#could also wear elf ears for some extra spice

[mascwoman]

Okay, I think I might go as an artificer for weekend #2 of Ren Faire. I am plotting.

[friendocheaven]

Picnic Ask

Ask and ye shall recieve @theaxolotleastofthesun it’s long af tho, so it’s under the cut.

 1.       Where and When is the picnic happening? (Gonna take this as ideal location and season basically)

a.       Milo: Prefers someplace a bit south—warmer than the northern parts of the Eye. Summer in Sun Elf territory would be nice. Not south enough to get jungle-y and humid (Glim can take heat, but draws the line at humidity), but someplace he could retreat to the blessed relief offered by the shade of a scrubby tree and have a good excuse to eat his favorite spicy foods and sweat to cool down.

b.      Glim: as stated above, he doesn’t do well in high humidity. Also not the biggest fan of excessive heat, but will put up with it for Milo’s sake. Were it up to him though, he would prefer an autumn picnic in a cozy shady glen under a still-full canopy of rich reds and violets and sunny yellows. A sigh of crisp wind carrying with it the first hint of winter.

c.       Remmi: Love’s spring, especially when it’s still early. They love the way the fruit trees look while still flowering and the cool, but warming, breeze. They would most enjoy something near water, but with plush green grass still under foot. The Northern Reservoir is well tended, with bright, blossoming bushes hedging cobbled pathways. The surrounding park stretches most of the way ‘round. Remmi would most like a quiet day at the eastern edge—farthest away from the great roaring falls that lead into the canyon. Bonus if there are frogs.

d.      Hani: Loves the dead heat of summer; the feel of warm sun on his skin. A midsummer, late afternoon picnic after a day of splashing around the Southern Sea would be heaven. Sure, the food might get a little sandy, but it wouldn’t stop him from eating and enjoying every second.

2.       What food and drinks do your OCs bring? (you fool! You’re enabling me to indulge my fascination with food culture!)

a.       Milo: Goes all out on the spice—picnic with him at your own peril. He packs extra-hot kimchi, seasoned roasted garlic cloves, Zevi’s falafel recipe, and a few other side dishes that reflect his upbringing by a Southern Dwarf familiar with Halfling food culture. He also gets pretty excited with drinks, bringing three; an iced ginger tea made with turmeric and black pepper, buttercup and honey hwachae (most non-halflings just call it wine even though it’s usually not alcoholic) because he’s (not so) secretly pretty sappy and sentimental, and Baekse-ju to finish off with a good pair for spicy food and just a touch of alcohol.

b.      Glim: Settles for light, seasonal snack foods. He brings a bunch of fresh cut in-season fruit like apples (that yes, he does cut the skins to look like bunnies like his mother used to), a couple loaves of bara brith made with ground dried fruits and nuts served with butter, and a whole basket of pic ar y maen (cookies with raisins and currants mixed in). He brings spiced virgin cider and a fine local white wine to wash it down.

c.       Remmi: As a professional baker, they refused to bring anything but their best to their picnic. They pick finger-food pastries—the best from their eclectic cooking experience and travels. Beignets topped with honey and powdered sugar—in a basket enchanted to keep them fresh and hot and crisp because they take pride in their work. An impressive assortment of petit fors lined up and packed tightly in another container. Muffuletta finger sandwiches with toothpicks holding them together for the more savory inclined guests. And finally some cranberry pastila which they hadn’t made in years and was their way of flexing their baker’s muscles. They pack a thermos of milk tea and an iced chocolate drink.

d.      Hani: not a big cook. He was hoping Senya would do most of the cooking. It’s not like he’s particularly picky about what he ingests. To be polite though, he brings a crock of bamia—a stew with lamb, okra, tomatoes, and onion—that his mother would make on special occasions. He also brings an impressive array of drinks; sugar cane juice, carob juice, tamarind juice, and iced coffee.

