounge and later attacked Yori with the yankee doodle vampire, and now in VKM 14. Of the potential suspects this chapter, I feel she’s the weakest, but she is the last known person to have seen both Zero and Yuuki, and that can’t be discounted entirely.

Points in her favor as an accomplice to the Vampire King plot:

She has a known animus against Zero in particular and humans in general (Yori).

She’s a petty criminal and knows the tunnels very well.

She appeared suddenly this chapter after not being mentioned at all for a while.

She’s in the last panel showing Zero and Yuuki fighting the bomb. It’s quite possible she’s the one who runs up to Zero and knocks him out.

That being said, I really don’t think she’s involved at all. Reasons why I lean this way:

Mimi’s dumb as a box of rocks and can’t keep her mouth shut for two minutes flat.

Her narrative role appears to be filling in as the Yuuki sidekick character since Aidou is being used for other purposes and Zero has been removed.

She’s being used to help Yuuki articulate her thoughts in a sincere way, and these conversations would be seriously undermined by villainous activity.

She steps on the damn landmine. What conspirator steps on the landmine? Yes, it offers authenticity, but there was no guarantee she’d escape unscathed unless it was a dud she stepped on which we know it wasn’t.

Unless she’s speed running in that last panel that shows her head, she’s too far away to be the culprit who kidnaps Zero. The shot we see from behind her is also potentially a perspective shot of the person who DID attack Zero, and who IS running past her to get to him (hence the angle and speed).

Hino never paints her suspiciously in the chapter, unlike Kaien, Maria, and Goggles Guy.

There’s an interesting moment where Mimi points to Zero with Maria/Goggles Guy and demands to know why he’s not on Yuuki’s team and is on Maria’s. This is a potential narrative device foreshadowing the arc that’s about to come, with Zero “on the Vampire King’s side” due to blackmail, and Yuuki/Mimi having to figure out why. A device like this normally isn’t used for or by villainous characters.

It may be my bias toward Mimi talking here, but honestly she’s the most refreshing character in this story since Ai lost a lot of her charm and flatlined, and I’d hate to see her used for villainous purposes when there are plenty of other, superior candidates.

Suspect X: Everyone Else

I won’t go too deeply into the other options for the Vampire King mastermind this chapter, but a quick list of characters who are still potential masterminds despite not being directly involved this chapter:

Ai - Ai’s an unlikely candidate, but since we know she can wake up and go back to sleep, it’s entirely possible she’s somehow involved, rendering this whole Vampire King thing a big sham. Given how violent it has been so far, I think she’s an unlikely choice, but we can’t rule her out yet.

Isaya - Isaya’s not normally an active character, but he can be in the right situation. Perhaps he’s off his rocker.

Takuma - My favorite option, and the one who appears the most innocent and has the most potential for juicy narrative twists. He’s not in this chapter of course, but “someone” had to tip Kain off on what was going on, and we don’t know who that someone was.

Kain - An unlikely option, given he was one of the earliest victims, but still possible since he’s the one who gave Yuuki the intel.

Kaito - With the return of Maria, the first of the two anti-Zeki characters, it’s not a stretch to imagine Kaito might return as well to be a foil to Zero, especially if in the interim between Night 93 and VKM 14 Kaito was attacked and turned by a pureblood. Kaito has a distinct animus against vampires and purebloods, and he is not supportive of Zero’s relationship with Yuuki. There’s also a scene in Night 93 of Kaito watching over Zero hugging Yuuki which might feed into this possibility. Hino hasn’t shown us what happened to Kaito for a reason, and what that reason is may be relevant to this new plotline.

Other random purebloods/nobles/level cs/humans/hunters - The Vampire KIng mastermind could certainly be someone we’ve never met yet. I would be disappointed if this were the case, but it’s entirely possible. Who knows who or why this group has been cobbled together.

So as is evident, we have quite a bit of potential for who the Vampire King culprit is. Hopefully the next few chapters will give us some new information, but for now we can enjoy the speculation. ;)

A Breath of Fresh Air

Mimi is a complete delight this chapter. She brings back some much-needed humor in a natural way. She’s not enabling Yuuki or interested in babying her. She’s dumb, but has a sharp intuition, if pointed incorrectly. Hino’s incessant need for comedy plays off well with this character, in a way it didn’t with Ai. As someone who is uninvolved in all the drama of Kaname’s interference in everyone’s lives from the previous series, Mimi has a refreshing outlook that helps break the story away from the bleak shadow Kaname cast over all the characters.

I love Mimi’s assessment of Zero. It tickles me pink that she thinks he’s a cheater and off wooing all the ladies and that he “seduced” Yuuki. This just shows how off-base she is, but I do believe she is picking up on his dissatisfaction with his current relationship, and is just reflecting it back to Yuuki in her own unique way. What I love about her perception of Zero is that she has no idea that in reality he never even tried to steal Yuuki--Yuuki chose him, Yuuki latched onto him, and Yuuki wouldn’t let go of him. The only “seducing” Zero ever did was simply be a hurt and fragile boy who stood in front of Yuuki on a dark night. The rest was all Yuuki. But of course Mimi wouldn’t know any of this, so it’s cute to see her misread the situation. ;) It also is a nice reminder of how charming, handsome, and attractive Zero is--that he is a catch and one who rightfully should have his pick of the ladies, even if Hino won’t give that to him because, well, they’d clearly outshine our “heroine,” who wouldn’t be able to compete with a proper rival. =P

I also love that Mimi has no reverence for Yuuki at all, despite dubbing her “Yuuki-sama.” She also cuts through Yuuki’s bullcrap in a way none of the other characters seem capable of in recent chapters. She honestly is a better friend to Yuuki in this single chapter than Yori was in the past 13--and I don’t mean better as in better person, but simply better in the fact that real friends don’t enable bad behavior for an entire lifetime, and Yori enabled Yuuki whereas Mimi reminds her to stop moping and dwelling and just do what she thinks is right. It’s so refreshing, and I’d love to keep this girl around for a while.

Her simple foolishness is charming and fun in a way Yuuki’s false obliviousness is not anymore, and it acts as a good contrast to Yuuki’s fake attempts at playing such a character. With Mimi around, even more than when Ai was near, Yuuki is forced to step into the adult role she’s meant to have and stop playing the eternal child who doesn’t know her adult responsibilities. All I can do is tip my hat to Mimi and thank her for channeling the true spirit of the Eternal Fool, the very person who lights the way for heroes to become heroes. All heroes step through the Fool’s Way first, and it’s long past time for Yuuki to get her own journey started. If Mimi can light the way for her, I’d be quite pleased.

