#fiolev

[kittensartswriting]

OCs As Animals Tag

Thank you for tagging me @mariahwritesstuff! This is such a fun tag game. I've done similar of these years ago for the MCs of BCC but (from what I remember) most of my answers will be different as the characters have changed somewhat from that time.

I'll tag: @kainablue @dotr-rose-love @sam-glade @elshells @writer-artemis @writernopal @oh-no-another-idea

Faerathos - Owl

Owls being symbols of scholarship and intelligence, fits Faerathos well, who is a scholar and very intelligent. Owls are also really good at what they do (hunting), and similarly he's good at very specific thing (not hunting or fighting in general), but kinda dumb outside it and lacks a lot of basic practical skills. He's a very high int low wis type of character.

Cassia - Snow leopard

Other leopards and closely related big cats would fit Cassia too, but I choose snow leopard, since her companion and helper animal (for witch purposes) is a saber-tooth snow leopard (a thing their world has). She's a lone predator, who stalks her pray. She does acrobatics as an opera performer (their opera is a little different), and moves quietly with ease. She also can do the maiming beside the stalking too. She looks much softer and cuddlier than she is. But big cats are still just cats, which fits her too. She's very picky about the people she likes and how she receives affection, and if her boundaries is crossed she will (metaphorically) scratch and bite. She enjoys solitude and alone time, but when she's in the mood she likes company as well. One of the best ways to be with people in her opinion is to sit in same space in silence. She likes to sleep in small spaces.

Valeri - Dog

Valeri is definitely a dog, specifically a big dog. He's very loyal, very helpful to the people he loves, smart in a practical way (and in other ways kinda dumb), bad at lying, good in teams, ferocious when needed and protective. Like dogs typically he wants to please others and likes physical affection from people he trusts. Though he's the kind of dog, whose been traumatized, so suspicious of strangers, kinda grumpy, gets stressed around too many people, bites (metaphorically in his case) when stressed and reacts badly when touched wrong or by wrong people.

Fiolev - Cat

Cats are small predators, so they seek prey but they also have to avoid bigger predators, and that fits Fiolev perfectly. His prey is the money of gullible rich people, but also there's worse, more dangerous criminals and whole imperial army preying on him. So he has to look over his shoulder, move quietly and unnoticed. Cats teeth and claws are sharp and they can do surprising amount of damage, but they not really very dangerous. and he's the same (metaphorically). He's quick witted and quick in his movements. He can be so smart and so dumb at the same time. He's the type of cat who goes to check out new people, get their scratches and meows at them, but is not to be picked up by strangers, basically he's friendly but you have to win his trust to get his whole affection. He can also be purposefully annoying, when he demands attention. And like cats he's a little goofy guy, he's funny, and not as graceful as he'd like you to believe.

[kittensartswriting]

15 Questions Tag

Thank you for tagging me @andromeda-grace!

I'll tag @dotr-rose-love @kainablue @rustywritessometimes @mariahwritesstuff @oh-no-another-idea @faelanvance @aquadestinyswriting @westywrites

So this is that one originally personal tag game, but people started answering it as their characters. I couldn't decide which of my MCs from BCC I'd answer this with, so I thought it might be fun to imagine them all being interviewed together. This is not a realistic scenario because during the first book they are all separated (and I answered this as if they're about 1/3 to the first book, where I'm roughly at writing wise), but it was still fun to imagine :D

1. Are you named after anyone?

Faerathos: "I can go first. Oldest sons in our house have been named Faerathos for a long time. In ancient times the name was Faerían, Faerathos being Angusianized version. Our father wasn't the eldest brother, his brother, the previous Faerathos, died before we were born so in a way I was mostly named after him."

Cassia: "My name also runs in the family, given to oldest daughters. Our aunt, from father's side, was also a Cassia."

Valeri: "My name is from our mother's family. I think her uncle was a Valeri?"

Fiolev: "I named myself after my cat." *everyone turns to him in disbelief including Valeri who thought he knew the story behind the name* "Well, that's the truth! There was some ancient legendary Cerfí warrior named Fiolev and I remembered Valeri telling me the name meant a white mountain cat. So when I had to give myself a name, I had just befriended this homeless white kitten and I named myself basically white cat. Though mountain cats are a tiny bit bigger than my cat."

2. When was the last time you cried?

Cassia: "When I was 19."

Valeri: "7 years ago? I don't believe that."

Cassia: "I'm sorry, if that makes you feel bad that you cry all the time, but I have done the work to destroy my ability to express emotions, so I can't cry anymore, even if I wanted to."

Valeri: "I don't cry all the time."

Cassia: "Well, tell us then the last time you cried?"

Valeri: "... Last week."

Faerathos: "I think I last cried three weeks ago during my monthly mental breakdown."

Fiolev: "My memory is pretty bad, so I'm not fully sure, but I think it was month ago, when Valeri left to his mission."