3.       What are your OC’s wearing to the picnic?

a.       Milo: Largely his usual sort of outfit. A sleeveless turtleneck, cargo capris, and combat boots. He does add a lightweight cotton shawl embroidered with geese in shades of red that he got as a wedding gift from Lian. He wears it to avoid sunburn, but once in the shade and eating, he carefully folds it and sets it aside so it doesn’t get dirty.

b.      Glim: A cream colored tunic and brown tasseled cardigan over dark blue leggings, simple but sleek black ankle boots, and finished off with a simple sapphire teardrop pendant on a gold chain.

c.       Remmi: they opt for something simple and comfortable, but fitting for the season. They wear a yellow wide-band tank top under an oversized baby pink cable knit sweater. The sweater is so big it slouches off one shoulder, reaches their knees, and the sleeves hide their hands if they aren’t scrunched up at the elbow. They pair that with slim, washed out jeans, and a pair of tan slouchy boots. As one final touch, they don cherry blossom studs in their ears.

d.      Hani: he goes for something sporty and comfy. A loose and flowy off-white sleeveless crop top over a pair of baggy gray-blue shorts held round his hips by a broad and colorful sash and a pair of greek sandals that he discards almost immediately. To add a touch of class—after all this is a fun outing so why not—he wears golden arm bands just above each bicep. Those stay on longer, but they, too, eventually get unceremoniously dumped into the picnic basket in favor of total comfort.

4.       Which OC brings a musical instrument to idly play?

a.       Surprisingly enough, Hani. Remmi knows a little piano and harp, but those aren’t exactly available at a picnic. Milo has never learned an instrument (though he finds guitar interesting). And Glim tried playing, but sucked at just about everything; and anything he could play he couldn’t play in front of others. Hani, on the other hand, randomly knows how to play—and is good at—the oud (which is like an Arab lute). And yes, he does attempt to play Wonderwall on it.

5.       How quickly does your OC realize there are ants trying to sneak into their food? What do they do about it?

a.       Milo: He’s very perceptive, so it doesn’t take long for him to notice. He proceeds to squish them then mix them into his food for “extra protein” without hesitation. Despite knowing that Milo was raised eating bugs and still does fairly regularly, everyone still looks at him like he’s gone insane.

b.      Glim: He picks up on it when someone else points it out. It’s only then that he realizes that he forgot to activate the insect repellent rune. He curses under his breath and apologizes before quickly moving the picnic supplies a few meters away and activating it then.

c.       Remmi: They spend the whole picnic low-key looking out for this. Whenever bugs start walking toward or flying around their precious gourmet picnic, they nonchalantly close all the containers up tight then swat them all away without breaking the conversation.

d.      Hani: he doesn’t notice until one of the ants bites his tongue as he’s eating. He spits that one out because it was mean, but all subsequent ones he eats. And unlike Milo, Hani doesn’t mix them into anything, he just pops them into his mouth.

6.       Which OC hides under the shade at first before being convinced to come out into the sun? How do they react?

a.       Glim hates the heat. If you can manage to convince him to leave the tranquility of shade, he will be a drama queen about it. Really laying it on thick and moaning about how “the sun is a white hot laser” against his “poor fragile flesh” and that if he continues on he will surely “burn up, dry out, and die!” and other such dramatic nonsense. He gets weirdly poetic when he’s frustrated or cranky. Needless to say, Milo has ceased pushing the issue.

7.       Imagine your OCs spending their time picking nearby wildflowers and watching the butterflies and bees at work.

a.       Milo foregoes this particular activity, choosing this time instead to just take in the scenery. He’s scared he might upset a hive or get stung or bitten by something so he’d rather just sit back and soak up the atmosphere.

b.      Glim is carefully rooting around for four leaf clovers under a subdued parasol.

c.       Remmi carefully plucks and cuts an armful of flowers and stems so they can make colorful flower crowns for everyone.

d.      Hani chases the bugs and small animals, not unlike a dog would. But he’s having fun so it’s fine.

8.       Which OC foregoes a picnic blanket and sits directly on the ground? Are they concerned by the grass stains on their clothes afterwards?

a.       Hani doesn’t care where he plants his butt and cares almost as little about stains.

9.       Which OC brings a chair because they can’t stand the thought of sitting on the ground?

a.       Remmi, but a lot of it is because they don’t want to risk getting their clothes too dirty and also because the ground is never as soft and even as you think or hope. So sitting on the ground, even on a blanket, hurts their butt.