Welcome Home

I won’t cover Maria as a potential suspect in this section, but I do want to talk about her role as a character and why she has returned at this time to the story. This section will assume Maria is not a suspect, but even if she is, her function in this chapter doesn’t change all that much, it just gains additional layers. Assuming she’s innocent, though, she still brings some interesting and much-needed layers to the table.

Maria is an active foil to Yuuki this chapter. In many ways, she is Yuuki’s superior and is closer to living as Yuuki’s “ideal” than Yuuki is, and this is a factor that I feel is not lost on Yuuki. Here are the ways that I feel Maria is acting more heroically than Yuuki this chapter:

Maria finds out on her own about the terrorist attack using her own intelligence-gathering abilities. (Assuming she is innocent of being part of the Vampire King plot, of course.) Yuuki, on the other hand, is sitting on her thumbs at home and the information has to be brought to her. Maria is active, Yuuki passive.

Maria is acting in the memory of her beloved and without his direct involvement and without any direct recognition from anyone. Yuuki only acts when she feels social pressure to do something, because it looks good in front of her friends.

Maria helps form and collect the members of the vigilante group. Yuuki sneaks around and drags uninvolved parties into danger.

Maria takes action despite the risks to her. Yuuki remains passive and uninvolved despite having immense power and political clout.

Maria is honest and forthright about her reasons for stepping in. Yuuki is cagey and unable to articulate why she is doing what she’s doing.

Maria’s activities bring the sincere admiration of Zero, while Yuuki’s bring only his irritation and concern.

Maria responds to Zero openly and sincerely, while Yuuki remains unable to express her true feelings honestly, despite knowing she should follow Ruka’s example.

Maria is acting out of a sincere desire to help, Yuuki to get attention and show off.

Again, the points above are assuming Maria is not a suspect. If she’s a suspect, some of the sincerity of her actions is diminished, but her role as a foil to Yuuki still remains intact because Yuuki believes she’s sincere.

I was chatting with @vampireknightmeta about why Maria comes across to me as sincere this chapter and why Yuuki doesn’t, and she brought up a brilliant point about the difference between the two (and the difference between Zero and Yuuki). I felt her point was very relevant and explains the difference well: Yuuki is the type of person who deep down knows that her natural inclination is not to do the right thing, and so tries to “act” like a good person. Maria (if she’s not acting duplicitously as a member of the Vampire King group) and Zero are the type of people who instinctively do the right thing because they are good people. They don’t have to act like good people, they are. This isn’t to say Yuuki isn’t a good person or doesn’t have the potential to be a good person--rather, it’s the difference between a person who follows laws because they’re “afraid” of the consequences of breaking them (and who, if there were no consequences, would do the acts that the laws warn against) and a person who follows laws because they genuinely believe the laws are good and are of benefit to themselves and others (and even if the laws never existed would choose to follow them on principle). The outcome is the same--both types of people follow the laws and would be viewed as “good” and “innocent” by bystanders looking in, but in their hearts the two are very different--one type is genuinely good and altruistic, the other is not but wishes they were.

I do believe Hino is trying to help Yuuki grow into such a person, a person who--although she is fully capable of great evil and great caprice--deliberately chooses not to be because in her core she truly has embraced altruism and genuine love. This hearkens back to VKM 3, where Yuuki talks about the seed of desire and her fears about it. Yuuki has never truly faced herself and the darkness within herself and the darkness she’s capable of creating, and because she hasn’t incorporated her shadow, she can’t actualize her full potential as a person the way Zero and (potentially) Maria can. Until you face your shadow, you don’t really know who you are, and I believe Maria’s return to the story (assuming she’s not part of the Vampire King plot, or even if she is) is meant to help Yuuki identify where she’s failing as a person, and why her relationships never unfold correctly. Maria’s role is always to help Yuuki course-correct, and I believe she is reprising that again this time. She represents a woman who isn’t relying on a man as a crutch, but who is using a past love as inspiration for moving forward, a direct contrast to Yuuki who is both using one man as a crutch and using a past relationship as a reason not to move forward.

By using Maria as a foil, Yuuki’s flaws as a heroine come into stark relief, and we can see more clearly where she needs to go and what she needs to do in order to achieve the happiness that surely she desires somewhere, deep down inside.

Closer to Shadow than Light

I’m feeling pretty darn ambivalent about Yuuki this chapter, and this section will reflect that ambivalence. There are aspects to what we saw unfold this chapter that I enjoyed and am pleased to see, and there are other things that I’m not so pleased with when I pull back to the macro level. Unfortunately they’re all kind of meshed together, so I’ll have to talk about them together. If anyone reading this is the kind of person who is defensive of Yuuki, I’d recommend just skipping this section and going to the next one. There’s a lot to deal with here, and I’m not going to be going easy on the girl.

Yuuki is more talkative and friendly this chapter than she has been in any chapter since Night 89. It almost seems like she’s had a personality transplant, honestly. She is actively trying to learn a new skill with Ruka, she opens up about herself and her feelings to Kain and Mimi, she’s more proactive and adventurous, she even openly admires and talks about Zero. It’s like we’ve been transported back in time to the Sara mini-arc, where she was running around doing her Night Class restoration thing. She treats Kain and Mimi better than she’s treated anyone since Night 89--she’s genuine and honest with both of them. While this is nice to see in general and is certainly a step forward from the lifeless doll she’s been recently, for me it feels like too little too late and makes me genuinely angry on behalf of Zero, Ai, Aidou, and Yori. Yuuki’s been dishonest and cagey with all of the people dearest to her for decades, yet all of sudden she’s now blabbing everything about herself to two people who aren’t even her friends. It’s frustrating that she’s kept this habit from her teen years, and it’s a sign of how little she’s grown in the decades since the final volume of the original series. And this is just the tip of the iceberg that is the mess that is Yuuki in VKM 14.

When we first encounter Yuuki in this chapter, she’s in her own home having a cooking lesson with Ruka. This fact is glossed over lightly due to the scene beginning in medias res, but it brings up some interesting questions:

Why is Yuuki suddenly interested in cooking? She’s never been good at it or interested in it in her over 70 years of life.