Valeri: "I'm sorry..."

3. Do you have any kids?

Cassia: "No and I mean to keep it that way."

Valeri: "No, but I'd like to have one day, if ever my life stops being a constant battle for survival."

Fiolev: "Yeah, no, that sounds like a nightmare. But I want Valeri to have so I can be the cool uncle who teaches them all the bad words."

*After a silence everyone turns to Faerathos.*

Faerathos: "Can I go with I'm not sure? Probably not?"

Valeri: "What the fuck does that mean?"

Faerathos: "There is a non-zero change that the empress is not in fact pregnant with a legitimate imperial heir, but my child so... We don't have to get too deep into that."

Cassia: "It was literally this type of scenario our whole clan got murdered over!"

Faerathos: "... I'm sorry?"

4. Do you use sarcasm?

Fiolev: "I'm fluent in it yes."

Cassia: "Do I look like the type of person, who would do something like that? she said sarcastically."

Faerathos: "Sure, sometimes when annoyed."

Valeri: "I'm not very good with words, but contrary to the popular belief I have a sense of humor too, so occasionally yes."

5. What's the first thing you notice about people?

Faerathos: "The way they dress. It's pretty noticeable from far away."

Cassia: "The way people move and hold themselves."

Valeri: "I agree with Cassia."

Fiolew: "I will answer truthfully only, if everyone promises to have no follow up questions." *looks at the others till they all nod* "I first notice where people are holding their money."

6. What's your eye color?

Fiolev: "Gray."

Faerathos: "Also gray."

Valeri: "Light blue."

Cassia: "Even lighter blue."

7. Scary movies stories or happy endings?

Fiolev: "I love scary stories."

Cassia: "I agree. The more gruesome the better."

Faerathos: "I'm not that interested in scary stories, but happy endings do often ring hollow to me, so I think I'll choose scary stories."

Valeri: "I'm the only one who prefers happy endings?"

8. Any special talents?

Cassia: "I'm quite good at singing really low notes. I can do acrobatics and my specialty is sword dance where I balance with three swords. I'm also very good at disguising myself with transformation magic as people I have killed by using their skin and bones."

Faerathos: "Well that escalated. Maybe we'll just breeze past that? I don't have a lot of special talents. I guess I'm good at math, but that's not very special. Though I can research at the library for hours without breaks if that counts?"

Fiolev: "I'm very good at taking... let's say objects from other people's pockets without them noticing. I'm also quite good at... let's say convincing people of not exactly true things. I also do an excellent impression of a very naive and impressionable noble girl in distress. A totally innocent skill that could have no implications of criminal behavior."

Cassia: "We all believe you, love."

Valeri: "I don't have any very special talents. I'm pretty good at disarming people, shooting and parrying on horseback, surviving in wilderness and I guess taking a beating."

9. Where were you born?

Faerathos: "We were all born in Abhlean, the capital of Cabalusia, in literally the same room."

10. What are your hobbies?

Faerathos: "Playing piano, reading, gambling and swords-fighting, but that last one I do only because Marcus forces me to."

Cassia: "Opera could be characterized as my third job and not a hobby, so I'll go with... industrial sabotage."

Valeri: "You're not going to elaborate on that, are you?"

Cassia: "Nope."

Valeri: "Okay then. I also play piano and I play violin, both of which I'm pretty rusty at."

Fiolev: "I feed the local homeless animals and take care of them generally."

11. Have you any pets?

Fiolev: "As I mentioned earlier, I have a cat. Her name is Snow, because she's white and I named her when I was five. She's great, though getting elderly."

Valeri: "I have two dogs, Cúén and Faéndie, both Cabalusian bear dogs. They are trained as war dogs, but they are family and I keep them with me at home."

Fearathos: "I don't have a pet."

Cassia: "I have technically a crow. It's not my pet though, it would probably eat me in my sleep if I called it my pet. Yeah... it's not really a crow. It's name is Fianne. I have an actual animal companion too, my little baby saber-tooth snow leopard, Ciri. She's not actually little."

12. What sports do you play/have played?

Faerathos: "Hunting, which I don't get opportunities to do as a hostage in the court, Cabalusian horse-racing, which every Cabalusian noble kid has to do, but I didn't really enjoy, and now I'm still forced to do swords-fighting."

Cassia: "I also did Cabalusian horse-racing, which I did like, and hunting, but I haven't done them as a hobby since, you know, the civil war. I have hunted for survival though."

Valeri: "I also did the same sports before civil war, though I was too young to be taken to the hunts and I did horse polo. I don't play sports anymore, as a cavalry officer I do swords-fighting and horseriding a lot, but for war purposes. And I've hunted for survival."

Fiolev: "I was too young to play any sports before the civil war, and when I grew up we were poor and sports really are a rich people thing. I have played whatever ball games poor kids play on the plazas, but I don't think they count here."

13. How tall are you?

Faerathos: "195 cm."