10.   Imagine your OCs falling asleep after eating their food, content and happy.

a.       Milo is one of the first to nod off and lays down in the shade. He kicks his shoes off and lets the sun warm his feet while the shade keeps his face cool. He wakes up to groggily help pack everything back up.

b.      Glim doesn’t actually fall asleep. He just sort of zones out while playing with Milo’s hair and enjoying the breeze.

c.       After loading up on carbs, Remmi dozes off in their chair and wake up with a tender sunburn spread across their nose and cheeks. They vow to never fall asleep in the sun like that again, but they make the same mistake next time.

d.      Hanni has seemingly boundless energy throughout the day, which is a bit unusual for him as he often naps a lot when the sun is out, but is wired by the time the moon replaces it. As soon as they’ve packed everything up and are headed home, though, the excitement wears off and he crashes hard. He’s asleep the whole way back.

[blahblahblippyblah]

The Magic of Dust

Also follow on Ao3

The story of the Marauders as they go through all 7 years at Hogwarts. However this take place in a universe where your soul manifests as a daemon. Which is a magical animal that is apart of you and cannot be separated from you.

For those who did not read His Dark Materials, daemons can transform between different animal representations when you are young, but will eventually find a final form when you grow up.

Daemons usually express what you are feeling deep down and are extensions of the people they are tied to.

******************

Sirius

“MOOOOOTHEEERRRRRR SIRIUS IS DOING IT AGAIN!”

Sirius heard his brother Regulus yell as he ran down the stairs towards the day room to fetch mother. Tattle tale he thought to himself.

“Hurry up before she comes, at least if you’re at the bottom you can deny it” Puddles his daemon said slithering from his arm to the banister. Puddles was currently a King Snake and his red band stood out in great contrast to the dusty green and dark black wood that made up the dingy dark stairwell of the Nobel and Most Ancient house of Black.

“Ok” Sirius said and he swung his leg up over the handrail and took a deep breath. He looked down the 5 stories of twisting staircases, It looked higher when he was perched on the edge. He steadied himself and then pushed off sliding down in circles as the staircase twisted magically to keep him from turning too sharp and flying off at one of the landings. Puddles slithered down the banister after him laughing as he went. He managed to pick up more sped then he anticipated and by the time he got to the last floor he couldn’t stop himself.

“SLOW DOWN!” Puddles yelled turning into a small fish crow to fly down after him faster.

Too late Sirius thought before he flew of the end and rolled into the hallway scraping his back across the carpet. Sirius then collapsed sprawled out on the floor. Man, that was a rush, totally worth the bruise. Puddles landed ontop of his chest and instantly turned into a fluffy back dog tail wagging furiously.

“That was awesome. Why don’t we do that to come downstairs everyday?” Puddles said.

Sirius was about to reply exactly why they didn’t when he heard the unmistakable sound of clacking heels heading towards them. The person who was the exact reason he didn’t do it every morning. Sirius jumped up quickly trying to look nonchalant and bent down to pick up Puddles who on que turned back into a King Snake and slithered up his sleeve just in time for Regulus and his mother to turn the corner.

“Hello Mother. I was… ummm… Just headed upstairs to change for supper” Sirius said trying to control his breathing so it wouldn’t sound like he was panting.

“Where is Pudicitiam?” His mother demanded. Pudicitiam was the name his parents had given his daemon when he first appeared when Sirius was 4 and a half. Pudicitiam meant ‘Pure’, something his parents had chosen because of a the Black family motto ‘Toujours Pur’. Sirius hated the name and the motto. He didn’t fall for the nonsense that pureblood were superior like he was constantly told. He also didn’t appreciate the Black family tradition of parents naming both their children and their daemons. As far as he knew that tradition was pure Black.

Walburga regarded him up and down. She was a tall thin women with a thick dark dress that stretched to the floor with long sleeves and a turtleneck that went all the way up to her chin. Her dark hair was pulled back tight into a high bun. Her presence was haunting and intimidating. It was also exasperated by the King Cobra daemon that slithered up beside her and hissed at him in displeasure. Sirius held out his arm and Puddles slithered out slowly keeping cautious eyes on Insignus, his mother’s Cobra. Having not caught him in the act she didn’t seem to have much to yell at him about.

Snakes were commonly the daemons of pure blood families. That tradition was common across Europe. Sirius was told ever since his daemon appeared that snake daemons signified superiority, intelligence and power. The greatest wizards of all time, Salazar Slytherin, Merlin, Grindelwald, The Minister for Magic, and anyone who was of any importance all had snake daemons. Stories even said Salazar Slytherins’ daemon was a Basilisk the most powerful snake of all. So from a very young age his parents made sure his daemon stayed as a snake, because a Black heir with anything but a snake for a daemon would be disgraceful.

