#hunter mercedes lackey

[sannahofskva]

Shepherd’s Train

Description

Joy’s first time meeting the Lavender Folk, from his perspective.

Extra

I don’t own the Hunter series. Mercedes Lackey does.

This fic is also on AO3. Maybe check it out there.

The train slows to a stop several yards away, the smoke that had filled clearing up. The Drakken that had joined him is long gone, having bolted out of the cage seconds before the multitude of missiles collided with his shield. Unlike him, the beast didn’t believe that it or its shield would survive the heat and damage from the attack.

Soon enough, one of the humans at the front makes their way out of the train, climbing down the side. Magic comes off of them in waves, and his suspicions of them being a Hunter are shown to be true when a pack of Hounds burst out of a Portal and land by their side. The noise that the creatures make normally would’ve been deafening if he hadn’t had his shield quieting sound.

Torcion watches the Hunter walk towards him, the train slowly following behind them. During the wait, he studies them and their Hounds. Unlike those that he has seen in the largest city, this Hunter’s dress isn’t as… flashy in terms of human wear. It’s more muted and worn, like those who live in smaller towns and cities. And even stranger, the Hounds that walk beside them are something he’s never seen before. They come in an array of colors and sizes, looking less like the Hounds he’s familiar with and more like an eyesore-given life. The largest growls at him, and he raises an eyebrow at the thing.

The Hunter stops not too far from him, eyes looking him up and down in silence. They don’t say a thing, simply meeting Torcion’s eyes with a blank look. He watches them in turn, the rumbling of the train and the huffs of the Hounds the only thing he can hear.

“I see you, Hunter.” Torcion starts with, an idea forming in his mind. This Hunter isn’t like the rest.

“I see you, Magician.” The response came after a heartbeat, a sharp bite to the Hunter’s voice.

He smiles a bit inside. So she knows what I am? “What have you to do with the sheep behind you?”

As he had expected, there isn’t an immediate response to Torcion’s question. The Hunter probably wasn’t expecting it, clueing him in on the fact that this one didn’t grow up truly knowing what his kind considers humans. This might work in his favor.

“I am the shepherd of these sheep.” Ah, so she’s taking on the responsibility of the others? How expected of her.

“Then the shelter can spare a lamb. Or two.” He pauses, watching the human closely. “Or more.”

The Hunter tenses before quickly relaxing into the stand she was in before, the only indication that she was shocked by what he has said. Has she not heard of this happening before? Or maybe she had, but wasn’t expecting it to happen to her?

Even then, Torcion doesn’t glean much from her mind. It is completely blank, unusual for the majority of humans he had come across. There were a few, though, that he had met in passing, though there wasn't much of their humanity left in them when those meetings had happened.

“Not an option. You must look elsewhere, Magician.”

Ah, yes. The refusal. Not many would be daring enough to refuse, and little would survive long enough to refuse again or be swayed to let a few go. Most would have no hesitation in giving a Mage what he wants.

“You have no shield, no armor.” He states, staring at the Hunter in confusion. “And yet your mind is smooth.”

“So they say.” Soon comes a shrug as one of the Hunter’s hands moves to rest on the side of the nearest Hound, the one that has yet to leave her side. “Of a courtesy, please uncomber the way, Magician. I would take my sheep to their pasture.”

“You could… take them to mine.” Torcion suggests, and the surprise that he sees in the Hounds is telling enough. And, yet again, he senses nothing from the Hunter herself. “We have shepherds tending our flocks. You could be one, take season of me. Take me as your Lord and forsake the Lords of the city.”

Smiling a bit, he floats a smidge closer to the Hunter as he talks. “You would find a more pleasant life. I do assure you, your sheep would be tended. You could tend them yourself, if you wish. They will even prefer their new life.”

The Hunter practically snorts, her refusal obvious in the way she stands. “The Folk have no love for my kind. Why would you offer such a kind thing?”

He laughed at the comment, shaking his head. Though true for some, it isn’t for all. “You interest me, Hunter. You are not a sheep. You are more clever and patient than a wolf. You are braver than the lion. You are a new thing. You might prove to be a weapon in my hand. Or… something else.”

He leans down, meeting her eyes. “You are partially incorrect. Not all of my kind finds yours to be the enemy. And my kind do not find yours uncomely.” He straightened, eyes hardening a bit. “Properly groomed and garbed, of course. And your Hounds, they interest me too. They are new to me as well. What are they?”

“Oh, Zapotec.”

The word is one he doesn’t know, frowning as he tosses it around in his head. Then his focus turns back to the Hunter, noticing that her Hounds pile on and around her. It soon is revealed why when those missiles from before arch towards him, smacking his shield and causing it to cave inward. Eyes widening in surprise, he bamphs a second before his shield breaks.

This Hunter is interesting.

[book--brackets]

Young Wizards by Diana Duane (1983-2016)

Nita Callahan is at the end of her rope because of the bullies who've been hounding her at school... until she discovers a mysterious library book that promises her the chance to become a wizard. But she has no idea of the difference that taking the Wizard's Oath is going to make in her life. Shortly, in company with fellow beginner-wizard Kit Rodriguez, Nita's catapulted into what will be the adventure of a lifetime—if she and Kit can both live through it. For every wizard's career starts with an Ordeal in which he or she must challenge the one power in the universe that hates wizardry more than anything else: the Lone Power that invented death and turned it loose in the worlds. Plunged into a dark and deadly alternate New York full of the Lone One's creatures, Kit and Nita must venture into the very heart of darkness to find the stolen, legendary Book of Night with Moon. Only with the dangerous power of the wizardly Book do they have a chance to save not just their own lives, but their world...