Fiolev: "175 cm."

Cassia: "186 cm."

Valeri: "What? You're also taller than me?"

Cassia: "How tall are you then?"

Valeri: "185 cm."

Cassia: "Ha!"

14. Favorite subject in school?

Fiolev: "History."

Cassia: "Biology."

Valeri: "It would be either music or history."

Faerathos: "Physics, which is why I'm still studying it. It hits the right spot of 'I'm good at it so I don't get too frustrated' and 'it's hard so it's interesting'."

15. Dream job?

Fiolev: "Hmm I don't know. What profession makes you rich? Probably depends on that. Alternatively I would love to just take care of all the strays in the city, if someone rich would suddenly get a strong desire to pay someone for that."

Faerathos: "I'm pretty happy with my job as a physicist, but even more than that I would want to be a senator. I can't of course because of the whole hostage situation, but I want to be in a position where I can actually change things."

Cassia: "Dream job? I have never thought about that. Before civil war I was a noble girl and nobles don't have jobs, so I didn't dream of having one. And now I have more important things to do than thinking what I'd want to do for a profession. Though I will say, I have always enjoyed opera, and now that I'm actually an opera performer, I do like it, even if it's just an means to an end, like my other professions. So if I have to pick one, that might be it."

Valeri: "I wanted to be a soldier as a child, but I ended up being one in the least desirable way possible. I don't think I'd call it my dream job anymore. I don't know what I'd call my dream job."

[kittensartswriting]

For the ask game! 🎃🍎

Thank you for the ask!!

🎃 pumpkin: do you have any favorite brainstorming techniques? how do you like to gather ideas for your wip?

The idea part is usually easy for me, so I don't exactly do brainstorming. I go to look for inspiration to Pinterest and by researching. Reading about history, geography, sociology, psychology and mythology often act as very strong inspiration fuels. When I have head full off ideas, I vomit them into a doc, and usually it prompts me to come up with more details to the ideas and expand the ideas. I usually let it marinate pretty passively for at least couple of months, just writing down more ideas as I come up with them. When I feel like I have some basis of a story and a direction for it I start doing more focused worldbuilding, character development and plotting.

🍎 apple: let’s talk about friendship in your wip. do you have any favorite friend/platonic dynamics? any friendships gone sour?

One of my favorite friendships in BCC, which I haven't talked about much before, is between Fiolev and Cateline. They befriended when they were homeless children both around 6 yos and fell under influence of Vauquelin, an older homeless kid, who was a leader of a child gang. For a while Cateline was like a sister to Fiolev and his older brother Valeri, but she was devoted to Vauquelin, who had saved her. So when Valeri got into a massive falling out with Vauquelin and his gang over their brutal punishment for Fiolev, Cateline sided with Vauquelin. Valeri and Fiolev became enemies of the gang, which ended Fiolev's friendship with Cateline. Soon after that Valeri was forced into the army, which meant that he along with Fiolev got to leave the city ghetto and got some actual housing away from the gang.

For some years Fiolev didn't have contact with the gang, since when they became proper adult criminal organization, they got in conflict with the city watch and had to leave. They come in contact again at the beginning of the story as Vauquelin's gang returns and Fiolev has become a scam artist on his own right. Fiolev falls quickly back under Vauquelin's influence, who is as manipulative and abusive as ever. Cateline has become very hardened and Vauquelin's trusted assassin, but she slowly warms back up to Fiolev, who actually cares about her, unlike Vauquelin whose affection is always conditional. Fiolev realises fairly quickly (in like one book) that Vauquelin is abusive, since he has experienced actual unconditional care and protection from Valeri, but Vauquelin has been Cateline's whole world for many years at that point. Fiolev desperately wants to save Cateline, but even as she's abused by Vauquelin, at least he never left her, like she feels Fiolev (and Valeri) did.

[kittensartswriting]

Bear Castle Chronicles - Reintroduction

11th of the 3rd month, year 495 of the Fourth Age Imperial forces took the castle. The five centuries of Mantgamia's rule is over.

BASIC INFO

STATUS | re-outlining | FORMAT | trilogy | POV | multiple 3rd person limited | TENSE | past | GENRE | high/epic fantasy, dark fantasy, horror elements, mystery elements | AUDIENCE | adult | LANGUAGE WRITTEN IN | zero draft Finnish, 1st draft English

CONTENT WARNING | graphic violence | war | child abuse mentioned | torture | psychological horror | toxic relationships | drug and alcohol abuse | mental illness | sex | suicidal ideation | tba

INTRO

In the militaristic Angusian Empire only the clergy is allowed to use magic, which is seen as dangerous and terrifying by most. Magic has it's own will and while it can be helpful, other times it can be vindictive, malicious and unpredictable. There are also some terrifying great powers, like dragons, that most think are better left untouched and undisturbed. This is one of the things that has caused friction and an endless string of wars between the Empire and it's northern neighbor Dir'ahin, where magic is freely practiced. Dir'ahin has kept it's independence from the expansionist empire with it's advanced magic, but as Angusian Empire rapidly industrializes, a new decisive war of conquest looms ahead.