Unfortunately Puddles hated staying as a snake, and whenever he was alone Puddle would usually transform into a small shaggy black dog. A few times when he got upset or angry Puddles would change without notice and his mother would get angry and usually punish him, especially is company was around.

“Very well, go wash up and put on some nicer clothes. Uncle Cygnus and the girls are coming for dinner to celebrate you going off to school tomorrow.”

And with that dismissal Sirius quickly as he could without running scurried up the stairs.

He didn’t notice until he got to the second landing that Regulus was following him into his room.

Sirius let him in, closed the door then turned on him.

“Why do you always have to run to mother?”

“You could have hurt yourself” Regulus said crossing his arms in anger. Sirius saw Nobella Regulus’ Smooth greens snake daemon poke his head out of Regulus’ collar tongue out sensing the air. She then whispered something in his ear and Regulus made a scrunched face.

“I’m sorry, I’m just upset you are leaving tomorrow, and I’m going to be all alone” Regulus said with a bit of a whine.

Sirius rolled his eyes.

“You won’t be alone. I’ll write to you everyday. And then next year you’ll be coming with me.”

Regulus looked at his feet but stayed quiet as if he had no retort.

“Come on, you can wear my favorite velvet robes to dinner. I’ll ever tie your tie” Sirius said reaching out to pull Regulus to his closet to try and cheer him up. As much as Regulus annoyed him he couldn’t stand to see his baby brother upset.

He would miss Regulus but he was too excited to go to Hogwarts to saying much else. He instead spent the rest of the night playing pranks on Bella and Cissy to keep Regulus smiling. Hopefully that would make up for it.

James

“James stop bouncing like that”

James’ mother scolded him as he stared up in awe at the glistening maroon train in front of him spilling steam onto the platform. Students and parents were running around greeting one another, pulling trunks onto the train and hugging their parent’s goodbye. Beside him Bahaadur was impatiently stepping in spot like he couldn’t wait to get on the train. James reached down and patted his back to calm him. His golden fur was soft to the touch. Today Bahaadur was a lion, and although he didn’t have a mane James thought he looked impressive non the less. He was proud of his daemon, when he was close and excited it made him feel 10 times more confident.

His mom knelt down in front of him. “Did you pack your extra jumper?”

“Yes”

“Your extra trainers?”

“Yes”

“Your extra set of quills and ink?”

“ummmmm… maybe” James said with an innocent smile.

His mom tutted at him.

“Don’t worry we’ll send them along in the mail” She said pulling him into a hug.

James blushed feeling embarrassed but hugged her back. She smelled of spices and freshly made bread. Beside him Sahaanubhooti (or Hooti for short) his moms swan daemon place her head on Bahaadur’s back in a farewell. When they finally broke apart his father came up and clapped him on the shoulder.

“You make us proud son.” Then he bent down and hugged him too. Raksha his tiger daemon then took his turn nuzzling into Bahaadur in his own farewell. When he stood up he said “The house is going to be so quiet with you gone.”

His mother laughed at that. “The elves will be bored with all the idle time.”

The train whistle blew, and the crowd stated forward.

“Oh you better hurry or you’ll miss the train” His father said guiding him forward.

James got onto the train and his father levitated his trunk in after him.

“Make sure to write at least once a week” His mother called waving.

“And stay out of trouble.” His father called.

And with that the train pulled out of the station. And the last view James had of his parents was them waving to him on the steamy platform.

Now by himself in the busy train hallway James was feeling a little worried. He had never been apart from his parents for more than 24 hours and now he was on his own. Bahaadur was now in his young stag form and his legs wobbled a little, which to James showed he too was worried. Bahaadur leaned against his leg either to comfort him or to comfort himself. Either way James appreciated the gesture.

James looked down at Bahaadur and Bahaadur looked up at him and together they said “ Maybe we should find some first years to share a trolley with?”