Valdemar: The Last Herald-Mage by Mercedes Lackey (1989-1990)

Though Vanyel has been born with near-legendary abilities to work both Herald and Mage magic, he wasn't no part in such things. Nor does he seek a warrior's path, wishing instead to become a Bard.

Yet such talent as his, if left untrained, may prove a menace not only to Vanyel but to others as well. So he is sent to be fostered with his aunt, Savil, one of the fame Herald-Mages of Valdemar.

But, strong-willed and self-centered, Vanyel is a challenge which even Savil cannot master alone. For soon he will become the focus of frightening forces, lending his raw magic to a spell that unleashes terrifying wyr-hunters on the land.

And by the time Savil seeks the assistance of a Shin'a'in Adept, Vanyel's wild talent may have already grown beyond anyone's ability to contain, placing Vanyel, Savil, and Valdemar itself in desperate peril.

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi (2016-2018)

Fate and fortune. Power and passion. What does it take to be the queen of a kingdom when you're only seventeen?

Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of Death and Destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father's kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran's queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar's wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire...

But Akaran has its own secrets -- thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust? With the fate of the human and Otherworldly realms hanging in the balance, Maya must unravel an ancient mystery that spans reincarnated lives to save those she loves the most... including herself.

The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson (2008-2014)

Janner Igiby, his brother, Tink, and their disabled sister, Leeli, are gifted children as all children are, loved well by a noble mother and ex-pirate grandfather. But they will need all their gifts and all that they love to survive the evil pursuit of the venomous Fangs of Dang, who have crossed the dark sea to rule the land with malice. The Igibys hold the secret to the lost legend and jewels of good King Wingfeather of the Shining Isle of Anniera.

Myth Adventures by Robert Lyn Asprin (1978-2002)

Skeeve was a magician's apprentice--until an assassin struck and his master was killed. Now, with a purple-tongued demon named Aahz as a companion, he's on a quest to get even.

The Land of Elyon by Patrick Carman (2003-2008)

Alexa is curious about what lies beyond the massive ramparts that surround the city and the walled roads that link Bridewell to nearby towns; soon after town leader Thomas Warvold passes away, Alexa finds herself outside the walls, acquires a stone with remarkable powers, and discovers that she's meant to stop a potential war from occurring.

The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy (1974-2018)

Mildred Hubble is a trainee witch at Miss Cackle's Academy, and she's making an awful mess of it. She's always getting her spells wrong and she can't even ride a broomstick without crashing it. Will she ever make a real witch?

The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix (2020-2023)

In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met. Crime boss Frank Thringley might be able to help her, but Susan doesn't get time to ask Frank any questions before he is turned to dust by the prick of a silver hatpin in the hands of the outrageously attractive Merlin.

Merlin is a young left-handed bookseller (one of the fighting ones), who with the right-handed booksellers (the intellectual ones), are an extended family of magical beings who police the mythic and legendary Old World when it intrudes on the modern world, in addition to running several bookshops.

Susan's search for her father begins with her mother's possibly misremembered or misspelt surnames, a reading room ticket, and a silver cigarette case engraved with something that might be a coat of arms.

Merlin has a quest of his own, to find the Old World entity who used ordinary criminals to kill his mother. As he and his sister, the right-handed bookseller Vivien, tread in the path of a botched or covered-up police investigation from years past, they find this quest strangely overlaps with Susan's. Who or what was her father? Susan, Merlin, and Vivien must find out, as the Old World erupts dangerously into the New.

The Lighthouse Witches by C. J. Cooke (2021)

When single mother Liv is commissioned to paint a mural in a 100-year-old lighthouse on a remote Scottish island, it’s an opportunity to start over with her three daughters–Luna, Sapphire, and Clover. When two of her daughters go missing, she’s frantic. She learns that the cave beneath the lighthouse was once a prison for women accused of witchcraft. The locals warn her about wildlings, supernatural beings who mimic human children, created by witches for revenge. Liv is told wildlings are dangerous and must be killed.

Twenty-two years later, Luna has been searching for her missing sisters and mother. When she receives a call about her youngest sister, Clover, she’s initially ecstatic. Clover is the sister she remembers–except she’s still seven years old, the age she was when she vanished. Luna is worried Clover is a wildling. Luna has few memories of her time on the island, but she’ll have to return to find the truth of what happened to her family. But she doesn’t realize just how much the truth will change her.

Reckless by Cornelia Funke (2010-2020)

Jacob has uncovered the doorway to another world, hidden behind a mirror. It is a place of dark magic and enchanted objects, scheming dwarves and fearsome ogres, fairies born from water and men born from stone.Here, he hunts for treasure and seeks adventure in the company of Fox - a beautiful, shape-shifting girl, who guides and guards him.But now Jacob's younger brother has followed him into the mirrored world, and all that was freedom has turned to fear. Because a deadly curse has been spoken; and Jacob must risk his life to reverse it, before his brother is turned to stone forever...