The Bear, the guardian of the Bear Castle, is ancient and forgotten magic. 14 years ago it watched as it's people were massacred by Imperial forces in a bloody civil war. It followed the four heirs of the castle as they grew up scattered in distant places. One of them in the imperial court, one of them in the northern occupied border, and two of them in a southern metropolis. Now the Bear watches as it's children struggle to find their way back to it.

FAERATHOS, THE OLDEST | While Faerathos has been hostage at the court, he has not been idle. He's physicist, researching electromagnetism, and he is still trying to understand why did the Cabalusian civil war happen and unearth the mysteries of the court.

CASSIA, THE SECOND OLDEST | Cassia has committed on getting vengeance on the Imperial family and the Angusian Empire as a whole by any means necessary. To work towards her goal, she is aiding Dir'ahin by spying for them on an occupied area.

VALERI, THE SECOND YOUNGEST | Valeri joined the ranks of the Imperial army with a false identity against his will, to protect Fiolew and provide for him. He becomes quite successful as a cavalry officer, but when he is reunited with his uncle, who is allied with another enemy, Manoa, he becomes an uneasy spy for them.

FIOLEV, THE YOUNGEST | Fiolev is not the innocent younger sibling Valeri thinks he is, but rather a quite successful and infamous con artist and thief. He steals magical amulet, accidentally releases a demon upon himself and gets entangled with a dangerous gang of criminals, who are involved with the Cabalusian separatists.

LINKS

CAST | Quick intro to the main cast | Faerathos

WORLDBUILDING | Maps

ART | Main siblings

SCENE EXCERPTS | Julius x Marcus kiss scene - Prequel | Julius visits graves - Prologue | Faerathos comforts Marcus | Valeri x Agrippa fluff

TAGS | #bear castle chronicles | #bcc | #bcc art | #bcc aesthetics | #bcc excerpt | #bcc worldbuilding | #faerathos | #cassia | #valeri | #fiolew

Brief intro to the main cast and the tag list under the cut! I'll keep the tag list here updated.

CHARACTERS

Faerathos cor Mantgamia | 27 | he/him | intelligent but lacks practical skills | depressed | a little pretentious | dry humor | empathetic

Cassia cor Mantgamia | 26 | she/her | cold rage | detached | calculative | cares deeply but would not admit it | amoral

Valeri cor Mantgamia | 24 | he/him | very competent soldier | practical | stoic exterior but highly emotional interior | lacks emotional regulation | anxious

Fiolev cor Mantgamia | 18 | he/they | smart and quick thinker | compulsive liar | easy going | opportunist | attachment issues

Agrippa noé Moireau / Gal'eivil Daughter of Moon | 21 | she/her | Ahinian princess | political tool | possesses destructive magic | painter | naive

Marcus K'irhinzaham | 49 | he/him | Faerathos' bodyguard | greatest swordsman of their time | prickly | one-eyed | emotionally distant

Julie noé Moireau | 31 | she/her | Cassia's target | celebrity opera singer | lesbian casanova | hedonist | unmatched duelist

Cúén "Fechín" cor Faélci | 22 | he/him | Valeri's rival in the army | Cabalusian nobility | spy for the Cabalusian separatists | brooding | great with words and insults

Gid'alon Child of Stars | 45 | they/she/any | Agrippa's tutor | the one who Fiolew steals the amulet from | scholar of spirit realm | reserved | endless thirst for knowledge

Fianne | ??? | they/it | Cassia's talking crow | really a malicious forest demon bound to a crow | ate Cassia's twin sister | snarky | inhuman

Cateline | 19 | she/her | Fiolew's childhood friend | assassin for a criminal organization | mute | lacks empathy | protective

Vauquelin | 27 | he/him | leader of the gang Cateline's in and Fiolew get's involved with | opportunist | power hungry | controlling | soft-spoken

Verginia Emerentius | 59 | she/her | empress mother | probably behind the Cabalusian civil war | cult-like following | controlling | savior

Lucretius Emerentius | 37 | he/him | brother of late emperor | current duke of Cabalusia and the lord of Bear Castle | ruthless | ambitious | manipulative

Augustus III Emerentius | 29 | he/him | emperor | puppet ruler | Farathos' friend | not interested in being the emperor | a bit of playboy

Eirdene “Erene” Sarantachaizak | 26 | she/her | empress | unhappy marriage | toxic affair with Faerathos | manipulative | perfectionist

Alexis noé Moireau | 53 | he/him | duke and general of Virén | Agrippa's adoptive and doting father | master strategist | gambler | easy to like

Ignatus cor Mantgamia | 50 | he/him | uncle of the siblings | wife and kids died in Cabalusian civil war | severe | ambitious | vengeful

Mánoheahpi Son of Moon | 28 | he/him | Agrippa's brother | powerful priest | plots to take power | reserved | visionary

TAG LIST

@siarven @worldbuildng @emilyoracle @frvnwrites @kainablue @writingrosesonneptune @contes-de-rheio @faelanvance @outpost51 @dotr-rose-love

[kittensartswriting]

Bear Castle Chronicles 2.0

(actually there has been at least 4 different versions but let's not go there...)