Sirius

After Creature the Black family house elf came back from bringing his trunk on board Sirius ran onto the train as fast as he could. He heard his mom calling after him but Sirius was so close to freedom that he couldn’t hold himself back. The only thing he heard was his mother shouting that he should write home before the end of the week and to remember not to consort with halfbloods. He also heard his father say something along the lines of coming home for Christmas, but both things he promptly ignored. He took off down the train corridor away from the carriage he knew Creature left his stuff, the same carriage his cousins would soon be coming to sit in. Sirius didn’t want to be around when they got on or he might get stuck with them the whole train ride. He made it through 2 carriages before the train started moving, by the third it was full steam ahead and the crowd who were waving out the windows started to disperse. When he got to the 3 carriage he was full running through the halls dodging people. Puddles was running beside him now in his black dog form which he changed into once they were out of sight of any Black family members, jumping over trunks and weaving between legs to keep up with Sirius.

He was almost to the door to the last train car when he accidently lost his footing a bit and slammed into someone, sending them both tumbling.

“BLOODY HELL!” The person shouted as he collided with him.

“Shit, Sorry mate” Sirius said quickly getting back up and offering the stranger his hand to help him up.

The guy looked his age. He had dark brown skin and spiky messy black hair and round glasses on. The guy looked both confused and irritated but took his hand none the less and Sirius helped him up.

“Sorry” He said again. “I was just trying to get away from my cousins.”

“No problem” The boy said. “You a first year?”

“Ya, you?”

“Ya. I’m James, James Potter, and this is Bahaadur” He said gesturing to the young stag standing beside him.

Puddles walked up to Bahaadur and sniffed at him, apparently, he liked what he smelled because he lowered his front and began wagging his tail like he wanted to play. Puddle never took to anyone’s daemon so quick before, so Sirius took that as a good sign. Plus, he knew the name Potter. His mother said the Potters were blood traitors, but Sirius knew enough about the intensive pureblood family tree he was forced to memorize to know the Potters were still pure blooded. So technically he was still obeying his mother’s orders.

“I’m Sirius, Sirius Black.” Sirius said offering his hand out for a shake. “And this is ummm….”

Sirius was about to say Puddles, but knew that would sound stupid and thus make him look stupid. But he wasn’t about to call Puddles Pudicitiam either, since then he would look super stupid as well as a prat. Quickly he tried to think of a name.

“Uhh. This is Fidèlami”

“Cool. Umm if you’re a Black why is your daemon a dog?”

“Oh ummmmm” Sirius rubbed the back of his head. “I’m not really fond of snakes. Mother hates when ummm Fidèlami looks like this, but she isn’t here so…” Sirius trailed off unsure what to say.

“No problem. I hate snaked too” James said scrunching his nose. “Anyway let’s find a car no point hanging around in the hallway”

Sirius followed James back into the very last cart and they searched for an empty car. They were all full except the very last one which had 4 people inside with two spare seats left. The four people inside looked about their age so James and him decided to go in.

Remus

Remus was so nervous he could barely hear to train whistle blow from the platform. He only got on just in time when his mom let him go from a big long hug and his father quickly ran him to the train to get one just in time. Once alone Remus went straight to the very back compartment. He was hoping he could stay solitary so as to not run into anyone. He had never been around any wizards, or muggle, let alone anyone his age. His parents kept him at home not only to keep him safe and secret, but also for the safety of others.

Remus understood why they did it. He was dangerous. Remus was a werewolf, and if anyone found out he would be in big trouble. Not only could he hurt someone if he got loose on a full moon, but the ministry would also take him away from his family to love under more ‘secure’ conditions. Remus didn’t know what these conditions were, but he really didn’t want to find out. The only thing worse than being taken away to a more ‘secure’ place would be if he accidentally hurt someone during the full moon. Then he would be ‘put down’, at least that’s what the ministry called it. So, Remus made the decision to take his father’s advice and stay away from others, and not get too close to anyone. If someone figured out what he was they would tell someone, then he would be in a lot of trouble, and Professor Dumbledore would get into trouble as well.

Remus never thought he would be able to attend Hogwarts. And if it wasn’t for Dumbledore he wouldn’t. He remembered when Dumbledore came to his house to give him his letter. His parents were so scared, they were especially scared when they found out Dumbledore knew what he was. But it turned out Dumbledore didn’t care. He offered Remus a place in his school for magic and reassure both him and his parents Remus would be safe. He would have a safe place to transform, a hospital to spend his days in after transforming and a matron to help heal him. It seemed too good to be true, yet here he was on his way to school. Remus really didn’t want to mess this up.