[showdown-of-the-undead]

Vampire Character Showdown Roster

First Bracket:

Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way (My Immortal)

Trencil Varnnia (Smile for me)

Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Grimm-Pitch (Carry On)

Dracula (Dracula (Bram Stoker))

Colin Robinson (What We Do In The Shadows)

Armand (Interview with a Vampire)

Count Chocula (Kelloggs)

Noé Archiviste (The Case Study of Vanitas)

Vamdemon (Digimon)

Dio Brando (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventures)

Elsie (Fangs)

Jeanne (The Case Study of Vanitas)

Silas (The Graveyard Book)

Kanaya Maryam (Homestuck)

Marceline (Adventure Time)

Vanfeny Vamp (Inazuma Eleven)

Kevin Wettsworth (Hunter: The Parenting)

Bunnicula (Bunnicula)

Pyotr (Hunter: The Parenting)

Draculaura (Monster High)

Count von Count (Sesame Street)

Kid Vampire (Kid Vampire (Mummy Joe))

Count Papa (Kid Vampire (Mummy Joe))

Lady Dimitrescu (Resident Evil Village)

Count Orlok (Nosferatu)

Carmilla (Carmilla (Novel))

NOS-4-A2 (Buzz Lightyear of Star Command)

Dracula (My Dad Is Dracula)

Edward Hart (Tokyo Debunker)

Oz (Morgana and Oz)

Astarion (Baldur’s Gate 3)

Spike aka William the Bloody (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

Second Bracket:

Nadja of Antipaxos (What We Do In The Shadows)

Baron Von Ghoulish (The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy)

Andre Le Brel (Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey)

Dracula (Castlevania)

Alucard (Hellsing)

Louis du pointe du lac (Interview with a Vampire)

Matthew Clairmont (All Souls / A Discovery of Witches)

Philippe de Clairmont (All Souls / A Discovery of Witches)

Vampirina Hauntly (Vampirina)

Juliet Van Heusen (Wizards of Waverly Place)

Vamp (Metal Gear Solid)

Damon Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries)

Bree Tanner (The Twilight Saga)

Niklaus Michaelson (The Vampire Diaries)

Rosalie Hale (The Twilight Saga)

James (Nightworld)

Mick St John (Moonlight)

Josef Kostan (Moonlight)

Henry Sturges (Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter)

Shido Tatsuhiko (Nightwalker: The Midnight Detective)

Purgatori (Comic book character)

Mavis (Hotel Transylvania)

Dracula (Hotel Transylvania)

Countess Marya Zaleska (Dracula’s Daughter (1936))

Eric Northman (True Blood)

Pamela Swynford de Beaufort (True Blood)

Shivers (The Umbrella Academy (Issue: You Look Like Death))

Camula (Yu-Gi-Oh GX)

Shalltear Bloodfallen (Overlord)

Chizuru Kirishiki (Shiki)

Sunako Kirishiki (Shiki)

Olivia Voldaren (Magic the Gathering)

[coeluvr]

Here's a list I decided to make at presicely 2:06 am about songs that describe my MC (Rika) in different routes because I'm desperate for more coaaf content.

"I'm Just Ken" (Ryan Gosling) - Rika when Hunter

"I'm still standing" (Elton John) - 'Rika that went to therapy' when Luceris

"Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" (Set It Off) - 'Rika that said "Fuck you" to therapy' when Luceris

"Battle Dawn" (Mercedes Lackey) - 'Rika that said "May the act of intercourse strike upon thee" to therapy' when Luceris

"Bad Romance" (Lady Gaga) - Rika when Soarine

"Daisy Bell" (Harry Dacre) or "Until I Found You"  (Stephen Sanchez) - Rika when Fadiya

"The Fox's Wedding" (-MASA Works DESIGN-) - 'Rika that said "Fuck you" to therapy' when Helios

"Love Story" (Taylor Swift) Rika and Helios in the AU where everyone's happy and nobody dies and the biggest obstacle they face is Luceris being the evil Mother-in-law in every Indian soap opera that I was forced to sit through as a kid thanks to my mom.

"Red Flags" (Tom Cardy ft. Montaigne) - Rika when Helios but it's 3 am and I'm dying inside. 

"Mixed Messages" (Tom Cardy) - Rika when Helios and Luceris but specifically the part where the guy punches her girlfriend's dad's dick and it's once again 3 am and I'm once again dying inside.

"Regret Message" (Mothy) - Rika when Alistair (Haha get it cuz they're twi-)

Rika when Vincent doesn't exist, he's just a lil hallucination she has sometimes haha.

Help the songs with the ROs are so funny 😭😭 "I'm just Ken" and "Red Flags" fit some of the dynamics with those ROs so well, I thought of that one with Helios too! Soarine is the waiter, I know it in my heart.

[tearlessrain]

Tagged by @dingoat (thanks!!)

3 ships

okay so this is going to be 100% ocs but right now

My Sith Warrior Kalarros and @darth-bagel's smuggler/crimelord Sylvas. look it's basically just canon at this point, I love these two, I love their relationship. it could be argued that it's not really romantic, they're both married to other people and have a few other relationships (all consensually to be clear, they're not having an affair they're both very poly). Sylvas's husband was actually the one who originally set them up for some bdsm shenanigans (because honestly the only reason Kalarros isn't a pro dom is it's never occurred to him to charge for it, and said husband is also a Sith who'd considered Kalarros a friend for years prior to that and trusted him to look after Sylvas and treat them well) and they clicked spectacularly and developed a strong bond over the years. At this point they're so entwined with each other's stories that I've pretty much abandoned my original canon for Kalarros because it's just vastly improved with Sylvas in it lol. they've stuck by each other through some rough times on both sides and consider each other much more than casual play partners by now.