I have officially un-shelved BCC (reintro here) after almost 2 years of hiatus. At the time I was very frustrated with it and felt like I didn't know anymore what I wanted and what was it's point. Now I have rediscovered a passion for it. With more distance to the story, I can more easily see the darlings that need to be killed and where I want to take this story. I will be rewriting some of the worldbuilding and restructuring the plot. Hopefully I get back to drafting it soon.

I drew some of the most central characters as I was thinking about the fashion. There's no big departures from my previous ideas, but I have much clearer image about the fashion in my mind now, so mission succeeded. I will use this as an opportunity to do a little re-intro to the characters. There is some changes to them, some older (which I never publicly introduced) some I have done since I un-shelved this WIP.

Valeri cor Mantgamia (left)

he/him

Second youngest main sibling (25)

Accidentally becomes a spy but oops is the worst liar on the planet

Biromantic demisexual

Is in cavalry and there has all the homoromantic tension a man could ask for but is unfortunately the most repressed man

Is in for an existential crisis and unreasonable amounts of maiming (because he's my poor little meow meow)

Fiolev cor Mantgamia (right)

he/they

Youngest main sibling (19)

So in a much earlier iteration of the story he was a girl, but the character wasn't working out and I kinda made a whole different character, a boy, but I've still struggled figuring him out. You could say I transed his gender, so now he is transmasc

Valeri made him dress as a boy when they were kids and homeless, and while he doesn't see himself as a boy, he definitely doesn't see himself as a girl either and rather presents as a boy

Uses his ability to turn into a girl to con people though

Accidentally cons his way to being possessed by a demon and being part of a plot to start a civil war

Aroace

Faerathos cor Mantgamia (bottom)

he/him

Oldest main sibling (28)

He was supposed to be the one tragically cishet sibling... They were all cishet at first....

He is bi of course he is bi I'm incapable of not making my characters bi

Accidentally commits high treason by (accidentally of course) having an affair with the empress

Also commits high bi disaster by accidentally having a thing with the emperor too, his long time homoerotic friend

Agrippa noé Moireau (top left)

she/her

Tragically straight

Groomed to be The Long Lost Rightful Heir and The Chosen One

Is actually a tool of imperial control

Valeri's love interest

Cassia cor Mantgamia (top right)

she/her

Second oldest main sibling (27)

Plotting murder literally every waking moment

Spying for the enemy with the goal of overthrowing the government and murdering the imperial family

Targets Julie, who is partroned by an imperial prince, but accidentally catches feelings but oops she is bad at feelings (the whole family is very accident-prone)

Collected on the outside, disaster bi on the inside

Julie noé Maupin (bottom left)

she/her

Opera singer master duelist lesbian casanova occasional novelist

Has a dark secret

Does NOT want to get involved with any political shenanigas (gets involved with political shenanigans)

Cateline (bottom right)

she/her

Assassin to a criminal organization Fiolew gets entangled with

One-sidedly in love with their leader who has ambitions of power

Mute and communicates with writing

Bi

Marcus K'irhinzaham (left)

he/him

The commander of Mantgamia house guard, which now only consists of him, and (according to popular (and his) knowledge) Faerathos is the only one left to guard anyway

Widely recognized as the greatest swordsman of his time

Short king (169 cm)

Bi

Cúén "Fechín" cor Faélci (right)

he/him

Previously named Conan cor Faélin, the last name changed a bit because I did some changes to his language and his first name didn't really fit the language either

Known in the army as Fechín, because he is imposing as his dead cousin to spy for the Cabalusian independence army

Gay trans man (which makes his cover solid, people think there's only daughter his age in his aristocratic family)

An asshole especially to Valeri but oops they have to secretly work together now

Gid'alon Child of Stars (bottom)

they/any

Vašáin, Ahinian third gender, in their case it means they are intersex and non-binary

In exile after doing a little bit of heresy

Just wants to do their research on the spiritrealm but oops one of the demons they studied possessed Fiolew

It's been such a long time since I used the tag list, so if you were tagged, let me know if you want to be continued to be tagged and I'll add you to the new tag list! If you weren't tagged, but would liked to be in future, also let me know! Tag list under the cut.

bcc tag list: @lady-redshield-writes @worldbuildng @siarven @hell-yeah-fantasy @heniareth @wilde-writing @contes-de-rheio @kainablue @lillayalightfoot @teacupwriter @sancta-seraphina @writingnosefreak @dotr-rose-love @writingwithhotchocolate @dove-actually @kathritana @ettawritesnstudies @the-ichor-of-ruination

(I forgot to add the taglist at first, I hope it still works even if I edited it in)

[kittensartswriting]

Happy STS! Bit of a basic question, but what is your OCs' favorite smell?