Does Zero know about these lessons, or are they a secret?

I wouldn’t find this lesson remarkable if this was during Ai’s childhood or right before or right after Yuuki and Zero became official. But it’s arguably several months after VKM 9′s official announcement, and the timing is suspicious for Yuuki to suddenly take an interest in being domestic where before she was content to leave it to the servants/Ruka (when taking care of Ai) or leaving it to Zero. It seems too coincidental that this sudden interest in being a more attractive and useful partner comes directly on the heels of VKM 13′s final scene; we don’t know how much time has passed since then, but clearly whatever transpired afterward led to Yuuki taking a sudden keen interest in improving herself. I’ll discuss the ramifications of this more later on, but for now it’s fair to leave this as a point of interest.

We begin the scene with Kain informing Yuuki of the next potential plot of the Vampire King group--to plant bombs under the sewers of the kindergarten and daycare centers. Why this group would broadcast their plans should be the real issue for the investigators--that alone should have been a red flag that their goals weren’t the bombing itself--but that aside, Yuuki gets herself worked up into a rage over the issue of children being targets. There’s an distasteful element of hypocrisy in Yuuki’s sudden desire to protect children that bothers me deeply as a reader. Yuuki declares very forthrightly that she won’t forgive anyone who targets children. Yet this is the same woman who spared not a single moment of regret for what Rido did to her real baby brother, the real Kaname, and free-passed and ignored what Kaname’s own crime of targeting Zero and Ichiru as children. For her to run around screaming that she won’t forgive anyone who targets children now, when she’s already done such a thing in the original series, is less than convincing and is outright distasteful in my opinion. I can only hope Hino recognizes this herself and doesn’t think Yuuki’s outrage in this scene is merely a cute way to show how altruistic and kind Yuuki is--because if that’s true, then that shows that Hino (and Yuuki) both think only criminals one doesn’t know are evil, and that the criminals one does know are excusable especially if they’re romantic interests, and that is reprehensible in the most vile manner. It’s okay for Kaname to target two innocent twins for Yuuki’s sake, but it’s not okay for the Vampire King group to do the same for their own reasons. The hypocrisy is a little too thick to be ignored on this one, and I hope Hino has Yuuki get called out on this later on in VKM.

On top of this, Yuuki’s outrage is rather out of proportion to the threat, especially with so many good people (including the man she supposedly cares about) on the case. It’s clear something more is going on beneath the surface than concern over the safety of children. Even Ruka, who is one of the most maternal characters in the story besides Yori, has a much more reasonable reaction to the news--she calls the perpetrators out for being despicable, but doesn’t let it steal her chill. Yuuki flies off the handle melodramatically and is rightfully stopped by Kain--she’s out of control, and her involvement isn’t going to help matters. Ruka’s solution works out well for Yuuki, but it read more to me like an adult stepping in to keep the peace rather than a genuine compromise. Still, Yuuki trying to be proactive is better than Yuuki sitting on her thumbs, so baby steps I suppose. The most damning news, and likely the real reason why Yuuki wants to get involved, is because Zero didn’t tell her this was going on and concealed it from her. She’s upset that he’s not involving her in the case, but also knows she has no right to get her nose out of joint because it’s his job. Sneaking in and sniffing around gives her an excuse to keep an eye on him. Trying to protect children is most likely a cover up for her real reasons for going. Yuuki always tries to look good in front of others to hide her real motives; typical pureblood activity.

This scene with Ruka and Kain isn’t just to establish Yuuki’s reasons for trespassing into Zero’s territory; it’s also meant to serve as a mirror, with Ruka and Kain’s relationship reflecting Zero and Yuuki’s. Remember, Ruka and Kain are a settling relationship, the one Zero and Yuuki should be if Yuuki genuinely loved Kaname and is just moving on with Zero as her second best option. If Ruka and Kain, who are a settlement pairing, are shown in a more positive light than Yuuki and Zero, it should serve as a red flag to a careful reader.

And that’s exactly what Hino does with this section--Ruka, the woman who settled for Kain, is shown behaving like a proper wife to him. She gets upset when he dismisses the importance of their time together as a married couple, she encourages him to do his best at his work, she expresses her explicit faith in and admiration for his abilities, and then she sends him off to do his duty while going about her day, having absolute confidence that he’ll return to her in the end. This woman, a woman who held favor for Kaname for nearly as long as Yuuki, is capable of being such a wife to a man she settled for, a man she clearly cares deeply about but who wasn’t her first choice. If Yuuki’s issues with Zero are simply her failure to move on from Kaname, she should be more like Ruka, not less.

Instead, Hino casts Yuuki unfavorably in contrast to Ruka. Unlike Ruka, Yuuki has no faith in Zero as a partner. Though she does admire him behind closed doors, she never openly speaks of her pride in him when he’s present, as Ruka does to Kain. She doesn’t appreciate his hard work or his efforts, she doesn’t nag him for time together, she doesn’t support his endeavors. Instead she frets over his safety and looks down on him because he’s not immortal like she is. She doesn’t trust that he’ll return to her, as she admits to Mimi later on in the chapter. Where did all this fear and distrust come from? It certainly didn’t come from the original series, at least not before she herself destroyed their bond in Night 88--she held a deep trust for Zero before then and didn’t fear for him during the Sara arc. In fact, she even said as much openly to him back then--she “wasn’t worried about him” even as she sent him to drink Sara’s blood. That same girl now has no faith in this man at all, despite all he’s done in the meantime. Something has gone terribly wrong, and from her conversations with both Kain and Mimi, she knows it too, even if she’s unwilling to face why.

Yuuki has her first semi-breakdown around Kain in this chapter, but she’ll break down around Mimi as well. She admits that she’s all scrambled, because she knows she should be more like Ruka but can’t quite get herself to that point. Instead of taking the time to sort herself out, she focuses on irrelevant things that won’t solve the real problems--such as interfering with Zero’s investigation. She basically says that rather than deal with the snakes in the garden, she’d rather go out and hunt the wolves howling outside the walls. This section reveals her real intentions for going out on this case--she’s not interested in protecting the children, but in preventing Zero from being involved. This mindset, as her own narration implies, will come back to bite her in the future. From some point in the future, she admits that during this period all she could do was eliminate the immediate fires, rather than preemptively planning for them.