Khatte and another of Bagel's ocs, their bounty hunter Liz. honestly these two are just a lot of fun and kind of happened by accident, we had minimal involvement in this they just decided to develop a mutual crush and now Khatte has firmly entered his femdom era. it honestly wouldn't have worked pre Alliance era, Liz has zero tolerance for his bullshit and Khatte is significantly better at keeping his bullshit in check with some legitimate therapy under his belt. It's fairly casual but probably one of the healthiest relationships he's ever had just because he knows she won't settle for less and he likes her enough to meet those standards. what can I say, Khatte's type is people who could kill him and Liz's type (at least when it comes to men) is "extremely competent but also kind of pathetic" so of course they saw each other and instantly had to fuck.

taking an abrupt turn from SWTOR into BG3, my Durge (or half of my Durge) Ryldimar and @elaphaemourra's Tav Dragonfly. listen I did not particularly even like Durge as a concept until these two happened. [SPOILERS REDACTED I FUCKED UP SOME PEOPLE I TAGGED HAVEN'T PLAYED DURGE YET]

First Ship

I'm honestly not sure? technically this might also be ocs, because I was writing original fiction before I ever got into fandom spaces and even then I've never really actively shipped canon characters from other media that much (I passively ship a lot of things but I don't get that invested yknow?). so it's probably Talon and Iadra, my gryphons from a fantasy thing I started writing in high school and have been continuously developing for the last fifteen years or so. Talon is actually half gryphon, in this world gryphons are shapeshifters and are capable of both assuming a humanoid form and interbreeding with that planet's closest human analog (and also humans, theoretically, though I'm unclear on whether any of them have gotten to earth and tested that, the worldbuilding kind of got away from me and it's a beautiful mess now). gryphons bond for life the way a lot of predatory birds do and these two are completely devoted to each other, and also they have the fun aesthetic element of Talon being about 1/3 Iadra's size when she's in gryphonic form (due to an Incident™, he lost one of his wings years ago and it caused him to be stuck between forms, so he mainly looks like a slightly feathery Guy with a singular wing. about what you'd expect of an oc I made in high school but I love him okay).

Last Song

uuuh the Ken Theriot cover of The Witch of the Westmereland I think.

Currently Reading

honestly I have not been doing a lot of reading lately (been meaning to get back to it but yknow) but I'm in the middle of The Black Gryphon by Mercedes Lackey

Last Film

OG Star Wars, couple days ago my internet went out and that was one of three movies I happen to have on my hard drive (take a wild guess what the other two are)

Currently Craving

Salmon chirashi. I literally always want any iteration of raw salmon combined with sushi rice. fortunately I'm refilling my meds in a few days (to be clear the meds are unrelated to my love of salmon, there just happens to be a really good sushi place within a block of my pharmacy so I get chirashi whenever I need to pick something up)

tagging (only if you want to!): @elvhenyoung, @elaphaemourra, @mercurypilgrim, @darkshadeless, @vampiraptor, @reucrion, @artpigeons, @chaoticspacefam

[dayscapism]

Read this instead of Harry Potter - part 3/ 3:

Young Adult (YA) recommendations under the cut:

Part 1 - Adult books

Part 2 - Middle grade/children's books

Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar trilogy) by Mercedes Lackey (high fantasy): There's actually multiple series in the same world. In this trilogy we follow Talia, a young girl who lives in a small community that misteats her. She doesnt know any different, this is the only life and people shes ever known, but then is chosen whisked away by a mystical horse and taken to a school to become a trainee Herald, destined to become one of the Queen's own elite guard. For Talia has certain talents of the mind only her horse companion can sense. Here, as she works to master her abilities, she also begins to learn to trust for the first time in her life, connect with other people, and understanding her trauma. Meanwhile, conspiracy and trason is brewing in the realm, and only the Heralds can help protect it from its enemies.... This first book is very heartwarming and classic fantasy. In the sequels we follow her as she gets older and the sacrifices and darker, heavier moments that come with that. Honestly thos one sounds like the same brief for the main character as HP. Lackey has great LGBTQ+ representation too.

★ Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson (novel + novella): About a warrior-librarian who finds herself entangled in an evil plot in a world where magic books, called grimoires, have sentience and can turn into monsters if they're not properly taken care of. These grimoires are created by magicians whose magic comes from demons linked to their old-blood families, and these magicians' houses are full of magical artefacts, strange curses, hidden rooms magically folded up between walls and sentient gardens, all very reminiscent of Hogwarts' ever-shifting magical corridors.

★ Lockwood & Co. by Jonathan Stroud (series, British): Teenage ghost-hunters, magic bureaucracy, dark vibes, historical artefacts, death discussions, found family, haunted houses, suspense, and more.

The Nature of Witches by Rachel Griffin (standalone): In this world, witches maintain the climate, but when this control starts faltering, a witch with rare magic, connected to every season is the only hope.

To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo (duology): Mermaids! For Goblet of Fire fans.

Raybearer by Jordan Ifuenko (duology): Tarisai was raised in isolation by a mysterious, absent mother until one day she sends her to the capital, to be chosen as one of the crown prince's council and kill him. This is a story about friendship and the love and warmth of family.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas: Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him. This story is about a Latino, trans young wizard, who battles with his family accepting his gender.

★ Legenborn by Tracy Deonn (trilogy): Arthurian retelling with a black protagonist who enters a secret society in her university to solve the mystery of her mother's death but she finds it more full of magic and secrets than she expected. Secrets that might even tie to her own heritage and bloodline...