He sat by himself with Ileuad with daemon in his lap, gently petting her as he read his copy of Hogwarts: A History. She was currently in her Cotton Tail Rabbit form, which she stayed in most of the time. Having her close and warm against him helped calm his nerves. Ileuad was usually a quiet daemon, but today she was eerily quiet. Remus though this probably had to do with the fact they were both very scared for what lied ahead. So to calm his nerves he pulled out a book and began to read occasionally reading out cool facts to her. She simply nodded and nuzzled in closer to his chest.

Unfortunately shortly after he settled in 3 people had joined the compartment. A small Red head with bright green eyes and a mourning dove daemon on her shoulder. A think long nosed kid with dark greasy hair and tattered robes just like Remus’ with a small brown bat daemon clinging to his collar, and a bring blonde chubby boy with pink cheeks and blue eyes with a. chubby racoon daemon. They quickly introduced themselves as Lily, Severus, and Peter, and their daemons, Curant, Potio, and Aspecta, before Remus smiled and went back to his reading. However, he noticed Ileuad secretly listening to their conversation seemingly curious as Remus continued reading.

'This is fine. They mind their business ill mind mine and it’ll be perfectly ok.' Remus thought.

He just got to a chapter on the founders when the compartment door slammed open. The boy named Peter jumped at the loud crash, but Severus and Lily continued on with their heated conversation. Remus glanced over his book and the two boys took their seats and introduced themselves to Peter. The boy beside him was named James and his deer daemon was named Bahaadur. James had Messy black hair, that he kept making more messy by running his hand through it, and a mischievous smile that looked like he was ready to set something to explode. The by who sat down beside Peter also had Black hair, but his was longer and well groomed, pulled back with a black silk ribbon. His eyes were also grey not brown like James’. His name was Sirius Black, and his furry black dog daemon was named Fidèlami or Fid for short apparently They both wore expensive looking robes that weren’t Hogwarts issued meaning they were both probably from rich wizarding families. Peter eagerly started talking with them. Remus went back to his book.

He finished the chapter on the brief history of the founders and started a chapter on the magical architecture of Hogwarts.

'The grand staircase of Hogwarts contains 52 sets of moving staircases which provide access to the 13 floors of the castle. 54 sets on Wednesdays, and 50 during lunar eclipses. It is unknown who initially charmed the staircases to move of their own free will, however many historical documents rumoured is was the founder Rowena Ravenclaw who initially magicked them to life. There is currently no way to determine the pattern in which the staircases may move'. Remus read.

He was however distracted when the boy beside him suddenly seemed to shout at the greasy big nosed boy .

“Why would you want to be in Slytherin. Who wants to be a dirty great snake”

The greasy hair boy turned slowly to face James, his face was blank but his eyes seemed to fill with hate.

Ileuda discreetly nudged him to look at James who’s daemon was now the form of a lion who was posed aggressively on the set next to him staring at Severus and his daemon who’s daemon had changed into a snake now slowly circling his upper arm hissing as Snape replied back in a cold tone.

“Let me guess. You think you’ll be a Gryfindor.”

“I don’t think I know. Only brave and daring people get into Gryfindor”

“Not to mention stupid and foolhardy” Severus said with a sneer.

James stood up so quickly Remus almost dropped his book to wrap his arms around Ileuda. But Sirius stood up too and put his hand on James’s chest.

“He’s not worth it. Plus if yu hit him your fist would just get covered in grease” Sirius said pushing James back a little. But Remus noticed that although Sirius’ voice was talking James down his Daemon’s hair was standing on end and he was growling and baring his teeth at Severus.

“Leave Severus alone you prats” The girl named Lily said standing up.

“Oooooh getting your girlfriend to defend you Snivellous” Sirius taunted.

Lilt ignored this and grabbed Severus’ hand. “Come on, let’s find another compartment. Maybe one with better smelling people in it” And she pulled Severus out of the compartment after her.

Once gone both James and Sirius sat back down. James huffed out seemingly irritated and Sirius laughed a bit like a mad man. Soon the car fell silent again.

After a few second Peter broke the silence.

“So we know what house James want to get into. What about you Sirius?”