What’s interesting about the way Hino frames this discussion with Kain (if it can even be called a discussion; it’s more like Yuuki talking to herself in front of Kain), is that Kain is clearly uncomfortable with Yuuki suddenly blabbing to him about her inner worries. This tells the reader a few things:

Yuuki and Kain are not normally close enough for these kinds of conversations to be normal.

Yuuki’s starting to crack under some kind of internal pressure to the point where she’s talking to people she normally doesn’t talk to.

Notice she doesn’t talk to Ruka about her worries, despite the fact that Ruka is a far better option for this sort of discussion than Kain. In the past, she did the same thing to Yori--when Yori tried to ask her about herself, she’d clam up (as she does in VKM 13.5) or deflect. Yuuki hasn’t talked about herself openly in decades, and so for her to start blathering her true thoughts now, well, that can only imply something...unusual...has triggered this sudden need to talk to everyone who’s not involved with Zero.

She does another thing that’s rather interesting during this whole scene with Ruka and Kain--she brings Zero up when no one else brought him up. Kain never once mentions Zero, only the hunters in general. Yuuki brings him up twice on her own when no one asked her to. This also implies that whatever it is that’s spurring her into action, it’s related to him and nothing else. Coming on the heels of VKM 13, I smell a rat that’ll need to be buried in future chapters.

This all would be more than enough to chew on if the chapter ended there, but there’s still more to unpack once Yuuki gets herself into the sewers. She’s joined by Mimi, the culprit of the attack on Yori in VKM 6, who has “reformed” (so she says) thanks to Yuuki’s intervention. Mimi’s a charming girl, and she brings some of Yuuki’s flaws and failures as a person into stark relief for anyone with a knowledge of the original series.

The first thing we find out about Mimi is that Yuuki’s helped her get her life back together after her crimes, and Mimi’s grateful to her. Yuuki flat out tells Mimi that the only reason she helped Mimi was to keep her from returning to her criminal ways. When Mimi acts like she probably hasn’t, Yuuki asks her if she’s really gotten her act together.

While this is a cute scene on the surface, and if this was any other character (Zero, Aidou, Yori, or Ai, for example) who helped Mimi, it would be just a funny character-building scene for Mimi; unfortunately Yuuki’s past history with a certain other criminal highlights another aspect of her hypocrisy this chapter: she judges Mimi for her unlawful actions, but she refuses to hold Kaname accountable for his--instead she blames herself, rather than Kaname, for his crimes in order to excuse him and absolve him of them. For her to judge Mimi, whose crimes are much lower on the scale of criminality than the man who fathered her first child, is a pretty classless and hypocritical move as far as I’m concerned. I’m sure Hino just meant this scene to be a cute example of Yuuki helping people, but it was a fairly tasteless choice in my opinion. As I said earlier in the Kain section, I can only hope Hino knows how tasteless this is going to come across and accounts for it with a reckoning later.

While Mimi herself is adorable, Yuuki is fairly gruff and curt with her in the first part of their scene together; it’s clear she doesn’t like Mimi and finds her to be useless at best, irritating at worst. Mimi’s worth as a character won’t appear until later, but we can already start seeing the role she’s going to play for Yuuki in the upcoming chapters: she’s taking Aidou’s place, since Aidou is now a serious character who can’t play the fool for Yuuki, while Zero is gone from Yuuki’s side. Mimi is here to point out the things Yuuki won’t say, and to hint at resolutions to the things Yuuki is running from, just as Aidou was before her during the second arc of the original series.

When Yuuki realizes Zero is one of the three people she’s sensing in the tunnels, she aborts her mission rapidly--her hope to capture the culprits before Zero gets involved is immediately quashed. She tries to backpedal before Zero notices her, but of course no one escapes the greatest hunter who ever lived, and certainly not two girls as blockheaded as Yuuki and Mimi. But the mere fact that Yuuki tries to avoid Zero highlights a few issues right away:

Yuuki doesn’t want Zero to know she’s there.

Yuuki didn’t tell Zero she’d be there.

Yuuki knows she shouldn’t be there.

Interestingly, earlier on in the scene with Mimi, Mimi mentioned that running into the association members is what she really doesn’t want to do, likely because they’re the most dangerous for vampires. Yuuki carefully ignores her comment, but we see here that Yuuki had the same intention, if for very different reasons.

Hino uses screentones to show Zero’s none-too-happy about the appearance of his pseudo-girlfriend in the tunnels. He and Yuuki look like they’re about to get into it, but then Mimi distracts Yuuki by insulting Zero, which pisses Yuuki off. Any ensuing argument is cut short by the sudden appearance of Maria, who Yuuki clearly hasn’t seen in a while. The two teams chat for a bit, and Yuuki grows increasingly tense the longer the discussion goes on.

As I mentioned earlier in the Maria section, Maria is another foil for Yuuki, much as Ruka is, in this chapter. Beyond being a general foil, she highlights some of Yuuki’s deep insecurities specifically about Zero. Yuuki’s jealousy in this chapter, while funny on the surface, actually serves to highlight some of the true sources of her real fears about Zero, the ones she conceals behind fear for his safety, which is a more appropriate fear than her real ones. The first moment that worries Yuuki is when Zero openly admires Maria for doing something brave that is out of character for her. Zero then tells Yuuki about information he learned from Maria, implying that he and Maria have a “world” together that Yuuki’s not a part of (of course, this only because Zero just ran into Maria, so this is just Yuuki’s perception, and Zero’s being very upfront and honest).

Yuuki watches (as does Mimi) this little world Zero and Maria are creating between them and becomes increasingly anxious with each moment. Mimi serves to highlight this for the reader, because Yuuki’s unwilling to let her true feelings be known other than some leaky facial expressions. Zero makes a comment showing he resents Yuuki hesitating about whether or not he’s cheating (the guy has waited patiently at least 70 years for this girl to have a real relationship with him; he’s no cheater and she shouldn’t be fretting over that--it’s insulting to him), and Maria quickly steps in to try to resolve the issue. Of course, the manner in which she does it just digs the hole further--she elicits a gentle response from Zero that continues to create a “world” around them that Yuuki isn’t a part of.

Maria’s interactions with Zero establish a few things for Yuuki:

Zero honestly compliments Maria, yet he doesn’t compliment Yuuki or appreciate her efforts.

Zero respects Maria, yet he doesn’t seem to respect Yuuki.

Zero openly shows affection for Maria, but not Yuuki.