The Diviners by Libba Bray (quartet, paranormal, mystery, horror): It's set in 1929 New York, the protagonist, Evie, comes to the city to live with her uncle, who has an unhealthy obsession with the occult and she worries he will discover her greatest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought problems so far. When a girl is murdered and branded with a cryptic symbol, she realizes her power might help solve the murder. Great alternative to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman (trilogy, sci-fi dystopian): This has themes about death and mortality/immortality. Set in a world where humanity has conquered hunger, disease, war and misery, now a group of select people called scythes are tasked with ending life to keep the population size under control. We follow two apprentices to such a vital profession, a role that neither wants.

This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab (duology): In a city overrun by monsters created out of acts of violence, there's no such thing as "safe", a young woman and a young man on opposite sides of the divided city, must decide if they will become enemies or friends, heroes or villains and what means to be one. (I mean if that premise is not the analogue to a Horocrux or werewolves idk what is.) I also recommend City of Ghosts by this author (set in Edinburgh, where the protagonist's parents host a TV show about haunted places. But the protagonist can enter this world of spirits ever since she almost--or did drown.)

The Little Witch by M. Rickert (short story): Every Halloween an elderly woman hands out candy to a young trick-or-treater girl who's always dressed as a witch and looks the same age every year. She grows more and more curious and attached to her and her oddness.

One Dark Window by Rachel Gilling (duology): To stay safe in her eerie, mist-locked kingdom, Elspeth needs a monster. One day she meets a mysterious highwayman on the forest road, and her life takes a drastic turn, thrusting her into a world of shadow and deception. Together with the highwayman, they must gather a set of magical cards that are keys to cure the kingdom from the dark magic infecting it. But Elspeth is forced to face a dark magic taking over her own mind. This sounds great for people who liked the horrocruxes as a magic device, who like exploring evilness corrupting a character from the inside out, and for fans of the dark forest in Hogwarts.

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco (series): Set in London in the 1880s, we follow Audrey Rose Wadsworth, born a lord's daughter, who yearns for more than social tea parties and dress fittings. She has a secret life working in her uncle's laboratory, studying the gruesome and fascinating practice of forensic medicine. Then a string of savagely killed corpses begin appearing... Deliciously creepy horror novel inspired by the Ripper murders.

School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani and illustrator Iacopo Bruno (series): This year, best friends Sophie and Agatha are about to discover where all the lost children go: the fabled School for Good & Evil, where ordinary boys and girls are trained to be fairy tale heroes and villains. As the most beautiful girl in Gavaldon, Sophie has dreamed of pink dresses, glass slippers, and devotion to good deeds all her life, she knows she’ll earn top marks at the School for Good and graduate a storybook princess. Meanwhile Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks, wicked pet cat, and dislike of nearly everyone, seems a natural fit for the School for Evil. But when the two girls are swept into schools, they find their fortunes reversed... Is this really a mistake? Or is it a clue to discovering who they really are?

Into the Labirynth by Jown Bierce (series): Hugh is the worst student the Academy of Skyhold has ever seen. He can barely cast any spells without them failing explosively. He is an outcast in the school, and he definitely doesn't expect a mage to choose him as an apprentice, but when a very unusual mage does, his life starts taking a sharp turn for the better. Though, he still has to get ready for his final test in the labyrinth below the school.

Fireborn by Rosaria Munda (trilogy): post-revolution/overthrowing the government plot, with dragon riders and maybe a child of the old regime survived... This is perfect if you were unsatisfied by the infamous HP7 epilogue.

Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch by Julie Abe (duology + prequel): Eva Evergreen is determined to earn the rank of Novice Witch before her thirteenth birthday. If she doesn't, she'll lose her magic forever. For most young witches and wizards, it's a simple enough test, but Eva has only a pinch of magic and always gets the spells backwards. But she comes up with a plan: set up a semi-magical repair shop to help her town and prove she's worthy. But the biggest magical storm in history threatens the town. Will her little bit of magic be enough? If you wanted justice for the squibs in HP!

The Magician's Guild by Trudi Canavan (trilogy, adventure, epic fantasy): Every year, the magicians gather to purge the city of undesirables. Cloaked in the protection of their sorcery, they move with no fear, until one angry girl hurls a stone at them; there is someone outside their ranks who possesses raw magical power. She must be found and schooled before she destroys herself and her city with the power she can't control.

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger and illustrated by Rovina Cai (standalone, mystery, magical realism, LGBTQ+): Set in an alternate USA with magic, monsters and legends. Elatsoe, an indigenous girl, can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed by generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered and she will protect her family and unveil the secrets of this town.

★Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (YA, series): A magic school but for vampires instead of witches. Still has magic in it, with the dark vibe that goes with vampires. It's a trashy teen vampire series in the best way, tbh. Great to pass the time.

Graphic novel recommendations:

Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama

Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol

⚠️The following books are often recommended too, but some or their authors are problematic, so tread with caution: ⚠️

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: Has racist Asian stereotyping/jokes in the third book of the series. The author has some problematic behavior on Twitter but I don't know the details.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: Asian racist stereotypes of the character Park. Carry On/Fangirl could be options, I suppose.

Scholomance series by Naomi Novik: The first book, A Deathly Education, had damaging racist passages and stereotypes of black people's hair. The book was later reprinted to fix the issue.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: This author is staunchly homophobic.

