#even tho ireland doesn't exist in his world

[mika-writing]

Character discussion: Cain

So I can't remember if I've mentioned Cain yet, but he's one of my OCs in my Mika x Takeo world who tends to follow them into most AUs. When he's around, they're an ot3. They are all dating each other.

Cain originally showed up in the urban fantasy AU where Mika was a Siren and Takeo a demon (tho sometimes its classic werewolf and vampire instead).

In above AU, Cain is a fae changeling. The ones that are swapped as babies with human children from European folklore, specifically Irish in his case. He doesn't know this. His original name was Cian, but he was adopted and moved out of Ireland (my story is generally set in a vague approximation of what I imagine the USA is like from reading fanfics) and his name got changed to Cain in the process.

How he meets Mika and Takeo very much depends on the AU, but as a general rule he comes along after they're an established couple, and it a few years younger than them.

Cain's relationship with the other 2 is interesting and very different to that between Mika & Tak. Its not that he's any less loyal or ride-or-die or anything, but its slightly more childish and fickle. Cain has a 'free-bird-that-always-has-a-home' style of relationship. While M & T would get anxious if they were apart for too long, Cain would get restless if he stuck around too long. So he's constantly in their orbit, always coming back, loves them nearly obsessively - but he will also randomly disappear for weeks or months at a time.

Personality wise, Cain generally comes across as bubbly, extraverted, and kind, if a little bit over-the-top and ditzy. He feels like a friendly jock - he's tall, athletic (not big, but lean muscle), and attractive. And this doesn't even waver much when he's with Mika & Takeo, even in some of the more seedy places they go to. But this in itself is a bit of a hint to his underlying darkness; because to see this young, dumb, handsome jock giggling and bouncing around and fawning over his boyfriend who has just shot someone and is watching them bleed out on the floor is JARRING. It's like he doesn't even see it. Because Cain isn't less morally grey than the other 2. In fact, its up for debate which is more 'evil' - the one who enjoys killing, or the one who kills like he's just thrown something in the trash, with such complete apathy that its like he never saw them as alive in the first place.

Because that's Cain's true personality. The people that he loves exist, of course. Mika and Takeo and anyone else that count as their family. But he is completely devoid of empathy for anyone else. He interacts with them. He might have 'friends' or associates from a 'normal' world (e.g. uni friends, or allies), but he doesn't actually care about them. It's just a way to beat boredom for him.

His relationship with the older boys (Mika & Takeo) is slightly obsessive on his part. While the other 2 are basically equals and stand level with one another, Cain tends to look up to and idolise them. He's never the one 'in charge' and that suits him just fine. They absolutely spoil him though, and there's a sense of power in that - he could get away with basically anything. In kink terms, he's a sub through and through, and it probably borders on Little to an extent.

Anyway, I could talk forever about Cain but I'll stop here. Feel free to ask questions about him, or the other 2. Or give me prompts about any of them.

[bardic-tales]

Heart of the Horseman ● Gothic Romance ● Third Person Limited

Summary: The Proto-Celtic god of death, Donn, tasks his best Dullahan to capture a woman he wishes to wed. This woman is the goddess The Morrigu. What Donn doesn't know is that she is bound to the Dullahan who pursues her.

NaNo Page ● Pinterest ● Spotify Playlist

Setting: 18th century Ireland.

Aesthetics: Red wine. Graveyards. Ravens. Bones. Dead roses. night time. gardens. Samhain

Elements: Life and Death. Good vs. Evil. Love. The Distressed Heroine. The Byronic Hero. Intense Emotions. Supernatural Elements. Power and constraint. Dark atmosphere. Dark fantasy. Romance. Banshees. Mermaids. The Fair Folk. The Undead. Death and the Maiden.

Protagonist(s). Antagonist.

Celeste Jolie Delphine de Lebelle: The reincarnated Morrigan. Disgraced French noble. Lost her father and brother during the Women's March and her mother and sister as they escapged France. Beautiful and terrible.

Donn: God of Death. He coveted The Morrigan before she wed the Dadga. Wishes to rule the Fairy Host and knows that with the Phantom Queen's prophecies he can usurp the Fairy King and Queen.

Kian Patrick Culligan: One of Four Dullahan. He represents the horseman Death. during 1736 BC, he and the Morrigu kill each other and, through death, become anam cara. He was murdered in the Colonies and raised by Donn, becoming Donn's best Dullahan.

Supporting Characters

Aodhan: Celeste's Irish draught. Celeste purchased Aodhan with the last of her family's fortune, making her live off the land as a peasant. Aodhan is both a reminder of what she overcame and a bitter memory of her family's wealth.

Aithne: After Kian died and was brought back to life, Aithne loved him as a lover, but she is one of Donn's favorite merrows. She is depicted as having jet black hair and a black finned tail.

Ciaran Llwewllynw: He is a Protestant landowner's son. Ciaran is smitten with Celeste. He is a painful reminder of her lavish lifestyle in France.

Claud: Celeste's loyal hound. He is an Irish Wolfhound and her constant companion.

Cuirealan: Kian's steed. He is really a pooka who advises Kian and antagonizes Celeste when she is captured.

Magic does exist in Heart of the Horseman. It is not like Harry Potter where it is said by spells or learned.

Only the Fairy Host and the Tuatha Dé Danann have access to any magic. It is defined as mystical, paranormal, or even supernatural in nature.

In Heart of the Horseman, there is an unseen world where creatures such as the Faery host dwell. Prophecy is well documented in Heart of the Horseman. The Lebelle family had visions that a goddess would be born into their family.

Actual magic is rarely seen in the “modern” world. The “fair folk” and the fairy host are able to conjure fire, create light to dispel darkness, read “minds and memory”, able to communicate telepathically, and command nature.

All fair folk are immortal. They can die, but they are reincarnate with their memories intact. The high-born have the ability to see the fairy host and are considered to be more powerful than the lowborn. The Morrigan is one of the most powerful high-born.

Some fair folk and members of the Fairy Host have anthropomorphism. The Morrigan is able to transform into several animals: including a heifer and a black wolf.

If everyone in the world were able to use magic, there would be no witch trials or belief that a woman would exchange her soul for Satan’s assistance and to employ demons to accomplish magical deeds.

If Celeste was able to use magic from the start, she would have had a better chance of escaping the Dullahan. It would change the plot from Kian trying to pursue her.

❗ Limits

Magic cannot burn snow or other unnatural effects. It can burn natural things.

It is extremely difficult to communicate over long distance. Once Celeste realizes who she is, she will tell Kain through telepathy that it could even be impossible without the scrying pools that the Fair Ones created.

The effects of magic can always be felt by those sensitive to it. These people who are sensitive have been called many things: mediums, psychics, and mystics.

Shapeshifting was extremely rare. Even the most powerful Fair Folks still have difficulties in changing their physical shape. The Morrigan is one of the only ones who are known to have mastered it. Donn is another.