Maria is open and honest with her feelings for Ichiru and Zero, while Yuuki remains closed.

Zero relies on Maria, but not on Yuuki.

Yuuki is diminished standing next to Maria; her efforts to be helpful all pale in comparison to Maria’s. Zero’s admiration and affection and attention are all directed toward Maria; Yuuki is an irritation and an afterthought to him (from Yuuki’s perspective, though of course that’s likely not true in reality). Zero is warm and affectionate and openly speaks about his beloved brother with Maria. The reality of all of this makes Yuuki surly, and she brushes Zero off with a curt goodbye rather than wishing him well as Ruka wished Kain earlier. Even now, Yuuki’s still failing to fully take her place at Zero’s side.

Maria stands as a symbol of what Yuuki should be: a woman who openly speaks of her affection for the ones she loves and who acts to protect not only the ones she loves but all the things she holds dear. Yet Yuuki’s failing to do any of this, and this is why Maria receives the reward Yuuki wants--Zero’s affection, respect, and admiration. But Yuuki hasn’t done anything to earn those things from Zero, and we’ll see this continues to be true even to the very end of the chapter.

Before I leave this section, I just wanted to mention one thing I found incredibly irritating about Yuuki’s reaction in this section. Yuuki’s spent 70 years moping over a guy who is “dead” in name only by Zero’s and Yuuki’s own choice in VKM 8; Zero’s spent the same amount of time silently holding his own losses in his heart without complaint. The reason Zero is affectionate and kind to Maria in this chapter is because of her connection to his own loved one, and he actually has a chance to talk about his loved one with another person who loved him, unlike Yuuki. Yuuki can’t even handle this much; she’s too busy focusing on herself to see how good this is for Zero, how healing it is for him, and how much he’s needed this. Yet, she gets to mope about Kaname and talk about Kaname to her daughter and all Kaname’s friends and Zero, but can’t even afford a single tiny conversation about Zero’s brother to Zero because *egads* Maria has feelings for Zero and Zero might find a girl who lets him talk about his interests more attractive than a girl who whines to him about his mortal enemy in nearly every conversation for the past however many decades. It’s absolutely preposterous and honestly I hope Yuuki pulls her head out of her rear sooner rather than later because I’m getting hellaciously tired of her narcissistic naval gazing.

That aside, we come to the most revealing part of the chapter--after this new stress on her psyche, Yuuki breaks down to talk to yet another person she’s not close to, because apparently that’s how Yuuki works through things. She admits to Mimi that she knows her fears for Zero’s safety are potentially overblown, but that she can’t seem to have faith that he’ll return to her. Mimi, being a bit dumb but a good girl at heart, thinks the solution is as simple as Yuuki just letting go and having faith, rather than focusing on her anxiety. But obviously Yuuki’s anxieties aren’t about Zero dying--oh, no, they’re about him leaving. Yuuki clearly is aware she’s not the best girlfriend and that there are other women who are superior to her, and that if she doesn’t take action soon, after VKM 13, Zero might actually start to consider at other opportunities that are definitely out there. Maria clearly still is an option, Yuuki’s own daughter is an option, and we know from VKM 5 that Zero has had other opportunities. This is the first positive sign that Zero’s outburst in VKM 13 has made Yuuki realize not all is well with him, and that the status quo is no longer good enough to lead him on into the future. Her “restart” plan is starting to fail, and she has to figure out why. This is the real reason she’s talking to random people like Kain and Mimi, rather than her friends or Zero--she doesn’t want anyone to know how bad things have gotten, or how close she senses Zero is of realizing he doesn’t need her or her Kaname baggage anymore.

She clinches this with a thought that Zero smiled for Maria. That means Zero hasn’t smiled for her in a loooooong time if she is struck by his basic polite smile to Maria. He probably hasn’t smiled since Ai grew up, as we see in VKM 10 that Yuuki loves his smile for Ai and thinks that things are well because of it. But Yuuki doesn’t make him smile, and rightly so--she’s honestly a terrible girlfriend, and worse--a terrible friend. She can’t even do friendship properly with Zero anymore, much less the relationship and intimacy he clearly needs. For her to get envious over Zero smiling politely and even a bit fondly at another girl, she has to have robbed him of his smile for so long that even that sad sorry state of a smile seems brilliant to her. It’s pathetic, but perhaps it’s the wake up call she needs to get her act together.

Sadly, we don’t get any more reflection from her because of course Mimi just has to step on a landmine, and Yuuki follows suit. This yet again highlights the fact that Yuuki can’t seem to do a single thing right and always needs Zero to save her--far from saving him, he’s the one saving her. Mimi wonders if Yuuki will save her, to which Yuuki replies in the affirmative. But in Yuuki’s mind, her first instinct is to panic--rather than immediately dealing with the threat and expelling Mimi herself, she stands frozen, trapped in thought, until she senses Zero coming for her.

Despite my complaints about Yuuki in this chapter, this section is my favorite. Her fear and her love for Zero are actually palpable in this scene, more than we’ve seen since Night 88. She actually seems to care about Zero’s wellbeing here, which is more than could be said about her in previous chapters. Unfortunately, her care for his wellbeing has a darker underbelly--she stands around wasting time yelling at him rather than being useful and dealing with the threat before he gets there.

Mimi is clearly in danger (the bombs could actually kill her, unlike Yuuki), and rather than immediately getting Mimi out of the blast zone (the way Yuuki will do as soon as Zero arrives), she stands around shouting at Zero like a spoiled child. Their bombs could go off at any minute if Mimi or Yuuki moves at all, yet Yuuki’s wasting time yelling at someone who isn’t even at her side yet or in danger. Clearly it doesn’t matter to her if Mimi’s head gets blown off, so long as she “proves” that she can protect Zero. It’s foolish and stupid, and it just goes to show how much growing Yuuki needs to do and how useless she is unless she has Zero as a crutch.

When Zero reaches her side, instead of thanking him for coming (because, as always, his presence calms her mind and helps her focus), she goes all tsuntsun on him and snaps that she was going to deal with it herself. But she clearly wasn’t dealing with it--she was panicking and frozen and wasting time yelling at him and spinning her useless brains instead of focusing and doing something. She comes across not as a capable woman who is a good partner to Zero but rather as a petulant child who was testing Zero to see if he’d come running for her despite her protests. And as she surely knew, he came running to her side to save her, abandoning Maria in the process despite Yuuki playing the “bigger person” and telling him to stay by Maria’s side. If she were truly the capable woman she wants to pretend she is, she’d have already begun dealing with the bomb before he arrived to support her--that would have earned his admiration and praise. Instead, she’s uselessly standing around until he’s at her side, and then suddenly her brains work. Magical.