Happy STS!! Thank you for the question! These are fun to think :D

Faerathos - sweet flowers in midsummer and coffee

Cassia - fresh smells, like clean winter air or mint

Valery - earthy smells, like herbs such as rosemary and thyme and air after a summer rain

Fiolev - sour smells such as those of citrus fruits

[kittensartswriting]

The Mantgamia Siblings

Faerathos, Cassia, Valeri and Fiolev, in order from oldest to youngest, who are the main characters in Bear Castle Chronicles.

Some worldbuilding notes about their outfits:

Faerathos is wearing ultramarine blue cloak of academia. It's worn by all academics, always draped and shouldn't be used with any pins to hold it. It can be used in any setting, where using a draped unpinned cloak is possible (for example not when riding or something) and is approproate for indoors use.

He is also wearing golden oak leaf corolla, which is granted to those with commendable academic achievements (basically doctorate). It's only used in formal settings (which does not fit the rest of his outfit but I wanted to draw it too see how it looks).

Sandals are the standard inside/evening shoes, but also worn outside during summer, which is what Faerathos is doing. Evening sandals would usually be fancier than basic leather sandals, and his clothes are day wear. (Which is why he shouldn't be using a corolla.)

He's not wearing his cravat properly though. Firstly he doesn't bother. Secondly he doesn't like the feeling of a cloth around his neck.

Cassia is wearing men's day wear for sapphic reasons and having her hair open, which is inappropriate with long hair regardless of gender (currently short hair is very fashionable for men and there's a short hair trend for women too), but she is inappropriate (she's a courtesan and opera performer) so it's fine. She does wear women's clothing too, when she wants.

She's wearing a black cloak as a nod to the Matgamia house guards, who wore black cloaks. But also because of the aesthetics.

Valeri is wearing a red cloak of the imperial army, which is worn outside and with the uniform.

He and Fiolew are both wearing standard middle class day wear. Though Valeri is wearing boots, usually used for traveling and riding, because he's a cavalry man and therefore rides often.

Dangly earrings are fashionable for everyone, but expensive, so often used only by upper classes. Cassia is definitely not upper class but sex work makes good money so she has nice earrings.

Diadems/headbands are also fashionable for everyone. Lower classes often wear diadems made from cloth, upper classes ones made from precious metals and gemstones. Upper classes might also wear diadems of cloth, for example in a sports context.

Tag list under the cut. Let me know if you want to be added/removed!

BCC tag list:

@siarven @worldbuildng @emilyoracle @frvnwrites @kainablue @writingrosesonneptune @contes-de-rheio @faelanvance @outpost51

[kittensartswriting]

7 Lines Tag

Thank you for tagging me @izzyspussy! Here's last (roughly) seven lines from BCC.

For context, it's from Valeri's perspective and his false last name is Iolean, real is of course Mantgamia.

On top of that, all of it, the dancing, the socialising, was to get young unmarried people, like him, married. Yet he had no intentions of doing such thing. He was able to keep up his false identity mostly by not speaking about things he had to lie about, like his background or his family, but if he were to get married... No, marrying was not an option. His only priority was to stay alive and keep Fiolev safe. Thankfully, he was not a good match. Valeri Iolean came from nothing, had no connections and a questionable background. Valeri cor Mantgamia was a traitor.

Tagging @kainablue @captain-kraken @sam-glade @wildswrites @circa-specturgia!

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WIP Drinking Game Tag

@elshells had an open tag for this one (here's the post), and it looked so much fun I decided to do it too!

I'll tag: @howl-of-the-blood @dotr-rose-love @mariahwritesstuff @dontjudgemeimawriter

Rules: Make a drinking game that could theoretically be played while reading your WIP. The game can range from leaving the reader tipsy to killing your reader with alcohol poisoning (don’t actually kill yourselves with alcohol poisoning tho).

I'm doing this with Bear Castle Chronicles. So this would be on the alcohol poisoning territory :'D don't do this at home.

Take a sip when

Cassia wants to commit murder

Valeri says "fuck"

Faerathos makes a bad decision

Fiolev lies

The Cabalusian Civil War/Siege of Bear Castle is mentioned

A spirit is being cryptic

Cúén (a dog) licks Valeri's face

Julie flirts with women

The Bear (the narrator) comments on the events

Someone does mind invasion magic

Marcus is angry at Faerathos for putting himself in danger

Something's on fire (this was on @elshells' list too and I was like, hey that happens in my WIP too lol)

Description of nature

Down the drink when

Cassia commits murder

Valeri gets injured

Someone has a mental breakdown

A character dies

Agrippa does something OP

A sentence is written in fantasy language and never really translated or fully explained

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Trick or Treat? 👻

(Event Post)

A treat for you!