Skyward & Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson: This author is a Mormon. By this religion's rules, they have to donate a percentage (aka tithing) of their net earnings to the church (around 10%), and the Mormon Church actively funds anti-LGBTQ+ initiatives. Sanderson has been asked before about this, but he hasn't given a clear answer on his contributions. He is presumably paying the tithes, though he will tell you he is pro-gays if you ask him. His books also have heavy religious preaching and his world-building is often very cis/hetero-normative. He is doing great work fighting against Amazon's book monopoly though, using his popularity and power for good, which is great. (I have read his books before but nowadays I would rather read other authors and I will never BUY any of his books.)

Happy reading!

★ Books I've read and personally recommend.

Supporting Sources:

https://www.aspiraldance.com/middle-grade-and-young-adult-books-to-read-instead-of-harry-potter/

https://missprint.wordpress.com/2022/09/01/back-to-magic-school-harry-potter-alternatives-booklist/

Goodreads for synopses.

[olderthannetfic]

okay but the funniest joke about RWRB will always be that it's Prince Harry x Hunter Biden RPF. but I truly think it's just that the author has a very fanfic style of writing, not that she filed any serial numbers off. like she cleary has written a lot of fanfic, but I don't know that that story was ever a fic.

--

She has said it wasn't, and I'm inclined to believe her.

"Fic style" is a thing, but it's not completely unique to fic. We just call it that because fic is where we encounter it most. Old Mercedes Lackey novels sound like this too. So does plenty of other genre fiction to one degree or another.

If one thinks an author has fic influence, one is typically right, but it's much harder to say whether the actual text of the book started as fic.

[starlit-hopes-and-dreams]

Seven Silly Questions Tag

I am suffering the consequences of @i-can-even-burn-salad's lack of sleep and playing this lovely new tag game with lovely new questions I haven't answered a thousand times already. Thank you, Elli 💜

And I'm gonna no pressure tag these peeps in return: @outpost51, @little-peril-stories, @clairelsonao3, @crowandmoonwriting, @sarandipitywrites, @oh-no-another-idea, and Open Tag if you wanna jump on board :D

First messaging app: aol instant messenger/AIM babyyyy. and god, does that make me feel fucking old XD

Pickles yes or no: Yes :D but normal pickles, not the bread and butter ones. i mean, i can tolerate those on a sandwich or smth, but fucking pickles aren't supposed to be sweet. c'mon.

Favorite mythical creature: Dragons, my beloved.

Longest book series you've read: If you count a series that contains multiple trilogies and stuff in the same world across different timelines, the Heralds of Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey has north of 40 books and I've read 32 of them. If not, please don't make me count the Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward with 18 books read out of 21, or the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon with 18 read out of 22, please don't😅

Playstation, xbox, or nintendo controller layout: I'm gonna have to go with xbox, just bc its what i'm used to now and using smth else is just weird. But I did grow up with and went through all the nintendo layouts, so they hold a special place in my heart lol

Best time to get out of bed: i guess that depends on what time i got in it in the first place lol. gonna go with around 10 am. by that time i've been awake for a couple hours (i seem to have an internal alarm for around 7 or 8 am these days >.>) and my back is starting to hurt and i've left my kids unattended for some time 😬 (assuming weekend here, when i can actually choose when i want to get up, yk)

Did you ever have a tamagotchi: hell yeah!! and i went on a search and find but i don't have it anymore :(( i loved that thing

Template under the cut

First messaging app:

Pickles yes or no:

Favorite mythical creature:

Longest book series you've read:

Playstation, xbox, or nintendo controller layout:

Best time to get out of bed:

Did you ever have a tamagotchi:

[unkipt]

I got bored again, gonna be asking questions I found on Google.

What was the first book that you couldn't put down? How did it effect you as a person? Would you still read it today?

i love questions

unfortunately i don't remember the answer to this one lmao, i read a lot of books as a kid, many of which i would claim were my favourite until i picked up the next one. i do remember being obsessed with a series called (i think) the cupcake club, or something, and i got really into the dear america/dear canada books in like, middle school, which really should've been when i knew i was a history nerd lol. a series that remains a favourite to this day though is the hunter trilogy by mercedes lackey, i remember that being a series i read and continued to call my favourite for a good while, so probably that one

it's a very heavily world built sci fi fantasy series, which i think only spurred to further make that my favourite genre, and probably affected how i world build a little, but i couldn't say for certain tbh

i reread it a few years ago and it definitely isn't as good as middle school me thought it was, but it's still very enjoyable to me

[kattra]

What I’m Reading

BOOKS OF OCTOBER How to Fake It in Hollywood by Ava Wilder You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron  Rabbits by Terry Miles  Elementary: All-New Tales of the Elemental Masters edited by Mercedes Lackey (SS) The Wizard Killer: Season 1 by Adam Dreece  One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston **

Graphic Novels: Spy x Family Vol.9-10 by Tatsuya Endo Sorry For My Familiar Vol.4-7 by Tekka Yaguraba 

(128 books read / 125 books goal)

currently reading:  Other Terrors: An Inclusive Anthology edited by Vince A. Liaguno & Rena Mason (SS) Dunce by Mary Ruefle (P) Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology edited by Shane Hawk & Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. (SS) Pop Song: Adventures in Art & Intimacy by Larissa Pham (NF) The Wizard Killer: Season Two by Adam Dreece  Idlewild by Nick Sagan  Discount Armageddon by Seanan McGuire  Piranesi by Susanna Clarke 

* - re-read // ** - 4+ star-rating (recommended) GN - graphic novel // NF - non-fiction // P - poetry SS - short story collection // AB - audiobook 