I do want to stress that it’s not at all that I truly believe Yuuki isn’t capable of courage, bravery, and being a useful member of the team. It’s the very fact that I know full well she’s capable of great courage and bravery (the Rido arc, the Sara arc) that makes her behavior this chapter so grating on my thinning patience. That’s the very reason why her behavior is so frustrating here--as soon as Zero is at her side, she instantaneously transforms into the capable woman she’s always been. She gets Mimi out of danger and starts dealing with containing the blast. If she’d just do this and trust Zero to support her and back her up, she’d find she likes herself a lot more, I think. That’s how they’ve always worked together, and for her to forget that after all these years shows how far she’s fallen.

There’s a weird moment when they’re bickering with each other where he touches her arm and her eyes go wide with shock. This to me says they’re really on the rocks if she’s shocked that he’s touching her. Their bickering itself only reveals surface-level issues which by now I think is clear aren’t their real issues. Yuuki does reveal she resents Zero not telling her about the investigation, so likely she’s upset that he’s not wanting her as a partner in crime anymore. But given how reckless and unreliable she is, and how for a long time she made them do things separately due to their bench agreement, it’s hard to blame him for not being a mind reader and knowing she wanted back in on the action. Really she’s just being unreasonable, and she knows it.

Of course, Zero then disappears before they can work through anything. Whether he’s been kidnapped or he disappeared of his own volition remains to be seen, but whatever is about to happen is surely to test Yuuki at last. It’s time for her to face being alone without a man to use as a crutch--no Kaname, no Zero, no Aidou. She might even grow from the experience. Wouldn’t that be something extraordinary?

The thing that bothers me a bit about how Hino’s handling Yuuki this chapter is that this sudden “action heroine Yuuki” is too little, too late. Yuuki’s failed as an action heroine since the second arc of the original series began. This girl spends more time sitting on her rear than she does helping anyone in this story or doing anything useful. Most of her “activities” are pointless and result in no lasting consequences. It’s honestly laughable that Hino wants to try to go back to the Yuuki who stood against Kaname and Rido at the end of the first arc of the original series, but we’ll see. Maybe she’ll surprise me. I doubt it though.

The Solitary Sun

The flip side of Yuuki this chapter is Zero. While Yuuki’s thoughts are laid bare for us to see, Zero’s are, as I predicted, hidden. No surprise there, because Hino probably doesn’t want any Zeki fans to run away, and a peek in Zero’s head would probably send the remaining readers bolting for the hills. Better to stick with Yuuki for now.

However, we have enough clues to theorize where Zero’s headspace potentially is this chapter. We learn that he’s actively hiding intel from Yuuki, including information about the vigilante groups, which Maria (her rival) is a part of. While the likelihood of him cheating is low, this does demonstrate a lack of reciprocal trust in Yuuki’s maturity and judgment.

It’s likely that Zero’s concealing of intelligence from Yuuki is partially motivated by the outcome of VKM 13. There are a few hints that he’s still unhappy about the unresolved issues from VKM 13--he becomes angry with Yuuki the minute he sees her in the tunnels (inappropriately so; despite Hino trying to play it off as a comedic moment, there’s really no reason for him to be that angry at an immortal woman taking part in vigilante activity), and he’s the first one to bring up Yuuki’s VKM 13 request that he not die during their bickering fest as they disarm the bomb.

Given that Yuuki wanted to avoid him this chapter and he’s displeased to see her, this implies he’s at the very least been stewing on VKM 13 for an indeterminate amount of time, even if he hasn’t yet taken any action or made any decision about them as a couple yet as a result of it. It does appear that publicly he’s still holding his position in their relationship--he’s openly bothered by her pause before she rejects the idea of him cheating, and he openly calls her the woman he loves during the bomb disarming. However, these also may be signs that internally he’s starting to wonder about their relationship and is over-emphasizing it in order to keep legitimizing it. His doubts may be crumbling the foundation of the relationship beneath his feet faster than he can rebuild. Not once in all of VKM has Zero called Yuuki the woman he loves. For him to be saying this now, on the heels of VKM 13, strikes me as a red flag, and not of the “Zero’s about to be kidnapped” foreshadowing flavor. If Zero’s pulling out all the stops and openly declaring his feelings before he’s happy with Yuuki, we’re at the end of the line. This strikes me as the last desperate push to make things right before they all fall apart and he has to at last admit the experiment was a failure. But we’ll see. The kidnapping might give him a reprieve.

I don’t have any evidence for this, but his behavior with Maria vs. Yuki this chapter brought up some questions for me. He openly admires Maria’s courage, despite her actions being against her regular character. Yet when Yuuki does the same thing, he doesn’t admire her actions or her attempts at bravery--he doesn’t encourage her, as he does Maria. I’m not sure if he’s doing this deliberately or if he’s just tired of Yuuki in general and thus can no longer be a supportive figure in her life. I think what he admires about Maria too is that she’s putting her life on the line in a genuine way, a way Yuuki can’t do because she’s a pureblood and thus doesn’t have to fear those things anymore. That’s something Zero may deep down wish he still had--the ability to walk the same lifespan with Yuuki, and to take risks together with her, as opposed to being the only truly vulnerable one of the two of them.

I also was struck by how he handled the moment when Maria was explaining how she had to insist he abandon her. Zero’s obviously a kind person, but it was a surprisingly manipulative move on his part to express his concern in the manner he did in front of Yuuki. It reminded me a little of an insecure man slyly trying to make his girlfriend jealous more than a sincere question. The rest of his interactions with Maria felt platonic and sincere to me, but that particular moment struck me as odd.

Overall, in the initial scene with Maria, Zero doesn’t give Yuuki much warmth at all. Mimi even picks up on it, though she immediately assumes he’s cheating (in other words, she misreads the energy, but the energy does exist). He’s deliberately warm and supportive to Maria. This might be genuine, or it might be manipulative on his part, I’m honestly not sure yet. A Zero who is capable of what he did in VKM 13 is a different Zero than i’m used to, and so he may have some new snakes in his heart than before. Hence, he might be capable of new behaviors that he wasn’t capable of previously. If Zero is sincere in his admiration of Maria, it shows that he can tell the difference between her efforts and Yuuki’s. He knows exactly what Yuuki’s up to (spying on him and snooping), but Maria (as far as he’s aware, of course) seems to be genuinely working toward a higher cause, which Zero admires.