Here's some picrews I made of the main siblings of the main siblings from BCC!

first one is Faerathos, the oldest sibling

second is Cassia, the second oldest, and only sister left after he twin sister died

third is Valeri, second youngest

last is Fiolev, youngest, who starts by presenting as a boy (man? feels weird calling 18 yo a man), but is non-binary and trans masc so kinda a boy but not really

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Happy STS! Inspired by my impromptu and much needed offline day, if your OCs had an unexpected day off, what would they spend it doing?

Happy STS! I hope you had a great day offline! :)

I will answer this for the BCC cast.

Faerathos would be probably drinking way too much and making some very bad decisions, probably gambling. If he wasn't allowed to dive into research (he is a scholar) or keep his hands full with the plot, he wouldn't know what to do with himself and then he might have to be alone with his thoughts and we can't have that.

Cassia would also not handle it super well. Getting her revenge is the only thing she thinks matters, so if she was suddenly denied working towards it, she would be very frustrated. She would lock herself in solitude, refuse to talk to anyone, read books and generally be depressed.

Valeri would do much better than the other two. He would go outside, either for a walk or horse ride, and take his dogs too. Maybe also polish his swords, shoes and riding gear, and also upkeep any of Fiolev's things. Generally just do as much errands as possible. His idea of day off is to keep doing useful stuff, though he might play some music, maybe even practice on violin, if there's no one listening. (He is very embarrassed of falling out of practice with violin even though he's still actually not bad at it.)

For Fiolev it depends if he would have just a day off from his apprenticeship in a bank, or if it would be also a day off from his "side hustle" (scamming and stealing). If both, he would either go chill with the local homeless cats (and other animals), give them food and take care of them, or if Valeri was present, pester him all day.

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Happy STS! Hope this week has been treating you well! <3

And sorry this ask is so late, I was catching up my own ask and tag games and lost track of time

Here’s a scenario, inspired by a cold open of Brooklyn Nine-Nine: each member of your main cast is presented with a marshmallow for the first time. My question for you is, how do they react?

Happy (late) STS! No worries at all! My week has not been the greatest. I'm sick right now :') I hope you've been having a great week though! And thank you for the very fun question!

I decided it might be fun to write their reactions like a scene :D

Valeri: *looks at the marshmallow with suspicion and disgust while squeezing it between his fingers* "What the fuck is this? It's... sticky?" Cassia: *smells it* "Smells sweet..." Faerathos: *examines it carefully from every angle* "I think it might be something edible?" Fiolev: *immediately puts it in his mouth* "Yep, definitely edible." Faerathos: "Don't just eat it! That's not how you examine an unknown object!" Valeri: "It could be poisonous!" Fiolev: *voice mumbled by the marshmallow in his mouth* "It doesn't taste poisonous. It tastes like sugar. I like it." Cassia: "Not all poisons taste bad. But I'm leaning to think this is some sort of pastry." *puts it in her mouth and immediately spits it* Valeri: *concerned* "Is it poisonous?" Cassia: "No. It's definitely pastry. The mouthfeel is just disgusting." Faerathos: "I don't know why but that's a little disappointing. I hate sweet things." Fiolev: "Can I eat yours then?" Faerathos: "Sure." Valeri: *suspiciously puts it in his mouth and slowly chews it* "It's weird."

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Happy STS! If you were to design a deck of playing cards based on characters in your WIP, who would you assign to be the King? The Queen? The Jack? The Ace? And the Joker?

Happy STS! Oh this is a fun question!! I will do this for the Bear Castle Chronicles cast.

The King - Faerathos. Mostly because he is the oldest sibling and the heir of their clan (legally not anymore heir to any land or titles because their clan was stripped of them but still). He's also the politician of the siblings and the one who grew up in court.

The Queen - Agrippa. She is literally a heir to a throne, though her title would be High Priestess, since it's a theocratic monarchy but close enough to a queen I'd say. She also grew up very privileged and sheltered in a very high status noble family.

The Jack - Valeri. I honestly don't know if this is based in any actual reality, but I've always thought of the jack as a knight/retainer. Which is why Valeri fits it as he is a soldier, generally fairly knightly person and the type of person who likes to serve.

The Ace - Cassia. Being a spy, she is very much the ace card that's pulled at the last minute out of left field. Especially out of sleeve, since she's not above of cheating or lying (is ace up in your sleeve a saying in English too? I'm not sure if this makes sense).

The Joker - Fiolev. I was considering should Fiolev and Cassia be the other way around since Fiolev is aroace, but these fit much better really. Fiolev is definitely the chaotic and trickster type of character. No one in power ever considers him as a real player or threat, but he manages to fuck shit up in ways no one would have considered even. He also does a lot of impersonating and scamming people, which fits to the way the card functions.