TBR: Gallant by V.E. Schwab  The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson  Hour of the Crab by Patricia Robertson (SS) Sunburn by Andi Watson (GN) Brindille and the Shadow Hunters by Frédéric Brrémaud & Federico Bertolucci (GN) Lore Olympus Vol.1 by Rachel Smythe (GN)

WHAT ARE YOU READING? :D

Find me on: GOODREADS | THE STORYGRAPH

[runes-menagerie]

alias / name: Rune short for Runecaster

birthday: Feb 14th

zodiac sign: Aquarius

height: 5'9"

hobbies: writing, gaming, drawing, crochet, knitting, custom doll making

favorite color: dark purple

favorite book: Song of the Lioness trilogy by Tamora Pierce

last song: "Answers" aka the main theme of Final Fantasy XIV: Realm Reborn

last film / show: Ghost Hunters

recent reads: Mostly Helluva Boss or Baldur's Gate 3 fanfiction

inspiration: 90's anime and manga, Xena, multiple music genres, mythology, Marvel and DC comics to an extent, supernatural romance novels but especially those by Tamora Pierce or Mercedes Lackey, video games, psychology.

story behind url: This is my first multimuse blog and I've used the alias Rune for a while. I also had no idea what sorts of characters I was going to end up with on here so the menagerie part seemed appropriate.

fun fact about me: I have an eye condition where I only see through one eye at a time. The eye I'm not focusing through is usually off in the corner but it can still be hard to tell where I'm looking at any given moment. Side note: It's the same condition I gave Sky in one of my head canons.

tagged by :: @zaunseye

tagging :: @jynxd

[book--brackets]

Once & Future by Kieron Gillan (2019-2022)

When a group of Nationalists use an ancient artifact to bring a villain from Arthurian myth back from the dead to gain power, ex-monster hunter Bridgette McGuire escapes her retirement home and pulls her unsuspecting grandson Duncan, a museum curator, into a world of magic and mysticism to defeat a legendary threat.

Ashtown Burials by N. D. Wilson (2011-2013)

For two years, Cyrus and Antigone Smith have run a sagging roadside motel with their older brother, Daniel. Nothing ever seems to happen. Then a strange old man with bone tattoos arrives, demanding a specific room. 

Less than 24 hours later, the old man is dead. The motel has burned, and Daniel is missing. And Cyrus and Antigone are kneeling in a crowded hall, swearing an oath to an order of explorers who have long served as caretakers of the world's secrets, keepers of powerful relics from lost civilizations, and jailers to unkillable criminals who have terrorized the world for millennia.

Zachary Ying by Xiran Jay Zhao (2022)

12-year-old Zack never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open. 

The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers. 

And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.

Lady Sally's by Spider Robinson (1989-1992)

Wife of time traveling bartender Mike Callahan, and employer of some of the most unusual and talented performing artists ever to work in the field of hedonic interface, Her Ladyship has designed her House to be an "equal opportunity enjoyer," discreetly, tastefully and joyfully catering to all erotic tastes and fantasies, however unusual. Like her famous husband, Lady Sally doesn't even insist that her customers be "human."..as long as they have good manners.

Small wonder, then, that she and her staff encounter beings as unique and memorable as the superhuman Colt, whose banner never, ever flags...Diana, the deadly dominatrix who "cannot" be disobeyed...Tony Donuts, the moronic man-monster even the Mafia doesn't want to mess with...or Charles, the werewolf with a distinct difference...

Thomas the Rhymer by Ellen Kushner (1990)

A minstrel lives by his words, his tunes, and sometimes by his lies. But when the bold and gifted young Thomas the Rhymer awakens the desire of the powerful Queen of Elfland, he finds that words are not enough to keep him from his fate. As the Queen sweeps him far from the people he has known and loved into her realm of magic, opulence--and captivity--he learns at last what it is to be truly human. When he returns to his home with the Queen's parting gift, his great task will be to seek out the girl he loved and wronged, and offer her at last the tongue that cannot lie.

Teeth by Hannah Moskowitz (2013)

Be careful what you believe in.Rudy's life is flipped upside-down when his family moves to a remote island in a last attempt to save his sick younger brother. With nothing to do but worry, Rudy sinks deeper and deeper into loneliness and lies awake at night listening to the screams of the ocean beneath his family's rickety house.Then he meets Diana, who makes him wonder what he even knows about love, and Teeth, who makes him question what he knows about anything. Rudy can't remember the last time he felt so connected to someone, but being friends with Teeth is more than a little bit complicated. He soon learns that Teeth has terrible secrets. Violent secrets. Secrets that will force Rudy to choose between his own happiness and his brother's life.

SERRAted Edge by Mercedes Lackey (1992-2020)

Seeking to make their fortunes in human society, the elves of the underworld involve themselves in stock car racing, child pornography, and worse, and three runaway kids find themselves in a heap of trouble.

The Summer Dragon by Todd Lockwood (2016)

Maia and her family raise dragons for the political war machine. As she comes of age, she hopes for a dragon of her own to add to the stable of breeding parents. But the war goes badly, and the needs of the Dragonry dash her hopes. Her peaceful life is shattered when the Summer Dragon—one of the rare and mythical High Dragons—makes an appearance in her quiet valley. The Summer Dragon is an omen of change, but no one knows for certain what kind of change he augurs. Political factions vie to control the implied message, each to further their own agendas.