That also says something about the state of how Zero feels about Yuuki that is truly heartbreaking for me. Zero used to admire her straight-forward gaze and her inner courage and strength and kindness throughout all of the original series. For him to now be at a point where he’s not even acknowledging what she’s trying to accomplish, that leads me to only two conclusions: 1.) he doesn’t believe her sincerity due to his suspicions about her true motives, or 2.) he’s so angry with her he can’t appreciate her right now. It could also be a combination of the two, which is particularly unfortunate.

The other thing I feel is lurking under the surface in Zero’s interaction with Yuuki this chapter is a sense that he feels resentful of her inability to trust him. He wants her to have faith in him and his abilities, as she once did when they worked together in the original series. I think he resents (on multiple levels) her obsession with his death--she’s not appreciating his life and is myopically focusing on something that may or may not come to pass. This comes out in his deep frustration with her at the end of the chapter; he hates the idea of being her damsel in distress that she has to rescue simply because she happens to be the longer-lived of the two of them. He still has his pride as a man and wants to protect her with his own skill, even if she’s technically stronger than him.

Some of this comes back to what I feel his true issues are lurking deep beneath the surface, which I mentioned in my review of VKM 13. His real issues center on a deep insecurity about his place in her heart versus Kaname. Kaname, on the surface, is a far better partner for her--he’s immortal, like she is, he’s older than she is, he’s more mature than she is. Zero is all these things as well, but he’s not “immortal,” only long-lived. If Zero is beginning to fear that Kaname (and Kaname’s lifespan) is what’s really at the center of Yuuki’s “fears” about Zero’s lifespan, then his outburst at the end of VKM 14 may be due more to his own insecurities than any genuine fear about the trouble Yuuki might get herself into. Of course, he loves her, so he doesn’t want her to suffer, but if he had faith in her (as he wants her to have faith in him), he’d know she could get herself out of any scrape she got herself into. So this to me indicates he’s really worried about something else, and that her “arms getting blown off” is more of an excuse than the real reason.

I want to do a write up on this separately at some point, but for a long time now (since before the original series ended), I’ve had this sense that Zero is the real shoujo heroine of this story, and that the traditional “character roles” have been gender-reversed. This chapter added fuel to that suspicion, because normally the shoujo heroine is the one who gets kidnapped so the hero can come valiantly rescue her. However, I don’t think this particular kidnapping is going to play out that way--honestly I still believe this kidnapping is meant to isolate Zero so a deal can be struck with him; I don’t think Hino wants him to be seen as the damsel in distress. But with everyone targeting him in particular, and with the purebloods wanting him in the past, and with him being labeled as special far more than Yuuki ever was or has been, the chips are stacking in his favor that he’s the “real” shoujo heroine of this story, and thus many of the heroine character beats are going to him rather than to Yuuki. This makes for a difficult road for Yuuki as a heroine, because she’s not traversing the masculine beats very well--she’s just not capable enough. The Hooded Woman was a much better character for those sorts of beats, but Yuuki’s just too damaged, fragile, and flawed to play them out correctly. We’ll see how it unfolds, but for now I’ll keep mulling this over.

Ships Passing in the Night

I don’t want to talk too much about Zeki as a couple, simply because they’re in a very frustrating spot and I’ve already labored over them enough separately. However, I do want to point out a few things about their situation together this chapter that struck me.

First is that I think it’s fairly clear that underpinning the whole chapter is VKM 13, which indicates a lack of resolution on the part of that chapter. I think it’s safe to say that nothing was resolved between them, and that Zero’s words to Yuuki (that her fear was her own curse on herself, rather than anything legitimate) hit home to her, while Zero is confirmed to not be buying any of the snake oil she’s selling with her “fears” for his life. We can see this in how they both behave in the chapter:

Zero’s behavior:

Zero’s the easiest, because the best way to prove he didn’t buy what Yuuki was selling in VKM 13 is to look at his behavior. If he’d bought into her fears as legitimate, he’d be doing a couple things this chapter that we don’t see:

He’d have told her what was going on with the investigation.

He’d have asked for her help in securing the scene of the crime.

He’d be making sure she was emotionally okay with the idea of him doing his job.

He’d be kinder to her for sneaking around to check up on him.

He would be taking precautions to ease her worries.

Zero does none of this in VKM 14. Instead he:

Hides what he knows about the investigation from her.

Gets outright angry when he finds her in the tunnels.

Is not taking any precautions to protect himself, and is instead protecting other people.

Throws her “curse” and her “worry” in her face in the middle of their bomb disarmament.

Flat out rejects her worries by pointing out that he hates the idea of her getting her body parts blown off, implicitly admitting that he’d rather die than witness that.

This all points to Zero not buying what Yuuki was selling in VKM 13, which I think puts to rest the idea that his “behavior” in VKM 13 was in any way shape or form genuinely a response to her fears and a “taking on” of her fears--he was mocking her then and taking out his frustrations on her, not “empathizing” with her or giving her what she wanted. If he genuinely felt her fears were legitimate, he’d be taking them into consideration in this chapter. I feel the case is closed on that at this time; now all we have to wait for is to find out what he was really upset about in that chapter, because now we know he was upset about something unrelated to her preposterous anxieties.

Yuuki’s behavior:

Yuuki’s behavior this chapter implies the opposite of Zero’s, another point in favor of Zero’s accusation that her curse was her own and not legitimate during VKM 13. If she felt her behavior in VKM 13 was legitimate and that her fears were legitimate, we should see some different outcomes from her this chapter:

She would be angry at Zero for getting involved in another case despite her fears. She would be upset with him for not taking her feelings into consideration. (Ironically, this is why she comments to Kain that she should be “worried” like Ruka--the fact is, she isn’t worried for his safety; her fears have nothing to do with whether he’ll get blown up or hurt or killed--they’re about something she’s not willing to face.)

She would be hunting Zero down in the tunnels openly to yell at him and drag him off the case.

She would immediately deal with the bomb herself without shouting at Zero when she and Mimi step on it, because that would prevent him (and Mimi) from being in the blast zone if she handled it promptly.