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Happy STS! How different are your characters now vs when you first created them? Is there anything you miss about their previous traits/personality? (Also ignore this if I already sent it to you, I have a bad memory sometimes haha)

Happy STS! And you didn't sent me this already, no worries! :D I relate to having a bad memory, I also sometimes forget to whom I've sent questions already xD

The cast of BCC has changed a lot during the almost 10 years. The whole story has changed massively too and there's very little left of the initial version of it (it wasn't even fantasy). I don't even remember much of the historical fiction version of the story or the characters there, but some of the characters that I created for the next version, the first fantasy version of the story, are still around.

Faerathos was then the only main character, but he was named Victor then. He was kinda a mix of Faerathos and Valeri now, but more Faerathos. The Faerathos back then was a soldier type (which is one of the qualities Valeri got as I created him), and much more severe type of person. Now he's still kinda angsty (actually he's more depressed and generally mentally damaged than his original version), but he's more chill, takes himself less seriously and now he's more the intellectual type than the fighter type. He also turned from repressed straight to still somewhat repressed but also slutty bisexual.

Cassia is in some ways newest addition to the main cast and has changed the least I'd say. (In the version where the MC was Victor, he had two little siblings, which were very different from what Valeri and Fiolev are now, but they did kinda develop from those characters.) She started as a very traditional femme fatale character. I'd say she still fit to the femme fatale trope in many ways, but now she's more of a futch and much more feral and angry.

I have much less to say about Valeri's and Fiolev's original version mostly because they weren't main characters and I really don't remember than much about them. But one character that has been there since the version with Victor, who has barely changed at all is Marcus. Marcus even has the same name and the same design. Even a big part of his background is the same. I have developed him further and he's much more fleshed out. But like if the only thing that is different from his original version and not like added there is that his bi and not straight.

I don't think I really miss anything about their previous versions. Like if I liked them better in their previous versions I guessed I'd just change them back.

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Happy STS!!! What would be your characters choice of weapon if they had one?

Happy STS! Thank you for the question! I'll answer with Bear Castle Chronicles cast.

Faerathos - Scimitar, it's the only weapon he can use well, since Marcus has forced him to learn swordplay, specifically in the style that's suitable for a scimitar.

Cassia - Short sword. She's pretty good with a wide variety of weapons, but she likes a short sword most as it can be used in situations where an actual sword is needed and in situations where a dagger is better. She likes a quick, easily hidden and easily pulled out weapon.

Valeri - Rifle with a bayonet. He's best with a long sword, but if he had to choose only one weapon he'd choose a rifle with a bayonet because it would be most widely usable and practical in many situations.

Fiolev - Knife. He's not very good at fighting, but he knows how to use a knife, so if he had to have a weaped he'd choose it to use as last resort defense.

Marcus - Scimitar. He is the greatest swordsman in the empire so an easy choice.

Julie - Saber. She is a duelist, and extremely good at it, and not that good with other weapons.

Faélci - Rifle. He's very good at sharpshooting and only okay with a sword, so he rather relies on a rifle.

Cateline - Saber. She's an assassin and while she uses pistols and daggers too, saber is her default weapon of choice.

Gid - Pistol. She is in no way athletic or a fighter, so she'd use a fire arm, and of those something small and easy to handle.

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Happy STS! I hope you’ve had a good week :) your OCs are forced to spend the night in a haunted house, how does that go? Does anyone try to take charge? Who is the most scared?

Happy STS! Thank you, it's been a good one! I hope you had a great week too :)

This is a very fun question!! I'll answer with the main siblings from BCC.

Cassia would take charge as she is most experienced with magic (their magic system is based on spirits so it's very useful here) and very knowledgeable about dealing with ghosts and malicious spirits in particular.

Fiolev has unusually strong connection with spirits and has interacted with them since he was a child, so he's not really much afraid either. Everyone thinks it's very weird he can just interact with the ghosts without going to a trance, which he also finds weird because he didn't know it wasn't normal.

Valeri dissociates the whole time, since he was tortured as a prisoner of war by being isolated with malicious ghosts. So we could say he would definitely be the one most afraid though he would not admit it.

Faerathos would also be pretty afraid. He's a very intellectual and scientific person and he's afraid by things that don't follow the laws of physics, that he can't calculate, and are therefore out the realm of his understanding (he is a physicist). He would try to make Cassia explain spirits to him the whole time though, which would make her pretty annoyed.

They would be totally fine there (except maybe Valeri's psyche), since Cassia and Fiolev both could easily find out what the ghosts want and how to not piss them off. And even in a worst case scenario where there's a malicious spirit/demon that could actually harm them, Cassia could exorcise it, trap it into an artifact or let Fianne (her companion who is itself a malicious forest spirit possessing a crow) eat it, if it wasn't too powerful.