And so Maia is swept into an adventure that pits her against the deathless Horrors—thralls of the enemy—and a faceless creature drawn from her fears. In her fight to preserve everything she knows and loves, she uncovers secrets that challenge her understanding of her world and of herself.

Klaus by Grant Morrison (2016-2019)

Set in a dark fantastic past of myth and magic, Klaus tells the origin story of Santa Claus. It's the tale of one man and his wolf against a totalitarian state and the ancient evil that sustains it. 

Birthright by Joshua Williamson (2014-2021)

For the Rhodes family, losing their son was the most devastating thing that could have occurred...but it couldn't prepare them for what happened when he returned.

[kamari3]

tagged by @starsgivemehp

Last Song: something i composed myself

Currently Watching: the anime Didn't I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life? (on crunchyroll)

Currently Reading: The Mage Wings trilogy (part of the Heralds of Valdemar series) by Mercedes Lackey

Current Obsession: writing undertale/utmv fanfic (going strong since 2017)

also Pikmin; The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom; Monster Hunter

Tagging: @deku-lily @h2oblooky @silverryu25

[ainyan]

I was tagged by @mxkelsifer.

Here’s a little about me:

3 ships: Wolcred, Shenko, and F!Agent x Theron Shan

First ship: Man. That sailed a long time ago. Bad pun is bad, but I'd have to say my first non-Canon ship (IE, non-BioWare ship) would have to be my F! Nelf Hunter x Vol'jin. Hush. I really liked him.

Currently consuming: Diet Dr. Pepper and Sweettarts. Shh. It's moderately healthy. Diet! ;)

Currently watching: Nothing. >.> It takes a lot to get me to watch any movie/tv show/anime, and nothing has been able to drag me out of my office and onto the couch in a while.

Last movie: Spiderman: No Way Home

Last song: "In the Balance" - FFXIV Endwalker 6.1 Soundtrack (I listen to FFXIV music in my classroom)

Currently reading: Winnowing my way through the Five Hundred Kingdoms series by Mercedes Lackey yet again. I suppose I should go browsing for new books sometime.

Currently craving: [Redacted] (Come on, y'all all know what I thirst for most in this world.)

Tagging: @aeriefel, @eorzeashan, @thelealinhypehouse, @thefrostflower, @actualanxiousswampwitch, @briar-ffxiv, @violet-stormbringer, and anyone else who wants to join in!

[balaenopteraricei]

the second one appears in the hunter series by mercedes lackey

Random, but a really handy way to make things seem creepy or wrong in horror is to make them incongruously neat or clean:

In the middle of a horrific battlefield, you find one corpse laid aside neatly, straightened and arranged, its arms crossed neatly across its chest

As you walk through the garden, you gradually realise that the oddness you’ve been noticing about the trees is that they are all perfectly symmetrical

As you move through the abandoned house, you realise that suddenly that there’s no dust in this room, no dirt or cobwebs

You hear hideous noises coming from behind a locked door, screams and pleas, and visceral sounds of violence. When you manage to break down the door, there is no one there, and the room is perfectly spotless

In the middle of a horrific battlefield, a hollow full of churned mud and blood, you find five corpses cleanly dismembered, each set of limbs or parts neatly laid out in their own little row

You witness a murder, a brutal, grisly killing that carpets the area in blood. When you return in a blind panic with the authorities, the scene is completely clean, and no amount of examination can find even a drop of blood

You run through the night and the woods with a comrade, pulling each other through leaves and twigs and mud as you scramble desperately towards freedom. When you finally emerge from the forest, in the grey light of dawn, you turn to your companion in relief, and notice that their clothes are somehow perfectly clean

You hand a glass of water to your suspect, talking casually the whole while, and watch with satisfaction as they take it in their bare hand and take a drink. There’ll be a decent set of prints to run from that later. Except there isn’t. There are no prints at all. As if nothing ever touched the glass

You browse idly through your host’s catalogue, and stop, and pay much more attention, when you realise that several items on a dry list of acquisitions are ones you’ve seen before, and it slowly dawns on you that each neat little object and number in this neat little book are things that belong (belonged?) to people you know

Neatness, particularly incongruous neatness, neatness where you expect violence or imperfection or abandonment, or neatness that you belatedly realise was hiding violence, or neatness that is imposed over violence, is incredibly scary. Because neatness is not a natural thing. Neatness requires some active force to have come through and made it so. Neatness implies that the world around you is being arranged, maybe to hide things, to disguise things, to make you doubt your senses, or else simply according to something else’s desires. Neatness is active and artificial. Neatness puts things, maybe even people, into neat little boxes according to something else’s ideals, and that’s terrifying as well. Being objectified. Being asked to fit categories that you’re not sure you can fit, and wondering what will happen to the bits of you that don’t.

Neatness, essentially, says that something else is here. Neatness where there should be chaos says that either something came and changed things, or that what you’re seeing now or what you saw then is not real. Neatness alongside violence says that something came through here for whom violence did not mean the same thing as it does to you.

Neatness, in the right context, in the right place, can be very, very scary

And fun

[melindakucsera]

10 Authors SFF Edition

I saw someone else do this. So here’s 10 authors I’ve read at least five books from SFF edition: Faith Hunter Jim Butcher BV Larson Larry Correia Jack Campbell Craig Schaefer Richard Kadrey Michael J. Sullivan Mercedes Lackey Anne McCaffrey If LOTR counts as more than one book then, JRR Tolkien’s on this list. 🙂 If not, then he just misses it by one book. 😦 Your turn. Which SFF…