Instead of this, what we get is the following:

Yuuki suddenly wants to improve her cooking skills! (That’s a bit of an odd reaction to fearing for your man’s life.)

Yuuki has a sudden “need” to be part of the investigation just because she overhears what the target is, when she wasn’t interested before other than in passing.

Yuuki suddenly starts talking to random people about her issues, as if she realized she needs to work through them and get to the bottom of them. (She even flat out admits she’s a mess and can’t work through that mess easily.) This alone confirms she knows she’s full of horse manure and that Zero was right when he called her out in VKM 13.

She immediately has anxieties about Zero and Maria, despite all she and Zero have been through since the original series. Her anxieties aren’t even about Maria--they’re about Zero!

She envies Zero smiling at Maria! If her true issue was his safety, who he smiles at shouldn’t bug her in the slightest because she has a good relationship with him and is being genuine and sincere with him.

She admits to Mimi that she doesn’t even have faith he’ll come back to her. This is not about him dying--this is about him leaving her.

We see from Yuuki’s actions this chapter the first true hints (which her actions in VKM 12 support) that she’s afraid Zero is finally fed up and is thinking of leaving. That all she’s done to string him along and “keep” him is no longer enough--her blood’s not enough, sleeping in bed holding hands isn’t enough, being “platonic friends” isn’t enough. He has finally hit the end of the road with her “I won’t let you go but I won’t do anything with you” declaration in VKM 9.

What she’s afraid of isn’t Maria per se--Zero isn’t going to leave her for Maria. But what about some other girl she doesn’t know about? There are thousands of women for Zero to choose from--thousands who, like Maria, would openly appreciate him and react warmly to his advances rather than shutting him out and clinging on to the memory of a man who hurt him deeply. Yuuki’s real fear isn’t that he’ll die--it’s that he’ll live, but not with her.

Yet for her to keep Zero, she has to “clean up the mess,” which she herself admits is “hard.” So instead of doing the real work of dealing with her own issues, she goes off to play investigator and spy on Zero and play “hero” when she has no right to. Basically, this kidnapping is quite good for her, in my estimation, because it means she’ll have to start facing those things she doesn’t want to face--the real reasons Zero is unhappy with her and their relationship isn’t progressing. What’ll come of that is anyone’s guess at this point.

Zero and Yuuki’s mutual issues from VKM 13 bleed into their teamwork this chapter--although they still work together well, it’s not seamless like in their younger days. Yuuki trying to test Zero doesn’t help much, either--your partner isn’t going to respect you if you’re testing their loyalty when you yourself have been disloyal for 70 years. Seriously, why is Yuuki always one step forward, fifty back, I have no idea. It’s very frustrating for a reader, and I can only imagine how frustrating it must be for Zero to have to live with that.

Ultimately, I’m pleased as punch they’ll be separated for a while. But more on where we’re going from here next.

Past Reflections Echoing into the Future

If VKM 13 was VKM’s version of Nights 61-64, VKM 14 picks up as the inverse of the Kuran Manor mini-arc’s Nights 65-67. I suspect the parallels will continue into the future, which is why I expect Zero to “return” of his own “free” will after he’s been blackmailed by the Vampire King group’s mastermind to act “against” Yuuki (and thus parallel the Rogue Kaname mini-arc from the original series).

Because Zero was kidnapped, unlike Kaname in Night 67, this gives a different general atmosphere to this parallel to the original series, but ultimately the point is to separate Yuuki from the crutch she’s leaning on (Zero now, Kaname back then) and send her on a journey of self discovery, which hopefully this time will actually lead to growth rather than regression as it did in the original series in Volume 19.

I see us being set up for a new arc where Zero’s return gives Yuuki initial relief, but because he’s being blackmailed he has to protect her by pretending to break things off with her. In this process, he will likely say quite a few “true” things that actually do reflect his true feelings--the best way to fool your enemies is to fool your loved ones, and the truth is the best way to accomplish that. So while Zero is saying these things to keep her safe and in the dark about what he’s about to do for the Vampire King (and in order to keep other innocents safe, because Zero’s lovely and altruistic like that), Yuuki will “believe” what he’s saying, because he’ll be speaking the truth from his heart at last.

I suspect we’ll finally see that he has been afraid that she truly loves Kaname, despite what her blood tells him. We may see that he’s been contemplating bringing Kaname back for her again once the cure is in place. We may see that he’s open to the idea of disappearing from her life, because he feels he’s brought her nothing but misery. We may see that he feels Kaname was wrong in Night 93--that he doesn’t believe he and Yuuki were meant to be at all. All these fears and more are what could potentially be revealed on Zero’s side via this arc, and I would feel so relieved to see him finally speak these oppressive thoughts he’s clearly been suffering under for so long.

Even if none of this comes to pass and Hino has other less interesting reasons for these events, Zero’s kidnapping is the best thing that’s happened to this story since Night 87. Even though I didn’t get Zero walking out on Yuuki (which I would have preferred), the kidnapping still forces them to separate and (hopefully) will force Yuuki to begin to examine what’s wrong in herself and her relationship and why it’s gotten to this point in the first place.

This will work especially well if Zero does come back and is forced to act cold to her in order to protect innocents due to blackmailing from the Vampire King group’s mastermind. This would force Yuuki to have to examine how much she trusts Zero, how much of his words are true, and what all of it means for her. It’s a far greater test than what Ruka put her through when she gave her the illusion of Zero shooting her--because everything Zero will say to her here will be truth--perhaps incomplete truth, but still truth that she needs to acknowledge and deal with at last.

As for what else is coming our way, perhaps we might finally start seeing some movement on the cure. I’m quite looking forward to how that plotline mixes with this one, if indeed that’s what Hino intends for these two plotlines.

All in all, I think we’re still on track for things to unfold happily for our two star-crossed lovers, as long as Hino stops setting us back with detours. It’s time for Yuuki to get her act together and decide which man she wants in her life and what she actually wants for herself. It’s time for her to decide she prefers happiness to misery, whether or not she deserves it, and that Zero deserves happiness from her if she wants to stay with him or freedom from her if she wants to be true to Kaname. And since we know that he dies in her arms, I’d say chances are higher for the former happening than the latter.

And that, as they say, is that. Until next time!

#vampire knight #vampire knight memories #vkm spec #vkm speculation #zeki criticism #anti ky #vkm chapter review

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